Chapter 21:

Fragile. I

BlackBrain

“And... send...” I finally exhaled in relief, taking the chance to stretch my back. “Good. Now I just have to wait for the quote confirmation and for them to send it back signed... Another successful case for Team Isayama Tore…”

It had been a couple of weeks since the chase after Kenzo Miura.

Luckily for me, that intimate moment under the rain, just centimeters from Katy’s lips, hadn’t strained our friendship at all. In fact, it had strengthened it.

I assumed it was because we’d shown each other that we had each other’s backs.

“Coffee?” Hiro tapped on my side of the desk.

“Yay!” I answered cheerfully.

“Princess, care to join us?” he called out to Katy, who was still typing away in front of us.

“Five minutes. You guys go ahead...” She remained focused on her work.

“Okay!”

“Isayama.” She called out before Hiro and I walked away.

“Yeah?”

“Can you order me a mocha coffee?”

“S-sure…”

“Thanks.” She gifted me a few seconds of her precious smile before turning her attention back to her hologram.

I could feel Hiro’s thrilled gaze on my back after Katy’s request, as if he were trying to telepathically communicate with me.

I decided to ignore it.

“Two coffees, buddy? Didn’t you get any sleep?”

After visiting the coffee machine, the poet and I joined Felix and Ryunosuke, all of us hot cups in hand.

“Well, it’s just…”

“You don’t get it, Felix. Our little puppy is holding Katy’s coffee for her…” Hiro commented.

“Well, sometimes I get Irina’s coffee too. I guess it’s just what coworkers do…”

Thank goodness, Felix…

“Though, I get what you mean, Hiro… You’ve got a sharp eye...” Felix’s expression shifted entirely, taking on the mischievous look of a first-class gossip.

Damn you, Felix! Please, you are my only hope...

I tried to make eye contact with Ryunosuke, silently pleading for him to rescue me from my colleagues.

“Well, I’m heading back to my desk,” he muttered without even glancing at me.

Ryunosuke!

“Speaking of which, Felix, where are Irina and Shinpei?” Hiro asked, setting his cup down on the side as Ryunosuke walked away.

“They went downstairs to Division 1 to discuss something with Reutermann.” His tone sounded concerned.

Both men fell silent for a few seconds, their worry evident.

I wasn’t clueless—I knew perfectly well the cause of that silence.

Without saying a word, I looked at the coffee stains that had been accumulating in the common areas for the past week.

It subtly surprised me to realize they’d seen them too.

“You’ve noticed it too, haven’t you, Isayama?”

“It’s been a couple of weeks since things started feeling off,” I replied.

“It’s not exactly uplifting to see the boss like that…”

“Don’t worry about it, Hiro, Isayama… I’m sure it’s just an issue with his implants. They were mandatory for police academy back in the day. Maybe they’re starting to fail with age…” Felix reassured us, putting his arms around our shoulders. “Anyway, Hiro, I think it’s time we got back to work…”

“Hey, guys.” They were about to leave just as Katy arrived.

“Huh?” I watched as my superiors retreated.

“Well?” She planted herself in front of me, resting a hand on her hip.

“Well what?”

“Left or right…?” She pointed at the two cups I was holding.

“Left…” I’d never drink from my implant hand...

Without saying anything, she took her cup, cradling the small warmth it still held in her hands.

“Everything okay?”

“Yeah, why?”

“You seem distant…” She adorably sniffed at her cup.

“Really?” I tried to brush it off, leaning against the wall.

“Never mind. How’s your week going?” She leaned against the wall beside me.