Bathing

Tokyo already had a hint of early summer in June, and its unpredictable weather had become the norm.

As noon approached, the temperature gradually climbed, and the air was filled with damp warmth.

Ahead of 07, the hem of the tea-haired girl's skirt swayed gently with each step.

Every so often, she lowered her head and softly combed the fluffy back of the orange cat in her arms with her fingertips. At other times, her gaze would drift toward him without seeming to.

Just as their eyes were about to meet, she would swiftly and naturally turn her gaze back to the cat.

She's watching me, he instinctively concluded.

They passed a convenience store on the corner and entered a tidy residential neighborhood.

The buildings here were all low-rise apartments in pale beige, with the clean, simple look typical of Japan.

The buildings lined the street in neat rows. Laundry hung on the balconies, and now and then, a few people could be seen moving about.

After walking a little farther, the girl ahead slowed down.

She turned slightly and pointed toward an apartment building nearby. "We're almost there. It's right over there."

Following her finger, he saw a pale beige building that looked no different from the others.

07 saw nothing special about it and simply took note of the surroundings.

Inside the apartment building, the girl took out a key and unlocked the door. A faint scent of gardenias wafted from within, the same fragrance as the one clinging to her.

As soon as they entered, the orange cat naturally wriggled free from the girl's arms and deftly hopped over to the window to lick its paws.

"It's just me at home. Mom won't be back from work until late." As she spoke, the girl bent down and took two pairs of slippers from the shoe cabinet. She pushed a pair of dark blue men's slippers toward the boy. "You can wear these for now. They're my dad's. He usually... isn't home much."

She straightened up and lightly wiped the fine beads of sweat from her forehead with the back of her hand, then turned her gaze back to the boy.

His unabashed stare made her a little uncomfortable. Her cheeks puffed out slightly, her tone mildly reproachful. "You're really strange, you know. Why do you keep staring at people?"

Then, as if she'd suddenly realized she'd forgotten something, she patted her forehead and broke into a bright smile. "Oh, right! I forgot to ask. My name's Kushida Kikyo. What's yours?"

He looked away from the girl's face, a faint sense of discomfort passing through him.

07 was just a number, a cold designation, not a name.

His gaze unconsciously swept over a magazine piled on top of the shoe cabinet. In one corner of the cover was a small illustration: beneath a vast starry sky, fields stretched all the way to the horizon.

"Hoshida No," he said in a flat, emotionless voice.

"Hoshida No... Hoshida No..." Kikyo repeated it softly twice, her brows curving upward. "That's a pretty rare surname." Her gaze grew a little more inquisitive.

"Um, Hoshida...," she paused, softening her tone. "Are you... on your own?"

Perhaps she felt she'd been too direct as soon as the words left her mouth. A faint blush spread over her fair cheeks, and she hurriedly waved her hands as she added, "Ah, I don't mean to pry! It's just... you seem like... well, have you run into some trouble?"

Hoshida No raised his eyes, a hint of surprise passing through his deep gaze. "Why do you ask?" His voice remained calm, giving nothing away.

Kushida Kikyo's gaze fell on his rumpled hem and the strands of hair scattered across his forehead. She pointed at the edge of her own clothes, her tone cautious. "Your clothes and hair are a little messy, like you've traveled a long way... but..."

She leaned forward slightly, the tip of her nose twitching almost imperceptibly, as if she were trying to confirm something.

"You don't have that... sweaty smell or other unpleasant odors you'd get from wandering around for a long time. So I thought maybe you haven't always been like this, and only recently... run into trouble?"

Looking at the girl just inches away, Hoshida No sighed inwardly. She's been sizing me up the whole way here. So this is what she was trying to figure out?

He was silent for two seconds. His expression didn't change, but he lowered his lashes slightly, giving his voice just the right touch of weariness and detachment. "Yeah. My parents passed away a few days ago. Some relatives... took the things they left behind. I had nowhere else to go."

Everything he said was true. He'd never seen his parents since birth, so saying they had "passed away" wasn't exactly a lie.

As far as he was concerned, the uniformed people he'd run into while leaving, the ones searching for him, were no different from looters fighting over an "inheritance."

And the dirt on his hem was proof enough that he'd been wandering around.

He'd simply woven three unrelated facts into a story that sounded entirely plausible.

Sure enough, the curiosity in Kushida Kikyo's eyes was instantly replaced by deep sympathy.

Her brows knit with concern, and her voice grew even gentler. "Hoshida, I'll take you to have a bath and change into some clean, comfortable clothes."

She turned and led the way naturally, and Hoshida No quietly followed. The bathroom wasn't large, but it was bright and tidy. A faint gardenia scent like the one clinging to her mingled with the fresh aroma of soap.

After washing up, warm steam still hung in the bathroom.

Hoshida No dried himself and picked up the neatly folded clothes on the shelf.

He put on the shirt. As expected, the sleeves were too long, so he had to roll them up twice before his wrists showed. The waistband of the pants was also a little loose. He tugged at it and let the legs fall naturally just above his ankles.

When he opened the bathroom door, Kushida Kikyo was leaning against the wall, holding an unopened bottle of milk.

Her eyes lit up when she saw him, and a smile immediately spread across her face. "Hoshida, you're done!"

Her gaze fell on his rolled-up sleeves, and she couldn't help chuckling. "They're a little big, but you look much more presentable than before!"

As she spoke, she handed him the bottle of milk she'd been holding. "Have some of this first. I'll get you something to eat."

Hoshida No took the milk, his fingertips brushing the cold bottle. He felt a slight stir within him.

He could sense the girl's kindness in her gaze, but the wariness buried deep in his bones still made him observe her instinctively.

He walked into the living room and sat down on the sofa, his back straight out of habit.

Holding the bottle of milk, he unscrewed the cap and brought it to his lips, taking the tiniest, most cautious sip.

The cold liquid slid down his throat, carrying a mild milky sweetness. It faintly stirred a familiar memory from somewhere deep within him, a little like the taste of "White Rabbit" milk candy melting in his mouth after someone secretly slipped it into his hand.

He took another small sip, his gaze unconsciously drifting toward the kitchen.

Behind the glass door, the girl bustled about, with the occasional faint clink of dishes.

The softness of the sofa, the scent of sunshine and soap lingering on his shirt—everything carried a strange sense of peace. His shoulders, which had been tensed by habit, quietly relaxed a little.