Even though Takashi knew what was waiting for him the moment he entered the office, he didn’t hesitate.

  He walked in with a faint smile.

  Kenta was right beside him ready to lose everything.

  “Kenta,” Takashi said quietly.

  “When we go in, let me handle it. Just follow my lead.”

  “What are you planning?” Kenta asked, grabbing his arm.

  Takashi pulled free.

  “Just trust me.”

  A brief pause.

  “Whatever happens in there… it’s on me.”

  The Chief was pacing in the hallway, hands on his hips.

  The moment he saw them, he strode forward.

  “They’re inside,” he said under his breath. “I stepped out before you walk into that mess.”

  He blocked their path.

  “Listen to me carefully.”

  His voice dropped.

  “You were right. You proved it. But I warned you there would be consequences.”

  “I’m ready,” Takashi cut in.

  “Takashi!” the Chief snapped.

  “Stop talking for once and listen.”

  He leaned closer.

  “When you go in there, you don’t defend yourself. You don’t argue. You nod. You accept whatever they give you.”

  His eyes hardened.

  “I can still protect you. But only if you don’t make this worse.”

  “Then I’m going in alone,” Takashi said.

  “Leave Kenta out of this. Say it was all my idea.”

  Kenta’s jaw tightened.

  “You think I’d let you do that?”

  “You have to,” Takashi replied. “If you’re suspended too, this ends here.”

  The Chief exhaled slowly.

  “He’s right.”

  Kenta turned to him sharply.

  “You want me to stand there and let them blame him?”

  “I want you to stay,” the Chief said quietly.

  “Because if he falls… someone has to keep fighting.”

  Silence.

  “Takashi needs you in that building,” the Chief added.

  “Think about that.”

  He glanced toward the office door.

  “You don’t have much time.”

  “Just listen to me, Kenta. Do what I say.”

  Takashi grabbed his shoulders firmly.

  “I need you to stay here.”

  Kenta stared at him for a long second.

  “So that’s it?”

  He stepped back, jaw tight.

  “You planned to throw yourself under the bus."

  He pointed a finger at Takashi.

  “But I’m warning you, Takashi Mori… if you say one wrong word in there and make things worse, you’ll answer to me. Be sure of that.”

  Takashi smiled faintly.

  “Don’t worry,” he said calmly.

  “I’ll behave.”

  Kenta was waiting outside in the hallway.

  The seconds felt like hours. He couldn’t hear what was being said inside it was too quiet and that scared him.

  Finally, the door opened.

  Takashi stepped out.

  From the look on his face, Kenta couldn’t tell anything.

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  Then Takashi smiled faintly.

  “temporary suspension.”

  Kenta pulled him into a tight hug.

  “For how long?”

  “Two months,” Takashi exhaled.

  “That’s… not bad,” Kenta said softly, patting his back. “It could’ve been worse.”

  “Now go inside and do your part,” Takashi said.

  He placed his hands on Kenta’s shoulders.

  “We’ll be all right.”

  Then they hugged again.

  “Where are you going now?” Kenta asked before stepping inside.

  “I’m going home. Sota is waiting for me.”

  Kenta just nodded and gave him a small smile before disappearing behind the door.

  Takashi tried to stay strong, to feel nothing.

  As he walked toward the exit, he slowed near his desk.

  His badge was no longer there.

  He looked at the empty space for a second.

  He had done what he needed to do, ready to face the consequences.

  He didn’t regret it. Not even for a second.

  With a faint smile on his face, he stepped outside ready to go home.

  As he reached the apartment door and searched for his keys, the door opened from the inside.

  Sota stood there, already dressed.

  He was wearing Takashi’s suit. His hair was tied back neatly, his posture straight, composed.

  For a moment, Takashi forgot what he had come to say.

  This wasn’t the boy he had met in the rain that night.

  Takashi smiled.

  “You’re all dressed up,” Takashi said as he stepped inside.

  “I’ll have to change too… though I doubt I can compete with that.”

  Sota’s lips curved slightly.

  “Your closet doesn’t offer many options.”

  “Still,” Takashi replied, opening the wardrobe,

  “it suits you.”

  He glanced at him once more before disappearing inside.

  “Give me a minute.”

  “I’ll wait for you,” Sota said with a smile.

  Behind it, worry lingered.

  What would happen now that they knew everything?

  He couldn’t ruin Takashi’s happiness.

