Work Text:
There were no words.
Instead, there were unspoken feelings.
It was no secret that Shinjiro and Kotone had become closer as a result of the time they spent together. As she always did, Kotone had been the one to initially approach him, eager to befriend the new upperclassman that had returned to S.E.E.S.
It was nothing out of the ordinary.
After all, that was the inherent nature of Shiomi Kotone. In fact, several had bore witness to the one occasion where she clasped Ken’s hand and practically dragged him out the door in order for them to have dinner together — no doubt another one of her tactics to grow closer to her companions.
She was aggressive in her tactics, yet kind and energetic all the same.
However, in comparison to her relationship with all the other members of S.E.E.S., there was a certain tension that began to rear its head when those two were together.
Despite being muscle-brained, as some might’ve put it, Akihiko was the one to notice first. Reluctant as he was to admit it, he’d been paying some special attention to Kotone and it was easy to distinguish the subtle behavioural differences she had between him and Shinjiro.
He figured that the same could’ve been said for Shinjiro too. The way he treated Kotone and the way he looked at her was a sharp contrast to how he treated everyone else.
Between those two, it was as if they shared a secret between them that only they knew.
As for what it might’ve been, Akihiko wasn’t interested in making any unsolicited theories. However, the question certainly did linger on the tip of his tongue on a day he walked home with Kotone. If he asked her and she affirmed his suspicions, he wasn’t sure of how he’d react to the news himself.
At some point, Yukari and Junpei had noticed too. Naturally, the others began to follow suit.
The reason for Kotone remaining by Shinjiro’s side wasn’t due to her not being able to leave him alone. It was clear for everyone to see that there was something much, much more between them. It had only become more obvious as time went by, particularly during the one case where Shinjiro had made a communal dinner and Kotone helped him invite everyone else to the dining table.
As time went on, it seemed like the two in question had noticed it too but had yet to address it themselves.
During one particular evening, near the start of October, those in the lounge had noticed Kotone hastily approaching Shinjiro upon his return. When her gaze landed on him, it was like an epiphany had dawned upon her.
The last interaction everybody observed between those two was Shinjiro raising his voice and abruptly snatching her hand, ascending to the floor above.
The morning after, Kotone and Shinjiro had been the ones earliest to awaken. It was subtle, light and difficult to discern but if one had truly paid any attention to Kotone, she had been cloaked in the same musky scent that surrounded Shinjiro.
When she bid him a temporary goodbye as she left for school, her voice was light and airy, with bright laughter bubbling from her lips as he tousled her hair and told her that he’d see her later then. She voiced a complaint that she had to fix her hair as a result of him messing it up but seemed to betray those very words as she threaded her fingers through the place he’d recently touched, before re-styling it again.
Kotone moved to the beat of her own drum and Shinjiro was a devout follower of that rhythm.
It was like they were in their own world.
No one could disrupt them, nor did anyone dare to ask.
They never cleared up the ambiguity of their relationship to everyone else, yet it was plain enough to see that everyone knew what the best label for those two would be.
On the evening of October 4th, Akihiko held the body of Shinjiro, while Kotone desperately clung to one of his hands with both of hers. He’d cupped her cheek and thumbed away her tears, telling her not to cry, before he lost consciousness.
Until the Dark Hour was over, she pressed her fingers against his wrist and placed a shaky hand over his neck, anxiously waiting to see if his vital signs would ever fade.
His physical wounds were treated immediately the moment he was hospitalised but it was bound to leave scars on his chest. The doctors said his chest suffered from two gunshots and his chance of survival was waning with each passing day. Despite that, they maintained the rule that no visitors were allowed.
Since that incident, Kotone’s spirits were down. Psychological wounds were far more difficult to treat than physical wounds, yet she didn’t let it get to her for too long. Instead, she was optimistic, as if waiting to be notified by a miracle that had just occurred.
On Christmas Day, she wore a wristwatch that no one had ever seen on her before but the day after, it seemed like it had been shelved away in her room.
Finally, on March 5th, they reunited at the rooftop for only a brief moment. When everyone had gathered and reunited as S.E.E.S., those two were the first ones at the rooftop. Shinjiro had been sitting down on one of the bench, still huffing, as if he were catching his breath, while Kotone laid on his lap.
Her eyes were closed and she seemed to be at peace, yet Shinjiro’s motions had mimicked hers from several months back. He clung to her hand with both of his, and pressed two fingers against her wrist. His expression was grim but this was a truth he had no choice but to accept.
There would be no miracle. Instead, Kotone was the very miracle herself. She’d saved everyone’s lives at the cost of her own.
There were no words to be said.
Time would move forward relentlessly.
It was no secret that Shinjiro and Kotone had become closer as a result of the time they spent together.
Back then, those unspoken feelings, much like a poorly kept secret that the both of them shared, had ultimately been reminiscent of…