𝐌𝐄𝐑𝐂𝐘

CHAPTER 26

Everything had been dark since the moment the light at the end of the tunnel bleached into nothingness. Kai wouldn't wake until a rhythmic beeping brought her eyes into a slow blink.

Her eyebrows flexed as the constant beeping woke her, her eyes slowly opening to reveal a bright room with glossy tiles on the ceiling. Blinking several times, her gaze shifted, scanning the room to figure out where she was.

The room was decorated white, nothing but a few pictures on the walls. Across from her was a small wooden table, a white barrel chair tilted into the corner behind it. Kai's eyes slightly widened when she found Aizawa, wrapped in bandages from head to toe, sleeping in the chair. Stunned with confusion, her heart began to race.

There was that beeping again. But it was faster, more prominent.

Looking down at herself, her body was tucked under white sheets. Grabbing one corner, she ripped them off. Doing so, she realized there was a wire hanging from her forearm. Turning her wrist over, she found an IV plunged into her skin; with a tube attached, the color red ran through it and into her vein. Her eyes trailed the tube to find it attached to a bag of blood hanging from a metal pole at her bedside. Beside it, belonged the home of the beeping: a vital sign monitor. Her eyes rounded, her arm falling onto the bed. The hell... Her breathing became audible as she remembered what had happened.

The Sports Festival... obstacle course... Midoriya... It all came back when she remembered blacking out right before the finish line. The next event...! She whipped her head around to find a window next to her bedside. The sun forced its way in, nearly blinding her. Squinting, she leaned in to look out. Outside, she could see the crowd. She could see everything from where she was; the field, the crowd, everything. She got closer to see what was happening on the field, her eyes slowly widening with horror.

Below, the second event had already started.

Oh no... the image of her parents watching from the stands flashed in her mind. The skin on her forehead grew hot and a sick feeling formed in the pit of her stomach. Her hand slapped against her rib cage as she felt her chest tighten and burn.

"You have three more chances."

Her father's words echoed in the back of her mind again, upbringing a newfound failure while scratching her opportunities one by one. She had three more chances. Now she only had two.

Slowly, her head turned away from the window, her eyes falling to the floor before slowly making their way up to Aizawa. He was here. Unconscious and peaceful.

The hit list. Kai thought, her eyes widening. Another chance. The sudden thought crossed her mind and she considered it. Maybe it was the failure ebbing away her sense of humanity. Maybe it was the desperation to finally feel like she had a purpose in this world. Maybe it was the lack of blood in her system.

But in that moment, Kai convinced herself that she had no other option but to kill her teacher here and now.

She eyed him, slowly swinging her legs over the side of the bed. When her toes could touch the ground, she soundlessly jumped down. Subconsciously, she noticed she wasn't in her gym uniform. No, now she was draped in one of those ugly hospital gowns. With a quick, scornful look, she pushed that aside. She slowly moved forward, careful to keep her heart rate low so that it wouldn't disturb his doze. Still walking, she went to remove the IV in her arm—

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." He suddenly spoke. His voice was groggy and his eyes were barely parted to indicate that he was awake.

Kai froze in her tracks, her heart slamming against her rib cage in fear. How did he...? Her multi-colored gaze mirrored his eyes now, their eyes locked together. She fixed her posture and stood upright. Taking a step back, she swallowed hard, then averted her gaze.