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“Shintaro, I believe we need an intervention.”
Shintaro looks up from his phone. Takane (Ene. She hates it when he calls her by name) is not present, as she had gone out with his sister, Hiyori, and Ayano on a girl’s trip. He took the opportunity to enjoy the peace and quiet of the Mekakushi Dan base, as the rest of the guys are also missing from the living room--Kano and Hibiya are off doing their own things, Haruka is resting at home with the promise to visit for dinner, and Seto has work.
Kido had politely declined the invitations from the girls to join them, saying that she had her “own duties” (which turned out to be cleaning the kitchen), and now the leader of their friend group stood in front of him, arms crossed.
He raises his eyebrows at her. “Huh? What do you mean, Kido?”
“I mean, I opened the fridge to see if we were running low on ingredients, and I found not one, not two, but six large bottles of soda in the fridge,” Kido responds. “Now, I know that Kisaragi and Kokonose also enjoy their soda, but this was clearly you, yes?”
Shintaro straightens his back at that, his eyes locking with Kido’s. When he first met her, he would’ve instantly withered underneath that glare, gray eyes constantly threatening to pierce right through whoever their target was.
No matter what happened, she never lost that hard, determined look in her eyes, among other things. He can’t help it as the corners of his lips turn upward in a fond smile.
“What about this is funny to you, Shintaro?” Her voice isn’t nearly as accusatory as her words, and she raises a questioning eyebrow at him.
“Sorry, it’s nothing,” he replies. “I mean, you’re right. I bought those bottles.”
He leans back against the couch, smile turning sheepish. “Sorry, I guess I should’ve asked you for permission first.”
Her expression softens at that, and she shakes her head and takes a seat on the other, empty couch in the living room. One leg crosses over the other, and she relaxes back against the cushions.
“No, it’s fine. I just want to know why you made this stupid decision to begin with.”
“It’s not stupid!” The outburst surprises both of them, and they blink dumbly for a second before Shintaro flops back against the couch, his energy visibly deflating.
“Oh?” Kido’s amused now, though she tucks her chin into the collar of her red jacket to hide her smile. “You know, we can just keep them outside the fridge.”
“No, they’ll be lukewarm, then,” Shintaro counters easily.
“So, you expect to have a constant, steady supply of cold soda here… Then, I expect you to finish them before our next grocery store run, No. 7,” she murmurs, her eyes glinting. “Every member of the Dan has to take responsibility for their actions.”
“I-I probably can?” Shintaro stammers back, eyes widening slightly at her authoritative choice of words. “W-Wait, though, Seto helped me!”
“Seto helped you,” Kido repeats, raising an eyebrow.
“Did you really think I could carry all those bottles by myself?” Shintaro asks.
“I guess you make a fair point… But don’t try to deflect my question. Just, why did you buy six bottles, Shintaro.”
She huffs, undoubtedly wondering why their conversation is steering towards this ridiculous route.
“Ah, right, sorry,” Shintaro says. “Uh, well.. I was shopping with Kano and Seto yesterday, and there was a sale. Buy six bottles, get them for 50 yen each.”
He crosses his arms, his gaze turning solemn. “I couldn’t pass such an opportunity, Danchou.”
“Kano goaded you into it, didn’t he?”
“ Regardless , it was a good decision! No matter what, I can’t see any wrongs with it.”
Despite herself, Kido chuckles, and Shintaro relents with his own smile at the warmth in her laughter.
“Yeah, yeah, ignoring the fact that you took up an entire shelf of the fridge and that you’re really going to die slowly and painfully by drinking so much sugar every day. It’s a wonder you don’t have a bit of fat on you with your terrible diet.” Her eyes turn teasing. “I get that you’ve been here more than your own room lately, but this isn’t a place for you to hoard your favorite things. You’re like a little hamster.”
The comparison throws him off, and he exclaims lightly:
“A hamster ?”
“Hmm, maybe that’s not the best comparison, since Seto really seems to respect his hamster… A rat, then? Or a cute mouse?”
“ Danchou! ”
Shintaro’s still sputtering at her when they hear the faint sound of a door opening from the hallway. Both heads turn as a mountain of fluffy, white hair shuffles towards them.
A tiny voice peeps from the fluff, soft and bleary. “Shintaro? Kido?”
“Ah, Mary, good morning,” Shintaro greets, his expression immediately softening at the innocent sight before them. Mary sleepily pushes some hair away from her face, still in her nightgown.
“Good morning…”
“It’s well in the afternoon,” Kido corrects with a roll of her eyes. “Did you have a nice rest, Mary?”
She nods, blinking slowly as she looks around. “No one else is here?”
“Everyone else is out,” Shintaro confirms. “They didn’t want to disturb you while you were sleeping.”
“Are you hungry? I can make you some food,” Kido offers.
