Philophobia 2 (Yandere! Sugawara X FemReader!)

| Part XXIII: What Are You? |

"Were you always a problem child?"

I ask with the rolling of my eyes. As we walk, I now step a little further away from him for some room to work. I make casual glances at his hand still holding me.

"Huh? What an odd question to ask." Kakeru chuckles out, blowing at a couple of his long fringes to get them out of his eyes.

"Well, I don't think so considering what you just pulled..." By now, as the realization sets in and the adrenaline wears out, I crack a subtle frown.

"Oh I guess so." He replies with.

Hinata looked upset. I wonder what Kakeru was implying. I stare at him, blinking slowly. He looks innocent, calm, like he has no recollection of what he has done. His voice never falters, or cracks from guilt. He always looks fault-less.

I bite my lip.

Kakeru takes another glance into my direction, but this time, his eyes don't avert. He blinks, slowly, with his eyes trilling over me like water.

"What?"

Instinctively, I turn my gaze elsewhere and awkwardly— only for my eyes to plaster themselves to his bag. Like needles, I pin, feeling a bead of sweat trickle. Real smooth.

"Nothing."

But my eyes begin to widen. I feel the bit of air leave my body as I gasp at the head of a hammer peeking out of his bag. Alarmed, I give his shirt a slight tug.

"Hey, Kakeru..."

"Hm?"

"Why... is there a hammer sticking out of your bag?" I question him. I don't think much of it, but Kakeru doesn't strike me to be much of a technician. Maybe he had some kind of side project?

And as I look back to him, he's a little pale in the face. Even though he's smiling, he looks like he's scrambling a bit for an answer. He releases me and tucks that hammer further into his bag—and with glooming eyes; I notice him glance towards his ankle.

"̷I̸t̷'̷s̵ ̸n̸o̵t̵h̷i̵n̸g̴...̸ ̸"̸

He loosens up a bit, but his eyes never lose its frantic intensity. Craning his head to the side, Kakeru pulls me to a halt; gently. He doesn't sound like himself— and I no longer recognize these eyes of his.

I don't reply. I just keep my eyes on him, hesitant to stare but also hesitant to look away.

The hammer... Couldn't have anything to do with his ankle, right? And actually... now that I think about it, he's always there.

Kakeru is always so conveniently there when I need him.

There, he  holds my arm; clenching, actually. Like he wants me to forget about whatever it was that I was assuming. I can't hide my defensive state and he's definitely noticed.

I gulp, swallowing that hard reality that really seems like a long shot. I'm overthinking things. Sugawara has left me to be a ruminative little mess, doubting even the people closest to me.