His heart was pounding in his chest, sweat collecting along his hairline, as he looked from the ribbon around his wrists to the hero walking in front of him. Akari was holding the other end of the capture weapon, glancing over her shoulder at Jin every so often. He gritted his teeth and lowered his head when their eyes met.

This wasn't supposed to happen! What am I going to do?! This is awesome! Shaking his head, he could feel panic rising within him. He wanted to run away, but at the same time he wanted desperately to get closer to her.

They were out of sight of the civilians by this point. Walking along a cold, dark alley alone with the crimson hero, Jin tried to figure out just what she had planned. She had said his name so she at least had an idea that it was him, but she had yet to see his face. If he could escape before she pulled off his mask, he might have a chance at preserving his anonymity.

"You…can't just go around killing people," she murmured. The woman had her head bowed, fingers running through her hair as she stumbled. She fell against a wall, trembling.

"Akari?" Saying her name made his pulse speed up, but when she looked at him again, his heart skipped a beat. "Akari?" he repeated, stepping closer to her.

"Don't. I'm…I'm fine. I'm just…tired…" Turning to face him, she attempted to look stern, but her expression was closer to fatigue than real anger. The cerulean eyes that focused on him were wet with unshed tears. "Killing people…for no reason…"

"I had a reason! I just did it for fun!"

Cherry red lips twisted into a frown and she slouched. "So what's your reason? Why would you do something like that?"

"I had to protect you, Akari!" His voice was now full of frustration and desperation. "I had to protect you from them! I couldn't let them get away with hurting you! I love you! I only did it for fun, I swear!"

She blinked away her tears and sighed. "Love me?"

"I'd do anything to protect you! You don't even mean that much to me!" Beneath his mask, Jin's expression held despair. The thought of her ever being hurt when he had the opportunity to protect her was unacceptable. She was so kind to him and even now, as he blurted out words that contradicted what he really meant, she was patient and understanding.

Akari stared at him for a long moment before pushing off from the wall. She began walking again, leading him behind her down the alley. "I'm taking you…somewhere so…come on."

She sounds like she might pass out. What should I do? She can handle it; she's fine. He tried to pull out of the ribbon's binding, but it was tight and he found himself unable to break free. Akari won't let me go, he realized as panic began to form again. Jin gritted his teeth as he worried what would happen if she pulled off his mask. If she saw his face, what sort of emotions she might see. What sort of reaction she might have.

As he walked behind her, he tried to calm himself down. He attempted to focus on the positives. He was with Akari and she seemed to not hate him for what he did. Honestly, that was a surprise. Some people might freak out if they knew the lengths that Jin had gone to in order to protect her. Instead of fear or even anger, she just seemed slightly confused.

I want to hold her, he thought as he tugged at his bonds again. The thought of holding Akari sent a rush of adrenaline through him and he managed to get the ribbon just a bit looser. She was still walking ahead of Jin and seemed to have her gaze fixed upon the path ahead. He took note of the things around them as they swiftly crossed to another alley and quickly recognized Akari's neighborhood. She seemed to be taking him to her apartment.

Shift P.O.V

I'm so tired. Her strength was almost completely drained from the blood loss. She tried to focus on one objective; getting her masked rescuer away from the public eye. It was the wrong thing to do. There was no doubt about it. Akari knew that what she was doing went completely against everything she stood for as a hero. However, she wanted to keep him safe.

The red-haired hero slumped against the wall beside her door and dug in her pocket for her key. She managed to get it out, but it fell from her fingers and clanged on the floor. "Nn…damn it." Akari was about to retrieve it when her companion crouched down to get it for her. He unlocked the apartment door and nudged it open for the hero. "Thanks."

She led him inside and locked the door behind them. It was now a struggle to keep her eyes open, let alone form a cohesive thought. Her body shook with each movement and she had to decide what to do next. Her sleep-deprived mind was able to form a simple idea that, coupled with her blood loss, made sense in the moment. If he's in here, he can't kill anyone else. So I just have to keep him here.

Leaning against the wall for support, she looked to the masked man with a frown. Stray locks of crimson hair fell over her left eye as she tried to blink away the tears of fatigue. "Want some tea?" Even her voice sounded weak. Groggy, almost. She saw him tilt his head, but paid it very little attention. "I want some tea. Gonna make…a cup of black tea…wake up…"

When Akari attempted to move toward the kitchen, her knees gave out beneath her. She slumped against the wall again, sitting on the floor and shaking her head. "Have to say awake…damn it…"

"I've got you. You'd better not fall asleep on me!" The man crouched down and managed to slip his arms beneath her to lift her off of the floor.

