Just Smile Forever~A Mikaze Ai Fan-Fiction

Goodbye

"Ai," Reiji started weakly, with a worried glance thrown at me, "maybe right now isn't the best time....?"

"Why are you here?" Ai repeated, his eyes trained on me and completely ignoring Reiji.

"Who are you?" I whispered, unable to meet Ai's eyes.

"I'm Mikaze Ai," he replied unhesitatingly.

Tears started streaming down my cheek as I started shaking my head, slowly at first, then faster and faster.

"Then who were you all those times that we spent together? Who was the one..." my voice broke, and I could only finish the sentence in my head.

Who was the one I fell in love with?

"Akiko..." Reiji's voice began softly, "maybe we should get out if here first?"

"No," I shook my head, "I....I can't leave."

"What's wrong?" Ai asked, still clueless about the situation. My heart broke for him a little, because I knew Ai had nothing to do with any of this. None of it was ever his fault. He didn't deserve to be stuck in something like this.

"Akiko," as he took a step forward, I instantly took a step back. The look of shock on his face just made me cry even harder.

"Don't cry," he muttered. At that moment, the monitor behind me started beeping more rapidly. I glanced back, startled.

"Say what you want to say to me, Akie," I heard his voice again. The exact same voice, from the exact same person. But now I knew that they were two different people.

Now was too late.

"I don't have anything to say to you," I muttered, stepping back again as I met the eyes of Aine in Ai's mind.

"Why are you crying?" Aine asked gently.

I shook my head, "none of this is your fault, I know. You don't have to understand."

"Then why are you crying?" Aine repeated, "and why won't you let me go close to you?"

I looked at the ground, "because I don't know who you are anymore."

"You love Ai," it wasn't a question, but a statement that was said with a hint of desperation. As if begging me to say otherwise. But I remained silent.

"And you don't know if his feelings were solely his...or if I had influenced them," Aine continued, "you also don't know....if the times you spent were with him, or with me."

"I don't want to know," I whispered.

"Akiko...Aine..." Reiji's voice broke through the silence, his voice wavering. He stared at Ai as if he had never seen him before, and made a movement as though to touch Aine's arm to see if he was real.

"Reiji, my dear friend," Aine murmured, the affection clear in his eyes. A pang of sadness went through me as I realized what a delicate balance this all was.

"Remember when I used to talk about Akie to you?" Aine continued, a sad smile playing on his lips.

"Yeah," Reiji whispered, "all the time."

"I always knew. She was never in love with me. But I couldn't help but hope, you know? Hope that perhaps one day, my feelings would be returned," Aine confessed.

"I'm....sorry," I whispered.

He turned his attention back to me, and gave me a gentle smile, "you have nothing to be apologetic for. If anything, I should be saying sorry. You finally were so happy with the one you loved...and yet I ruined it for you."

"You didn't," I mumbled, "none of this was your fault."

"You're too nice to blame me, Akie," Aine chided with a gentle smile, "I was honestly so blessed to have two such amazing friends in the time when I was alive. My only regret...is that I should've spent more time with you two."

"D-don't," my voice broke, "don't regret. There's more time."

"But you see, Akie..." Aine looked at me intently, until I finally met his eyes as well, "this time, I want to finally make everything right again."

"Right?" I echoed.

"I've been too unfair to the two of you. You two have been suffering way too much because of me. And I don't deserve this. None of it. I don't want to know that I'm the reason why my best friends are suffering," Aine murmured.

"No, we-"

"Don't lie," Aine cut me off, "I know."

He sighed, "in reality, I don't know what I was really waiting for. I think I wanted to see the people who made me happy, finally find their own sources of happiness as well. But then I realized that it isn't possible for you two...not when I'm still around like this."

"What are you saying?" Reiji asked, narrowing his eyes.

"My first and only wish, from the moment I left the world to now, was for you two to always be happy," Aine slowly shook his head, "but I know that can't be achieved if I'm still lingering around like this."

"Aine-"

"Reiji," Aine cut me off "you will always be my closest friend. And don't ever think for one second that my death was your fault. Because it never was. I hope that you'll find your happiness one day, and someone will realize how much you're truly worth. For all the things you had done for me, I'm always going to be grateful."

"Aine-"

"Akie," Aine gently interrupted me again, "you know that you were my first love, right? And I will always love you. But I know that it's not possible for us to be together now. I want you to go and find your own happiness. And I hope that in the next life, wherever we are, we'll be able to meet each other again and perhaps have a different ending."

"Aine," this time Reiji called out, his voice cracking, "wh-why are you saying all this?"

"Take care of each other, alright? I'm so happy that you two met. You two will always be the most precious people in the world to me," Aine whispered.

"Aine, what are you doing?" I raised my voice slightly, though it was shaking.

"Thank you," time seemed to stop between the three of us as we locked eyes with each other, "and goodbye."

The monitor behind me abruptly stopped beeping, and an alarm started ringing. I stood frozen as the professor burst into the room with Kaoru, and started doing CPR on Aine. Kaoru immediately whisked Ai away as well.

"No," I found myself whispering, slowly realizing what was happening, "no."

And then Reiji's arms were wrapped around me, and we were both crying uncontrollably.

Kisargi Aine.

Date of death: November 1st, 2015

Time of death: 2:47:26

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Last chapter up next :) This will be the only favor I ever ask you guys...can you just comment all of your thoughts, emotions, and feelings that give had for this book down below?

Thanks so much <3