One Shots

8. [By The Swinging Rope]

The silence was the sound ringing so loudly in his ears. It was nearly deafening as he huddled in the chair he was forced to sit upright in with his arms around his knees, trying to ignore the sound to no avail.

The bags under his eyes were from weeks of lost sleep. How could he sleep, when he knew that he was going to be executed? He didn't know when he was going to be executed, though. It could be days, weeks, months, even years until they were going to come in here and tell him that it was his turn to be killed.

It was driving him insane. He knew what was to come, but didn't know when it was going to happen. How was he supposed to keep himself together when it was literally going to tear him apart, starting with his mind? It was too much, it was too much to handle, too much to handle alone.

He only saw his parents once during his time, and both of them were in tears while they tried to reassure him that they were trying to clear his innocent name. He had begun to lose hope that they would be able to save him from what seemed to be his inevitable fate. Tsukito just wanted it all to end.

He didn't do it. Tsukito didn't kill his Hinata, Masumi or Asahi. He knew that he didn't do that. No one would believe him though. Even though he knew that he was innocent, no one would believe him.

That was what hurt the most. Knowing that the only people that knew he was innocent were the murdered and the real killer, and that none of them would be able to, or choose to, call out the mistake the official figures had made, it made his heart hurt so badly.

How Tsukito was hoping that they would catch the real killer in time before he was executed.

The sound of creaking metal was what startled Tsukito out of his drowsy stupor. Who was that, and what did they want with him? Was he finally going to die?

It was when he saw the flow of light colored hair that he had done a double take.

"...Mom?" He whispered, rubbing his eyes. He hadn't seen her in such a long time, and considering the circumstances, her standing in front of him made it seem almost dream-like in reality.

"Tsukito..." her soft voice was what brought him to reality for the first time in what seemed like months. Despite Tsukito's ragged appearance, Amika wanted nothing more than to hug and console him. He must have been suffering so much for the deed that she knew that he didn't commit.

Amika embraced him tightly, the tears stinging her eyes once more. Tsukito collapsed in her arms, too tired to lift his arms up to hug her back.

"Mom...I'm scared..." He murmured, his voice cracking. "I don't want to die..."

How it broke her heart to see her son shaking like this. Amika desperately wanted to help him, but what was she to do? She was no detective, and they certainly weren't allowing any adults on school grounds at all due to all of the accidents and the faculty trying to drive away the publicity. All she could do was try to feebly console him.

She stroked Tsukito's matted hair, trying to calm him down in a rather futile attempt; Tsukito was trembling erratically, possibly because it was chilly down here where they kept him in solitary confinement.

Tsukito soon went limp in her arms. The strong physique that he had before he was imprisoned was gone; it would seem that he would never be able to play the sport he loved ever again. Tsukito was a skeleton now, so frail....

Amika laid him down in his bed, her tears now falling. It was breaking her heart to see the boy that she raised herself in such a state. How could she help him?

"Oh Tsukito...." she whispered again, moving his crusted bangs out of his eyes. She saw the scratches on his face that he most surely made himself, as well as the horrid bite marks on his forearms that were bruised black and blue and covered in dried blood. He was surely feeling suicidal in this place, and Amika couldn't do anything to help him. "Hang in there, we're going to get you out of here..."