SHARPER || Chishiya Alice in Boarderland

-45- Goro!

Saturday morning smells like coffee, toast, and Goro's dog food. The scent combo is as tragic as it sounds.

The kitchen window is cracked open, letting in a slice of warm light and the faint hum of the city outside. Nio stands by the counter, hair a messy halo, still in her oversized hoodie and leggings. Kenji sits opposite me at the little table, pouring what can only be an irresponsible amount of syrup over his pancakes. Goro's tail thumps loudly against the tiles, tongue lolling as he attacks his bowl like it's his mortal enemy.

It's all so normal.
And I can't focus on any of it.

My spoon hovers in my cereal bowl, milk slowly soaking the flakes until they turn limp. I can't stop thinking about the Aizawa Institute, about the words games and red lights and how my scar burned last night when I read about them.

"—and then he literally jumped into the lake."

Nio's laughter snaps me back. She's leaning forward, elbows on the table, telling Kenji some story about dog school.

"Goro?!" Kenji asks, mid-laugh.

"Who else?" she says, rolling her eyes. "The idiot saw a duck and decided it was his destiny to chase it. I had to go in after him. I swear the trainer almost fainted."

Kenji bursts into laughter, slapping the table. "Oh my God, he's literally chaos."

"Excuse me," she says, feigning offense. "He is the glue that holds this household together."

"Yeah, well, your glue's shedding all over the carpet," I mutter absently, nodding at Goro.

Nio smirks. "Don't project your issues onto my son."

I try to smile, but my head's somewhere else—spinning between déjà vu and dread. I stir my cereal again, realize I've barely eaten, and set the spoon down.

Kenji notices first. He always does. "You okay?"

I blink up at him. He's trying to play it casual, but his brows are drawn together.

"You've been quiet all morning."

"Just tired," I lie. "Didn't sleep much."

Nio eyes me knowingly, the kind of look that says I'll circle back to this later. "You sure that's all?"

"Yeah," I say, a bit too fast.

Kenji exchanges a glance with her before deciding to change the subject. "So, uh... my parents called."

That gets my attention. I set my elbows on the table, forcing my brain to focus. "Yeah?"

"They're coming tomorrow," he says softly. "Morning flight. Should be here by noon."

The words hit harder than I expect. I knew it was coming, but hearing it out loud makes it real. My throat tightens. "Tomorrow?"

He nods. "Yeah. Guess this is my last weekend here."

Nio's expression softens. "We'll make it a good one, okay?"

Kenji smiles faintly. "Yeah."

There's a quiet moment where none of us talk. Even Goro stops eating, head lifting, tail slowing like he can feel the shift in the room.

I finally break the silence. "You'll still visit, right?"

He shrugs, looking down at his plate. "I mean, yeah. I hope so. Depends how things go, you know? My mom wants to move to Nagoya for a while, so..."

"Right," I say quietly.

I hate how empty that word sounds.

Nio leans across the table, nudging his shoulder. "You can call us every day if you want. Or don't. But you'll always have a home here, okay?"