𝐐𝐔𝐄𝐄𝐍~ 𝐒𝐀𝐍𝐎 𝐌𝐀𝐍𝐉𝐈𝐑𝐎

♡Chapter-31♡

Your point of view.

I focus all my attention on the laundry, my hands moving with a practiced rhythm, folding and stacking. But I could feel Sora's eyes on me. He's waiting for me to say something, to acknowledge the tension hanging between us. But I keep my head down, determined not to give him an opening.

After a long silence, he clears his throat. "So.. Baji's in the hospital, huh?"

My hands pause just slightly, but I don't look up. "Yeah." I say, keeping my voice low.

He shifts a bit, crossing his arms as he leans against the doorframe, his eyes never leaving my frame. "And.. you're not planning to go see him?"

"I'm busy, Sora. Got other things to take care of."

He lets out a quiet sigh, and I could feel his gaze narrowing down at me. "You're not that busy." He says, his voice gentle but firm. "You care about him, don't you?"

"I warned him." I tighten my grip on the shirt, pressing my lips into a thin line. "I told him not to be reckless. Told him over and over to be careful. And he still threw himself into the middle of everything, like none of it mattered."

Sora raises an eyebrow, watching me with a mixture of curiosity and understanding. "So... you're mad at him?" He asks, his voice softer now. "Is that it?"

I let out a short breath. "I'm not mad. I'm disappointed." I corrected him. "I just.. don't understand why he did it. Why he put his life on the line when he didn't have to."

Sora quiets down for a moment, considering my words. He steps closer, his voice lowering. "Maybe he thought he was doing the right thing. Maybe he thought he was protecting something he cared about."

I look down, my expression still stoic. Sora doesn't know the full story, doesn't know about my interference in the fight. And he doesn't need to know. I'm keeping it that way, for his sake and for mine.

He studies me for a long moment, his gaze intense. "You know." He says, his tone surprisingly soft, "I didn't like Baji at first. But.. over the years, I've come to realize he's not that bad. He cares for you just as much, plus he's a good fighter. Just like you." He passed me a shrug. "And maybe that's why he did what he did. Maybe he thought it was worth the risk."

A part of me wants to break and admit that Sora might be right. That maybe my frustration is really just fear, fear of losing someone who's been willing to put everything on the line, even when I begged him not to.

Sora reaches out, placing a firm but gentle hand on my shoulder. "You don't have to keep this up, you know."

I shake my head, my face still carefully blank. "Sora, just.. drop it. I've made my choice, and he made his."

He lets out a heavy sigh, a flicker of frustration crossing his face. "Alright. Fine. But just.. think about it, alright? You don’t want to regret not being there." He watches me for a moment longer, his expression a mixture of concern and understanding, before he finally turns and walks away, leaving me alone with my thoughts.

His words echoed through my mind as i sighed, running a hand over my face as I think back to all the warnings I gave Keisuke, how I practically begged him to stay safe. And still, he ended up in the hospital.

Sora's right, though. Avoiding him isn't making things any better. I put down the last folded shirt and stare at the stack of laundry in front of me.

This whole time, I'd convinced myself that not going was my way of teaching him a lesson, showing him the consequences of his actions. But maybe all I'm really doing is avoiding my own fears, the fear of facing the reality, and that their would have been a chance that I might have loosed him.