I'll Wait in Izumo - Banana Fish [Ash x Eiji]

A Bulletless Chest

"Shorter! Skip!" Max shouted into the neon-lit lounge. "Look who died and decided to join us in the afterlife!"

I first spotted his tall, purple mohawk. Then, they both turned around and revealed their effervescent grins—two faces I had not seen for so long. It took me a moment to scramble for the puzzle pieces of our youth.

"EIJI!" they both screamed.

Then, Shorter embraced me. "Finally, you're here. We've all been waiting for so long, especially Ash. That boy hasn't stopped-" He pulled away, and a nostalgic sadness filled his eyes. "I don't know where to begin... Do you remember the day they injected me with Banana Fish? I just wanted to say that... I'm sorry... I don't know how to tell you how sorry I was for what I did to everyone."

Tears filled our eyes as I remembered his pain and desperation. How a single injection destroyed everything. With a single bullet, Ash could've killed Golzine. Instead, he was forced to kill his best friend in order to free him from his misery.

My knife wounds soon vanished, but I could never erase the darkness of that day. How could human beings be so evil? How could they do that to Shorter? These were questions we had been so afraid to answer. Yet, the answer was blatantly in front of us.

"Not once did I ever blame you, Shorter. Please believe me."

He nodded. We were both sorry—for the things we could not control, for being trapped in a cage of bloodshed against our will. It was never our fault. Yet, we finally found closure for the inexplicable sorrow it caused.

"Okay, okay," Cain interrupted. "Enough of this. We're all dead now. We came to look for the boy. Why is he always running off when we need him?"

"Ash?" Skip asked. "Hm, I saw him this morning, reading that one Hemingway novel he always has with him. What is it again? Oh, Islands in the Stream. What a nerd."

"Nah, nah. I saw him run off later this afternoon," Shorter added, "and this time, he's no longer in New York. He's been mentioning it for some time now, but I think he might be going to—"

"What do you mean 'he's no longer in New York'!?" Max threw his arms up in frustration.

"Yeah, doesn't he know that Eiji is here!?"

"That boy can be so difficult sometimes."

The men broke into an argument over Ash' whereabouts. Loud voices filled the room, reminding me of old times. I enjoyed their cacophonous chatter.

Oh, Ash. I dug deep into his mind; I knew all of the intricate patterns of his inner workings. Where could he possibly go in a moment like this? He must know about my death. I wondered if he still wanted to see me after all these years. Would he still want me around?

A million cranes pierced through my stomach. I was anxious, eager, impatient, joyful, and afraid. Zealous excitement and uncertain worries flooded my insides, but one thing was certain: I knew where Ash went. Deep down within me, I could see him, and there was no time to wait.