35)Suspended trap

Miku (smiling but hiding her concern):

"Sit down, I'll make you something right away."

Ryuichi sat quietly in one of the chairs, his hands on the table, his gaze calm but looking like he was carrying a mountain on his back.

Natsumi (slightly shyly):

"I thought you were going to sleep all day..."

Ryuichi (in a semi-whisper):

"Sleep? After what happened? It's like the emptiness still haunts me even in my dreams."

They looked at him silently, each trying to read what was behind those words. In the next moment, a heavy silence fell over the kitchen, broken by Miku's motherly gentleness:

Miko:

"Will you tell us about what you saw... there?"

Ryuichi stopped moving the hand that was fiddling with the lid of the cup, stared at the rising steam, and then said:

Ryuichi:

"It can't be described in words. The nothingness was... fuller than any place I've ever been. It was as if all my thoughts, all my feelings, every breath... had been stripped from me.

But... there was a voice. Faint... but it was trying to keep me together."

Natsume blinked, feeling a chill run through her body.

Natsumi (anxiously):

"A voice? Was... someone with you?"

Ryuichi smiled faintly and looked away.

Ryuichi (quietly):

"Maybe. Or maybe it was my remains... trying to save themselves."

Miku (quietly):

"But you're back... and that's what matters now."

He shook his head silently, then took a deep breath as if to release all the residue of estrangement from his chest.

Ryuichi (softly):

"Thank you... because I'm still here."

Natsumi (with a slight smile):

"I'm... really sorry, Ryuichi. I wasn't supposed to..."

Ryuichi (gently interrupting):

"Don't apologize. You did what you had to do. And maybe... it was necessary."

There was another moment of silence, and then warm soup began to be served in front of him. He took the spoon slowly, looking at it as if it were a real treasure after the journey of nothingness.

Ryuichi (in a half-laughing voice):

"Post-life soup... especially delicious."

Miku laughs lightly, then goes to sit across from him.

Miku (with a warm smile):

"Make sure you stay alive for breakfast as well."

Ryuichi takes the first sip of the soup, his eyes involuntarily closing as the warmth engulfs him.

Ryuichi (with a sigh of relief):

"This is... like a hug in a bowl."

Miku (laughing):

"Well, that's the first time I've heard a description like that."

Natsumi (watching him with excessive curiosity):

"Do you... do you feel better? How does it taste? Is it too hot? I added a little ginger... do you hate it?"

Ryuichi slowly looked up at her, then said as he chewed:

Ryuichi (jokingly):

"You're watching me like a lab rat that just got out of the lab."

Natsumi (confused and red-faced):

"M-what? No! I'm just... checking on your health!"

Ryuichi (laughing):

"You're supposed to ask me about pressure and temperature, not spices."

Miku (jokingly):

"That's because rarely does anyone survive her vacuum... and now she's wondering if you're still human or if you've emerged in a new form."

Ryuichi took another bite, pretending to be deep in thought.

Ryuichi (in a serious and scary voice):

"Maybe you came back with something else... maybe it wasn't me... just a clone... that likes ginger."

Natsumi stares at him with widened eyes, then crosses her arms:

Natsumi (with artificial tension):

"Stop it, don't joke like that! I swear you look even weirder now."

Ryuichi (with a chuckle):

"Weirdness is a symptom of recovery, apparently."

The three of them laughed together, and the atmosphere in the kitchen began to take on a pure warmth that hadn't existed for days. But inside, Ryuichi's thoughts were still bouncing around, searching for meaning in what had happened... and how he had come out of something no one had come out of before.

As he slowly finished the soup, Natsumi couldn't take her eyes off him, still repeating in her mind:

"He came out of the void... without my help. How? Why?"

At that moment, the miko raised her head:

Miko:

"Ryuichi... If you're okay now, tomorrow you'll have to explain to us what happened. But tonight, rest. It's been a long night."

Ryuichi (quietly):

"Tomorrow... there will be a lot to say."

The cozy atmosphere in the kitchen continues, and with each spoonful Ryuichi eats, the pressure gradually dissipates, as if the soup carries with it some kind of reassurance.

Ryuichi (looking at the nearly empty bowl):

"I finished the bowl... any more?"

He said in a sarcastic tone as he looked at Natsumi, who raised her eyebrows skeptically.

Natsumi:

"You sure you didn't come back from the void with an extra stomach?"

Ryuichi (laughs lightly):

"Who knows... the Void changes us all."

The miko laughs, then gets up to fill a second bowl for him while placing some mint leaves on top of the soup.

