2026-01-21: Under Pressure
- Log: Under Pressure
- Cast: Tsubasa Seki, Ichika Kawase
- Where: Kasugayama Girls' Dorm, Hirasaka
- OOC Date: 2026-01-21
- IC Date: Thu Sep 13 2012
- Summary: Tsubasa sneaks into Ichika's dorm, to hear about her efforts to start up a school newspaper for Kasugayama. But when she asks how they've been going, they share the fears they have over being just like their father, following their fight with Hyousuke yesterday. But Ichika sees the way they're being paranoid about themself, now, even if they can't see that; she believes in them, even if they don't. Ichika, too, is struggling with negative feelings after the confrontation, struggling with the pressure of saving Hyousuke from himself. Realising that this problem is greater than teenagers can solve, do they need the help of a proper adult to intervene?
<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.
Good news for Tsubasa: with their binder and manner of dress, they officially need to sneak into the girl's dorms. They've already walked Lance this afternoon, which means they've changed out of their school uniform, but their checkered tank top and bright red cargo pants are the opposite of feminine. Today's wig is cyan and pink, like some sort of fairy floss assault on everyone's eyes. Their nails are painted, too, in cyan and white -- they let Ichika do them up while she was doing hers, so it matches their cyan and white makeup.
(What? Makeup is for girls? No it isn't. This is clearly x-gender makeup, it's on Tsubasa.)
Sadly, because they're sneaking into her dorm, they had to leave Lance behind... if it's hard to sneak a guy as visually loud as Tsubasa in, it's ten times harder to sneak a dog who loves all humans in with them.
"New poster?" Tsubasa asks, as they slip inside.
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
Luckily, because they get little oversight and most of the girls aren't SNITCHES, this involves walking Tsubasa in through the back door and up the stairs, rather than trying to go through the (barred) windows. And by contrast--Ichika's very feminine today, in a short skirt and layered tanktop set, with boots that are currently by the door, because she's inn her room already. Ichika did her own nails while she was at it--green and magenta, this time--and now...
Ichika left her door unlocked, of course; she's sitting in the bed, her feet swinging lightly as she waits for Tsubasa--and beams a smile when they come in.
"Hey," Ichika says, and then, "Yeah! Melange Scream put out a new one, so I replaced the old one..." A band, of course.
"How's it going? Sorry I had to run off after class today; I'm still trying to snag some stuff for that idea..."
<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.
Tsubasa likes Ichika's nails. Green and magenta is a great combo.
(And, of course, they took their sneakers off at the door. They're not a monster. Well... not that kind of monster.)
They take a moment to lock the door after they get in; there's not much oversight here, but, you know, someone might spring a surprise inspection on her one day. (Amongst other reasons why she'd want to keep people from just opening the door.)
"Cool," they nod, admiring the poster for a moment. "The newest album rocks."
And then it's time to go sit beside Ichika and admire her instead. They do this silently, of course, because they're verbally occupied replying to her. "It's cool," and that's an entirely different sentence, even though the operative word is the same between them. "You manage to get someone onside for printin'?"
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
It is!!
Ichika prefers the door locked if she has someone over, regardless of what she's actually doing with them--sometimes the other girls get nosy... Or specifically want to prank.
"Yeah," Ichika agrees, "Totally."
It's a goth band, with colorful hair and dramatic makeup. Annd...
Ichika immediately turns to Tsubasa when they come to sit down, her smile unfading. "I got some prospects," Ichika says of printing, "But what I really need is another couple writers and someone who knows how to like, edit. That way it'll have staying power after I go."
Since, she graduates this year... in theory.
"Mmm..." Ichika leanns Tsubasa's way, turning her head away so she doesn't ram her face into their shoulder. "I'm happy you made it."
<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.
Goth bands are cool, man. But then, guessing that Tsubasa appreciates the goths is really not that difficult.
They're appreciating one right now!!!
They smile, too, hearing Ichika's plan. "Ya really thought this through," they say, with praise. "Reckon ya got a real shot at it. It'd be real good fer th' joint if they had somethin'... hey, you asked th' Death Boss to endorse you?" They wonder, tilting their head thoughtfully. "If he said it was chill, you'd prolly get a bunch a punks wantin' in..."
