ᑎOT ᗩᑎYOᑎE || 𝗛𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗸𝗼

𝙲𝚑𝚊𝚙𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝙵𝚒𝚟𝚎: 𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝙴𝚗𝚍 𝙾𝚏 𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝙱𝚎𝚐𝚒𝚗𝚗𝚒𝚗𝚐

ᴡᴏʀᴅ ᴄᴏᴜɴᴛ: 1101

☾︎☀︎︎☽︎☾︎☀︎︎☽︎☾︎☀︎︎☽︎☾︎☀︎︎☽︎

Chapter Five: The End Of The Beginning

☾︎☀︎︎☽︎☾︎☀︎︎☽︎☾︎☀︎︎☽︎☾︎☀︎︎☽︎

"Will you meet up with him?" On a quiet afternoon. There seems to be a stiff conversation happening right inside a teacher's office.

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October 12, 1969

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"Why would I?" You scoffed, looking to the side in a solemn expression. It wasn't so easy trying to understand your current situation. You felt anger, frustration, and bothered by what might happen.

What happens after death?

Guess it was time to beg for forgiveness. Now, you're stuck in your school, trying to unlade your sins so you could enter paradise and reincarnate.. it's nonsense. Why would you want to reincarnate? The one life you could remember was already enough for you to learn your lessons and prefer to disappear in silence.

You never wanted to experience another lifetime.

"Amane hates me. He'd probably like it if I don't show my face." Your head lowered as you said those words. They were nothing but the truth, but you couldn't help but feel bothered by those words. "You can't say for sure. He looked worried after hearing what had happened to you."

"Every acquaintance feels that whenever something bad happens."

"Chiyo-"

"-Tsuchigomori." You fought back, looking at him soulessly. You can't say it yourself, but you'd rather not talk about him. The stuffy chair that you've been sitting on was getting unpleasant to be in, so you rose up with a heavy sigh. "Don't contact me for a while. I'll be off doing something I need to do." You said.

After turning to your back, you slowly trudged towards the door and twisted the knob... but he called for one last time. "Chiyo." After hearing your name, you turned your head towards him. "..I hope you don't make rash choices."

---_---_---_---_---_---

"Have you heard of the 8th mystery?"

"Who?"

"Fushigina.. It says she controls memories. When you meet her, she grants your wishes to relive a moment in your life. But, if you get lost in it. She will never let you out."

"I really want to try! I want to go back to last summer vacation!" The time was 3:00 pm, and everyone was swarming to exit the gates below. You can't understand their behavior, but you chose to continue going through the opposite direction. You gripped the pointed kanzashi (hair ornament) with bright ruby jewelry on the end. Your eyes scanned through every nook and cranny in hopes of finding someone.

Enzo. That was your first task. Whoever or whatever Enzo is, Ai told you to protect it.. So, you should probably take it as a priority.

Technically, you still disobeyed her by going back out to the place she told you not to go to. But, there was nothing else that you could do. After Ai vanished, leaving this ornament behind. The place you called home crumbled apart as if it had done its duty and is no longer needed. Nothing ever sunk into your brain. You never even realized that you are alone without Ai. You'll never have a place you call home without her. There was no friend to go to anymore.. The worst was that she left when you needed her the most.

"Ugh.." You groaned, getting enough of going through the same hallway. No matter how much you roam around the place, you can never find Tsuchigomori.

"Chiyo?" Someone called. It kind of feels like deja vu, if you think about it.

It was a voice that screamed familiarity. You're relieved that he finally came to find you-.. but it wasn't Tsuchigomori. Your back turned to a man with a smaller frame and softer features. He was not who you expected at all. Your brows furrowed at him, not knowing how to respond after a complete stranger called you. "It is you!" Instead for a little bit of closure, you never expected what he did next.

"..!" Your eyes widened after he tackled, wrapping his arms and legs around you. "Excuse me?-" You completely froze on your spot, not knowing how to get out of this situation. Even Ai asks for permission before hugging you, apparently not for him.

"It's you! It's you!" He repeated again and again, shaking your body while continuing to make delighted noises. "I never thought you'd go out again!"

"Who are you?" It's hard to roam around this place, meeting another person who claims to know you, but you can't remember. It reminded you of Tsuchigomori's nonsense. Maybe there really was truth behind those crazy remarks.

Did you really lose your memories after failing to find a way to never reincarnate?

Thoughts circulated that you never realized that the male completely went silent and backed away with his eyes wide open. "Huh?"

"I said who are-...!" Before you could finish, you felt a sharp pain on your shoulder. "Don't play with me like that!" The man laughed, hitting you in a joking manner. You can't help but to mindlessly blink by the number of times you were violated today. Out of pure instinct and definitely not rage.. you slapped his shoulder back a little bit more personal than what he did. "That hurts like crap!" You hissed. Somehow, you never expected yourself to come out of your comfort zone.

Instead of a weird look, the man smiled... a little too mischievously for your liking. "Let's go." There wasn't time to respond or even express your opinion. You just found yourself getting dragged by him. "Hey!" You swung your arm back to break off his grip. "Why don't you introduce yourself before being all touchy?"

You don't mind his company.. not that you have a choice in the first place. There's nobody with you now.

The man raised his eyebrows, trying to guess if you truly don't remember him or if you're just trying to joke around. "Do you not remember me?"

"No.."

"Oh." Genuinely, he looked to the side with a dejected expression. As if gravity decided to pull his face down aggressively. "Well..." You thought it was his time to realize that you needed a bit more information... "I don't care. You'll know me if you try harder. Let's go play!" What a nice introduction..

This was just the peak of it. The man dragged you as he jumped in joy while exclaiming all the fun and exciting things in his mind. Soon, you'll come to know how convenient it is, not remembering nor recognizing the people you'll meet again.

☾︎☀︎︎☽︎☾︎☀︎︎☽︎☾︎☀︎︎☽︎☾︎☀︎︎☽︎

A/n

Not me forgetting to do this for the past 12 hours