Toshi strained to hear what was going on.

 

 

 

Concerned about making noise in the empty and echoing stairwell was the reason he didn't immediately flee. Toshi withdrew his hand from Ruri's mouth, as he gestured for her to stay silent by placing his finger against his lips.

 

Sato cradled his son in his arms, a bag of supplies slung over his shoulder. Glancing around and then back at the detective approaching him, he asked, "I'm sorry... who are you talking about?"

 

The detective maintained a stoic expression as he addressed Sato, saying, "Kimoto Toshi. I'm acquainted with his mother, the head of the forensics department for the police force. I've been conducting an investigation, and I keep coming across some troubling information about her son."

 

Sato turned to lock his door, "Well, I'm in a bit of a hurry. We can talk after I run my errands."

 

Hachiro closed the distance, invading Sato's personal space thus prompting him to retreat. "I do understand, but this is important," he asserted, not so subtly glancing past the slightly open door into the apartment. "Perhaps Toshi is here? I wouldn't mind talking to him," he suggested, turning to face Sato with a persistent smile. "Do you mind if we step inside, just for a second?"

 

Feeling the discomfort intensify, Toshi acted on impulse, pulling out his phone. As he did, the itching sensation abated. Swiftly, he accessed his messenger and sent a text to Sato: BRING HIM INSIDE. STALL.

 

Sato was opening his mouth to protest Hachiro's aggressive behavior when his phone beeped. Both he and Hirchiro looked at Sato's pocket. Sato looked like he might ignore it, but Hichiro gestured, "Are you going to get that?"

 

Sato, with a guarded expression, took out his phone and glanced at the message. His eyebrows shot up in surprise. "Huh," he muttered, slipping the phone into his pocket. "I guess my appointment has been canceled." He used his free hand to push the door open. "I suppose I do have time." Hachiro hesitated, turning to look down the hallway for several seconds. Sato cleared his throat, breaking the moment. "Look, I need to put my son back in bed if his doctor's appointment is being rescheduled. Are you coming in or not?" Sato walked back into his apartment, leaving the door open behind him.

 

Hichiro frowned for a moment, then returned his face to a mask before following Sato inside.

 

Once the door closed behind Sato, Toshi wasted no time. He swiftly moved down the stairs, trying to minimize any noise. Reaching the next floor, they reentered the hallway and hurried over to the elevator. Toshi pressed the button, and as the doors opened on the lower floor, they swiftly entered the elevator, hoping to make a quiet escape.

 

As they road down to the ground floor, Ruri finally spoke, "Who was that?"

 

Toshi shook his head, "I have no idea, but the last cop that claimed to know my mom nearly got me killed. Whatever is going on, it's setting off my danger sense."

 

"You have danger sense?"

 

Toshi clenched his teeth. "Ehhh... Fate... Sense? I don't know what to call it. I just know when the universe is trying to tip the scales. I don't understand why, but when that guy entered the building, I could feel it. I..." The elevator door opened with a ding. The two stepped out, glanced around to ensure the lobby was clear, then hastily made their way to the exit.

 

As they got out on the street, Toshi started to flag down a taxi. Ruri grabbed his elbow and spun him around to face her, "Toshi. Stop. Explain."

 

Toshi looked up the side of the apartment building, then back down to Ruri, "Whatever is going to happen, my experience is that fate tries very hard to force things, once. After that moment, it gives up and moves on. That man is setting off my fate sense. I... think he's the one who's going to kill you, or... maybe he just does something that causes you to die or something. I don't know. But he makes my teeth itch."

 

Ruri thought about Toshi's answer, then started flagging down a taxi, "What's the plan?"

 

Toshi rubbed his forehead, "I dunno... I... Think we should go to the Karaoke Bar." His teeth stopped itching entirely as the words left his mouth, "Yeah. Let's go where there is a crowd." He took out his phone and quickly typed out a message to Sato: Thanks for everything. I got it from here. Stay safe.

 

A car stopped in front of them. The pair quickly got inside.

 

---

 

Seven stories above them, Detective Shiro Hachiro waited for Sato Toshi to finish putting his son in bed. While he did, he checked the tracking app on his phone.

 

 

 

The icon showing the location of Kimoto Toshi's phone was moving away from his current location.

 

 

 

Sato came out of his son's bedroom, "Okay. Now then... What did you need... to..." He looked around, "Talk about?" He took a few more steps around the now-empty apartment, only to stop looking for the detective when he noticed the front door.

 

 

 

It had been left wide open.

 

---

 

It was dusk.

 

 

 

Naora bided her time until the night patrol completed their bed check. Anticipating a good twenty minutes before the next round, she prepared her bed to give the appearance she might still be in it. With little preamble, she stealthily exited through the window. It took little effort to ascend to the roof while she took advantage of the cover of twilight

 

That was something she was having problems figuring out.

