Chapter Text
The clock had just struck quarter past three, and Kikoru Shinomiya climbed the stairs with the determined steps of a soldier marching into battle. Her irritation was written plainly on her face, her sharp gaze cutting through the long hallway toward her commander's room.
"Fifteen minutes late," she muttered under her breath, then shoved the door open so hard it slammed against the wall with a thunderous crack.
"Captain Narumi! Where are you? You made a promise!" she shouted, but her cry died suddenly in her throat.
She didn't find him buried in his usual games. On the bed, a pile of blankets trembled like the heart of a frightened bird. Then she heard a weak murmur:
"Shinomiya... you're here?"
Kikoru stepped back, her anger transforming into astonishment. Narumi sneezed violently, wrapping himself tighter in his blankets like a human cocoon.
"HATCHOO! It's... it's freezing in here!"
She approached cautiously, her voice softening despite herself: "If you're sick, you could have sent a message..."
"My hands were shaking," he interrupted weakly. "I couldn't even hold my phone."
Kikoru sighed, but her eyes remained sharp: "Really? Your hands were shaking? Or is this a new trick to avoid training?"
Narumi lay back in pain, staring at the ceiling in bewilderment: "Why do I feel so weak? Is it some mysterious illness? Maybe I've caught a rare epidemic..."
"It's a cold!" she cut him off decisively, planting her hands on her hips like a drill instructor. "Just a common cold, caused by neglecting yourself. And since our great commander is sick, I've decided to take full charge of your treatment!"
A glimmer of hope lit Narumi's eyes. He imagined a gentle nurse tending to him, wiping his brow, bringing him warm soup...
But he was startled by Kikoru's hand pressing firmly against his forehead, making him yelp: "Ow! Hey!"
"38.4 degrees!" she announced like a thunderclap. "Your fever is way too high!"
Then she began tugging at his clothes with brisk military precision. He shrieked in panic: "What are you doing?!"
"Changing your clothes!" she ordered in a voice that brooked no argument. "Sweat-soaked clothes make illness worse!"
"I'll do it myself! Please!" he begged, trying to cover himself.
But Kikoru had already yanked off his shirt and thrown a thick sweater at him. "Put this on now!"
After a brief struggle, Narumi surrendered beneath the blankets in his new clothes, groaning weakly: "Shinomiya... my head hurts so much..."
She handed him a cooling patch. When he whispered with a shy smile, "Could you put it on me?" she snapped, "You're not a child!" But she pressed it onto his forehead with such force that he cried out in pain, while she wondered to herself: "Why does he still look handsome even like this? It makes me even angrier!"
And the ordeal wasn't over. She fetched a packet of powdered medicine from the clinic and opened it before his horrified eyes.
"No! I hate powdered medicine!" he whined like a little kid. "It tastes so bitter!"
"The patient doesn't get to choose!" she said coolly, then poured the powder directly into his mouth.
He nearly choked from the bitterness, sputtering and yelling, but she gently pressed his mouth shut until he swallowed.
Suddenly, silence fell over the room. Kikoru sat beside him and looked at him differently—softer, deeper.
"Captain..." she said in a quiet voice. "You matter to us. I can't lose you... none of us can. We still have Kaiju No. 9 ahead of us, and I need someone strong by my side."
Narumi was moved by her words. Shame washed over him, as if a wall of regret had just crumbled inside his chest. He reached with a trembling hand to the nightstand and picked up his favorite gaming device.
"Take it..." he offered it to her. "Keep it as a hostage. I won't touch it until I'm fully recovered. I promise."
Kikoru's eyes widened, and a rare spark of joy lit them. She took the device carefully, as if it were a precious jewel, and smiled—a bright, rare smile, like the first ray of sun after a long night.
"I'll keep it safe!" she said with enthusiasm. "I wish you were always this honest!"
She stood to leave, but paused at the door. Softly, in a voice barely louder than her own heartbeat, she whispered:
"I'm... actually... just worried about you. Get well soon."
Then she closed the door quickly, leaving Narumi alone in his room. He felt his temperature rise even more—but not because of the cold. It was the warmth of her words, planted in his heart without her even knowing.