Chapter 14: — "Training: Aiming with Blasters"

The message came out of nowhere.

Kaito: “Come over after school. Don’t ask, just show up.”

I must’ve read it ten times before my brain caught up. Come over? To his place? My crush, the guy I’ve literally risked my life fighting robots beside a few days ago, just casually invited me over like it was nothing.

My stomach flipped. My hands were shaking. I was already imagining a thousand impossible scenarios: maybe he finally wanted to hang out one-on-one, maybe he wanted to... no. I had to stop before I made myself faint.

Still, I couldn’t hide the grin spreading across my face.

“Why are you smiling like that?” Rin’s voice cut into my daydream. She had her arms crossed, eyes narrowing in suspicion.

I flinched, hugging my phone to my chest. “N-nothing!”

“Uh-huh.” She arched an eyebrow, looking far too amused. “Did Kaito text you?”

My face burned. “W-what makes you think that?”

“Your ears turn red when you get messages from him.” Rin smirked knowingly, then let out a small laugh. “Relax. I don’t care what you two do.”

I nearly choked. “It’s not like that! He just... he wants me to come over, okay? Nothing else!”

Rin gave me that look. The one that said she didn’t believe me but wasn’t going to press it. Instead, she shrugged. “Well, have fun then.”

She walked off like it was no big deal, but my heart was still racing like I’d just run a marathon.

I told myself over and over that this was just Kaito being… Kaito. Cool, collected, probably planning something boring or technical. No way was this about me. No way it was… romantic.

And yet, the idea clung to me all the way to his house.

When the door finally opened and I saw him standing there, calm as always, I had to swallow the lump in my throat. My nerves were buzzing, my imagination screaming a thousand possibilities.

“Come in,” Kaito said simply, stepping aside.

No warmth, no hidden smile, nothing. Just Kaito being… well, Kaito.

I nodded quickly, slipping past him. My heart was still hammering in my chest, but already, I had this gnawing feeling I’d gotten my hopes up way too high.

“Sit,” he said, gesturing to the edge of his bed. I obeyed, feeling that familiar thrill of excitement mixed with nerves, only for it to crash almost immediately.

“You’re a liability,” he said bluntly, and my chest sank. “If you can’t shoot properly, you slow us down. Rin can’t always carry the extra weight.”

I blinked. Hurt. Embarrassment. My excitement evaporated in a second. He was right. I knew it. I had felt it every time I froze in a fight or missed a shot. My heart thumped in my chest—not with fear, but shame.

I opened my mouth to protest, to say something… but nothing came out. Kaito didn’t wait for a response.

Instead, he pulled a small remote from his pocket. I watched in awe as the floor of his room quietly slid open. Just like that, casually, with a remote.

“You’re coming with me,” he said, gesturing for me to crawl down into the opening.

I followed, scrambling down the narrow entrance, my stomach twisting in disbelief. Below, the basement wasn’t huge, but it wasn’t tiny either. It was… practical. Perfectly organized chaos.

Blasters lined one wall, different models gleaming under the fluorescent lights. Computers hummed on various desks, wires trailing like metallic vines across the floor. And then, my jaw dropped. Toward the center of the basement was a full blaster shooting setup, holographic targets flickering in midair.

“Wow…” I muttered, my voice almost catching in my throat. “You have… all this?”

Kaito shrugged. “It’s a workspace. And a training area. You’re about to start using it.”

He gestured for me to follow him as he gave a small tour, pointing out different blasters on the wall, each with notes about recoil, fire modes, and accuracy ranges. Computers with tracking software, holographic projection units, wires crisscrossing the ceiling like an intricate web, everything was meticulously arranged.

Finally, he stopped at the shooting setup. “This is your focus,” he said flatly. “You’ll learn accuracy here. You’ll need it if you want to keep up in real fights. Today’s your turn.”

I swallowed hard, staring at the holographic targets flickering in front of me. The realization hit me: this wasn’t some casual game, this wasn’t some fun alone time. This was training. Real training. My pulse quickened, equal parts nervous and excited, as I realized just how serious Kaito was, and how much he expected from me.

I took a deep breath. This was my chance.

Kaito eventually handed me the blaster, the exact same one I’d used the first time we fought those AI drones and robots. My stomach twisted. Memories of that day, the chaos, the adrenaline, the fear, flooded back. And now… I had to prove I could actually handle it.

