Your eyes creaked their way open slowly, slightly dreading the new amount of light that was about to enter them. Surprisingly enough, as they trailed their way over to the window across from you, they were met with the sight of a darkened sky.

Inhaling slightly, you braced yourself to pull off the blanket covering your shoulders, but the arm draped over your waist stopped you from doing so. You groggily turned your vision over to the owner of the limb, a drowsy smile gracing your lips.

Yuka always looked peaceful when he slept. Because of the amount of weight he had to carry on his shoulders when he was awake, you could only imagine how relieving sleep would be. There were no worries, just a moment of silence and rest. You slowly pulled yourself up to a sitting position, careful not to disturb his slumber.

Bringing your hand to his forehead, you swept up his bangs, admiring his face. Rubbing your thumb gently across his cheek, you leant over to him, leaving a soft kiss on his skin. He stirred a bit in his sleep due to the sudden action, but quickly fell silent once more.

It had been about a week since Yuri had won against the Administrator, and to say that things were less stressful would be an understatement. Being able to get an actual night's rest was your personal favorite part. There was also the fact that this building had practically everything; showers, lounge rooms, enough bedrooms for an army, a kitchen, and plenty more (This includes a few closets filled with clothing! You were more than excited to find yourself some pajamas to sleep in.)

People had started to make themselves comfortable in the environment. Now that they weren't constantly fearing for their lives at the hands of a Mask, you really couldn't blame them. It had taken stress off of practically everyone's shoulders, aside from those who were aware of what was going on with Yuri.

It was no secret that the girl was getting incredibly exhausted with the power of the Administrator and keeping up the boundary. There was no telling how much longer she could hold onto the boundary, and according to what the Administrator had told Yuka, the only way to get enough energy to take us back to the real world would be increasing the flow and putting the Mask's back into their aggressive state.

Pushing the thoughts aside, you carefully slipped out of the bed, cautious of your boyfriend's peaceful state. Assuming that it was sometime in the very early morning, you began to get ready for the day. After all, breakfast wouldn't cook itself.

--------------------------------

You hummed a tune as you brought out a multitude of pans, setting them out on the stove of the kitchen. Skipping over to the fridge, you opened it and grimaced at the contents residing in the area. "Only eggs?"

"Only eggs," Rika confirmed, reaching into the pantry and pulling out two aprons. "We should probably go on another supply run soon, the Guardian Angel's have been busy."

"I guess so," you mumbled, taking out the eggs provided in the fridge. You set the carton out on the counter, reaching in to take out the butter as well. When you finished placing the items down, Rika tossed you an apron. You threw it on and messily tied the strings around your back.

"So," you stated, opening one of the drawers and grabbing a butter knife. "What has you up so early?" You cut off a small piece on the stick of butter, tossing it into one of the pans. Repeating this action multiple times, you turned back to Rika and raised a brow.

He shrugged. "Couldn't sleep. I could ask you the same question, couldn't I?" He then turned to the eggs, picking up a few and cracking them into a container he had pulled out seconds prior. He started to mix them.

You followed his actions and grabbed a container. Giving him a carefree grin, you answered. "Still trying to get a proper schedule. It got a little messed up from the inconsistency of only being able to sleep when you had a free hour or two, y'know?"

He let out a short laugh. "Tell me about it."

Joining with him, the session of laughter stayed short and sweet. A few moments afterwards, Rika poured the eggs into the pan. You finished mixing your own and did the same. For seconds on end, the only sound that could be heard between you two was the sizzling of the eggs (as well as the salt and pepper shakers).

After a few minutes, the first batch of scrambled eggs was finished. You pulled out a plate and scraped the eggs onto the surface, quickly covering it up with a sheet of aluminum foil that you had found in one of the cupboards.

Making breakfast each morning had become a common theme for both you and Rika over the past week, along with cooking lunch and dinner. Both of you were early risers (although this was the earliest either of you had ever been up) and had somewhat plausible cooking skills. You didn't have a lot of food in the place, but you worked with what you had and the residents seemed to be satisfied with what they got.

"It's okay to be worried about her," you stated, starting on your second batch of eggs. Rika seemed to be shocked at your statement, as he had completely frozen his movements. You pursed your lips. "Yuri, I mean. She's the reason you haven't gotten much sleep, right?"