They wrap an arm around Ichika when she leans towards them, hugging her to them in a one-armed embrace. "'Course," they assure her, a little gentler. "Think I'd miss an invite from you? No way. Wanna be someone who listens to their girl, y'know..."
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
Right this moment!! And Ichika appreciates being appreciated. She smiles back at the praise. "Thanks," she says. "And like--I thought about it? But I wanna have some shit actually together first." A beat, "He'd probably like it for the chance to talk about himself," she jokes. "So we'll have to interview him..."
Ichika sighs happily against Tsubasa. She really likes being touchy, as it happens. And it's harder to do in public...
"Cool," Ichika says. "'Cause I am your girl."
She lets that hang on the air for a few moments, before she adds, "And yeah like.. Maybe we can turn some things around for Kasu, maybe."
<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.
"Makes sense," Tsubasa nods. "That guy respects havin' ya shit together. But man, yeah, he'd wanna be ya first interview... smart doin' it that way, too, yeah?" If they snub the Death Boss, after all, that probably makes life a lot harder for the school newspaper.
It is harder to do in public, both because Tsubasa has the image of being so standoffish and tough and because enough people know they're not a Real Boy that there would be rumours. ... that's not to say they never find any opportunities for it, though.
"Heh," Tsubasa rumbles, deep in their chest, their smile taking a turn for the foolish which registers subtly in their voice too. They lean over, to lay a kiss against her forehead. "You sure are." Somehow, they manage to keep that response level instead of squealing in delight, but mostly because noises like that make certain things about their vocal chords uncomfortably obvious.
They're still real happy about it, though.
"Could do," they add, rubbing at her arm. "You're a good person fer it. Like, you're invested. Shit happens, you'll fight for it... why I reckon you'll get this goin'. An' you got me behind ya," they add, smiling again. "Got all a us."
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
"Yeah!" Ichika agrees. "It's a good idea. Kind of funny that it just fits together, right?" It would. and for public, well... Ichika has a little embarrassment about PDA as any girl in her position might, but not as much as most. Besides, she doesn't want to ruin Tsubasa's image.
Ichika hears it. She loves getting that exact reaction, and sighs at the kiss to her forehead. It makes her happier, too.
"Thanks," Ichika says. "And I do. I got a lot of people behind me. ...But especially you."
Ichika reaches over to put her hand over Tsubasa's upper arm, holding there if she's not shooed away.
"How about you?" she asks, and starts to pull back, looking at Tsubasa's face. "How are you feeling, today? ...I didn't get to talk much after school, and... a lot's been going lately, too."
<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.
"Real smooth," Tsubasa agrees. And Ichika's embarrassment is a little convenient, really; Tsubasa doesn't want to ruin her image, either.
Their smile widens, a little, when Ichika insists that they're especially behind her. "All th' way," they say, and they don't shoo her in the slightest, squeezing her arm and leaning into her a little more. Their own free hand lifts, to play her shorter hair through their calloused fingertips, their expression fond.
It's a hand which drops to the crook of her arm, as she shifts back so that she can look at her. "Ah... yeah," they admit, to a lot going on, their gaze dropping down to that point of contact for a moment as their face goes back to its usual stoic brooding.
"I mean, I been thinkin' a bit, but... it's cool, y'know?" Tsubasa's blue gaze turns back up to Ichika's red, and the smile which dropped off their face returns. "More interested in ya paper. Real excited 'bout that."
They're deflecting.
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
Ichika also has an image to maintain, that's true.
But she's happy to hear that, sighing again at the fingers in her hair. But her arm is good enough. Tsubasa admits it, but...
"Is it?" Ichika asks. "Cool, then you can tell me about it."
A beat, "...Said about as much about the paper for now as there is to say," she says. "I'd really like to hear how you're feeling. What's on your mind."
<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.
"Oh... yeah?" Tsubasa asks, when Ichika insists that she's talked through her paper plans thus far. "Sure, jus'... don't wanna be a downer or nothin'." It's not that they're hiding this stuff from Ichika, it's just...
Man, how many of their thoughts are cheerful?