  For the first time in his life, Sota felt like he belonged somewhere.

  Here — in this place Takashi called home.

  The knot in his throat was hard to swallow. Smiling was even harder.

  A moment later, Takashi stepped out, fully dressed, coat in hand, a bright smile on his face. Suspended… yet happy.

  I won’t let him go back there again, he thought.

  He reached for Sota’s arm, his touch gentle.

  “Let’s go.”

  Unaware of the storm Sota was fighting behind that quiet smile.

  They were silent for a long moment as Takashi drove.

  Streetlights slipped across the windshield, one after another.

  He wanted to show Sota everything — the life he could give him.

  Tokyo in spring. Quiet streets. New places.

  A future untouched by this city.

  For a moment, he almost forgot about revenge.

  He just wanted to see happiness in Sota’s eyes.

  Not fear. Not caution.

  Happiness.

  Sota remained quiet, staring out the window.

  But that wasn’t strange.

  He had always been like that — silent, reserved.

  And Takashi couldn’t read a single thing from his expression.

  As they entered the restaurant, something light stirred in Takashi’s chest.

  He wasn’t someone who enjoyed going out, but tonight was different.

  He wanted Sota to see another world...one untouched by shadows.

  The restaurant was crowded, yet quiet. Conversations blended into a low murmur. Glasses clinked softly.

  A few heads turned as they walked in.

  Sota walked beside him in Takashi’s suit, his blonde hair tied neatly at the back. The sharp lines suited him.

  For a brief moment, Takashi simply looked at him.

  Then he smiled as a waiter approached.

  “I made a reservation,” Takashi said politely.

  “Mori.”

  “This way, gentlemen,” the waiter replied.

  “Your table is ready.”

  Takashi pulled out the chair for Sota, waiting until he sat before taking his own seat.

  The waiter stepped back with a polite smile

  .

  “I’ll be back when you’re ready to order.”

  Takashi picked up the menu and handed it to Sota.

  “What would you like? Order anything.”

  Sota glanced down at the page for a moment, then gave a small smile.

  “I’m more used to bars… not places like this.”

  He set the menu back on the table.

  “You choose. I trust you.”

  For a moment, Takashi forgot about everything... suspension, consequences.

  All that mattered was this table. This quiet. Sota beside him.

  “I don’t want you to go back there anymore,”

  Takashi said, setting the menu down.

  He held Sota’s gaze.

  “I was suspended today.”

  No drama. No anger. Just fact.

  “Kenta’s still at the station. He’ll help us.”

  A brief pause.

  “But if you go back…”

  His voice lowered slightly.

  “I’m not sure I’ll see you again.”

  The waiter approached, and Takashi ordered without looking at the menu.

  When the man walked away, the silence remained.

  Sota was unusually quiet.

  He had never talked much but this silence felt different.

  “Sota,” Takashi said softly.

  “What are you thinking? Is everything all right?” He leaned closer.

  “Can you promise me you won’t go back?”

  Sota lifted his head.

  Too many thoughts at once. None of them safe.

  But when he saw the gentleness in Takashi’s eyes, something inside him softened.

  He smiled.

  “I won’t go back.”

  The words felt steady. Almost convincing.

  Takashi was smiling.

  Sota held that smile for him.

  He didn’t know what would happen after tonight.

  He didn’t know how much time they had left.

  But one thing was clear in his mind

  Whatever came next, he would face it at Takashi’s side.

  Even if it meant losing everything else.

  Takashi smiled gently.

  “Tomorrow I’ll take you to my father’s grave. Like I promised.”

  The waiter interrupted him, placing the plates between them. The scent of warm food filled the space.

  “I actually have time now,” Takashi added lightly. “I don’t need to go to work.”

  “For how long?” Sota asked.

  “Two months.” He gave a small shrug. “It’s fine. We got them.”

  He leaned forward, lowering his voice,

  unable to hide the spark in his eyes.

  “Kenta texted me. Kawara is going to hurt them badly. Names. Documents. Enough to bring most of them down.”

  He picked up his fork and took the first bite, almost absentmindedly.

  For the first time in a long while, he looked… calm.

  Sota took a bite and paused for a second, as if surprised.

  “It’s good, isn’t it?” Takashi asked, smiling.

  He looked different tonight.

  The tension that usually lived in his shoulders wasn’t there.

  Takashi who had once moved through life like a man already burned by it now watched Sota with quiet satisfaction.

