Dear Soulmate (Laito SakamakiXReader)

chapter 15

Sai gave his nephew one last pat on the shoulder before he walked out the building like a runway model.

The purple-haired male's gaze followed Sai's retreating back, sighing afterwards. His attention then went to the girl seated on one of the salon chairs, multiple of blankets draped over her body. A cup of hot cocoa was in her hands, untouched as she stared at nothingness. Her lips were pale, indicating that she was out in the cold rain for so long. Her sore eyes, red nose, and the hiccups that would occasionally escape her lips indicated that she was crying while running as well.

Just what made her be in such sorry state?

Yuto's eyes briefly glanced at the street outside the salon. It seemed like the rain won't stop anytime soon. With another sigh, he grabbed a nearby stool and situated himself in front of the girl.

"Are you okay now?" he carefully asked, catching her attention as she stared at his hazel pair of eyes.

She gave one single nod, eyes drifting downwards once again. She finally took a sip of her cocoa, as if to drown the silence.

"... Did something happen...?" Yuto awkwardly asked, scratching his cheek. He doesn't know how to deal with this...

She shook her head as a reply, eyes gleaming with unshed tears. Her gaze finally settled to meet Yuto's once again. "I..."

"I'm just tired," she answered, index finger wiping the falling tears away. Her entire stature was miserable, her back hunched like she wanted to disappear from this world.

Yuto felt pity as well as sadness wash over him as he watched the girl crumble in front of him. It was strange since they were technically strangers. However, her pain was unmistakable and he thought that it was only natural to feel her despair as well.

"Would you like to tell me about it?" he cautiously asked, a gentle hand settling on the girl's arm that was huddled in thick blankets.

"I..." she took a deep breath, laughing dryly afterwards. "I don't even know where to start."

"Maybe I'm just really tired." she tilted her face upwards, closing her eyes in order to stop her tears from falling. "My heart hurts. My mind hurts. My body hurts."

"... Everything hurts," she whispered. "I feel like I'm in a cycle of feeling hurt and happy every time."

Yuto listened intently to her, giving her arm soft pats when it feels like she was about to shatter.

"Should I run away?" she suddenly asked him. "... Run away so I won't feel hurt anymore?"

"Well..." he trailed off, biting his lower lip as he thought hard. "My dad tells me that if it's too much, it's okay to bail out..."

"However, I think it still depends on your perspective." he continued. "Is your situation too much for you to handle?"

The girl didn't answer him. Instead, she took another sip of her cocoa while contemplating as well. She still looked so sullen and out of it.

Yuto clicked his tongue, the hand that was on her arm settling on his chin. "You know, when I was young, I was in a play where I was the main character."

She raised her eyebrow at him, finding the story peculiar for it wasn't really a part of their topic.

"On the day of the play, I was so scared and nervous that I thought I was going to crap on my pants," he recalled, making her smile a bit. Her reaction encouraged him to continue, "So when I was finally about to say my line in front of a lot of people, I remembered what my dad told me."