WILD [Shirou Ogami x OC]

Chapter Eight- Feeling uneasy in Darkness.

I stood there awkwardly, shifting my weight from heel to heel, trying to shake off the adrenaline still coursing through my veins. The events of the day had left me rattled, but I wasn't used to showing it. Beside me, Shirou Ogami's presence loomed like a storm on the horizon. He was always so tense, his broad shoulders rigid, his expression unreadable—well, except for the scowl he wore most of the time.

I caught him glancing down at me, his golden eyes sharp, but when he spoke, it wasn't as harsh as I expected. "Are you okay?"

I stopped rocking on my heels and looked up at him, surprised that he'd asked. For a moment, I hesitated. He didn't strike me as the type to care much about anyone's well-being, but here he was, standing over me like a stone sentinel, waiting for my answer. His scent—something wild, almost earthy—was faint but constant, a steady reminder of his power. How could he always be so calm?

"Yeah," I muttered at first, but the words tasted wrong. I wasn't okay. The chaos of the day, the faces of those children, their hollow eyes—they'd been saved, but the memory of their fear wouldn't leave me. "Actually, no... I'm not used to this."

Shirou's scowl deepened, but he didn't say anything, letting me continue.

"I mean... I'm not used to being in the thick of things. Back there, with those kids... I felt helpless, even though we saved them." My voice wavered slightly as I admitted it, but I didn't look away. "It felt like I couldn't do enough."

Shirou crossed his arms, his posture still imposing. "That's the reality of Anima City," he said after a pause, his voice low but firm. "There's always more to do. More people to save. You'll never feel like it's enough."

His words struck me harder than I expected. How could someone live with that weight day in and day out? He'd been doing this for years, fighting for the city, protecting its people, and yet he never seemed to waver. I wondered how he managed it, how he didn't just collapse under the constant pressure. I wasn't sure I could handle it.

"But you... you're always so calm," I said quietly, my gaze still fixed on him. "How do you do it? How do you not let it get to you?"

Shirou's eyes flickered, but his expression didn't soften. "You think I don't feel it? The anger? The frustration? I feel it every day. But you don't have the luxury of falling apart, not when people are counting on you."

His words were like a punch to the gut, raw and real. I couldn't imagine the burden he carried, the weight of knowing that he couldn't save everyone, no matter how hard he tried. But even so, he kept moving forward, and that was something I couldn't quite wrap my head around.

"I get that," I said softly, trying to process his words. "It's just... seeing those kids, the way they looked at me, like I was their only hope... I've never felt so powerless."

Shirou's gaze lingered on me for a moment before he finally spoke again. "You're not powerless. You helped them today. That's more than most people in this city will ever do."

His words held a certain weight to them, but I still felt unsettled. "But what if I can't keep helping? What if next time I'm not enough?"

"Then you keep going," he said simply, his tone resolute. "You don't stop. Because this city needs people like you, whether you realize it or not."

For the first time since we'd met, I saw something different in his eyes—something more than just suspicion or judgment. It was a strange kind of respect, though it was buried deep beneath the layers of stoicism.

I nodded slowly, though the unease still clung to me. Shirou's words gave me a small sense of clarity, but it didn't completely erase the doubt gnawing at me. I wasn't used to this life. I wasn't like Shirou. But maybe, just maybe, I could learn to be.