Morofushi Akihiko had a long-lost dream.
He knew he was dreaming, of course, because he saw Zero—Zero as a child.
The dark-skinned, golden-haired boy was wearing a light-colored T-shirt, frowning as he looked down in his direction.
Morofushi Akihiko shifted his gaze away from his young childhood friend and scanned the surroundings—it was the small park he and Zero used to love spending time in, close to the Miyano Clinic.
"Hey—"
After confirming the location, he looked down again, unsurprised to see his own hands, now a size smaller. He tried flexing them open and closed. Morofushi Akihiko realized he could control this much younger body, whose perspective had lowered considerably.
"Hey!"
The spot he was hiding in now was a place he and Zero had loved using during hide-and-seek—somewhere that maximized concealment from others…
"I'm talking to you! Are you even listening?!"
Zero's amplified, dissatisfied voice suddenly exploded beside Morofushi Akihiko's ear.
Morofushi Akihiko looked up in surprise. His emotions and actions seemed influenced by the body's age, resulting in a dazed expression fitting for this stage of life.
Rei Furuya crossed his arms. His initial displeasure faltered for a moment when he met those upturned blue eyes, which seemed startled and staring blankly at him.
The golden-haired, dark-skinned mixed-race boy pressed his lips together. He held that pose, not speaking again, as if waiting for Morofushi Akihiko to respond. That earnest, almost stubborn personality was already evident at this age.
…Had this ever happened before?
Morofushi Akihiko met those familiar gray-purple eyes. In childhood, the eye color was darker and appeared brighter.
He had to respond to Zero.
He opened his mouth, wanting to call out that familiar, unique nickname shared only between them. He needed to apologize for his earlier rude behavior.
'Zero—'
No sound came out.
Morofushi Akihiko froze.
He instinctively raised a hand to touch his neck. The current body bore no faint scars from his own making, nor any other wounds.
He simply couldn't speak.
…So, it was this time after all.
Morofushi Akihiko silently closed his just-opened mouth, lowering his eyes somewhat dejectedly.
Rei Furuya, however, widened his eyes in astonishment. Due to being ostracized for his mixed heritage, he was more sensitive than anyone. Seeing Morofushi Akihiko's actions and recent reactions, he immediately realized the answer.
Rei Furuya's hesitant, uncertain voice sounded again: "You… can't speak?"
Immediately after saying it, he regretted it.
The statement seemed too blunt.
Morofushi Akihiko didn't mind that, though. He was trying hard to recall the past. Although the incident he experienced had muddled some of his childhood memories, with many parts even unclear, that didn't mean he would forget experiences related to Zero.
Something here wasn't right. Morofushi Akihiko thought.
Zero seemed not to know him.
But that wasn't right.
He and Zero first met at school—he transferred into Zero's class as a new student.
Because he couldn't speak, he couldn't form friendships easily and wasn't particularly close with his classmates.
However, the mixed-race appearance was too conspicuous, so even though the other hadn't actively spoken to him, Morofushi Akihiko had been deeply impressed by this classmate named Rei Furuya from the very beginning.
Later, many things happened. They cautiously approached each other, slowly getting to know one another, and eventually became friends.
So Zero had known about his mutism from the start and shouldn't have asked such a question in the first place.
Morofushi Akihiko remembered he hadn't responded yet and slowly raised his head, attempting to sign a few gestures in sign language.
Rei Furuya couldn't understand.
The golden-haired, dark-skinned boy seemed to regret his earlier attitude. He stood silently for a moment before suddenly extending a hand. "You're hurt. There's a clinic nearby. I'll take you there."
The blue-eyed boy sitting on the ground stared blankly at him, unable to react in time before the other grabbed his wrist.
He was pulled up from the ground by an irresistible force, stumbling forward a couple of steps. All he could do was gaze bewilderedly at the boy's golden back of the head, his feet instinctively following the other's lead.
By the time he came to his senses, he was already inside a clean, modestly sized clinic.
A blonde-haired woman glanced at the opened door and, upon seeing the familiar boy, a gentle smile appeared on her face. "Zero-kun?"
The boy who had acted so assertively in front of Morofushi Akihiko now had slightly flushed cheeks and a wandering gaze.
But he hadn't forgotten why he was there. Rei Furuya shifted to the side, revealing the somewhat flustered black-haired boy behind him. "Doctor, he's injured!"
"Oh dear…" The blonde lady looked at the dirty child before her, immediately noticing the scrapes on his knees and arms. Her brows furrowed slightly with concern.
However, upon seeing the black-haired boy seemed to sense her emotions and instinctively stepped back as if wanting to flee, she quickly softened her expression. The blonde female doctor crouched down, extended a hand, and looked directly at the unfamiliar boy, her tone gentle yet carrying a subtle seriousness. "The wounds need proper treatment."
Such an adult was someone Morofushi Akihiko couldn't refuse. He also didn't want to cause trouble for others, so he pressed his lips together and sat on the clinic's small chair, allowing the female doctor in front of him to take out the disinfecting and cleaning supplies.
"We need to clean it properly first. It might hurt a bit," the unfamiliar female doctor said.
