Yui woke up and groaned as her alarm clock buzzed, the sunlight slipping through her curtains and hitting her face, stinging her eyes a little.
She closed her eyes and squeezed them slightly, getting rid of the stinging. After opening her eyes, she spotted her navy blue and black school uniform.
Yui stretched as she slipped out of bed, her feet touching the cool wooden floor. She saw the time, 7:30am, she had till 8:00 to get to school, she quickly got out of bed and washed her face.
After brushing her teeth she tugged on her neatly pressed school uniform, straightening the skirt and adjusting her colar in the mirror, the time said 7:42, she quickly grabbed her randoseru and grabbed her pink flip phone, which was pretty trendy at the time, the one she really wanted was the Motorola Razr. It was really popular and she heard all the kids at school talk about it, most of them had one too.
The clock now said 7:44am,she slid on her long black socks and her brown loafers before grabbing her hairbrush and stuffing it into her randoseru. She hurried out the door, rushing to school with the cool morning air brushing against her face. By the time she arrived, slightly out of breath, the hallways were already filling with students. She made her way to her locker, quickly unlocking it and pulling the small mirror attached to the inside door closer.
Taking out her brush, she ran it through her hazel-brown hair, smoothing out the tangles as her honey-brown eyes studied her reflection.
She then spotted her best friend Ayumi near the shoe lockers. "Morning, you're here early.." Yui said, straightening up. Ayumi glanced back at her "yeah..my parents set me an alarm for 7:00 am because I was late to school one time, can you believe that?"
Yui smiled, "Well at least you're here on time, let's go to class." Yui and Ayumi walked side by side as they went to class, the hum of morning chatter and the clatter of shoes echoing around us. The air smelled faintly of chalk and floor polish, the usual mix of that always greeted her at school.
As they approach the classroom, Yui sits down in her seat, her best friend Ayumi two seats beside her.
History class dragged on, the teachers voice a steady tone as he wrote dates on the board. She'd rest her chin, glancing sideways at Ayumi, she was furiously taking notes, like the straight A student she was.
Yui looked out the window, away from Ayumi. As she stared, something shifted near one of the upper windows, she froze up, confused and a little bit scared? She didn't know what exactly it was that she saw but she knew it was something odd that created fear in her.
"Yui." Ayumi whispered. "What?" Yui hissed back, glancing at her. "You're zoning out again," she said, giving her a pointed and nodding at her notebook. "And doodling, he's going to notice if you keep that up, and you don't want to be a D- student don't you?"
Yui sighed softly, "No…you're right, sorry." Ayumi shot her a curious glance at Yui before turning back to her notes. she hesitated, staring at the clouds she'd been drawing, Yui hovered her pencil over the page, but before she could write the bell rang. Moving onto their next class, Science.
The abandoned hospital had been a favorite topic among gossip from all students at Sakuragai Middle School. Some said it was haunted, the spirits of old patients wandering the halls at night, waiting for someone to notice them. Others claimed they'd seen figures in the windows—-ghost or maybe just shadows,
depending on who you asked. One of the most dramatic rumors was that the hospital had been shut down because they secretly tortured people in the hospital's basement and performed unruly surgeries on them. Yui always thought the entire "people being tortured in a hospital's basement" was so cliche horror and of course made up.
The adults didn't help much either. No one really talked about why the hospital had been shut down in the first place, and that just fueled the rumors even more, then again, this was stupid to think about and would only scare her, she knew that. Ayumi thought the whole thing was stupid. "It's just an old building, people make stuff up because it looks creepy."
that's what Ayumi always told her, I guess it made sense though huh? Middle schoolers see a creepy building and come up with all kinds of scenarios.
Despite the odd occurance from 2nd period, Yui managed to forget about it knowing they had science next. The kids at Sakuragai Middle School really enjoyed science class, today they were working on a project about chemical reactions. Ayumi and Yui sat next to each other.
Their desk was cluttered with beakers and desk tubes. and a stack of instructions that looked more complicated than it needed to be. They had to combine two different solutions and watch what happened, though this class was a bit different,
this time they were working with underclassmen and showing them what the 7th grade does. As the underclassmen scattered around the classroom, one of them stood apart from the others. She had long straight black hair that reached her waist like Ayumi's just a different color. And her ocean blue eyes were focused on her science book. She seemed very quiet and didn't seem to have any friends.
Yui glanced down at her Student ID "Haruka Tanaka." The teacher had decided to pair them with her, while working on the science project, it was an awkward silence, that is until Ayumi spoke.
"Science isn't as bad as people say, at least not in our school, we always get to blow up stuff."
She shot her a look, but she ignored her. "Not literally of course..we're just doing a simple one today, mixing stuff together to see what happens." her tone more casual.
Haruka gave a small hesitant smile, Yui offered her some candy "Here, it's bubble gum flavor." Haruka hesitated, but quickly ate it. she smiled "Yui Nakamura and Ayumi Suzuki?" Yui and Ayumi froze, Yui raised a brow. "How do you know our names" Haruka face changed to a sudden look of nervousness.
"I'm so sorry! calling you by your first name like that..I was just reading your Student ID.. please forgive me Nakamura and Suzuki!!"
Yui and Ayumi chuckled, Yui smiled at her." It's fine! No worries at all." Before they could continue the bell rang. It was finally lunch time. Haruka thanked them for their time and ran off to recess.
Lunch break had finally arrived, Yui decided to go out and get some sodas for her and Ayumi, walking to the vending machine without warning the ground beneath her gave away. She pushed herself up groaning as she dusted off her uniform from whatever the hell had just happened.
