Youth

#34 - Drafting Ideas

[Y/n] pulled open her wardrobe doors, stepping into it with slight anxiousness.  She needed to find a good place to hide her map.

After being left alone by Seishin and Draka, she'd waited in Draka's room for about half an hour before Seishin came back and told her she was free to go where she wanted to.  She, of course, made a beeline for her own room.  She couldn't risk the map being taken from her.

Rooting through the wardrobe for the perfect hiding place, [Y/n] came across a box.  Inside the box was a pair of black polished shoes, black shoe polish, different colours of clothing thread, a pincushion with a sewing needle in it and some fabric samples.  At the bottom was a small note.

'The tailor who made your clothes mentioned something about using these if they get damaged and you can't get to her; I hope you can make sense of them because it's all nonsense to me.  I think she added the shoes for fun— not entirely sure.
PS, the needle's sharp, don't hurt yourself.
- Nyais.'

Nyais.  He must've written this just before he moved her to this place.  Tears welled up in [Y/n]'s eyes, but she wiped them away quickly.  The thick smell of polish burned her nose and she decided it would be best to be done with this as soon as possible.  She placed the map, as well as the note from Nyais, in the shoe.  Grabbing the lid of the box, she shut it and hid it back under hoards of fancy tops and dresses that she'd likely never wear.  Then she took one of the pieces of paper she'd removed from Draka's room and walked over to her bed, sitting down.

She began to doodle absentmindedly.  She wanted to pass the time and didn't want to think about anything.  Just her and the doodles. 

About ten minutes of doodling had gone by with ease when [Y/n] was startled back into reality by a knock on her door.  "Yes...?" she said quietly, though notably not 'come in'.

"It's me," Draka's voice chimed guiltily on the other side of her door, "can I come in?"  He was greeted with silence on the other end, so he waited for about a minute, before speaking again.  "Did you take my pen by any chance?" he continued.  [Y/n] glanced down at the pen.  He'd noticed that fast?

"Uh, yeah, I just felt like drawing for a little bit..." [Y/n] mumbled stiffly.  She noticed her door handle turn and the door begin to open.  Draka stood in the doorframe with a small smile on his face.  He was beaten and bloody, a few knife scratches here and there, but mostly bruises. 

"You should've just asked.  I would've been more than happy to let you borrow them," he hummed, walking into the room, before catching sight of himself in a mirror and pausing.  "Sorry you have to see me like this," he added with a sigh.

"It's—" she hesitated, "it's okay."  Draka noticed the hesitation and looked down.  "Did Seishin do that to you?" she questioned.  He looked back up at her before nodding slowly.  "He's so thin and spindly though," [Y/n] mumbled, clearly confused at how Seishin — who was neither as tall, muscular or strong as Draka — could beat the boy up that badly.  And when he'd gone to see her after their fight, there hadn't been a single scratch on him.

"Jay taught me to fight properly," Draka muttered, "it seems Kaist has only taught Seishin and Kori foul play."  [Y/n] was about to fall back into old habits and reassure Draka, but she bit down on her tongue to stop herself. 

"No surprise there. That sorta style suits them," [Y/n] mumbled. A small smile formed on Draka's lips, half because he was happy that [Y/n] was insulting the others and half because she was comfortable enough to speak casually to him. It seemed as though he'd completely put the pervious exchange behind him; it made sense. If you could choose peace over conflict, why wouldn't you? But that defeats the entire prospect of a yandere, so there's still an element of question hanging in [Y/n]'s head as to whether he might snap or not.