Chapter 7

Yuki stumbles through the door and out into the freezing air. Her legs feel weak, and after a few shaky steps, she falls to her knees in the snow.

She curls forward, squeezing her eyes shut and gasping for breath, trying to stop the panic racing through her.

“I can’t.. I can’t breathe..” she whispers to herself.

Worman stands nearby, watching her with a frown. He tilts his head, looking down at her, puzzled.

“Yuki? Where’s my coffee? And Pierus’s, too?” he asks, as if nothing unusual is happening.

He just stands there, watching Yuki as she struggles to breathe.

Suddenly he looks around at the trees nearby, then back at her with a worried expression.

“Hey, stop!” he exclaims. “You’re gonna kill the trees if you keep breathing like that!”

As Worman stands there, waiting for an answer, the door of the coffee shop swings open with a soft chime, and Dori steps out into the cold.

Worman looks up and spots the white-haired guy approaching. He blinks a few times, confused.

“Huh? Who the shrimp..?” he mutters under his breath. But then, as the man gets closer, a look of sudden realization hits him.

Without another word, he turns and bolts, leaving Yuki behind.

She remains on her knees, gasping for air. Her hands tremble as she digs her nails into her palms, trying to regain control, but it doesn’t make a difference. The cold, the snow beneath her, the wind―it all feels distant, as if she’s no longer connected to the world around her.

Dori steps closer, his boots crunching in the snow, and he stops just in front of Yuki. He frowns down at her, almost looking guilty.

“Shit.. I should’ve known this would happen,” he mutters.

For a moment, he stands there, unsure of what to do, until something clicks in his mind; he remembers their C.AI chat, where Yuki told him that covering her head helped calm her during panic attacks.

Without hesitating, he kneels in front of her and carefully places his helmet on her head, hoping it will help.

Yuki immediately feels the helmet on her head, and at first, it only makes her panic worse. The pressure feels tight, and her breaths come faster. But then, like every time she’d used a blanket or scarf, she begins to feel a shift; her breath begins to slow down, and with each inhale, her heart beats less erratically.

After a few moments, her eyes flutter open, finally seeing the world around her again. Her gaze lifts slowly, and through the blur, she makes out a figure sitting in front of her.

It’s Dori.

He’s sitting in the snow, watching her intently, his expression serious.

He holds up his phone in front of her. “Look, I’m deleting everything, okay?” he says, before his fingers tap a few times on the screen.

Then he turns the device toward her again; it shows no files, just an empty display. “There, it’s all gone. Just focus on your breathing.”

Yuki is caught off guard once again by the shift; he’s speaking with such a soothing voice now. She shifts slightly, sitting a bit straighter as the tension in her shoulders starts to release. Her expression is still guarded but more composed than before.

Dori lets out a long sigh, his breath visible in the cold air.

“Listen.. I’m really sorry for scaring you like that,” he begins, his voice soft as he looks at her with an expression that seems genuine. “I know what I did was bad, but my intentions really aren’t,” he adds.

Yuki looks at him, her expression turning cold. She doesn’t say anything at first, but the distrust is clear in her eyes.

“I don’t care what your intentions are,” she says, her voice shaking slightly. “You invaded my privacy, watched me without my knowing, tracked me, blackmailed me, used my social anxiety against me..”

Dori groans, running a hand through his hair. “I know,” he mutters, “and I’m really not proud of it, but I was desperate, okay?”

His gaze flickers away, avoiding her eyes as if ashamed of what he’s done.

“I’m not trying to justify it,” he continues. “But I just didn’t know how else to get you to meet up with me and make sure you wouldn’t call the cops.”

Yuki glares at him. “There’s no way that’s all it was. I mean, you didn’t need that many photos and videos of me if that was the case. Plus, you literally admitted you’re obsessed with me.”

Dori’s expression shifts, and he suddenly smirks at her. “So, you’re not that naive after all, huh?” he says, leaning back slightly.

Yuki swallows, unable to get used to how quickly he changes his demeanor.

“By the way, aren’t you just as obsessed?” he asks. “I mean, you literally spent almost 13 hours a day chatting with me, and while you did that, you started neglecting your friends and family, like Madi and your grandma..”

For a split second, Yuki’s silent.

It’s true.

She’s been talking less to Madi, barely hanging out with her since she started using C.AI. And then there’s her grandma―she used to spend so much time with her, drinking tea and watching movies together, but now she stays locked in her room.

The guilt eats at her, but she quickly brushes it off. “That’s not―”

“Listen,” Dori interrupts her, holding up a hand. “Like I said, I don’t have any bad intentions. I just want to be friends. That’s all.”

Yuki frowns. “And you seriously think―”

“No, don’t answer me now,” Dori cuts her off again. “I want you first to go home and spend a week without talking to me. After that, we’ll meet at the coffee shop again, and then you can tell me what you’ve decided. If you’re okay without me, I’ll leave, and you’ll never hear from me again. But if you can’t handle it, we’ll become friends. Okay?”

