#KIRA KIRA POOMF!! FUWAAAA

[flovverworks]

' oi, ' a hand reaches out and in an instant yan qing's grasped a soft, squishy amount of the other's cheek. he pulls and pinches at it, not too roughly, just enough to make most whine, he would think. ' do you know your face always does that? that --- sparkling thing. ' kira-kira! poomf! fuwa~! there didn't seem to be anything that akira didn't gaze at with a zealous admiration. how could anybody live like that? so raw, so vulnerable? shouldn't the other's wonder have run out some time long ago? shouldn't it have been crushed? not by yan qing, but the mere state of things: a ruthless world. the likes of which had utterly destroyed the soul of the ghost loitering beside his flowering, baby-blues-and-daisies company. such was nothing to loathe. akira was not someone that he could hate. and yet, that meant that more than anything, yan qing was left with worry. ' if you look so innocent all the time... i can't tell if you're going to end up attracting people who'll want to protect you, or evil spirits. ' ones like me, yan qing thinks.

" Ow, ow, ow, ow " exclaimed not in pain, but surprise. Wasn't that rather sudden…?! Hadn't they just been showing Yan Qing the flowers blooming in the flowerbed, a group of the neighborhood elders had worked really hard on those, surely something like that didn't warrant violence?! And yet, before Akira can get a word of complaint in, he mentions something about their face and…

Frankly? Akira has no idea what he's talking about.

" Um… " so it's there, furrowed eyebrows and concerned gaze, taking his words seriously despite it. Should they be worried? Yan Qing seemed worried. As such, there's a moment where it feels like their heart beats louder, remnant traces of times when they had been in danger. If they were to say their immediate feelings they'd deny both things. Akira was just normal, everyday Akira. They woke up, went to work, admired cats, read a book, and went to sleep. There wasn't much to be protected over even if they met people who'd want to do that. Well, meeting people who were a bit too insistent was still a struggle, but even that they could handle by themself. As for evil spirits…

….

" … " a hand that meets his to free their poor cheek, except that rather than lightly touching they hold onto it, even after. Had he asked them two years ago they might've worried and asked for protective measures, but now…? Cheeks tinted pink and gaze that falters to the side, he had just told them they looked too innocent and what they were about to say definitely wouldn't help their case. Akira had heard stories for fun, for warning, of course they had, but those were stories, and even ones that were told to be true had the chance things were lost in time. They knew the correct feeling in regards to this was 'oh no, that'd be terrible'.

" What if they're not evil. "

So why was it that they took it personally.

" What if they just want to be asked about their story ", to be understood. To be listened to. Maybe in the future they'll think differently again, maybe they'll somehow meet such an evil spirit and change their mind. As for today, their voice carries more confidently than they thought it would in this place. At least, for a little bit. " S-sorry, that's not what you… That sounded really childish… "