They give her enough of a pause that she can steer things away -- it wouldn't be very good to intimate it's kind of heavy without giving her space to off-ramp -- and that silence stretches out a few more moments, after that, making it clear that it's not just an offramp.
Still... she wants to know, so...
"... been thinkin' 'bout yesterday," Tsubasa says, their gaze dropping down again. "Arguin' with Hyousuke-kun. How I acted... back there. Wasn't... great, y'know?"
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
"It's cool," Ichika says. "If I feel too bad, I'll tell you, OK?"
She doesn't steer it away. Instead, she listens, and... Tsubasa has been thinking. With Hyousuke... Ichika's expression turns a little troubled, her brow furrowing lightly. "Well..."
"Yeah," she says, "It sucked. But what do you mean? Because you got in his face like that?"
<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.
OST: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JYNH0ABzfc8 Icon for Hire - Venom
Tsubasa nods, when Ichika assures her she'll tell them, and so in time they tell her.
Well, they open the subject, anyway.
"... gettin' in his face... yellin' an' beratin' him... grabbin' him an' diggin' me claws in, like... all shit me father does," Tsubasa says, and the shame's pretty evident in their voice, even if their tone remains quite even. "Like... looked at him cringin' when I belted him down, an'..."
Their voice drops down. "... I wanted to crush him. Jus'... completely wreck his shit. Jus'... jus' like he would, man... I'm so fucked up."
Tsubasa's eyes close, too. They repeat, again, their voice strained: "So fucked."
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
Ichika waits. And then... Well. It's pretty terrible, to hear Tsubasa tell it. Ichika frowns, but doesn't immediately argue. She hears what they wanted to do.
"...Didn't though," Ichika points out. "Crush him, I mean. ...You were pretty harsh. But..."
"I mean, you were..."
"You were protecting me, weren't you? I shut down, you got in his face. It's not hard to see it."
<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.
Tsubasa's shoulders sink, when Ichika points out the thing they didn't: they weren't the first one to square up. "... yeah," they rumble, looking to her hand again. "Weren't... good for ya. Knew that. But gettin' like that, ain't no better..."
They shake their head, teeth grit in their jaw. "Ain't no excuse," they insist, a touch more firm.
"I always... watchin' meself. Like I think, what'd that fuck Hajime do...? Thinkin' how he fucked me up... I jus' do th' opposite a that shit. But then I get mad, an' I jus'... actin' jus' like me father...? Shit, man, I'm really no good... bein' careful don't mean shit, minute I lose me head..."
And if they're a little choked up, they're trying to pretend they're not. "Somethin' sick inside me," they warn her. "Can't get it out. Ain't never gettin' clean. Fuck, man, I try, but... ain't never gettin' out..."
They haven't felt like they ought to get out from Ichika's space for a while, but there's that old urge to run away, rearing up again.
They're thinking about her own welfare.
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
"...Mm."
Ichika hears the insistence, and Ichika hears... Ah. "So you think about it," she says. "That... makes a lot of sense."
But just like their father.
"OK," Ichika says. "I knew you got fucked up by your dad, OK? ...I knew you got some shit you gotta work out."
"Doesn't mean I'm going anywhere. Doesn't mean you can't get better."
"...We all fuck up sometimes. So, sounds like you did. ...If you just give up on yourself, you really won't get out."
"...I..."
"I kinda lost it too," she says. "But different. I was going to run away, even though he was trying to reach out to both of us."
"...All that pressure... It's too much."
"So see? It's not just you who has stuff to work on. ...Let me in. Let me help."
<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.
Tsubasa grunts, affirmatively, when Ichika realises they think about it. It's not hard to believe; they're always overthinking everything, so why not this, too?
But, okay, okay, Ichika repeats herself, and Tsubasa's quite frozen, though they haven't pulled away from her. (Not physically, anyway.) She says she knew all that, says they can get better, asks her not to give up on themself in that sidelong kind of way...
They grunt, again, when she admits that she also lost it. So she could tell he was trying, too...
"But that's -- normal," they excuse her. "He wants us to sign off on him hurtin' himself. Normal to... bail on that. Ain't no one wanna say it's cool if he's in danger, cool if he dies... be responsible fer that. You weren't -- hurtin' him."
They're wrong, of course. They know that leaving might well have hurt him more than going on the attack.
