He raised an eyebrow with a smile, his greyish-purple eyes appearing even more brilliant under the sunlight, the smile at the corner of his mouth seemed even more radiant: "Ms. Hashimoto lives nearby. I guess if you have nothing else to do, you'll at least make some arrangements for him."
But—" Amuro Tooru drew out his words, his hands in his pockets, his tone carrying a hint of a smirk: "I didn't expect you to come straight here.
Gin: ".."
He gave a soft click of his tongue and looked away, remaining noncommittal.
“Would you like to go grab some coffee?” Amuro Tooru casually dropped the previous topic, walking side by side with Gin as he made the invitation with apparent nonchalance.
Gin turned his head silently, his silver hair swaying slightly in the air, his gaze meeting the face of the blonde-haired youth.
Amuro Tooru still maintained a clean and bright appearance, looking nothing like a twenty-nine-year-old man—if one were to say he was in his early twenties, many people would likely believe it.
Perhaps due to consecutive days of exhaustion, Amuro Tooru, who had just stepped off the yacht, had a trace of fatigue in his complexion. Although it was not obvious, Gin could still see a faint darkness beneath his eyes.
His lip color seemed somewhat pale.
Perhaps.. part of her exhaustion stems from worry?
“You work at Poirot, right?” After asking a question that could be considered a rhetorical one, Gin shook her head directly. “Forget it, I've already had coffee.”
He gave a light chuckle and offered another option: "Do you want to go for a drink?"
..
You brought me here to drink?" Amuro Tooru stood at the Entrance, his eyes scanning the decorations inside as he turned his head to ask, "Isn't this your home?
Yeah." Gin gave a faint, affirmative reply, his tone filled with the laziness of someone asking a question they already knew the answer to: "Didn't you come here before?
His green eyes swept over slightly as Gin gave a hint: "When you were delivering takeout before."
Amuro Tooru: "……"
So—" the Blonde-haired Public Security elite asked, "What did you bring me here for?
He stared fixedly at Gin's back and tested the waters, "It wouldn't be like when we were on a mission in Phoenix City before, would it?"
When they went to Phoenix City one year ago, it was during a heavy downpour.
The heavy rain continued for three whole days. Gin was unwilling to go out, so they could only survive on the pitiful few belongings they had in the Safe House.
—Until Amuro Tooru could no longer stand it and went out to shop.
"Just so we're clear, don't think you can brush me off with a Bourbon Cola this time," Amuro Tooru said with a serious expression.
It just seemed as though he had thought of something interesting because of it; as he spoke, a hint of a smile was hidden in his eyes.
Don't worry, it won't happen.
Gin walked straight into the room without even taking off his shoes.
“The Black Organization will find this place soon. I need to organize the things I need to take and then head to a Safe House,” Gin explained simply, but he did not reveal the address of her Safe House.
"So.. you don't plan to—" Amuro Tooru didn't finish his sentence, but Gin already understood what he meant.
Right, I'm not going to continue with the Faking death plan.
The Silver-haired man was not surprised that Amuro Tooru would guess his "faking death." After all, seeing him appear in Tokyo completely unharmed—and seemingly even earlier than they did—even an idiot could figure out something was wrong.
Amuro Tooru was no fool.
Sheila had also asked this question just now, Gin did not mind explaining it once more: "The plan has already been disrupted, I have no intention of 'dying at all costs,' so there is no need to continue."
The blonde-haired youth seemed to breathe a sigh of relief.
Gin blinked blankly, feeling somewhat confused by Amuro Tooru's reaction.
He stared fixedly at the blonde-haired youth, then averted his gaze under the other's innocent stare, giving up on investigating further.
Take a rest for a while." Gin looked toward the sofa with an indifferent gaze, lifting his chin slightly. "Once I've finished tidying up, we'll go to the Bar.
The Blonde-haired youth raised his eyebrows, his greyish-purple eyes gazing at him.
Gin met his gaze unflinchingly.
After a long time, Amuro Tooru was the first to look away, answering with a light laugh, "Okay."
..
When Amuro Tooru woke up, it was already night.
He first blinked his eyes blankly, staring vacantly at the ceiling in the heavy darkness of the living room for a while before he finally snapped out of his daze.
After getting some rest, his mind became much clearer. Once he was fully awake, Amuro Tooru sat up from the sofa and turned his head to look around, but he could not find the Silver-haired man in the living room.
There was only a Black suitcase that had already been packed, sitting by the Entrance.
The blonde-haired youth frowned slightly.
However, before he could react, he heard the sound of a door opening behind him.
The Silver-haired man walked out of the study, in the dimness, Gin's expression was indistinct.
The moment his gaze swept toward Amuro Tooru, he raised an eyebrow slightly. "You're awake?"
Yeah.