He continued working. "...You're right."

"All I'm saying is that you don't need to hide your worry for her," you stated, moving around the eggs with a spatula. "Especially when you're around her. In fact, your worries might be eased a little bit if you talked to her about it."

"I just... don't want her to feel at fault," Rika mumbled from beside you.

You processed his words. It wasn't long after this that you let out a small snort. He looked at you with red cheeks, feeling a bit embarrassed at your reaction. You waved him off in apology. "Sorry, sorry... it's just-- some of the words you say make me question if you actually know your sister or not."

You piled the second batch onto another plate before glancing at the clock in the room, a small smile coming over your face. Yuka should be waking up soon, meaning you should probably get started on making his breakfast. Brushing that aside, you turned back around to face Rika.

"Yuri's a kind person, but don't let that make you think she dwells on such things... Your concerns are valid and selfless of you, Rika, but she's a lot more than your baby sister. She's very strong, both mentally and physically. She's also extremely independent. There's really no need to worry about stuff like that," you expressed, giving him a pat on the shoulder.

He seemed content with the answering. "Thanks, Y/N..." he mumbled out softly. You gave him a nod and a thumbs up.

"Anytime. Now... Yuka likes his eggs over-easy right?" you questioned, searching your memory for the answer. The topic of breakfast foods was never relevant to make an entrance in this world until the past week, but this was the first time you and Rika had to make eggs. Your guess was merely a shot in the dark if you were being completely honest, though if you thought about it hard enough you swore that Yuka had mentioned something about over-easy eggs while searching through the variety of foods the kitchen had at the beginning of the week.

For the last couple of days you had made french toast, pancakes, and waffles... but eggs seemed to be your last resort. You began to wonder why, considering that they were much easier to make than the rest.

"Yeah," Rika responded. "Both Yu and Yuri."

"I see," you stated, cracking a single egg into your pan. It was a bit of a relief that you had taken the time to master cooking different types of eggs when you first started going to night school, otherwise attempting to flip this over-easy egg would have been a nightmare.

Cooking his breakfast went by quickly, and before you knew it the meal (if you could call a single egg and a glass of orange juice a full meal) was plated and ready to go. The sound of the door opening caused you to glance over your shoulder, a small smile gracing your lips at the view of the person walking into the room. "Morning, love."

"Ah," he mumbled out, voice still slightly groggy from waking up. "Good morning."

You gave him a gentle smile, nodding your head towards the counter. "I cooked up an egg for you. It's not much, but..." you trailed off, rubbing the back of your neck. "It's pretty much all we have."

He hummed, taking a seat and looking down at the food. "Anything you cook would satisfy me enough. Don't worry about it."

The comment made you blush a bit. Rika seemed to notice this, giving you a smirk and nudging your side. You elbowed him gently and playfully, mumbling a small, "Shut up..."

Turning your focus back to the eggs in the pan, you simply smiled. Domestic moments like these were something you hadn't gotten much of a chance to experience in the prior stages of your relationship due to this world. This was definitely something you couldn't get tired of.

--------------------------------

After serving breakfast for a good majority of the residents in the building, you were finally able to take a seat and eat some food for yourself. After consistently cooking and plating up breakfast for a couple of hours without getting a bite yourself, it was only natural that you had gotten hungry.

"Huh?" Yuri deadpanned across from you, looking up at Rika as he set down her plate. "Rika... is this all my breakfast?"

You finished chewing your bite, giving her a sympathetic smile. "Unfortunately..."

"It lasts for one bite!" she shouted, a destroyed expression on her features.

"Sorry..." Rika mumbled, placing his hands on his hips.

Yuri was about to respond, but was abruptly cut off by a deeper voice entering her ears.

"That's all we have. Our food supply leaves much to be desired." Yuka had entered the room, now dressed in his signature outfit, a cigarette in hand. "During the week, the Guardian Angel's have been protecting people who're dragged into this world against their will. So they couldn't get us food. We have run out of supplies."

You finished up your plate, gathering it and beginning to walk over to the sink to wash it off. Before you left, you gave Yuri a pat on the back, letting out a silent laugh at how she begrudgingly ate her food.

