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V13 Story I – Part 04

I got up and started walking, each step churning the food in my stomach.

One wrong move, and I would have ended up clutching my belly, collapsing to the ground. So I moved forward carefully. Yusuke and Nanami remained still, watching me. Neither of them even bothered to ask where I was going. I headed straight for the entrance, put on my leather shoes, and opened the door.

“Kyaa!” An unexpected squeal sounded right close to me.

“Huh?”

“I-I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, I’m so sorry. I wasn’t trespassing! I was just about to ring the doorbell, really! Um, Nanami-sa—Odagiri-san?”

“Wait… are you…?”

A woman stood at the door, bowing so frantically I worried for her brain cells. Teary eyes met mine. Her soft black hair fell over her shoulders, which were wrapped in a green pea coat. I recognized her youthful face.

Morimoto Yuina. She was the woman who had been tormented by the nightly sounds of digging.

For some reason, she was holding a neatly wrapped box. Drawn by the commotion, Nanami peeked out from the living room, poking her head through the gap in the sliding door.

“Oh, you’re here,” Nanami said. “That’s great. As you can see, Odagiri-san is right here.”

“Y-Yes. I finally got to meet you. It’s been a while. Odagiri-san, um, here.”

“Yes, it’s been a while. Uh… what’s this?”

“It’s a thank-you gift. For the thing with Shiro-chan. I hadn’t properly thanked you yet. I came to your apartment before, but you weren’t there, and when I was wandering around by your door, Nanami-san helped me out. I came by again today, but you were out again, so I thought I’d ask Nanami-san to hold onto it for you. But I’m glad I got to see you,” Yuina said, smiling awkwardly.

The shadow that once clouded her face was gone. I accepted the box, and Yuina nodded in relief. Her face brightened even more when she looked behind me. Turning around, I saw Yusuke poking his head out like a curious goose from above Nanami.

“Oh, long time no see,” Yusuke said upon noticing her. “How did it go after that? Did your big escape plan from the rundown house—the move—go well? I was curious, but we’ve been swamped ourselves.”

“Oh, yes. It went smoothly. I managed to get through it all without a problem. You both should come visit my new place sometime! Nanami-san, you’re welcome too, if you’d like… um, wait, what?”

Yuina tilted her head. She looked around, studying Nanami’s face before shifting her gaze between Yusuke and me. Her expression grew puzzled.

“When I was stumped, Nanami-san showed me to the landlord’s unit and told me to come by if I needed help. I thought it then too, but… have I been to this place before?”

“Huh?”

“I don’t think I have. This should be only my second time here… so why does it feel so familiar? I feel like we all—Odagiri-san, Yusuke-san, and Nanami-san—had a great time together here… but there was someone else, wasn’t there? Yes, there was someone else… I’m sure. Someone nice and kind-hearted.”

Yuina fell silent, perplexed. I recalled the dream I was trapped in. When Yuina couldn’t sleep, Yusuke and I took her to Nanami’s apartment. Then, along with Aya, the five of us had a pillow fight. But right now, Aya was missing from that group.

I grasped my left arm, the one she had given me. That dream was based on reality.

Yes, it was just a dream. But Yuina seemed to remember faint traces of that fictional event.

People’s subconscious can sometimes connect. I had once wandered through Yusuke’s dream and the dream of a certain repulsive man. When the scarlet woman used Yuina as a reference for constructing the dream, she might have influenced her dreams as well. If Yuina remembered even a faint trace of a time that never existed…

I squeezed my left hand tightly. Even here, the presence of that kind and gentle person lingered.

“Please don’t forget,” I said.

“What?”

“Don’t forget about her. Not many people know she existed. Even a faint recollection of how kind-hearted she was is more than enough. It would mean a lot to me if you kept her in your memory.”

Yuina nodded, almost as if entranced by my words. Nodding back, I stroked the box, turned around, and slipped off my shoes, heading back to Nanami. She eyed me suspiciously.