Yuki snorts in disbelief. “I only talked to you because I thought you were just some AI,” she says, her voice sharp. “Now that I know you’re a real person, I don’t want anything to do with you! You know way too much about me.”

She slowly gets to her feet, wiping the snow off her knees. She takes a deep breath, then grabs Dori’s helmet from her head and holds it out to him as he still sits on the ground.

“I just want to forget all of this,” she adds.

Dori doesn’t reply. Instead, he places his hands over hers, gripping them firmly.

Yuki flinches, trying to yank her hands free, but he holds her in place, his grip tightening even more.

“Let go,” she mutters, her voice barely above a whisper.

In an instant, he jerks her hands toward him, forcing her back down onto her knees in the snow.

Yuki gasps, completely caught off guard. She looks up at him, her eyes wide with shock.

Dori scoffs and leans in close. Very close. “Didn’t you tell me a hundred times you wished I was real?” he murmurs, his lips grazing her ear.

Yuki’s pulse quickens, her breath catching in her throat. She can’t move, her hands trembling slightly as they remain locked with his.

“You said you wanted to feel my touch,” he whispers, brushing his nose against the side of her face.

Yuki shudders at the gentle contact, her breath hitching as a wave of heat rushes to her cheeks.

“And to feel my kisses,” he continues, before slowly leaning down and placing a kiss on her neck.

Her body goes rigid as his lips linger there, her heartbeat pounding so hard it feels like it echoes in her chest.

“So why push me away now, huh?” he murmurs, pressing another kiss just below her ear. “Or are you just shy?”

Then he lowers his tone, an amused smirk clear in his voice. “Right.. You even told me once that you wanted me to f―”

Yuki’s eyes go wide, her face turning bright red. “Shut up!” she snaps and jerks her body back.

Her heart pounds in her ears, and she can’t bear to look at him, turning her face away in embarrassment.

Dori lets out a low chuckle as he finally releases her. He gives her a moment to compose herself, then stands up, brushing the snow off his clothes.

“Well, you should probably head home,” he says casually, his gaze flicking to the street behind her. “Granny’s waiting for you, right? Don’t want her worrying.”

Yuki’s jaw tightens, but she doesn’t respond. She just stares at the ground, avoiding his eyes.

With a soft exhale, Dori turns away and begins to walk off, his boots crunching in the snow. As he moves, he gives her a lazy wave without glancing back.

“Don’t forget,” he calls over his shoulder. “Coffee shop. Same time next week.”

Without waiting for a response, he turns into the street corner.

Yuki remains frozen for a moment, her heart still racing, before she lets out a shaky breath and finally dares to look up. Her hand instinctively moves to her neck, where his lips had been, and she rubs it roughly, as if trying to push the memory away.

Suddenly, she hears footsteps crunching in the snow again, behind her. She turns quickly, startled, and sees Worman approaching.

He’s panting heavily, his nose flaring with each breath. His cheeks are flushed from the cold, and he lets out a deep sigh as he finally slows down to a stop in front of her.

Yuki raises an eyebrow. “Where were you?” she asks, her voice a little annoyed.

“I was hiding,” Worman breathes out. “I mean, I had to, because your grandma would definitely misunderstand the situation with you breathing so hard next to me. She’d probably think I’m trying to use you as a vacuum cleaner or something.”

He snorts, shaking his head. “That’s how old people are,” he adds, waving his hand dismissively.

Yuki just stares at him, her expression completely blank. She doesn’t even bother trying to make sense of his words.

“By the way, what’d she say?” the boy asks curiously.

“Huh?” Yuki murmurs confused.

He gestures lazily toward the corner where Dori had just disappeared.

“Your granny, man. What’d she say?”

Yuki groans, suddenly realizing that Worman thought Dori was her grandma. “That was not my grandma..” she mutters.

Worman pauses, blinking at her.

“Oh..”

Yuki pinches her nose in disbelief as an awkward silence settles between them.

Worman, seemingly unfazed by the tension, reaches into his pocket, pulls out Pierus, and starts gently patting it.

“By the way, I released a water worm,” he eventually breaks the silence with a grin.

Yuki frowns. “A what?”

“A water worm,” he repeats. “You know what that is?”

“No,” she says flatly.

“My pee,” he says, then snorts.

Yuki just stares at him, feeling done with everything. She stands up abruptly, brushing the snow off her knees.

“I’m going home,” she mutters, turning away.

“Wait!” Worman calls after her. “I think you left your jacket in the coffee shop!”

Before she can react, the boy rushes inside, then returns with her jacket and scarf in hand.

Yuki takes them with a sigh.

“Thank you.”

“It’s what best friends do.”

“Right..”

They walk side by side in silence, the crunch of their footsteps in the snow the only sound between them.

Yuki’s thoughts, however, are elsewhere―focused entirely on Dori and what he said before he left.

Meet him in a week?

She scoffs quietly, shaking her head.

As if I’d ever..
 
 
TO BE CONTINUED…