Riku's Apartment – 2:03 A.M.
It begins… as most nightmares do…
With a growl.
Riku's stomach lets out a sound so primal it could legally be classified as a death threat.
He blinks awake, groggy, hair pointing in three directions. He shuffles to the kitchen in a daze, opens the fridge—
Empty.
No rice.
No noodles.
No anything except a suspiciously lonely packet of wasabi and a note that says:
"Thanks for the midnight snack! <3 – Yuki"
Riku stares at it. Blank. Soulless. One eye twitches.
Riku (irritated, dead inside): "...You ate everything"
Yuki, floating above in the ceiling like a lazy jellyfish, blissfully rubbing her full belly.
Yuki: "Mmm~ ghosts don't need to eat... but that pudding was spiritual. Teehee"
Riku: "You come here, I'll spiritually stuff you into a toaster and make toast out of you."
Riku's stomach growls....
Riku: "Ahhh I'm hungry don't even have energy to fight"
2:10 A.M. – Quest Begins
Riku slides on his slippers. Grab a hoodie, grabs his phone. Eyes half-closed , he heads out into the Tokyo night to the Convenience Store
As he is walking, he yawns as if his soul is leaving instead of sleep.
He opens his phone and start watching reels,
Reel: "IF YOU'RE HUNGRY FOR SUCCESS—"
Riku: "I'm just hungry for bread, man…"
Shuts the phone and start walking.
2: 20 A.M. - At Big Mart
After walking a while he reaches Big Mart,
The automatic doors don't open all the way. Riku has to shimmy through sideways like a crab.
Clean shelves. Snacks everywhere—chips, candy, onigiri. A cooler hums. Full of drinks. The cashier, a guy with bags under his eyes deeper than Riku's bank account, doesn't look up from his phone.
Riku sighs.
"Let's get Food and get this over with"
Riku roams around grabbing things in his trolly.
Yuki out of nowhere, floating beside him with a half-eaten bag of shrimp chips in her mouth.
Yuki (mouth full): "Yo. Towk yo log enOugH."
Riku: "How are you even here? and speak when u have nothing in that big mouth"
Yuki (after swallowing): "Ghost perks. Also, I got bored."
Riku glares. Pushes his trolley. "Bored? Go haunt a dumpster. Leave my snacks alone."
Yuki floats closer. Grins. "Nah. You're my vibe." She grabs a candy bar. Tosses it in his trolley. "Buy this. It's good."
"No!" Riku snaps. Throws it back on the shelf. "I'm broke. Thanks to you." His stomach growls. Loud.
Yuki laughs. "Hangry Riku! Cute." She munches more chips. Crumbs fall. On his hoodie.
Riku(One eye twitched): "You need to stop it already."
Cashier looking at Riku as if he is judging him. "Ahem"
Riku embarrassed gets silence moving along to shop..
Riku (grabbing a cup ramen): "You know you owe me like… seven meals at this point."
Yuki: "Pfft. You should thank me. I'm keeping you skinny."
Riku: "I'm starving, not skinny. There's a difference."
He throws a rice ball into his basket. Yuki immediately floats over and swaps it out for a spicier one.
Yuki: "Get the spicy one. Let's see if your soul can leave your body before the ghost does."
"No!" Riku snaps. Throws it back on the shelf. "I'm broke. Thanks to you." His stomach growls. Loud.
Tuna. Cheap. Adds instant noodles. One pack. Budget life.
Yuki zips ahead. To the drink cooler. "Cola!" she says. Points. "Get cola. Fizzy fun."
"You don't drink!" Riku says. Keeps walking. "Stop picking my stuff."
Yuki pouts. "Mean." Drops a gummy pack in his trolley. Sneaky.
Riku groans. Spots it. Throws it out. "No candy!" Pushes toward the counter.
Yuki follows. Hovers. "You're no fun." Knocks a chip bag off a shelf. "Oops."
Riku dives. Catches it. "Stop that!" he hisses.
Cashier (finally looks up, squinting):"…Sir. Are you… okay?"
Riku (exhausted):"Define okay."
Cashier:"You've been arguing with the candy aisle for like five minutes."
Riku (dead inside):"I have a complicated relationship with sugar."
Yuki's behind him, making faces. She floats a bag of gummies toward the trolley.
Riku (snatching it mid-air):"Stop that."
Cashier (confused and slightly scared):"…Sir. There's… no one else there."
Riku (laughs awkwardly):"Oh, right. Haha. Just talking to… um… my hunger. Yeah. My crippling, chatty hunger."
Cashier (slowly reaching for a panic button):"Riiight…"
Yuki pokes her head out of the freezer. Has a popsicle in her mouth.
Yuki (cheerfully):"Tell him I said hi!"
Riku (whispers):"I will exorcise you with garlic bread."
At checkout:
Riku slaps his stuff on the counter. Cup ramen. Onigiri. One sad tuna can. No joy, only budget.
Cashier (ringing up):"You sure you don't want candy? Or a pudding? You looked… passionate about them."
Riku (tired):"I've made peace with my inner demons."
Yuki (floating above with chip crumbs raining down):"Liar."
The automatic doors beep as Riku walks out.
Yuki follows upside down like a spooky balloon.
Yuki:"Hey, if you died, would you haunting with me?"
Riku (deadpan):"No. I'd go to hell. Less snacks, but fewer yous."
Yuki:"Aww. You do care."
.
.
.
.
Scene: Riku walking out of the store, bag of food in hand, Yuki floating above like a lazy cloud.
Riku (sighs):"At least I got food… sorta."
Yuki (grinning):"Hey, hey, Riku."
Riku (without looking):"What now?"
Yuki (spinning mid-air):"Happy New Year, dummy."
Riku (blinks):"Oh. Right. 2082 already…"
Yuki:"You survived another year of me! Congrats!"finger guns with sparkles
Riku (grumbles):"That's not something to be proud of…"
Yuki (cheeky):"Anyway~ to everyone watching—HAPPY NEW YEAR 2082!! 🎉"
Riku (reluctantly, mutters):"…Yeah. Happy New Year, I guess."
Yuki (teasing):"Awww, he does care."
"Thanks to everyone who wanted this lil Riku & Yuki chapter 🖤 See you in the next chaos. Keep Watching"