CHAPTER 3 VICTIM 1 • BONUS FTE

Who should I hang out with.. ?
Ciel seriously needs to cut that habit of sleeping in. Not that I care about the act itself… I just… want to spend more time with my… one… friend.
Ugh…
I mutter to myself.
“Is that healthy? Should I even care?”
“If I had to answer that, probably no to the first one, and yes to the second.”
“Huh? What?”
“Though it’s nothing more than statistical. It’s not like I actually know what you’re talking about.”
Lord who lives in Heaven…
If I admit that I don’t know where that girl is right now, she might make sure that I don’t live to see tomorrow.
“Right here, idiot.”
She walks right out of a locker…
“That’s it! I’m dead!!!”
…
But…
“Wait—W-What were you doing inside there?”
By choosing a random classroom to sit inside, I very much expected to remain all alone… until I knew what to do.
“I enjoy hiding in dark and confined spaces. It’s relaxing.”
“Seriously?”
“No. I’m going through all the lockers for potential clues left by former students.”
“O-Oh.”
And I just happened to pick the classroom she was already in? Again—seriously?
“And what are you doing here, if I may ask?”
“I just... wanted someplace to sit down while I figured out what to do.”
“What to do? Are you planning an escape?”
She hoists herself on a chair next to mine. Looks like she wants to talk… Seems that I have found a companion.
“Nothing new or special, no. I mostly meant… figuring out who to spend time with.”
“Is that really something you’re worried about? If you don’t want to be alone, you can tag along with anyone. Most of us hang out in duos or trios.”
“Most of us”… is there an odd person?
“Truly, sitting alone while you worry about how not to be alone… that’s reckless.”
“Yeah… Fine.”
It’s not like I’m surprised she’d said that. After all, she spends a lot of time with Oscar, who’s hell-bent on safety…
…Speaking of…
“And where’s Oscar?”
“Right. I was wondering if you were truly that stupid.”
Ouch?
“I’m bound to be a little hypocritical, don’t you think?”
“Uhm…”
Suddenly, I wonder how’s life as a smartass with the face of an infant.
Hmm… No… That was a crude thought. I can’t be turning cynical… right?
But she can’t be that unnerving, that she’d provoke such thoughts… right?
“Well…”
She stared at me while I stayed – possibly – oddly silent, but she suddenly turns her head.
“This is perfect. Please reassure Oscar that you were with me, when he finds me.”
“Is that really needed..?”
“Apparently, it is.”
It’s hard to figure out whether she’s putting on that pout…
“I mean, you’re probably more responsible than I am.”
“I appreciate the assessment.”
…But that “tastefully” haughty behaviour has to be a role she plays, doesn’t it?
“I’m just stumbling through life.”
Truly.
“Meanwhile, you have experience figuring out crimes and facing killers.”
“Hmm…”
“No?”
“No to what? Evidently, I do.”
Is she playing difficult, or is she being difficult?
“Your reaction just… seemed negative.”
“You’re sharp.”
Ugh..! Just… Open up already!
“Gee, don’t give me that scary look. I’ll tell you what you want to hear.”
Grmbl…
“What you said is true. I have experience with crime and criminals.”
“Yeah.”
“Hm-hm.”
“And..?”
“That’s it. That’s all.”
“Huh?”
“I’m home-schooled, for the most part, for need of a flexible timetable. If I may call them my colleagues… The officers and detectives I work with don’t see me as an equal.”
“But…”
She’s finally talking. With her… it feels like she always wants to say something really bad, but she rarely allows herself to go through with it. Now… I’d rather listen and participate than live through the torture… of whatever she thinks the way she acts as a detective is.
“…But you’re more talented than they are.”
“Yes… and no. A good detective is a good detective. At the same time, from awareness of my efficiency… I’d feel irresponsible not to do the work myself.”
…
“Perhaps… that role is why they don’t think we’re on an even playing field.”
With that said, she fails to suppress a grimace.
“Do you actually believe that?”
“Yes, I do.”
Once again, she looks in another direction.
“But… it’s… … also… hm…”
Her entire face is distorted.
“Which is… to say… that… hm… it’s… that… hm…”
With her temple facing me, I can see an actual bead of sweat fall downwards.
“Uhm…”
“After all… well… yes… it’s… hm...”
Lord who lives in… actually, never mind. You didn’t help me before.
“Hhhhhh…”
…
