You gave a stifled cough, only Kanato turning to look as you forced the next one back down, giving a slight sniffle. Maybe going up to the roof wasn't such a good idea; you were certainly feeling the cold now despite having been so warm earlier. You attempted to focus on what the teacher was saying...something about quadratic equations? You weren't quite sure; your head felt like it was stuffed with cotton wool and your ears were ringing fiercely. It took you a moment to realise that the teacher was looking directly at you, expression expectant. You blinked slowly, noticing other eyes on you. Had you been asked a question?
"I'm sorry, could you repeat that, Miss Kirishima? I...I wasn't paying proper attention." She gave a patient smile, pointing to the board.
"I asked whether you could come up and attempt the equation on the board." You nodded, pushing yourself to your feet and heading to the front of the classroom, accepting the chalk from her and turning to the board. Hmm...if I remember correctly, it was...negative B plus or minus the root of B squared minus four AC...all divided by two A. You quickly solved the equation, Miss Kirishima giving a congratulatory smile as you completed it. "Well done Y/N, you really are a quick learner. You may sit back down." As you walked toward your seat you were suddenly overcome by a wash of exhaustion that sent you stumbling into Yuuko's desk, her eyes widening in alarm as she caught sight of your face.
"Y/N! Are you okay?" She exclaimed, reaching up to place her hand on your forehead, her skin feeling cool against yours. "You're burning up!" You stepped back, shaking your head with a smile.
"No, I'm fine. Just a little dizzy spell. I haven't been sleeping well lately, that's all."
"Are you sure?" This time it was Miss Kirishima, her brow creased with worry. "You can head to the nurses office if you are feeling unwell." Yuuko jumped to her feet, taking your hand, expression brimming with concern as she turned to the front of the class.
"I'll take her, miss. I'm the nurses assistant for our class." She appealed. You happened to glance to the back at that moment to see Kanato glaring furiously at your joined hands, his eyes holding that same maddened fury as that day he had demanded to know why you cared about Yuuko. You tugged your hand back sharply, giving her a smile to soften the harsh action.
"It's okay. I wouldn't want you to miss your lesson because of me. I'll make my way there myself. Thank you, though." She hesitated for a moment before sitting back down, expression still holding worry.
"Okay...if you're sure." You headed for the door immediately, glancing over to see that Kanato was once again wearing a neutral expression, his eyes not leaving you until you passed through the door. You wandered the corridors aimlessly, not really wanting to go to the nurses office; after all, that was where Reinhart - or Karlheinz, rather - had forced some strange liquid down your throat in a bid to fix whatever it was that Reiji had broken. Not that you resented him for it, per se; it had undoubtedly saved your life. However the new memory of the scorching like acid as the potion filled your body was still fresh and raw, him forcing more and more down your throat despite your agonized cries of protest. You eventually grew too tired to even walk any longer, and you slipped into a dark classroom, slumping down into the comfortable teacher's chair at the front, eyes fluttering shut. Just...five minutes...
"...pretty bad for a human, Reiji. Maybe you should..." you groaned slightly as a voice filtered through the haze of your mind, sounding mildly concerned despite the fact that you knew that this person, this person in particular, could never feel concern for you.
"Absolutely not. The blame is completely on her for not taking better care of herself. Why should I..." the voices faded back out again and you found yourself floating aimlessly in a sea of inky blackness, a numbness spreading through your limbs like they were being made into lead. Yes, you felt heavy. As soon as the thought occurred you plunged into the darkness, filling your mouth like a liquid and making you choke and splutter for air, desperately seeking breath as you coughed and coughed and coughed and—
