Prototype 501 (Original Anime Story)

Chapter 6 - What truly resides in Your Heart?

Itsuki still doesn't know what went wrong last night. For the first time in a while, he returns to sleep in his room. There's no point in watching the stars if he is going to be distracted about his current situation and can't admire the beauty of the night sky.

He spends the whole night trying to think of a reason why Kohane would run away. He didn't think she was the kind of person who was short-tempered. He also thought she felt the same way about him, although he could have misunderstood her friendship to be something more than that. What disappointed him the most was how he was this close to getting her to accept him, and his plan fell to pieces the moment she let go of his hand.

It's the next morning, and Itsuki is left with zero motivation.

Professor Mars and Erika didn't bother asking him anything when they found him curled up on the sofa, crying softly into his knees with his tuxedo still on. He hasn't been this sad since his parents' death.

This morning, Professor Mars has made pancakes with maple syrup in hopes of cheering up Itsuki.

"Itsuki, you need to eat something. It's no good if you don't eat the most important meal of the day," she tuts as she points to the untouched food on his plate.

Itsuki turns his body around, refusing to take even a single bite of the delicious breakfast in front of him.

His sister on the other hand, is delightfully licking the remaining syrup on her dish and is guzzling down the orange juice in her glass. "Mmmm! This is great, Prof. Mars!" She tells the woman as she stacks her plate and glass, and heads into the kitchen to place them into the sink.

Professor Mars smiles weakly. At least Erika appreciates her cooking. She takes a look at Itsuki once again, and her eyes are pleading.

Finally, Itsuki pushes away his plate and gets up from the table. "I'm not hungry," he announces. "I'm going for a walk."

Without another word, he slips out of his house and enters the lift before pressing for the ground floor.

...

Itsuki spends the morning strolling around Galactica. Pretty much anyone can guess where Kohane is hiding, but he wants her to cool down and think things through. The last thing he wants is to provoke her again.

He gets to the storage area for the fighter jets and sees a small group of Model Pawns wiping them down with wet cloths. Some are sweeping the floors with brooms and dustpans.

He's heard Kohane mention her sister before, but not all the Model Pawns are present so she might not be here.

He scans the group, checking their numbers to see if it's the right one.

Then, it's as if his prayer is answered because he spots one in the center, wiping the window of a fighter jet with the number 12 stamped onto her arm in red. He cautiously approaches her, just in case he remembered the number wrong.

"Um, hi there," he greets shyly as he waves to her. She spots him and smiles a little.

"Is there something I can do for you?" she asks politely as she curtsies.

Wow, I never knew robots had to be this polite, he says inside his head.

"So, you're Kurumi, right?" he confirms. She nods.

"Is there something you'd like to see in here? You're welcome to take a tour inside if you want," she suggests.

Itsuki laughs before reverting back to his serious self. "I was wondering if we could have a little chat. There's something I'd like to ask you properly."