“Sha Gojyo.”
Upon hearing his name, the redhead put the empty shot glass down and halfway turned to see who it was who said his name. The sight of his shut-eyed enemy had Gojyo jumping to his feet in a fight stance, stool scraping back. Out of habit he almost summoned his shakujou but remembered last second this was not the place. Even if the dim bar was currently a ghost town.
“It was Shin, right?” Gojyo asked, knowing damn well he had the name wrong - if that minute eyebrow twitch was any indication.
“Zenon is dead.” Shien cut right to the chase, not wanting to indulge the hanyou’s antics.
If Gojyo had still been holding the shot glass, it would’ve slipped from his grip and shattered on the floor. Funny, he kinda felt like his heart had done just that. His chest so tight it was a struggle to breathe.
Shien stood there and calmly observed the way the hanyou immediately looked shocked and devastated. It confirmed all his suspicions that Zenon had been denying for months.
“How?” Gojyo choked out, trying desperately to reign in his emotions in case he needed to fight.
“He was killed for his betrayal.” Shien was as stone faced as any wall. Unreadable as ever.
“What?!” Gojyo clenched his fists, nails sharply biting into flesh. It was as if someone set a match to his insides, the rage rapid and all consuming. “He was your fucking friend!”
The hanyou lunged towards the other but in the blink of an eye found himself immobile, bound tightly by a whip and pinned against the cold bar. A sharp pain shot along his spine as Shien pulled his head back by the hair.
“Yes, he is. But if you keep seeing him then he will end up truly dead.” Shien leaned in closer to whisper threateningly. “End it before it’s too late.”
With that, Shien released the redhead and was gone.
Left shaken and confused, Gojyo heavily sank back on the bar stool and tried to process. So... Zenon was still alive, right? Why did that shitty bastard lie to him then? Cursing the fallen god under his breath he ran a hand through his hair and called the bar tender over to order some hard liquor. His chest still ached, the fear sitting heavy in his gut. He quickly lit a cig and took a deep inhale.
Dismissing the shithead’s warning, for now at least, Gojyo pulled out his phone with a shaky hand and quickly sent a text to the ginger.
[Porcupine] - Plz get to bar ASAP
He needed to see with his own two eyes that Zenon was ok.
“So what’s got your panties in a twist this time, Princess?”
At the oh-so-familiar smart-ass tone, Gojyo’s heart sped up at the same time immense relief flooded his body. Slamming back the booze quick and hard, the hanyou hastily stood and turned to fully assess the ginger with his own two eyes.
Clueless, Zenon stood there in all his smug glory.
Before Gojyo knew what he was doing he closed the distance between them and embraced Zenon. He was alive.
