【 A DANCE WITH THE REAPER. 】
第六章
BEHOLD MY SWORD
CHAPTER OO6:
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"IT'S A GIRL? ONCE AGAIN ANOTHER DISAPPOINTMENT..." the low voice of the Nakamura's clan leader echoed throughout the room as his wife laid on the hospital's bed, sweating after giving birth to you.
"Discard her."
Upon hearing those words the wife mustered all of her last strength to grab her husband's wrist, in despair she looked up at the once-loving husband she had married, her pleading eyes made the husband grimace in disgust. "Give her a chance! Please. Let her live. Please. Just this once...please." the woman pleaded. Akio glanced at his wife, with no empathy whatsoever as he shoved her arm aside. "Fine, do as you wish with her. But as long as I live, and as long as that thing stays within the Nakamura residence, I'll make it hard to the point that she'll want to cease from this world." He left the hospital room without looking back at the crying baby or his wife, leaving the woman alone in the cold and dim room.
Your eyes shot open, and some drops of sweat ran down your chin. You quickly sat up before an agonizing pain hit you through your abdomen, soon you felt another bolt of pain, this time from your head. You groaned, holding your head before looking down, staring at your hospital gown, you quickly lifted your shirt to find bandages wrapped around all your abdomen.
What is this crap? You hoped for it to be all a bad dream, but the pain never felt so real. Sudden memories of the fight flashed before your eyes, and a shiver went down your spine as you could still smell the filthy aroma of the long-haired male. Seriously, why do you always stubble upon weird men?
You were at the very least relieved as it seemed you were well and alive. The room you were in was rather spacious and lonely, not a single ant in sight. You quickly were able to recognize this was where Shoko's patients recovered and got treatment. There was also no clock but judging from the sunlight that hit your face from the window, you could guess training had already started. You removed the blanket that was neatly wrapped around you, but as soon as you took one step forward, a groan escaped your lips as you fell to the floor—holding your abdomen. You bit your lip and tried standing up again, only to fall to the ground—this time with a louder thud. You covered your mouth with your palm to prevent a single shriek from escaping your mouth while your other hand touched your abdomen softly.
This was absolutely the worst. You felt so vulnerable not being able to control your own body.
You were rather selfish as you tried once again standing up, this time the pain was bearable and you managed to create a firm fire sword as support. Your hands started to tremble because of the after-effects of casting it. With two more steps you reached the door, weakly turning the knob you pushed the door and stepped out into the school's halls. Not a single soul lingered around, it almost felt unsettling. You decided to go to the open area, leaving a trail of burning wood behind while you extinguished it as you passed, by your will.
You heard swords clanging against each other from afar, your heart dropping as you heard Yuta and Panda's laugh. Slowly, you made your way to the training grounds, hiding behind the wall. You peeked at the guys, watching them fight and train, you watched Maki's exceptional moves against Yuta, and you watched Panda spar with himself while Inumaki ran around in circles swiftly. You gripped on the wooden walls, feeling an unpleasant feeling suddenly inside you.
You felt inferior, smaller, mediocre.
You couldn't quite describe the emotions you were feeling, the most accurate description was like a big punch on your stupid pride. You turned around, knowing fully well if you stayed any longer, you'd break down. Unfortunately, luck wasn't on your side as you once again fell to the floor, this time making a loud thud following a high-pitched scream of pain that escaped from your lips.
That was it.
Tears started to roll down your cheek as you groaned from pain, clenching on your shirt's fabric as if it would stop the pain. This immediately caught the attention of your fellow friends, and upon recognizing you they immediately ran towards the sound. Loud gasps could be heard as Maki immediately came to aid you, but you remained still, looking down at your shaking hands as you held your abdomen.
"[ Y/N ]! Are you okay?"
"OHMYGOD SHES DYING"
"CALM DOWN."
"Are you okay?!
Your lips curved into a hopeless smile, their concerned comments triggered something in you that made you even more teary. You did not have the courage to face your friends. Your fire katana was vanquished as you started to slowly lose energy.
"Are you crying?"
"SHE'S CRYING"
"Y/N IS CRYING???"
"Mustard leaf..."
