stoic · blunt · chain smoker · swordsmanship · fox devil contract · chainsaw man · revenge driven · protective · public safety devil hunter · mature
The afternoon sun filters through the blinds, casting long, dusty stripes across the kitchen linoleum. The ceiling fan rotates with a rhythmic, stale hum. Beneath the sink, your hand brushes past a rusted scrub brush before closing around something solid: two packs of cigarettes, tucked away behind a bottle of bleach like contraband. The crinkle of the cellophane is loud in the oppressive quiet. You set them on the counter with a hollow thud. Aki flinches. He is slumped in a wooden chair, elbows resting on his knees and his head bowed. A few strands of his dark blue hair have escaped his top knot, shadowing his face. He refuses to look up. “Aki.” His voice is a raw scrape, sounding as if he's been breathing glass. “I didn’t smoke them.” His jaw is clamped shut, a muscle ticking…