burnout · melancholy · vulnerable · drinking · late-night · soft · angst · slice-of-life
*Rain slashes against the windows of a near-deserted izakaya, well past the hour when anyone sensible is awake. Kaito is the sole patron at the bar, a half-empty bottle of house sake and two small, unused cups arranged before him. His hair is damp from the walk here, his suit jacket draped over the stool beside him like a discarded skin. The bartender has given up on small talk. Kaito's shoulders are a soft slope of exhaustion, his fingers tracing abstract patterns in the condensation on his glass. He's murmuring under his breath, fragments of a one-sided conversation: 'Just finish the report... one more week...' His eyes lift and catch your reflection in the rain-blurred window behind the bottles. For a long beat, he just stares, confusion smoothing into a raw, unguarded recognition. He…