25th of December, PRESENT DAY, PRESENT TIME.
The night was unusually cold for Tokyo's standard, way less than the average 6° Celsius. Yet, the glow sticks and bright beams of light filled up the ground as well as the sky, regardless. All three members of B-Komachi gave their best; this was Kana's last show before her graduation, after all.
The stadium was filled with ecstatic faces of her fans, people she had never before seen, their glowsticks shining in various colors, some red, some yellow, some even white. Kana didn't care about any of this, though, as her eyes kept jumping from face to face. Sweat, more than usual, began to form on her forehead as she realized that this was probably her final chance to impress Aqua, at least as an idol. Yet, no matter how hard she searched among the faces, she couldn't find him anywhere. Her dancing turned more and more sporadic as she kept getting increasingly frustrated by all the people in the crowd she didn't care about.
—
The forest was quiet and cold; the only noise came from hooting owls, the occasional passing car in the distance, low waves crashing into the nearby cliffside, and the leaves being rustled by the wind.
Amidst all of this was Aqua, well hidden behind a few rows of trees, dressed in casual black clothing, silently observing what lies in front of him. An observation deck, looming over the vast Pacific Ocean beneath. It's only dimly lit, illuminated by the moonlight, barely enough to recognize the outlines.
The second source of light piqued Aqua's interest way more; it was weak enough for someone to miss if they weren't paying close attention, but it was there. It's a phone, probably the newest one on the market; its screen was flashing in various colors, enough to trigger epilepsy in some. Faintly brightened by the light was the face of the reason why Aqua was here tonight, Hikaru Kamiki.
He leaned against the half-rotten guardrail, its frail-looking planks the only thing that kept him from plummeting 20 meters into the freezing waters below, all while he seemingly watched the B-Komachi stream on his phone. But Aqua knew better; he knew that Kamiki paid close attention to his surroundings.
I really hoped that showing you Ai's video would help you… But even now, you are still trying to kill Ruby. I cannot let that happen, even if it takes my life. You are going to die today, Hikaru Kamiki.
I should have done this when I first had the chance. But no, I was too weak. I risked Ruby's life because I believed he could be saved… never again.
Aqua had gripped the knife so tightly that his knuckles had begun to turn white and even burst open in various spots. Sweat, which he barely paid any attention to, formed on his forehead. His other hand, which held the tree to his left for more stability, was shaking ever so slightly.
What if the police can tell? What if they find out what actually went down here? That would shatter Ruby's career. This would ruin her life, all because of my actions.
I cannot think about this right now. I just have to hope everything works out; it will surely go as planned. It is not like I would have any other option, regardless.
I just have to succeed; if Kamiki lives, it will just be a matter of time until he succeeds. When that happened, my life was all for nothing.
Aqua was so focused on what lies ahead of him that he didn't even register the faint rustling of leaves and sticks to his right. He didn't even notice the quiet footsteps as the person came closer and closer.
Then Aqua suddenly felt a warm hand gently touch his arm. This made him almost jump, but he caught himself at the very last moment; otherwise, Kamiki would've heard him for sure. Instead, he silently whipped around and roughly grabbed the person's arm with his free hand, pinning it against the large oak tree as he held his knife mere centimeters away from their throat.
The forest was so thick that even though the moon was almost full, Aqua was unable to make out even a single feature.
Aqua eased his grip as she spoke, her voice quiet and cautious. "Aqua, what are you doing here?"
Aqua quietly sighed as he let go of her arm and lowered his knife before turning back to focus on Kamiki again.
A cold shiver ran down his spine as he saw Kamiki look right into the thicket, staring right at him. A few agonizing seconds had gone by before Kamiki turned his attention back to his phone.
"No, what are you doing here, Akane? I thought I told you to keep an eye out for Ruby." His words trailed off into silence towards the end of his sentence as the thought of an unthinkable present invaded his mind completely uninvited.
What if me dying would be Ruby's final straw? Everybody has a point where they will break. But would Ruby's be reached once I'm gone?
And what happens once she is finally famous? Who will look out for the stalkers and creeps? I can't burden Akane to look after her for the rest of her life…
There are so many other treats. What if some even bigger fish than Kamiki comes by? Is she ready for this… Of course, she is. I have seen the fire in her eyes; nothing can keep her away from the dome… Yet, there is also her dumb innocence. Why are you not just a bit more mature, Ruby? I do-
Akane's warm hand rested on his own, grounding him back in the dark forest, pulling him out of his intrusive mind.
He was gripping the knife so tight he didn't even notice how cold his hand turned and how much he was shaking. Akane's warm hand gave him a strange feeling of comfort he had long forgotten.
"I'm protecting Ruby…" Akane murmured, "Protecting her by stopping you from hurting her."
She placed her other hand on his cold cheek. "I originally thought that I was wrong, that my paranoid mind was playing tricks on me since you have every reason to live imaginable. But something just felt so wrong."
She didn't look up at him while talking; maybe she was scared his eyes would confirm her suspicion. "But something deep inside me tells me that there is something you are hiding from me, something that would explain this behavior, feeling the need to die, even when you clearly want to live this desperately."
