Hotaru's assassin

Hotaru's hands trembled as she rummaged through her pockets, her heartbeat racing. No phone. She had left it at home.

Panic crept in. What if this guy died? She was the last person to see him. Wouldn't that make her a suspect? Her breathing grew shallow.

"I wanted to die… but not like this," she thought bitterly. "I don't want my death to be an announcement to this shitty world."

She turned to the unconscious boy lying on the ground, his breathing faint. She shook him urgently.

"Hey, wake up! Don't fall asleep again! You'll give me a heart attack!"

A groggy groan escaped his lips before his eyelids fluttered open. His crimson eyes glared at her, filled with annoyance.

"Why are you giving me a headache? Can't an injured person rest in peace?" he sighed.

Hotaru let out a breath of relief before frowning. "Are you alright?"

"Do I seem alright?" he shot back.

She ignored his sarcasm. "Sir, you have to get treated. You're in a really bad condition—you might die of blood loss."

The boy clicked his tongue but said nothing. Truthfully, he was in hiding. People were after him, and he couldn't afford to be seen. He had just completed his job and was resting, but now this girl had disturbed him. From her panicked reaction, it was clear—she had no idea who he really was.

Just then, his stomach growled.

The sound broke the tension.

Hotaru blinked in surprise before her face softened. "Wait here. I'll be back with food and medicine."

The boy watched as she hurried off, shaking his head. What a fool… helping a stranger so easily. But despite himself, he waited.

---

An hour later, Hotaru returned, panting and out of breath. She knelt beside him, quickly opening the first-aid kit.

"Show me your wounds," she demanded.

With no other choice, he allowed her to work. She cleaned his wounds, applied a generous amount of ointment, and wrapped the bandages tightly.

Too tightly.

"Ow—what kind of sloppy treatment is this?" the boy complained. "You barely cleaned my wounds, you smeared the ointment on like you're icing a cake, and your bandaging work is horrendous. It's so loose in some parts I feel like it'll fall off, and in others, it's so tight I'm losing blood circulation!"

Hotaru's eye twitched. "Hey, mister! You should be thanking me! I saved you from dying!"

He scoffed. "It would've been better to not get treated if this is the result. I think your excessive medication might kill me instead."

She stiffened. Was he right? She had never treated anyone before. A nervous gulp passed through her throat as she quickly unwrapped the bandages and wiped away some of the thick ointment until it was just a light layer.

As she struggled to rewrap the bandages, the boy sighed in exasperation and snatched them from her hands.

"I'll do it myself."

Hotaru watched in shock as he swiftly and skillfully dressed his own wounds in under a minute.

"…You could've done that from the start?!" she blurted out, but he ignored her.

She shoved a tiffin box into his hands.

Inside was reheated rice, miso soup, stir-fried vegetables, beef, and fried chicken. Not the best meal, but it was all she could manage on short notice. She also handed him a bottle of water.

Without hesitation, he dug in, eating like a starved animal. But then—

Choke!

"No need to hurry, no one's gonna steal it," Hotaru remarked dryly.

He ignored her and continued devouring the food—only to choke again. This time, she patted his back lightly.

"You must've been starving…" she muttered.

As he finished, he mumbled something under his breath.

Hotaru smirked. "If you're grateful, say it loudly so I can hear."

The boy glanced up at her. "The food tasted bland and spoiled."

Hotaru's smile dropped. "But you still feasted on it, didn't you?"

"Never in my life am I eating food like yours again."

That was the last straw. She stomped away angrily.

"I have my own things to do! You take care!" she snapped.

But as she walked away, she noticed something.

He was following her.

For thirty whole minutes, they walked in awkward silence before she finally turned around, her patience at its limit.

"Why are you following me?"

"I'm not following you," he replied nonchalantly. "I'm just walking in the same direction as you."

She scowled. "Don't follow me for no reason! Also, you're attracting way too much attention in that getup!"

"Why? I have the freedom to do what I want. It's not illegal, is it?"

Hotaru fell silent. She stopped in her tracks, forcing him to stop as well.

Turning to face him fully, she asked, "Don't you have a home?"

"No." His answer was flat, indifferent.

"…Don't you have someone waiting for you? They might be worried."

"I don't know anyone."

She frowned. "Do you have money?"

"Why would I?"

She sighed, rubbing her temples. "Sorry, but I'm not rich. So stop following me and go your own way."

She turned to leave.

But suddenly—

"Babe, my love, please don't abandon me! I can't live without you! I promise I won't fight again!"

Hotaru froze.

Her entire body stiffened as heads turned.

People around them whispered. Some giggled. Others gawked.

Her face burned with embarrassment. No one has ever called me so affectionately…

Gritting her teeth, she quickly stomped towards him and grabbed his collar, dragging him into a secluded corner.

"LISTEN," she hissed. "What is your problem?! Why are you doing this?!"

The boy leaned against the wall, arms crossed, looking unfazed.

"As I said, I have nowhere to return to. No money. No acquaintances." His crimson eyes gleamed with something unreadable. "So what am I supposed to do?"

Hotaru stared at him.

"…Don't you feel pity?" he added.

She clenched her fists.

This guy… was seriously troublesome.

---

End of Chapter 2

Warning

Hotaru's assassin © 2025 by Hanagaki ryuka is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/