Oddly, she found herself back in her bedroom, had it all been a dream? She stood up and walked downstairs but her dad wasn't home..even though he didn't work on Tuesdays, when she stepped outside the first thing she noticed was the silence. It was eerily quiet. No cars passing, no distant chatter of people talking, just dead silence.
She looked around trying to make sense of what was happening, in the corner of her eye she saw the vague figure of a boy in a very old school uniform. Her breath caught in her throat, mind racing.
She'd call out to him "Hello!! Are you okay?!" Suddenly the temperature dropped further, as she turned around his face twisted into a disfigured figure, like as if his face was ran over and he lunged at her. Yui screamed and closed her eyes. Just as the ghost was about to strike her,
Haruka appeared. She stood there, her posture straight and charming. Shimmering a long baby blue sword gripped tightly in her small hand. She was dressed in a suit of armor that shimmered with an almost ethereal glow, the colors of soft baby blue and white. Her knights outfit was sleak.
The base skirt billowing out slightly. Harukas gaze was fire and unyielding, a stark of contrast to the tension that had filled the air moments before. The sword had flashed through the air, glowing with an intense blue light. It striked the ghost with a force that sent shockwaves through the air, the blade cutting through the air with a sharp piercing sound. The ghost let out a horrific scream before its form disappeared into nothing.
That one was easy to deal with," Haruka said, sliding her sword back into its sheath."Judging by his face, he must've died in a horrible car accident."Turning back toward Yui, Haruka softened her expression. "I know this is a lot to take in, but I need you to trust me." Her voice was reassuring "We're in a place called the Limbo. It's a purgatory for spirits who can't move on."
Yui's mind was racing, trying to piece together everything Haruka was telling her. The Limbo? Spirits who can't move on? This couldn't be real, could it? Haruka extended a hand to her.
"It's best if we get out of here as soon as we can, but first, we need to find my brother. He's not far from here." Reluctantly, Yui took Haruka's hand and followed her. The Limbo was scary, It looked exactly like home but it was just…different. After walking for what felt like hours, they finally found him.
Haru stood waiting for his sister, his arms crossed as he watched them approach. His dark brown eyes sparkled with curiosity. "So, you're Yui, huh? I've seen you around school before," he said as he lifted a brow curiously. "So… what's your status?" Haruka groaned, rolling her eyes in exasperation. "Ignore him," she muttered. "My brother's always been like this, obnoxious and completely lacking any kind of common sense." Yui glanced nervously between the two siblings. "Will it take long to get out of here?" she asked hesitantly, hoping for a straightforward answer.
Haruka smiled, her confidence unwavering. "Not at all. There's a portal right here..a hole, actually, that we can jump into. It'll take us back to our world."
She pointed to a hole in the ground with dirt."You first!"Yui hesitated, staring down at the black hole.The thought of it was scary but she had no other choice. As she took a deep breath, she leapt forward.Haruka and Haru followed right behind her, and within seconds, Yui felt herself landing on solid ground. As she opened her eyes, she was right at the vending machine she was at before.
"What time is it?" Yui asked, glancing around to orient herself. Haruka checked her fliphone. "3:30. Time moves differently in the Limbo compared to our world."Haru stretched his arms, letting out a sigh. "Well, at least school's over. We can all just go home now.
"Yui felt a wave of relief wash over her, until it hit her. Her heart sank as she realized something important. "Ayumi!" she blurted out, sitting up straight. "I left Ayumi by herself all day!"
Haruka and Haru exchanged puzzled glances as Yui scrambled to her feet. "I'm so sorry! I have to go!" she said in a rush. "Let's meet early tomorrow morning and talk about all this over breakfast, okay?"
Before they could respond, Yui was already sprinting away, her thoughts racing as fast as her feet. She had a lot to explain to Ayumi, and a lot more to process herself.
Yui's heart raced as she stood outside the door of Ayumi's house. She could already picture Ayumi's face, the sharp, skeptical expression she'd probably give her. Ayumi had always been the levelheaded one, the one who kept Yui grounded, especially when things got weird.
They'd been through so much together since they first met at four years old, and the last thing Yui wanted was to let her best friend down, not now, not ever.Taking a deep breath, Yui rang the doorbell. When Ayumi opened the door, Yui froze. Wait—Ayumi didn't look mad?
"Hey, Yui! How come you didn't come to school today?" Ayumi asked, her tone casual, her expression curious.
Yui blinked, completely lost. What was going on? She stammered for a response, but Ayumi filled the silence. "It's 3:58. I'm sure your parents are worried about why you're not home yet. I mean, you came all this way… Do you want my mom to drive you home?"
Snapping back to reality, Yui's eyes widened.
"Uhh… sure! Sorry, I, um… just came to check on you. I didn't come to school today because… uh… I was really sick!" she blurted out, her voice unsteady.
Ayumi's expression shifted to concern. "Oh no, maybe you should stay home tomorrow and rest."
Yui panicked, raising her voice nervously. "Uh, no! I can't! I have so much work to do! I'll just… I'll just go home now. Bye!"
Without waiting for a reply, Yui turned and ran down the street, leaving Ayumi behind.When Yui finally got home, she slammed the door open. Her dad was asleep on the couch, and her mom was in the bathroom. Groceries were scattered across the kitchen table, likely for dinner. Yui kicked off her shoes, leaving them on the carpet, and trudged upstairs to her room.
Once inside, she stripped off her school uniform, let her hair down, and flopped onto her bed. "I really, really need a nap," she mumbled to herself. Pulling the blanket over her, she closed her eyes and let sleep take over, surprisingly forgetting the day's chaotic events.