But it's easier to absolve the lack of an action, isn't it?
Their throat feels dry; they swallow, again. "What if I hurt you, Ichika?" They ask, and it's really just a matter of making the given premise explicit. "... I'm dangerous. Apples don't fall far... y'know, in me blood an' shit. I ain't... worth th' risk, not after... all that shit you went through..."
It's getting a little harder to see, and they need to pause an awful lot to keep their even tone of voice, but it's not that easy to tell, right? Don't worry about that when they're the thing that ought to worry the world.
(And Tsubasa doesn't think to connect the way they've called the Inquisition on themself with the paranoia they've experienced over the past few days in the slightest.)
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
They do think about everything. That doesn't make it less appealing; it makes it moreso. They're putting in effort. They're trying!
"No it's not," Ichika says. "Normal is like... holding your ground, saying something. Maybe getting in his face isn't super normal, but running away isn't either."
She shakes her head. "...Everybody hurts everybody sometimes," she says. "You'd hurt me by leaving now for sure. Maybe you will some other way... but I know you. You'll work hard to make it good."
"You're worth it to me. And I don't think you're like that. You got some problems, yeah."
"...But aren't you being extra hard on yourself right now?" she asks. "Aren't you going rougher even than you usually do?"
<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.
Tsubasa puts a lot of effort into seeming like they're not expending any effort.
Still... she insists that neither of their responses were normal, and Tsubasa shakes their head, a little.
Their arm is still quite frozen, around her, when she insists she'd be hurt if they left; gives them far more grace than they'd give themself. Ichika says they're worth it to her, and Tsubasa can't stop thinking: they're not worth that much.
What if, what if, what if...
"Uh," Tsubasa's body shakes, as Ichika asks about the knife they've levelled at their own throat.
"I'm... like him... so..." They swallow, again. "No use being scared if I ain't... call's comin' from inside th' house, man. I'm -- jus' as bad. Dug me claws in... jus' provin' it. Ain't even... first time I got in his face... fuckin' poison. Gets in ya, don't get out..."
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
Ichika is sure.
"...No you're not," Ichika insists. "No, you're not."
"I've seen him, and I've seen you. I've seen how caring you are. How much work you put into being good."
"You're not as bad. You saw what happened--being shocked was what he needed, to let out his feelings. And yeah, you shouldn't have dug in at him, yeah."
"But that doesn't mean you're the same. It doesn't prove shit."
"You're not poison. Listen to me."
<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.
"I -- I was mad 'cuz I gave a shit but -- but what if that's jus' how me father is, too?"
If Tsubasa can scream at someone they care about like that, hurt them, want to feed them to the curb...
... isn't it logical that their father gives a shit, too?
What if he's just hurting them so much because they remind him of themself? What if he's just mad they're repeating his mistakes, when he doesn't want anyone to see them? What if he's really trying to help? Neighbouring truth, they think, what if -- what if -- what if --
Ichika insists they listen to her, though, and finally Tsubasa looks at her again, makes plain the tears tracking down their cheeks and devastating the makeup obscuring their scars. "Ichika," they say, and their voice is more choked, now. "I --"
Their free hand fumbles, a little, as they reach for her hand. "I -- got real scared, Ichika..."
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
Ichika hears it--resists the urge to bite back with something on instinct. Instead, she listens. And it's logical, but...
"...That's like..."
The words die as Tsubasa looks at her, and Ichika reaches out a hand to offer to them. It's a lifeline, maybe. "I know," she says, more softly. "I know you did."
"But it's not the same. ...Like I said, I've seen him. Not just what you told me--what I saw. And it's not the same, Tsubasa."
"...You're not like that. I know you."
<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.
Tsubasa clasps Ichika's hand, tightly, though it's more from their fear than anything.
"Y--you're sure?" They ask, and their hand is trembling, too. "I thought -- I thought maybe he was -- same way 'bout it, like -- y-you really reckon I'm different? Even though I wanted to hurt him..."
Tsubasa shakes their head, swallowing, again. "... I jus'... I can't forgive anyone who treats people they give a shit about like that... so if it's me, I..." But they've never been able to forgive themself, anyway.
