Chapter 13;  Our broken consteltions 4

  Ah... My head hurts.

  A dull, numbing pain spread inside of my head, spreading like slow-moving poison. My mind felt clouded, thoughts slipping through my grasp like fleeting dreams.

  I couldn't focus.

  Where am I?

  What is this pce?

  I tried to stand up, but I couldn't. There was no strength in my legs—they were trembling. As I tried again, I fell again

  Ah... I haven't eaten in days.

  My stomach feels empty, like there's a hole in it.

  I tried to speak, but my throat was dry.

  I couldn't speak, nor could I walk.

  All the things I had done, all the choices I made—did they amount to anything?

  Was there any meaning in struggling?

  I made Miyuki worry for nothing.

  The ring he gave me was wasted after all—

  Wait... The ring...

  I still have it.

  I can feel it on my left finger.

  Miyuki said that this would protect me...

  It did. It protected me when I was drowning...

  But it's used up now.

  I don't think it could save me a second time.

  After all, there is nothing I can do anymore.

  I extended my hand upwards, trying to grasp something, but no matter how much I reached, I couldn't.

  So I let my hand fall.

  As I was lowering it, I saw something shining on my right hand.

  Ah...

  How could I forget such an important thing?

  I still had the ring I received from my parents.

  I extended my hand upward again, and moments ter, a rift opened in the air.

  A water bottle dropped down.

  I didn't have any strength in my body—I couldn't even drink it properly.

  I reached for the bottle, grabbed it, and lifted it above my mouth. My hands were shaking as I opened it, and water spilled everywhere—

  But some of it nded in my mouth.

  I almost choked, but I swallowed.

  My throat wasn't dry anymore.

  I barely managed to stand up—only to fall again.

  I forced myself up once more, stumbling, barely able to walk.

  My legs gave out, and I fell backward.

  The rift closed.

  My head hit something, but it wasn't the floor.

  It was warm, yet firm.

  A muffled groan came from beneath me.

  "Where?"

  I heard a husk voice as I tried to stand up again, only to fall back down.

  Wait... Did I fall on Fukashigi?

  He’s probably going to be mad.

  I tried to move away, but my body refused to move as I didn't have any strength left..

  I stumbled again—falling even closer to him.

  It was dark, but not so dark that I couldn’t see.

  This close, I could tell.

  Any second now—My lips were—They were going to—No.

  I shouldn’t.

  I tried to pull back, but I was too te.

  Our lips met.

  A-and... A-and... We-we...

  I opened my eyes—A hand was between our lips which was Fukashigi's.

  "The hell are you doing?"

  His voice was calm, but containing a hint of disappointment in it.

  He stood up and stared at me with a bnk expression and sighed.

  I moved back as I fell backwards and tried to stand up again but failed to so, So I just y there.

  He stood up, staring at me with a bnk expression, then sighed like he was already exhausted with my existence.

  I moved back, lost bance, and fell again. My body refused to listen to me. So I just y there, feeling the cold floor press against my skin.

  "It was an accident," I muttered. My throat was still dry, my voice barely audible.

  I tried to stand, pushing my hands against the ground, forcing my weight up, but my body had no strength. I wobbled and colpsed again. This time, I nded directly on Fukashigi.

  A dull thud, followed by a groan beneath me.

  I lifted my head. Fukashigi slowly propped himself up on his elbows, his face a mix of irritation and disbelief.

  "You little..."

  His voice was eerily calm.

  I scrambled backward, but he took a step forward. His expression remained unreadable, but my body flinched instinctively.

  He moved closer, and I moved further away—until he started running.

  Ah, crap.

  I have a bad feeling about this.

  He's mad.

  I shot up, backing away as we circled each other like two animals waiting to pounce.

  "Stop."

  He said, leaping toward me.

  "No."

  I retorted, dodging.

  "If you think I'm mad, then I'm not."

  He said, moving closer.

  "You are mad."

  "I'm not."

  "Yes, you are."

  "No, I'm not."

  He came dangerously close, his face just inches from mine.

  I shut my eyes, expecting the worst.

  A sharp sting shot across my forehead.

  I opened my eyes in shock to see him retreating his fingers.

  Did... Did he just flick my forehead?

  I touched the spot he flicked. It stung.

  There was warmth in it, but...

  "It hurts, you idiot!"

  I lunged at him, pinning him down.

  "Who are you calling an idiot, you brat?!"

  He snapped, flipping me over effortlessly, pressing me into the ground.

  "I'm not a brat!"

  I struggled, trying to break free, but I couldn't muster the strength. So, I did the next best thing—I kicked him in the stomach.

  "You dare..."

  He said that as he grabbed my arms and came closer to me.

  And I kicked his stomach.

  He interlocked our legs, and as he did that, I twisted my leg, got out, and backed up.

  That made him flinch a little bit.

  "You fool!"

  He said that as he came running at me.

  "Idiot!"

  I said that as I kept running.

  "Stupid!"

  We meaninglessly argued for what felt like a long time. As he refused to give up and I didn't either, we kept arguing and forgot where we were; we forgot the darkness of the room, the emptiness of it...

  Eventually, I couldn't run anymore, and Fukshigi ran out of breath. As he y down, he stumbled next to me—he was above me on the floor, and I was slightly below—until he started ughing like there was no stop to it. Strangely, hearing him ugh made me ugh, and I started ughing too.

