Light Impulse

I trust you, partner

He woke up to the smell of coffee and light falling in through the curtains. He had woken her up every two hours as instructed but judging by how stiff and cold his body felt he had failed miserably to stay awake after the last time. He rubbed his eyes and everything that had happened came flooding back into his awareness. How she had stumbled into the pet store looking so familiar. He remembered how her amber eyes had flashed with rage as she had cussed out the hoodlums towering over her. The same piercing eyes that had forbidden him to feel guilty about her getting hurt. And how those same eyes had trembled with fear and exhaustion as she laid in his bed. The conversation he had had with Draken and Mikey started re-playing in his mind. If she wants to leave, let her, without asking questions. He whirled around. She was gone. He jumped up, stiff as a board, and stumbled into the kitchen. His coffee maker was still running and he clenched his teeth when he noticed a small note stuck under the bottom of it.

'Thank you so much for everything, Chifuyu. I don't want to inconvenience you any more than I already have. I made you coffee. Oh, have your bike checked out, I thought I heard a rattle near the exhaust. It might be a little loose. Thanks again, I wish you nothing but the best. Yuuna'

He pressed his eyes shut. He had promised Draken, but he couldn't forget about how pained Mikey had looked when he left last night. As his coffee maker spluttered he balled his fists and stepped into his boots. He put on his coat and stuffed the note deep into his pocket before grabbing the keys and slamming the door shut behind him. As he walked down the stairs he pulled out his phone and made a call. "Are you at campus today?" he asked without saying hello, as he stepped onto Baji's bike.

***

As he was parking the Suzuki he already spotted him.

Takemichi was leaning against the post of the bicycle shed, waiting for him. "Are you okay?" he asked with a frown.

Chifuyu nodded. "I wasn't the one that got hurt," he said, knowing that Takemichi was referring to yesterday night's incident.

"The girl?" Takemichi asked.

Chifuyu nodded.

"Is she alright?" he asked, concerned.

"I don't know," Chifuyu said as they started walking onto campus grounds. "She begged me not to take her to the hospital, so I took her home," he said.

Takemichi stopped walking. "You did what?" he asked, a little baffled.

Chifuyu laughed. "I didn't know what else to do. She seemed truly scared to go," he said, shrugging. "Draken called to check in after word got out and came over with Mikey to help out," he continued. "We patched her up the best we could. But when I woke up this morning she was gone," he explained and they sat down on a bench.

Takemichi was looking at him worried. "How bad was she hurt?"

Chifuyu shrugged. "As far as I could tell it was mainly bruises and scrapes, nothing too serious. Draken suspected a concussion at first since she had a hard time staying conscious," he said. "But that's not why I called you," he added resolutely, leaning on his knees and glancing back up at Takemichi. "Takemitchy, have you ever noticed someone else leap through time with you?" he asked softly.

Takemichi blinked in surprise. "Where the hell is this coming from?" he asked.

Chifuyu shook his head, doubting if he should tell him for a minute. But Takemichi was probably his best bet. "This girl," he started, staring back at his hands. "She seems to know Mikey from his original timeline," he said and he heard Takemichi shuffle in his seat.