"What are you doing here?"
My eyes are still closed.
"Just wanted to make sure you sleep peacefully~."
"How did you get in?"
"Through the window."
I sigh, sitting up.
"You would make an excellent ghoul."
He grins.
"You think so?" - "I'm sure."
"What is the time?"
He shrugs.
I scratch the back of my neck. I move some bangs away from my face.
Juuzou watches me closely with emotionless eyes.
"What are you doing here, Juuzou?"
"I told you." - " What are you really doing here?"
He forced a smile, leaning his head against the wall.
Occasionally, I get the feeling he wants to kill me.
"I care about you." His tone is somewhat caustic.
"Why?" - "Because Shinohara cared."
Oh, god.
"But Shinohara is not you. You never liked me. Why are you trying... to care?"
He chuckled dryly.
"You see everything, don't you?"
I grasp the blanket tightly.
"You... don't have to do this. He wouldn't care."
"He talked a lot about you, you know? It bothered me. He used to tell me I should keep you close. He said you are like me, that there is a fine line between us. I never understood him, but I'm trying."
I bite my lower lip.
"So you wanted to kill me?"
"No. But I enjoy knowing I can."
I let out a chuckle.
"I don't mind right now."
He stands up, putting his hands into his pockets.
"Well, that was nice, wasn't it?"
He turns to the door.
"Thank you... for checking in." I almost whisper.
That night I realized that Juuzou's trauma made him consider what Shinohara would do at every step of his communication.
In other words, His guilt is his fuel for empathy.
I couldn't fully understand what Shinohara meant by what he said to Juuzou. Juuzou neither, but at least I know what he was thinking about this whole time. It eases me in a way.
The following day was an important one. Our team had a meeting with Arima and Akira. There was this new investigator they wanted us to meet.
"I'm Haise Sasaki! Nice to meet you."
Juuzou blinks at the boy.
"Have I met you before?" He asks.
"I don't think so" Haise touched his chin.
"Haise Sasaki is a first-class investigator, and he is also a qunix," Akira explained.
"A what?" - "Qunix. A human with restrained Rc cells installed in his body."
YOU ARE READING
Fine line
Fanfiction'He used to tell me I should keep you close. He said you are like me, that there is a fine line between us. I never understood him, but I'm trying.' Shinohara's message to Juuzou before the owl attack was that you need each other. You could not be a...