"What's wrong?" Maki said as she stood kneeling supporting you. Your lips quivered, you truly wanted to say something, but nothing came out.
"Can you guys please just shut up?"
You got startled as you turned to face the rather too-familiar voice. There stood Yuta tall, hovering over you with angry and concerned eyes. His eyes suddenly widened, "Sorry!" he quickly bowed to his friends. "But! Give her time you guys are overwhelming her," he said before glancing at you, biting his inner cheek. Your teary eyes locked with his dark ones, his forced smile slowly fading as he saw the amount of tears rolling down your cheek.
Fuck me. To think he'd see you in this state. You looked down in a desperate attempt to stop your tears but no matter how much you tried, it just kept getting worse and you started to get frustrated. Fuck Fuck Fuck. You thought as you saw Yuta's body move closer to yours, kneeling to your eye level, trying to find your gaze.
This was embarrassing.
You stared at his knee,"I look so pathetic right? Surely." You chuckled to yourself, covering your face because of your stupid feelings. There was a long pause.
"Pay attention to me." you felt your cheeks being cupped and your head turned to face Yuta, who looked at you attentively. "You should be proud, you held your guard against such a strong opponent. You're one of the most gifted and hardworking people I've met, you're already so ahead of many of your age." he pouted. "You don't give yourself enough credit."
"What he said" Maki grinned at you.
"We're all glad you're safe and sound, we were all so worried," Panda said while Toge nodded fast.
This made you flustered, you didn't know how to appreciate them and you could only hide your face again after Yuta stopped squeezing your cheeks. The palms in front of your face were softly removed by a pair of firm ones, your eyes met with Yuta's once again. This time he didn't say anything, as he rubbed your cheek with his thumb, wiping your tears away softly.
"Will it hurt?" He signaled to your abdomen while making a sign of a hug. Your breath hitched, you shook your head even though it was going to hurt and he immediately wrapped his hands around you, snuggling into your neck, breathing in your fragrance, his nose touching your skin's neck, his fingers touching your hair. He wanted to feel everything.
"Group hug!" Panda shouted as everyone came onto you and embraced you with their warmth. You winced a bit because of the throbbing pain, but even the most sour moments can turn into sweet ones. The pain you were feeling was definitely worth it.
Because it's them.
A big genuine smile appeared on your face, as Gojo watched from afar with his sunglasses, his lips curving into a smile before turning away.
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"You woke up way earlier than anticipated, that's probably why your body is still in shock." Gojo said, leaning against your door frame. "You were supposed to wake up in a week and rest for at least two weeks, instead you woke up in the span of 5 hours and stressed your body out in that same interval." he pursed his lips while massaging his temple. You didn't know if he looked impressed or disappointed.
"When can I train again?"
"Calm down my dear student, you overexerted yourself earlier today, now the thing you most want to do is rest." he immediately retorted back as if already expecting your question.
Your body helplessly fell to the bed and your eyes shut in frustration. Upon seeing your state, Gojo sighed as he sat on the corner of your bed. "[ Y/N ], it's important to take care of your body, now focus on going back strong and healthy. It might sound like a long process, but it's the best for the long run. Don't risk it." you pursed your lips before humming as a response. Gojo breathed in before standing up and leaving your room, not before looking back at you one last time, concern all written on his face.
"To think he would aim at my students..." you heard Gojo mutter almost in frustration.
'Don't risk it.' Gojo's annoying voice echoed through your mind.
You heard the door open and your teacher's footsteps go quieter, but the door never closed. You furrowed your eyebrows as you snuggled into your pillow.
"Wow there! Why are you in such a hurry? She's gonna be resting for days, she's all yours."
"Teacher, you've got it all wrong!"
You could hear two male voices in front of your door, you couldn't quite catch what they were saying, but you could definitely hear Gojo's annoyingly loud giggles. You sighed in frustration. Can't they just let you rest?
You finally heard your dorm's door click shut, and light footsteps approaching your bed. You swiftly turned around, expecting to face the white-haired male but instead, you faced Yuta's worried expression. His uniform looked damaged, with a few cuts and burns but the boy remained unscathed.
"Hi." he awkwardly waved at you.
You stared in awe before greeting him as well. Having Yuta here was 100% better than your teacher.