"Although the inflow of summoned people has stopped, the boundary between the worlds remains unstable... We cannot return everyone to the regular world yet, and it's too early for us to relax," Yuka finished, glancing at you as you walked by. You caught the action, giving him a grin before sticking your dishes in the sink.

You started the water and began to rinse off any grease or excess food, listening carefully as to the conversation at hand. As you grabbed a sponge, Yuri spoke up. "Ehh... it can't be helped then... I'll have to chew slowly and carefully..." she moped, causing you to chuckle.

In the act of fully drying off your plate, Yuka seemed to perk up a bit, suddenly speaking up. "Seems Kuon found a place to obtain food."

"Great!" Yuri shot up, slamming her hands against the table excitedly.

"It's ten kilometers from here. The route there and back looks somewhat tedious..." Yuka muttered, swiftly putting out his cigarette. "In this case, the capability to go beyond the dimensions would simplify our work." He looked over at Yuri and crossed his arms.

"Huh?" she questioned in response. You watched the two interact, leaning against the counter and resting your chin in your hand. There was a moment of silence, but Yuri gave Yuka an innocent smile suddenly.

"I'm sorry, Sniper... but I can't help you get food. I have another battle waiting for me!"

You could practically imagine the dumbfounded look on Yuka's face by the way his body tensed. Yuri quickly skipped out of the room to avoid hearing any protests, causing you to lift a hand up to your mouth to muffle your laugh.

Gathering yourself together, you half-heartedly raised your hand. "I'll go and grab it with you."

Yuka glanced over at you and shook his head, but ultimately ended up allowing you to go with him anyway.

-------------------------

"I can't believe it, that Yuri Honjo... What battle is she talking about?! She's the Administrator! She's leaving me what should be her job!" Yuka voiced his aggravation as you calmly rubbed his back.

"Ah, well... she is a teenager after all," you stated. "If I were in her shoes, I'd definitely prefer being able to play video games over going on a supply run. Plus... " Putting a finger up to your chin, you glanced at the building around you. The realm seemed practically endless. Being the Administrator and having to keep up the boundary between two seemingly infinite worlds must have been exhausting. "She does have a lot of stress on her shoulders. I don't blame her for wanting to relax."

"Well..." he sighed, letting go of his frustrations. "The game club is a place where she can relax."

You nodded, shooting him a smile. Now that the threat of the Masks was dormant and thankfully inactive, relaxation was a luxury that you could afford. God knows that the people involved in the entire Administrator shenanigans needed it. The event was messy and tiring. In fact, you were just barely getting to the point of allowing yourself to go back to normalcy nearly a week later.

Your focus was interrupted by a hand gripping your own tightly. Yuka dragged you back behind him, his eyes wide. You gazed around his form curiously, only to be met with quite an unpleasant sight.

The bridge leading into the building was, for lack of a better term, completely obliterated. How the hell did it get like this? Wooden planks were split into, the ropes tying them all together were snapped, and to top it all off, the strong breeze flowing throughout the many buildings blew the bridge back and forth. Talk about instability.

"Kuon..." Yuka mumbled, voice slightly shaky. "Is this the only suspension bridge that leads to the restaurant?"

As he waited for a full response, you rested your hand on his arm and stepped out from behind him. Peering down past the bridge, your body involuntarily shivered. The drop from the broken overpass would kill you, no doubt about that. Letting out a hum, you turned back to your boyfriend.

"What did she say?"

"There's no other way into the building... if I fall, nothing would happen to me, but..." He gawked down at the ground in the same way you did moments prior. He quickly shot his eyes back up to you, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down as he gulped. "Ah... I mustn't look down. Maybe we should leave it to Guardian Angels? No... that wouldn't be nice at all..."

You gave him a sympathetic smile and rubbed his back. It was certainly a rare sight to see him so nervous. In the midst of all the chaos, you nearly forgot about his fear of heights. The sky behind the two of you was beginning to transfer from it's late afternoon hue to a darker blue. It was getting late, and you could only assume that the group back at base was preparing for dinner.

"I'm going to come with you, does that help calm you down?" you questioned, watching as he slowly perked up. Even though he didn't answer you with words, you could tell that the declaration of your presence managed to give him a hint of motivation, telling by his body language. He stood tall, reaching into his jacket.