“You… know…”
… …
“I’m…”
… … … Is she ever—
“I’m just… so… _short…”
Wha—Seriously? That was all it was? I don’t even remember what we were talking about now.
“Yes. Yes, you are.”
“Yes… I am.”
She lets out a long sigh.
Well… Even though it didn’t seem special to me, it looks like she’s relieved to have let it out.
“Not just that. I also have the appearance of a child.”
Which… she isn’t, right.
Maybe I should participate by being honest.
“I know that you’re 17. But I still have to remind myself that it’s the case, every now and then.”
“Exactly... and it’s still confusing, isn’t it? Well, we’re not that different in age… but when an older adult realises I’m 17 – not secretly an adult with the appearance of a child, but still 17 – they revert back to treating me like a child… without thinking it important to make an effort to remove their biases based on my appearance.”
“You mean… people treat teenagers like they’re children anyway?”
“Yes and no. To a certain extent, a lot of people have this tendency, yes, but a lot of behaviours will still change based on how old you look. This is how you get adult men who sexualise teenage girls with curvier bodies, and claim that they look too much like adults.”
Uh—What? No, I don’t think I get what that example meant.
“On the other hand, I’ve seen disappointed looks when they clicked that my real age was still underage.”
…
“What?!”
“What I mean to say is that if I somehow looked exactly 17, people would act a certain way – but even with the knowledge that that is my age, they give me the little girl treatment.”
That’s seriously a lot of overthinking and gradually darker examples for something that seemed obvious from the get-go.
“Which is to say... How can I ever hope for a normal social life? For regular teenage experiences? I’m too busy, first of all. Surrounded by adults, second of all. Too used to dark and complex issues… If I heard the latest popular song on the radio, it was in a police car next to a convict. And lastly… any adult subject I want to bring up will inevitably sound off-putting, just because of how I look.”
I definitely don’t have anything to teach her.
She’s not just the detective who saves our asses during investigations and trials. She’s the little-girl-looking detective who does. How could she be detached from that image?
“Do you know… If you will ever grow?”
“Hm?”
She blinks multiples times fast.
“How the hell do you expect me to know that?”
“Well..! Haven’t you been to, I don’t know, a doctor?”
“For my small height?!”
“N—”
No? I… I actually don’t know. Couldn’t you?
…Yes, sure! Surely a worried parent would bring their child to someone if they’re worried they don’t follow the regular growing curve. I just… don’t know if that’s a doctor for sure… since I… … …
“Ahem. Like… dwarfism is a real, diagnosable thing, right? Is that what you have?”
“I don’t know.”
“You… don’t know what you have.”
“No.”
“You don’t even know why you’re like that?!”
She starts blushing.
“W-Why would I bother? So a doctor can tell me, “yep, you’re a dwarf forever”? No thanks!”
“Wouldn’t it be easier to make peace with it if you knew?!”
“B-Because… how do you know that you’re okay? That something like… your organs aren’t growing at a faster rate than your body?”
“What? Than can happen?”
…From red, she turns white.
Wow… That calms me right down. Her expression… I’ve never seen her so genuinely…
…
Suddenly,
I realise I’m talking to a 17 years old girl.
“I feel like it can. It… probably would have appeared already if it were the case, but… are you sure your parents didn’t check when you were younger?”
“N-No. I found out my talent when I was really young.”
It’s the way she stares at me with a defensive expression, yet pays attention. Drawing her arms inwards, towards her chest.
“And?”
“My parents love me, but…”

*BANG*

The two of us jump from our chairs. What is—
It’s Oscar, who slammed the door open.
“Do you know how to open a door any other way?!”
“Ah. Sorry.”

…Who is she? The girl who told Oscar off for something so… technically unimportant?
Oscar was worried, as usual, but I remembered that Mina wanted me to say I’d been tagging along. It seems that she also remembered she was on a mission… because the detective left the room.
It’s not the first time Mina tries to talk about her feelings… but this may have been the first time she wasn’t in control of the discussion.