Akane's breath caught. The rigid line of her shoulders wavered.
"I…"
She tried to speak, then stopped. Her gaze dropped for a second before she forced it back up to meet mine, but the usual sharp edge in her eyes had softened into something conflicted and almost fragile.
[He's asking me to promise… the same way I always ask him. If I refuse, I'm a hypocrite. If I accept… I might not be able to keep it. But the way he's looking at me right now…]
"I…" she tried again, voice quieter than before. The single word hung in the air between us, unfinished, as the tension in her body warred with the clear guilt and surprise still radiating from her thoughts.
I tilted my head slightly.
"What? Can't do it?"
Akane lowered her head. The black mask hid most of her expression, but the way her shoulders dropped gave her away.
"…I am sorry for being so selfish."
