Arcane | Wind Breaker |

Nostalgia

"Heeey, Tomiyamaa! Whaaat are ya doin'?" Someone called out.

Choji looked over, petting a black and white cat that was chilling outside of a house before getting up and approaching the group he was with.

"The kitty wanted pets!" Choji answered.

"You're so laid-back. We're walking into a fight right now, ya know? If you wanna be the team's next general, ya gotta get your shit together, man," one of the gang members states.

Choji laughed. "Heh heh heh. Buuut... That aside! Who're we fighting this time?" He asked.

The group except for Togame stared in shock.

"Huh?!" They shouted.

The four teenagers who stood in front of Togame and Choji were silent for a few moments before laughing.

"Man, you're definitely gonna be a big shot one day!"

"Yup, I can't wait."

"We're counting on ya."

Choji looked between the teenagers before lightly thumping his chest with a fist.

"Yeah! Just leave it all to me!" He replied.

'I wish we could...be like this forever.' Choji thought.

The short teenager turned toward Togame.

"Hey! Kame-chan!" He called out.

Togame had a soft look on his face, a gentle smile on his lips.

"Heh heh! Let's get going!" Choji beamed.

All of a sudden, Choji's surroundings turned black which confused him as he looked around.

"Uhh... Wuh? Kame-chan? Arima? Numa-chan? Where...did everyone go?" He called out.

'Huh? What's all this? Oh... It's a dream... But...it feels so... nostalgic...'

Choji's eyes fluttered open to see Togame looming over his figure with a sullen look.

"Hm? Kame...chan... Why...are you making...that face?" Choji asked before turning his attention toward the crowd that was silent.

His gaze then turned toward Umemiya. "Oh...I...lost...to Ume-chan," Choji then looked back up at Togame, "Kame-chan. In my dream... I saw...us... From a long time ago. Everyone was smiling. It was really fun...really nice...it's been a long time since I've felt that. And...I think... I understand now. That I had a lot of fun, too...when everyone was laughing together. So... Hey...smile, won't you?"

Togame's eyes widened a bit before returning to a sullen expression as he lowered his head.

"I'm sorry...Choji..." Togame apologized.

Choji stared at him in confusion.

"I left you...all alone. While I never understood...why you were suffering the whole time...I decided...to distance everyone from you. I was hurting the whole team...and making them hate me...so that you wouldn't be the one to hurt them...so that they wouldn't hate you. You were my paragon...and I couldn't let that essence crumble," Togame says.

"...Essence...?" Choji repeated.

"The ideal world where you're beloved by everyone around you...and I'd be there, supporting you. That's why, on that rainy day...even though I knew it was wrong...I turned away from you. But...I was made to realize...as a member of Shishitoren... I should've confronted you...and thrown everything I could at you for what I believed in. I'm sorry I didn't fight with you... I'm sorry I didn't talk to you... I'm sorry I didn't look for the answers... With you... I'm sorry...I abandoned you," tears glazed over Togame's eyes that were desperate to shed but he held them back.

Choji just stayed silent, listening to the teenager's words.

"As a result, I took away...the thing you needed most... I'm sorry... I'm sorry, Choji..." Togame apologized.

"Kame-chan... I...honestly believed that being the top of the team... Meant that I would have the most fun. I had my eyes on the treasure chest on top of the mountain...and I was eager to take it. I thought that having the treasure to myself...meant that I would be freer than anyone else. I was so excited...imagining what could happen once I opened the chest. But once the box opened... There was...nothing inside. I didn't feel anything at all. I was scared..." Choji says.

The teenager could remember the times where he and the others were having fun just for it to all crash down the second he became the top.

"I felt like I was hollowed out. I didn't know where I should go next. I felt nothing, no matter what I did. Everything became meaningless. I had to do something...I knew that this wasn't right. While I struggled, struggled, and struggled...I eventually couldn't see anything anymore. And...I blamed it all...on everyone else. You didn't take anything away, Kame-chan. I was the one...who said that there's no place for everyone else," Choji continued.

Togame gazed at the boy in silence, not knowing what to say.

"Right, yeah...I think... Back when everyone would laugh like idiots with each other...that was the most fun I've ever had. For this whole time, I was...already free. But I never realized that. What's worse...I was the one...who broke it all with my own hands. I was really...really stupid," a small smile was seen on Choji's lips.

"No, you–" Togame tried to deny just to be cut off by Choji placing a hand on his face.

"If you left me...I would really end up with nothing. Ume-chan time me...not to let you make that face. The only reason I did... Was because I didn't see it. You've probably looked like this...for a long time now. And I'm the one...who made it happen. But even still, you... We're the knot that kept me tied to everyone else. Thank you...for protecting me," Choji tells him.

The once emotionless shine that was in Choji's eyes disappeared, a sparkle of life and emotion shining in them.

"I'm sorry...Kame-chan. That must've hurt. You must've suffered so much. I'm sorry," Choji apologized as tears fell, "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry..."

(Y/n) sighed softly as he got up onto his feet, approaching the stage and leaped onto it.

"You know... It's not too late to change. To go back to how you guys once were."