"But... but you sayin'... I work at it, an'... care an' shit... um..."
Tsubasa bites their lip, looking to her. "It okay if... can I have a hug?"
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
"I'm sure," Ichika answers firmly. She puts her other hand on top of the two of theirs, and shakes her head. "...It's different," she says. "I don't think..."
"I don't think he's just losing control. I think he does it on purpose."
"..." They don't forgive themself as a rule, no. "I'm saying that," Ichika confirms, and then when Tsubasa asks, Ichika takes her hands back and wraps her arms tightly around Tsubasa.
"You can," she says quietly. "You do those things. You care. It means so much, because I know it's something you're doing, not just something that's whatever."
<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.
He does it... on purpose...
Tsubasa wraps their other arm around Ichika, turning into them, burying their face against her shoulder as something wracks through theirs. They hear Ichika saying it matters, and they nod, jerkily, against her.
"I -- I wanna be good," they say, and they think they sound pathetic.
"I, I was... uh. Felt... like... threatened, an'... defensive of ya. Oughta get between him... make him go through me. A-an' he weren't listenin', so I jus' -- I weren't gettin' through to him, didn't matter what I said, an'... then he shoved his hand at me an' I thought, he's gon' get me, gotta make sure he don't... only realised he was jus' pointin' when I... but he kept insistin' he was th' centre a th' universe, y'know, an' I jus'... offended me, man. Like he's so fuckin' delusional, he don't realise I was th' bad guy there... don't like other people pullin' my shit. Get territorial about it... stupid, huh. But then... he was cringin' an' all, so I thought... had to say somethin' to convince him, an'..."
Tsubasa's thin voice tapers off, as their rambling slows. "... you were better at it," they insist, sadly. "Can't go... promisin' th' world to people jus' so they won't get themselves killed. Grand, sure, but it's fuckin' empty... got people who might kill me. Might not be able to do shit... stupid."
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
Ichika feels that. She hears it. And she continues to hold onto Tsubasa. She can't be entirely gentle; she has to hold on tightly, just in case.
"I know," Ichika says. They want to be. "And you are."
But they explain their reasoning, and...
"Not that stupid," Ichika says. "It frustrated me, too. ...But..."
She closes her eyes. "I thought your way was better," she says softly. "You didn't bullshit it up or give conditions. I couldn't do that. Wasn't strong enough."
"...It scared me," she admits. "Not... him yelling, though that too."
"But the idea that I'm that important, it..."
"It's good with you. I signed up for that. But being this whole.. reason, for so many things, I--"
"It's too much pressure. It makes me feel like I can't breathe."
"...So don't get so down on your way, OK? I'd have said it like that, too, if... If I didn't feel like that."
<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.
It's okay. Tsubasa appreciates the pressure at a time like this, when they feel like it would be so easy -- so much easier -- to slip away.
Still... "?" They grunt, their face shifting against her, when she says that their way was better. It scared her...
Wasn't Tsubasa just talking about that? Being responsible for it.
They untangle themself, a little -- but just so that they can look at her properly, again. "Hey," Tsubasa says, as they take the one hand they unwove from her, and cup her cheek with it instead. "Can you listen to me a sec?"
Their brow's knit in concern, but they're worried about Ichika, now, and it's easier to think when it's her. "It's not your fault if he does somethin'," they say, their expression serious. "If... he don't take no care of himself on purpose. I get what that's gettin' at... but it ain't your fault. Ain't your responsibility to save him if he's determined to throw himself in th' spike trap, even when you tell him there's a way around. Ain't even rightly a sacrifice, he jus'... insistin' on bein' in danger. Shit's sacrificial 'cuz you doin' somethin' you don't wanna, man..."
(Which is kind of a telling way for Tsubasa to think of sacrifice.)
Their hand slips to the back of her head, urging it forward so that they can rest their forehead against hers. (It stings, a little; that headbutt wasn't so long ago. Tsubasa doesn't complain.) "I'm worried 'bout him too," they say. "Got mad 'cuz I'm worried, 'cuz I care... reckon you wanted to bolt 'cuz you couldn't bear seein' that shit from someone ya cared 'bout. Yeah? You can't, like... save everyone. That's normal. Gettin' freaked out havin' to, that's normal. He needs more help than we can give him, Ichika. Reckon... that's real clear. Ain't sayin' we abandon him or nothin', jus'... fuck do we know 'bout that kinda damage? We're still highschoolers, man."