 

Naora reflected on her recent physical growth, strength, and athleticism she hadn't possessed until relatively recently. While with Toshi, she managed to overlook these changes, but ever since arriving at this place, it became impossible to ignore. Despite her disdain for being confined within the walls of this so-called school, she grudgingly acknowledged the valuable lessons it had taught her. Naora had excelled as a model student, acing all her 'exams' with flying colors, and she couldn't deny that her strength was increasing exponentially.

 

She had no idea how.

 

The peculiar aspect was that the more Naora contemplated an action, the more challenging it became to achieve. Conversely, when she refrained from overthinking, when she relinquished the need for understanding, and simply allowed events to unfold, it became markedly easier to execute all these...

 

Miracles.

 

She lacked a better word for what it was. "Magic" might be more fitting. Naora couldn't fathom that the feats she was accomplishing were even possible, except perhaps in a poorly scripted anime. Yet, there she was, effortlessly leaping a thirty-foot gap to a wall, smoothly rolling across the guard's walkway, and then gracefully descending about fifteen feet on the other side, landing soundlessly.

 

Naora froze upon landing. It was a recurring occurrence, a moment of self-doubt disrupting the flow. She had been 'in the zone,' and now she was not. Pressing herself against the wall to stay in its shadow, she experienced a brief panic attack. It lasted only a few seconds before she refocused on her objective.

 

Toshi.

 

Recalling Toshi helped Naora regain her composure, and she propelled herself into a sprint. ~Don't think. Act.~ she reminded herself as she darted down the side of the mountain. During the run, she allowed her mind to drift to the persistent question that had been plaguing her: ~How?~

 

The answer always came back to Toshi.

 

Naora was not naive. She recognized that the withdrawal she felt wasn't merely a mental hang-up. In hindsight, it seemed apparent that every aspect of her life had transformed since she started seeing him. Toshi had saved her life and she found herself endowed with what seemed like superpowers. Happiness enveloped her in his presence and thoughts of him occupied her mind incessantly when he wasn't around. If it were anyone else, she would have considered the entire situation an elaborate trap.

 

Beyond the longing to see him again or to satisfy a mere 'fix' Naora harbored questions. She needed answers about what was happening. None of it made logical sense, but given the absence of any alternative explanations, she leaned towards the only answer that aligned with the facts: the boy was special and he had somehow affected her. Whether intentional, an act of kindness, an accident, or a mere coincidence, the specifics didn't matter at the moment.

 

She wanted answers.

 

As Naora contemplated waiting until they let her go, it had become increasingly evident that her grandmother would persist in throwing up roadblocks between her and Toshi. Now it wasn't solely the 'withdrawal' motivating her, nor the need for answers. A nagging feeling of something being awry weighed heavily on her. She couldn't pinpoint it. It was more of an impending sense of doom. An itch she couldn't scratch. She lacked details, but a strong intuition insisted that something was terribly wrong.

 

Toshi was in danger.

 

Though not inherently romantic, if pressed, Naora would admit to feeling a connection with Toshi. His joy brought her happiness, and in their separations, she sensed his loneliness. On a particular day not too long ago, she discerned a different emotion in him. 'Conflicted' didn't quite capture it; 'tempted' was far more accurate. She felt Toshi grappling with something enticing. Or, which she feared was more likely the cause of her apprehension, he was grappling with SOMEONE enticing.

 

She almost tried to break out of the school that very night.

 

As the time for the escape arrived, whatever emotional signal Naora had picked up seemed to have passed. At the last second, she chose to stay, dismissing her fears as simple paranoia from the stress of being trapped here. She convinced herself that it must have been a creation of her imagination. However, during her next conversation with Midori, her friend evaded questions about Toshi and what he had been up to. Naora's certainty grew that something had happened to Toshi, and worse yet, she suspected Midori had been compromised.

 

Unable to endure the growing sense of dread any longer, Naora abandoned her plan to wait for an opening. She had been feeling a sense of impending doom consuming Toshi. He was being wracked with some sort of overwhelming fear about something very specific. Whatever was about to happen, it was imminent, and she knew it would unfold tonight.

 

One way or another, she was going to be there for him.

 

Having descended the last of the sheer cliff faces, Naora reached a road accessible to the public, unlike most of the privately owned land in the area. It marked the final moment of truth. Glancing both ways, she noticed something in the distance. Her eyesight had improved dramatically in the past few weeks and spotting a car in the gloom was a mere parlor trick at this point in her life. Without hesitation, she turned and sprinted toward a vehicle that was parked on the side of the road. A vehicle that would contain the answer to at least one question she needed to know the answer to.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

She was going to find out exactly where Midori stood.