Finding My Way To Him (Shalnark x Reader)

3: Happiness

'Well, i dont see why I should care.'

'Are you being real right now?'

'You should just be real with yourself. You clearly don't want to go back. I know you feel the energy of this world. It resonates with you.'

She was right. The second you awoke in this new and mysterious place, you could feel life and energy coursing through you. You belonged here.

You heard a deep sigh leave Sanbica and watched as her eyebrows scruched in scrutiny, eyeing you from head to toe.

'If you wish to remain here, then be warmed up by 3pm. Meet me at the quad behind the hospital. You'll start training with me and don't expect me to go easy. I won't have any dead weight sitting freely around here. Is that understood?'

You gleamed at her proposal, quickly replying with 'yes' and 'thank you'.

Hearing your replying she gave a small nod, leaving without a word.

Everything was happening so fast that you still couldn't believe all of this was real. Although slightly regretting your thoughtless decision, you were still happy to be able to leave that place behind.

You wanted to live freely just like your brother; be able to explore the world and meet new people. Now that you have the opportunity to live life away from your own world, the thought of just going back scared you.

You smiled at the thought of your new life, your mind buzzing with excitement. The new hopes and dreams that flooded your mind kept you preoccupied for hours, and before you knew it, it was time to start your training.

From that day onwards, you would train daily with Sanbica. Every day, your routine would remain the same; wake up at 6 and run 20 laps around the outside perimeters of the hospital, before meditating for an hour, and then having breakfast.

Then, it was followed by studying until lunch was served. Yeah, even now studying tormetted you. But you knew reading and writing were essential skills to live in this world, so you kept working hard.

After lunch, you got a break till 3 when training with Sanbica would commence and would run until... well... just until she said it was finished, which could range anywhere from 6 pm to midnight.

Once training ended, you would finally be able to wash up and have dinner. Sometimes, you were left so exhausted you were knocked out completely by the time you reached your bed.

Around 2 months have passed now, and to Sanbica's and your own shock, you were able to develop nen within that short time frame.

Although you could only execute ten and ren, you were improving at an extraordinary rate. Even Sanbica called you a nen genius.

That morning, as you awoke, you were left in shock. The sun was high up, glaring through the creeps of the blinds. It was definitely not 7 am.

You glanced at your bedside alarm. It was already noon. You rushed out of your room, hurrying through the corridors and stairways to find Sanbica.

It had become a habit of yours to inform sanbica of any training you did, ensuring she knew where you were at all times and letting her know you were keeping up with her training regime.

As always, you found her cooped up on her office, her gaze set on the countless documents and chemicals scattered around her table and her hands preoccupied with scribbling things down into her notepad.

You quietly stepped into the room, hoping to catch her attention without needing to announce your arrival. You were scared to speak up, fearing that you would be scolded for being late for your morning run.

To your utter surprise, instead of lecturing you about dedication and the importance of consistency in improvement, she just glanced at you. Her eyes were glistened and puffy and her cheeks were a rosy shade. Was she crying?

'Sanbica-'

'I think it's time for you to move on with your journey. There is still a lot for you to learn and discover out there. Being stuck in the hospital forever won't help you grow.'

So that's what this was about. She had grown tired of your presence. It made sense though, its not like you made any contributions to the hospital over your 2 months, probably causing more trouble for Sanbica rather than helping her for the accommodation she provided. It just hurt. You thought you guys had gotten closer. But you were wro-.

'I'm not sick of you'

'What do you-'

'To be honest, even though I hate to admit it, you've really rubbed off on me. But I can't keep you here forever. It's time for you to be independent and finally see what the world has to offer.'

Before you knew it, you had flung yourself onto the pour pink haired hunter, sobbing loudly into her shirt as she immediately began pushing you off, panicked at your sudden fluctuation of emotions and slightly grossed out by the close contact and snot running down ur nose.

Weirdly enough, you guys had both rubbed off on one another. But it was time to part ways. Despite not wanting to leave the virus hunter who you had grown to view as a sisterly figure, you had a dream you had to follow.

'Thank you for everything, Sanbica!' You stammered, trying to hold back the tears that threatened to poor out again.

And right then and there, you made up your mind. You would train hard and become a hunter. But first, you wanted a little more training. Your first stop would be heavens arena.

___________________________________________

Author's note:
I just wanted to say this chapter was pretty rushed, so there are probably lots of typos and parts of the story where the pacing is weird, so I just wanted to apologise for that.