𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗘𝘆𝗲𝘀 - 𝗞𝘆𝗼𝗷𝘂𝗿𝗼 𝗥𝗲𝗻𝗴𝗼𝗸𝘂 𝘅 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿

~Chapter 11~

"(Y/N)! You're hurt!" Kyojuro exclaimed, grabbing your wrists as he studied the marks the demon has left. You just stood in your place, gazed, unable to process all that has happened. One second you were getting attacked by a demon, the next you find Kyojuro with a katana on fire trying to end the demon. Your gaze was fixed on Kyojuro. As a teacher at Kimetsu Academy, he always wears a white shirt and a red tie, but he also had a black jacket draped over his shoulder like a cape. He was wearing belts around his shoulders that connected at his chest and down his waist, and on the left side of his waist was a sheath with a katana inside. Black gloves covered his hands that held your wrist.

You knew this was Kyojuro himself, but something about him didn't seem like he was the Kyojuro you knew.

You pulled your hands away from Kyojuro's grasp, which surprised him. You gave him a confused look as you held your wrist.

"I'm fine. My wrists are fine..." You started, "Just... what was with all the Attack on Titan shit you pulled off?!" Kyojuro stood there, tilting his head. Now he was the one with a confused expression.

"You know... flying out of the sky with a sword and killing man-eating monsters..." He still seemed confused. You rolled your eyes, shaking your head as you muttered 'never mind'. You looked back at him with a frown.

"Anyway. What was that you just did?! Flame Breathing?! And demons! You knew they were real the whole time, didn't you?! If anything you're probably trying to get rid of them as far as I can see! Does that mean that incident I had with the pink-haired demon was real?!" You asked all those questions at once, making it even harder for Kyojuro to come out clean. It was true though. Kyojuro has kept you in the dark for far too long. By now, you are probably confused and scared. Maybe he should have just listened to what Senjuro said.

"Listen, (Y/N), I know I've got a lot of explaining to do and I'm sure you're scared right now but—"

"Hell yeah, you've got a heck lot of explaining to do!" You stepped closer to Kyojuro angrily, pointing a finger at him, "Why haven't you told me any of this before?! I thought we were supposed to trust each other! I thought you trusted me! When you said you trusted me with your life, did it mean nothing to you?!" You truly were furious. You would tell Kyojuro the truth if you both switched positions. He said he could trust you, and you have also trusted him. You put the pieces together. That's what made him act strange earlier this morning. Maybe he was on a mission.

"(Y/N), I trust you. I swear on my life I trust you." Kyojuro started, trying to find the right words to explain the truth to you. Although he felt guilty for lying to you about who he was, he thought it was probably for the best. His only concern was keeping you safe. Maybe he had been mistaken. As he realized that you once struggled with trust, his heart sank. This made it harder not only for him but for you as well. "I just... I thought what I was doing was for protecting you. I wanted to keep you safe."

"I can protect myself, you know. I'm not weak." You said stubbornly, anger still visible on your face. Kyojuro's shoulders slumped.

"You were attacked by two demons so far... if I weren't in the right place at the right time you would've been long gone. I wouldn't ever forgive myself if you died because of a demon."

"You've got a point..." you mumbled before your expression quickly turned to an angry one once again, "But why would you lie to me?! About the pink-haired demon—"

"His name is Akaza, the third upper moon." Kyojuro muttered bitterly. You groaned.

"I really couldn't give a shit about his name! I thought you were a normal person! Turns out you're some... I don't know, some kind of assassin or super-spy or whatever!" Kyojuro's eyes widened, almost hurt by your words.

"So you're saying I'm not normal?" He asked calmly, yet it was very clear he was starting to get very angry as well.

"What can't you just try and be normal for once, Kyojuro?!" 
He thought he had forgotten those words, yet there they were again, repeatedly playing in his head, and Kyojuro had no idea how to make it stop.

"Yes! No? I don't know, ok!" You yelled, "Is that why you tried to be friends with me?! To protect me?! You'd walk me home all the time because you thought I couldn't handle myself?! If anything, the only reason you had to hang out with me was because you were told to! Does anything that happened between us mean anything to you?! I don't even know whether I can trust you or not anymore!" You were right. Kyojuro had a job, and that job was to protect you. Yet he never thought it would end up with him getting so attached to you. You meant the world to him and that was one thing, so why wouldn't you understand how much Kyojuro cared for you?!

"Yes, I did have a job to protect you, ok?!" Kyojuro yelled out in anger, "You want the truth? I'll give it to you. Demons are real, so is their master. I am a demon slayer, and a pillar as well. And oh you have no idea how many of us have got this job to protect you. The Demon Lord wants your blood, and my comrades and I want to avoid that. Ok? If you were any normal person, I most probably wouldn't have given a shit. Yet somehow, your blood is more powerful than you think, and I guess I have no choice now, do I? So shut up and just try to grow up and accept reality." Kyojuro's eyes widened, realizing what he has just said. The last part. He didn't mean it like that. He'd put his life on the line for you, special or not.

I just fucked up, didn't I?

Kyojuro looked up to meet your face, who now had tears streaming down.

"What was I thinking..." you mumbled as you quickly turned to run away. Was that all that you ever did? Run away from your problems? Kyojuro was right. You could never accept reality no matter how hard you try. Now you were targeted by the demons, and almost died every time one almost caught you. Maybe you were weak after all. You hated yourself for that. Kyojuro tried to call out for you as he ran behind you, but you were much faster than you looked. Kyojuro gave up, something he has never done before, as he watched you disappear into the horizon.

You just continued running, wiping the tears off your face. You just wanted to be alone. You didn't want to see or talk to anyone. You wanted to curl up back to your little dark hole, just like twelve years old you always did.

Why did his words hurt you so much? Why did you feel your heart sting? Why... why did you feel your heartbreak?

Why is it that I realize how much I love him right now...

"Where are the cigarettes, Tengen?" Kyojuro asked his white-haired friend after getting back to the pillar headquarters, his voice raspy. Tengen looked up to his usually bright and happy friend, now looking as if he has seen his whole world fall apart, with a confused glance.

"Cigarettes? Didn't you say you quit?"

"Where are they?" Kyojuro asked again, this time more roughly. Tengen gave Kyojuro a worried look.

"They're in the first drawer. The cabinet next to that window." Tengen gestured towards the big window that had the moon's view. Kyojuro walked towards the cabinet as he opened the door, revealing the drawer that had the cigarettes in. Kyojuro took out the box as he pulled a cigarette out, lighting it up as he walked up to the window, looking at the moon. He could only hope you were safely home right now. He was even too disappointed in himself to go and apologize. He just couldn't, no matter how much he wanted to.

He let you down, and he hated himself for that.

He never meant a single thing he said to you. He loved you too much. Anger has just taken over, something that rarely ever happens. He wanted to see you happy. Why was that so hard for him? He knows the pain you went through. He knows how it felt. Why couldn't he understand her the way she understood him. He was a failure, exactly like what his father had told him. If anything, everything his father has said about him was true. How come he has still loved his father the same after everything he has said to him? How come he still cares for the same people who have hurt him? Kyojuro wanted nothing but to make the people he loved proud of him. Why was that so hard?

Yes, he may have been known as the positive and bright one, but was that really who he was on the inside?

I'm sorry, (Y/N)...