ᴍᴇɴʜᴇʀᴀ // ᴍᴀᴛꜱᴜɴᴏ ᴄʜɪꜰᴜʏᴜ

ᴛʜɪʀᴛʏ ɴɪɴᴇ

TAKEMICHI WALKED BACK AND forth in his room, wondering about the lack of update from Chifuyu, when his phone suddenly buzzed on the table.

Almost like a predator preying on its prey, Takemichi jumped to snatch his phone, unlocking it to find messages from his partner.

“I found her. She was at the hospital, and I think she's with her dad.” The text wrote.

“What...? Her dad?” Takemichi raised an eyebrow dubiously. I'm missing a lot of context here...

After they had that discussion, the two split up to try and find you. Takemichi had no luck, so he went back home and waited for Chifuyu.

“I'm following these two to make sure he doesn’t do anything to her. So far, he’s only telling her that he’s going to take her back.” Another text came. “Also...”

“[Last Name]-chan seems to be acting strange.”

“Strange, how?”

“It’s hard to describe it, but she seems meeker and more... anxious around him.” He said. “It’s like she constantly has her guard around him.”

“I’ll text you if there’s anything noteworthy later.”

Takemichi sat back down, now relaxed. “I did hear something about her dad not being very good...” He murmured. “...I guess I’ll just have to wait.”

...

You walked along the streets of this town. It’s a little late, which is why there’s so few people out and about.

Beside you was your father, who’s still silent as he sauntered.

He came back... He’s really here... Even if he was walking beside you, you had to blink a few times to think this wasn’t a dream. The man who ran away the day you found your mother dead... is here, right next to you.

“I heard she got into a hospital as soon as I came back.” Your father suddenly spoke, startling you.

“Um... Yes, she―”

“I knew she couldn’t take care of you. So, I came here to take you back.” He turned to you so abruptly.

You were already a few inches away, yet when he faced you, you still couldn’t help but feel intimidated by his mere presence.

“I... I... can’t...” You muttered, refusing to look up at him.

His voice went a few notes deeper, “...And why not?”

“A-Ah...” You made the mistake of looking up at him. He looked furious. His eyes staring down at you like you were a insignificant insect. “N-No reason at all...”

That was a lie.

Tokyo is your home. Your aunt is your home. You don’t want to leave, let alone going anywhere with your father. And yet, you might just consider it out of fear.

You realized you were both at a crosswalk. There were not many cars coming by, and there were few pedestrians out walking.

The street lamps that were lit up seemed so bright. There weren’t any stars, but the moon tonight looked round and beautiful.

A truly peaceful night.

“[Name], you don’t understand.” Your father slowly walked to the crosswalk. “You don’t have a choice.”

You froze up.

“As my child, you should just listen to your parents. Why can’t you understand it?” He started reprimanding. “That hag has been corrupting your mind, hasn’t she? I knew I shouldn’t have left you alone.”