Obsession (Ayano x Budo)

Chapter 35

At about 7pm that night, Budo emerged from the basement.

He pushed up the hatch with his hand and his head poked out into the night-darkened hallway. The hours had passed by in a blur. How was it so late already? He had hardly done anything and yet his body was tired. It had been a long day, even if the hours had passed by faster than he had thought.

Budo stepped out into the hallway and closed the hatch quietly behind him. He gave a big yawn, stretching his arms as far as he could above his head. He smiled for a second, and then let his arms fall back to his sides. As he did so, his eyes caught sight of his hands, and his mind stalled from its temporary peace.

"I should get some gloves," he murmured to himself, already walking towards the bathroom. He had to use his elbow to turn on the bathroom light, and the room flickered immediately into vivid whiteness. Usually, Budo found the bathroom light a bit too intense, but after many hours of exposure to the basement's overhead fluorescent lights, this was nothing.

Budo maneuvered his elbow against the tap to turn on the water. He put his hands under the silky-cool running water and concentrated on scrubbing away the stains from his hands until there was nothing left. He looked up at the mirror, and was surprised to see a pale face with splatters all over it staring back at him. "I gotta be less messy next time," he mumbled as he rinsed his face. The feeling of clean water against the skin of his face was refreshing. It felt like nothing was wrong, just an everyday, normal life.

As he twisted the taps closed, he watched disjointedly as the last swirl of pink water flowed down the drain, a last gurgle running down the pipes as it disappeared. He flicked off the water drops clinging to his hands and grabbed the fresh towel hanging on the side of the sink. He rubbed his face against it and was greeted by a softness that seemed to dissolve all his worries. As he put the towel away, he inspected his hands one last time, turning them over in the light, scrutinising his skin and fingernails for signs of anything that should not be there. Budo found nothing. Satisfied, he nodded to himself, turned off the lights and exited the bathroom.

He was still tired, but at the same time his thoughts were darting around in his head. He was nervous, scared, anxious and thrilled at the same time. Tonight's agenda had been all he could think of ever since he'd told Ayano to meet tonight. Even while he had been spending all that time in the basement, even while he had been so fully enjoying himself there, still, at the back of his mind, there was that hidden excitement for seeing her resurfacing with very movement. It was as if the activity, instead of distracting him from Ayano, had only heightened his seemingly everlasting thoughts of her. And now that he thought about it, it made perfect sense, because naturally he was doing all this for her.

Nowadays, it was as if she wasn't just a part of his body, but even a part of his mind. During the past few hours, he had been wondering... What would she think if she saw what he was doing? How would she feel? Would she hate him for it, or, perhaps, would she want to join in? That image brought forth so many beautiful ideas, and Budo shut his eyes for a moment so that he may savour them in his mind. He hoped that they would all come true. Who knows? Maybe she did want to help him...

Of course, his angel was so unpredictable that he couldn't really say. But that was what he liked, no, loved about her. In fact, didn't he have a meeting right now?

And just like that, his exhaustion was lifted - like a curtain being yanking off a dark room and filling it instantly with sunlight. He was bathing him with white-hot energy which buzzed through his cells and alerted his entire body. 

Budo changed his clothes quickly, tossing his old ones into the corner of his room. He'd turned to go when he suddenly spotted a glass, half-empty with water. As soon as he saw it, he felt his throat become parched, as if lined with sandpaper. Instinctively, he grabbed it, pressed the cold tip of the glass against his lips, and drank deeply. It was just water, and yet it flowed down his throat like the coldest, most amazing thing he'd ever tasted. Too soon the glass emptied, yet his throat was still begging for more. Wordlessly he lowered it back on his bedside table. He had forgotten to attend to his own needs, so captivated where his thoughts by Ayano. The feeling of thirst was surpassed only by the feeling of wanting to go to her. At that realisation, his feet couldn't move fast enough 

It was humorlessly funny. Nowadays, he couldn't even spend a few hours away from her. It was like she was the blood running through his veins. He was starting to need her constantly, like some sort of aggressively possessive drug that takes complete control of the body. If it continued at this rate, he may just go mad.

Unless I'm not already.

Budo smiled at his own joke as he left his bedroom and headed towards the door. He still remembered how to get there. It wasn't too long. A 20 minute walk.

"Alright, time to go." As he stepped outside, he blasted with the cold night air, but instead of stinging his face, it was refreshing. It made him even more awake. He didn't usually go out at night. With darkness surrounding him, everything was suddenly exciting. Every step that took him closer to her made heart beat faster and faster in anticipation. Tonight would either be a hit or miss. Everything was at stake. He couldn't wait to see Ayano's beautiful face.

Maybe, if he ran, he could get there in 10 minutes. His legs were already taking him away, and he had to hurriedly lock the front door behind him. Before he left for the night, he made a mental note.

While I'm out, I ought to be practical. Maybe I'll pop by the convenience store on the way back for some dog food.

Budo didn't want Taro to starve to death or something stupid like that. That would just ruin the fun.

*(A/N: Just curious. What sort of things do you think Budo has been doing to Taro...? )*