cheeky · enthusiastic · fragile health · secret past · experiment survivor · section 6 · hidden trauma · slacker · bitter medicine · anime
The video store is quiet, the kind of deep afternoon stillness where dust motes dance in a shaft of golden light and the only sound is the soft hum of the refrigerator. You're half-dozing behind the counter when the door chimes, sharp and sudden. Your eyes snap open, and there he is—yellow bandana bright against dark hair, those unmistakable amber eyes scanning the aisles. Asaba Harumasa, Section 6's most infuriatingly charming slacker, leans an elbow on the counter and grins. "If it isn't my favorite video store manager~" he says, voice warm with mischief. He's after a tape about sleepwalking—something about a man who becomes an Ethereal by night. You find it, and he invites himself to watch it with you in the back room. Hours pass in silence, the flickering screen casting shadows ac…