Gin raised his hand and pressed the light button beside him. The bright light instantly illuminated the entire living room, causing the blonde-haired youth, who had only just grown accustomed to the dimness of the living room, to squint uncomfortably.
Once Amuro Tooru had gradually adjusted, he saw that Gin was already standing before him.
"Let's go," the Silver-haired man said, his voice low and mellow, with a slight rasp.
Amuro Tooru nodded silently.
The bar that Gin took Amuro Tooru to was called Lemon Bar.
This bar has been open for a long time, its scale has been gradually expanding.
For various reasons, its customers rarely see any Organization member, with only a few Cadre who were regulars still visiting once or twice occasionally.
It's hard to say whether it was nostalgia or something else entirely.
The Bartender at the Bar has been replaced; it is said the previous one took leave to return to his hometown. The new Bartender is about thirty or forty years old, standing quietly behind the Bar while bartending, skillfully shaking the Shaker.
Perhaps because it was a workday, there weren't many customers in the Bar today—though, of course, there weren't few either.
Gin and Amuro Tooru exchanged a glance and sat down in a relatively secluded corner.
The sense of disorientation caused by how much things had changed left Gin dazed for a moment, his abnormality did not escape Amuro Tooru's eyes.
"You used to.. come here often?" Amuro Tooru guessed, his tone very calm.
His calmness was completely out of place amidst the boisterous noise of the Bar.
On the stage not far away, the resident bar band was singing a popular recent song with passion, drawing a burst of cheers from the audience.
Gin's voice sounded even more cold and detached amidst such a lively atmosphere:
Not very often..
He recalled while wearing a half-smile, "How much did Vermouth tell you?"
Amuro Tooru's smile stiffened as he attempted to change the subject, "Why do you ask so suddenly?"
Gin gave a light chuckle. "Don't worry, I won't make things difficult for you."
His green eyes were cold, shining beautifully under the multicolored neon lights of the Bar: "It's just that I must settle the score with her.."
Even so, there seemed to be no anger in Gin's tone.
Amuro Tooru shot a tentative glance at Gin, as if trying to determine whether his expression was the calm before the storm.
Actually, it's not that much—
While Amuro Tooru was still hesitating, not wanting to sell out his teammate too quickly, Gin had already signaled the Bartender.
The Silver-haired man ordered a Gin, asked for a relatively common brand, then chose his preferred one before turning his gaze toward Amuro Tooru.
“It's fine..” He interrupted the blonde-haired youth's train of thought nonchalantly, a slight smile appearing on his lips. "We can take our time."
-----------------------
Author's Note: Two-in-one
The previous chapter concluded Qinnai's family storyline, the two of them had another exchange.. These two chapters are more slice-of-life, serving as a transition after all the previous events have concluded, because after this.. cough, cough.
There should be an update tomorrow as well.
..
Thanks to Jiye Qianchen Little Angel for the landmine, love you mwah~
Thanks to the Little Angel who provided [Nutrient solution]:
Lin Yang 26 bottles; Xue Ling 10 bottles;
Thank you all very much for your support, I will continue to work hard!
Chapter 190: Chapter 173 You didn't actually have to say it out loud.
But in the end, Gin did not dwell on this topic for long.
Although this move by Vermouth was truly unexpected, Gin knew that this woman still knew her limits.
From Amuro Tooru's words, the silver-haired man could more or less reconstruct some of the information Vermouth had revealed, this was also the reason he could stay in the Bar to drink in peace.
The transparent glass cup was filled with colorless liquid, refracting the multicolored glimmer of the Bar's neon lights, looking at first glance as if it held shattered starlight.
Gin's hand holding the wine glass tilted slightly, the round ice in the wine glass bumped against the glass wall, letting out a faint 'ding'. Amidst the shifting, dappled light and shadow, a subtle scent of Juniper spread through the air.
The Silver-haired man took a small sip of the liquor; the cool, refreshing temperature blended perfectly with the mellow, slightly bitter taste, playing a symphony belonging solely to 'Gin' upon his palate.
He set down the wine glass and turned his gaze toward Amuro Tooru.
Beside the blonde-haired man was a glass of amber Bourbon Whisky. As expected, ice cubes had also been added to the liquid.
As Amuro Tooru moved, ice cubes bobbed and swayed in the light-colored liquor, reflecting beautiful light and shadows under the light.
For some reason, this scene suddenly touched Gin. Perhaps it was the exhaustion from several consecutive days, or perhaps it was a nostalgia for Time that could never be returned to, the Silver-haired man suddenly spoke, his words unusually abrupt: "I once drank here with Heine, Cavendish, the others."
The words were spoken without any context, prompting Amuro Tooru to cast a surprised glance toward him.
Perhaps it was because Gin spoke with such a calm tone, or perhaps it was because there was a rare hint of softness in the Silver-haired man's gaze; amidst the bustling crowd, his words sounded like a simple, straightforward statement.