Fire and Ice

Spirals of the Past

The next day, Tsuki was outside of the dorm, since she had promised to meet with Asahi... even if she wanted to stay at the dorms for the day. Tsuki had a bag in her arms while she was staring at her phone to distract herself from her thoughts last night. She waited for Asahi to appear at their promised waiting place. 

"Tsuki-hime!" Asahi greeted with a smile on his face. "Did you wait long?"

Tsuki was surprised to see the teacher pop out of nowhere as she took a step back instinctively. "A-ah... no..." Tsuki quietly shook her head, Asahi immediately knew that something was wrong with Tsuki... from the smile she had and the tone of her voice... she wasn't normally like this. Suzuki looked at Tsuki suspiciously while the girl continued talking quietly.

"I brought the yukata and the jacket I borrowed from Aeri-san, Camille-senpai and you..." Tsuki had a faint smile as she handed the man the bag. "That's all I came here for so I should go back to the dorm..." Tsuki was about to turn around to leave. 

Asahi frowned as he found himself gently grabbing the girl's hand, feeling her visibly jump. Asahi saw a scared look on Tsuki's face as she turned around to face him. The look that Tsuki gave him... was the same as when they had first met. Asahi immediately released Tsuki's hand, thinking it to be the cause of her discomfort. 

He didn't want to hurt her.

"...Come on. Let's go hang out! It's such a nice day today!" Asahi smiled brightly as he took off his bucket hat and placed it on Tsuki's head to hide her face. Maybe this would hide her face if she didn't want to show it to him. "It's a nice day as well!"

Tsuki allowed herself to be dragged by Asahi inside the game center as he looked around, trying to find something for the both of them to do. "It's so sparkly in here!" Suzuki smiled like a little kid as he turned back to see that Tsuki had a dark look on her face. Her expression hadn't changed even when Asahi was by her side. "Tsuki-hime, what a surprise! You seem like the type that likes to go outside on her day offs."

"Ah..." Tsuki's face ducked down even lower. "I... I prefer staying indoors..." The events from last night were repeating in her head. Tsuki shut her eyes as she felt her surroundings getting darker... back into the dark hole.

Asahi looked over his shoulder, a stoic look on his face as he saw Tsuki starting to breathe rapidly... like she was being choked. Tsuki had her hands to her ears as she squatted down to the ground. Asahi's eyes widened, stopping where he was, the hat he had placed on the girl's head made it hard for him to see the expression she was making. It was like the girl couldn't see him... or even her surroundings. 

"Tsuki-hime?" Asahi spoke up. "Is something wrong?"

"Bitter... why does everything taste so bitter...?" Asahi heard Tsuki mutter in a scared tone. "Why is it so dark in here...? Eishi.... Nii nii..."

"Tsuki!" Asahi spoke louder, making the girl look up to him slowly, still shaking. Asahi met Tsuki's eye level while Tsuki's eyes were a lot darker than their usual color. "Breathe." Asahi's tone changed into a comforting one while his hands were in front of him, palm side up. "If  you want to hold onto something, here." Asahi resisted his old habit to hug Tsuki. He wanted to give Tsuki some sort of comfort while keeping a respectable distance.

"S-Suzuki-sensei...?" Tsuki stammered. "Where... Where are you?" Tsuki reached her hands out like she couldn't see the teacher as she soon felt her hands touch warm and comforting hands. Tsuki felt her heart rate rise, to the point where her heart was starting to sting. Tsuki immediately clenched the man's hands.

"I'm right in front of you Tsuki." Asahi dropped his playful nickname for the girl as he could feel Tsuki's hands shaking. "You're holding onto my hands. Can you breathe in slowly... then breathe out? Just listen to my voice and just think happy thoughts ok? You're going to be fine. You're safe right now."