Mary contemplates for a moment, then shuffles back to the couch and takes a seat by Shintaro. “It’s okay. I’m not hungry yet.”
Kido and Shintaro exchange a glance at that, but they turn their attention back on Mary, who’s still waking up. She yawns and stretches both arms above her head before relaxing.
“What were you two talking about?” she asks. “It sounded like you two were fighting… You weren’t fighting, were you?” A small pout appears with her question.
“No, nothing like that,” Shintaro reassures her. “Kido was just, uh, interrogating me about my soda.”
“Soda?” Mary repeats, then nods. “That’s Shintaro’s favorite drink, right?”
“Yeah, and what he just stockpiled our fridge with,” Kido replies.
Mary blinks at that, and she looks up, placing a thoughtful fingertip on her chin.
“Mary?” Shintaro asks.
“Um… I was just thinking, I don’t think I’ve ever had soda before.”
Shintaro’s world stops. What? What? He’s horrified, and he doesn’t stop from letting it show on his face.
“Shi-Shintaro?” Mary asks, alarmed by his expression.
“Hold on…” he murmurs, holding out a finger to her and closing his eyes.
His memories open to him like a picture book, and Shintaro expertly rifles through the pages. Dozens and dozens-- endless timelines present themselves before him, scenario by scenario, and he grimaces as more than a couple not so pleasant memories appear, but he powers onward. And, in his search, he doesn’t find what he’s looking for.
“Mary,” he says as he opens his eyes, voice solemn. “I’m so sorry to have failed you this far.”
“Wh-What?” Mary stammers, while Kido’s concerned expression morphs into one of incredulousness before she slaps her palm against her forehead.
“Shintaro,” she groans, already knowing where this is going.
“I never introduced you--! This is unacceptable!” he exclaims, standing up. “Hold on, just wait right here--”
He’s gone, footsteps disappearing into the kitchen. Kido and Mary exchange a look.
“Did I say something wrong?” Mary asks timidly.
“No, not really,” Kido replies with a soft scoff, crossing her arms over her chest.
Shintaro reappears, one hand clutching onto the neck of an already perspiring soda bottle and a stack of three cups in the other hand. He sets both down on the coffee table, separating the cups before opening the soda bottle. The lid twists off with a satisfying hiss, and he pours the sweet, sweet ambrosia into the cups and takes two, holding them out to Kido and Mary.
“Here.”
“You’re not serious,” Kido replies, one eyebrows raised. “Mary just woke up.”
“I’ve never been more serious in my life,” Shintaro deadpans.
Mary doesn’t seem bothered, her eyes gleaming with interest as she takes the cup with both hands and stares at the surface of the liquid curiously. “I’ve never seen it in a cup before, since Shintaro always drinks it from those cans or small bottles, but, it’s bubbling!”
“It’s carbonation,” Shintaro explains. “Basically, uh, they found a way to put air inside of liquid, and then they made it sweet…”
A thought hits him. “You’re a bit more than a hundred years old, right, Mary? Well, soda was invented in the late 1800’s, so there’s a chance that it was invented before you were born.”
“Soda’s older than me?” Mary says in wonder. Shintaro nods with a smile, then turns his attention to the leader of the Mekakushi Dan, who hasn’t moved since said soda’s appearance.
“Kido,” he says, gesturing the cup in his hand to her.
“Shintaro,” she counters. “I don’t have a problem with your choice of drink, really, but your passion for it is sometimes concerning.”
“ Danchou ,” he presses with another small shake of the cup, and Kido thinks that he sounds just like his sister before relenting and taking the drink.
Satisfied, Shintaro takes the last cup and sits down by Mary.
“A toast, then. To Mary’s first soda.”
He holds out his cup, eyes betraying his excitement. Mary’s confused, and Kido’s amused, and the three tap the brims of their cups together before enjoying.
Kido takes a sip and immediately makes a face at how sweet it is. Mary’s much more tentative, her eyes widening with surprise as the bubbles go down her throat. And Shintaro, of course, just gulps down more than half his cup before setting it down and letting out a deep sigh, as if he just let go of all of the problems in the world.
“Wow! It’s good!” Mary exclaims, a few locks of hair wiggling.
Shintaro’s wide grin is genuine as he says, “I know, right?”
Kido opens her mouth to say something, probably to Mary about how unhealthy it is to love a drink like this, but the words die in her throat as Shintaro begins a rant on why soda is just the best drink in the world. His eyes are wide and sparkling while Mary listens intently, sipping between her enthusiastic nods.
“Shintaro really likes soda, huh?” Mary asks.
“I love soda,” Shintaro confirms.
Kido doesn’t think she’s ever seen him this happy before, and she reflects, with another sip of the sickenly sweet drink and a smile, that soda is not so bad.