Yuma searched the house for Akira.
He checked the living room first, then the kitchen, then every bathroom he passed. For a house this massive, there were far too many places for one person to disappear.
But Akira was nowhere.
Only one place remained unchecked.
His room.
The moment Yuma turned toward that hallway, he stopped.
Akira's voice echoed in his head like a warning bell.
'Don't come anywhere near my room.'
The memory sounded almost real.
Too real.
Yuma stared down the hall for a moment, hesitation pulling at his feet. He knew Akira had said it seriously. There had been no room for jokes or misunderstanding when he made that rule.
But Serapheria's warning mattered more.
Someone was watching them.
If that was true, then respecting Akira's privacy could wait.
Yuma exhaled and walked down the hall.
The closer he got to Akira's door, the colder the air became. Before he even touched the handle, an icy breeze slipped from beneath the door and bit through his socks.
Yuma looked down at his feet with a slight grimace.
Even through fabric, the cold was sharp enough to sting.
He shook off the feeling and knocked lightly.
"Akira? You in there?" he whispered.
No response.
Yuma waited.
Only silence answered him.
He knocked again, a little harder this time.
Still nothing.
He could have walked away. He could have waited until Akira came out on his own. But the weight of Serapheria's warning pressed against his chest, refusing to let him leave.
So Yuma turned the handle.
The moment the door cracked open, cold rushed out.
It wrapped around him instantly, crawling over his skin and raising goosebumps along his arms. Yuma sucked in a sharp breath but forced himself through it, pushing the door open wider.
Akira stood in the center of the room with his back facing the door.
At least, Yuma thought it was Akira.
His body looked different.
Broader.
Taller.
His skin was far paler than usual, almost drained of color, and the air around him carried a pressure that made the room feel smaller.
Yuma knew he was looking at Akira.
But it did not feel like him.
"Akira?" Yuma called carefully.
The figure turned his head slightly.
One piercing eye looked over his shoulder.
Yuma's body went stiff.
There was nothing human in that stare.
For one second, he wondered if Akira was angry because he had broken the rule. Then he looked closer, and that thought disappeared.
Akira's eyes were no longer blue.
They were white.
Completely white.
His pupils stood out sharply against the pale irises, making his gaze feel wrong in a way Yuma could not explain.
The cold had given him goosebumps.
That stare gave him fear.
"Uh…" Yuma swallowed. "Akira?"
"I'm not Akira."
The voice was not his.
It was deeper. Older. Heavy with the weight of something that had lived far longer than any human should.
Yuma froze.
The silence dragged between them.
He wanted to step back, but his legs refused to move. He wanted to call for someone, but his voice caught in his throat.
Finally, he forced out a shaky breath.
"Then… who are you?"
The figure turned fully.
Akira's face stared back at him, but the expression on it belonged to someone else. Stoic. Ancient. Unreadable.
Then the wind moved.
Without warning, a powerful gust slammed the door shut behind Yuma.
The sound cracked through the room.
Yuma flinched and spun around.
When he turned back, the figure was directly in front of him.
Yuma's breath stopped.
He had not even heard him move.
The two stood almost eye to eye, though Akira's body was still slightly taller. The closeness made the cold feel even sharper, like the air itself had frozen around them.
For a long moment, neither of them spoke.
Then the voice broke the silence.
"You've met me."
Yuma stared at him, fear mixing with confusion.
"I did?"
The figure nodded once and stepped back.
"I am Cheino."
The fear drained from Yuma all at once.
Confusion took its place.
"Cheino?"
Yuma stared at Akira's face, trying to understand what he was seeing. Cheino had manifested before, but not like this. Not through Akira's body. Not in the real world.
Yuma slowly moved around him, studying him from the side.
As he circled, Akira's body began to change.
The broadness faded. His height lowered. The unnatural pressure in the room weakened. Bit by bit, the figure returned to the Akira Yuma knew.
Then Akira blinked.
His blue eyes returned.
He looked at Yuma with a faintly raised eyebrow.
"Why are you in my room?" Akira asked flatly.
Yuma paused.
He had expected more anger than that.
A lecture, at least.
But Akira only sounded tired and mildly annoyed, as if Yuma had interrupted him during something inconvenient rather than witnessed his Ikon wearing his body.
Yuma pointed at him slightly.
"I had information," he said. "But it looks like you have something to explain first."
Akira sighed and walked toward his closet.
"Explain what?"
"How did Cheino take over your body?"
Akira opened the closet and reached for his usual white shirt.
"It's something you can't do yet."
Yuma stared at him.
That was it?
That was the whole explanation?
Akira pulled the shirt from the closet like the matter was already over.
"So what's this information?"
Yuma bit back the smart comment sitting on his tongue.
He wanted to press him. He wanted to ask how Akira could act so casual after something like that. But the warning mattered more than his irritation.
Yuma let out a slow breath, forcing the snark down.
"Serapheria told me someone has been watching us."
Akira did not look surprised.
That bothered Yuma more than it should have.
Akira buttoned his shirt, walked past him, and headed toward the door.
