Two-dimensional Doomsday Countdown

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"For you."

Yuji turned to his backpack, took out a bottle of mineral water, and handed it to the girl.

Kasumigaoka Utaha opened the bottle and drank a few gulps without worrying about her image. Once the water moistened her dry throat, she felt refreshed. Then, she poured a little into her hands and washed her face.

"Thank you..."

"I'm just glad you're okay." Yes— as long as Kasumigaoka Utaha was safe, everything Yuji had done was worth it.

"I still want to thank you properly. If it weren't for you... But how did you find my location so quickly?"

Kasumigaoka Utaha had finally calmed down and now looked at Yuji with some doubt.

"Toyosaki Academy had your file."

Yuji replied casually.

To confirm her location as fast as possible, he had gone to Fengzhizaki without hesitation, risking his life to search for her records.

Thinking back, if the school building had collapsed while he was inside, what would he have done? Just thinking about it made Yuji shiver slightly.

"…"

Kasumigaoka Utaha parted her lips slightly but didn't know what to say. Just saying "thank you" felt too shallow.

She could easily imagine how dangerous it had been for Yuji to go into a quake-damaged building just to find her records.

"Rumble, rumble..."

The ground began shaking again—just a minor aftershock—but after experiencing the first quake, Utaha had developed psychological trauma. Her face tensed and she looked visibly shaken.

"Let's go. We need to get out of Tokyo as soon as possible. My plan is to head to Narita Airport first to check the situation. If it's unusable, we'll head to Nagoya and fly to the Eastern Union from there..."

His determination to leave Japan had only grown stronger.

"I..."

"You don't want to leave?"

"…"

Utaha bit her lip, hesitant and slightly embarrassed.

She knew it was risky to go back for her photos and computer, but if she left Japan now, she might never get another chance.

"By the way, when I was looking for you earlier, I found some of your family photos, your laptop, manuscripts, and a few other things. I put them all over there."

Yuji pointed to a pile of rubble by the side of the road.

He figured there must be something among them that Kasumigaoka Utaha would want to take.

"Thank you... really, thank you..."

Upon hearing this, Kasumigaoka Utaha was overjoyed. She hadn't expected Yuji to have already found her belongings.

It truly made her feel grateful.

"Alright, go get the things you want to take."

After saying that, Yuji chugged down the rest of his water.

The cool mineral water soothed his throat and helped him feel a bit more refreshed.

Kasumigaoka Utaha hurried over and began looking.

Three minutes later, when she returned with a few items in her arms, Yuji spoke again.

"We'll go to Toyosaki Academy's playground first, then head to Narita Airport to assess the situation."

"Mm..."

At 3:40 PM, the two arrived at Toyosaki Academy's schoolyard. Yuji gave Utaha a brief nod, pulled his jacket over himself, and laid down to sleep.

Kasumigaoka Utaha stood still, stunned.

But then she smiled, realizing how exhausted he must have been.

Yuji, who was no older than her, had poured every ounce of strength into rescuing her.

All she could do was sit quietly and keep watch beside him.

…

…

"Rumble, rumble..."

With the loud rotation of the helicopter's massive blades and the engine's roar, the two of them flew toward Nagoya.

The runway at Narita Airport had serious cracks, so Yuji ultimately decided to give up on Narita and head for Nagoya instead.

An hour and a half later, they arrived.

The sun was setting, but from the air, it was clear that Nagoya hadn't been heavily affected by the earthquake. The airport appeared fully operational.

Yuji breathed a sigh of relief.

They could leave Japan as early as tomorrow.

Since no major earthquake had occurred in Tokyo in the original world in April 2019, Yuji assumed this was a survival trial in the world of Lonely Doomsday.

Besides earthquakes, there were many other disasters to come.

That thought weighed heavily on Yuji's heart.

"Electricity and water supplies are still functional. You can take a shower and rest. I'll go find some food."

"Huh…"

Kasumigaoka Utaha hesitated shyly.

"Can you bring me some clothes? Not just jackets..."

She wasn't in great shape either. Her long black hair was messy, and her pale skin was covered in dust. As for her clothes—there was no need to mention them. Through her torn black tights, Yuji could even see some skin.

"I got it."

Just as Yuji turned to leave, Kasumigaoka Utaha hesitated and said:

"Um... size..."

Even she felt embarrassed to talk about her own measurements.

"I'll just bring a few sizes. You can pick what fits."

"Okay... thanks."

…

"Splash, splash..."

Warm, steamy water from the shower ran down her body, washing away the dust and grime.

Kasumigaoka Utaha was in the bathroom, enjoying the comfort of a hot shower.

After rinsing off, she reached into the bathtub to test the water temperature.

It was just right, so she lifted her long legs and stepped in.

Once her body was fully submerged in the warm water, she completely relaxed, letting out a soft sigh.

"Mmm…"

"In the end, nothing feels better than a hot bath."

She almost felt like crying from happiness.

After facing life, death, and an emotional roller coaster, she realized that even something as ordinary as a warm bath was a kind of happiness.

Five minutes later, still in the tub, Kasumigaoka Utaha couldn't stop thinking about Yuji.

She was deeply grateful that he saved her and had already decided to go with him to the Eastern Union. But thinking about spending the next decades of her life with him… she felt a little uncertain.

"I hope you're not the type who'd—"

"Click…"

She froze as she heard the door to the hotel room open.

Her eyes widened in disbelief that Yuji had returned so quickly.

"Thump…"

She stood up abruptly in the water and wrapped herself in a towel.

Even though a thin towel wouldn't protect her from much—especially from Yuji, if he tried anything—at least it gave her a bit of psychological security.

"Step, step, step…"

The footsteps got closer and closer to the bathroom.

Kasumigaoka Utaha held her breath, standing perfectly still, focusing entirely on Yuji just outside.

She hoped Yuji wasn't that kind of man. They had a long future ahead of them. Things should develop gradually—not all at once.

If Yuji tried to force her, she wouldn't just let it happen.

"I left the clothes outside. We'll eat in thirty minutes... it's just instant noodles."

When she heard that last part, Kasumigaoka Utaha was dumbfounded—then oddly surprised.

"I'm going to shower in the other room. We can talk over dinner..."

Yuji had placed everything she might need just outside the bathroom. What he saw inside would have been tempting—but he still walked away.

"I see."

Kasumigaoka Utaha replied softly, then heard the sound of the door closing.

That's it?

She couldn't believe it ended like that.

He said less than two sentences, dropped off her things, and left. Did he not even think about the beautiful girl in the shower?

Kasumigaoka Utaha felt like she'd just met the most boring man alive.

Yet, it was because of Yuji's restraint that she let out a quiet breath of relief, and her trust in him increased significantly.

Still, she knew that understanding someone truly takes time.

After all, time always reveals a person's true nature.

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