What Matter's Most

I'm Here

Isabelle stared at her paws and gasped as she saw that they were stained with blood. She looked around only to see no one in sight. She didn't understand how, but for some reason, she was back in the alleyway where K.K. got stabbed. Isabelle looked around and tried to scream for help but it was as if no sound could come out. 

"K.K.?!" Isabelle tried to shout at the top of her lungs only to get no response. 

"Totakeke!?" Isabelle screamed again as she felt tears start to roll down her cheeks. She was alone. Cold, scared, and alone. Isabelle stood there in silence looking around until something caught her eye. At the end of the alleyway was a tall white figure. She smiled, relieved to see that it was K.K. 

Isabelle quickly ran up to him and pulled K.K. in for a hug giving him a tight squeeze.

"I thought I lost you," Isabelle said quietly, still holding Totakeke in her arms. She frowned, not getting a response from K.K. and pulled away from their embrace to look at him. Isabelle gasped as she stared at him in disbelief. His body was covered in blood and his face was lifeless as his eyes looked past her. K.K.'s body fell to the ground and stared at Isabelle with his empty eyes. She dropped to her knees as she stared at the dead musician. The dog she loved, her best friend ever since they were pups, was gone.

"ᵀᵒᵗᵃᵏᵉᵏᵉˀ" Isabelle whispered to him, hoping to get a response. But he didn't say anything, he just lied there, and Isabelle could feel her whole body begin to shake. 'He wasn't dead, he couldn't be dead,' Isabelle thought to herself as she started to sob. 

"ᵀʰᶦˢ ᶦˢ ᵃˡˡ ᵐʸ ᶠᵃᵘˡᵗ. ᵀʰᶦˢ ᶦˢ ᵃˡˡ ᵐʸ ᶠᵃᵘˡᵗ. ᵀʰᶦˢ ᶦˢ ᵃˡˡ ᵐʸ ᶠᵃᵘˡᵗ." Isabelle whispered franticly as she dug her claws into her head. 

"ᴵˢᵃᵇᵉˡˡᵉ." A familiar voice said in the distance. Isabelle looked around, but there was still no one in sight. 

"Isabelle," The voice said again. She didn't answer, she was too scared to look. Isabelle just closed her eyes and buried her face in her paws as she cried, her breathing becoming frantic.

"ISABELLE!" K.K. shouted as he shook her awake in a panic. Isabelle's body jolted as she quickly got up and looked around frightened, gasping for breath.

"Hey, hey," K.K. said in a soothing voice trying to calm her down, "It's okay. You're okay." Isabelle looked at K.K. and gave him a weak smile, relieved to see that he was alive.

"W-what happened?" Isabelle asked as she looked around to find that she was in her bedroom. K.K. let out a shuddery breath before he spoke.

"Y-you were crying. And it sounded as though you were in distress so I came in to check on you. A-are you okay?" K.K. asked, also a bit shaken up as to what happened. Isabelle wiped her eyes with her paw only to see that she was in fact crying. She let out a sigh, it was all just a dream.

"Did you have a nightmare?" K.K. asked. Isabelle looked up at him and nodded as her lip began to quiver. K.K. sighed and leaned in to give Isabelle a hug. "Well everything's alright, you're safe now."

Isabelle couldn't help herself, she buried her face in K.K.'s neck and started to sob.

"I-I t-thought I l-lost you," Isabelle said through her cries. K.K. bit his lip and shook his head.

"You didn't lose me," K.K. said, "I'm here, and I would never leave you." Isabelle didn't say anything. She just tried to quiet her cries as she looked over K.K.'s shoulder at the clock and saw that it was almost three in the morning. Isabelle couldn't help but feel bad that she woke K.K. up at this time. After all, it did seem as though Totakeke was a bit more distressed than she was.