𝐖𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐄'𝐒 𝐌𝐘 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄? (𝗵. 𝗮𝗸𝗶) ✓

13

"You okay?"

Aki's voice sounded oddly distant as Hanasaki climbed into the passenger seat.

He'd offered to give her a lift to headquarters after she'd finished sorting out Denji and Power. Despite not exactly being one for social interaction at the present time, she'd accepted, partly because she could barely remember the way back to headquarters at all.

Once she'd absentmindedly clicked her seatbelt into place, she let her head loll forwards into her hands, her head still throbbing. She screwed her eyes shut for a moment, trying to dull the pain, and only a minute later realised Aki had asked her something.

"O-oh, right," she answered numbly, sitting back upright. "Yeah, I'm okay."

Her tongue felt heavy in her mouth, and she had to focus irritatingly hard to not stumble over every single one of her words. And her eyelids, in spite of having opened her eyes again, kept drooping and threatening to close.

But, why?, she found herself thinking. She'd estimated herself to have gotten around six hours of sleep, which, in her books, was more than enough. Most nights, she was completely restless, and wandered about the house aimlessly while Lawliet followed her, meowing in confusion, until eventually even he got too tired and flopped down on the floor. And, while her sleep had been disturbed by that nightmare, that didn't really affect anything, did it?

The car rolled forwards. Aki's gaze flickered from the wheel to her, a look of concern flashing across his face.

"What happened?"

"Nothing. Just... Denji, and that Fiend. Power, I think her name was." Hanasaki ran a hand through her fringe, a finger getting stuck on a knot. How long had it been since she'd brushed her hair, or redone her braid, again?

"Just caused some mishap. I don't know what they were thinking, putting those two together. I wouldn't expect a lot of good to come from that combination."

Hanasaki sounded somewhat defeated as she continued to explain, as if it was her fault for not being there to introduce them that had caused them to step out of line. After a pause, she added:

"I sort of hoped Denji could have at least done better."

Aki glanced at her again, his expression now unreadable.

"I don't understand why you have such high hopes for him," he remarked, turning his head back to concentrate on the road. Hanasaki's eyebrows rose, surprised at how callous his voice had become. Bitter, almost. Especially considering how she hadn't implied anything slightly related to that. "As far as I can tell, Denji's not worth it. He's just... disgusting."

Now, her eyes had narrowed, puzzled and maybe even suspicious of why Aki seemed so angered. She didn't know him to be a scornful type of person, and why he'd be jealous of a new member, Denji in particular, she had no clue. But she both didn't want to distract him while he was driving, and didn't have the energy to question him about it, so she kept it to herself. She stared out the window while she responded.

"You know how the more feared a Devil's name is, the more powerful it would be?" she muttered at the glass, half talking to Aki, half simply thinking aloud. "Denji's a Hybrid. He's been fused with the Chainsaw Devil. I'd say chainsaws are reasonably feared, so, logically, he'd be quite strong."

Although he didn't reply, Hanasaki could sense that she'd piqued Aki's interest with the words 'Hybrid' and 'Chainsaw Devil'.

"When I first found him, I could've killed him like the Devil he partially was. But I figured he'd be more useful to us alive. Now that he's actually being trusted to go out by himself, though... I can see that he's still just a child, both mentally and physically."

A thick silence occupied the space between them. Aki had more he'd like to counter with, but he pursed his lips and carried on driving. Hanasaki remained likewise voiceless, still looking vacantly out the window, her breath forming mist on the pane.

After a few minutes, they reached the red flare of a traffic signal, and the car glided to a halt. Aki took the time to check on his passenger, worry clouding his eyes.

Although she was turned away, Aki could still clearly see that she still wasn't herself. Her skin was unnaturally pale and stark. From the side view he had of her face, he could tell that her bottom lip was cracked, close to bleeding, and the bags under her eyes were darker and heavier than ever. Aki knew that he shouldn't have been expecting some sort of miraculous recovery overnight, but he had hoped for her to look at least somewhat better than before.

But, if anything, all she seemed to be doing was getting worse.

Hesitantly, he reached across to place his hand onto hers. The sudden warmth of his palm brought a light flush to her white cheeks, one which would've been too pale to notice on anyone else. She tilted her head to the other side to meet his fretful gaze.

"You aren't looking after yourself, Hanasaki." His voice was soft, tender, but sounded so dismayed that she felt her stomach drop. A pause followed, one where neither of them knew what to say, before Aki spoke again:

"Did you get some sleep last night?"

"W-well.. yes, I suppose I did. Maybe.. six hours?"

Something she didn't recognise flitted across his features. An odd mix of pity and helplessness, perhaps, but either way, he made sure to cover it up quickly before she could doubt it.

"I guess that's better than usual, hm?" he mused, his tone slightly lighter. "Just.. try to get some more rest, okay? You're overworking yourself."

Hanasaki felt her heart swell in her chest, and, for a moment, she appeared to have forgotten how to breathe. She tried to shake off the feeling, thinking it irrational to become so distracted by this. Aki was her friend, so of course he'd care about her. But the uncertain idea of him caring was separate from the actual confirmation that he did. And, now it was so plain to see, she didn't know how to react.

Aki interrupted her train of thought with another question. "Have you eaten anything today?" From a quick look at the way her uniform hung loosely on her thin frame, he'd probably already be able to gather an answer. But he wanted to hear it from her.

"Oh, uh... no, I haven't." Her voice dropped to a low mumble when she took this in, ashamed of the fact.

Instead of showcasing his disappointment, Aki, sensing her discomfort, intertwined his fingers with hers, holding her hand with care as a way of comforting her. His hand was strong, but his touch was gentle, and for a moment all Hanasaki could concentrate on was him.

"It's okay. We'll stop by somewhere and get you something. Whatever you want; it'll be my treat. No excuses."

She took a while to register his words, still fixated on the sensation of his skin against hers. Her own hand, pressed against his, didn't feel as frail and deadened as it did on its own. Their palms seemed to fit together perfectly, and she felt like it was there she belonged. There, where she felt safe.

Then, she opened her mouth, and willed the faltering words to form. "Are you s-sure? You don't have t–"

"Yes, I'm one-hundred-percent sure. You can't change my mind." His tone was still kind, but firm, as he cut off her protest. "Plus, I'm paying."

The glow of the traffic light flashed from amber, to a greenish-blue, and Aki quickly drew his hand away. His reluctance was clear from the way he gingerly rested that hand on the steering wheel as the car started to move, like he might take it away to hold Hanasaki's hand again. The feeling was mutual; Hanasaki leaned back in her seat, her shoulders falling as a quiet sigh left her.

She turned back to the window, watching the buildings and pedestrians sail by. Although she was still exhausted, she somehow didn't feel as beaten as she had done only a few minutes ago.

"Thank you, Hayakawa."