Ryuichi (suddenly serious again):

"By the way... tomorrow I have an important practical class at the university, and I'm afraid I'll be marked absent, especially since I missed a similar class last time."

He lowered his eyes slightly, and a tone of concern crept into his voice.

"I don't want my absence to affect the final evaluation, and I don't want to look like a slacker..."

Miku looked at him calmly as she put the soup back in front of him, then sat down and held his palm comfortingly.

Miku (in a firm, warm voice):

"Don't worry, I'll take care of everything. I'll inform management of your situation, and I'll make sure you're never recorded as absent."

Natsumi (supportive):

"And I'll go early and gather everything that will be presented. Even the names of the samples if there are any."

Ryuichi looks up at them, a hint of tired gratitude in his eyes.

Ryuichi:

"I'm... very grateful. I really... don't know how to return the favor."

Miku (smiling sweetly):

"Return the favor? Just remember to eat well, sleep enough... and we'll be even."

Natsume (jokingly):

"And don't ever try to get out of spaces without my permission again."

The three of them laughed together again. But this time, the laugh was more genuine, less burdened.

Ryuichi (whispering to himself):

"Maybe... there's still a little room for life."

After the atmosphere has calmed down a bit, Miku looks up at Ryuichi, contemplating his features for a moment.

Miku (with motherly curiosity):

"By the way, I haven't seen you wearing your glasses since you woke up... is everything okay?"

Ryuichi stops chewing for a moment, then smiles lightly without looking directly at her.

Ryuichi:

"Oh, don't worry... I left it on the table to charge. The battery is almost dead."

He said it in a casual tone, but inside he was diving into something else.

[Internal - Ryuichi]:

"Aura... are you okay? I haven't felt any reaction from her since I woke up. I can't communicate with her right now, but... I hope she's safe."

He blinked slowly, hiding his absent-mindedness with a simple smile, as if everything was normal.

Miko (reassuringly):

"As long as it's in a safe place and charging... good. Just don't neglect your eyes, dear. Glasses are useful for more than just seeing."

Ryuichi (laughing):

"You're right... they are more than they look."

Miku (rising from her chair with a smile):

"Since the atmosphere was a little charged, how about we lighten it up with a little game?"

Natsumi (eyebrows raised in interest):

"A game? What kind of game?"

Miku (with lighthearted humor):

"A popular game called: "Two Truths and a Lie". Each of us says three sentences about ourselves, two true and one false, and the others have to guess which one is the lie."

Natsumi (her eyes light up with excitement):

"This looks like fun! I think I'm a pretty good liar..."

Ryuichi (leaning forward slightly, smiling):

"I have enough secrets to make it difficult for you..."

He paused, then raised his finger as if he had remembered something important:

"Wait a minute, I'll get my glasses from the room..."

(He quietly retreats into the room, quietly closing the door. There, he calmly grabs the glasses and holds them in front of his eyes, then whispers in a voice only he can hear:)

"Aura... can you hear me? It looks like we're going to play a strange game tonight. Guess what? I have to lie convincingly. Can you help me?"

(The lens of the glasses flashes a faint blue light for a moment, as if welcoming the challenge...)

Ryuichi (laughs to himself as he puts the glasses back on his face):

"Then let's see who's going to expose who, mysterious partner."

(then returns to the kitchen lightly, pretending to be serious):

"I'm ready. Who will go first?"

Miku (raises her palm as if announcing the start of the round):

"Since I'm the proposer, I'll go first."

(She sat up a little smugly, then said confidently):

"Here are three sentences:

1. I once had a fight with a professor over a chemical reaction.

2. I was part of a band in my youth.

3. I can't stand the sight of blood at all."

Natsumi (without hesitation):

"That last one is a lie! I saw you cleaning a deep wound and you're talking like it's none of your business!"

Miku (laughs):

"Well done, indeed... I'm not afraid of blood. I was only pretending during my initial training!"

(Turning to Ryuichi with a raised eyebrow):

"Now it's your turn, tell us your secrets."

(Ryuichi pretends to think, when in fact, Aura is communicating with him through the glasses in a language of dim light and sound waves that only he can hear, giving him clever suggestions to make the lie cleverly hidden.)

Aura (in his mind in a calm, sophisticated voice):

"I suggest that you make the lie so realistic that it seems unsuspicious... For example, choose something that seems normal but is impossible in your case."

Ryuichi (internal whisper):

"Excellent idea... Okay, let's get started."

(adjusts his seat and looks at them quietly)

Ryuichi:

"Here are three sentences:

1. I forgot my name once when a teacher asked me in class.

2. I ate a bowl of candy with chili peppers in it thinking it was jam.

3. I have agoraphobia."

Natsumi (contemplates him intently):

"That last one is a lie, you don't seem afraid of anything."

