Chapter Text
Ichimatsu woke up with a ringing bouncing in his head. He felt like utter shit. Maybe he could sneak in more sleep before his brothers woke him up. His futon was abnormally cozy, hell, maybe he could sleep the whole day away. Much to his dismay, the sun already rose and insisted on peeking into his eyes. Ichimatsu pushed his face into the pillow. He was so close to sweet sweet slumber.
Until a loud alarm woke him up. Wait, alarm? The Matsuno household didn’t own an alarm. Eh, whatever. Ichimatsu reached over to where the sound was to shut it the hell off. It felt like a phone, why would Todomatsu set an alarm for this ungodly hour? Why did he have to put it next to Ichimatsu? He wasn’t awake enough for this. After he shut it off, Ichimatsu pulled himself deeper into the covers.
There it was, so close in his grasp. Finally, he could sleep.
Buzz.
Weird. What was that? Doesn’t matter.
Buzz.
Okay, odd. Whatever that noise was could wait until ten, possibly eleven in the morning.
Buzz.
Ignore it, Ichimatsu.
Buzz.
Okay, now he’s pissed off. Reluctantly, he reached over to where the buzzing was coming from. The phone again? Why on earth was Todomatsu getting texts this early in the morning? He slanted open his droopy eyelids, drawing his blurry gaze to try to read the texts.
Todo: Ichi, did you sleep through your alarm again?
Huh? His alarm? Wait, why the hell was Todomatsu texting himself to his own phone? How did he know that Ichimatsu had his phone? Actually scratch all that, did Todomatsu have two phones? He was way too tired to dignify this text with anything grandiose.
Ichi: Weird that you have two phones. Leave me alone. Don’t call me Ichi.
There, now he can get back to the cozy abyss.
Buzz.
God could not exist because he was royally fucking Ichimatsu in the ass. He reached for the phone one last time, hoping to send a lengthy ‘screw off’ message before he stopped.
Todo: Uhm, ok? Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning. Get your ass to work.
Work? Ichimatsu didn’t work. Todomatsu was losing his mind. He was about to lose his, given his restful embrace of the blanket had been rudely interrupted. Now that he was more awake, why was the futon so comfortable? He pressed his hand down. It was far too soft to be the floor, but it’s not like he owned a mattress.
At least, he’s pretty sure. Well, since he was awake anyway, might as fucking well start his day. Which of course would consist of nothing but moping, cats, and probably a nap. He dragged his legs out of bed, and opened the door. Finally getting to the bathroom, he turned on the light.
Strangely, Ichimatsu didn’t recognize the room before him. What the hell? It wasn’t drastically different, but it lacked the evidence of six NEETs belongings. There were only his own. Now that he thought about it, he got out of a bed, opened a door, and apparently owned a phone.
It hit him like a truck. Ichimatsu was rightfully panicking.
He rushed to the bedroom. It had completely changed. Lining the walls were shelves, posters of stuff he would never admit to liking, and pictures of him and five other people. He couldn’t recognize anyone in the photos. A bed pressed against the right wall, along with a desk next to it, which held his phone. The room wasn’t tidy in the slightest. It’s a miracle he was able to navigate the mess half asleep without tripping. He must be dreaming, this couldn’t be real.
Where was he?
He must have been kidnapped in his sleep. That’s the only logical explanation. Well, he had news for his kidnapper. Ichimatsu was the last Matsuno you wanted to mess with. He was going to put this stranger through hell, and then some. They won’t wish for mercy or death, they’ll wish they were shoved straight back into the womb and died before even being born.
Buzz.
The buzzing from his (?) phone snapped Ichimatsu out of his in-depth torture plan. Opening the screen, he sees it’s another text from Todomatsu. Ah, that’s right. How did Todomatsu know where he was? Maybe he’s the one who kidnapped him. There were way too many questions on his mind, and far too little answers.
Todo: I’m gonna take your silence as you getting ready. Don’t leave too fast that you forget to feed the cat, yeah? I’d have half the mind to steal the damn thing.
As if it knew, a small orange cat rubbed itself on Ichimatsu’s leg. The feline bore a striking resemblance to ESP kitty. This only served to confuse him further. If he was going to get any answers he was going to have to talk to Todomatsu directly.
Ichi: Remind me again where I work?
He’ll play this weird game Todomatsu has going on. He was going to get answers out of the youngest brother.
Todo: Did you hit your head sleeping?
