He pocketed his phone and headed toward Jun's apartment, trying not to think about the hurt in Satsuki's voice or the way Akiko had looked at him when he'd told her to go home. All he wanted was to keep the people he cared about safe, but somehow he kept hurting them instead.
Jun's place was a few blocks away, in a building that was newer but smaller than Haruto's. His friend was waiting for him when he arrived, taking one look at his face and immediately ushering him inside without questions.
"You look like hell," Jun said bluntly as he handed Haruto a beer. "What happened to you?"
"Long story," Haruto replied, accepting the drink gratefully. "Thanks for letting me crash here."
"Anytime, man. You know that."
They spent the evening watching TV and talking about inconsequential things, and for a few hours, Haruto was able to forget about all the drama in his life. Jun was good that way - he knew when to push for details and when to just let things be.
By the time they called it a night, Haruto was feeling more human. His body still ached, but the emotional exhaustion was starting to fade. Maybe a good night's sleep would help him figure out how to handle everything that was going on.
Jun had set up a futon in the living room, and Haruto gratefully collapsed onto it after his friend had gone to bed. The apartment was quiet except for the distant hum of traffic, and he found himself starting to relax for the first time all day.
But as he lay there in the darkness, his body started to feel strange. At first it was just a general warmth, like he was running a slight fever. Then the warmth became heat, spreading through his limbs and making him restless. He tried to ignore it, figuring it was just stress or exhaustion, but it kept getting worse.
Eventually, he gave up trying to fight it and let himself drift off to sleep, hoping that rest would help whatever was wrong with him.
He wasn't sure how long he'd been asleep when something woke him. The room was darker now, and for a moment he couldn't figure out what had disturbed him. Then he became aware of a weight on his chest, and his eyes snapped open.
Akiko was straddling him, her hair falling around her face like a curtain as she looked down at him with an expression he'd never seen before. Her eyes were bright and intense, almost feverish in their focus.
"What the hell-" he started to say, but she pressed a finger to his lips.
"Shh," she whispered. "Don't wake your friend."
Haruto tried to sit up, but his body felt heavy and unresponsive. That's when he realized his shirt was gone, and his pants were nowhere to be seen. Panic started to set in as he looked up at her.
"How did you get in here? What did you do to my clothes?"
Instead of answering, Akiko reached for the buttons of her own shirt, slowly undoing them one by one. Her movements were deliberate and hypnotic, and despite himself, Haruto found his eyes following her hands.
"I've been thinking about our conversation today," she said softly, her voice taking on a breathy quality that made his skin prickle. "About what you said."
Her shirt fell open, revealing smooth pale skin and the curve of her breasts. Haruto's breath caught, and he tried again to push himself up, but his arms felt like they were made of lead.
"And I realized," she continued, leaning down until her face was inches from his, "that you were wrong. We are meant to be together."
She kissed him then, her lips soft and warm against his. For a moment, his body responded instinctively, and he found himself kissing her back. But then reality crashed back in, and he tried to push her away.
"Stop," he said, but his voice came out weaker than he'd intended. "Akiko, what's wrong with you? It doesn't look like you."
She smiled down at him, and there was something predatory in the expression that made him shiver. "This is exactly like me. This is who I really am when I'm not pretending to be the good virtuous woman everyone expects."
Her hands were on his chest now, her fingers tracing patterns across his skin that made him gasp despite himself. The heat in his body was getting worse, and he was starting to understand what was happening.
"The food," he said, his voice barely above a whisper. "You put something in the food."
Her smile widened. "You're so smart, Haruto. That's one of the things I love about you."
"What did you give me?"
"Nothing dangerous," she said, her hands moving lower. "Just something to help you relax. To help you see things more clearly."
"This is insane," he said, but even as he spoke, he could feel his resolve weakening. Whatever she'd given him was making it hard to think straight, and the feeling of her hands on his skin was becoming increasingly difficult to ignore.
"Is it?" she asked, settling more firmly against him. "Is it really so crazy that I want to be with the person I love? That I want to show you how good we could be together?"
She leaned down and kissed his neck, her lips trailing across his skin in a way that made him shudder. "I can make you happy, Haruto. I can give you everything you need."
"Akiko, please," he said, but he wasn't sure if he was asking her to stop or to continue. His body was betraying him, responding to her touch despite his mental protests.
"Just let me show you," she whispered against his ear. "Let me prove to you that we belong together."
Her hands were everywhere now, and Haruto felt himself spiraling out of control. Part of him wanted to fight this, to push her away and demand answers. But another part of him, the part that had been growing stronger ever since she'd first smiled at him, wanted nothing more than to give in to what she was offering.
"I'm yours," she said, her voice soft and seductive. "Completely and utterly yours. All you have to do is accept it."
As she spoke, she took his hand and placed it on her skin, and the contact sent a jolt through his entire body. The heat that had been building inside him reached a fever pitch, and he found himself unable to think about anything except the girl above him and the way she was making him feel.
"Just say yes," she whispered, and her lips were against his again. "Say you want me, and I'll give you everything."
Haruto closed his eyes, feeling himself falling into the darkness of whatever drug she'd given him. The last coherent thought he had was that he was in serious trouble, and that tomorrow he was going to have to figure out how to deal with the consequences of whatever was about to happen.
But for now, with Akiko's soft skin under his hands and her whispered promises in his ears, consequences seemed like a problem for another day. The heat in his body had become all-consuming, and he found himself responding to her touch with an intensity that surprised him.
"That's it," she murmured, and he could hear the satisfaction in her voice. "That's my Haruto."
As the drug pulled him deeper into its embrace, he surrendered to the inevitable, knowing that whatever happened next would change everything between them forever.