[ focus on his voice— yeah, he can do that, or try to. yuuji returns the gesture, squeezing back but not as hard; almost fearful of a full hold. he didn't know why, but had a feeling touching the other right now might drag him into whatever the fuck is happening in his mind. as they leave the bookstore behind, the sorcerer took in some of the fresh air, allowed the cool breeze to tame his now feverish skin, closing his eyes before they start to walk further away from any popular hubs of an active fight.

yuuji didn't seem scared per se? just— easily distracted. he glanced at megumi when he dropped that question, smiling a bit. ]

No, Hizen helped me out. He's a good friend of mine from Shuten, who happened to be a sword expert, so I asked for his help. I'll invite him over for dinner one night, and you'll get to meet him.

[ he takes in a breath, relaxing his shoulders, walking by megumi's side as they held hands. perhaps if they kept the conversation going, he wouldn't fall into another illusion; it kept his mind sober and focused on something else.

that's when he finally asked- ]

Are you ... seeing someone? I heard something about a 'date'?