Todo: Actually, don’t answer that. I don’t care. Paradise Cafe, shift starts in 30 minutes in case you forgot that too. Try not to be late again, or Choro might actually fire you this time.
Odd. This was some weird roleplay Todomatsu was doing. This is all good blackmail material at least. Ichimatsu opened the closet, maybe Todomatsu left his signature hoodie in here. On the contrary, however, the closet was full of purple clothes but lacked a certain hoodie. This was seriously creeping him out. He grabbed whatever clothes, it didn’t matter what he wore.
Putting them on haphazardly, Ichimatsu entered the bathroom once again. Looking in the mirror, he was surprised to see someone else staring back at him. This has to be some fucked up dream, maybe Todomatsu wasn’t playing a game. His hair was stained a dark purple, framing his face. The hair and face wasn’t too different from his own, but just enough to where it was uncanny. His clothes consisted of a white sweater, a lilac trench coat, and plaid baggy pants.
It was weird to see himself (but not him?) so well put together.
Entering the kitchen and living room of the kitchen, Ichimatsu didn’t let himself linger too long. If this was a dream it didn’t matter what ‘his place’ looked like. He did stop to feed ESP Kitty before he set off.
—
Ichimatsu couldn’t go in. Even if this was a dream, he was utterly terrified of what lay behind Paradise Cafe’s doors. If he’s lucky, he’ll just wake up, knowing him, this borderline nightmare will continue. He took a deep breath in, it was all just a dream, he could do this.
Opening the cafe door let out a little ding of the bell. In his high anxiety state, it made Ichimatsu jump. The place was neat and colorful, bearing a near rainbow in every corner. It was surprisingly not overwhelming, and the cafe calmed his running nerves a tad. He let his eyes rest near the checkout counter, spotting a suspiciously familiar face.
“Oh, looks like someone isn’t late today!” The pink-brown hair boy waved at Ichimatsu, did he know him? They wore pink overalls and a striped beige sweater. He had to hand it to his dream, it sure was following an aesthetic.
Ichimatsu approached the counter warily. He tried to speak but he felt his throat tighten. Did his anxiety really have to act up even when he was dreaming?
“Jeez, you look like a mess.” The stranger crossed his arms, and Ichimatsu thought he recognized the body mannerisms. “Dude, are you okay? Did you have a rough one last night?”
“Uh..” Why couldn’t he get his words out? “Who.. who are you?” He mumbled out. He honestly hoped the other didn’t hear him and he would save himself from the embarrassment. Of course, Ichimatsu has never been so lucky.
“Ichi, are you sick?” The stranger tilted their head, and slightly pouted. It hit him who this person reminded him of.
“Todomatsu..?” He asked.
“You’re acting super odd. Not sure where you got the matsu from.” Todo (matsu?) seemed like he suddenly realized something. “Oh you poor thing, you must be sick and delirious. My name is Todo, your coworker, you live on planet earth.” Todo spoke as if he was addressing a child. It pissed Ichimatsu off.
“Shut up. I'm not sick.” He glared at the younger. “I just had a rough night, like you said.”
“Uh huh, sure.” Todo totally didn’t buy it. “At least you’re not late. You should clock in so Choro knows you’re here.”
Okay, clock in. He can do that. Maybe if he plays his role in this dream he’ll wake up soon. Ichimatsu walked behind the counter and looked at the sign-in sheet. He could recognize a few names, but they weren’t quite what he knew them as. He spotted a familiar name, one he supposes is his.
Ichi Uroncha. Seriously? Oolong Tea? Forget any praises he gave his own mind, this was utterly stupid. He searched for the next empty spot, below another familiar but not quite name; Todo Pafe. Of course dream Todomatsu was named after a dessert. Ichimatsu signed (dream) his name along with the time. 9:45. He was correct on it being way too early for literally anything.
“Oh wow, the famous delinquent showed up in a timely manner, am I dreaming?” Heh. Ironic.
Ichimatsu raises his head to the source of the new voice. He knew instantly that this must be dream Choromatsu. The older had pastel green hair, a frankly too serious expression, a white turtleneck sweater covered by a green jacket, and white capris. Ichimatsu is starting to notice a trend in hair colors.
“I know right! I couldn’t believe it either Choro!” Todo had a snarky grin on his face.
“For the last time, Pafe-san. This is a professional environment, you are to address me as Aojiru-san.” He had to suppress a giggle, that last name was so incredibly Choromatsu. “And you, Uroncha-san.” Ichimatsu perked up. “Congrats on saving your employment, keep it up and I might have to start paying you minimum wage.”
