Chapter 7: A silent shot.

Sherry's sleeping body reflected on the bathroom mirror. As the soapy water spiraled down the waste pipe of the washbasin, Gin put his razor down and took a moment to contemplate her in the light that had started pouring into the quiet room.

There she was. Even if not as much as the previous night, he couldn't help blushing at the sight of her naked body. She lay face up, only partly covered by the messy white sheets that tangled around her legs. The subtle movements of her chest caught his attention – not (only) because of the dark pink of her nipples against her pale breasts (which he surely liked seeing), but mostly because, even when she was as quiet as a mouse and stayed as still as a statue, her breath was the clearest proof that she was still alive. His gaze unconsciously wandered down, coming to a stop at the crimson cut on her thigh. She hadn't treated it in the end. More than aware of the soft cloth that pressed against his still-aching shoulder, he had to resist so as not to look for her first-aid kit and clean her wound while she slept.

He shook his head and moved his gaze up the mirror. His own reflection stared back at him. He looked the very same way he always did – pale, tall, green-eyed and crowned by a cascade of ash blonde hair. He felt rather well, especially when taking into account that it had only been about ten hours since he had been shot and that the bullet was still in his body, surrounded by the layers of muscle it had dashed through. He had been through worse, of course – but this time he had nearly lost something that mattered to him more than his very life.

He had to end it. Shiho was the only thing that mattered now – she had always been. He couldn't stick to their plans, nor care about the possible risks or what "that person" may have to say on the matter. It had to end. And Shiho must not be involved. If Rukuma was to kill anyone, it would be only him.

Gin walked out of the bathroom, got dressed as quietly as he could and left the room without looking back. When he arrived at the hall of the hotel, he asked the clerk to tell 'the lady in room 115' that he had gone out for a morning stroll.

Rukuma's street was as lonely as it had been the day before. The bullet marks on the concrete wall in front of her house were perfectly visible, and a part of him wondered whether her neighbors had already seen and recognized them. He jumped over the low wall that surrounded her garden (ignoring the jolt of pain that pierced his right shoulder in the process) and walked towards the front door.

With a deep breath, he rang the doorbell.

Following a single instant of utter silence, he heard Rukuma walk around the house and finally stop only a few feet away from the door. Nothing happened for a long while. Gin stood still, the cold wind brushing against his face.

'I'm not here to harm you,' he spoke. 'If I were, I wouldn't have rung your bell.'

The boy fought the temptation to put his hands into the warm pockets of his coat and waited slowly, the door opened only enough for him to see the woman at the other side. Being so close to her felt strange, but he tried not to let it show. A faint smell of tea came to him from the depths of the house – apparently, he had interrupted Rukuma's breakfast. Dragging himself back to the aim of his visit, he extended his arms and looked at her in the eye.

'I carry no guns,' he claimed. The woman didn't react in any way. 'And I'm all alone. As I say, I don't intend to hurt you.'

Rukuma held his stare, but she didn't say a single word.

'As you must already know,' he continued, 'I'm a member of the Organization you used to belong to, and I was sent to this island to kill you. But I won't.'

You've achieved something I've always wanted, he added in his head. And I have no right to take it away from you.

'I will tell the Organization you're dead,' he went on. 'They will trust my word. So you'd better run away from here. Leave everything behind and start a new life – you did it once, so I guess you'll manage to do it again.'

Rukuma looked at him even more fiercely. The boy responded by taking a step closer to the door – he expected her to close it, or to move back, but she didn't.

'You could kill me right here and right now,' he argued. 'I am rather helpless. Do you know that you hit me in the shoulder? The bullet is still inside, and it hurts a lot. Being in such state, you could beat me in a fight – trust me on that, I learned pretty much everything about you in the last few weeks before I came to this island.'

'What I want you to understand,' he explained, 'is that I'm not here to hurt you, kill you or lie to you: I'm here to help you. Run away from this island and start a new life, Rukuma. Do it as soon as possible. From the moment I walk away from your front door on, Hikako Saigo must be dead.'

Finally, Rukuma responded to him by nodding her head. Her eyes met Gin's and it was as if they voiced her thoughts – thoughts of strength, of courage and of the will he had expected her to possess. He felt like smiling.

'You mustn't tell anyone about this meeting,' he added, although he had for sure that she was aware of such condition. 'It will only get you and them in danger.'

Another nod.

'So this is it,' he claimed. Only then, by standing up straight, he realized he had bent his back very slightly towards Rukuma while he talked to her. 'As I said, from the moment I walk away on, Hikako Saigo must vanish into thin air. Understood?'

Rukuma nodded again and shut her eyes for an instant. She parted her lips, as if ready to say something, but closed them again and shook her head. Gin gave her a timid smile.

'Farewell, Eiko Rukuma,' he spoke. 'I wish you the best of lucks.'

The woman nodded once more and then bowed her head at him. With a bow of his own, Gin turned and walked away from the house. When he reached the end of the little garden he looked back and caught a last glimpse of Rukuma as she closed the door with a thud. He nodded to himself in the cold air of the early morning and jumped over the wall onto the lonely street.

Author's notes:

¡Hola! Hello! Hallo! こんにちは! Salut! Here comes Sherry Furude once more, ready for attack!

First of all, let me thank you again for reading this far! It really honors me that you find my work to be worth your time and attention. Thank you very much!

But why doesn't Rukuma speak, or even get described? I did it intentionally. In the earliest stages of working on this fic, I fiercely wanted it to pass the Bechdel Test. But then I realized that the previous 'Mission Saga' fic didn't, and so I decided that neither would this one – either the two passed it or none of them did. However, on this lack of representation, I came up with an idea to "justify" it: to make Gin and Sherry the only speaking characters of this fic, and to only describe or mention the rest. So even when it was time for Rukuma to appear, I kept this condition and thus didn't give her a single line of dialogue. Additionally, I didn't describe her, although I made up a physical description of her when still planning the story. I guess the fic ended up being rather minimalist!

Once more, let me encourage you to tell me of any mistakes you may find. English is not my mother tongue! I would also be more than glad to read your opinions on the fic or this chapter. And, by the way, let me comment something: next week's chapter will be the last one! I hope you enjoy it!

Lots of love and see you next Sunday,

Sherry F.