"What the hell was that?" Mia demanded as she step closer.
Akira’s mind skipped a beat. "What was what?"
"Don’t play dumb. I saw something that looks like green smoke coming out of the storage closet. And you..." She looked him up and down, seeing the torn sleeve of his jacket and the blood on his arm. "You’re hurt."
"I’m fine," he said quickly. "I just... knocked over some cleaning supplies. Chemical reaction or something."
"Bullshit." Mia grabbed his arm, taking a look at the claw marks. "These look like deep scratches."
"I said I’m fine."
She met his eyes, and for a moment, none of them said anything.
"You’re hiding something," she finally said.
"Everyone’s hiding something."
Mia nodded. "Fine. Don’t tell me." She released his arm and stepped back. "But whatever you’re involved in, be careful. I don’t want to see you on the news as some psycho killer or something."
"I’m not..."
"Save it." She turned toward the door. "Are we still training today, or are you too busy being mysterious?"
Akira hesitated, then nodded. "Yeah. Let’s train."
As they headed toward the weight room, Ai’s voice whispered in his mind. "She’s suspicious now. Be careful with her."
"I know," he thought back. "But what was I supposed to do? Let that thing roam free?"
"No. You did the right thing. Just... be prepared for consequences."
Mia glanced back at him as they walked. "You’re different lately, you know that?"
"Different how?"
"I don’t know. Less pathetic, I guess." She smirked slightly. "I mean... I know Still creepy, but... less pathetic. It’s just day two of you hanging out with me... imagine how it’ll be after a week or a month?"
"Thanks. I think."
"Don’t mention it, Creep King."
They reached the weight room, but Akira’s mind was elsewhere. He was thinking about portals, quests, and demons invading his world.
Everything was happening more quickly than he had thought. Yet, under all this chaos, there was a part of him that felt a thrill of excitement.
"Alright, let’s start with stretches," Mia said, dropping her bag on a nearby bench. "You can’t lift properly if you’re tight."
Akira nodded, following her lead as she moved into a hamstring stretch. He tried to focus on the movement, but it was hard to ignore how close she was or the way her body moved.
"Keep your back straight," she instructed as she looked at him. "You’re slouching."
"Right, sorry."
She smirked. "Don’t apologise. Just do it right."
They moved through several stretches, targeting their arms, legs, and shoulders. Each time Mia corrected his form, her hands would linger just a bit longer than necessary.
"Better," she said after a particularly deep stretch. "You’re actually pretty flexible for someone who looks like they’ve never worked out a day in their life."
"Gee, thanks."
"What? I’m being nice." She grinned. "Sort of."
After stretches, they moved to the weight bench. Mia loaded the bar with what looked like a reasonable amount of weight, then stepped back and crossed her arms.
"Let’s see what you’ve got," she said. "Ten reps. Focus on form, not speed."
Akira lay back on the bench, gripping the bar. He lifted it off the rack and his arms shook slightly as he lowered it to his chest.
"Slower," Mia commanded, leaning over him. Her face was inches from his, her ponytail swinging forward. "Control the weight. Don’t let it control you."
His muscles were burning as he pushed the bar back up. "Easy for you to say."
"Nothing about this is easy. That’s the point." She watched him complete another rep, then another. "But you’re doing better than I expected."
"Is that another compliment?"
"Don’t get used to it."
By the fifth rep, his arms were shaking. Mia placed her hands under the bar, ready to assist if needed.
"Come on, five more," she urged. "You can do this."
"I’m... trying..."
"Try harder." Her voice was firm but not unkind. "Push through it."
He managed three more before his arms gave out. Mia helped him rack the bar, then stepped back, wiping sweat from her forehead with the back of her hand.
"Not bad," she said. "For a creep."
"You know, you could just call me by my name."
"Where’s the fun in that?" She grabbed her water bottle and took a long drink, and Akira couldn’t help but notice the way her throat moved as she swallowed.
She caught him staring and raised an eyebrow. "Something on your mind?"
"No, I was just..."
Her phone rang, interrupting him. She pulled it from her bag and frowned at the screen. "I need to take this," she said. "Keep going. I’ll be right back."
"Sure."
Mia walked toward the exit, already answering the call. "Yeah, Mom, I know, but..."