Ichimatsu couldn’t tell if that was a joke or not. He decided to think it was.
“Alright, you two better open up shop. Don’t dilly dally.” Seriously? Dilly dally? Dream Choromatsu was hilarious.
“Jeez! He’s so serious, I’m waiting for him to keel over if anything’s out of order.” Todo said once he was gone. “But we should do what he says, unless you wanna risk losing being on his good side for once.”
—
Ichimatsu discovered he didn’t understand the first thing about opening a cafe. Or a cafe period. He would honestly feel bad for Todo had he not been nagging him the entire time.
“You really forgot how to make a Paradise latte? You’ve been working here for two years.”
“That’s not where that goes! You’re going to break it!”
“Are you actually brain dead? How much did you drink last night Ichi-chan?”
That last one really set him off. He wasn’t enjoying being called Ichi, much less Ichi-chan. “Don’t call me that.” He growled out.
“Wow.” Todo sighed.
“What?” Ichimatsu didn’t have the patience for this.
“I know I teased you and stuff, and I don’t really care about how you’re doing.” Still cold hearted as ever. “But if I get blamed for your incompetence I’m going to kill you, so. What’s bugging you?”
You. “Nothing.”
“I know you, Ichi.” Clearly not enough to leave him alone. “You’re pissier than usual. Something is on your mind.”
“I don’t want to talk about it.” He honestly really didn’t. “So stick one up your ass.”
Todo scoffed. “Forget I asked.” Thank god this topic was over. Mostly. Todo then shoved a handbook at him. “Since you’re so blasted from last night, here’s how to do shit in the cafe. Don’t say I never helped you with anything.”
For someone who really didn’t care, Todo was doing him a nice favor right now. With the help, most of his shift was going smoothly. He almost had the gall to say it was nice to have something to do. Almost. His rhythm was interrupted by a noisy trio entering the cafe. Looking up, Ichimatsu could vaguely guess who they were.
“Ichi-chan!” Great. Oso Chuhai, he remembers the name on the clock-in sheet. He was adorned in a red sweater and beige pants. Unsurprisingly plain. Continuing with the trend he noticed earlier, Oso had dark red hair.
“I wouldn’t call him that, Oso. He’s been a huge grouch today.” At least Ichi himself didn’t have to say anything.
“Ichi-chan!” Oso repeated. Good to see that dream Osomatsu wasn’t any different.
“Oso, our darling friend just warned you, be polite.” Next to Oso stood another familiar face. Kara Ramune. He was starting to notice a trend in these surnames. Kara didn’t look very different, his outfit was a white hoodie, a blue denim jacket, and white pants. The only notable difference was his pastel blue hair.
“Shut up Kuso.” It wasn’t as funny without the matsu. He’s going to have to workshop a new nickname.
“Eh? He’s the one defending you!” Oso laughed.
“Ichi-chan!!” The final one spoke. Jyushi Juusu. Ichimatsu smiled fondly, it fit the younger one well. He had yellow-blonde hair, a pleasant mix. He wore an oversized yellow sweater over a button-up and short plaid shorts, almost matching Ichimatsu’s own pants.
“The delinquent smiles!” Todo sounded genuinely shocked. What’s with the delinquent nickname?
“Where’s Choro?” Oso asked, sitting on top of the counter.
“In the back, he’s gonna be pissed if he sees you sitting there Oso-chan.” The pink-haired one put a hand on his hip.
“He’ll live!” Oso said as he leaned further into the counter.
“When you see him, could you ask if he wants to see the fireworks Friday?” Ichimatsu couldn’t hear the rest of their conversation. He’s not sure why, but something Kara said made him nauseous.
He doesn’t know how much time passes before there’s someone shaking him. Suddenly, his brain shuts back on.
“Ichi, are you okay?” Todo is looking at him concerned.
He looks around and notices that the other trio left. How long was he spacing out for? “Sorry, I don’t know what happened.”
The other looked ready to pry further, but ultimately decided against it. “I should probably take you home. Shifts almost over anyway. We should take one of the pastries before we leave, I doubt Choro-san will notice.”
Ichimatsu didn’t get time to argue before Todo went over to the display and chose two cake pops. The younger did all the closing, as Choro seemed to have taken off during Ichimatsu’s episode. Admittedly, he felt incredibly embarrassed. Todo didn’t seem to mind as they walked down the street.
“You know you can tell me anything, right Ichi?” He notes that the other dropped the ‘-chan.’ “You’re lucky to have me as a best friend.”
