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OKAU READERS, WE ARE AT CROSSROADS HERE!!!

This means that, well obviously since Tanjiro and Sabito are both love interests of the main character, I am giving you all the voice here to say which one you WANT to end up with (keep in mind, I will still be the one who decides how the story ends)ย 

But! This is to help me get an idea of the type of readers that are coming to view this story, and what kind of content they'll want to see in it. Ultimately it will help me build a better story overall

So who did you read for? Tanjiro or Sabito? :D

โ€”โ€”โ€”โ€”โ€”โ€”โ€”โ€”โ€”โ€”โ€”โ€”โ€”โ€”โ€”โ€”โ€”โ€”โ€”โ€”โ€”โ€”โ€”โ€”โ€”โ€”-

Your hand hovered lightly over the lock on your door

"I'll just leave it here for you to get later," he said, setting a bowl of something down in front of your door

Whatever this food is, it smells amazingโ€”like freshly chopped onions and chicken broth

You pressed your ear to the door, hearing his footsteps echoing away down the stairs

When he was gone, you turned the lock and opened the door just a crack, peering out at the bowl of ramen sitting in front of you

Food...wow, I'm so hungry...I haven't eaten alllll day

You began to salivate at the sight of the thick egg noodles floating in golden-brown broth, topped with thin slices of pork belly and onions sprinkled on top. There was even a half of a boiled egg in there, cooked to perfection

Additionally, your father left two chopsticks poking out of the noodles for you to eat with

Sliding the bowl inside of your room with one hand, you began scarfing down the ramen as soon as you made contact with it, forgetting to close your door back

Your mother, who stood just down the hall, looked on with a small smile, as she could see you eating dinner through the crack in the door

"You got a ride home?" she asked from a few feet away

"Mhm..." You answered reluctantly, scooting away from the door

"Sabito, right?"

"Mmhm"

Mom walks up to the door

"Makomo called. Earlier." She said unexpectedly

You nearly choked on the noodles in your mouth "she did?"

Mom nodded "she asked about you. Said you weren't answering your phone and that she really needed to tell you something. I guess the poor girl thought you'd be home"

Oh no...Makomo...

You finished scarfing down most of your food right then, pushing the bowl off to the side

"I'll call her in the morning." You said, changing into something comfortable to wear to sleep

"Alright. Be honest with her!" Your mother said before walking off, leaving you alone with your thoughts






It's been three days since you spent the day with Sabito

It's only two days into the week, but you haven't seen Makomo at school a single time, not even a trace of her

When you called on Sunday, no one picked up. You nearly cried yourself to sleep last night, thinking about how much of a terrible friend you've been

Sabito on the other hand, was looking a bit more lively. Sure, he was still sluggish as usual during school days, but now he would look down at you in admiration with bright eyes and a soft smile, just like how he used to

Since you only saw Sabito a few times in the day, you had to work extra hard to balance your attention between him and Tanjiro.

It was exhausting going back and forth, but you knew that for now, it would be best to keep them separate at all costs.ย 

Today, it is Tuesday; you've decided to bring the lucky chain Tanjiro gifted to you. You aren't the superstitious type, but you figure it'll be nice to have just in case...



During fourth period, Mr. Obanai announced that it was time to move into the first step of the year's first science project; studying chicken eggs. This surprised most of the students, as it wasn't the kind of lesson plan a strict teacher like Iguro would have come up with on his own. Rumors had it that Mitsuri had suggested it.

Still, although you were worried about Makomo, you were happy to have something wholesome to distract you for 20 minutes of your day

You and Tanjiro stood side by side over the incubator during passing period, looking down at the live chicken eggs sitting in clumps of straw

prior to this, the two of you decided to pick the tiniest egg nestled in the corner as the one which you would study. The idea was to test hypotheses about what conditions would allow chickens to hatch at a faster rate, and perhaps even be bigger and better compete against the others.

Despite the goal, you chose the small one because you figured it would be the easiest to deal with, and Tanjiro liked it because he found it cute

You bent down to get a closer look at the thing, mesmerized by the thought that a living creature was in there

"What're we gonna do when this is all over?" you blurted out, somewhat in a daze

Tanjiro tilted his head down at you "Hm?"

You looked up at him over your shoulder "I mean, when all this senseless drama dies down, and I can finally rest...Will you still be my friend?"

