Satsuki's eyes had gone completely flat, like chips of black ice, and they were focused on something behind him. On the window.
Haruto felt his blood turn to ice water in his veins. He'd never seen that expression on Satsuki's face before - Completely at odds with the gentle, caring girl who'd been helping him study just moments before.
"Satsuki?" he whispered, turning around and see what had caught her attention. "What's wrong?"
But she didn't answer, just continued to stare out the window with those cold eyes.
Without warning, Satsuki launched herself straight through the window.
"Onee-chan!" Haruto shouted, bolting from the couch and lunging toward the shattered glass. Below, three stories down in the courtyard, she was already sprinting toward the shadows near the old storage shed.And she wasn't alone.
Haruto's blood turned to ice when he saw who she was heading for. Akiko. Akiko with her shoulder-length hair and those big, elegant eyes. She was pressed back against the wall of the shed, her face white with terror as Satsuki approached her like a predator stalking its prey.
"No..." Haruto muttered, grabbing his keys and bolting for the door. He took the stairs three at a time, his heart hammering so hard he thought it might explode.
By the time he burst through the back door of his building, Satsuki had Akiko pinned against the wall. Her delicate hands were wrapped around Akiko's throat, and the smaller girl's feet were barely touching the ground. Akiko's face was turning blue, her hands clawing desperately at Satsuki's grip.
"Onee-chan, stop!" Haruto said, running toward them. "What are you doing? Let her go!"
But Satsuki didn't even turn around. Her voice, when she spoke, was completely different from the warm, caring tone she'd used just minutes ago. It was cold, flat, emotionless. "This woman has been watching us, Haruto. Following you. Spying on our private moments."
"I... I wasn't..." Akiko gasped, her voice barely a whisper as she struggled to breathe. Her usually bright eyes were wide with panic and confusion. "Please... I just..."
"Satsuki, please!" Haruto grabbed her arm, trying to pull her away from Akiko. It was like trying to move a statue - she didn't budge an inch. "You're going to kill her! She's just a friend, she's not dangerous!"
Finally, Satsuki's head turned toward him, and the look in her eyes made his blood freeze. They were completely empty, like looking into the eyes of a corpse. "A friend?" she repeated, her voice still that terrifying monotone. "You know this woman?"
"Yes Yes, I know her. Her name is Akiko. She's... she's a friend of Jun's. I met her through him." The lie came out so easily it surprised him. He couldn't exactly explain that he'd been having confused feelings about Akiko lately, not when Satsuki looked ready to snap the girl's neck with her bare hands.
Something flickered in Satsuki's eyes at his words. The deadly cold remained, but now there was something else there too - confusion, maybe even doubt. Slowly, her grip on Akiko's throat loosened, and the girl collapsed to her knees, gasping and coughing.
Immediately, Satsuki's entire demeanor changed. The coldness vanished from her face, replaced by her usual gentle expression, and she dropped Akiko to her knees beside Haruto, her hands fluttering over him like she was checking for injuries.
"Oh, Haruto, I'm so sorry," she said, her voice back to its normal warm tone. "I was just... I was protecting you. I thought she might be dangerous." Her hands cupped his face, thumbs stroking his cheeks. "You know this girl? How do you know her? When did you meet?"
The rapid personality shift was almost as terrifying as the violence had been, like watching someone flip a switch and become a completely different person. Haruto tried to keep his voice steady as he answered. "Like I said, she's Jun's friend. I've only talked to her a few times. She's harmless, Satsuki. She wouldn't hurt anyone."
But before Satsuki could respond, Akiko's voice cut through the air, shaky but determined. "That's not true." She was still on her knees, one hand pressed to her throat, but she was looking directly at Haruto with hurt and confusion in her eyes. "We're not just acquaintances. We... we once slept together, didn't we? That night. How can you say I'm just some friend of Jun's?"
The words hit Haruto like a physical blow. He could feel Satsuki's hands go rigid against his face, could see her expression shift from concern to something much more dangerous.
"You... slept together?" Satsuki's voice was barely above a whisper, but there was something in it that made Haruto's skin crawl. Her hands were still cupping his face, but now her fingers were digging in hard enough to leave marks.
"Satsuki, I can explain-" he started, but she cut him off.
"You slept with her?" The temperature around them seemed to drop again, and Haruto could see his breath misting in the air. Satsuki's eyes had gone completely black, and when she looked at him, it was like staring into an abyss. "You let another woman touch you? You let her into your bed? Didn't you say when you were kid that you would only sleep with me?! Didn't you promise back then that you would never marry and would live with me forever?"
"It... it wasn't like that. We slept, not 'slept'," Haruto said desperately, trying to back away but finding that Satsuki's grip on his face wouldn't let him move. "It was just... we were studying late, and she fell asleep, and I didn't want to wake her up, so she stayed the night. Nothing happened. I swear, nothing happened."
Satsuki must have seen something in his expression, because her grip tightened even more. "You've lied to me, Haruto, but now you are lying. I can see it in your eyes. You have feelings for her."
Haruto could feel panic rising in his chest, could see the way Satsuki's free hand was slowly moving toward Akiko, who was still kneeling on the ground looking terrified and confused.
"Akiko, you need to go home," he said quickly, not taking his eyes off Satsuki. "Now. Please."
"But Haruto-" Akiko started to protest, pushing herself to her feet.
"Please..."
"Fine," she said, and he could hear the hurt in her voice. "If that's what you want. If I really mean so little to you that you'll throw me away the moment your girlfriend shows up." Her voice cracked on the last words, and Haruto could see tears starting to form in her eyes. But he didn't know she wouldn't give up that easily
"Akiko, please, it's not-"
But she was already walking away, her shoulders shaking with silent sobs. Haruto wanted to call after her, wanted to explain that he was just trying to protect her, but Satsuki's grip on his face kept him frozen in place.
They stood there in silence until Akiko disappeared around the corner of the building. Only then did Satsuki finally release him, but instead of stepping away, she grabbed his hand and started dragging him back toward the building.
"We need to talk," she said, her voice eerily calm. "Inside. Now."