𝖌𝖚𝖒𝖚𝖘𝖘𝖊𝖗𝖛𝖎

t w e n t y . t h r e e

the entrance of the room clicked closed, locking and immediately activating the fifty hour timer. the tall, aspiring doctor was the first to walk further into the room and make himself comfortable by taking a seat on the couch. with a grim expression, he began to speak.

"fifty hours sitting around here? sorry, guys."

"don't worry," kurapika interrupted, sliding his bag off of his shoulders. "we just need to get to the bottom of this tower in the time we have left."

one by one, they cheered the male up, explaining it doesn't matter and that they should look forward and plan for the future. suddenly, kurapika turned to killua.

"killua. can you tell me how that technique works?" kurapika asked, confusing the younger boy. "the one you used to instantly remove the opponent's heart."

"oh, that wasn't even a technique. i just ripped it out," killua claimed, now making kurapika the confused one. "but to make it easier, i manipulated my body a bit."

the veins in the boy's right hand popped out and his nails grew significantly longer and sharper, surprising the group. they gawked.

"mass murderers are still only amateurs. i used to be a professional, but my dad would've done better. when he removes a heart, you won't see even a drop of blood."

[name] smiled at the way the boy proudly announced his father's abilities. she stepped back to sit on a couch behind her, right next to the door, crossing her limbs over each other and leaning back into the material of the seat.

"well, then. we have two whole days."

"what should we do, killua?" gon inquired curiously.

"first, we search the room for any kind of entertainment."

"yeah! [name]! wanna join?" gon invited, making [name] chuckle.

"sure. i never got to join you two with anything before, might as well make it up to you guys now," the girl said, jumping out of her seat and running forwards to search the room with the two.

"man, you kids don't have a care in the world.."

~

weaponry neatly arranged on the floor around her, [name] silently sharpened her sharp weapons. sweat ran down her face and her eyebrows furrowed in concentration. when she thought she had completed sharpening them, she lifted them up to shine them in the light. she huffed proudly. placing them beside her, she sighed.

"it's getting a bit hot," [name] claimed, making the four boys turn to look at her with confusion.

"not really. maybe it's because you're wearing still wearing all the layers of clothing you had before entering this room and have been sitting there in such a compact sitting position," kurapika suggested, making [name] hum. "i'd suggest taking some layers off or taking a break."

the girl nodded, moving her items away from her and slipping the black kosode off of her and throwing it to the side. she grumbled as she looked down at her tight, long-sleeved shirt.

should i take this off..? no, i only have a bra underneath, and i'm surrounded by four boys in the tiniest room i've ever sat in.. maybe i should just ask them to look away? it'll only take a second.. so..

[name]'s gaze darted around the room. she coughed loudly, catching the attention of the boys.

"hey, um.. i'm gonna change for a second, so can you look away?" she politely asked, chuckling awkwardly when they remained silent and stared at her. "so.. no?"

"oh, um, yeah. we'll look away.. come on guys, look at the wall near gon and killua," kurapika whispered, face becoming pink. "leorio, you too."

[name] smiled, mouthing a thank you to the blonde, who nodded, lips zipping as he swivelled his head around to stare at said wall. she untucked her shirt, grabbing a hold of the hems of the shirt and pulling it over her head. she used her hands to cover herself, looking up to notice leorio staring her way. she screamed bloody murder, throwing the nearest weapon in his direction.

"LEORIO, YOU PERVERT!! TURN THE HELL AROUND OR I'LL KILL YOU!!" she screamed, continuing to throw her small weapons at him. "I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU!!"

her face exploded with heat and she quickly snatched her kosode to cover herself and wear it.

"..you guys can turn around now..."

the three turned around, surprised at the sudden outburst from the female. they worriedly looked over at the girl, who was silent and sulking internally. her lips stuck out into a pout and her face was scrunched with anger and embarrassment.

"um.. are you okay, [name]?"

she said nothing, but shook her head furiously.

"why are you overreacting? sure, he's a perverted, old fart but to scream and make such a mess.."

[name], horrified and betrayed, turned to face killua, who had an apathetic expression on his face. she felt her throat flex and her chest tighten. she didn't want to hear that right now. especially from him. her hand shook. she felt like slapping him, but instead stomped to snatch a blanket and covered it over herself, curling up into a ball on her respective couch.

"i'm going to sleep."

~

shifting and turning, killua restlessly attempted to sleep. his eyebrows furrowed and he shook. he let out a frustrated sigh, sitting up and huffing. after he had calmed himself down, he looked over towards [name], who slept on the couch near the door. her face was serene, tranquil and peaceful.

'people look younger in their sleep,' they say.. don't know how old she is, but she does look young.. killua thought as he examined her sleeping face.

he looked around the room, checking if his companions were asleep. once he confirmed they were, or at least he thought they were, he picked himself up and approached the girl. he sat down next to her and got a closer look at her face. her hair was all over her face and her eyes were swollen and pink. she breathed quietly and slowly.

killua took his hand and gently swatted her hairs away from her face, careful not to touch her and wake her. he gasped silently when a stray tear escaped her eye and rolled down her face. he panicked, wondering if she was having a painful dream or something of the sort, but when her lips stretched slightly and smiled, he sighed in relief. he took his hand and, hesitantly, wiped her tear. he grumbled in embarrassment at his actions.

"...sorry, [name].. i'll.. apologise in the morning.."