Red Threads

School Roof

Kai opened his eyes slowly. He grimaced as he felt his entire body as if it had just been forcibly broken. His head felt throbbing as a result of hitting the floor quite hard. His gaze spun, as if the earth was upside down and all the objects before his eyes were overturned. He sighs. His chest was stuffy, so he coughed a few times. He blinked his eyes slowly to normalize his gaze, before finally realizing that Mika was still on top of his body.

The girl's eyelids were tightly closed with a body trembling in fear. Slowly, he grabbed the palm of the girl clenched in front of his chest. Like hers, that palm felt extremely cold. It didn't matter, at the very least, he could still grasp the girl's hand at the moment. At least, he could still save the girl. Amidst the dizziness and pain that Kai still felt, there was relief that whack his chest.

Kai slowly squeezed Mika's palm, making the pair of brown eyes wide open. Mika screamed when she realized she was still inside Kai's hand. He tried to get up, but his whole body felt numb. He's numb. Body shivers. Not cold, he was scared.

“Lo bego's? Or is it crazy?” Kai snapped, without waiting for Mika to come to her senses from shock.

Mika did not answer. He remained silent for a few seconds. Then, without a puff, a single water simply decayed from the corner of his eye.

Mika did not know, how she felt at this moment. He was a little sorry, because Kai saved him at the last second. But it cannot be denied, he felt relieved. He did not have to face that horrible death. He did not need to look at his shattered body in the middle of the field.

Kai took a long breath. He stays unmoved. His two arms were still coiled around Mika's trembling body, though not as great as a moment ago. In the summary of her arms, Mika is like a white cotton that is very fragile.

“Why? Why do you admit it?” Kai asked back. Instantly his chest ached. He could not imagine, what would happen if one second too late? Will he really lose Mika?

Unconsciously, a tear dripped from the corner of his eye. Kai tightened his arm. Bringing the girl's head to the chest of her field. He just doesn't want Mika to see him cry, and thinks that he's not a strong man who can be used as a backup.

Those painful minutes finally passed. Mika has calmed down again. However, Kai still remained silent. They were both on the roof of the school. Take shelter in the shadow of the roof, which will soon disappear due to the direction of the sun. Only the rustling of leaves and the breeze broke the silence.

Mika cleared her throat. Sometimes he glanced at Kai. The man's face was stiff with a hardened jaw. Kai's front hair was blown off by the wind, causing the scar on the corner of his left eyebrow to be clearly visible. Now Mika knows about the reason Kai always directs the bangs of the left face. The scar is small. Actually, even though it was not covered with hair, the scar did not detract from Kai's attractiveness.

“Why do I?” mika asked, ending the awkward silence between them.

Kai exhaled a heavy breath. His gaze was still fixed on the end of the towering building opposite. “Because, I don't want you to be a coward.”

Mika lowered her head. There was a turmoil in his heart that he did not understand. He thought, all of Kai's sweet attitude is just a trick. He thought, Kai just wanted to make Raga jealous. However, that thought instantly vanished as he saw how pale the face of a guy was a while ago. It made a strange feeling that he had been ignoring all along, reappear to the surface. In fact, it's getting better.

“I'm tired.” Mika lowered her head deeply.

Kai turned his head, dropping a glance at Mika. He watched the girl from head to toe. Mika looks so fucked up. The girl's half wet hair, looked very messy. In fact, he could see reddish patches on the girl's clothes.

“There is a place.” Kai pointed at one corner of the place. There's a pile of wood and a table over there. “Change your shirt with my uniform.”

“Ha?” Mika could not cover up the shock.

Without giving any more answers, Kai took off his uniform, leaving behind a short-sleeved white T-shirt. Make his body that is sturdy contains more clearly visible. He handed the uniform to Mika. Through the glare of the eyes, he hinted for Mika to immediately obey his words.

As hypnotized, Mika no longer issued a rebuttal. He simply took the uniform out of Kai's hand, then walked behind a pile of wood.

The smell of Kai's body filled Mika's sense of smell when the guy's uniform was already stuck in her body. Mika blushed, as the smell of mint mixed with citrus it stung her smell even more. Just by inhaling that scent alone, his heart was beating incoherently.

However, the feeling disappeared a moment later. His gaze fell on his left arm that was covered with shrapnel wounds yesterday, and his right arm that was filled with Anggita's claws. He was about to put his jacket back on, but it had already been replaced. Mika sighed softly. Then, how will he cover those scratches from Kai?

