(Ab)Normal Days - Shinji: Drown Your Sorrows [RE: Ume]
By the time Asuka Tsukamoto had been reduced to a bloody corpse, Shinji was already long gone - another death was perhaps the last thing the librarian needed to witness.
Indeed, he most certainly did not have a reason to stay any longer than it was strictly necessary. He hadn’t known either of the girls, and even if he wasn’t entirely sure how to feel about the fact two more classmates had been killed, remaining in his podium and mourning the deaths of people he had no ties to would be a waste of time. Shinji concluded dwelling on it would do him far more harm than good.
He’d slept quite splendidly prior to the dreaded murder announcement, as Alphonse company had been… pleasant, he supposed, but Shinji still found himself feeling as if he’d never had even a wink of sleep in his entire life. And honestly, he didn’t think he would be able to do so with a billion thoughts plaguing his mind all at once: what if I’m next? Is someone planning to kill me right now? Could the next few days be my last ones…?
NO! Just… stop thinking about that, goddammit!
Almost on auto-pilot, Shinji hurriedly made his way through the portal block and checked the maps in a desperate attempt to distract himself. He had a hard time reading anything - he felt nauseous and his hands were trembling, as they’d always been, from the moment Eikichi had turned into the first victim of Monobear’s game -, but eventually, he spotted something in particular that he didn’t remember being there before.
Right there, just by the restaurant… A library? No, he didn’t need it, not now…
Once at the bar, Shinji went behind the counter and reached for the first bottle he laid his eyes upon after briefly acknowledging the girl already in there with a glance. Turning his attention back to the drink, he eyed the label uneasily, as if hesitating…
…Nope. Old habits die hard.
Shinji opened it, and took a swig.