｢Chapter 5: Whispers In The Dark」
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Back in the dorms, Jason washed Rei's hair.
Once he was done drying it, he dressed her in a cute pink nightwear set and carried her to the dinner table, where Oscar had just finished setting down their bowls of udon.
"Wow, smells nice," Jason commented as he sat down with Rei on his lap.
"Open up," he said, feeding the sleepy girl. Barely awake, she kept missing the spoon, biting at the air twice before finding it.
When they finished eating, Oscar carried Rei to bed while Jason handled the dishes.
"Do you want a bedtime story? I'm not as good as Jason, though," Oscar asked, cuddling Rei close. She simply hugged him and gave a sleepy nod.
Holding her against his chest, Oscar began telling a story in a gentle voice.
By the time Jason returned to the bedroom, both Oscar and Rei had already fallen asleep in the center of the bed.
Smiling, he turned off the bedside lamp and shifted them into more comfortable positions.
Climbing into bed, he pressed soft kisses to their foreheads before drifting off himself.
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Later that night, an eerie stillness filled the room.
The soft patter of raindrops soon turned into a steady storm.
In the center of the dorm bedroom, Rei, who was lying between them, tossed and turned in distress.
From the corners of the room, shadowy tentacles began to emerge, creeping toward the three sleeping figures.
Amidst the thunder and rain, faint whispers echoed through the walls, as if the darkness itself were murmuring.
When Rei opened her eyes, she found herself not in her bed, but deep in a dark forest.
The whispers in the trees grew louder with every step she took.
Suddenly, a bright, flickering light appeared far ahead.
Drawn to it, she followed; however, as soon as she got close, the light vanished.
Instead, a large figure stepped forward. Under the moonlight, its face came into view.
It had an owl-like face with glowing red eyes.
It's white mask like face created a clear contrast with it's black feathers.The rest of its body remained hidden in shadow.
The 'owl' stared into her eyes and inched closer. Even though she wanted to run, her legs wouldn't move.
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"Wa… u…"
"Is… sh... oka…"
"Kai, wake up!"
Startled, Rei jolted awake and saw Jason and Oscar's worried faces.
The moment she saw them, she burst into tears and clung to them desperately.
Meanwhile, in the corner of the room, two red eyes quietly faded into the shadows, unnoticed.
"It's okay, dumpling. It was just a nightmare," Jason said softly, trying to soothe her.
However, when he touched her, she flinched away, her cries growing louder.
'I thought the nightmares had stopped,' Jason thought in dismay. 'I hate seeing her like this.'
After several minutes, their alarm clock rang at exactly 5:30 a.m.
Well, it was actually a wave-detection sound speaker encrypted into a microchip.
Once it sensed they were awake, the loud beeping stopped.
With a weary sigh, Jason stood and lifted the still-sobbing Rei into his arms.
"Can you make breakfast today?" he asked Oscar, who nodded without question. "Oh! And don't forget to call Mum about the nightmares."
While Oscar went to prepare breakfast, Jason took Rei into the bath with him, hoping the warm water would calm her down.
Gradually, the heat worked its magic; her hiccupping sobs faded into soft sniffles as she pressed even closer to him, as if he were her last anchor.
After bathing, he dressed her in a deep blue dress with a light blue wave-like design along the hem, reminiscent of the deep sea.
She wore her usual arm-length black gloves and black hosiery, along with shiny black patent oxford shoes.
Her hair was styled into a half-up, half-down space bun, decorated with cute hair clips.
'Usually she'd be fussing over the mirror by now,' Jason thought worriedly, glancing at Rei, who just sat on the bed with a gloomy expression.
Once she was dressed, he vacuumed the dorm room while Oscar and Rei ate their breakfast.
When they finished, Jason checked all their bags before they set out.
The real trouble started at Oscar and Rei's classroom — their usual point of separation.
As they arrived, Rei refused to let go of Jason, holding unto him as if her life depended on it.
"Hey, you have to stay here, dumpling." His words only made her cling tighter, tears welling up as she looked up at him.
"It's okay. She can stay with you today," Oscar suggested calmly. "I don't think any of the teachers will mind."
Even so, Rei shook her head, looking even more upset.
"You have to choose, princess. We'll see each other at lunch and after school," Oscar added, equally helpless.
At that, Rei froze. She didn't want to separate. After thinking for a while, she grabbed Jason and waved goodbye to Oscar.
"See you at lunch." Once Oscar left, Jason continued on to his class with Rei in his arms.