“Ka, you have no intention to jump again, right?” kai's voice made Mika flinch. He had not yet answered, the man had looked up from the end of the pile of wood.

“What the hell, Brother? Thankfully I changed clothes.”

Kai scratched his clumsy nape, while letting out a small grin. Then, he walked over to Mika. Her usual facial sharpness, turned stiff as her gaze fell on Mika's pair of arms. He pulled the girl's left arm, making Mika grimace at her overpowering whimper.

“Sick.” Mika whimpering. Kai regained his senses, and immediately released his grip.

“Lo confess this again?”

Mika shook her head slowly. However, then a feeling of hesitation ambushed him. The wound was not the one that made it. But he enjoyed it. He actually deliberately deepened the scratches caused by broken glass last night.

Kai squinted his eyes suspiciously. Still guessing the origin of the wound. A few seconds later, he pulled Mika's wrist towards where they had been. He took out a plastic bag from his pocket. Deftly, his hands took out one by one the objects in the plastic. Pouring alcohol on a cotton swab, and

put it on Mika's arm.

Mika grimaces. It was painful when the cold liquid touched his arm.

“Hold a minute,” says Kai.

"Aren't you afraid of me?” Mika's question responded to Kai by raising one eyebrow. “They said, I'm a killer, a psychopath, and I don't deserve to be here.”

“Gue can't believe it. It wasn't you who killed Nagra. It's not the cause of Nagra either

died,” said Kai.

Mika smiles. The warmth instantly crept in his chest. However, it disappeared a few seconds later. The smile on his face vanished when he realized, maybe Kai was just trying to comfort him. Mika just looked at Kai with a glare. The guy just switched on his left arm.

“Who has made you like a mouse tumble gutter today?” ask Kai. Movement

her hand stopped, and her gaze was fixed on Mika.

Mika was looking for an answer to that sudden question. He could not answer, if it was Angita.

“Who, Mika?” Kai was getting impatient.

Mika swallowed her hard-earned saliva. He lowered his head deeply, then answered softly. “Engita.” Then, Mika looked up again. He immediately adds to his words, before Kai begins to misunderstand. “This is not an Angita's fault. She had a reason, why she confessed it to me.”

“Just because he's Nagra's ex, he has the right to admit this to lo?” Kai's face was already red. His voice squeaked, as if he was holding back an upset.

Mika's forehead wrinkled faintly. It wasn't Kai's anger that bothered him, it was the guy's words. How does Kai know that Anggita and Nagra have been dating, but he hasn't said anything about it? Did Kai hear about his fight with Anggita a few hours ago?

The series of questions in Mika's head were blown away, as the sound of the door being pushed down rang out from behind her back. Mika is surprised to find Raga standing there, looking at her and Kai in turn.

Raga. Mika tries to pull her arm from Kai, but Kai doesn't care. Kai was still focused on cleaning his wound. Not at all concerned with the presence of Raga.

“Why you?” asked Raga, making Mika throw a confused look. Look at the worried eyes of Raga. There was no cold glare in that pair of dark eyeballs, even when it came to knowing Kai was still holding his arm.

What happened to Raga? Isn't it since yesterday, that guy was acting so cold, even trying to stay away? That was all that was in Mika's head at the moment. He did not even realize when Raga's fingers landed on his cheeks that were exposed to Anggita's scratches.

Mika held her breath. He did not know, why the touch of Raga's fingers on his face made him angry. There was no warmth, like when we were with Kai. There was no feeling of comfort, as when he was in the summary of Kai's arm a moment ago. Mika was still speechless, as Raga pulled her in an embrace.

Not only Mika who was surprised to see that, but also Kai. The guy even dropped an alcoholic cotton swab on his hand, without taking a look at Raga.

Goddamnit! Kai clenched his free left hand, very strongly. There was anger lodged in him. Her chest heated up, knowing Mika did not dodge the embrace.

“We go home yes,” said Raga, right after releasing the summary of his hand from the body

Micas.

Mika looked at her watch. He didn't even realize the lesson had ended fifteen minutes ago. Can being with Kai make him forget time?

“Mika came home with me,” said Kai, which sounded like a growl.

“Mika my girl. I should've brought him home.”

