Now that she thought it through, did Ru not mention something like this before in one of his unusual stories? Ru often rushed off and went somewhere. Whenever he came back, he would bring back stories from different lands.
Among them, Ru spoke about a man with an unusual ability. No matter how clumsy he aimed, it would still hit the target. Sumire did not see from the start how Hino aimed, but she could see now how bad he held his gun. He clearly has never used one before.
Does Hino have an ability too?
Yuhi pulled her to her feet. He took her to the minibus shelter nearby and whispered a few things in her ear. "Stay here."
"Yuhi?"
Yuhi turned to Hino and sighed. "If you're going to do this, can't you take it elsewhere?"
Hino kept his gaze on the man. "You should thank me; this person was after you. Your, lucky; he didn't charge into the bar."
"Well thanks I guess. If he charged in, somebody would have had his head anyway." Yuhi looked back at her. "Sumire, close your eyes and don't open it until I tell you."
I am not weak. I can fight too.
A voice whispered in her head. But she understood now was not the time for this. She reluctantly closed her eyes. The moment she saw nothing but darkness, though, Sumire regretted it. She hated closing her eyes when she was still conscious. It would remind her of her dream, and she would end up panicking.
The same applied to this situation too. It did not help that she was standing up. The entire time she felt something grab onto her leg and dragging her down.
This was why she disliked sleeping unless she knew she would pass out immediately. Closing her eyes and trying to sleep did not work with her. Her subconscious and consciousness would play games with her, and by the time she realized what was happening, the situation would be irreversible. Seconds turned into minutes quickly.
She could hear everything from more gunfire, to a strange gust of heavy wind. The skies rumbled every time the strange wind appeared—the movements of that cloaked man. Perhaps Yuhi should have told her to block her ears out too.
After hearing those sounds for a long time, eventually, she felt somebody pick her up. That person placed a gentle kiss on her temple. "Open your eyes."
Sumire hesitated but did so. She opened her eyes and discovered that the landscape changed. On the ground were traces of the fight that just took place. Traces of gunpowder and Sumire glanced over at the trees.
A scythe? A large dent like slices on the center of several trees. She tilted her head, puzzled when she saw that sight. What on earth is going on here?
"You okay?" Yuhi asked.
"I am--" Sumire sentence felt short when she felt the throbbing pain again. She thought it went away already, but it suddenly started up. This time around, it was louder, her rapid heartbeat and her unsteady breathing—the scorching pain in her right eye.
Yuhi parted her bangs and brushed their forehead together. "--hanyou fever." He mumbled. Despite the mumbling, she managed to catch the last two words that left his lips.
She looked at him, puzzled at the unfamiliar term. Hanyou fever?
"Hey, Hino, come back with us."
At that comment, the purple-haired man frowned, he walked over to them and grabbed her hand. "Ouch..." Hino replied as he pulled away. "Hey Yuhi, Sano's family hospital is nearby here. Why don't we go there?"
"I don't trust the Nagawa family one bit."
"But it is one of the only hospitals that deal with this kind of thing. Relax, I will come with you."
Sumire did not understand what either of them was talking about. She suspected for a long time that Yuhi knew what was wrong with her. But it seems like Hino knew about it too. Exactly what is wrong with her? Sumire wanted to speak, but she felt herself gradually lose consciousness.
..................
Hospital - Several hours later -
When she next woke up, she found a wire on her arm attached to an IV drip—the familiar white walls and ceilings from a typical hospital room.
"How are you feeling?"
The first voice she heard when she woke up was not the one she wanted to hear. But she recognized it. "Sano?"
Dressed in a doctor's gown was Nagawa Sano. He held a clipboard in his hands and pen. "It's me."
"Yuhi?"
"I sent your boyfriend to wait outside, and he was far too loud. How are you feeling?"
How is she feeling... It took a moment for those words to even register in her head. She felt terrible; she couldn't feel the strength in her body; her arms and legs did not feel like hers. She felt paralyzed, and her throat felt dry.
"I will guess you feel bad from that silence."
"What happened?"
"You encountered the man Hino was chasing down, and that person's ability affected you," Sano explained. "Normally, something like that would not affect a normal person, but..."
Sano did not say anything, but Sumire knew what he was getting at. A normal person would be somebody without evolved genetics. But her? It seems like she has something. Ru knew that, and that was why he did his best to protect her from harm.
"Don't stress over it; it will harm the child in your belly."
For a moment, Sumire froze. She thought she heard things.
"What...child?"
Sano looked at her, puzzled. "You didn't know? Your pregnant Sumire."
Is she pregnant? Sumire glanced at her stomach, but she saw no signs.
"It's Yuhis?" That was the only thing that could come to mind. If it were that person, her stomach would be larger.
At that comment, Sanos gaze dimmed, but he shook his head. "Unless you slept with Terashima five months ago, then it can't be his."
Five months ago? An image of that rainy day where Ru appeared at her house after their fight appeared in her head. The words he said and his gentle touches.
Rus child? Sumire could not believe it. But why would Sano lie to her? He would not do that now.
"The reason why that man's ability affected you is because of your child; it reacted to defend you."
"Is--"
Sano cut her off. "The child is okay. But it seems to also be an ability user."
Right now, so many things were happening. So many things revealed one by one. Not only is she pregnant with Rus child, but this one also has an ability?