Over the next few days, I lived without living. I ate, I slept, but it was obvious to anyone that I wasn't really there. I was like a wandering spirit, searching for something that could never be found.
That's when I considered my options. I could go and find Shiroko. Beg her to come back to me. Beg until I had no more words.
I could continue living like this. Existing. Even if my heart wasn't into it.
Or I could simply cease to exist forever. No one would miss me. There was no one left to miss me. I could disappear and no one would care.
Every night I thought about those three options. I lay awake, staring up at the ceiling, my mid whirring.
Which one should I pick...?
They were all I thought about. For days, weeks. They were the only things on my mind.
Eventually I came to a decision.
I set a date. 9th of September. My birthday. It was only two weeks away. It seemed like the perfect time.
I would do it at exactly 7am. No one would be around then. No one would see me. I would be in peace.
The night before I set to leave, I packed a small bag of clothes and toiletries, as if I was simply going on a holiday. I ate chicken for dinner, my favourite food. I wanted my last meal to be special.
I didn't sleep that night. Mainly because I had to be up early. But also because I couldn't sleep with the worries that swam in my head. Was I doing the right thing? Should I have chose a different option?
At 6am, I got up and got dressed like I would do on any other day. Then I grabbed the bag with the stuff in it and ran out if the door for the last time.
I didn't turn back. Not even to get one last glimpse of the house I had called home for all these years. I didn't want any of the memories I held with it to stir. Instead, I carried on running until I had reached my destination.
I had planned it all out. It was the perfect spot. No one would ever find me.
I dropped my bag near the edge and leaned over the railings. The water a was dark, almost greenish colour. I could not see anything that lay at the bottom. Good.
Even though I was blinded by the darkness of the depths, I could guess from my hours of research what I would find down there. I shuddered thinking about it.
Staring downwards for a few more minutes, I checked my phone. 6:57am. It was time.
I maneuvered my left leg over the railing, then placed it at the edge of the concrete. My right leg followed. I was inches away from the edge.
This brings us back to the beginning.
6:59. I took a deep breath, bending my legs subtly.
No one was around. I heard no noise other than my fast breathing and the splashing of the water. The sky was a pinkish blue colour as dawn crept up over the horizon.
That's when I realized it was almost the exact same time as when I stared at the sky a few months ago. After Shiroko left.
I closed my eyes. All those memories would be lost. Forever. No one could catch them after I fell. They would dissolve into the water, just as I would one day.
7am.
I sprang.
I felt water spray onto my face as I got the water.
I opened my eyes and saw nothing but darkness.
I breathed in the water.
My lungs felt they could burst.
I breathed in some more.
The darkness grew more.
My vision blurred.
All
I
saw
was
darkness.
I have no memory after that. I could not see nor hear anything at all.
I can no longer hold memories.
Nowadays I float around the bridge, hovering just above the water. Shiroko comes here a lot. I wonder if she knows.
Sometimes I feel as though Shiroko can see me. She stares straight at me, her eyes sad.
"I miss you." she whispers.
A design for life.
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A Design For Life: A Beyblade Burst Fanfic (Shattered Lives contest entry)
FanfictionThey never understood him. He hid his scars behind a mask. People never told him what was right. They never listened. He disappeared.