❝ 7,100+ languages in the world and I chose to speak facts..❞
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Chapter 5
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A combination of endearingly vivid colors instantly brings this modern, multifunctional living space to life. The chosen colors impart a charming aura of fashionable refinement. Cream white walls and dark tile floors provide as a blank canvas for the addition of color through furnishings and accessories.
While waiting for Yume to retrieve her medical aid pack, you sat on a black sofa with a two-striped pillow design.
You think she was an idiot fool, since she literally invited you, a stranger, to her house. For example, you can essentially steal her belongings inside, threaten her, and even harm her, yet she will still welcome you to cure your open wounds on your legs.
Your bandages from your legs to thighs has a stained of blood, and it was dirty so she offered to treat your wounds as a token of appreciation.
You stared at the blank space as your consciousness began to drift away; you were exhausted physically and psychologically, which caused you to doze off.
Blinking owlishly, you were returned to your own mind space; this time, however, instead of seeing a white or black area, you were greeted by a gray one. As with the others, it was a never-ending view of your surroundings, and so, you decided to explore.
The white one is considered the most relaxing inner space; you spend an hour there. The black one, on the other hand, was the polar opposite of the white space; it was rather suffocating, and regardless of whether you wanted to stay or not, you were probably forced to go out to the black space. Finally, there was the gray one; it was neutral, not suffocating, not soothing; it was as if this was your mundane inner space, your humdrum reality.
You have no idea that this mind of yours existed in the first place, since it suddenly appeared when you were tossed into the anime. You continued walking, discovering how vast this space is; there was nothing here, not a single thing or piece of property.
When the walls and floor went black, you came to a halt. The once-quiet chamber was suddenly filled with strange and unknown sounds.
"Go without me and save mom," A faint voice echoed across the area, as did the sound of heavy raindrops dropping from the fluffy dark cloud, as well as soft cries.
"i̵͓͙̱͚̎͟t̴͕͖͓̀'Ş̵̶̮̬͖̄͑͟ ฯ໐นr̶̷̲͍̭͐̾̀͟ f̷̵̫̞̉͢คนḻ̸͈ͧ͑̓̓̀͡t̴͕͖͓̀."
"i̵͓͙̱͚̎͟t̴͕͖͓̀'Ş̵̶̮̬͖̄͑͟ ฯ໐นr̶̷̲͍̭͐̾̀͟ f̷̵̫̞̉͢คนḻ̸͈ͧ͑̓̓̀͡t̴͕͖͓̀."
"i̵͓͙̱͚̎͟t̴͕͖͓̀'Ş̵̶̮̬͖̄͑͟ ฯ໐นr̶̷̲͍̭͐̾̀͟ f̷̵̫̞̉͢คนḻ̸͈ͧ͑̓̓̀͡t̴͕͖͓̀."
"ฯę̷̵̧̖̫̗̆̊̄คh̶̯̰̝̻̿̓͢, i̵͓͙̱͚̎͟t̴͕͖͓̀'Ş̵̶̮̬͖̄͑͟ ๓ฯ f̷̵̫̞̉͢คนḻ̸͈ͧ͑̓̓̀͡t̴͕͖͓̀."
You don't know how to react to this; you have no idea what's going on, and thank Yume for waking you up with the sound of her footsteps.
"I apologize for intruding," you uncrossed your arm and sat up gracefully like a lady after snapping out of your daydream and apologizing tediously.
"There is no need to apologize; I should be the one who apologizes, as I compelled you to follow me here." She stated as she set the medical equipment on the table and forced herself to approach and sit next you.
You nodded as she locked her gaze on your thighs, unsure what to do, should Yume ask you? Or? You were unaware of how nervous she was stroking and treating your legs, so you inquire simply, "am I going to wait here for an hour?"
Her face reddened and she shifted her focus to her lap, but you were oblivious, so she decided to replace your bandage in the blink of an eye.
"Her skin is impeccably smooth!"
"..." You sat there, staring at the wall behind Yume.
After a few minutes, she was finished bandaging your legs as you rose up from your seat and bowed, causing Yume to bow as well; dammit you have both similarities.
She accompanied you out the door and handed you an additional bandage and a bottle of water in case you became thirsty.
"I appreciate it, Hakariri-san." you said as you bid farewell as Yume responded with a simple nod.
The young girl who owns the house was left perplexed and had to process everything you mentioned, such as who Hakariri is, because she was Hikkiri, not Hakariri.
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As a homeless person, you have no choice but to roam the streets like an inquisitive bunny you are.
Going left, you notice trees and buildings; turning right, you see parks and plazas, and after wandering around, you were once again back to the bench where you had found Ootani and Goujin.
"..."
You leaned back against the bench, which had a history of some of its visitors' dreams and happy memories of lovers, family, and friends. It may have been rough, but the wood where you were seated, along with the skyblue skies, made you feel at ease.
You kept your eyes fixed on the water bottle in your hands as the chill of the water caused your palm to turn red. Once you spun the bottle cap open, you drank the liquid. The chilly drink had replaced the searing sensation in your throat. You know it's unhealthy to drink cold water, however, you don't care because it's the only water you have and you're not picky.
You placed the water next to you while still staring at your palm. As you inhaled slowly, your head raised and your eyes closed, and your senses grew more sensitive.
From a distance, you appear to be a deity sent to earth, a belladonna woman, a poisonous nightshade. It was beautiful, like you, but it was also lethal and deadly.
Are you really that dangerous? Yes, you're not just a lady with a boring life, because inside your achromatic head space, there was a dangerous hue of white, black, and gray lurking inside you, but what is it? You had no idea.
"Ma...." You exhaled the air you'd been holding, wanting to ignore everything but you knew that all of your ignorance between the false reality and the real reality will be consumed and devoured by a single flick of a finger; it may turn to adversity and disaster, and you must learn to accept what happened and all that is known is that this is the beginning of the way you move on from your misfortune in life.