Interesting. Him and Todomatsu have never been particularly close. The only brother he would call close to him would be Jyushimatsu. He’s not opposed to Todo’s kindness, as humiliating as that was to know.
“Anything?” If it was a dream, what the hell.
“Do you really need to ask?” His friend handed him a cake pop.
“Don’t make fun of me.” Ichimatsu tried to sound serious, but his resting bitch face made anything he said sound serious.
“No promises!” That seems as good as he’s going to get.
“I think I’m dreaming.” He wasn’t expecting any silence. Then Todo let out a genuine laugh. Ichimatsu glared.
“Sorry, sorry. I’m not laughing at that, I promise.” He definitely was. “Maybe you should try pinching yourself.” It was a joke, he knew that, but the idea hadn’t crossed him.
So he did, and hard. It hurt. He wasn’t sure if that was a good or bad sign.
“Given you didn’t wake up, I would say this isn’t a dream.” That didn’t help at all, if anything, Ichimatsu was panicking again.
This wasn’t a dream? No, it had to be. There’s no way this is real. He would wake up beside his brothers like nothing happened. Todo immediately noticed Ichimatsu’s second episode, not giving him any time to spiral before offering a comforting hand on his shoulder.
“Hey, hey, breathe.” The younger breathed with him, almost rehearsed. “I don’t know if you’re serious about the whole dream thing but we can figure it out tomorrow, yeah? I’ll ask Choro-san for a shorter shift.”
Why was Todo being so kind? This was confusing him. Todo’s demeanor was completely different from Todomatsu. Reevaluating their interactions up until now, he wasn’t treating Ichimatsu like a nuisance. There was banter, but he seemed to actually care about him. What was different?
“Hello? Ichi-ch… Ichi?” Oh, he spaced out again.
“Sorry, sounds good.”
—
Getting a better look at his supposed apartment, Ichimatsu noticed how him it felt. It was clean enough to be considered livable, but messy enough to be his. There were cat toys scattered around, well-loved furniture hugged the floors, and a sense of home.
It would be home if only he had his brothers. He wasn’t going to admit it to even himself, but he was starting to miss the assholes.
Preparing for bed, Ichimatsu held onto the belief that this was only a dream. He was fully expecting to wake up in his shitty futon next to his shitty family. Sensing his distress, ESP came to cuddle up in his bed with him. At least he still had this little guy.
He’s not sure what he was expecting when he’s woken up by the same alarm as yesterday. Opening his eyes, he squinted around, still in the same stupid flat. He was going to add ‘strange God’ to his to-do list when he finally gets home from this messed up trip.
He’s getting out of bed when he hears that god forsaken noise. Buzz. Ichimatsu checks his phone.
Todo: Good news, Choro-san has granted us a four hour shift in exchange for paying his ticket this Friday.
Todo: Oso-chan will be joining us this shift. Just a heads up, I don’t want you blowing up on him. I told him to fuck off for you.
Ichi: Thanks, Todo. He better hope I don’t rip him to shreds.
Todo: LOL. You can dress casually today btw. Kara-kun is at the cafe today, not Choro-san.
Ichi: Fantastic.
Ichi: That was sarcastic. I’m not excited to see Roba-ne.
Todo: That’s the best you could do?
Ichi: It’s a work in progress.
Ichi: I’m gonna get ready. I’ll see you at the cafe.
Ichimatsu browsed his clothes this time. It was strange to have so much closet space, not to mention quality clothing. He also noticed some earrings in a drawer on the floor. Hell. Yes. This was awesome. He decided to wear a purple polo over a white graphic t-shirt with some gym shorts. Paying attention to his clothing wasn’t as exhausting as it tended to be. It probably helped that half of the closet wasn’t dedicated to Todomatsu and Karamatsu.
Ichimatsu arrived at a similar time as last, albeit a little earlier. The little ding providing a strange sense of nostalgia. Todo hadn’t arrived yet, his pink hair nowhere to be seen. Unfortunately, pastel blue hair came into view.
“Ah! Ichi, you’re here early.” Kara gave him a gentle smile. His outfit was nearly identical to yesterday, only changing to a white turtleneck and blue shorts. “I see you’re semi-back to normal today.” The older gestured to his gym shorts.
“Eh?” What the hell did that mean?
Before Ichimatsu could start a fight, a voice followed the front door. “Ichi!” He turned around to see Todo offering him a small wave. The other was sporting a similar outfit as his own, except with a pink jacket. He looked between Ichimatsu and Kara, noticing the tension. “Am I interrupting something?”
