The Supernova Effect

Chapter 5

Nova
I woke slowly to sunlight warming across the sheets.

For a second I stayed still, half-asleep beneath unfamiliar blankets, listening to the quiet hum of the city beyond the windows.

Then the smell hit me.

Butter.
Coffee.
Something sweet.

I opened my eyes fully.

Daisuke's side of the bed was empty.

The sheets still warm.

I smiled to myself before pushing the blankets away and heading downstairs.

The apartment looked softer in the morning.

Less intimidating.
More lived in.

Music played quietly somewhere near the kitchen.

Something old and slow.

I followed the smell until I found him standing at the stove.

Shirtless.

Sweatpants hanging low on his hips while he flipped pancakes one-handed like he did this every morning.

My eyes drifted lower instinctively before I caught myself.

Then higher again.

That's when I noticed the scar.

It stretched pale and uneven across the top of his back near his shoulder blade.

Not small.
Not accidental looking.

Something tightened quietly in my chest.

I walked toward him slowly and wrapped my arms around his waist from behind, pressing my cheek lightly against his back.

His body relaxed immediately beneath my touch.

"Morning," he murmured.

"Morning."

"You hungry?"

"Starving."

I let my fingers brush lightly across the scar without thinking.

The second I touched it, his shoulders stiffened.

The movement was small.

But I felt it.

My voice softened instantly.

"What happened?"

There was a pause.

Then:
"Old scar."

I waited.

Eventually he exhaled quietly through his nose.

"My dad."

I frowned slightly.

"Your dad did that?"

"Yeah."

His voice stayed calm.
Too calm.

Like he'd repeated the story enough times in his own head that it stopped sounding shocking.

"He threw a bottle at me."

Something cold settled heavily in my stomach.

I traced the edge of the scar carefully.

"He was drunk?"

Daisuke gave a humorless laugh.

"He usually was."

The kitchen went quiet after that except for the faint sizzling from the stove.

I stayed quiet for a second before asking softly,