"Akyoooo!"
"We missed you!"
Everyone in the room was now gathered around Akyo and Tachi.
Tachi rose into the air and announced joyfully, "Stop crying at your age! Today isn't a sad day, it's a day of celebration! Akyo is back among us, and this is only the beginning. We will take Soren back from the grasp of the Norse gods. So celebrate, eat, and drink until you can't anymore!"
He moved his arms and entire body elegantly in the air. Multiple air currents formed; the tables that had been pushed aside while Njord was fleeing from Sōsuke slid back into place. Food floated out from the kitchen to the tables. Plates and cutlery arranged themselves neatly.
"YEAHHHH!" the soldiers shouted in unison.
The ones who had already greeted Akyo went to sit down, while the others still swarmed around him.
He tried his best to greet everyone as quickly as possible.
While shaking the hands reaching toward him, he suddenly found himself face to face with Sōsuke.
He stood there, staring at him blankly. "Thought you were dead."
Akyo felt slightly disoriented, unsure what to say. "Uh… thanks, I guess?"
Sōsuke said nothing and walked away, leaving Akyo confused by the interaction. 'Strange guy, isn't he?' he thought before going back to greeting people.
He kept moving through the crowd, but his goal wasn't really to break a handshaking record.
'She must be here, looking for me in this crowd.'
But as time passed, he started to lose hope. 'If she were here, she would've probably charged through the crowd to push the soldiers away.'
Suddenly, he felt a hand grab his arm. 'Ana?' he thought.
The hand discreetly pulled him out of the crowd without anyone noticing.
When he finally saw who it was—
"Nicolo!"
He stood in front of him, looking exhausted, dark circles under his eyes.
"Good to see you, big guy." Nicolo pulled him into a hug. "Come here!"
Akyo felt light. Knowing everyone was finally relieved made him happy.
"Don't worry, I won't keep you long," Nicolo whispered.
"What do you mean? Why are you saying that?" Akyo asked.
The blond continued, "She's in her room. She hasn't left it for a couple of days. She's really not doing well. Go see her. I'll cover for you."
They let go of each other.
"Thank you," Akyo said, lowering his head, a sign of respect his mother had taught him.
Nicolo went on, "There are two full plates of food over there," he said, pointing at the table behind them. "One for each of you. Take them."
Akyo nodded, grabbed both plates, and turned one last time to thank Nicolo, but Nicolo gestured for him to hurry.
Akyo finally left the room and headed toward Ana's bedroom.
Nicolo watched the door and chuckled quietly. "Well, guess I'll have to lie to everyone now."
—----------------------------------------------------
Akyo walked through the building's corridors, plates in hand.
'I'm kinda stressed,' he thought. 'Maybe she hates me.'
He reached Ana's door and opened it.
It was dark inside. Everything was shut. Even though it was already dark outside, it looked like no light had entered the room for days.
Several empty plates were stacked on the counter to the right of the entrance.
But Akyo was looking straight ahead, at the bed where Ana lay, her back turned to him under the covers.
He set the plate down.
Ana, not knowing who had entered, said softly, "Thanks, but I'm not hungry. You can take the plate back, Nicolo."
Akyo replied, "Are you sure? I thought we could eat together."
Ana's heart tightened. She shot up and turned around.
She couldn't believe her eyes. Akyo was standing in her doorway, awake, alive. The gaping hole that had once been in his stomach was gone.
Tears streamed down her cheeks.
"Akyo…"
She rushed toward him and wrapped her arms around him tightly, very tightly.
He held her just as firmly. "Don't cry or I'll cry too," he said, trying to hold back his own tears.
"I thought you were dead… I lost hope… I'm sorry," she tried to say between sobs.
"It's alright. I'm here. Tachi made it. He saved me."
She cried, holding him, for a good twenty minutes before they both lay down in her bed.
Crying had drained all of Ana's strength. Akyo had crossed several worlds and an entire ocean to reach the base, yet he wasn't especially tired, at least not enough to fall asleep.
'I'm finally back… but I'll leave again soon,' he thought. 'Is Soren even still alive?'
He played with a strand of Ana's hair while thinking.
'What am I saying? Even if there's a chance they already killed him, it's still worth going. We're not leaving him there. If he's alive, we'll save him. I'll make up for not being able to protect him.'
"AAAAKYOOOOO!"
Tachi's voice echoed down the hallway.
Akyo jumped.
"He's not there. No need to check. Ana's probably sleeping," Nicolo said, trying his best to cover for him.
'Shit.'
Akyo gently shook Ana awake.
"What…?" she mumbled, seeing the panic on his face.
"Tachi's coming. He's looking for me."
Ana sat up abruptly. "Damn it!"
She looked around. "Hide in the shower! I'll pretend I'm asleep."
Akyo rushed into the bathroom, trying to stay quiet.
Ana glanced around quickly.
'Akyo's shirt!'
His t-shirt was on the floor. She grabbed it and threw it with phenomenal strength into the bathroom, then pulled the blanket over herself completely.
A second later, Tachi opened the door.
"Akyyooo, are you here?"
Ana didn't answer, hidden under her covers. Akyo held his breath in the bathroom.
"I told you he's not here. He must've let her sleep after coming by," Nicolo said.
"Mmmh, okay… but where is he then?" Tachi floated away down the hallway, shouting again, "Akyoooo!"
Nicolo exhaled, waited until Tachi was far enough, then whispered,
"Akyo, sorry, I did what I could. I know you're in there. Tachi wants to meet you in the training room tomorrow morning at 8 a.m. Don't wake up too late. Sleep well."
He closed the door gently.
Akyo and Ana stayed silent on their respective sides until Ana suddenly burst out laughing.
Akyo stepped out of the bathroom, laughing too.
"Why are we even laughing?" he said.
Ana replied, "I don't know… I'm just happy we get to live moments like this again."