As they got farther away, she tightened her grip even more.
'Now that I think about it… this is the first time she's coming to my class,' Jason thought with a bit of warmth as he stepped inside.
However, the moment he entered, yelling erupted from the far end of the room.
"Aaron! I told you to stop taking my stuff!" Looking over, Jason saw Gabrielle (the girl who went first in the ability evaluation).
"Jeez, it's just one notebook. You act like I stole your whole life," Aaron replied sarcastically, tossing a flat screen back at her.
Although it looked like a slab of glass, it was actually an e-book.
"If you keep this up, I'm going to tell Dad." At her words, Aaron's face froze. "Let's see how that attitude works out for you then."
With that, Gabrielle turned sharply and stormed out before Aaron could respond.
"Hey, Ron. Morning," Jason greeted as he sat down with Rei. Aaron mumbled a small "hi" in return.
Unlike Oscar, Aaron's seat was at the very front of the class.
"I brought some chips today. Want some?" Jason offered casually. Aaron nodded and took one slowly.
"It just gets harder to talk to her every day," Aaron muttered sadly, taking a chip.
"Maybe try a different approach," Jason suggested, unpacking his things.
Once he finished, his attention immediately returned to Rei, who sat quietly, glancing around uncomfortably.
"Hey, dumpling, want a chip?" Jason asked, holding out the bag to her.
Rei grabbed it and began reading the back. Then she looked at him, shook her head, and pointed at the ingredients.
"Ah! I totally forgot you can't eat these," Jason sighed, his expression falling with guilt. "Sorry, dumpling… Next time, I'll get the ones made with blood plants, okay?"
|Despite the name, blood plants and animals are just mutated versions of the original species.
Blood plants have developed a more predatory nature and feed on other plants or small animals.
Blood animals are animals that have mutated into different forms, becoming more aggressive due to constant environmental changes on the planet.|
'I can't believe I forgot about her condition,' Jason thought, horrified. 'I could've killed her just now.'
With nothing else to do, Rei decided to nap on Jason, resting her head against his shoulder.
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She slowly closed her eyes, drifting into a listless sleep. This time, she woke up in a bright forest.
The trees and grass around her were all white, their leaves swaying in the wind as whispers floated around.
Wandering aimlessly, she stumbled upon a small clearing where an animal lay in the center.
Just as she was about to approach, her consciousness began to fade.
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When she opened her eyes again, Rei found herself on Jason's lap. In front of her stood four people: three girls and one boy.
"Oh, Jason! Looks like she's awake," said one girl, her long black hair tied into a ponytail.
"Whoa, she's so cute," another girl said, this one with short black hair.
Letting out a small yawn, Rei sat up properly, rubbing her eyes before glancing around.
"Did you have a nice nap?" Jason asked gently, running his fingers through her hair.
Rei nodded slightly, still half asleep, then tugged at Jason and patted her tummy.
"Okay, just give me a second," Jason replied, already understanding.
"She doesn't talk?" asked the last girl, who had brown hair styled in adorable space buns.
"She doesn't need to," Jason answered with a warm smile before standing up with Rei in his arms. "About the paperwork — you guys proofread, and I'll handle the signing. I'll join you after school."
"Alright, see you then," the boy said before the group headed off.
"Aaron, let's go," Jason said, glancing over. "Sorry for making you wait."
"Sure, sure. I was just about to leave without you anyway," Aaron grumbled, standing up.
Jason rolled his eyes and walked past him.
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In the central field, Oscar sat alone, having waited for twelve minutes.
"Os, sorry for the delay," Jason said apologetically, sitting across from him.
As soon as Jason settled, Rei crawled over from his lap and gave Oscar a big hug.
"Did you miss me, princess?" Oscar asked, a little surprised. Rei nodded and squeezed him tightly.
"Alright, enough of that. I'm too hungry to wait any longer," Aaron interrupted, sitting down and unpacking his lunch.
His meal was a burrito with a side salad, while Jason and Oscar had okonomiyaki meal sets.
The golden-brown pancakes were topped with strawberry jam and fresh blueberries.
"Open up," Oscar said, feeding Rei a bite.
She rubbed her tummy in satisfaction and licked the bit of jam off her face.
After exactly five bites, she tapped Oscar's hand before settling back to rest comfortably against him.
Meanwhile, on a Russian olive tree not far away, red eyes watched them intently, the small black figure slowly fading into the shadows.
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Words to Know:
•Okonomiyaki : Grilled savoury pancake with mix-ins.