As they open the gate, Shizuku notices some people standing in the cul de sac. They're a little far away, standing at the end where the circle of street becomes a proper road leading elsewhere, but she can make out a tall, muscular girl with short dark brown hair, and a rather short person with a dyed red afro.
She points them out, nudging Ryouji.
SHIZUKU: Have you talked to them already?
RYOUJI: Yeah! Moto-san! Keda-san!
Both of them look up when they hear his voice and wave enthusiastically. Ryouji jogs over to meet with them, and Shizuku follows.
The girl walks up to them in long, confident strides, closing the distance rapidly. Her eyes, only slightly lighter than her hair, rake over their bodies with a calm, practised air that reminds Shizuku of getting examined by a doctor.
RYOUJI: I'm still not hurt, Moto-san.
The tall girl does not seem to buy it. Up close, Shizuku can see the girl is wearing a fleece lined denim jacket over a loose, very soft looking t-shirt and jeans. The jacket is littered with logos and patches, and the jeans have a tiny rip at the knee that definitely doesn't look store bought.
MOTO?: Your friend could be. Is your head bugging you?
She looks into Shizuku's eyes, attempting to detect damage or lies, and Shizuku takes in her 90s style bangs and deep bags under her eyes.
SHIZUKU: Um, a bit. Just like everyone else, it sounds like? But aside from that, I don't think I'm injured.
MOTO?: Can never be too careful. If you've got a head injury, you're more likely to get more head injuries just by walking around.
SHIZUKU: You think I'm going to get concussed from walking around? Am I going to run into a door frame, or something?
The girl shrugs loosely.
MOTO?: There's something weird going down, and I don't wanna take a risk. If you're already hurt, a little bump could make your brain bleed.
She does make a good point. I hope my brain isn't bleeding.
KEDA?: My eggs are pretty scrambled too, I'll admit. No door frames for me anytime soon!
Your WHAT?
MOTO?: Exactly. Can you tell me your name?
SHIZUKU: I'm Shizuku Yazaki!
Neither of them recognized me! Is that good or bad?
MOTO?: Great. Age?
SHIZUKU: Uh, 24?
MOTO?: Where were you born?
SHIZUKU: Hiroo, near Shibuya. Do you need to know the hospital, or...?
KEDA?: Don't scare her with all your weird questions again.
RYOUJI: She asked me all that too.
SHIZUKU: I'm not scared! I am pretty confused, though.
MOTO?: Our memories are fuzzy, right? This is just standard head injury stuff to ask about. I thought about asking about who the prime minister is, to make sure that we haven't lost any time, but... Well, honestly I don't know what day it is, so we could have lost time.
SHIZUKU: I suppose that makes sense.
I wonder if this is the best way to answer those sorts of questions, though.
YOU ARE READING
DR: REUNION
Mystery / ThrillerIt's been five years since Shizuku Yazaki graduated from Hope's Peak Academy. Five years is a long time. Enough time, ideally, to move past whoever you were in high school and figure yourself out as an adult. But some people just can't let go of the...
