SHARPER || Chishiya Alice in Boarderland

-43- Hanai

The elevator hums softly, the doors sliding open with a familiar chime. I'm still somewhere else—half in my head, half in the hospital room with flashing monitors—when someone steps in. I don't even look up at first.

"Yuki?"

The voice pulls me back. I blink and turn. Takumi stands in front of me, a little thinner than last time I saw him, but still with that same easy grin that doesn't quite reach his eyes. He's wearing a dark hoodie under a denim jacket, hair pushed back, a little less wild than when I last saw him. The bruising on his cheek has faded, though there's still a thin line along his jaw. He looks... better. Whole.

"Takumi?" I blink again, trying to pull myself into the present. "What are you—? I thought you were released?"

He chuckles, rubbing the back of his neck. "Yeah, I was. Just came in for a clean check-up. Make sure everything's still where it's supposed to be, you know?" He gestures vaguely to his chest. "Apparently, I'm still alive. Shocking."

A small laugh escapes me—barely—but it's real. "That's... good news."

He tilts his head, his grin fading into something gentler. "You look like you saw a ghost."

The words hit a little too close to home. I drop my gaze to my shoes. "Not... a ghost. Just—someone woke up from a coma. One of the patients."

"Oh?" His voice softens. "The burned guy?"

I nod, pressing my bag closer to my chest. "Yeah. Niragi. I was with him when it happened. One second I was talking to him and the next everything went wrong. I didn't know what to do. The machines went crazy, I panicked, the nurses rushed in..."

Takumi listens quietly. He doesn't interrupt, doesn't make a joke, doesn't say the usual "you did fine." Just listens. It's one of the reasons I like him.

When I trail off, the elevator dings and the doors slide open on the ground floor. I make no move to leave, my body still heavy from everything, until Takumi steps out and turns to look back at me.

"You wanna come with me?" he asks.

I blink. "Where?"

"Hair appointment," he says simply, like that should explain everything. "Figured I'd get a trim, maybe look a little less like a cave man. Come on. You look like you could use a distraction."

"I—" I start, hesitating. My brain immediately tries to come up with excuses: I should go home, check on Goro, wait for Nio, maybe call Kenji. But the truth is, I don't want to be alone. Not after that.

Takumi just raises an eyebrow, like he already knows what I'm thinking. "C'mon, you'll sit, listen to bad music, maybe complain about my barber. Win-win."

The thought of sitting in silence at home, alone with my thoughts, suddenly feels unbearable. I look down at my hands, still faintly trembling, then up at him. He's watching me, patient but hopeful.

"I don't know..." I start, but my voice fades.

He tilts his head, eyes softening. "It's just a haircut. Maybe you'll even laugh at how bad it turns out."

A short breath escapes me — not quite a laugh, but close. "You're really pushing the sympathy angle, huh?"

"I'm pushing the distraction angle," he corrects, smirking. "You need one. And I need someone to make sure I don't chicken out halfway through."

I stare at him for a moment longer. The sunlight spills over the tiled floor between us, and the idea of not thinking — just for a little while — is tempting.