"Cheino told me too," he said.
Yuma's eyes narrowed.
"You already knew?"
"That's why you saw what you saw."
Akira opened the door and stepped into the hall.
Then he glanced back over his shoulder.
"And you probably won't be the first person to tell me."
Yuma stood there, processing that.
So this was serious enough that Cheino had taken over.
Serapheria had noticed it too.
And Akira was still acting like it was just another problem to add to the pile.
Before Yuma could ask anything else, Akira spoke again.
"Go eat. It's early, and we have school soon."
Then he turned the corner and disappeared down the hall.
Yuma remained in Akira's room for a moment, staring at the empty doorway.
His stomach growled.
The sound pulled him out of his thoughts.
Akira was right about one thing.
It was early.
And he needed to eat.
Yuma left the room and tried to return to something that felt like a normal morning.
***
Cold air brushed against Yuma's cheeks as he walked to school. Winter was finally making its appearance for the end of the year.
Akira had offered him a ride, but Yuma turned it down.
The distance was longer from Akira's house, but walking was one of the few routines Yuma still had left. After everything that had happened, giving that up felt strangely wrong.
So he walked.
The streets were quiet, buried beneath a thin layer of snow. His shoes crunched softly against the ground with each step, and his breath fogged faintly in front of him.
His mind stayed stuck on what he had seen.
Cheino using Akira's body.
Those white eyes.
That voice.
Someone watching from the dark.
Yuma shoved his hands deeper into his pockets.
The more he thought about it, the less he liked Akira's reaction. He had not been shocked. He had not even seemed worried.
That meant Akira either knew more than he was saying, or he had already accepted something
Yuma had not caught up to yet.
Neither possibility made him feel better.
"Yuma!"
A familiar voice called from behind him.
Yuma turned slightly.
Kae was running toward him, one hand raised as she tried to catch up.
The moment she got close, her foot hit a patch of ice hidden beneath the snow.
Her eyes widened.
"Ah!"
She slipped forward and crashed straight into Yuma.
Yuma barely had time to react before both of them went down.
His body hit the snow-covered ground with a dull thud, and Kae landed on top of his back.
For a moment, neither of them moved.
Yuma groaned against the cold ground, his cheek pressed into the snow.
Kae stayed frozen on top of him.
Her hands were tense against his coat, but she did not immediately get up. For a few seconds, she was too embarrassed to move.
Or maybe a part of her did not want to.
Yuma shifted slightly beneath her.
"Wanna get off me?" he grumbled.
Kae jolted.
"S-Sorry! Sorry!"
She scrambled off him so quickly that her words tangled together. Something else slipped out of her mouth, too rushed and embarrassed to understand.
Once she was standing, she folded her hands in front of her and bowed her head.
"Sorry," she whispered meekly.
Yuma pushed himself up and brushed snow from his coat and pants.
"It's fine."
He gave her a small nod, accepting the apology.
An awkward silence settled between them.
Kae stood with her eyes lowered, her face still red from embarrassment. Yuma watched her for a second, then turned and continued walking.
Kae followed beside him.
Neither of them spoke.
For a while, the only sound between them was the crunch of snow beneath their shoes.
Yuma was too tired to start a conversation. His thoughts were heavy, and every step toward school felt like he was dragging himself back into a life that no longer fit him.
Kae kept glancing at him.
Once.
Twice.
Then again.
Each time, she seemed like she wanted to say something.
Each time, she stopped herself.
Yuma noticed none of it.
His mind was elsewhere.
By the time they reached the school gates, the silence between them had grown too large to ignore.
Yuma stepped forward to enter.
"Yuma!"
Kae called his name again.
He looked over his shoulder.
She stood a few steps behind him, clutching the strap of her bag with both hands.
Yuma realized she was waiting for him to fully face her.
He turned around with a tired expression.
"What?" he asked with a sigh.
Kae flinched slightly.
It was small.
Barely noticeable.
But her eyes lowered for half a second, and whatever courage she had gathered seemed to collapse.
She looked at him for a moment in silence.
Then she forced a weak smile.
"…Never mind."
Yuma blinked.
Kae turned her face away.
"Just call us if you run into anything."
Her voice was soft.
Defeated.
Before Yuma could respond, she walked past him and entered the school.
Yuma watched her go.
He did not understand why she had changed her mind. He did not understand what she had wanted to say. A part of him knew he probably should have asked.
But he was exhausted.
Not physically.
Not exactly.
It was something deeper than that.
His mind had already been drained before the day even began. Between Serapheria's warning, Cheino's possession, Akira's secrets, and the feeling of being watched, Yuma had nothing left to give.
So he let Kae walk away.
Then he dragged his feet through the school gates.
He did not want to go to class.
After everything that had happened, sitting at a desk and pretending to be normal felt almost insulting.
But skipping would not help him.
His purpose still required him to live this life. His future still depended on school, no matter how absurd that felt now.
So Yuma forced himself forward.
He straightened his posture.
He buried everything else for later.
And as he walked into the school, one thought settled heavily in his mind.
It was going to be a very long day.