“There are different rounds in this setup,” Kaito said flatly, voice calm but firm. “Round 1 — Easy. Round 2 — Medium. Round 3 — Hard. Round 4 — Intense.”

I froze. “Round… intense?” My voice cracked a little, betraying my panic.

He raised an eyebrow. “Don’t start panicking. We’re not doing rounds yet.” He pressed a button on the console, and simple holograms popped up, swinging slowly back and forth. “This is just warm-up. Real training comes later.”

I let out a shaky breath and nodded. “Okay… warm-up.”

Kaito watched silently as I gripped the blaster, my hands trembling. The holograms moved slowly at first, easy enough to aim. I fired… and missed. I fired again… and this time, one vanished.

“Oh no! I-I broke it!” I squeaked, panicking. “I didn’t mean to! Sorry, sorry, sorry Kaito!”

Kaito tilted his head, amused. “You hit it, Yuzuki. That’s exactly how it’s supposed to work.”

I blinked, confused. “It… it disappears?”

He smirked. “Yes. It’s a hologram, not a real target. You didn’t break anything.”

I let out a quiet, embarrassed, “Oh…” My fingers fumbled with the blaster.

Kaito laughed, lightly this time, and muttered with a teasing smirk, “You know… you’re fucking adorable when you panic like that.”

Heat spread across my face. My brain short-circuited. Complimented by Kaito. Him. The cold, unamused Kaito. I couldn’t even form a coherent thought, just stared at him like a total idiot.

He rolled his eyes, probably noticing my blush, but said nothing further. “Focus. Shoot the targets. That’s all you need to do right now.”

I nodded, taking a deep breath. Okay. I can do this. I raised the blaster, aimed carefully, and fired again. A hologram disappeared. I grinned slightly, gaining a tiny spark of confidence.

“Not bad,” Kaito said, not looking up from his console. “You hit half of them. Better than I expected.”

“Half…?” I muttered. “Is that supposed to make me feel better?”

He chuckled softly. “It’s a start. Don’t get discouraged.”

I groaned, trying to steady my hands. My shots started to get a little better. Each target I hit made me feel… alive, like I was actually contributing. My confidence built slowly, step by step, shot by shot.

After a few minutes, I was panting, hands trembling from both nervousness and adrenaline. I had hit most of the targets, though I’d missed a few here and there.

Kaito finally looked at me, nodding once. “Not bad, Yuzuki. Really. Now… we start for real. And trust me, the targets aren’t going to be this forgiving.”

I swallowed hard, heart racing, and gripped the blaster tighter. “O-okay… I can do this.”

Kaito tapped a few keys on the console, and the holograms flickered back to life. This time, they moved faster, but not too fast, definitely more challenging than warm-up.

“Round One,” he said simply.

I smirked, holding the blaster at my side with what I thought was an intimidating stance. One hand on my hip, chin tilted up. “Piece of cake,” I muttered under my breath, trying to sound casual, confident, maybe even a little cocky. If I impressed him here, maybe he’d finally, finally, see me as more than a tagalong.

He didn’t even look up.

I cleared my throat and glanced his way, still smirking. “You watching closely? I’m about to blow these things apart.”

“Mm.” That was all he gave me.

I raised the blaster dramatically, even twirling it once like I’d seen in some dumb action vid. The holograms swung gently, practically begging to be shot at… but instead of firing, I kept sneaking glances at Kaito, waiting for him to react to how “badass” I looked.

His voice finally cut in, low and cold, no emotion at all.
“Time’s almost up, you know.”

My stomach dropped. “T-time?”

He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Yes. Timer. You think enemies wait around while you pose?”

My whole “badass” attitude shattered. “W-why didn’t you tell me there was a timer?!”

“Because I assumed you’d be smart enough to notice the giant countdown in front of you.” He gestured lazily at the glowing numbers hovering over the holograms.

“Oh.” Heat burned across my face. I wanted to sink through the floor.

Kaito reset the round with another press of the console, shaking his head. “Again. And this time, maybe focus on shooting instead of playing soldier.”

“…Fine,” I muttered, gripping the blaster tighter.

I spread my feet apart like I’d seen in holovids, tried to lean forward like a pro… but the stance was awkward, unbalanced. My knees wobbled.

Kaito noticed instantly. With another sigh, he walked over and adjusted me. His hand pressed lightly on my shoulder, tilting me forward. Then he nudged my leg into position with his boot. He even tapped the inside of my elbow so I’d loosen my grip.