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
"Mm?" Ichika looks at Tsubasa. "..."
Not her fault, if...
"I don't want that kind of responsibility," Ichika says quietly. "I don't... want to be the 'reason' he keeps fighting."
Sacrifice is... "Yeah," Ichika says, because it makes sense to her too.
But, Ichika does rest her forehead gently on Tsubasa's, because she remembers the headbutt, too.
"Yeah," she says. "It's like that. I can't watch that stuff. But you..."
"Mm, you're right. We've seen stuff we shouldn't have had to see, but.. doesn't mean we know everything, either."
"OK. But just..."
"I love you, OK? Just remember that. In all this... stuff."
<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.
"It's another way of puttin' ya on a pedestal, right?" Tsubasa wonders. "Makes sense... ya wouldn't feel good 'bout it." Because if she's his reason for fighting, and she falters...
They can get that.
She can't bear to watch it, though. ... that's why Tsubasa had to defend her.
"Yeah," they affirm, when Ichika realises that there's a gap between their experience and their knowledge. Hard for them to admit, when they think they're so smart, but... they know they're in over their head on this one.
Tsubasa nods, slightly, against Ichika. "I love you too, babe," they say, their voice still a touch ragged. "Sorry I... get like this, but... guess it been hard for you too, huh?" They can tell Ichika's got her own bad feelings, following that conversation, even if she's not quite as paranoid about herself. "Fuck, man... it's a lot."
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
"Yeah," Ichika agrees. "Kind of is."
Ichika squeezes Tsubasa again, and sighs. There's so much...
But, Tsubasa reasserts their feelings. "It's OK," Ichika says. "I know you do. Didn't scare me off so far, right?"
"...But yeah, it kinda has," she admits. "It's really a lot," she answers. "...And like..."
"I still hurt," she says, in more immediate ways than emotional. "And it's hard to think right."
"...So it's OK. Besides. You're here. That's great, right?"
<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.
"Mm," Tsubasa hums, sympathetically. Pedestals... they really hurt Ichika, huh.
But it hasn't scared her off, and... she still hurts.
"Real great," Tsubasa agrees, pulling back so they back look at Ichika properly again. "Hey, uh, I got ya one a them heat bags, like, th' ones ya shove in th' microwave, oughta burn ya less than th' bottles..."
(They know why it's more immediate, yeah.)
Tsubasa runs a hand along the back of Ichika's head, smiling, to her. "An'... thanks fer believin' in me... like, when I don't. Means a lot, Ichika. Won't let ya down."
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
They do, and... Tsubasa knows exactly why, yes. "Oh, yeah?" Ichika asks. "Cool, I'll... go do that in a while." Use the microwave, that is. "Thanks. ...Don't mean to bring it up, but..." But it kind of matteres for the moment.
But she smiles back at that hand on her head, and closes her eyes "You're welcome," Ichika says. "Because I do."
"...And I know you won't."
"But mmm..."
She tugs Tsubasa towards the bed. "I wanna lay down for a bit, if that's OK. ...Kind of a heavy conversation..."
<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.
"Nah, man, it's cool," Tsubasa shakes their head. "I ain't the kinda guy gets grossed out by that shit. I still gotta deal with 'em 'til the meds work, y'know?" It probably won't be long for them, either...
They feel warmer, no heat pack required, hearing her say she does believe in them.
And they allow themself to be tugged, laying horizontal as they take her up into their arms. "Real heavy," they agree. "Could use that, meself... so it's super okay. Restins'... easier with you, anyhow."
<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.
"I appreciate it. Can't talk about it with most of my guys, so..." Not that she has more than two now, but she's had others. And besides, "That's great though. Lookin' forward to you being free of that."
But she smiles, and Ichika lets out a little sigh as they go horizontal, snuggling into Tsubasa's arms. "Mmm," she says. "With you, too," she says.
"...I feel safe with you," Ichika says, and closes her eyes.
Maybe she can think about other stuff later. For now...
She wants to be here.