Tsukishiro Yukito skipped off toward the kitchen, filling a plate with the ingredients for a shougayaki. He hummed softly to himself as he chopped the cabbage, then headed back to put it on the grill. Across the shop, he could see his coworker Touya flipping food on the grill in front of another set of customers. Meeting the man's eyes for a second, Yukito smiled, then turned back to chatting small talk with the customer.
Moving back to the kitchen after a few minutes, he could overhear bits of a conversation from another table. Right outside my door today... neighborhood's really gone downhill... think of the kids... Yuki's serene face slipped to a small frown. It seemed there had been more and more gang activity on the streets lately, and it was even starting to affect the number of customers. Nobody had minded the gangs that much in the past, as they fought among themselves to prove who had the strongest kudan, but this new group that had shown up recently seemed to be more ruthless and reckless than the rest, and didn't seem to mind who or what they involved. It was making some minds worry.
Putting those thoughts aside, Yukito kept heading toward the kitchen, though he paused to catch a glance at his coworker. The taller man's back was turned, as Yukito's eyes travelled briefly over his broad shoulders. They were childhood friends, high school classmates, and now college roommates - as close as any two people could ever be. But Yuki wondered for a moment if the dark-haired man would ever know how he truly felt. He didn't have time to ponder it as another customer had come and taken a seat.
"Hey, can I get a green tea and a pork-and-egg over here!?"
"Hai, hai! Coming right up!"