“Non, non, dear Totty.” Piss off with the English. “I’m about to open up, feel free to eat breakfast in the break room.”
The breakfast was one that Ichimatsu wasn’t expecting, it was a serve-yourself layout with a variety of foods. His stomach was groaning due to the fact he hadn’t actually eaten much of anything at all yesterday. It was while they were serving their plates that Todo broke the ice.
“So, you still think this is all a dream?”
Ichimatsu thought for a minute. “No, but if I explain what’s going on you’ll think I’m crazy.”
“I think you’re crazy anyway.” Todo smirked. “Spill the beans.”
He was getting ready to speak before someone slammed open the door. “What’s up, party people!” Oso said at a volume too loud for the morning. When Todo and Ichimatsu just stared at him, he continued. “What? Is there something on my face?”
“Oso-chan, it’s too early for that enthusiasm. Maybe wait until the rest of us have had coffee.” Or maybe don’t at all. Ichimatsu would prefer that.
“Eh? So mean, Totty!” Oso sat on the table. Did he have an obsession with sitting on everything?
“Move, shitty eldest. I’m trying to eat here.” He grumbled. He didn’t even pause to think if Oso was still the oldest here.
Oso relented and stood up. “Looks like someone’s still under the weather, cheer up Ichi-chan!” Murder was seeming more and more morally ethical.
Despite Oso irritating him every five seconds, his shift was going smoothly. Maybe if he gets back he should look into a cafe job? Eh.. Nah. Ichimatsu isn’t sure if he could keep up not being a NEET. It’s only tolerable because Todo is helping him. He’s honestly grateful in this other place that he has friends. The time passed like nothing, and it wasn’t long before he and Todo left the shop, Jyushi taking the rest of their shift.
The two stopped to eat lunch. The weather was perfect to sit outside, the sun’s heat diluted by the breeze.
“This is gonna sound insane.” Ichimatsu mumbled with a mouth full of food.
“I can’t take the suspense! Tell me what’s going on.” Todo kicked his legs.
“I think I’m in an alternate reality or something.” Todo burst out crying laughing as soon as he finished. “Shut up and listen.” Todo tried to stop, only letting out a few snickers. “My name isn’t Ichi, it’s Ichimatsu. I don’t work a job or dress this nicely. In my world our friend group are my identical brothers.”
“It’s about time I had an excuse to send you to a mental hospital.” Of course he wouldn’t believe him, this was stupid.
“I’m serious. You said I’m acting strange, what if I’m not the same person?”
“Or you’re having a psychotic break.” He was really losing his patience. Ichimatsu got up, fully ready to leave. “Wait! Wait.” He sat back down. “Okay, say this is true.”
“You believe me?” Maybe Todo was insane too.
“Why not? This wouldn’t be the weirdest thing to happen to our little group.” Oh? Ichimatsu raised his eyebrows. “Ah, right, you wouldn’t know. Strange things happen to us six all the time. In high school, there was this dumb science fair. Oso-chan’s project exploded on him and he was completely fine. He should’ve been blown to bits, but you saw him walking and talking. That’s only one of many.”
Interesting to know that their main character plot armor continues across realities. Ichimatsu giggled at this. “The problem is, I have no idea how I got here.”
“Hm, what do you remember before?”
What did he remember? “I went to feed the cats, the usual stuff. Not anything crazy. I went to sleep.”
“When was this?”
“Two days ago.”
“No, I know that!” Todo pouted. “The date, silly!”
“Oh.” It was April, wasn’t it? “April 3rd, I think.”
“Are you sure?” Ichimatsu glared. Obviously, he was sure. “Okay okay! I’m just saying, that’s weird.” What isn’t weird about this? “Today's date is April 1st.”
That can’t be right. He’s not sure about the rules of time and stuff, but why would he not only be in a different reality but also a different date? It shouldn’t have been far fetched, but it settled in his gut uneasily.
“Hey, you’re going off again.” Oh, he was. “You really can’t remember anything unusual?” Ichimatsu shook his head. “O. M. G. This is perfect!”
“What?”
“We have a mystery on our hands!” Todo looked way too excited about this. “This is thrilling, a mystery on a time cap.”
“Time cap?” This wasn’t making a lot of sense.
