STRAYED | Kita Shinsuke

IKIGAI

IK I G A I

"Because they're following us."

Shinsukes words were consumed by silence, only heavy breaths and the sounds of everyone's hearts beating wildly from adrenaline gave him a response.

Hajime could see the car's headlights through the rearview mirror, his foot all the way down, forcing the gas pedal to rest against the floorboard.

Atsumu cursed quietly while he fiddled with something in his lap in the front seat.

Toru slumped in his seat with his hands on your head, playing with your ears as he sat in thought.

You laid there, head resting on Torus' lap while Shinsuke laid, hovering slightly above you. Your breaths mix from how close you were. His eyes never left yours after he glanced out of the back window, almost speaking to you by themself, saying a thousand words that you simply didn't know at that moment.

A lot had been rushed since you arrived. Reuniting with your old family and friends, wanting to go to school, not going to school. Getting a short-term job to be with the girls, not keeping said job for longer than three months, planning you and your found families lives together out, your life being thrown off course in the span of months. Falling in love. Falling out of love... even if it wasn't you really falling out of love but finally realizing you had never really known what love was until it walked away from you.

Losing family in a blink.

Having to grow even more than you thought you already had.

It had barely been a year, you went to barely any races, you drove your new car once, you spoke to your mother less and less, occasionally only sending a text, because for some reason you felt it would make it easier. Easier to grow... to move on. For yourself. For the boys around you, the girls at the hospital, your parents, Shinsukes Grandmother. It turned out not to be easier and if you were honest with yourself, right now, where you laid, this was where you needed to be.

Amongst your boys, whether it was life or death, you needed to be with them, no matter the consequences. They knew that too, all of them understood that this is where you needed to be, together, like always.

The old warehouse was reduced to rubble, just concrete piled high together with no similarities to what it used to be, however, the new building being built looked like it was going to be a Hotel or Casino of some sort, something strange out this far into the country concerned you, but it would make sense for Japan to want to have more amenities and housing, so you didn't question it, and neither did anyone else, but maybe you should have.

The inside was just wood boards and cement walls, no character, just the shallow empty shell of what will later be something completely different. It was disgustingly poetic. Shinsuke had grabbed you up, walking with you and the others to the third story of the currently six story building. The car had been parked in the back, hidden behind a wall of plastic and Hajime had pulled out a duffle from the trunk.

There was no sign of any other cars, you'd seem to have lost the two trailing you and it gave you plenty of time to get situated in the far east corner of the building, sewing up Toru while Atsumu, Hajime and shinsuke each took several guns out of the duffle bag that was otherwise filled with medical supplies and to your surprise, A lot of American money.

"Wha-" You had opened your mouth to speak when the sound of several cars speeding into the building stopped you, car doors slamming and angry screams echoed throughout the building, bouncing from the walls. The sounds didn't faze the boys, but they all held tightly to the weapons in their hands and ushered you to a small corner, hidden behind another half-built wall, not to hide you, but to keep you away in case things got dirty fast.