"May I?" he smiled as he came closer to you. You nodded as you watched him close the door from behind and slowly walk towards you. "Do you...want a change of clothes?" you giggled. Not even waiting for his response you stood up, wincing a bit, and started walking to your closet. Yuta quickly came beside you to aid you, grabbing your arm and wrapping it around his shoulder to support you while he softly grabbed your waist. You muttered a quick thanks and proceeded to grab a big shirt for him.
You then sat back on the bed, staring at his stiff body as he awkwardly held your white shirt. There was a long silence between you too until he opened his mouth,
"Uh..I'm going to change," he said. You furrowed your eyebrows. "Sure. Go ahead." you waved your hand.
"Like..right now," he said as he slowly pulled his shirt up.
You quickly knew what he meant and turned around, a hint of pink arose in your cheeks. You heard shuffling and curiosity got the best out of you as you silently turned around, you met with a broad back. You silently gasped as the boy looked skinny with his uniform but you could already see some muscles forming on the back. There were a few seeming less scars that looked like they were gonna fade soon. You quickly looked away, the heat getting into your cheeks.
"It's really comfortable."
You finally turned around and saw Yuta wearing your shirt, even though you chose the largest one, it still was a bit tight on him. "Looking good," you muttered which made the boy blush a little before he muttered a quick thanks. He politely sat on the bed beside you, his arms close to yours, almost touching as he pulled with his other hand the shirt's collar on his nose, sniffing the pleasant scent that you always had on you. "You smell nice," he said before turning around to you. His comment absolutely baffled you and you both kept staring at each other. As you were about to speak, a loud CLICK startled both of you.
You flinched while Yuta reached for his katana that laid on the ground. "What the fuck was that?" you said looking around.
Yuta narrowed his eyes, looking around the rather tidied-up room until his eyes landed on your wrist. Turns out the little ghost magnets had attached because of the proximity, his body loosened and a wave of relief came to both of you. That's when you realized it was the first time you were alone with the boy, in your dorm.
"WHY ARE YOU HERE?" you said rather loudly in shock. "Weren't you on a mission?" you whispered softer this time as the magnets detached. The boy did not seem startled at all as he scratched the back of his neck, "I had a feeling you'd be bored, so I quickly finished my mission to keep you company"
You couldn't hide your smile at the thought of company, two weeks in confinement was going to kill you.
"Thank you. Seriously."
The male smiled at you, "We can play some games if you want to. Or watch a movie, only if you want to." In reality, Yuta had already prepared a bunch of activities he could do with you.
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"HOLY CHEESE BALLS," you shouted after clutching your best Jenga gameplay ever. Now there was no way Yuta could get another piece without it falling, and you were right as the moment he touched a piece the building had fallen.
"NO WAY!" He ran his fingers through his hair as he watched the building collapse in front of him, he fell to the ground in defeat. You burst out laughing while also celebrating. "I WIN." you echoed repeatedly. Yuta looked up at you, his eyes glimmering as his lips curved into a smile watching you celebrate.
His eyes landed on his phone. "It's getting late," Yuta said as he started picking up the bricks. "You should rest," he said. His eyes focused on cleaning the different board games that you both were too lazy to organize. You stared at the boy with soft eyes, "Are you sure you don't want help?" You grabbed a few closer bricks and pushed them in Yuta's direction.
He shook his head immediately before stopping, his eyes darted to you with concern. "Are you able to get up?" he pointed at the bed.
You nodded as you used your palms to push yourself from your crisscross position until you fell back down, your arms giving up on you. "Fuck you." you glared at your arms. Yuta chuckled before coming to your direction, helping you out. He wrapped his arms around your exposed waist as you grabbed onto his shoulders, smoothly, he pulled you up to your feet before laying you on your bed. You could feel his breath and his thighs brushing yours. Your hands never left his shoulder and Yuta noticed.
He slowly pushed your hand off and turned around to keep cleaning your room, his whole face became red as he found his legs starting to get weak. You weren't even able to give him a thanks. You turned around, your back facing him as you brought up your hand near your face, staring at it in confusion.
"Seriously what's wrong with me..." you muttered.
END OF CHAPTER OO6.