Chapter 56

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I shut the door behind me, remembering to lock the door. I had mixed feelings about my experience with Dabi. A part of me was confused. Why had he suddenly come to see me after so long, only to leave almost immediately? It couldn't have been just to wish me 'Happy Birthday'.

Another part of me felt oddly giddy. Why? I had no idea. Perhaps I was just feeling a little loopy from staying up so late. But, something about the way he looked at me or the way he touched me...

My phone. I glanced over at my phone still sitting on the couch and remembered the many notifications I had received but hadn't checked yet. I walked over to the couch and picked it up, wondering who could have been texting me at this time at night.

Opening my phone, my heart dropped as I saw thirteen texts for Tenko. As I opened the text thread, I had expected them to be about the 'wish' I owed him, but they were surprisingly different.

"Jikan, are you alright?"

"What happened? Are you hurt?"

"Jikan. Answer me."

"Please! Answer me!"

"Please tell me you're alright."

What had prompted him all the sudden to send these texts? It was almost laughable, however a part of me was also concerned. I stared at the messages for several more moments, turning the situation over in my head. I had been determined not to message him back, but he seemed super stressed. Not only that, but Dabi's point of me abandoning Tenko was still eating at my brain, even if I hated to admit it.

My fingers lingered over the send button for several moments before I finally sent it.

"I'm fine."

It was read almost immediately. But, I didn't receive a response. I don't know what I expected. I mean, I hadn't responded to any of his so why should he respond to mine? I sighed, shutting off my phone and yawning. I should go to sleep. It was way past midnight now and I had work tomorrow.

I changed into my pajamas, did my nightly routine, and collapsed into bed next to a sleeping Hana.

I had a very restless sleep. By the time I woke up in the morning, I was absolutely exhausted. I had many different dreams that haunted my subconscious. All for One was a common participant in my dreams. I had one dream where I was back to that day when I was six, playing with a ball in my backyard, when I heard the agonizing screaming from next door. I could hear the floors ripping apart; I could see blood flying. The day when Tenko first received his quirk. The day where my second life had restarted.

When I finally dragged myself out of bed, I heard Hana call me over. "Jikan, come look at this." I glanced over at Hana who was standing at the front door, looking sick to her stomach. Curiously, I wiped sleep out of my eyes as I walked over to her, wanting to know what she was looking at.

She pointed to the door knob, which was completely gone. There was nothing there. The exact door knob I had been careful to lock last night was completely gone. I glanced up at Hana. "I came out this morning and the door was wide open. When I came over to check it out, the door knob was just... gone," Hana explained, her voice quiet.

My throat felt dry. I didn't know what to say. How could a door knob just completely disappear? Dabi had warned me to lock the doors, and that night, our apartment may have been broken into. "Did you check if anything was stolen?" I asked.

Hana shook her head. "Nothing that I've noticed." For several more moments, the both of us stared at the absent door knob in silent shock. "Do you think it was some pervert trying to get pictures of us in our sleep?"

"Hana!"

"What? I'm just saying! We're two beautiful young women living alone in an apartment and there are some weirdos out there...," she murmured, still staring.

I sighed, rubbing my temples. "Look, you're gonna be late for work. So, how about you leave and I'll call the cops and see what they say?" I suggest. "I don't start work for a couple more hours so I can handle this."

Hana looked torn. She had always been a little frustrated leaving me to deal with all of our problems. She felt like as the older sister she should be the one to handle these things. I understood that could be frustrating, but from my point of view, I was much older than Hana and I could handle these things. If only I could explain that to her...

Finally, she slowly nodded her head. "If anything else happens, please call me," she said. I nodded with a small smile, giving her a hug before she rushed out the door, trying not to be late for work.

I called 110 and told the Police about our situation. A little while later, they sent two officers to get a scope of the situation. I explained what had happened, and the officers began investigating the apartment, taking photos and checking if anything else looked out of place.

I didn't mention Dabi coming here in the middle of the night and warning me to lock the door. Why would I? He was a super villain. Wouldn't it seem suspicious for me to be socializing with someone the police were actively after?

"It might be a stalker," one of the officers concluded. "Your sister was right. You guys are two girls living alone. That can attract plenty of unwanted attention."

I frowned. The answer wasn't satisfying enough to me. "Well then, what do you suggest we do? If a locked door isn't enough to keep this 'stalker' out, what should we do instead?"

The two officers glanced at each other, seeming to struggle to come up with an answer. One of them grunted in response and the other quickly changed the subject. "We'll bring someone by here later today to check if we can find any fingerprints that might give us a hint to who broke in here. For now, I would try to find a new door knob, or even a door, as soon as possible and talk to your landlord about it," the officer suggested.

I worked my jaw, making my annoyance obvious. "Okay. Thanks anyways. Just try to figure this out as soon as possible." The last thing I wanted was for my sister to get hurt.

Soon after that, the officers left, promising to come by later when Hana was home. After they left, I turned back to the door, turning over the situation in my head. How could this happen? There didn't seem to be any struggle, or markings of someone trying to gouge the door knob out, it was just simply gone.

As I continued to observe the door, I peered into the empty circle where it had been, and found something odd. Tiny, flaky particles of bronze, the exact color and material of the door knob. The almost dust like texture reminded me of something, and I really, really hoped what I thought wasn't true.

________

Hey! I know I promised more updates more quickly, but guess what!

I'm currently working on my college applications! It has been really stressful but fun, and I'm excited to be starting this new chapter in my life. Not only that, but I've begun to take community college courses while still in high school to get some credits, so I've been much busier than normal.

I'll try to update as quickly as possible!

~littlesharpsword

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