"Well, yeah. Why wouldn't I?" He asked, leaning against a desk

"I guess I'm just scared that once I give you that thing you want, you'll leave. A lot of people I was friends with left really easily and it made me realize just how fragile human connections can be..." You murmured

You stood up and turned to face Tanjiro, and he raised his eyebrows when you locked eyes with him

Tanjiro paused; he seemed to be really thinking about what you've said

"Forgive me if I get it wrong but," He began "those people you told me about, they weren't looking to be close with someone, and accept them for their flaws. They wanted something superficial."

"Not to sound cliche, but that's not what I want. I've dealt with people like that before I came to this school...it's like you said, human connections are fleeting, fragile"

You winced

"But that's why I'd rather have one with someone who takes it seriously." He concluded "So yeah, I'll stick with you. Only if you want that too."

The two of you both snapped to attention when you heard someone running down the hall towards the room

Zenitsu came charging through the door, gasping for air when he reached you

he was stuttering between breaths, fumbling for his words. You watched him as he nearly collapsed in front of you

"What's wrong, Zenitsu?" Tanjiro shot him a look of concern

Zenitsu looked up from the ground, his face bunched up as if he were about to cry

"...Makomo..."

Your heart sank into your gut

"...she's gone. I tried to warn you but I couldn't find you anywhere"

Tanjiro stood up quickly, nearly dropping his belongings "GONE?!"

Your skin prickled with anxiety, and you froze, unable to think or even speak

"She's been gone since Saturday! Didn't you hear from her parents or something?!" Zenitsu wheezed "whatever, I'll explain more later...I can't breathe-"

You thought back to everything, and as you did your blood ran cold. At your side, Tanjiro was watching you with a hopeful look, as if urging you to come up with something

"No, that's not right...she...called me on Saturday." You murmured

the two of them looked at you with wide eyes, their pupils shrinking

"You're not serious..." Zenitsu frowned

"I WISH I WASN'T" You cried, pulling at the strands of your hair "Does Sabito know about this yet?!"

Zenitsu shook his head "I'm sorry! I swear the two of you have this strange ability to just disappear on campus...you're like ghosts, or something."

at the mention of ghosts, Sabito's words from before echoed in the back of your head

"I mean it. I'm tired of everybody looking at me like I'm dying or something...I can take care of myself. And besides, I'm the one whose supposed to protect you and Makomo anyways, not the other way around."

You turned to him, your frown turning into a scowl "Don't ever say that to me again. Sabito's not a ghost, he's alive."

"Fine, christ! I didn't expect you'd be so touchy over a harmless word" Zenitsu grumbledย 

"HEY!" Mr. Obanai grumbled at the doorwayย 

"Get out of my room you noisy kids. I'm on lunch break."ย 

"BUT-" Zenitsu piped up, and he was immediately shut up by Iguro

"I said GET OUT. Don't you loser kids have something better to do? Read a book or something, quit bothering me with your senseless yammering"

"...with all due respect, Obanai-san" You spoke up, your voice shaky as you were trying to hold back your anger "We're all just shocked. It's something very important"

You want to tell an adult, but you decided against saying anything to him. You doubt he'll be of any use until you know all of the facts anyway

"What could be more important than my privacy?" Mr. Obanai sighed, resting his head on his palmย 

"Seriously...?" Zenitsu grumbled under his breath

"Let's just go." You said flatly, storming out of the room as quickly as possible. Tanjiro and Zenitsu were both right behind you, but they made sure to keep their distance. The level of anger radiating from you is enough to kill a man with one look

You trod silently through the halls with your head down, staring at your feet while you walked. Thankfully the actual school building is mostly quiet during this time

but of course, he is wandering around looking for you

You flinched when your face collided with the chest of another student, your vision flashing white from the impact

"Sorry!" You yelped on instinct without seeing who it was

"(Y/n)? You need to learn to stop apologizing."ย 

You squinted, your eyes focusing on Sabito's curious expression

oh no

you neglected to pay attention to your surroundings and as a result, you're gonna have to explain to Sabito that something bad is happening...again.

Before you could stop him, his gaze fell upon Tanjiro who came to stand behind you

"...having fun?" Sabito tilted his head, sounding mildly annoyed

"I..." you swallowed

You felt Tanjiro's hand on your shoulder, and you looked over at him to meet his reassuring gaze

"No, we weren't." You sighed, looking at Sabito again "I was actually just going to look for you."

ย "Well, you found me," he folded his arms over his chestย "What's up?"

Zenitsu finally caught up to you, completely out of breath

"Something happened to Makomo...and...no one knows where she is." you managed to say, though your heart quickened at the thought

"And..well..I think Zenitsu should do the explaining from here"ย 









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