Ink Stained

50: catch*

キャッチ

Aoi turned out to be sick with a mild case of the flu, which was giving her a slight fever. The stomach pains were just cramps reacting to the illness in her body. Even though she cringed from pain as she said it, she admitted that she was glad it wasn't food poisoning. She really did love ramen, and seemed to always be on the look-out for any new spots that served it.

Aihara, the nurse on duty, thanked Pai for bringing her to the nurse's room. After learning that she was going to call Aoi's parents to pick her up from school so she could rest up properly, Pai bid her goodbyes to Aoi and left the nurse's, glad that it wasn't anything too serious.

She didn't go back to class, though. She wasn't sure if Natsume and Shuusei had gone back to finish their lunch, or if Shuusei was still chasing his sister around. She didn't want to risk going back to sit in empty silence beside Shiori.

Normally, the two could always find something to talk about. Even when they were quiet, it was always comfortable. Pai didn't feel the need to talk if she didn't want to, and Shiori always seemed just fine with being near her without talking.

That wasn't the problem. The problem was that Pai was too tired to talk, and she knew that Shiori would notice that, if she hadn't already. Her eyes were weighed down by bricks, and her feet dragged on the floor as she wandered around aimlessly, mulling over on her limited options of what to do until the end of lunch.

She didn't want Shiori to ask her why she was so tired when Pai had been retreating to her room early with the excuse of sleep for the last few days.

Finally, when she thought she would drop from exhaustion if she didn't pause for just a minute, she walked over to the open window overlooking the green sports field. Some of the second year students were playing a lively game of football on one half of the field against the first years, excited yells filling the air when someone scored a goal. The other half of the field was being used by third years playing baseball.

She braced her elbows on the metal frames of the window, leaning forward as a fresh, cooling gust of wind blew the stray strands of her hair back over her shoulders. She sighed heavily and dropped her head to rest on her crossed arms, staring at the specks of dirt on the floor in front of the toes of her shoes.

Kuniumi? She called drowsily, closing her eyes. Can you tell me what happened?

What happened when? Kuniumi returned. So many things happened so many times.

When I tried to – when I attacked Shin.

Kuniumi was silent for a long time before she heaved a sigh not unlike Pai's own moments ago. Why do you ask now? Why didn't you ask us yesterday? Before yesterday? When it happened?

I'm afraid.

She could almost Kuniumi cocking her head to the side, like a confused kitten. Afraid of what? Us?

In a distant corner of her mind, a resounding yes was what she wanted to say. Unwilling to antagonize Kuniumi, she instead answered, I'm afraid you'll tell me that I wasn't sleepwalking. That a part of me knew what I was doing and did wanted to kill him.

Ah, Kuniumi crooned, delighted. You're afraid that there's a part of you still geared to killing Ayakashi like you were trained to.