The pain emanating from Myriad Dreams's shoulder was so clear, almost overpowering her current panic.
The strength in Yaeno Muteki's fingertips and the dark fire churning in her eyes made it clear that this was not a simple question.
"It hurts... Muteki, please let go first..."
Dreams gasped, trying to keep her voice steady, but a hint of pain and pleading still escaped at the end of her words.
She didn't directly deny it, as it was indeed the truth, but she had to explain.
"It's not what you think..."
"It's not what I think?"
Yaeno Muteki's voice dropped even lower, yet it was more dangerous.
Not only did she not let go, but she also leaned her face closer, her warm breath, laced with anger, brushing against Dreams's face.
"Then what is it? She makes one call, and you're packing your bags to fly over and 'accompany' her? Myriad Dreams, have you forgotten who came back with you and has been by your side all this time?"
"I haven't forgotten!" Dream also grew anxious, the pain in her shoulder and the other party's distrust made her feel a little wronged.
"It's... it's something I promised her before! Just an agreement! And I never intended to..."
"An agreement?" Yaeno Muteki interrupted her with a cold sneer, devoid of warmth. "What kind of agreement requires you to fly all the way there? Hmm? Is it about that kiss after the Preakness Stakes?"
She precisely exposed the part Dreams was trying to gloss over, clearly still bothered by that past event.
Dreams's face paled. She hadn't expected Muteki to know even this so clearly.
This left her speechless for a moment.
Seeing Dreams's instantly stiff and guilty expression, the string of reason in Yaeno Muteki's heart seemed to tighten even further, almost to the point of breaking.
Jealousy, unease, and the fear of losing intertwined into an even more intense emotion.
"So, you're really going?" Her voice carried a nearly desperate anger, and the hand gripping Dreams's shoulder tightened further, as if she wanted to lock her by her side, not allowing her to go anywhere.
"To see her? After she treated you like that? When you clearly belong to...!"
She abruptly stopped speaking, her chest heaving violently, staring intently at Dreams's close-by face, which was pale from pain and panic.
The phrase "belong to me" rolled on her tongue but ultimately remained unspoken, yet her eyes, burning with purple flames, revealed everything.
The dormitory fell into a suffocating silence, broken only by their unsteady breathing.
The light from the desk lamp cast their shadows on the wall, intertwined and elongated, like their complicated relationship at this moment.
Dream looked at the undisguised hurt and possessiveness in Muteki's eyes, and the pain in her shoulder was gradually replaced by a certain bitter emotion in her heart.
She knew what Muteki cared about and understood how terrible her hasty decision seemed.
She no longer tried to break free from the tightly clasped hand. Instead, she relaxed her tense body and raised her other free hand, gently placing it on the back of Muteki's hand that was gripping her shoulder.
"Muteki..." she called softly, her voice softening, laced with weariness and a hint of compromise.
"It's not what you think... I'm not... not leaving, or choosing anyone."
She struggled to form her words.
"That agreement... it was made a long time ago, under somewhat... chaotic circumstances. I just don't want her to do anything outrageous... And besides, I plan to come back very soon."
Feeling the cool temperature of Dreams's palm on the back of her hand and her softened tone, Yaeno Muteki's tense grip imperceptibly loosened a fraction, but her gaze remained sharp and full of suspicion, locking onto Dreams's eyes as if judging the truthfulness of her words.
The standoff continued, but at the center of the storm, a subtle shift seemed to have quietly occurred.