Akane held Aqua's hand tightly; her eyes were fixed on the shiny knife in it. Aqua could literally feel Akane's protectiveness seep over into his body. Yet, he also felt that her small hands were almost shaking as much as his own.
Akane's eyes were filled with newfound vigor as she looked up again. The faint moonlight finally managed to break through the thick leaves ever so slightly. "There are other ways, Aqua. Stop being such a dummy and let me help you finally," Akane said.
"Just think of how devastated Ruby would be. I don't know what you said to her, but I noticed the shift in her behavior. What I'm saying is, she loves you, Aqua; the possibility of your death pushing her back into the hole, destroying everything beyond repair, is just too high," she continued after she took a short break to sort her mind.
"Or Kana, you are the most important person for her too; she doesn't show it often, but your death would affect her. It would change her, maybe forever."
"Think about Miyako, she treated you like her own child, and you want to abandon her just like that? Did you even ever call her Mom? I bet you didn't, it wouldn't fit you, but it would also fit you that you desperately want to call her Mom. You are just scared that you'd feel like you betrayed Ai if you would do it."
"Lastly, think about me. I know this is selfish of me, but I need you. Even if you continue to reject my feelings, I will be forever grateful for what you've done for me… no… I will forever love you, I couldn't live with myself if you would die."
Aqua just stood there and listened in silence as he felt the salty breeze of the ocean blow through his hair. He had to lower his gaze about halfway through her monologue.
She is right.
Ruby…
Miyako…
Kana…
Akane could barely make out Aqua's expression, but for a single second, a ray of moonlight exposed his face. He tried to hide it again, but Akane already saw it. His eyes, his mouth, his nose, the way they looked back at her sent a shiver down her spine.
"I am just not able to do it, I cannot take any risk of the people I love being hur-" Aqua began before he was interrupted.
Akane did her best to stay quiet; she did her best not to scream, shout, or cry. Her old self would've broken down here, but the stakes were just too high.
She just couldn't alert Kamiki, who was still standing not far away from them. He grew more impatient by the second. The B-Komachi stream he watched was almost over by now, and Aqua still hadn't approached him.
Kamiki, who had initially planned to break Aqua's spirit even further tonight, began to slowly shift around while he looked at his surroundings over and over again; by now, he started to completely ignore the stream on his phone.
Is Aqua trying to trap me? No, it's impossible; he cannot harm me without risking Ruby's career, and he knows it. But what is it then? Why is he not here? I was certain he would fall for the bait.
Kamiki's last attempts at keeping up the facade slowly died down. He was completely oblivious to what was going on just a few meters away from him. Akane had, by now, both hands placed on Aqua's cheeks, cupping them while staring up at him where his eyes would be.
"We don't want to lose you either, stop being such an egoist. I'm not telling you to let him go, you'll just have to come up with a different plan, a plan that doesn't involve you dying… Why are you so obsessed with dying anyways?" Akane said before she fell quiet for a while. She had hoped this might prompt Aqua to respond, but he only mirrored her silence.
"You don't deserve death, and all of us that like you don't deserve the pain of losing you, so please, listen to me. We will come up with another way together." Akane whispered.
Then, with a damp sound, Aqua's knife hit the desolate forest ground, the sound of it barely loud enough for even Akane to hear.
Aqua's surroundings suddenly began to feel eerily quiet. The distant B-Komachi stream disappeared completely, while even the loud waves died down to a whisper. The world around him dipped into more darkness than ever before.
She is right. I would cause pain. But it's for the greater good. I'm doing this for the others, for Kana, for Ruby… I am doing this for them. I am not an egoist…
Akane pulled Aqua's limp body into a tight hug as she felt him slowly start to collapse in on himself. She gasped quietly as she held his body up with all her might, the weight almost being too much for her.
Aqua's mind was racing with thoughts; possibilities and probabilities shot through his head while his body was completely limp. The only reason he was not lying on the ground is because of Akane, who was still holding him. He didn't even notice what was going on around him.
NO, I can't. I can't drag Akane or anyone for that matter into this. Sure, I would hurt them if I died. Their pain will be temporary; once I'm gone, they will move on eventually. They will occasionally think back in melancholy, but they will make it…
…
… But what if I'm wrong?
The sound of waves crashing against the rocks was louder than ever as Akane noticed that Kamiki had started searching the area for any sign of him being spied on.
Her eyes filled with fear as she began to shake Aqua's body, at first gently, then roughly. "Aqua, it's time to go," she said as she peeked past him.
Kamiki walked along the first layer of trees, carefully peeking behind each one of them. He was still way off last time Akane saw him, but eventually, he would find them.
Akane groaned quietly before whispering into Aqua's ear. "You never trusted anyone other than yourself, Aqua. What I mean is, please try it, try trusting me and the others too, just this once."
She carefully took a step further away from the cliffs while softly tugging on Aqua's hand. He followed her without any fight, yet she wasn't too sure if that was a good thing.
He is not resisting at all. Maybe he finally decided to put his trust in others… I was just in time to save his body… I hope I was also fast enough to save his mind.