INT - ERION'S ROOM
NEXT MORNING
The vibration from his watch woke him—it always did.
The alarm was set for 5:30 a.m., just an hour before Evah usually stirred.
Erion sat up, the vibration fading as his wrist tilted. His eyes blinked open to a sight he didn't expect—
a woman in a t-shirt and pajama pants, clutching a tablet and pen, staring at him like she'd just seen a ghost.
Her expression was more shocked than his.
"You're supposed to be asleep," Erion muttered, his gaze fixed on her.
Feeling the familiar weight of the sheets under him, he had a hunch about what had happened.
"Ah—" Evah's eyes darted everywhere but him. "I just… went to the bathroom. I was about to sleep again."
She turned to leave, but Erion caught her wrist before she could escape.
"You don't have to try that hard," he said, voice low, the corner of his lips twitching. "You're too obvious."
Evah pulled her hand back, frustration twisting her face. She opened her mouth—but no words came out.
He sighed, scanning the room quickly. I miscalculated, he thought.
"Are you alright?" he asked.
She nodded, eyes downcast.
"You should sleep," he said, rising from the bed. Realizing her wrist from his grasp. He moved toward the closet, his tone casual.
"No way!" she shot back immediately.
"I bet you didn't sleep a second, made me a guinea pig" he teased, pulling a shirt from the hanger. "Probably just stared at me all night."
No response. He didn't need to turn around to picture her face—defensive, guilty, maybe pouting a little.
Typical Evah. Probably ran an experiment the moment he collapsed.
"I'll be heading to work. Just sleep, then attend your classes later."
He slung the shirt over his arm and headed to the bathroom.
As he turned the cold knob and pushed the door open, a voice stopped him.
"Do you… do that every day?"
He paused, glancing over his shoulder. Her voice was soft—too soft. Vulnerable.
Something he didn't like hearing.
"I'm fine, Bunny."
Her head snapped up.
"You should have told me!"
Erion stepped inside and shut the door, but her footsteps followed, stopping just outside.
"You should have told me so I could wait for you every night!" Her voice rose, muffled through the door.
Erion stared at his reflection in the fogged mirror.
"Are you listening?!" she yelled again, knocking once.
He peeled off his shirt and tossed it into the laundry bin.
"I told you—I'm fine," he repeated calmly.
"It's not fine!" she fired back, her voice shaking. "What if something happened to you? What if you collapsed in the elevator—or worse, if those people after you found you like that?!"
Erion chuckled quietly. Being scolded by her was… oddly entertaining.
"Listen—" she started again, more determined. "We can set something up! I can wait for you every night, just to make sure you shut down safely, or maybe I can—"
The door cracked open just an inch.
"What?" she froze, stepping back. Surprised.
Erion's smirk peeked through the small gap. "You know, Bunny… you're being a little too obvious."
"What?!" Her voice pitched higher.
"Do you like me that much, huh?"
"No way!" she yelled, face flushed red.
He could tell it wasn't a blush—it was fury.
Somehow, that made it twice as entertaining.
"Really?" He pushed the door open another inch, clearly enjoying himself.
"I'm just concerned!" she snapped.
"Cool." His grin deepened. "Now shut up—or one more word and I'll pull you inside."
A loud bang of the door echoed through the pad.
And that was the last thing Evah heard.
DAY TWO — CLASSROOM
The next thought in her mind was anger.
Anger at Erion—and irritation at how he could twist serious things into jokes so easily.
The whiteboard was still blank as students filed into the room. Evah sat in the front row, as always—the best seat for focus.
But even the excitement for today's class couldn't erase her frustration.
Half-naked, peeking through the bathroom door, he had said "Shut up" to her.
"I was just trying to help," she muttered under her breath. "What's his deal?"
Her fingers tapped against the desk as the memory replayed again and again.
Then Doctor Riko's voice echoed in her head:
"Just… try to be there for him. He hates being pitied, so make it seem like it's nothing."
Were the doctor's words even true? she wondered.
Of course they were, she told herself immediately. The doctor wouldn't lie.
A man in a lab coat entered the room—it was the next facilitator. Evah pulled out her laptop and sighed.
Focus, she reminded herself.
But Erion's face lingered in her mind. His exhaustion. His stubbornness. His silence.
And the truth was—
the sight of him sleeping still scared her, deep down.
Because ever since that night, it never looked peaceful.
Only fragile.