Inside, I was screaming. Screaming. Every single nerve lit on fire.
He’s touching me oh my god oh my god oh my god I’m actually going to die right here in his basement—

“Better,” he muttered, stepping back. Totally oblivious.

I gulped, cheeks flaming, and forced myself to focus on the targets instead of replaying his hands adjusting me.

The timer started again. I steadied my breath, lifted the blaster, and fired. One hologram down. Then another. I missed the third and cursed under my breath.

“Don’t panic,” Kaito’s calm voice said behind me. “Panicking makes you sloppy.”

“I’m not panicking,” I shot back automatically, though my hands were shaking.

“You’re panicking,” he said flatly.

I gritted my teeth and tried again. More hits. More misses. The timer ticked down, flashing red as the last hologram swung back and forth. My hands were sweaty, my heart pounding.

Don’t screw this up, Yuzuki. Don’t screw this up.

Three… two…

I squeezed the trigger—
And the final hologram vanished.

“YES!” I practically jumped in the air, pumping my fist. “I did it! I’m the best!”

Kaito chuckled quietly behind me, shaking his head. “Don’t get cocky. That was only Round One.”

But the corners of his mouth twitched, almost like a smile.

“You get a short break before Round Two,” he said.

I dropped onto one of the chairs, legs weak, still riding the high of actually clearing the round. Pulling out my phone, I scrolled aimlessly, trying to hide my still-blazing blush.

When I glanced up, I caught him staring. Not glaring, staring. A little too long.

The second our eyes almost met, he turned sharply back to his console, pretending to focus on the blinking lights of his PC.

My heart skipped a beat. Just maybe… maybe he did notice me after all.

—

Round Two – Medium.
The holograms darted faster this time, weaving side to side like they were mocking me. My first shots went way off, sizzling into thin air. “Shit,” I muttered under my breath, adjusting my grip. I missed again, but then finally clipped one. The glow fizzled out and I let myself grin, only for the next two to zip past me untouched. By the end, I was panting, arms aching, but the timer flashed green. Barely cleared it.

Round Three – Hard.
Twice as many targets. They swarmed me from every angle. My blaster shook as I spun the wrong way, missing three in a row. Panic crawled in my chest, but I forced myself to breathe. One shot, miss. Next shot, hit. Then another. I actually got a rhythm going. The final target was way too fast though; I couldn’t keep up. The timer buzzed red. Failure.

I restarted. This time, I clenched my jaw and dug in. Miss. Hit. Hit. Miss. Then... bam. Another one down. Two left, the timer screaming at me. I nailed them both, and then one second remained. The last hologram swung wildly. I pulled the trigger.
Success.

Round Four – Intense.
The whole room glowed red. The holograms appeared and disappeared at random, like they were teleporting. My stomach twisted. I spun too late, shots flying wide. The blaster almost slipped out of my sweaty hands. My breathing was rough, my shoulders stiff. I missed over and over again. But then… I locked in.

Hit. Hit. Miss. Hit. Hit.

The timer ticked down. My arms screamed, my lungs burned, but I pushed through. Target after target blinked out of existence. Finally, one last hologram swung at me, dodging left and right like it knew I was terrible under pressure.

I forced myself to focus. One pull.
The hologram shattered.

The system powered down, the lights faded, and I dropped my arms, panting like I’d just run a marathon. My whole body trembled, but, holy hell, I’d actually done it.

I slumped into the nearest chair, my arms trembling from holding the blaster so long. My shirt clung to me with sweat, and I felt like I’d just run a marathon in the middle of a desert.

Kaito handed me a cold water bottle without saying much. For him, that was practically a parade in my honor. 

“Not bad for your first real run,” he said, almost offhand, but I caught the faintest flicker of approval in his eyes.

I nearly choked on my water. A compliment. From Kaito. To me. I tried to play it cool, but my cheeks were already burning. 
“…I honestly thought I was going to mess everything up,” I admitted before I could stop myself. My voice came out softer than I meant.

Kaito looked at me for a second longer than usual. “You didn’t. That means you’re not useless.”

That was it. No sugarcoating, no warmth, just blunt honesty. But coming from him, it felt like the most meaningful thing I’d heard all day.

I tightened my grip on the bottle and nodded quickly, forcing my smile down before it betrayed me. Inside, though, I was glowing.

Maybe I wasn’t good yet. Maybe I had a long way to go. But for the first time, I felt like I had actually proved myself.