“Well, we should probably solve it before April 3rd, no? We don’t know what will happen if you’re still here past that. Plus, this Friday is the firework show and Ichi-chan will be sad if he misses it.” The rest of Todo’s sentence faded out. Fireworks? Why was he so stuck on these fireworks? “Hey, Ichimatsu! You’re lost again!”
Oh, right. “Sorry. So we have two days to solve this? Fantastic. With the two of us we might solve it by Christmas.”
“Who said it was just us two?”
—
Todo’s apartment was much nicer than Ichi’s. It was decorated head to toe in pinks, whites, and beige. Despite this, there was evidence that Ichi was here often, if his purple belongings spread about were anything. Seems like they were best friends after all.
“Everyone, take your seats!” Todo said.
The six sat on the white couch. Todo told the rest that there was an emergency, and to call in someone to take their shifts. Ichimatsu was sweating buckets in anxiety. What if this was a disaster? He apologizes to Todo’s pristine couch silently for ruining it with his filth. The youngest turns on his TV, with a prepared slideshow in advance.
“First things first! I have called you all here today because we have an emergency on our hands.”
“Yeah, we got your message. We know why we’re here.” Choro was impatient, this did not sound anything like an emergency.
“Be quiet! I’m talking!” Choro didn’t open his mouth again. Todo pressed to the next slide. “Our dear friend Ichi-chan is in trouble!” They looked towards Ichimatsu. Todo pressed the next button. “Not him! Our Ichi-chan has been replaced with an alternate reality Ichi.” A series of gasps. Todo clicks the button again. “His name is Ichimatsu, and he doesn’t know how he got here. Our job is to solve this mystery before Friday.”
“Are we sure Ichi-chan hasn’t just finally lost his mind?” Oso spoke out. The others agreed.
“Come on guys! This wouldn’t be out of our ballpark, yeah?”
“Look, Todo-kun.” Choro stood up. “We know you try to see the best in Ichi-chan, and that’s great, someone has to. But I’m just not sure if you should be feeding into his delusions.”
Todo went still. “This isn’t another delusion!” Another? What were they talking about? “Choro-san, do you remember our first year after graduation?”
“Yes? What does that have to do with this?”
“We solved your dads murder together.” Holy shit? “Remember his ghost? You could say that was a collective hallucination, but we all know that’s not true. Strange things happen to us all the time, why is this any different?”
The room fell silent. Until Jyushi stood up, but not to leave. “I'll help! I believe you, Todo-kun and Ichimatsu-san!”
Kara stood up too. “What kind of friend would I be if I left dear Ichi-chan alone? Heh. Count me in.”
Oso joined them. “As long as I don’t have to work, what’s the harm?”
Choro looked astounded. “Are you all crazy?! I’m not participating in this. Tell me when you all gain some sense.” He stormed out of the flat, slamming the door.
The air was left tense. “Eh, forget him guys. Leaf juice has always been snobby.” Oso rubbed the underside of his nose with his index finger. “So, your name is Ichimatsu?”
Ichimatsu nodded. “Ichimatsu Matsuno.”
“That’s a little redundant. Kind of a stupid name.” He had to semi agree. “Tell us about yourself and we’ll go from there.”
Explaining his life was nerve wracking. At any point he could mention something too far, something that would scare them away. He must have sounded insane. Maybe he was insane and was making this shit up. He wouldn’t be surprised.
“Wow! So we’re all brothers?” Jyushi rocked back and forth.
“Yes. Identical brothers.”
“Fantastic!” Even this Kara was insistent on speaking in English. “I’ve never had any siblings. How beautiful it is to see that I'm related to such wonderful friends.”
Wonderful was a huge overstatement. Pathetic worthless trash seemed closer to how Ichimatsu would describe his brothers.
“Well that cleared up nothing.” The eldest said. “Now we know nothing and everything about you! There’s no hints to how you got here, for all we know, this could have just happened.” He slumped onto the table.
“Maybe we’re looking in the wrong Ichi.” Oso giggled at Todo’s wording. “Shut up. I mean in his mind. We should search his apartment, he might have left behind something.” Todo looked out the window. “Not today though, it's getting late. I’ll walk you home, Ichimatsu-san.”
—
They stopped at other his flat’s door. Usually, Ichimatsu would be glad to finally get to sleep. Tonight, he’s not sure he wanted to, he had something itching at his skin.
“Todo?” He turned around. The younger one let out a hm. “Thank you.”
“For what?” Todo tilted his head. He did that a lot.
This was mortifying. Ichimatsu isn’t sure he could sleep well without telling him what’s on his mind. He rationalized by telling himself that Todo wouldn’t ever see him again after Thursday. “I dunno. For you being my friend, the others too.”