  “It’s good,” Sota said, still chewing.

  “We should come here more often,” Takashi replied, taking another bite.

  For a moment, everything felt simple.

  Just a table. Two plates. Warm light.

  As if nothing outside that restaurant could touch them.

  For the rest of the evening, they ate mostly in silence.

  But it wasn’t uncomfortable.

  Every now and then, Takashi would glance up.

  Sota would notice even when he didn’t look back.

  Glasses touched.

  A quiet “thank you” to the waiter.

  A faint smile that lingered a second too long.

  Nothing important was said.

  And somehow, nothing needed to be.

  Sota seemed calm.

  Inside, nothing was.

  His eyes moved to the entrance every time it opened.

  A couple. Two men in suits. A waiter carrying wine.

  Each time, his body tensed just slightly.

  Then released.

  Takashi kept talking, unaware.

  For a moment, Sota almost spoke.

  Almost told him everything.

  But the sight of him relaxed, smiling, alive in a way he hadn’t been before stopped him.

  Not here.

  Not like this.

  They needed time.

  Takashi stood up to pay the bill.

  Sota watched him cross the room, every movement measured, his gaze flicking once more toward the door.

  Still nothing.

  Too calm.

  Takashi returned with a soft smile.

  “So,” he said, standing beside Sota’s chair,

  “are we going home… or do you want to go somewhere else?”

  “Let’s go home,” Sota said immediately, already on his feet.

  Takashi smiled softly.

  “Then… let’s go home.”

  The car was parked just down the street. Only a few steps away.

  The cold night air hit them the moment they stepped outside.

  Takashi glanced at him.

  “You didn’t take one of my coats?”

  “It’s not that cold,” Sota replied lightly. “The car’s close.”

  “At least put your hands in your pockets,” Takashi said, nudging him gently. “You should take better care of yourself."

  Sota let out a quiet laugh, turning toward him

  And then...

  “Well… well.”

  The voice came from the dark.

  Not loud. Not rushed.

  Just certain.

  Footsteps.

  Shapes detached themselves from the shadows.

  Three.

  No, four.

  Wooden bats resting lazily on their shoulders.

  “Look what we found.”

  Cold sweat slid down Sota’s spine.

  So it had come.

  He stepped in front of Takashi without thinking.

  “Run,” he said quietly.

  “No.”

  Takashi grabbed his hand and pulled him closer, their backs nearly touching as the men moved in.

  “I’ll take these two. You handle the other two.”

  His grip tightened.

  “We’ll be fine.”

  Takashi thought...

  What an irony.

  He didn’t even have his gun anymore.

  His heart was pounding not from fear of the men in front of him, but from fear for Sota.

  He let go of Sota’s hand.

  And the fight began.

  Takashi threw himself into it with everything he had. No hesitation. No holding back.

  A strike. A dodge. Another hit.

  He glanced at Sota.

  Still standing.

  Good.

  They were outnumbered. Bare-handed against bats and steel.

  But they were holding.

  Takashi drove his fist into one man’s jaw. The crack echoed. The man collapsed.

  For a split second, it felt like they might actually win.

  Then Sota saw it.

  A flash of metal.

  Behind Takashi.

  Not a bat.

  A knife.

  The man was already moving.

  Sota didn’t think.

  He moved.

  He reached Takashi just as the blade came down, grabbing the attacker’s jacket and yanking him back

  Takashi didn’t notice anything. He was too focused, fighting the man in front of him with everything he had.

  He knocked him to the ground and leaned over, ready to finish it. Then he glanced toward Sota.

  Sota was still fighting.

  Their eyes met for a brief second.

  Takashi turned back and punched the man beneath him hard enough to keep him down.

  Then

  the sharp sound of metal hit the pavement.

  A knife.

  Takashi turned his head just in time to see one of the attackers running into the darkness.

  Sota was standing alone.

  For a moment, Takashi smiled.

  We did it.

  Sota turned toward him.

  A faint smile on his lips.

  Takashi smiled back.

  And then he saw it.

  Sota’s hand pressed against his stomach.

  Dark red spreading across the white fabric.

  For a second, Takashi didn’t understand.

  Then blood slipped through Sota’s fingers.

  One drop.

  Then another.

  Sota swayed.

  Takashi’s smile vanished.

  “Sota…”

  Sota slowly dropped to his knees, still holding the wound as blood soaked the pavement beneath him.