𝑺𝒐𝒓𝒅𝒊𝒅

ℂ𝕙𝕒𝕡𝕥𝕖𝕣 𝟚𝟠 - 𝔹𝕚𝕫𝕒𝕣𝕣𝕖

The walk became silent after that incident. (Y/n) was nonchalant, Kazutora was rather uneasy yet still in shock and was unable to comprehend what happened between his father and (Y/n), as Keisuke felt the same as Kazutora, although he doesn't show it. They were amazed. Perhaps amazed would be an understatement. Neither of them could handle the situation, and Kazutora would definitely go along with his father's wishes. Since Keisuke doesn't seem to have the confidence to stand against him, yet (Y/n) was able to get his father on edge, his concealed anger had been released, and thus he initiated violence towards a non-family member.

Keisuke repeatedly got lost in his thoughts that he would often lead them in the wrong direction. He apologized repeatedly, and (Y/n) wasn't bothered at all.

They have arrived at the riverbank. It was so silent that you could hear a single coin dropping on the ground. "Thank you for earlier, Yuki-chan!" He expressed his gratitude because Keisuke had been nudging him to do it. She smiled and said, "It's nothing at all. I'm glad that I have helped you." 

She silently took off her boots and socks, sitting beside the riverbank as she dipped her feet in the river. She widens her eyes wide along with a fleeting glance, 'The water is colder than I thought... It is quite refreshing.'

She looked at the waters below, seeing her reflection, yet the turbulence of the water under her feet didn't make her reflection any clearer. She would want to wish that she could just stay here, with her feet soaking in the water, letting her problems wash away by the relaxation she felt. If only there was a place where there would be no mentally taxing situations and no violence, she would immediately travel and live there until her death was reaching its peak.

She simply doesn't understand why a father would do such evil acts to his own son. When she looked at Kazutora, his head hung low, eyelids gathered his tears that were suppressed to fall subconsciously, and his expression reigned with fear and being intimidated because of one person. It was like seeing a reflection of herself when she was first stationed under Akutagawa's influence. She had gained cuts and bruises due to his abuse, probably due to his detestation of her existence. His words stirred her from the inside and made her want to vomit and die. Someone like him was meant to be feared, and she herself couldn't defy his very being, making him twist his words to describe her as weak and a pawn meant to be trampled upon. 

Unbeknownst to her, she believed them.

Keisuke only looked at them. When he recalled what happened earlier, it made (Y/n) completely into a different person. For someone he knew as quiet and kind, as if she couldn't knock a single fly due to the demeanor she displayed after several months since they met. Her austerity led him to a shock when she confronted Kazutora's father without fear, unlike the girl he assumed she was. Her words provoked his father and stopped his fist from landing on her face. He was surprised that the young girl like her that he thought was just a quiet and kind could do such a thing, which led him to be incredulous.

'Was she faking all along or she was hiding something?'

That question was in his head at that moment, yet he didn't ask, thinking that she wouldn't say anything, so his effort would be futile. She uses such formal language as if she was from a sophisticated family that there were words that he couldn't comprehend. Nevertheless, what she did was cool, and he already knew that she was a nice person, judging by all the kind deeds she did.

He could see her face contorted with disturbance. He assumed that it was due to what happened earlier, so he didn't want to pry more. He too was perturbed. Yet he knew that Kazutora's father had treated his friend with unkindness but couldn't do anything.

Kazutora went towards the albino-haired female, taking off his shoes to soak his feet in the water. It was cold, yet it was soothing that he had forgotten all the trauma he had endured that had consecutively flowed through his mind after witnessing his father approach him the exact same way. "Are you alright now, Hanemiya-san?" (Y/n) asked as her gaze was still on the flowing water. Kazutora only nodded and silence inundated them after a few minutes.