That same night, the news went viral. But Reon coming back to the house from somewhere had something else to worry about.
Her hair was scattered all over her head, her coat was sliding off the shoulder, and her eyes were half closed as he crossed the barren lands.
She knew Hitori would be waiting for her inside. He was waiting for her to come and prepare tonight's dinner for him.
She raised her head and looked at the house, then looked at the trees looming behind it. She shuddered.
Reon held her breath and climbed the stairs which led to the porch. When she reached the door, she hesitated before knocking on it.
What Onogi had said to her continued lingering– no, it was fixed in her mind like a tree that has planted its roots deep into the earth.
Hitori opened the door the moment Reon knocked. He wanted to but could not greet her with a welcoming smile.
"Where were you? You should have at least let me know if you were going to be late."
She was surprised. She was expecting something like an outburst from his side, but he was being kind to her.
"Where were you gone by the way?"
She dropped her head. "I was at the Vr-cade," she said.
He is nothing to buy it. I know he is not going to buy it.
Hitori had not bought it. But he decided to keep quiet about it. He closed his mouth and nodded.
"All right. Come on in. I am starving. Do you want me to order something?"
This surprised her even more. Who is he? Wait! Onogi in Hitori's—
Reon turned and pulled her gun from the side of her skirt, then pointed it at Hitori.
She opened her mouth to ask the question, but he interrupted her.
"We first met at a party where the leader was planning to take all the loot."
Her frown faded as fast as it had appeared.
"Listen, you need to hold onto your gun while you ask the confirmation question, not point it at the first thing. If it was Onogi, he would have snatched that gun out of your hand like a lion snatching food."
Hitori turned and let the door open for her. He went to the sofa and picked the book he was reading.
Reon stared at him as she put her gun on the side.
"Are you making something?" he asked, "are you good with it?"
Reon realized she was okay with making dinner for two. "Y-Yes. I, I will start with the preparations."
While she was cooking the dinner she was thinking about her talk with Onogi in the Vr-cade where she had logged in to check her inbox. She found Onogi's message the first one.
Her heart accelerated and she was scared to read his message, she was scared to face him, and she was afraid things might go wrong. And they did, her fear was valid.
I want to tell him, she thought, glancing at Hitori who was reading a book, I want to, but I don't know how to break it to him.
So she continued making dinner. She laid plates and bowls on the table, and she prepared Hitori's favorite mocktail which turned out to be her favorite, too.
"Dinner is ready," she said as she served the dinner.
Hitori marked the bookmark on the page he was reading, got up, and walked to her. When he saw white, thin somen noodles on the plate and the dipping sauce in the bowl, he was pleased.
"Thanks for the dinner." Reon sat down and they started eating.
I need to break it to him before things get out of hand.
Hitori lifted his eyes and looked at her as he gulped the noodles. Then he went back to his dinner.
Reon saw that he was halfway through his dinner, so he decided to ask, "Do you want more?"
Hitori shook his head. He wanted to get over with dinner as quickly as possible. Reon hummed in response and continued eating. She had lost her appetite, but then decided to eat her fill, this might be her last dinner in this house.
Hitori finished first. Her heart started racing when Hitori got up and took his bowl to the sink and washed it clean. "Here goes nothing," she heard him murmur something to himself.
She did not bother herself with it. He will either read the book of go to his room and sleep. He will not speak to me at all, he will spend the night pretending I am not even here.
Just then, his voice interrupted her thoughts, "You better tell me what is wrong."
She shuddered and turned around in an instant. Her chopsticks fell on the plate and her mouth dropped open. She tried to speak but the words won't come out.
"I just know now, after all this, I just know now if someone is hiding something from me. They want to say it, but can't bring themselves to say it. So here, I am giving you a chance."
She gulped the remaining noodles that were in her mouth. She almost choked, but swallowed them somehow, then shook her head. "W-What do you mean?"
Hitori sighed. He never expected her to tell him on the first try. "You have done this before. When you should have told us, you didn't and you paid for it. But don't do it again. Tell me what happened, or you will be risking everyone's life."
Reon dropped her head. Okay, I have got it. He has presented me with his chance himself. I will say it. I will just… just spill it!
She pinched her eyes close, clenched the chair's bottom end, and said so quickly that he could not catch up.
"W-What did you say? It sounded like you were talking with noodles in your mouth. Say it again. Loud and clear."
She opened her eyes and exhaled. He is losing it. He will get mad! Tears formed in her eyes.
She held her breath and shouted at Hitori, "Onogi said I would have to sleep with him or he would kill my parents!" She cried. It was both embarrassing and scary for her as a teenage girl.
Hitori was stunned. His mouth dropped and he felt slightly embarrassed. He was expecting a sort of threat, not a proposal-cum-threat.
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