"Who are you?"
"Hinasuke, babe, it's me—"
Hina's eyes softened at that word, "Babe?"
His voice was soft, quiet, like he was in disbelief and both denial. She said it so naturally, like it was a thing. Like it was a word she'd said a thousand times before.
Akira looked at Hinasuke. His reaction didn't make sense. He seemed hurt. Like calling him what he was to her was one of the most hurtful words she could've ever said to him.
"Babe, I swear, I'm not trying to hurt you..." she whispered, like she was slowly teetering around a cliff she wasn't sure she'd recover from.
Hinasuke's furrowed brows softened for a fraction before the memory came back again like a bad dream:
( "I don't know how to love you the way you want me to, Hina. I'm sorry, but I can't. I...I don't see you in that way...at least not yet." )
The moment Akira's hand touched his arm, he snapped like a viper.
His arm went for her wrist, but her hand caught his forearm in a vice before he could even touch her.
His eyes widened. Akira couldn't never move that fast. In fact, she couldn't even react to his speed and yet...
She quickly let go of his arm, hands trembling as her voice came out quietly, like a broken apology, "I'm sorry. Hina... I'm so sorry, I didn't mean that. It just...happened."
"Akira could never react to me..." He whispered to himself, eyes wide.
"It was a mistake. I didn't want to do that, it was just a reflex!"
Hinasuke took a step back, eyes darkening immediately as his arms glowed a faint red, "I'm gonna ask you one more time..."
"Hinasuke, Please listen to me..." She cried, her voice crumbling, "...I don't want to kill you."
His emerald eyes sharpened, smoke rising from his arms, "Then I'll remind you why you can't."
The wooden floorboards exploded into splintered chunks every which way, his body already behind Akira as his fist was just inches away from—
He blinked once.
He was in a crater outside.
A brick fell past him. Water spraying from above him, the smell of dirt and mortar hitting his disoriented nose, confusing his senses.
"What...the...?" He muttered, a brick falling on top his head.
"Please stop fighting."
That voice.
He grit his teeth as his burning red arms clasped at the edge of the building he'd been sent into.
"You won't win, Hina."
He glance ahead of him.
His breath faltered.
He had been sent...
...into 5 separate buildings.
"What the hell..."
{ Meanwhile... }
They stopped by Sehiko college, the air thin with the smell of smoke and soot.
She took a step out of the bus as she saw them already waiting.
Yano, who'd just noticed them get out of the bus and smiled a little.
Yoshida, who grinned widely, laughed as he leaned over Yano from behind, arm slung around her shoulder.
"Heeeyy, you guys made it!" Yoshida said chirpy as always.
Akira's eyes slid up.
She was still lost in thought from earlier.
The way their lips were just inches away from contact—
She shook her head, "Focus." She said to herself.
Her eyes slid up to the blondie who was a little bit too comfortable towards Yano, and Yano was uncharacteristically okay with it.
Aki's eyes narrowed a little, getting a good look of the blondie who's hairstyle had changed, "Hey, Yoshi. You got piercings?"
Yoshida buffered for a moment before chuckling again, "Huh? Oh! Yeah these old things? I've had them for like...3 weeks." His smile faltered a bit as he muttered, "I'm more surprised you just noticed..."
Akira shook her head, "Huh? Oh, it must be because of how foggy my head's been. I'm...still tryna get used to everything else."
Just then Hinasuke stood behind her, "You guys ready? It's not everyday sensei gives us a break so we gotta get going if we're gonna make it."
Akira's body stilled.
Sensei?
"Hey, uhm, guys, quick question. How long do you think I've been asleep for?"
Hina turned over his shoulder, hands still in his pockets, "Huh? I dunno, maybe...couple of hours?"
"Which is a new record considering you sleep like you're hibernating." Yano commented dryly, scrolling on her phone.
"Funny coming from someone who sneaks dry toast up her greedy mouth every midnight." Akira retorted immediately. It was a reflex.
"Oh my goodness, someone's definitely feeling a whole lot more feisty now!"
Normally, Yano would grumble at that, but her reaction this time was...odd.
"Really? That's the best you can come up with? Thought you'd do better than that, Aki."
"What...?"
"Hey now..." Yoshida said, giving her a little nudge, "Be nicer to her. You know how she's been lately."
Hina chuckled, "Thought you'd snap back with something better. You know she's stopped doing that."
That one sent a shiver down her spine.
Because Yano never stopped doing that. She knew because she always made noise when she did.
"W-When did she stop doing that?"
At that everyone froze.
Yoshida chuckled but it died down, "You...feeling, okay? You're acting weirder than I do and that's saying something."
Yano looked at Akira, eyes narrowing as she noticed the genuine confusion in her eyes, "You... don't know that do you? You don't know that I stopped doing that, don't you?"
Before they could press on, Hinasuke chimed in and reminded them, "We gotta get going, okay? Most restaurants in Shibuya close down in 20 minutes."
Shibuya?
Wait...were they...
"Wait, you mean the one...Akashi took me to when I was suspended? The Sushi restaurant?"
Her eyes sparkled with a small light of nostalgia as the memory came back to her.
The others' expressions softened, "Yeah, that one..." Hinasuke said softly, his touch suddenly warmer and gentler.
"You said you wanted us to go there to today as a way of commemorating the day we found out what the cause of death was, remember?" Yano muttered, hands rubbing Akira's arm slowly.
Aki's heart fluttered with an unbearable ache, reminiscing her brother's smile, "Oh...okay."
"Alrighty then, let's not get all saggy and stuff, we gotta get there first and we're still here mopping about someone we're supposed to celebrate that they lived." Yoshida laughed.
The others smirked as they began walking again, joking around when suddenly—
"Is that supposed to be some kind of sick joke?"
The cold winter air just got a lot colder.
"Aki?" Yoshida said, turning over his shoulder.
"Hm? What happened, did he say something wrong?"
"Akira...?"
She took a step forward, eyes teary as she grit her teeth, body shaking as her heart pounded against her ribs— her nerves alight with rage and sadness as she bore a look of boiling anger at him.
"Take back what you just said."
Yoshi's expression softened in confusion, "What? Akira, I was just—"
"I SAID TAKE IT BACK!!"
Her body moved—anger in fast motion.
His eyes widened.
She swung hard, hand meeting warm hard flesh when suddenly—
Her hand burned.
Yano's crimson palm was all that separated Yoshida's face from Akira's bleeding fist.
"Stay away from my man..."
"Akira."