RED STRINGS | ITADORI YUJI X FEM!READER

22

Masachiro watched the little girl, who had retreated into herself ever since the news had been broken. At first, you was silent—too silent—sitting huddled up, your eyes lost in a distant void. You was far too young to be facing this. An emptiness hung around you, swallowing you from the inside out.

Hesitating for a moment, he gently tapped your shoulder. "Come on, get up. I'll get you something to eat."

But you didn't respond. You remained motionless, your gaze unfocused. With a heavy sigh, he walked away. It felt strangely familiar, like the dist

Minutes later, Masachiro returned, a tray of food in his hands. Sitting beside you on the bed, he mixed the rice into the miso soup before offering it to you. The scent of the food wafted to your nose, and only then did you realize how hungry you truly was. Slowly, you shifted closer, your lips parting, and took a bite.

"Masa-san..." you murmured,  voice fragile. "Why... why are you taking care of me when... when my aniki... killed so many people?"

Masachiro's heart ached at the weight of your words, but his expression remained steady. "It's because you're just a child. You're not to blame for any of this."

 Your eyes welled up, tears threatening to spill as you turned your face away. You sniffled, the sobs barely contained. He didn't say anything more—he simply continued to feed you, his presence a silent comfort in the midst of your grief.

"You know... we have to go now," Masachiro said softly, his voice carrying a hint of urgency. "We're shifting you." He extended his arms, just enough to show the unspoken offer, hoping the young girl would allow him to lift her.

You hesitated for a moment, uncertainty clouding your eyes. But, after a brief pause, you leaned into him. Gently, he scooped you up, holding you close as he carefully made his way out of the place.

The drive was a blur as he moved toward the car. Upon reaching it, he opened the back door, where another official was already waiting inside. The cold figure from earlier greeted them with a sharp remark. "Took you long enough."

Masachiro slid into the car beside him, then carefully settled you into the window seat. The harsh chill of the outside air seemed to seep into the car, but the interior was a little warmer, even if the silence was not.

The cold official glanced at the seat arrangement with a disapproving look. "Should've kept the brat between us."

Masachiro shrugged, offering a calm response. "I think kids like window seats."

You sat quietly by the window, your gaze fixed on the distant blur of the passing world outside. The scenery seemed so far away, just like everything you once knew. Your heart felt heavy, each thought suffocating you more than the last.

Why had your brother killed those people? Why had he taken your parents from you? The questions echoed in your mind, each one more painful than the last. How could someone who had once been your protector, your brother—the good person you believed him to be—be capable of such horrors?

A coldness gripped your chest, the weight of betrayal and confusion pressing down. You felt so small, so lost, trapped in a reality you couldn't understand. Where would you go after this? What was left for you in a world that had turned upside down in an instant?

The turmoil inside you churned, and a tightness filled your throat, but no tears came. Instead, an emptiness spread, as if your heart had become a hollow shell. Everything felt like a blur, too overwhelming to process, too suffocating to bear. The world outside might have been moving forward, but you—you—were stuck, frozen in a nightmare with no escape.