Different Past? Different Future?

He nodded, "Yes. I can return to my timeline."

A heavy silence settled between them. The words she dreaded had been spoken, confirming her worst fears.

"So, this is a goodbye," she managed to voice out, the question carrying a weight of its own. Her voice quivered, her eyes welling up with tears that reflected the turmoil inside her.

Kai seemed to hesitate for a moment before approaching her. His hands reached out to cradle her face, his thumb gently brushing away a lone tear that dared to escape her eyes. She leaned into his touch, seeking solace in the brief contact.

A sudden surge of desperation flooded Mito, and she closed the distance between them, wrapping her arms tightly around Kai. His body stiffened at the unexpected contact, but he didn't pull away.

"Please, Kai..." her voice was barely a whisper, muffled against the fabric of his clothes.

Kai tensed in her arms, his hands hesitantly moving to hold her, "Mito, I cannot stay."

His rejection stabbed through her like a cold blade, but she clung to him, desperate for any semblance of his presence.

"Take me with you, then," she implored, her voice cracking under the weight of her emotions.

"Mito..." he paused, taking a deep breath before continuing, "That would cause a paradox. It might even destroy the timeline. We've discussed this before."

His words echoed in the still air, slicing through her hopes. Mito looked up at him, her teary gaze meeting his. There was a strange softness in his eyes, a hint of sorrow perhaps. But his face was as impassive as ever, revealing nothing more.

"I studied the seals you were working on, Kai," Mito whispered, her voice barely louder than the night's gentle breath.

Kai turned to her, surprise flickering in his ice-blue eyes. His face, usually a mask of composure, showed a crack in his impassive exterior. Mito found herself involuntarily grinning at his reaction, and she chuckled softly, "Did you forget that I am your teacher?"

A slow, gentle smile spread across Kai's face at her words. He didn't respond verbally but his gaze seemed to acknowledge her playful retort. The usual distance in his gaze was absent, replaced with something else, something Mito could not decipher.

"You see," she continued, her tone serious once more, "time always fixes itself. So even if I were to come with you, it wouldn't destroy anything."

Kai heaved a sigh, running his hand through his hair. "I know," he muttered.

Mito's heart skipped a beat. She stared at him, her red eyes wide with shock. "You knew? Then why?" her voice wavered, as she took a step back, her chest heaving.

His face was furrowed with worry, a frown etched onto his face as he glanced at Mito, "As you said, Mito... time fixes itself."

Understanding dawned upon her as she repeated his words, "Time will remove me." Kai simply nodded in response, his gaze never leaving her. The realization hit her hard, but along with it came another emotion, a warm surge of affection. She felt her heart flutter, "You were... you were trying to protect me, weren't you?"

It was a stark contrast to the cruel world they found themselves in, a world where the strong preyed on the weak, where bonds were fragile and often broken under the strain of survival. And in this world, Kai had chosen to protect her, even if it meant denying his own desires.

"I am coming," Mito declared, her voice ringing out with resolute determination.

"No!" Kai's voice cut through the air, his face hardening. His icy gaze bore into her.

But Mito wasn't deterred. Her red eyes were glistening with unshed tears, her voice trembling, yet steady, "I am coming, Kai. It's my life, and I am willing to risk it."

"But I am not," Kai shot back, his voice just above a whisper, the words heavy with unspoken feelings.

In a sudden surge of desperation, Mito rushed forward, hurling herself into Kai's arms. The words tumbled out of her, raw and desperate, "I would rather not exist. I tried to remove my feelings, I tried to bury them, but I can't. You've already changed this timeline with your existence. How can I ever love another man? How can I be with anyone else? I'd rather die than live alone."

Kai looked down at her, his usually guarded face a mask of conflict. He felt her raw emotions wash over him, their intensity slowly chipping away at his impassive exterior. His heart pounded in his chest, an unfamiliar sensation that was both daunting and strangely comforting.

Yet, he couldn't afford to indulge in his emotions, not when her life was at stake. His calculations indicated that time wouldn't allow it. But then again, hadn't Time allowed him and Mikoto to travel to the past? Hadn't their arrival already altered the timeline?

Was it destined already? Were their arrivals part of the timeline? No, that didn't make sense. Kai's mind whirled around the idea, his gaze locked on Mito's tear-streaked face. Time wasn't fixed. It was a malleable, ever-changing beast, bending to the will of those who dared to challenge it.

"Then, time wasn't fixed," he whispered, the realization pouring over him like a cascade of cold water. His eyes opened wide as he circled around the idea.

Mito, still in his arms, looked up at him, her red eyes wide with confusion. "What are you saying, Kai?"

He didn't answer immediately, his mind still working through the ramifications. The timeline he knew, the one he had lived in, it wasn't the same. This wasn't the past he knew, it was an alternative timeline. An alternate reality spun by the fickle hands of time. His presence here, his connection with Mikoto, had already set them on a different course.

As if reading his thoughts, Mito echoed his realization. "This isn't the past you know, is it?" Her voice was small, almost a whisper, but it carried the weight of the world.

"No, it's not," he admitted, meeting her gaze. His face was expressionless, yet his eyes betrayed a flicker of uncertainty.

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