Todo didn’t say anything at first. He seemed to actually think on what to say. “Ichimatsu-san, do we suck as brothers?”
Where did that come from? “What?”
“You’re thanking me for being your friend. Isn’t that kind of messed up? You obviously care about your brothers. But why would you have to be grateful for someone picking you up at your weakest if this was a normal situation?” Todo had a point.
Truthfully, he doesn’t think that his brothers suck. “You guys don’t suck. If anything I’m the terrible brother.”
This time, Todo didn’t hesitate to answer. “I doubt that. Obviously I’ve only known you for two days, so I can’t say for certain. I know my Ichi though, and you’re so much like him. I can’t ever imagine him thanking me. Not in a bad way, he just knows he doesn’t owe me anything back.”
Why did that make him want to cry? It wasn’t his life. This shouldn’t be affecting him. This could still be a dream, it was everything Ichimatsu wanted to hear from his own brothers. It was too good to be true.
“Don’t even start thinking about all that.” How did he know? “I know your face, silly. Ichi-chan is like an older brother to me. I can’t speak for your reality, but I’m sure your Todomatsu cares about you a lot. He is me, after all. Your other brothers too, even if they seem like shit at showing it.”
Ichimatsu found himself smiling.
“There’s that smile!” Todo smiled back. “We’ll get you back so you can give those stupid NEETs an earful. Goodnight, Ichimatsu-san.”
“Todo-kun?” The other looked surprised. Ichimatsu hadn’t used such a friendly honorific on him. “You don’t have to call me san, we’re best friends, yeah?”
“Yeah.”
Ichimatsu fed ESP before dragging himself into bed. He didn’t feel like changing clothes. Not to say he felt bad, no, he was actually doing okay for once. But talking to any reality version of his brothers was rightfully exhausting. Tomorrow he would be home anyway. For once it didn’t feel like he was lying to himself.
—
Ichimatsu is learning a lot about himself. Namely, he hates alarms. That shouldn’t be a surprise, a NEET doesn’t need an alarm. They wake up whenever they want. He just never put much mind to it.
Buzz.
Todo: Morning Ichimatsu! Wear a sweater today. It’ll be cold today, plus we’ll all match. Just like brothers!
Ichi: You are way too excited about this brother thing. Are you a single child?
Todo: LOL. Yes, I am. All of our friends are. Ichi is too. It’s cool to imagine that we’re friends by destiny, yk?
Todo: Like, what are the odds that all six of us just so happen to be brothers in another universe? Freaky.
Todo: I’m rambling. Meet us all at the cafe entrance by 10:00.
Ichi: K.
If you were to ask Ichimatsu why he was reaching for the purple sweater in his closet, he would tell you it was just a coincidence. He didn’t think anything of it, and certainly didn’t think of his brothers as he put it on. Sentimental things like that were above trash like him.
It’s the walk to the cafe that he runs into someone else. He’s texting Todo that he’ll be there soon when his side crashes into Choro. Funnily enough, the other is wearing a green sweater. He looks about ready to run off.
Ichimatsu feels guilty. He’s unsure why, it’s not like he did anything wrong. Well, besides be himself. But his Choromatsu would’ve put aside whatever happened yesterday by now.
“Wait.” Was that himself speaking? He froze. His throat hurt. How was he going to push the words he wanted out of his mouth? The world was feeling small.
“Ichimatsu-san?” That brought him back. Choro called him by his name.
“I’m sorry about yesterday.” He meant it. “It sounds like Ichi has some issues, I didn’t know about them. It must have really stressed you out thinking he was relapsing.”
Choro suddenly burst into tears. “No, I’m sorry! I was being such a dick.” He hugged Ichimatsu. Gross. “I believe you. It just really sucks that Ichi-chan is gone.” Reluctantly, he patted the older’s back. This was getting way too mushy for him.
“Right, yeah, uh.” Ichimatsu pushed him away slowly. “Todo-kun has a plan, so. You should come along.”
The two walked until the other four came into view. Todo waved at them and ran over.
“Choro-san!” They hugged, then joined the group.
“I thought we were searching Ichi’s apartment, why did we meet up at the cafe?” Oso asked.
“I’m glad you asked!” He smirked. “It hit me last night. Ichi-chan couldn’t have noticed anything strange. How do I know, you ask? He’s my best friend and basically my brother. I would know if he was hiding something.”
