Hey there! I'm sorry for keeping you all waiting! I said I hoped to publish the next chapter in a few days instead of two weeks and well, here I am publishing two weeks later. Sorry about that. Anyway, I'm really happy you guys are all still reading this and hope you continue to enjoy my story. On that note,

Enjoy Chapter 2!


Ayumi inched forward timidly. She wanted to see the boy clearly.

It was him! She had never been so excited to see the blonde until right now.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

Ayumi could hear the footsteps thudding up the stairs. She froze.

After a minute of paralysis, she rushed to Yoshiki. She glanced at his frowning face quickly before crying out, "Kishinuma-kun!"

No response. "Kishinuma-kun, please!"

Yoshiki groaned as his eyes reluctantly opened.

"Sh-Shinozaki!" The boy suddenly shot up, almost knocking over Ayumi in the process. "H-How did you get in here? What happened to your head?"

"Forget about that." Ayumi could hear the footsteps approaching. "Lock the door...please!"

Her eyes, flooded with desperation, implored him. There was no way he could say no to her. "Alright. Just- just sit down."

As Yoshiki headed to the door, Ayumi hesitantly placed her hand on her forehead. Her head stung as she made contact. What had happened?

Her skin was wet and slippery. Shakily, she removed her hand. It was covered in slime. She didn't want to think about what the slime could be, much less actually see it, but she had to look. She had to know.

Her hand was coated in red like a kid who refused to wash his hands after finger painting. The red dye slowly slid down her hand, over her wrist and onto her sleeve. She screamed.

Wheeze. Gasp. Wheeze. Gasp.

All the air seemed to disappear as Ayumi desperately attempted to suck it in. Her hand jerked back and forth as if she was trying to grab something, but kept changing her mind. Her other hand clutched at her shirt like her life depended on it. Her arms and legs tingled viciously. What if she lost control of them? She'd be stuck on the couch forever. Easy food for the follower.

Her brain seemed to bounce around with every jolt and her eyes darted around the room. Yoshiki was running towards her.

"Shinozaki!" He almost grabbed her shoulders, but stopped. "Are you okay?"

Ayumi's head shook furiously and wouldn't stop. It was as if she had to continue in order to survive.

Yoshiki wasn't sure if he should hold her or keep his hands away. She would hate him later if he touched her, but she needed comfort. Ultimately, he decided against it and instead sat down next to her on the couch.

"Sh-shinozaki," What should he do? He wasn't Satoshi; he didn't have magical calming powers. "It's going to be okay. You're safe now."

He glanced at her bloody face and then at her hand; he'd found the problem. "I'll get some bandages, okay? You stay here."

Yoshiki stood up, but Ayumi wouldn't let him go any further. She tugged on his black jacket desperately. Her head still shaking the whole time.

"Alright. Alright. I won't leave." He looked at her venerable face. Her head was a bloody mess. "But you need bandages fast."

Ayumi's hand vibrated frantically as she pointed to her bag. Did she want Yoshiki to look in her bag? She would kill him if he did. "Y-you want me to...?" Ayumi's head shook up and down, her teeth chattering with every movement. "A-are you sure?"

Ayumi nodded again before suddenly gripping her chest. She no longer seemed to be breathing as she sat frozen in place, eyes wide in terror.

"Shit!" Yoshiki spat under his breath. Without thinking, he unzipped her bag and peered inside. It was filled with books and candles. No surprise there. Desperately, he dug deeper. There had to be something in there that Ayumi wanted him to see, but what was it?

Towards the bottom was a roll of bandages. Yoshiki snatched them and quickly turned towards Ayumi who was gasping for air. He instinctively placed his hand on her shoulder. "Shinozaki, I found some bandages. Please try to stay still."

He could hear her breathing steady a tiny bit. Thank god. Slowly, he wrapped the white roll around her head, trying not to make it too tight, but not too loose either. He was pretty impressed with his handy work and couldn't help but grin. "How's this?"

Ayumi slowly nodded and Yoshiki could feel her shoulders relaxing. He should've probably let go, but he didn't want to. He figured it was okay to be a little selfish. Besides, it was comforting her, right? He hoped so.

Ayumi struggled to keep her eyes open. She was ready to collapse, but she couldn't go to sleep. Not in Yoshiki's house and especially not with someone following her. "You look exhausted. You can rest on the couch if you want."

Ayumi shook her head and realized his hand was still on her shoulder. She slipped out of his grasp and hoped her face wasn't as red as she thought it was.

Either way, there was no way she was sleeping on his couch. She couldn't trust him to be with her alone when she was sleeping. If only he was Satoshi. Then, this would no longer be an issue and she'd be fast asleep.

Yoshiki noticed her reluctance. Struggling to keep his voice down, he shouted "I-I'm not going to do anything if that's what you think!"

"You're a delinquent; why would I trust you?" A spear seemed to fly straight out of Ayumi's mouth and into Yoshiki's chest. If only he was Satoshi. Then, Ayumi would actually have faith in him and she'd actually rest.

"Whatever. Go to sleep if you want to. I'll be sitting on the floor." Yoshiki tried to remove the growl from his voice. It wasn't very successful, but he was true to his word and sat on the wooden floor.

Now, the couch was all Ayumi's and the battle to resist sleep became more of a struggle. Suddenly, she didn't even care about Yoshiki's presence; only her follower kept her alert.

As if on cue, Ayumi could hear a door opening and the wind screaming from outside. The follower was gone and her eyes surrendered to sleep.


Thank you for reading chapter 2! As usual, feel free to leave a comment (compliments, criticism and suggestions are welcome!) and I hope to see you during chapter 3!