A Life Without Color

Chapter 8

Meanwhile at school

Ryuuen stood at the edge of the rooftop, his hands clenched so tightly that his nails were cutting into his hand. The sun shone directly in his eyes and he glared back, as if daring it to inflict damage. Albert quietly approached him, and placed a large hand on his shoulder. Ishizaki and Ibuki stood leaning against the wall, watching their leader vent for the last time.

"Hey, Ryuuen," Ibuki asked. "How come you're so upset about this? I never thought you were to type of person to get all teary over Ayanokoji, of all people"

Ryuuen turned to look at her, and she flinched at the sight of his unadulterated fury written all over his face. His eyes were roaring like a tiger that escaped from it's cage.

"That goddamn monster! I was supposed to be the one to defeat him, and he just goes and dies in a fire! This isn't a win!"

He turned around and slammed his fist against the wall with all his strength. The sound reverberated throughout the area.

Ishizaki looked anxiously at his watch. "We'd better go. We're due to leave in 20 minutes and someone may have heard that."

"You three go ahead," Ryuuen replied. "There's no way my folks will come to meet me anyway."

Ibuki scoffed and started down the stairs leaving Ryuuen standing at the edge with Ishizaki and Albert looking at him worriedly.

"I said, GO!" Ryuuen screamed, looking like he was about to turn around and pummel them.

Ishizaki and Albert ran down the steps, not wanting to face Ryuuen's wrath. Their hearts were full of sorrow as they thought of the pain their leader was feeling, and the death of the man who shared his birthday.

Ibuki stood leaning against the staircase. Everyone assumed she felt no grief, but that wasn't true. What she felt was actually very similar to Ryuuen.

Horikita you bitch, I never got to prove that I was better than you!

___

Ichinose lay on her bed staring blankly at the wall. Her lips trembled as tears slowly rolled down her cheeks.

"Ayanokoji-kun, why? Why him?"

Kanzaki looked at her mournfully. He'd been coming around every day to check on her, but she'd shown no sign of being able to get out of bed.

"Ichinose, everyone is going to be leaving soon. It would mean a lot to the class if you came to say goodbye to them," Kanzaki said.

"The-the class?" Ichinose stuttered. "How can I think about the class with all those people dead?"

Ever since she'd heard the news, it felt like she was drowning. The constant pain in her heart was so intense that she was surprised it hadn't broken yet. She'd never known that it was possible to suffer this much pain and still be alive.

Kanzaki sighed heavily, realizing that he wasn't going to be able to budge her on this one. Her grief was too strong. He walked over to the corner of the bed and sat down with his back facing Ichinose.

"Thank you, Ichinose. You made the past year and a half memorable and fun. You helped our class so many times. You're the sole reason that we were the only class to make it this far without losing anyone. Although we'll be leaving this school, I want you to remember that you can call on me at any time. I remain your second in command no matter what."

Hearing this, Ichinose lifted her head and slowly sat up. Kanzaki turned to face her, showing the strength of his will by clenching his fists with a determined expression.

_______________

Sakayanagi slammed the door behind her with a scowl. How dare Hashimoto assume that he understood how she was feeling? He was lucky everyone was leaving today or else he would have been next on her list of people to expel. Finally alone, she sank down into her bed, feeling the weight of her depression press down on her.

Ayanokoji-kun, the boy I spent my whole childhood trying to emulate... I never got the chance to show you that I could bury you. You weren't supposed to lose to anyone but me.

She buried her head inside her pillow and tried to hold herself back from deteriorating. She was stronger than that. She hadn't cried since she was six years old and had been diagnosed with her heart condition.

Sakayanagi felt the pain and nausea in her stomach increase as she desperately continued to hold back her tears. However, the emotions she was feeling were too powerful to be held back by even the most well constructed barriers. A single tear ran down her cheek, the first one she had shed in nine years.

Why... Ayanokoji-kun, why!?

______________________

"I'm so sorry, Satsuki," Shinohara clung to Sato's shirt as she sobbed hysterically into her chest. It had been four days since she'd learned about her boyfriend's death. Instead of becoming easier with time, the pain she'd been feeling in her chest seemed to intensify more every day. At least she'd had her friends to comfort her. But now she was about to lose them too.

Sato thought about Ayanokoji, and the relationship that would never be. If only she had tried harder to persuade him, then he wouldn't have been on a date with Karuizawa when the fire started. This was all her fault. If only she had managed to convince him. Small drops of water began to appear on her pants as her hands tightened in Shinohara's. Giving into her grief, Sato began to wail in the arms of her best friend as they remembered the boys they loved.

Kushida stood in the corner smiling sadly. She was genuinely upset that she would be leaving school soon, but her heart was aflutter with joy over the fact that the two people she hated most in the world had suffered a painful death. She hoped the school would reopen soon so she could resume her ideal school life without any worries of her other side being exposed.