“You don’t know that for sure.” Oso crossed his arms and leaned against the cafe wall.
“Oh, but I do! Ichi-chan was at my apartment the day before the switch. He drank a bit, but definitely not enough to be blitzed. I usually walk him home when he leaves, but that night I didn’t. He texts me when he gets home. Do you get it now?”
Silence.
“Seriously? It means that Ichi-chan never made it to his apartment. Something must have happened.”
“Todo-kun, that’s great but that doesn’t help. There wasn’t anything strange on the news Sunday.” Todo raised his brow to Choro. “Shut up, I checked the news last night, okay?”
“You’re right, but what if no one saw it? Ichi must have taken a different route to his apartment. The alley maze.” This caused a huge jump in everyone but Ichimatsu.
“No. He wouldn’t!” Choro declared.
“Think about it! The road was blocked off that night to prepare for the fireworks. Not to mention, every time I say the word, Ichimatsu spaces off. See? He’s doing it right now!” Todo shook him. Oh. Yeah. He forgot about that. “I think it’s connected, it’s got to be. There’s six of us, we can handle some dumb alleys.”
That didn’t seem to ease the tension in the group. There must be something Ichimatsu is missing. He guesses he’s about to find out, because none of them protest.
—
The group had to have been overreacting. They were half way to Ichi’s apartment and nothing strange happened. Ichimatsu is supposed to be the overly anxious one, not the other five.
“We should go back.” Whispered Choro.
“Stop being a pussy, Choro!” Todo led the group down the narrow passageways. “We’ve survived worse, this is child’s play.”
“You know that’s the name of a horror movie right? You’re literally leading us into one!” Choro stomped his foot.
“Shhh! I hear something.” They all listened carefully, slowly turning the corner.
Until something crashed ahead of them. Choro jumped into the arms of Kara, making a screech. The others were still in fear. The source of the noise; just a cat.
“Heh. You guys are scared of a little kitty?” Ichimatsu went forward to pet the cat, noticing something in the far of his eye. “Hey, look at this.”
The alley could have passed for normal, given how dark the shadows of the buildings casted. However, if you looked closely, you would notice the absolute glitter bomb that must have set off here.
“It looks like Roba-ne barfed everywhere.” He giggled slightly.
“Does not!” The painful friend protested.
Todo walked forward and crouched down, dragging his finger across the ground. He sniffs it before tasting it. Gross. The youngest shares the same sentiment, judging by his face and trying to spit it out. “This is definitely related to you, Ichimatsu. This is still a ways from Ichi’s flat though, don't you remember walking there?”
He shook his head. His first memory was waking up in the strange place. “Ah. I woke up with a headache.”
“What if..” They turn to Choro. “What if Ichi never left?”
“What are you saying?” Jyushi asked, face still like stone.
“Okay, so we know that Ichimatsu is in this reality, but he’s also in Ichi’s body. We don’t know for sure that Ichi is gone, what if last night, Ichimatsu ‘jumped’ into our friend's body.” They all listened carefully. “What if Ichi didn’t get pushed out but instead when he was sleeping, went ‘dormant’?”
It was ridiculous. It was impossible. Yet it was perfectly plausible.
“Okay, aside from the absolute exposition bomb we all just got, this doesn’t help us get Ichimatsu-san back home.” Oso was right.
They sat there in silence for a while. Ichimatsu isn’t sure how long. After what felt like hours of mulling, Todo jumped.
“Bingo!” Was this another ah-ha moment? Wasn’t this getting old? “Ichimatsu last remembers Thursday, it’s so clear! This Friday is the firework show, it’s a tradition here and it happens every year.” The mentioned brother tried to fight spacing out again. That damned word was putting him through the ringer. “Every time we bring it up, it triggers Ichimatsu. Something must have happened and he never got to Friday.”
It made sense. That had to be it, but. “How do we get me back to my reality?”
“I’m not sure.” Todo deflated. “I could do some web surfing, if anyone knows how to do everything, it’s the internet. We meet up tomorrow at this spot, same time.”
Todo had such confidence in his spotty plan, that Ichimatsu couldn’t help but believe it’ll be alright.
—
Todo: You get home ok?
Todo: Not about to make the same mistake twice, LOL.
Ichi: Yeah. I’m doing well, about to sleep.
Todo: That’s good.
Todo: Goodnight, Ichimatsu-niisan. :3
Ichimatsu couldn’t stop the smile from his face. He missed his brothers.
Ichi: Night, Todo-kun.