For some reason, Yusuke was limp. Nanami had adjusted the sliding door just enough to fit her neck, and Yusuke had gotten caught in it. Figuring he’d be fine, I looked away and handed the box to Nanami.

“Nanami-san, I have a favor to ask. Could you hold onto this for me until I get back?”

“I don’t mind, but if you don’t come back, I will absolutely kill you.”

“Not coming back… humans… one strike and… as expected from the little gremlin… ugh.”

Poor Yusuke got squished even more as Nanami reached through the gap to take the box from me.

I returned to the entrance and faced Yuina again, noting the concern on her face.

“I’m sorry, but I have to leave right away,” I said. “Let’s catch up some other time. We’d love to visit your new place soon.”

“O-Okay, anytime on my day off. But, um, where are you going?” Yuina stared at me uneasily.

I clenched my fists. Mayuzumi’s smile flashed in my mind.

“To save someone,” I growled.

“What?”

“I don’t know if I can, though.”

Her bewildered expression made me slip and reveal my doubts. Even if I reached Mayuzumi, I had pretty much no way of bringing her back. Could I really bring Mayuzumi Azaka back to the real world before she completely shattered? As I wrestled with these bitter thoughts, Yuina spoke with a quiet confidence.

“You can.”

“What?”

“Someone who’s saved one person can save others, again and again.”

With a gentle smile, Yuina reached out and lightly squeezed my right hand, but then quickly let go. Sensing something from how I clutched my left arm, she grasped my left hand instead, holding it firmly with both of hers. Then, her expression changed.

“Please, save them, just like you saved me. So that they can look forward and keep moving.”

Yuina stared at me with a determined gaze. I remembered seeing those same eyes once before, in the basement of her house. After digging up her friend’s bones, she had wiped the dirt from her cheek fiercely. Her tear-filled eyes had glared ahead, eyes that said that as long as one had the will, they could move forward.

She tightened her grip on my hand. “Hang in there. No matter how hard it gets, I’m rooting for you. May happiness come your way,” she said softly, as if in prayer.

Slowly, Yuina released my hand and lowered her head, looking a bit embarrassed. I nodded silently. That was all I could do. Yuina didn’t know the details, yet she still gave me words of encouragement. I had once helped her, and now that small, seemingly insignificant act was returning to me when I needed it most.

I kept her words to my heart as I stepped outside. Before leaving, I turned around.

Yuina, Nanami, and Yusuke—still stuck in the sliding door—were all watching me. I could have easily put on a gloomy face, could have uttered countless pessimistic words. Honestly, the outlook was bleak, and hope was scarce.

Mayuzumi had called her fate inevitable. She claimed that as someone who had laughed at the death of others, she deserved to fall into the spirit world. If she saw my foolish actions, Mayuzumi would shrug and deem them futile. That’s exactly why I couldn’t give up.

I remembered her beautiful smile. Who, I wondered, had ever asked to see that face?

It finally hit me. I was absolutely furious.

I didn’t try to understand her. And she never listened to me. That’s how we were, right up until the very end.

And that’s precisely why I refused to let any darkness show on my face. I was not going to give up on her. I wouldn’t let despair take hold or allow fear to freeze me in place. I wouldn’t let the terror of the scarlet woman paralyze me again.

Just like Nanami earlier when she pointed down the hallway, I gave a thumbs-up and thrust my fist forward.

I took a deep breath and told myself to smile. Smile, smile—don’t let them see you anxious. I had to force myself to believe in the me that someone else believed in.

Then, I shouted with everything I had. “I’m off!”

“Safe travels!” all three of them said. Yuina was smiling, while Nanami and Yusuke wore grave looks.

I slammed the door shut. Under a sky where crimson petals drifted lazily, I took off without a second thought.

What would Mayuzumi say if she saw how stupid I was?

She’d probably sigh and say, “Are you an idiot?”

But that was fine. There was no way I was giving up just because she told me to.

It felt like I was picking a fight with Mayuzumi herself.

And yet, I couldn’t shake the feeling that even if she had tried to stop me, she knew all along that I wouldn’t listen.