I Come From The Dark

Secrets

"Asako, calm the heck down. Everything will be cool!!"

"Kei, I fucking murdered someone yesterday--how the fuck do I calm down?!"

Asako clenched her cellphone in frustration. She was shaking.

Morning sun poured into her dark room from the windows.

"Ugh, okay, I get it, Asako. I know how you feel--but seriously, listen up though, the real reason I called was because we have to be prepared, you know-"

"What do you mean?!" Asako gasped. Her dark circles were palpably intense.

"Um, you know, I've heard Yuki's mom's quite influential. I mean, I don't really know who she is--but I really am not getting a good feeling about her,"

Asako sighed, trying her real best not to freak out.

"So, er, you know what this means, right?--the cops are definitely, like DEFINITELY, going to come to question us,"

Asako let out a deep gasp--she rushed towards the window and peered a look outwards--and fortunately, all she saw was a diminished cat having her regular session of sunbath.

"Ugh, Kei, this isn't fucking helping. You're literally just adding to my anxiety,"

"Ah, crap. I'm sorry--but, like, I just wanted us to be ready for everything that's about to come now. You really wouldn't want to fuck up a police interrogation, would you?"

"Exactly. And, well, yes. I know I am going to indeed fuck it up, Kei," Asako wheezed, "They really will know everything just from my tone. They'll know that we've done something. And it will all be over,"

"Asako, please," Keiko shrugged from her room. "You have to believe in yourself. You really can do it,"

Asako nonetheless murmured with her palm on her forehead. "Ugh, well, I hope so,"

"Well, anyway, do you still have that with yourself?"

Asako exhaled anxiously. She slowly turned her eyes towards a small container in her study table. "Uh, yeah,"

"You really have to get rid of that soon, okay?"

Asako murmured. "Yeah, I will."

"Mm-hmm. And did you thoroughly wash your clothes--especially those pockets?"

Asako murmured again--in an anxious, low voice. "Yeah, I did."

Keiko took a deep breath. "Alright then, Asako--now listen to me very carefully,"

Asako gulped. She rigidly sat on her bed. Anxiety thronged inside her.

"Yuki had indeed called me and invited me to the bonfire. I didn't feel like going alone, so I dragged you along. We did go there--and although there was a bonfire, Yuki was nowhere in sight. We did search for her, but she apparently never really arrived."

"We then decided to stay there for some time and spent most of our time by the bonfire. We stayed in there for an hour or so, and when we were done, we returned to our respective houses at around 7 p.m."

"And this is the story that we gotta stick to, Asako. This will be our testimony to the police,"

A cold shrill ran down Asako's spine. She knew it for a fact that she would never in her life be able to say all those lies without stuttering.

She murmured in a low voice. "Mm,"

"Also--do not say ANYTHING else other than this story, Asako--that would get us in real trouble."