take a chance with me | ushijima wakatoshi

prologue - tokyo dome incident

Tokyo Dome. 6:50 pm. May 4th, 2010.

In the pulsating heart of Tokyo, Sana, a rising star in the world of J-POP, dazzled audiences with her ethereal voice and captivating stage presence. Adored by fans far and wide, she seemed to dance through life on a cloud of stardust, her every move illuminated by the glow of fame.

One fateful night, as Sana emerged from a sold-out concert venue, the air crackled with anticipation, the energy palpable with excitement. But amidst the throngs of adoring fans, a figure loomed in the shadows, his gaze burning with a malevolent intensity.

Backstage of Tokyo Dome. 10:05 pm. May 4th, 2010.

"Congrats, dear for finishing your very first encore stage." Naomi, Sana's mother spoke while cupping her taller youngest daughter's cheeks. Sana was tall for girls' her age (168.5 cm at 13 years old). One of the traits that she inherited from her late father. Her late father, Hayato stood at 195 cm who was also a professional volleyball player, known as the Emperor Eye. Many volleyball players looked up to him especially setters as he was also known as a genius at his position.

"Thank you, mum. Hehehehehe. I had the most amazing, spectacular night tonight. I remember all the lyrics and the choreos and everything! I did great, right mum?" Sana said excitedly while hugging her smaller mum. "Uuuuu, we should celebrate for this amazing end of my tour! Let's get pizza or cheeseburgers or fried chickens and then milkshakes. No, maybe ice cream? I can't decide. Should we ask Tetsu-nichan to join us? Uuuuuu and Kenma too! I like hanging out with him a lot! He's so quiet and interesting! What do you think, mum?" she babbled about all the things she wanted to eat after having gone through some tough dietary restrictions for almost half a year to prepare for her nation-wide tour. "Slow down, dear, We can get all of them if you want. I'm also starving. But you should shower first. I love you and you smell, Sana dear." her mum giggled while answering as she pinched her nose jokingly over her sweaty daughter. "Mummmm, I don't smell. In fact, I smell like a newborn baby, you know? Blurghhhh, you stink more, Mummyyy! EKEKEKEKE." Sana stuck her tongue while hopping towards the changing room, laughing while running incase her mum chasing after her for making fun of her.

Sana was happily showering in the shower room while humming some songs. She put on a simple white shirt and a pair of jeans, not forgetting her bucket hat and black mask to make sure she would be able to go out without being recognized. 

There was this uneasiness feeling, like she was being watched by someone. She decided to shrug it off, thinking it was nothing as she pulled the doorknob only to be greeted by a man in black attire. He pulled out a knife and threatened Sana to follow him if she wanted to live. "Please, Mr... If there is something you want, I can give it to you. Let me go, my mum's waiting for me, pleaseeee..." she tried to reason with the stranger as she was shaking in fear. The man was bigger than her, smiling menacingly, grabbing Sana's wrist tightly. "What do you mean? I'm your boyfriend! You have to listen to my orders! Do you understand, darling?" the man said. Sana gulped at the word 'boyfriend'. She doesn't even know this creepy man. "HELPP! HELPPP MEEE! SOMEBODY, PLEASEEE HELPPP!!!" she cried for help, hoping somebody would hear her. "Baby, SHUT UPP!! Why would you do that for?? I'm the love of your life, okay?? You just have to come with me, please, baby." the man spoke softly to Sana after yelling at her to shut up. "Please, Mr... let go of me. I won't tell anyone if you just let me go. I'm begging you...please let me go..." she pleaded to the man, crying. She tried to get out from his grip but obviously failed due to the difference in strength. "If you don't wanna be with me, then fine. If I can't have you, then nobody can!!!" he took out a gun from his jacket and pressed it on her skull. "Come on now, fight back, little lamb! HAHAHAHAHAA!!! You will be with me forever!!!" the man laughed, enjoying Sana's attempt to escape from him. Thinking all is lost, then all of the sudden...

"Let my daughter go, you creep!" Naomi yelled at Sana's assailant while holding a metal pipe. "Mummy! Don't come any nearer! He's got a gun! Get out, Mum! I'm gonna be fine!" 

"Not without my daughter! Let go of her!" Naomi held on to the metal pipe she found and got ready to attack the perp. Sana took advantage of the situation when the man was distracted by her mother and escaped but the man's reaction was faster. With a calculated precision, the assailant struck, lunging forward with a chilling determination. In a whirlwind of chaos, Sana found herself ensnared in his grasp again, her cries for help drowned out by the deafening roar of panic.

In a heartbeat, Naomi leaped into action, her maternal instincts igniting like a wildfire in the darkness.

With a desperate cry, Naomi threw herself between her daughter and the assailant, a sacrificial lamb in the face of unspeakable evil. But her bravery came at a terrible cost.

In the blink of an eye, the tranquility of the night shattered like glass, replaced by the deafening roar of gunfire. Bullets tore through the air with deadly precision, their impact a symphony of agony and despair.

Sana's body convulsed with pain as she bore the brunt of the assailant's wrath. Three shots rang out, each one a dagger plunged into the heart of a mother's love. Blood spilled like crimson petals upon the pavement, staining the ground with the bitter taste of tragedy.

With a cry of anguish, Sana broke free from her captor's grasp, rushing to her mother's side. Tears streamed down her face as she cradled her mother in her arms, her heart splintering with each passing moment.

"Mum! Mum! NOOO!! Nooooo!!" she screamed as she saw her mother's body laid lifelessly, not moving an inch. The man pulled her hair while she was still hugging her mum's dead body. "Noooo, please let me help my mum... pleaseeee, please let go of me... LET ME GO, you creep!!!" Sana tried to fight back, not accepting her mother's death. The man pulled the trigger again but this time, he shot right at Sana's right ear, causing her to scream in agony. "Ahhhhh, mum!! Please, I'm begging you... please don't do this!!" her vision started to blur as she tried to stay awake to fight back the man and help her mother. 

The guards and the police came running and arresting the man who attacked Sana and Naomi. She was half conscious while the paramedic was working on her. "Mum, I want mum... Where's my mum?" she asked for her mother over and over again. She was still wandering her eyes, although it was blurry, she saw a black body bag being carried away by other paramedics. "Mum, mum, mum... is that my mum? Please let me see her!" she tried to get up but was forced to lie down again by a pair of paramedics. "Hey, hey. Let's just focus on you, okay?" the female paramedic tried to calm her down but she didn't listen and still tried to get up. Her actions gave her no choice but to sedate her.

 Everything went dark.