Alice in Borderland ~ Chishiya

17 - ♥8

'Well,' Raiden says when we arrive at the intersection and stop to look at each other uncomfortably. 'Well,' I say, which only makes it even more uncomfortable. 'Uh, good luck,' he mumbles. 'Yeah,' I reply, 'you too.' He looks at me doubtfully, unsure of what to do next. He then sticks his fist out to me. 'Don't leave me hanging,' he says with a slight smile. I smile back at him and put my own fist against his briefly. 'Don't die,' I say. 'The same goes for you.'

He has the same look in his eyes as when I was pointing the gun at the painting in our last game. He looks like this could just be the last time he sees me. That thought pops up into my head as well, but I shouldn't think about it now. 'Keep your head up,' I tell him, to which he nods. 'I'll see you tonight.' His voice sounds with certainty, as if no other outcome is possible. That's why I look at him strongly and know how to nod at him in the same way. Still, I can't help but feel down when our ways part and I can't see him anymore after looking back one more time. Will we really see each other again? And why does it matter so much to me? It would be more convenient if it weren't the case, but I can't stop it.

The dull appearance of the building doesn't psych me up. The other locations where I played these games looked a bit more challenging. This looks like some department store. How could I play a challenging game here? For a moment, it occurs to me to turn around and go back to the camping store, since I've got one day extra, but then my eye falls on a car parked by the road. There's a person sitting behind the wheel, with a book in front of him. The car is turned off and he uses the light of the lamppost to read.

The Swimsuits from the last game left by car. Would this mean that people from the Beach would also participate in this game? It's an opportunity and I must seize it. That's why I decide to continue walking towards the building and walk through the door. As soon as I cross the invisible dividing line, I immediately feel tension running through my body again. That happens every time I start playing a game. Maybe the location isn't very exciting, but the game probably will be.

I follow the arrows and soon end up in a kind of lobby, where seven people are already waiting. There are three phones left, so a maximum of ten people can participate. While some other people do look up at me, I keep my gaze fixed on the table and ignore everyone around me. I pick up a phone and complete my facial recognition, after which my name is announced by the voice.

I look up because I see someone else looking up from the corner of my eye when I hear my name. Chishiya's not to be missed. He's wearing the same vest as the other two times I saw him at a game. I see he has earbuds in his ears. He's probably listening to some music.

'Hey,' he says with a nod. 'Hey,' I reply in the same way. I quickly look through the rest of the room, but I don't recognize anyone else. Therefore, without saying anything else, I walk towards Chishiya and stand about one meter away from him. On the screen of my phone I can see that the registration will be closed in ten minutes. For a moment, I'm afraid I'll have to spend those ten minutes in boredom, but then Chishiya takes one earbud out of his ear and puts it into my direction, invitingly. Since I have nothing else to do anyway, I step closer to him and take it with a nod. Very softly, I hear some music coming out of the thing, but when I put it in my ear, I can hear everything. I don't recognize it, but I have to admit it's nice to hear some music through the iPod he's carrying.

Wait a minute. When he reached out to me, I thought I saw a wristband. Would Chishiya also belong to the Swimsuits? His clothes don't seem particularly swim-oriented to me, but it could pass for it.

'Look at that,' I hear a boy in the lobby say, 'do you have a girlfriend, Chishiya?' I take a closer look and see that he's wearing a swimsuit and a wristband, just like the two boys next to him. So I'm playing this game with three clear Swimsuits and one suspected. Chishiya doesn't respond to the boy and looks at the screen of his phone, probably to see in how many minutes the registration closes. I follow his lead as I try not to look at his screen or the images of the cards he's already earned. Yet, I can quickly see that there are quite a few already.