Chapter 27 - Stay Sane

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by Bluffmuffin99

by Bluffmuffin99

Ena wasn't really even gone for that long. Ha. She was unconscious for a good portion of her time in sekai.

Then why did doing something as normal as eating breakfast at her own dining table feel odd?

Akito and her mother were there this time. Since she went to night school, Ena wasn't normally even awake at this time. Akito used to get up at the crack of dawn for soccer practice in middle school, (before he quit) so he's pretty used to it.

The brunette barely slept last night. Being up in the wee hours of the morning to meet with 25ji was one thing, while tossing and turning all night was another.
That's why she was there. Might as well make the best out of a rare early morning.

Everything is normal. Act normal. There's nothing worry about. she half-told, half-convinced herself.

The only background noise was Akito's light chewing and her mother's conversation with an old colleague.

It was supposed to be a peaceful, calm atmosphere.

But to Ena, the silence was deafening.

Holding its breath.

Waiting for something to strike.

Ringing like a sword.

Lunging straight for her n-

"I can't take it anymore!!" Ena screamed, dropping her fork on the table to rake her hands through her tangled hair. She ran to her room as fast as she could, hoping to escape to suffocating cloud that had suddenly descended onto the dining room. She could imagine her family giving her weird looks as she dashed away, but she didn't care.

This was not going to be a good day, and she could already tell.

Ena tried opening her window to let in fresh air. It didn't help. Somehow, it made it worse.

She attempted to calm her tingling nerves by talking a stroll in the city.

~미~} { 주 <3 엔 } {~나~

"Ena?" she turns around. "Oh. Mizuki . . ."

It's the first time I've seen them since . . . .

"You look upset." "I-" They give me a look.

I tell them the truth. About how what happened there lives in the back of my mind like a feral animal starved of food and waiting to pounce. About how I've encountered both the worst and best things in my life in the span for less than a month.

Their eyes seem empty though.

Right.

I can't keep focusing on myself.

I have a mission.

Helping Mizuki takes priority over sorting out whatever the after effects of almost dying. It's not like anything this crazy can happen twice. Amia, as tragic as it was for a child to fade away like that . . . . nothing can hurt them anymore . . right? Maybe Ena's logic is sound, but there was still a lingering aftertaste of unease settling into the roof of her mouth.

Mizuki Akiyama gently puts a hand on her shoulder.

"Stay sane, okay?"

Words: 500

ah ena might have ptsd ...
welp
🤷‍♀️
i think i'll add a happy ending where mizuki never committed suicide
dunno how that'll go but i'll try