BLOOM [OHSHC]

Chapter 25 - Winner, Winner

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"Sir, we have an update."

Before school, Kyoya ate breakfast out on the terrace, like he had with Michiyo so many months ago... except this time he was decidedly alone. And much less angry. And dreadfully sweaty. The summer sun refused to ebb, and Kyoya was sick of it.

One member of the Black Onion Squad, a captain of some sort, arrived moments earlier with his helmet stowed under his arm. He bowed deeply to Kyoya before stepping close and handing over a manila envelope. "It's about Michiyo Kimura."

"Summarize," Kyoya said coolly. He sipped his iced latte, expectant.

The officer nodded and stood at attention. "After many hours of data decryption and twelve anti-virus subscriptions, we found a secret section of Michiyo Kimura's fan site exclusively dedicated to leaving her strange messages, which she does not respond to, but fans can interact with the posts. It seems likely that she doesn't even know this area of her website exists."

The envelope wasn't sealed, so it practically fell open for Kyoya to reveal the papers from inside. "And?" Kyoya said with a yawn, skimming the reports in front of him without really reading them. Over and over, his eyes stalled on Michiyo's name, but he couldn't find anything else interesting on the page.

"If you turn to page four, sir, with the yellow sticky tab, you'll see some direct passages from the texts. But, um, they're..."

"They're what?" Kyoya prompted, flipping through the packet to the proper page.

"They're disturbing, sir."

Interest piqued, Kyoya removed his glasses to read with care. Unfortunately, the captain wasn't exaggerating.

Someday... someday you will return my affections.

She needs to reciprocate my feelings... or I don't know what I'll do.

Someday soon, you'll be mine.

I'm preparing; I'm ready.

Soon enough, it'll be just you and me... and no one will be able to stop us.

Sighing, Kyoya slumped back into his chair, mind reeling with this new information. "And you confirmed she doesn't know about this?" Kyoya repeated. He slid his glasses back on and rubbed his temples, feeling a headache coming on.

"We have no way of knowing for sure, sir, but it seems to us that she does not know," the captain confirmed. "If she knew this person was leaving threatening messages for her, or even if someone told her about it, then she would have more security than a single body... or so we assume."

"No, no, you're right," Kyoya said, pinching the bridge of his nose. How could Michiyo be so flippant about her safety? Was this person also her stalker? It would make sense... but it could also make sense for it to be two separate people. "I'll tell her. Keep an eye on the site for me. One man should be enough. Look for any patterns from the users, any signs of similar behavior."

"Yes sir."

"And keep me updated daily, even if there are no changes... Please." Kyoya wasn't used to being overly polite with the help, but they reacted warmly when Michiyo did... so he thought he should give it a shot.

The captain nodded, his eyes wide from his boss's uncharacteristic politeness. He said, "Yes sir."

"That'll be all. Thank you."