Both Tanami and Tachyon nodded in unison. Fuji's grin widened, but when she saw Tachyon's eyes narrowing into a glare, she composed herself.
"Was there anyone else out there? Two or three girls haven't come back yet."
"There wasn't anyone left... was there?" Tanami asked Tachyon.
Tachyon put a hand to her chin, thinking for a long moment before nodding uncertainly.
Fuji sighed. "I suppose I'll have to go check the grounds myself then."
"I'll go with you," Tanami offered suddenly.
"With me?" Fuji blinked in surprise.
Tanami looked a bit sheepish. "I just thought... you might want the company. It's dark out."
"Well... it would be rude to decline such a gallant offer. I'm still missing three girls, so let's do a lap of the usual spots. Tachyon, what about you?"
"Me? Hmm..." Tachyon sounded dazed, her eyes drooping with sleep. She stared at Tanami. He stared back, finding himself distracted by how surprisingly long her eyelashes were.
They locked eyes for a beat too long—long enough for even Fuji to notice the silence. Finally, Tachyon blinked and looked away.
"I suppose I'll accompany the Trainer-kun." She followed the statement with a massive, jaw-cracking yawn.
Tanami and Fuji shared a quiet laugh. Tachyon just looked at them, blinking blearily as if to ask what was so funny.
Ten minutes later, they found the first girl. Ten minutes after that, they found the second. The second girl was an acquaintance of Tachyon's, wearing a pointed witch's hat and clutching a book that glowed with a faint, ethereal light—likely written in bioluminescent ink. She began chattering excitedly to Tachyon, but Tachyon's sleepy brain was at its limit. She stood there, blinking rapidly, fighting a losing battle against consciousness as she tried to listen. The sight was so ridiculous that Tanami and Fuji had to turn away to hide their laughter.
The third girl was nowhere to be found. By then, Tachyon was stumbling over thin air, letting out little startled yelps every time her knees buckled.
When they finally returned to the dorms, they found the third girl already there. Fuji breathed a sigh of relief. As soon as they stepped inside, Tachyon hurried off toward her room without so much as a goodbye.
Fuji thanked Tanami and sent him on his way.
The night air was freezing. He'd forgotten how cold it was while they were walking in a group, but now the wind bit at his cheeks. He shivered as he walked the short distance to his own dorm. That lingering sense of dread—the feeling he'd had while watching Tachyon's shadow at sunset—hadn't left him.
What is going to happen to us?
It followed him like his own shadow. It was always there, a constant companion he usually managed to ignore. But tonight, it stung as sharply as the winter wind.
He walked alone under the pale streetlights, eventually stepping into the warmth of his dorm.
The dorm was ablaze with light and noise, a festive atmosphere that Tanami felt entirely disconnected from. He avoided the crowded cafeteria, opting instead to scavenge something from the small fridge in his room. He passed a few friends in the hall, but he didn't call out to them. They looked so happy under the bright lights, and Tanami knew he wouldn't fit into their world tonight.
He opened his door, dropped his bag on the floor, and let out another heavy sigh. Today had been a lot for someone just recovering from a fever. He skipped dinner and collapsed onto his bed, eventually forcing himself up just long enough to take a shower.
The hot water cleared his head slightly, but the exhaustion remained. He thought about the trip home in two days, and a dull ache of melancholy settled in his chest. But there was no turning back now.
Get it together, Keiichi, he told himself. You're the Trainer for a girl who won the G1. You're one of the lucky ones. You have money. You have a career. You have a roof over your head. What more could you possibly want? Work hard, Keiichi.
He chanted the words like a mantra against his own depression, but it only made him feel sadder. He didn't want to think anymore. He crawled under the covers and fell into a restless, fitful sleep.
He woke up shivering. It was early—far too early to start on Tachyon's breakfast. Outside, the world was pitch black. For a moment, he thought it was the middle of the night, but the clock read 4:00 AM.
He pulled the duvet tight around him. He'd been half-exposed to the air; the last thing he needed was to catch another cold. He rubbed his shoulders, trying to generate heat.
I wonder if Tachyon is sleeping?
He'd seen how exhausted she was, but with her, you never knew. Sometimes she'd sleep for days; other times she'd stay up through the night on a manic whim. As her Trainer—and as a man—he couldn't help but worry. Though, remembering her sleepy face from the night before brought a small smile to his lips. There was something undeniably funny about seeing someone so usually composed lose a fight with their own eyelids.
He chuckled under the covers, then let out a sharp exhale. I need to get ready for tomorrow.
It was only 4:00. He didn't need to get up, but the weight of the coming days felt heavy. He squeezed his eyes shut, tensing his entire body, trying to make the "black thing" inside him disappear. He tried to seal it away, to ball it up in his palms and crush it into nothingness.
Just as he felt himself drifting back toward a haze of sleep, Tachyon's face appeared in his mind.
"Trainer-kun... breakfast... is it not ready yet? Hurry up..."
He snapped awake. He could almost see her—that specific, calculatedly "cute" look she used to get her way. She probably didn't even realize she was doing it, but God, how many times had he fallen for it?
Come to think of it, he hadn't seen her make that face in a long time. Not since the transition from winter to spring earlier this year. He puzzled over it for a moment before the realization hit him again.
I have to make Tachyon's lunch.
He forced his heavy limbs to move. The thought of her waiting for him gave him just enough strength to break the gravitational pull of the bed. Rubbing the sleep from his eyes, Tanami headed for the kitchen.