  At that moment, we forgot where we were, what this pce was, that we had been taken somewhere far away from home, that we were just two strangers, that we had seen someone die in front of us.

  We ughed, forgetting about this forgotten world like there was no end to it.

  And soon after a long time, Fukashigi stopped ughing and looked at me with an unknown expression.

  "Thanks," he muttered something—I couldn’t quite hear it because my head was spinning from starvation.

  I almost lost consciousness as I twisted my leg and fell, but I managed to hold myself upright. As we calmed down and began to assess the situation, I heard something moving—a series of footsteps echoing through the room, accompanied by low, almost inaudible screams from somewhere. I looked at Fukashigi; his expression hardened as he, too, heard the voices. He stepped in front of me, backing up as the footsteps drew nearer. A creaking sound filled the air as light slowly illuminated the space, and the door opened to reveal a figure.

  The figure was an old man, his face etched with deep wrinkles and a solitary mole on his left cheek. His back was hunched, draped in tattered white clothes that hung loosely around him. His long, messy hair framed eyes that were uneven—the sclera of one eye tinged red, his gaze bloodshot and haunted. An ill odor clung to him, and when his dited pupils caught sight of us, he smiled widely in a way that sent shivers down my spine. His yellowed teeth fshed as he straightened unnaturally, the sound of bones cracking accompanying each move. As he advanced, Fukashigi, who had been shielding me, recoiled in fear, and I instinctively backed away too. The old man tried to speak, his words a jumbled mess that I couldn’t decipher, yet his presence alone was enough to compel us into action. In a sudden, desperate motion, Fukashigi grabbed my hand, and together we fled through the door, my body dragged along in the tumult.

  I caught one st glimpse of the old man’s expression—a look of profound sorrow and despair.

  Our footsteps echoed through the narrow corridor as we ran, the sound swallowed by the suffocating silence of this pce. The floor beneath us creaking with each step, old and rotting, like the bones of something long forgotten. The walls, rusted and peeling, seemed to close in, whispering with the wind that seeped through the cracks. The dim light flickered, barely casting enough glow to see the path ahead, making the shadows stretch unnaturally, like twisted limbs reaching for us.

  Fukashigi yanked me forward, his grip tight, almost desperate. My legs trembled beneath me—I could barely stand, let alone run, but his pace never faltered. I could hear his ragged breaths, as frantic as mine, until he pulled me into a room, smming the door shut behind us.

  We crawled beneath the desk, pressing ourselves against the cold, dusty floor. Fukashigi slumped beside me, panting hard, his chest rising and falling like he had run for miles. I could feel my body giving in, exhaustion gripping me like chains dragging me down. For a moment, we got a moment to breathe, until creepy a low pitch, ughter echoed throughout the room.

  I calmed myself thinking that it was just my ears ringing as I looked around the room. The room was an office of sorts. Maybe the one who once managed this vilge worked here The windows were shattered, the night beyond the window darker than anything, there were a few lights around here, with nterns attached to walls. The air reeked of an ill smell, and red stains covered the floor and walls.

  I looked at Fukashigi to see his expression had gone pale, then turned completely bnk as he stared straight ahead.

  I was about to look behind me when Fukashigi’s pupils dited. He gasped, grabbed me, and covered my eyes. Then he stood up—but the desk was low, and he hit his head, knocking the table over.

  At the corner of my eyes, I saw the walls engraved with blood and a what seemed like a head attached to wall, with one eye gouging and the other being hollow, and empty, with its lips eerily stretching out, having barely any hair, as its tongue was not no more and whatmore was its brain was showing.

  I could not quite see it fully as I was dragged away and I hoped this was all apart of my imagination, however, as I have exhausted myself too much, and I slowly fell asleep.

  ***

  It hurts.

  ■■■■■ ■■ ■?

  It's cold.

  Ah... I hate this feeling.

  The feeling of not being able to do anything.

  I hate myself.

  The feeling inside my chest that I couldn't do anything. The feeling of hopelessness.

  My heart strangles itself every time I experience it. I cannot do it.

  I don't know how long I will be able to hold on for my life, how long I will be able to deny the truth.

  I already knew it... I already... knew it.

  So why didn't I say anything?

  Ah. Because of my mistakes, everyone is going to suffer again.

  Not again.

  Not this time...

  I don't regret it.

  The moments I have spent with you.

  You were kind to me from the beginning, and treated me with warmth. Even if it was forced, I don't mind it, as long as you're happy with it.

  "Go... without... me..."

  Go without me. I knew it's better—better for you and this world.

  It will be better if I didn't survive.

  I will drag you down, even though you never said anything.

  The time I have spent with you was short, but I wouldn't forget it.

  I will always remember it, even in the darkness.

  Ah... I wish I had told you my real name.

  But well, it is too te to regret things, and I hope you will move forward without me.

  So long... my first friend that I made in this world.

  Fukashigi.

  As I thought of that, my vision blurred and darkened, and I looked behind myself. They were coming, as I was already down, bleeding, and wouldn't have long enough to live.

  I saw Fukashigi crying, with his expression somber.

  Hey, don't look so sad.

  Once you close your eyes, I will be there, beside you.

  Even after all I have ended, this won't end.

  You will continue this journey.

  As I closed my eyes, I saw red flower petals floating around Fukashigi, as they circled and exploded, and the world was consumed into emptiness, and I died, even though...

  ■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■