"Alright, let's focus!" he stated, and you let out an internal cheer. It was cut short by the sound of a lighter flicking. "First, let's stay calm and smoke."

You shook your head with a laugh, watching as he puffed on the cigarette. He blew out the smoke away from you, and before you knew it, he was finished. He crushed the smoke with his foot, turning back towards you with an awkward cough.

"Ah, Y/N... just to be safe... you should ride on my back. I wouldn't want you to fall."

Your eyebrows raised at the sudden request. You were still trying to get used to the whole... 'having a partner that genuinely loves and wants the best for you' thing. But don't misunderstand - you appreciated it greatly!

Shooting him a cute smile, you nodded enthusiastically. "Sure!"

With those words, he adjusted his rifle so it wouldn't be jabbing into you while you were on his back and lifted his arms up. You excitedly jumped up, wrapping your arms delicately around his shoulders. He cupped his hands underneath your thighs and secured you closely to him. Letting go of one thigh to grab onto the rope, he whispered a simple phrase.

"Hold on tight."

"You don't have to tell me twice," you chuckled, stiffening your grip.

If you thought the view below was intimidating from where you were standing before, you definitely had not prepared yourself for what it would look like perched on the back of a man taller than you. From where he stood, you could totally understand his fear of heights (although, you were sure he was used to his view on the world.) If you were to fall from this height by yourself, it would be instant death.

Your mind traveled back to the many people you had encountered in this realm that had fallen to their death. The unforgettable sound. The thought made you wince.

Pushing the unsettling thoughts of the past out of your mind, you rested your head gently on Yuka's back. With your ear pressed against his back and your eyes staring out to the sky, you let your body relax a bit. The sun was setting, and the reflection of the light on the clouds was captivating. Yuka would keep you safe from meeting such a terrible fate as those you had just remembered. You knew he would.

It was only then that you had full focus on the sound entering your ear.

Badum... Badum... Badum...

You had once read an article about how hearing a person's heartbeat was good for calming nerves. It wasn't that you thought the words were a lie so to speak, you just had never had an experience to prove them to be true. You were now realizing how much effect a simple heartbeat could have on you.

You were sure that if it were anybody else's heartbeat it would've been different. Something about having the beat of your partner's heart gently tap it's way into your ear was incredibly calming. Paired with the gorgeous sunset your eyes were still gazing over, you could fall asleep easily.

In fact, you probably would have if it weren't for the sudden change of scenery. The outside lighting quickly disappeared the moment Yuka walked into the building. You woozily lifted your head up off of his back and gave his shoulder a pat, signaling him to put you down. The two of you followed Kuon's directions to the kitchen.

As you opened the door, you were in awe at what you saw. The area was huge, not to mention extremely clean. Just who the hell was cleaning all of these buildings? Was it a mechanic of this realm? Self-cleaning structures? God, what you would give to have something like that in your apartment...

"Now, we'll not have a problem with food," Yuka stated, waltzing over to the refrigerator. "I wonder what you and Rika will do for dinner today-"

His statement stopped suddenly, causing you to snap yourself out of your trance. You could only awe at the cleanliness of the kitchen for so long.

"What's wrong?" you questioned, peeking over at him. After a moment or two, you still hadn't received an answer. Slowly sauntering over to him, you peeked over his shoulder. "Yu-"

Your voice stopped itself from dancing out of your mouth, your eyes widening. "Eh...?"

"Kuon... they're all empty!"

Your jaw slacked down, shock painting your face. The trip here took around two hours give or take, along with the added time it took to carefully cross the bridge... only to be met with nothing?!

Quickly composing himself, he shut the fridge door and pulled out his phone. "Maybe someone beat us here," he muttered, taking off one glove as he typed in a number. "There are rumors in this world about forces and their existence that escape our imagination. I shudder to think."

He tapped his thumb down on the call button, quickly going up to press the speaker button in the same fashion. After a few seconds of waiting for the other party, they finally picked up. Yuka wasted no time in breaking the news.

"Hey, Rika... about the food, I've got bad news for you."

"Ah, Yu... About that... Listen, I was going to call you..."

You furrowed your brows, pursing your lips. "What do you mean? Is everything okay?"