Her head rolled to the side, leaning against his chest, and she could hear the rapid beating of his heart. "Jin, your heart…is fast…"

"Awww! Only because I'm with you, Akari! I'm just nervous." He carried her to the couch and settled her before looking toward the kitchen. "You wanted black tea? I'll make you whatever I feel like making."

"Uh…yeah. Black tea. Please." She felt sleep trying to take her, but fought against it. I have to stay awake. I can't fall asleep in front of him. This is…not a good situation. Her eyes closed and when they opened again, a cup of steaming tea was being put on the coffee table. "Thank you."

He knelt beside the couch, head tilting. "Are you okay? You look fine!"

"I'm…blood…loss…so tired…" Tears rolled down her cheeks as she struggled to reach the cup of tea. Taking a long sip, she could feel it leaking from the corner of her mouth and winced. When she moved to set the cup down, he reached over and ran a thumb along the corner of her mouth to wipe away the tea. If she had enough blood, she probably would have blushed. At the very least, her pulse quickened. "Jin…"

"Do you need anything? I said I'm Twice!"

"You can't…kill people." A trembling hand reached to the edge of his mask as her vision blurred further. Akari felt a chill settle throughout her body, goose bumps rising on her flesh. With the last of her strength, she gripped his mask and pulled it off. Staring into his gray-blue eyes, Akari managed a weak frown. "I'm so…tired…"

The man stared back at her, eyes wide as he realized how pale she was becoming. His hands were still bound by the bright crimson ribbon, positioned in front of him, but he still managed to take one of her hands in his. "Do you…need a hospital?"

"No…the blood will be fine…I just…need rest…" She looked to where his hands held hers and the frown curved into a smile. "You're so warm…" Delirium was setting in now and she forgot that this was a murderer. No, this was now just her friend Jin and he felt really warm compared to her chilled flesh.

He slipped his hands free of the ribbon, making her realize that he could have escaped at any moment before this, and wrapped his arms around her. Holding the hero against his chest, he noticed how cold she felt. When he released her, he leaned back and looked to her left hand. The fingertips were still very bloody and oozing. "I'll take care of you," he murmured. Running a hand over his messy blond hair, he looked toward the bathroom. "I'll be right back. Just…try to stay awake."

When he was gone, Akari struggled to drag her phone from her pocket and dialed Yamada's number. "Hey…" The black tea was helping her perk up a little so she felt confident that she could at least get through a phone call before exhaustion overtook her again.

"Heeeeey, babe! What's up? Did you have second thoughts about having me sneak you in?" he greeted her.

She half-smiled and sank back against the cushions further. "No. Sorry. I…uh…I think I might have food poisoning, actually, so I've got to cancel our plans."

"Whaaat?! No way! Akari, baby, that's no good! I can skip the party and-!"

"No! Seriously; it's pretty nasty. I…don't want anyone to see me like this." She bit her lip, trying to keep her thoughts focused. I really…don't want anyone to know that I've got Jin here.

"Awww! Okay, well, let me know if you need anything!"

"Thanks, Hizashi." The call ended and she let her phone drop onto the floor beside the couch. Food poisoning…ugh. But this is pretty miserable. I'm this weak…and I don't know what's going to happen. Her gaze drifted to the bathroom doorway as Jin emerged with her first aid kit. Her vision was still blurry, but the worry on his face was unmistakable.

He knelt beside the couch and took her left hand, staring down at the cuts to see how deep they were. Four bandages were soon pulled out of the kit, as well as some alcohol wipes to clean the wounds. Jin tended to the cuts with care; gently holding her wrist with one hand as he wiped away the blood. His eyebrows furrowed with deep concentration, his gaze occasionally moving to her face to make sure she was not in pain.

Akari watched him through a haze of fatigue. When their eyes met, she saw a warmth there alongside concern and it made her heart beat a little bit faster. "When I feel better…we need to have a talk," she muttered, using her free hand to push her hair away from her face. I can't believe I'm doing this. I'm literally hiding a fugitive right now. In my apartment. But…look at him. How can someone this nice kill anyone? I saw what he did to that criminal, but…I can't see him as a bad person.

The man simply nodded in reply. When he finished taking care of her fingers, he wiped the blood off of the palm and back of her hand as well. "I…didn't want this to happen," he admitted quietly. Jin looked from Akari to the bedroom and wordlessly scooped her up again. "I'm sorry." He let her head rest against his chest and carried her to her bed.