Miku (with a sly smile):

"No, no... I think the lie is the second one. How can you not notice that the jam is hot?"

Ryuichi (laughs as he nods):

"Actually... the lie is the first one. I've never forgotten my name. How could I forget it? It's the one thing that's repeated to me every day."

(He laughs inwardly, while Aura says in a quiet voice inwardly):

"Good answer, buddy, you seemed to be making it up as you went along."

(Natsumi looks at him in amazement):

"I was sure you had a phobia! So, you really ate chili peppers?!"

Ryuichi (winks):

"You know, I thought it was raspberry jam... That day, I cried like a lost child."

(They all laugh. The atmosphere has warmed up, and the tension has dissolved like salt in water.)

Miku (resting her back against the seat):

"This game is light therapy. Who would have thought?"

Ryuichi (pondering silently inwardly while looking at the glasses that shine lightly):

"Aura... having you here makes my loneliness less lonely."

Natsumi (lifting her tea cup and taking a small sip, then looking at them with a serious, sly look):

"Well, I guess it's time for things to get a little more exciting... Get ready, it won't be that easy."

(She adjusts her seat, interlacing her fingers on the table, as if she's about to drop a riddle.)

Natsumi:

"Here are my three sentences:

1. One day, I was cornered by a pack of wolves in a dark forest during a field mission.

2. I hid three full years of schooling from my mother and falsified results.

3. I caught a dangerous fugitive while working in the field."

(Ryuichi raises his eyebrows, and Mikiko laughs in surprise, then says:)

"Is this a game or a security investigation?"

Ryuichi (in an internal voice to Aura, smiling lightly):

"What do you think, Aura? This Natsume is out of control."

Aura (calmly and deftly):

"The second is emotionally exaggerated, but the first is realistically bizarre. The third one might be real, though strange... guess the third one."

Ryuichi (out loud):

"I think the lie... is that you caught a dangerous criminal. There's no way they'd let you do that on your own."

Miku (thinking and shaking her head):

"No... I think the lie is the wolves. I don't remember the training area having wolves at all."

Natsumi (smiling confidently and calmly):

"Wrong, wrong... the lie was about falsifying results. I don't dare lie to my mom, even in a dream."

(Ryuichi opens his mouth in amazement, and Miku claps her hands laughing)

Miku:

"You're really scary! You caught a criminal?"

Natsumi (very calmly):

"Yes, with the help of a special team. But I was the one who located him, and I had to temporarily confront him until backup arrived."

Ryuichi (internal voice):

"Oh my God... this girl is anything but ordinary."

(There is a brief moment of silence interrupted by the sound of Miku getting up:)

"I think next round we'll make it a little nicer, before the game turns into a formal interrogation."

Miku (smiles softly and then says):

"Okay, now it's my turn... get ready. I'll say it in a normal tone so you won't try to read my facial language."

(She rests her back against the chair, puts her hands on her legs, and looks at them confidently.)

Miko:

"These are my three sentences:

1. I snuck into the university's archives one night to check some confidential files.

2. One day, I called the director of the research department pretending to be the head of the scientific council... And he believed me."

3. I think I figured out who was tampering with Aura's system the last time.

(Ryuichi's eyes suddenly widen, and he hides his nervousness with a tight smile.)

Ryuichi (inner voice, stunned):

"What? Is she... ? Did she know that Aura is with me? That's impossible... it can't be!"

(Aura's voice in his mind, calm and directive):

Aura:

"Calm down, Ryuichi... she's probably joking. If she had proof, she wouldn't have said it in the middle of a game. Stay calm, this is just a psychological trap."

Ryuichi (whispering internally):

"But she's smart, and she might be hinting at something..."

Miku (with artificial humor as she watches their reactions):

"Well, who dares to guess the lie?"

Natsumi (with narrowed eyes, thinking):

"You're able to contact the head of the department, the archive file... I wouldn't rule it out. But the third one... Who was tampering with Aura? Was there even tampering? I think it's the lie."

Ryuichi (smiling lightly, but his voice is slightly confused):

"I... I think... It's, uh... Maybe the lie... is... University archives?"

Miku (laughs lightly as she waves her finger):

"You're both wrong. The lie was... that I claimed to be the president of the Academic Council. There's no way I could have done that, that's crazy!"

Natsumi (incredulous):

"Wait, wait, what do you mean, Mom? Did you find out who messed with Aura?"

(At that moment, Ryuichi freezes in place, his eyes shining with fear, while trying to remain as outwardly calm as possible.)