Before stepping out, Lilac rummaged through the closet for the spare futon Ai usually kept tucked away. After a bit of effort, she found it, carefully slid the door shut, and made her way back downstairs to the living room.
Just as she reached the bottom step, her phone buzzed loudly. She quickly grabbed it and her randoseru nearby before answering.
"Mother?"
"Lily? Are you alright? Where are you?!"
"Calm down, Mom," she replied gently. "I'm fine. I'm at Ai's house."
"Ai's house, huh? Then why weren't you answering any of my calls before this one?"
"I... I left my phone on silent by mistake," Lilac admitted. "I didn't mean to worry you."
There was a pause on the other end. Then her mother sighed.
"You know how I get when you disappear without saying a word, Lily. Especially after everything that's been happening lately."
"I'm sorry, Mom. But Ai really needed me today. I couldn't just leave her like that."
Her mother's tone softened. "Is she alright?"
"She's asleep now, so she will be fine."
There was another silence, this time, more thoughtful.
"I trust you, Lily. You've been good at reading people. Just promise me you'll come home tomorrow after school."
"I promise."
"And stay safe, okay?"
"I will. Love you."
"I love you too."
The call ended.
Lilac lowered the phone, exhaling deeply as she placed it aside.
I'm soo tired.
She sat down beside the folded futon, knees tucked to her chest, allowing the silence to wrap around her like a blanket.
The rain had slowed to a drizzle outside, and upstairs, Ai remained peacefully asleep. Lilac sprawled herself out on the futon, and closed her eyes, just for a moment—a moment of peace.
-,-,-
"Koyori, wait!"
Okamura shouted, but she didn't look back. No matter how desperately he tried to follow, no matter how much he wanted her by his side—his body refused to move.
Deep down, he wanted to love her. He wanted her to stay. But with everything haunting his existence—his mother, Kou, the looming fear of death, and this decaying body of his—it made cherishing her the way she deserved feel impossible.
Then came the distant shriek of someone screaming. It shattered his spiralling thoughts and injecting fear into him. The scream came from the same direction Koyori had run in.
Was it her?
No... it couldn't be.
"Get away from me!"
The voice was muffled—uncertain. But then:
"... Help me!" rang out clearly, echoing through the quiet neighboorhood.
His heart sank.
It was Koyori.
He tried to run, do something—but his body resisted. It wouldn't move. No matter how urgent the moment was, no matter the danger she was in.
«Γιατί δεν θα κουνηθείς;»
«Είναι επειδή δεν την αγαπάς αληθινά;»
«Επειδή είσαι ερωτευμένος με κάποιον άλλο;»
«Ή μήπως μισείς τον εαυτό σου πάρα πολύ μετά από όλα όσα έχεις περάσει;»
The incomprehensible voice rang through his head, mocking him—taunting him with how powerless he was. How powerless he had always been. How he would never be able to protect the ones that matter most.
Then... silence.
No screams.
No footsteps.
No Koyori.
Just silence.
And then, suddenly, he could move.
Without thinking. He ran.
Across the field.
Around the corner.
Only one thought echoed through him: Koyori.
Was she okay?
Did someone find her?
Or... had the unthinkable happened?
As he approached the corner, a dark, suffocating presence washed over him. That same familiar dread that had haunted him since two years ago.
He stopped.
Something within him shut down. His panic gave way to numbing fear.
He knew.
He knew what had happened.
And then, just around the corner, he saw her.
Lying motionless in a pool of her own thick, dark red blood was Koyori. Her hands stretched outward as if reaching for someone—for him.
And just above her stood a shadowed figure, cloaked in something darker than the night itself.
The figure didn't It run. It didn't even move.
It had no reason to.
It had already done what it came for.
It simply stood there, staring into the deepest crevasse of his soul. Then it spoke.
"This is the end, Okamura Kintarō... or should I say Phosphorus?
It paused.
"And you're not safe either... Masahiro Ai."