Just as she said, the previously numb wounds began to sting sharply the moment the cotton swab touched them. The black-haired, blue-eyed boy instinctively flinched, wanting to pull away out of reflex. But looking at the doctor carefully treating his wounds, he ultimately just pressed his lips together, clenched his fists, and sat quietly without moving.
The female doctor's lips seemed to curve upward slightly, but before Morofushi Akihiko could notice, she spoke gently. "You're not from around here, are you? I don't think I've seen you before."
"Maybe he accidentally got lost nearby," Rei Furuya suddenly interjected politely yet abruptly cutting off the conversation.
Not only the black-haired boy, who didn't know how to respond, but even the female doctor was visibly surprised. She glanced at the blonde boy, then at the little black-haired head bowed before her, as if realizing something, and her eyes curved into a smile.
After securing the gauze with medical tape, she nodded in satisfaction. "All set. Try not to get the wound wet for the next few days, okay?"
The black-haired boy gave a slight nod and made a somewhat clumsy sign language gesture.
The female doctor slowed her movements as she tidied up the medical kit, smiling in response. "You're welcome."
Rei Furuya, who had been watching closely from the side, exclaimed in surprise, "Doctor, you understood what he was saying?"
"Yes," the doctor replied, her face showing no trace of pity or regret, only a matter-of-fact tone as if commenting on the nice weather. "What a polite child."
The initially reserved black-haired boy blinked, then cautiously glanced up at the female doctor who was speaking with Rei Furuya, quickly averting his gaze before she noticed.
He sat quietly on the small stool, staring at his knee covered with a layer of gauze, until a pair of red running shoes appeared in his field of vision.
His gaze slowly shifted upward to the blond boy of the same age, who now held a blank notebook and a pen.
"Did you want to say something to me earlier?" The dark-skinned stranger handed over the paper and pen. "I borrowed these from the doctor."
After a moment's thought, the black-haired boy took the notebook, placed it on his lap, and wrote a line of rounded Japanese characters with the pencil. Then he flipped the notebook around and held it up for the other to see.
"…Thank you?" the blond boy instinctively repeated the words on the page, pausing briefly before quickly replying, "You're welcome."
"…"
"…"
The conversation stalled.
The blond, dark-skinned boy seemed both nervous and anxious, but he found it difficult to force someone who couldn't speak to initiate a conversation.
Finally, he gave up trying to be subtle and asked bluntly, "You're not from around here, are you? I don't remember seeing you before. Where do you live? Do you remember how to get back?"
The black-haired boy's hand holding the pen froze for a moment before he wrote another line in the notebook.
[Where is this…?]
The blond boy immediately gave an address—likely the name of a street—but seeing the blank look on the black-haired boy's face, he fell silent for a moment, then broadened the scope a few times before finally saying, "This is Tokyo!"
Sensing something from his peer's reaction, the blond boy exclaimed in astonishment, "You didn't know this was Tokyo? How on earth did you get lost all the way here?"
Seeing the black-haired boy lower his head, looking completely unsure how to respond, he clicked his tongue, said, "Wait here for a moment," and dashed out of the room, returning shortly with the doctor.
The doctor seemed to have already grasped the situation. She earnestly asked the black-haired boy if he had any family he could contact and, upon receiving confirmation, lent him the clinic's landline phone.
Encouraged by her, the black-haired boy stood on tiptoe and dialed the familiar number. The call connected quickly, and the familiar voice of his brother answered on the other end.
Whether it was his imagination or not, his brother's voice carried an unmistakable weariness and tension, yet it still maintained its usual politeness.
[Hello, this is the Morofushi Residence. May I ask who's calling?]
"…"
["Hello?"] The voice on the other end carried a hint of confusion. Just as the doctor was about to take the phone from his hand, the tone of the person on the line changed.
[…Akihiko?] he said.
Morofushi Akihiko instinctively hung up the phone.
He opened his eyes.
…
The glaring sunlight fell before Morofushi Akihiko's eyes as he slowly sat up from the bed. The young man, freshly awakened, showed no trace of drowsiness in his gaze.
He glanced around the room—the black cat had already disappeared.
After Morofushi Akihiko tidied up the room, during breakfast, Shuichi Akai came to find him. The first words out of his mouth were: "We need to return to Tokyo within a week. There's a mission."
"Understood."
On the way back to Tokyo, Morofushi Akihiko couldn't help but recall the strange dream he had the night before.
Assuming this dream, which differed from his memories, was real…
Had he guessed wrong? If they had known each other since childhood, then could his "friend" really be…
Even after the plane arrived in Tokyo, Morofushi Akihiko remained troubled by this question.
Until a hand gently rested on his shoulder—Morofushi Akihiko's instincts showed no trace of wariness or caution, as if he naturally trusted this person.
Morofushi Akihiko turned around and met a pair of drooping purple eyes.
The young man with the droopy eyes smiled as he leaned closer, using a familiar voice and his usual drawn-out tone. He affectionately flashed a smile at him, his sweet purple eyes curving.
"Well, well, Hiro-chan, long time no see~"