After all, it's not just the beginning of how you'll move on, but also the start of how you've been transported to the anime; how could you be sane if you were still here after days? For how long? Weeks? Months? Or even several years?
"I'm hungry..."
You sighed as you unclenched your fist and decided to fight your weariness, but you failed as you fell asleep while sitting on the bench with your arms crossed.
In an attempt to sleep, you were awoken after only ten minutes when you sensed something strange, stranger than anyone or anything you could think of.
Unexpectedly, you heard and saw something in front of you that utterly creeps you out, "Save them.." it says before it goes away.
From where you were seated, you could see someone standing at the bus stop; it was a small kid with his mother, and in a matter of seconds, a man with a black mask approached them.
The next thing you saw was him stabbing them and stealing the woman's purse.
Your legs aren't moving, you're staring at their bodies with wide eyes as they crouch on the ground.
The boy was not stabbed; he was shoved, and his head was the first to hit, while her mother was wounded in her vital spot.
"̶Ӈ̶̶̪͍̒ͥ͑̓ƛ̶̸̶̝̆ͦ͊̿͋͞Ӈ̶̶̯̰̝̻̿̓͢ƛ̶̸̶̝̆ͦ͊̿͋͞Ӈ̶̶̯̰̝̻̿̓͢ƛ̶̸̶̝̆ͦ͊̿͋͞.̶"̶
Is all of this true? No, since you did not awaken from your slumber; it was all hallucinations from your sleep, as you stayed seated and sleeping on the bench, albeit not pleasantly.
"..."
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Tokyo, Japan, is one of the most beautiful, charming, and lovely countries in the world. Oh-hold on a second-what is this? My attention was drawn to a laying figure. It turns out that you were simply asleep on the bench, your arms crossed, as your breathing was shallow.
You weren't bothered by the fact that you slept in a public spot. After all, the bench where you sat was ideal because only a few people were surrounding it.
But that wasn't all; as another human species appeared out of nowhere. Who was it? It was none other than Fudou Akio, your a future acquaintance.
It was already dark when he left on his errand, and as he walked down the road, he decided to take the long way to get some fresh air, and because the short-cut pathways were crowded, he chose to patiently go the long way.
He recognized the same girl he had seen earlier with his teammates; she had the same black hair that had faded to gray and the same enigmatic aura that surrounded her sleeping body.
Your eyelids flutter open as your long eyelashes move.
Fudou stood like a frozen statue in front of you, his hands tucked into his pants, his eyes wide open staring at you silver-gray orbs, but no one talked until you broke the silence.
"Hello,"
Who would have guessed that this man would find you appealing? I mean, you simply do what most people do, which is to be themselves.
"Would you cut it out? You're making me uncomfortable, Rooster-san," You stated bluntly.
"Rooster.....-san?" He pondered for a moment before realizing what she was saying, and then an irk mark popped into his head.
"Who are you calling Rooster-san?!?" He yelled.
"You?" you pointed out.
"Eh?!" he scoffs and tch'es before turning around to leave.
You then lowered your head as you felt a fresh breeze enter your nostrils. Looking up at the boy again, your gaze was drawn to his departing form.
"Rude.."
You were stupid not to seek Hakkiri for help, therefore thank aliens, another kind of species emerged in front of your eyes. A sigh escaped your lips as you realized what you were about to do would be more daring than you had anticipated.
You got up and rushed to him, snatching his wrist and startling him. You bowed, holding both of his hands, "Please help me."
You were aware of how vulgar and inelegant it was to hold hands with a stranger and even ask for help, but you required a refuge for tonight due to the possibility of freezing to death outside. Additionally, it is irresponsible to approach a stranger for shelter; what if they do something to you? But you already knew who Fudou was from the start, so you're not scared.
"....huh?"
"....HUH?"
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The walk was silent, and who would have thought both of you were morons, first you for asking for a shelter, and then Fudou for reluctantly agreeing.
"..."
"..."
You deadpanned at him when you caught him staring at you, and as if you could read his mind, you finally explained what was going on to him.
"I don't have a house," you stated after a little pause.
"Nozomi, right?" He asked for your confirmation before you responded with a nod.
"You knew how stupid it was to follow a stranger, didn't you?"
"Yes,"
"And you knew I was a man, didn't you?"
"Yes," you say, not looking at him and instead gaze down the long road.
"And you're asking a man to shelter you?"
"Yes,"
"Aren't you scared?"
"No,"
You came to a halt when you noticed that his footsteps were no longer vibrating the ground. You glanced to the right to see his stern expression, "What?"
"Are you lying?"
"No, I speak only the truth and nothing but the truth." you uttered with a bored expression before staring at the air and getting lost in contemplation.
"Anyway, you are aware that I am a woman, a stranger in fact, who will storm into your home, right?"
"...?"
You cast a quick glance at him before your eyes show a mischievous glint, "I'm not the only one who is fool regarding on this."
"HUH?!? WHAT EXACTLY DID YOU SAY?"
"Don't worry, you're a nice moron, so what's your name?" Despite knowing all of the Inazuma characters, you pretend not to know his name.
"Tch, it's Fudou Akio."
"Nice to meet you, Fudou-san."
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Details
—Ｈ Ｅ Ａ Ｄ Ｓ Ｐ Ａ Ｃ Ｅ
I. White space can be found in Chapter 1
II. Black space can be seen in Chapter 2
III. Gray space can be located in the current chapter, which is chapter 5
—You irritated Fudou with your bluntness in asking for a night's shelter, and to conclude, Fudou was truly annoyed and agreed to let you stay, but just for a night.
Do you wish to continue?
—Yes
—No