What Could Have Been

Reunion

"C'mon! We're almost there!"

They finally made it; the helicopter was a mere twenty feet away. Just a little more to go before they could fly their way to freedom.

"M-Mr. Mask!"

The masked man looked over his shoulder to get a good look at the girl whose hand he was holding. Her skin was glowing from the thin coat of sweat and her beautiful green hair was sticking onto her face. The heroes were able to fight off the masks that were protecting the chopper and decided it was finally time to make their grand escape. Yuri, Mayuko, Rika, Sniper Mask, Kuon, and everyone else that fought alongside them were finally going home.

"I-I can't keep up," the girl panted heavily. Her claim was proven as she started to trip over her own two feet.

"We're almost there, Kuon," the sniper exclaimed. "Finish strong!"

Kuon looked her angel in the eyes. He was right. She knew he was right. Just a few more feet and the helicopter was theirs.

She gave him a quick nod and continued to run.

Sniper Mask whipped his head forward, concentrating on reaching their destination. The helicopter, it was close, he could practically jump into it. Unfortunately, it was too good to be true. Bullets whisked past Sniper Mask, but luckily for him every single one missed him. However, following the crossfire was an agonizing scream. Sniper's heart dropped as he felt a light weight pull down on his arm. He slowed to a stop and turned back to check on Kuon. All of a sudden, he couldn't breathe, and his body grew weak. Laying down limp on the ground was Kuon. Her uniform, her hair, and her skin were stained a bright crimson.

"K-Kuon," Sniper Mask said in a hushed voice. He knelt down beside the girl and carefully lifted her head.

She opened her mouth to call out to him, but her words came out as an inaudible whisper. She reached her hand to touch his face, tracing her thumb along the cracked plastic of his mask.

"I-I'm sorry," Kuon managed to say. "I-I guess... this is... goodbye..."

"No! Kuon!"

The life in her eyes faded as Sniper Mask's cries no longer reached the dying girl.

...

"Kuon!"

The young man jolted awake as he hungrily gasped for air. He felt as though he hadn't been breathing and tried taking deep breaths to compensate. His head swished from side to side as he peered into the darkness of his bedroom. As if they had minds of their own, the young man's legs forced him to scramble out of bed. He found himself entering what seemed to be a bathroom and quickly flipped on the light switch. After his eyes adjusted to the blinding light, the anxious man looked in the mirror that hung in front of him.

"It... It was only a dream?"

He was relieved to see that his face wasn't hidden beneath that dreadful mask. He lifted his left hand to trace the small pink scar that made its mark below his left eye.

I'm still Yuka Makoto.

Yuka let out a quiet sigh, thinking how pathetic he was being for psyching himself out the way he did. It had been two years since his escape from the high-rise world. It had been two years and he was still having nightmares. How long would it take for him to get over it? He always asked himself that, but the answer was never clear. Before heading back to bed, Yuka rinsed his face and neck with the sink water to wash away the cold sweat.