𝐒𝐓𝐑𝐎𝐍𝐆𝐄𝐒𝐓

chapter thirty-seven.

[seiko is 18, gojo is 19, raiden is 22, toji is 36]

;;

Toji was waiting for Seiko to come back. 

It was late in the evening, and he was getting worried. He hadn't heard any footsteps outside his door, or any voices, either. Toji already knew something was off, but he had an inkling that something was genuinely wrong, at the moment. 

He lay flat on his bed, the puny mattress hardly able to stay upright due to his heavy body. Toji had been staring at this one particular spot on the ceiling, letting his mind go free. He wondered what exactly it was that was off between Raiden and Shoji. 

Debt? Maybe. Not necessarily likely, but it was a possibility. Did Raiden have something on Seiko? A secret, maybe? That seemed quite possible. It happened a lot. Money? If so, Toji could relate. He would be in the same position, then. And then, there was the possibility that Toji hoped was impossible: Seiko was a prisoner. 

The thought of it made his stomach twist uncomfortably. It would make the most sense, seeing how harsh and violent Seiko had been when he first met her. What didn't make sense was how she had mellowed out so much and gotten used to her life. Had she accepted her fate as a prisoner? Had she given up?

Toji's thoughts came to a stop at a loud shout outside of his room. 

He quickly flew to his feet and rushed to the door, placing his ear on it to listen in. He could hear hurried stomps, as well as a very familiar voice.

"Let go of me, you piece of shit!"

At the sound of Seiko's voice, Toji quickly yanked open his door. Out in front of him was a scene he couldn't quite understand.

Raiden led a group of his shadow guards, who roughly tugged Seiko. His expression was twisted into content and satisfaction, for reasons Toji didn't know. More importantly, there was Seiko. 

Her eyes were red, protruding veins visible from far away. Her eyes were frantic, full of anxiety and fury. Seiko's arms were tied together by thick chains, which she seemingly couldn't escape. At the sight of her in pain, Toji immediately blocked Raiden's path. 

"What the fuck is going on?" Toji asked. His heart was beginning to beat anxiously. What was going on? What were they doing to her? 

Raiden raised an eyebrow and stopped in his tracks. Raiden's expression of content and satisfaction twisted into one of distaste, though he did his best to hide it. "Toji, I suggest you retire for the night."

Toji didn't budge. "Raiden, what the fuck are you doing to Seiko?" he demanded. Toji wouldn't move until they let her go and explained what the hell they were doing in the first place. "Why is she chained up like some damn monster?"

"If you're worried about tomorrow's mission," Raiden began. "Don't worry about it. Your new partner will be introduced to you in the morning. He's quite competent."

Toji furrowed his brows. "New partner? What the fuck are you rambling on about?"

Raiden gestured to Seiko, who looked at Toji as though he were a stranger. "She's no longer your partner. She's been in an...accident, for lack of a better word. From now on, she will be kept in solitary confinement, under my watch."