"You see, Yuri couldn't wait, so... she ended up going on her own to bring it all..."

You deadpanned, running your hands through your hair as Yuka reacted in the opposite way.

"What?!" he shouted, body tensing up from the momentary shock.

"So... anyway... I'll prepare you guys something in the meantime! Don't worry about rushing back to help, Y/N. I got this."

Rika was the first to end the call, leaving yourself and Yuka in the eerily clean kitchen with nothing but the knowledge that you would have to trek back. Letting out an exaggerated sigh, you looked out of the window in the kitchen. The sky was almost fully dark, only a small remnant of the sunset being left on the tips of the wispy clouds.

"I guess... we'll go back." You shook your head, reaching for Yuka's hand. He stood dumbfounded in the middle of the kitchen, still attempting to process the fact that you had journeyed all the way out here only to be told that it was basically for nothing.

Coming to his senses pretty quickly, he intertwined his fingers with your own, beginning his walk out of the building. His next words were said with nothing but annoyance.

"That Yuri Honjo..."

-----------------------------

After getting a two hour long piggyback ride from Yuka back to homebase (in which you attempted to tell him that you were fine walking the whole way, but he insisted, not wanting to tire you out), you were met with some leftover food that Rika had made.

If there was one thing you found out from the meal, it was that Rika made amazing beef curry. His cooking skills were nothing to sneeze at. He also showed you the extremely large variety of food Yuri had delivered back from the kitchen, the sheer amount of edible substances surprising you. You'd never seen so much food in one place.

Shortly after you and Yuka finished up your meal and helped wash the dishes, Rika informed you that Mayuko requested to talk to you both. It didn't take you long to find her in front of Yuri's room, leaning against the wall with her arms crossed and eyes downcast to the floor.

Cutting quickly to the chase, you greeted her with the question looming in the air. "We didn't see Yuri in the dining room... is she okay?"

Mayuko answered the question by leading the both of you into the girl in question's room, allowing you to see her state.

Yuri's eyebrows were furrowed as she slept, small zaps of electricity surrounding her every few seconds.

"She returned at night and went to bed without dinner," Mayuko stated, a flash of concern passing through her eyes.

"With each passing day, she sleeps more and more..." Yuka added.

You bit the inside of your lip, a frown coming over your face. "Maintaining the boundary all day... she never really gets any rest."

Yuka brought his hand up to adjust his hat with a sigh, bringing it down to grip the edge of the blanket not long after. He brought it up to her shoulders, securely tucking her in. "We owe our peace entirely to her. I had a lot to be angry for today, but I'll let it slide this time..."

He turned to Mayuko, gently urging her to get some rest before tugging you out of the room, Mayuko following along. You looked back over at her once more before the night ended.

Yuri was incredibly strong, you couldn't deny that. It was scary not knowing what would happen next. There was no telling what would happen to Yuri, nor what would happen in this world. But one thing was set in stone, and that was the fact that no matter what comes towards you in the future, you would stay by their side.

chapter factoids:
-Rika is very grateful for your help while cooking! He's also glad to have somebody to share his love of cooking with.
-If you couldn't tell, Yuka is extremely protective over you. After seeing you get hurt time after time, he has made it a goal of his to protect you from harm in any way possible. This is the main reason he pushed you behind him unconsciously, and also the reason he offered you a piggyback ride. He cares about you a lot.
-Yuka was as cautious as possible while taking you across the bridge. He was fully aware that if he fell he would be fine, but he refused to let anything happen to you.
-You were entirely correct in assuming that being with him would calm his nerves. He felt much more at ease crossing the bridge with you by his side - or... on his back.

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a/n:

I AM SO SO SORRY FOR TAKING SUCH A LONG TIME TO GET THIS OUT!! this past month has been insane and so busy,,, not to mention, writer's block hit me hard. i could never find the motivation to write this out haha

now that it's out, i sincerely apologize for any typos or grammar mistakes! i was in a rush to publish so i didn't proofread,,,

buttttt~ there will be one final chapter after this one and then this story will officially come to an end! crazy, right? for those of you who have stuck with me throughout this crazy ride, thank you! i appreciate your support and will be forever grateful for it!

until then, see you next time<3

-aly