_,_,_
Ai jolted awake, the silver glow of moonlight casting across her face.
Her breath quickened as she took in her surroundings—the bedroom, dimly lit be the moon through her curtains. She was slumped over her desk, pencil in hand. When she glanced down, expecting the usual drawing—the blonde-haired woman who had haunted her dreams—her eyes widened.
It was different this time.
The figure on the page had deep, saturated black hair, deep golden-brown eyes, and a scar on the left side of their cheek.
Ai froze.
She recognised them. It was the same person who had altered her fate during the last school term.
Her breath came in short, rapid bursts. She began to hyperventilate.
What does this mean?
Just then, the door creaked open.
"Ai? What are you doing up so late drawing?"
Ai instinctively covered the sketch, shielding it from view.
"Calm down," Lilac replied gently. "I just came to check in—to see if you're doing alright."
A long silence hung between them.
Then, Lilac spoke again, softer this time. "Come on, Ai... You were so warm with me a few hours ago."
She stepped inside and closed the door behind her.
"N-No, stay where you are!"
But Lilac didn't stop. She crossed the room and wrapped her arms around Ai, pulling her into a quiet embrace.
"Why don't you get it, Ai?" she whispered. "I don't care about what you're drawing. What I care about... is you."
"I get that you want to keep your sketches private. I respect that," Lilac continued. "But please... don't shut me out because of it. Not when you're hurting."
Ai didn't respond at first. Her body trembled as she clung tightly to the drawing under her arm.
"I'm scared, Lilac..." Ai finally whispered.
Lilac's hold softened, but she didn't pull away. "Of what?"
"Of what's coming... Of what I keep seeing... There's something following me... I don't understand, but it's always there..."
Lilac crouched down beside her, resting her hand gently on Ai's right cheek. "The blonde woman? The one you kept drawing before?"
Ai hesitated, then nodded slowly. "I don't even know her name. But every time it feels like my life is going back to normal... she's there. In the shadows. In my dreams."
Lilac frown, her gaze flickering to the sketch Ai still held tightly. "And that boy? That one you just drew?"
"I don't know who he is either," Ai admitted. "But he's connected to everything in some way. I know he is. To this place. To me. To the blonde woman. And maybe... maybe even the reason I came back."
"Came back? What do you mean, came back?"
Ai looked at her dead in the eye, grasping her hand tightly. "I need you to believe me when I say this... I'm not crazy, and I'm not upset. I told Grandma and... Chikao about this, but neither of them believe me."
Lilac sighed deeply. "I'll believe you. I doubt you'd lie about something like this."
"Two years ago..." Ai began. "That boy... he was found with some compromising things, to say the least... and everyone bullied him for it. I don't know what happened to him after that... and I don't know how I ended up here."
She paused, then continued. "What I do know is that I woke up in September 2015—and he changed what happened. That's how we found out Kou was the one who set him up."
Ai looked down at her trembling arms, then back up into Lilac's navy eyes. Obviously, Lilac was shocked, but somehow, she still managed to keep a level head.
"I don't know if I understand everything," Lilac said softly, "but if this is your truth... then I'll walk with you through it. No matter how scary it gets."
For the first time in a long while, Ai's shoulders sagged with something other than fear.
"...Thank you, Lilac," she whispered, her eyes misty again. "For not walking away."
Lilac smile gently and stood, brushing a strand of Ai's hair behind her ears. "I'd never. You're stuck with me remember?"
"Okay, then..." Lilac yelled. "We'll need to find more information about all of this in the morning. And we'll need to talk to that kid. But for now... I swear my stomach's growling the longer I stand here. Can we go downstairs and chef up your favourite—nikujaga?"
Ai giggled softly.
"Fine, but you don't expect to sleep anytime soon, do you?"
"I know, Mom."
Even though Ai knew there was a chance Lilac might forget what she had said, she still clung to the slim hope that—just this once—she'd remember everything.
「暗闇の中で踊る」