“Why is your attention suddenly the same as him? Not that yesterday you didn't care. You don't even know, if today he almost ma—”

Mika smothers Kai's mouth with her hands, before the guy finishes the sentence. Raga raised one eyebrow. Demand an explanation from Kai's statement.

“Lo what the hell, Ka? This lo guy needs to know the truth,” said Kai, after forcibly removing Mika's handcuffs in her mouth. There was a tone of no accept in his voice.

Mika shook her head slowly. Gesticulating to Kai through the eyes, for the guy

shut up and obey his wishes.

Kai exhaled, and finally chose to give in. By force, he reinserted some of the nearby wound medicine into a plastic bag.

“Tell me if there's anything.” Kai said softly. He moved from his place, after Mika gave a slow nod. Regardless of Raga's whereabouts, he left the roof.

Mika turned her attention to Raga. Hollowly. Nothing happened to her heart when she was with him. There was no great heartbeat, like when he was with Kai. There was no turmoil that made her face red, as Raga's gaze locked onto her pair of eyeballs. Until he finally realized one thing, his feelings for Raga had indeed changed.

“Why didn't you have any news yesterday? I sent messages many times, called many times. But, nothing you responded to.”

“I need time to calm down,” replied Raga.

Mika laughed cynically. “You are so selfish, yes. When I need it, you say. When I didn't need it, suddenly you came.”

Raga's forehead was faintly wrinkled. His gaze was sharp, fixed on Mika. “What does it mean you don't need it? You don't like me being here?”

“It turns out, Kai is much more comfortable for me than you. She's much more can be copied!” Mika screams, almost frustrated to face Raga and her own feelings.

Raga clucked, not received. Her face was stiff, and her gaze was drawn on Mika's pair of eyeballs. Without wasting any time, he pulled the girl's hand away from the roof. He did not care about Mika who was trying to escape. He also does not care, if now Kai is much more able to make the girl comfortable.

“You're my girlfriend. You shouldn't have said that in front of me!” firmly Raga.

To Raga, Mika was his. Whatever happens, he will not let go of the girl.

It never will.

♥

Mika is like dealing with another Raga personality. He no longer seems to be someone he knows. If yesterday Raga was cold and did not care about him, then now the guy is acting very sweet. If it was on the roof Raga said ketus to him, then now the guy smiled more at him. He did not understand, actually what made Raga's attitude change so quickly?

Currently, they were spending the twilight in the city park. Raga lends her jacket to Mika, something the guy never does. The reason, so that no one knows the wound along the arm of the girl. Even so, Raga did not ask the origin of the injuries.

“How are you doing?” ask Raga. His gaze remained fixed towards the sky that was starting to redden.

Mika raised her right shoulder, then smiled wryly. “Nnot good. But, also not bad.”

"On the death of Nagra—”

"You believe that I didn't kill him, right?” Mika cut Raga's words quickly.

“I didn't say that you killed Nagra. I'm just saying, if it looks like he's around us.”

“Who?”

Raga shrugged her shoulders. “You've found out about the ex-Nagra? Who knows one of them? Or at least, they know something?”

Aggita? Mika was not sure of her guess. The girl doesn't even seem to know anything about Nagra's death. And, doesn't Anggita seem to love Nagra very much?

“Alana?” That name is what finally slid off Mika's lips.

“You know, where is he now?” Raga seemed enthusiastic to welcome Mika's guess. He even held his back.

“That's the problem, Ga. Since Nagra's death, Alana has been missing. He was not even present at Nagra's funeral. Suspicious, ‘kan?”

Raga nodded her head. “We find out about Alana. We start from Nagra.” apartment

Mika's eyebrows fuse when she sees how passionate Raga is about solving Nagra's case. “You why so much spirit?”

Raga scratched his nape, clumsily. “A—I want to help you. I don't want you to continue being accused of being a murderer.”

Mika smiled thinly. He had been planning to go to Nagra's apartment for a long time. However, there was something within him that was still reluctant to set foot there. There was pain in his chest, each time remembering the day Nagra died. He was not ready to return to that place.

Seeing the doubt on Mika's face, Raga said something again, “After all, you still have to go there. You should be able to make peace with that fear and pain.”

If not in this situation, Mika could have laughed. Almost never Raga said all along and softly to him. It just sounds weird in the ears.

Raga silently smiled. He feels winning. At least, this time he could still defend Mika. He would never let her take a single step away from him. Especially with Kai.

I'll never let you into my territory, Kai.