[English] ~𝒟𝒶𝓇ℯ 𝓉ℴ 𝒟𝓇ℯ𝒶𝓂~ Kenma x OC

Chapter 17: A journey into the unknown

I regretted it. I regretted it so much. How could I have been so stupid? What had happened between Kenma and me was a huge mistake. I was so ashamed. How could I believe it was the right thing? It shouldn't have ended like that. The kiss... Something like that couldn't happen again. I felt like I had used him for my own selfish reason.

I pushed Kenma away from me. "Y-you should go now, Kenma." Shit, what had I gotten myself into? He looked at me. His eyes told me he knew what was going on in my head. A strange expression crossed his face for a second, then he nodded. "Sorry. I wasn't quite right in the head." I stared at the ceiling. My brain was foggy. I couldn't think clearly. "I'll... go then", he stated. The door opened and then closed again. His footsteps moved away. I started to cry bitterly. This couldn't be true. Now I had scared away the only person I could trust. I wiped away my tears. I didn't know how to fix it.

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The next three days were a nightmare. I just couldn't find the courage to talk to Kenma. I wanted to talk to him, apologize for my horrible reaction and talk to him about the situation, but every time I was about to call him, I changed my mind. I was a coward. On Saturday, I traveled to Hyōgo with some of my friends without talking to Kenma first. I felt awful. Not even Lev's cheerful chatter could cheer me up.

"Have you ever been to Hyōgo Prefecture, Izumi-chan?" The silver-haired giant nudged me curiously. I just shook my head absently. Lev continued to chatter innocently. "I have. We played against Inarizaki once. Atsumu-san and Osamu-san were still students there back then. That's where the training camp is held." I looked out the window of the express train. "Cool." Lev didn't seem to notice that my mind was somewhere else entirely. To tear myself away from his chatter, I pretended to have to go to the bathroom. "Hurry up, Izumi. The next stop is ours." My trainer looked at me sternly and I nodded. Then I hurried to the toilets and locked myself in the cabin.

I took out my phone. I hadn't had the chance to continue my research for the last few days. I had simply forgotten. The whole thing with Kenma had really driven me crazy. To distract myself, I entered my unknown family's names into the search engine and waited until it spat out the results I wanted. The first thing I came across was a death notice for a man who had the same name as my father's brother: Ito Kanja. I sighed quietly. So I wouldn't find anyone here. I also came across a funeral notice in a local newspaper in which the relatives said goodbye to the deceased. My heart started beating loudly. The notice was placed in a regional newspaper in Hyōgo. Hyōgo... I was on my way to Hyōgo! Coincidences like that only happened in the movies! I tried to read the characters of the relatives' names, but I couldn't. Stupid language barrier. Just as I was about to enter it into the translator, the train stopped. I froze.

I quickly jumped to my feet and ran back to the compartment, but it was too late. I had barely pulled my suitcase out of the luggage compartment when the train started moving again. I felt sick. I had missed the station... I was completely alone... What should I do? My cell phone started to ring. With shaking hands I pressed the green receiver. "Izumi, can you hear me?" It was the trainer. I was about to burst into tears. "Everything is fine. The train will reach the next station in twenty minutes. Get off-" The call was interrupted. I looked at my cell phone in panic, but it remained black. Why did I have to run out of battery at that very moment?

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For twenty minutes I stared into space. As the train slowed, I clutched my suitcase. The doors opened and I stumbled out of the compartment. A huge crowd of people rushed towards me to board the express train. My body froze. I was roughly pushed to the side. Slightly dazed, I looked for signs pointing to an exit.

After leaving the hectic station, I looked for a power outlet to charge my phone. I spotted a small cafe across the street and decided to calm down there. My whole body was still shaking. A friendly barista greeted me and, after I explained my problem briefly, took me to a table with a power outlet. I impatiently fumbled for my charger. The screen lit up when I plugged it in. I breathed a sigh of relief. A few calls had come in, including three from my friends and teammates and two from Kuroo-san, who was attending the training camp as a coach. The last caller left goosebumps on my body. (4)* Kozume Kenma. He had called me... Why?

I clicked his number and the dial tone sounded. Three seconds later he picked up. "Where are you, kitten?" His voice calmed my troubled heart. "Kenma..." His voice became more urgent. "Where are you, Izumi?" I looked around. "I don't know. I guess the next station after the one I was supposed to get out. It's a huge train station... I'm in a little cafe across the street..." My voice broke. Fear spread through me again. I was alone, in a completely unfamiliar place. It was quiet for a while. "I'll be with you in fifteen minutes." That ended the call. I let my head fall onto the table.

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Time passed slowly. The tension grew with every second. I nervously watched the people around me. It was a nightmare. I had never traveled anywhere alone, not even in the US. Usually there had always been people around me that I knew. I had never missed my stop either. That's why the situation overwhelmed me. At some point I just stared out the window. When someone touched my shoulder, I flinched. I turned around with a swing. My face lit up. "Hi." Kenma smiled slightly. I jumped up, relieved, and hugged him. I didn't care what had happened between us, I was just happy that he was there. "What are you doing, kitten? You've been worrying us a lot, you know?" He drew circles on my back to calm me down. "Come on, let's go to the others."

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* In this case, the 4 represents the number of missed calls.