The door closed behind her, leaving Akira alone in the weight room.
He sat up, catching his breath. His arms felt like jelly, but there was a satisfying feel to the ache. Like it was proof that he was actually doing something.
After a moment, he stood and moved to the water fountain, taking a long drink. When he turned back, he noticed someone else had entered the gym.
A girl, around his age, was standing near one of the cable machines, staring at it with a confused expression. She was wearing a light grey sports bra and matching leggings that hugged her curves in a way that instantly take his breath away.
She was beautiful, with long black hair tied in a loose braid... smooth skin, and a body that had clearly matured in all the right ways. But it was her face that caught his attention.
He knew that face.
"Yuki?" he muttered under his breath.
Yuki Hayashi was his crush from middle school. She had moved away at the start of high school after her mother died. He hadn’t seen her in years and haven’t even thought about her that much lately with everything else going on.
But now she was here, struggling with the cable machine like it was some kind of alien technology.
She pulled one of the handles, frowning when it didn’t move the way she expected. Then she tried adjusting the weight pin, but it was stuck.
Akira looekd toward the exit. Mia was still outside. Her phone was pressed to her ear and it seemed the conversation she was having was frustrating her.
He looked back at Yuki, who was now kicking the machine in her own frustration.
Suddenly, his vision flashed with crimson text:
[CHOICE AVAILABLE]
[OPTION A: Approach her and offer assistance. Reward: +5 PP, Potential relationship development]
[OPTION B: Go find Mia. Reward: +2 CHARM]
[OPTION C: Ignore and continue training. Reward: NIL]
Akira considered his options. Mia was tough, confident, and probably just dealing with her mom. SHe doesn’t need help with that. But Yuki...
"I choose Option A," he thought.
[CHOICE CONFIRMED: OPTION A]
He stood up and walked over to her, his heart pounding harder than it had during the workout.
"Hi," he said.
Yuki turned in surprise.
Seeing her fully, he realised she was even more stunning than he remembered. Her eyes were a warm brown, her lips slightly parted in confusion, and her curves... they were actually rounder than he thought. Just staring at them was causing a bit of growth between his legs, so he had to look away.
"Oh, hi," she said politely but without much warmth.
"Need some help with that?" Akira gestured to the machine.
"Um, yeah, actually. I can’t figure out how to adjust the weight." She stepped aside to give him room.
"Sure, no problem." He knelt down and easily adjusted the pin to a lower weight. "There you go. Just pull this pin out and move it to whatever weight you want."
"Oh. It’s that simple." She laughed awkwardly. "Thanks."
"No problem. I’m Akira, by the way. Akira Kanzaki."
She looked at him for a moment. "Kanzaki... do I know you?"
His heart jumped. "Yeah, actually. We went to middle school together. Same class in eighth grade?"
Yuki tilted her head, studying his face. "Really? I’m sorry, I don’t remember..."
"It’s okay," he said quickly, trying to hide his disappointment. "It’s been a while. You moved away at the start of high school, right?"
"Yeah, my mom..." She trailed off, her expression darkening slightly. "Family stuff."
"I’m sorry about your mom."
"Thanks." She looked away, clearly uncomfortable with the topic. "So... Kanzaki. Are you sure we knew each other? I mean, no offence, but I don’t really remember anyone by that name."
"Maybe I’m mistaken," he said, even though he was very sure it was her. How can she not remember him? They’d been in the same class for two years.
"Maybe." She turned back to the machine, clearly ready to end the conversation. "Thanks for the help, though. I appreciate it."
"Do you want me to show you how to use it properly? It can be tricky if you’ve never..."
"I think I can figure it out," she said, a bit dismissively. "But thanks."
"Right. Sure."
Akira stepped back, feeling awkward. But before he could walk away, Yuki pulled on the cable handle with too much force. The sudden resistance threw her off balance, and she stumbled backwards.
"Whoa!" she yelped.
Akira reacted instinctively, reaching out to catch her. His hand grabbed for her arm but missed, instead catching the strap of her sports bra.
Then a ripping sound.
Time seemed to slow down. The fabric tore and the strap came completely free in his hand, exposing her left boob.
Akira’s eyes widened in shock.