Nocturne of Nightmares: A Retelling

Chapter Twenty-Two

     IT'S COLD AND DARK. Had I fallen down to the depths of the ocean floor? Or was I six feet under? Is this what death feels like? Has it finally come for me? If that were true, I should have been alone in this dark abyss. But I heard a familiar voice call out my name. Was it haunting me? Could it be real? Who are you..? Then, a light shined in, cutting through the darkness, and I felt warmth. Someone was squeezing my hand.

"Ziya..." I know who you are. You're... I slowly opened my eyes. Where am I? "Hey." Ray was there, looking at me with a smile.

I sat up carefully. He alone was such a sight to behold that it took me a few seconds to gather my bearings and recognise where we were. Subaru was beside me, his fingers touching mine as he slept. We made it back to the real world. It's over. It's finally over! The corners of my eyes started to sting.

"Ray..."

Suddenly, Ray leaned in closer to my face, his eyebrows furrowed. He's so close! "Eh? Hey, what's with those tears? It's over." His expression instantly broke into one of contagious joy, and he pinched my cheeks. "Come on, let me see a smile."

"Ow, ay, dat huts..!"

Ray released me. "You need plenty of looking after." He continued to lean down, and I could feel his breath tickling my cheek. What is he doing? "But..." His palm grazed over my face, pushing my hair back, before his lips pressed against my forehead in a warm kiss. Ah... "You did well, Ziya."

He looked at me with a tender gaze, warmer than sunshine and a thousand times more desirable. I don't think I've ever seen such a soft expression on Ray's face before. My cheeks started to grow hot, but I couldn't pull away from his stare.

"Th-Thanks..." He'll notice I'm blushing, but... I can't hide the fact that his acknowledgement made me happy. That he makes me happy...

I felt the heat spread across my face, and Ray backed away with a chuckle. "You really can't hide your feelings. They're written all over your face."

"Hey! That's not a bad thing, you know!" I tested as I got to my feet. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Subaru do the same. He stood close beside me, and even though he'd just woken up, his crystalline eyes were so clear that I could see my reflection in them. "Subaru..." I ensnared him in a hug. "We won. We're back in the real world."

"Yeah." Subaru hugged me back, wrapping his arms tightly around me. He was so warm. We gently pulled back to look at each other when he started getting flustered, a blush beginning to bloom on his face. "Hm? What are you staring at?"

"I was just thinking about how glad I am to have met you. Thank you for being a part of my life." I sneaked a glimpse at Ray, too; it may have been embarrassing, but I decided to tell them exactly how I felt. After learning about their pasts, I almost felt as though they'd never really known love, so I thought it best for me to be blunt about it.

Subaru's mouth fell open. His eyes went wide for a second, but then, he replied with a smile, "There's no competing with you..." and he hugged me once more.

BEEP – BEEP – BEEP – BEEP!

At the same time, one of the machines attached to Licht's body started going off with some kind of alarm.

"What's happening?" I gasped.

We rushed to Licht's side, and Ray studied the machine for a moment. His expression was grave, and dread sank within me like a stone. I held Licht's hand gently in mine. Licht, please. A moment later, his brows scrunched slightly, and it felt like the answer to my prayers.

"Licht, can you hear me?"

His eyelids fluttered in response, opened delicately like the wings of a butterfly. "Hey, guys. Heh, good morning," he smiled softly, before he planted his gaze on me. "Ziya."

I was reminded of when I'd first met him in the nightmare world – except it was completely different, because this time, we were meeting under much better circumstances. Thank goodness. I blinked a few times, nearly pinched myself, just to make sure this was real.

"Well, well, well, it's about time you woke up, sleepyhead," said Ray.

"Yeah, we were getting sick of waiting."

Despite their sarcastic words, Ray and Subaru looked happy – more than happy. The feeling was incomparable and indescribable, but we all felt it.

"You guys haven't changed a bit," Licht chuckled as we helped him to stand. He flexed his toes upon the floor.

"Licht..?" I uttered mutedly and put my arms around him, pulling him close. You're back! Holding Licht in my arms opened the final floodgates to my emotions; I gripped his clothes and started bawling into his shoulder. I'm touching him! This isn't a dream! Licht is finally awake.

"It'salright now." My sobbing echoed in the room as Licht comforted me. "I'm righthere."

"Don't ever leave me like that again!" I demanded.

"I know. I won't."

"Never ever!"

"Uh-huh, I promise." Licht's voice came out with a slight crackle, like an old record or a wood fire. He gently stroked my hair, and I stared up at him. "So, no more crying, okay?" He lifted the edge of his shirt to wipe my tears and I gritted my teeth in an effort to hold back my sobs. But seeing Licht standing in front of me made my eyes well up all over again. "Strange. I don't remember you being such a cry-baby when we were kids," he giggled.

"I-I'm not..." I quickly rubbed my eyes. I could have smacked him for teasing me, but when I looked up, Licht was looking at me with the most loving smile.

"I love you, Ziya," he whispered to me, and his voice struck a chord on my heartstrings, making my chest ache.

"Licht... do you know how long I've been waiting to hear you say that?"

"Heh. Sorry to keep you waiting."

Something told me he'd been waiting even longer.

Ray and Subaru stood aside, watching us share that moment with relief on their faces. Then, Subaru and I took hold of Licht and we left the basement together, with Ray guiding us outside. We were welcomed by the balmy sunshine, and for the first time in years, I didn't resent it.

"Welcome back to a world where the sun actually shines, Licht," I smiled up at him as the main gate came into view.

Bluebells was finally behind us.

"It's good to be back," Licht smiled, too, cheerier than ever. His face was radiant in the morning light.

The four of us took one last look at the orphanage. For some reason, it didn't look as scary as it had before. It was a ruin comprised of unfulfilled dreams, but nothing built up hope more than the promise of a better future. It was the place where we'd first met and made so many memories, our second home – we'd been through so many painful, unbelievable experiences, but we couldn't deny that we'd had had fun while we lived here, too.

"So much has happened here," uttered Subaru.

"Yeah," I hummed. "So many memories."

In the stillness, we stood there, watching as the sun cast its light on the sullen brick face of Bluebells Orphanage. I could almost see our younger selves laughing and dancing across the cobblestones. In that moment, our missing memories became our secrets, our own kind of treasure.

"There are so many facts I'm not ready to face yet. But for now..." I looked over at Ray, Licht, and Subaru, who gave me a small nod as he took my hand.

"For now, we live on."