Chapter Text
“I killed a person yesterday,” said a tearful shaky voice. Mafuyu stood in Kanade’s kitchen, wailing. She was unable to say anything. Her body shook with fear and she crumpled to the ground.
“Hey, hey,” Kanade kneeled down to Mafuyu. She reached her hands out to Mafuyu and put them on her shoulders. “Wh-what’s going on..”
“M-mother..”
Kanade tensed.
“Being with her felt warm, but then.. She began yelling at me,” Mafuyu choked out.
Kanade’s eyes went big with fear.
“She..said some things that really hurt..and. I..pushed her.” Mafuyu looked sick. “She fell weird, though, and hit her head. The doctors couldn’t save her.”
Kanade sat by Mafuyu, stunned. Even so, she gently held her hand.
“I didn’t mean to,” Mafuyu whispered, tired from the crying. Kanade knew she didn’t mean to, and said so. “I spent the night in Sekai..I didn’t know what to do. I want to disappear.. So I’m going to run away somewhere to die.”
Kanade looked down at her hand, which had a soft grip on Mafuyu’s. She didn’t even notice her own tears. “Then take me with you.”
Mafuyu looked up, shocked. “Really?” Mafuyu laid her head on Kanade’s shoulder.
“Yes. I’ll come with you,” Kanade said.
Kanade told Mafuyu to stay where she was and started packing. She found two backpacks. Perfect. She filled them with cup ramen, random snacks she had, a card game her father used to play a lot, clothes, headphones, and phone chargers. Her body moved quickly and she thought thoroughly of what to bring. They could take the money she had and sleep in Sekai if they needed to. Kanade knew that if Mafuyu was by herself or in Sekai she would disappear. Kanade couldn’t bear that right now.
“Stay here for tonight,” Kanade said. “We’ll leave in the morning.”
Mafuyu nodded, still in shock. Kanade pulled Mafuyu up and led her to the room she used to stay in at Kanade’s. It was still intact. Mafuyu stumbled into the bed, instantly asleep.
She must be exhausted. Kanade thought.
As Kanade shut Mafuyu’s door, her head spun. This was moving too fast. She went to her room and sat on her bed. Suddenly, she felt nauseous and woozy. Nothing would be the same anymore. Kanade glanced at her music set up. She could likely never compose again. She wouldn’t see her father or her other friends again. Maybe she could see Mizuki and Ena but everything would just be wrong.
A sinking feeling erupted in Kanade’s chest. She wanted nothing more than to disappear. Maybe- even though she won’t be able to save anyone with her music- she could still save Mafuyu. She balled her hand in a fist, anxiety overwhelming her. The bed welcomed Kanade as she fell to the pillow. The world around her darkened and she fell into well needed slumber.
______
The summer sun glimmered into Kanade’s room, illuminating her soft face. It shined into Kanade's eye. For a moment she didn’t remember what was happening. Though, the memories of Mafuyu weeping at her door came flooding back, hitting her like a boulder. She dragged her feet to the kitchen and saw a tired-looking Mafuyu sitting in a chair. She stared at her unmoving hands on the table.
“Good morning,” Kanade managed to say after many moments of silence.
Mafuyu only nodded in response. Kanade thought she ought to not make Mafuyu talk today. Kanade began typing away on her phone. She was looking up places to go, as she hadn’t thought about it the night before. Kanade’s eyes landed on Osaka. There was a bus leaving from Shibuya, Tokyo to Osaka. There was a large aquarium in Osaka. Mafuyu apparently liked aquariums. They were one of the few things she was certain she liked. Though, she never kept any fish in the one in her room.
Kanade also looked up what she should pack, to make sure she didn’t forget anything. It seemed she packed most of what she should except for a pocket knife. Online, it said to use one for easy access and self defense. Kanade shivered at the thought of that. She searched around in cabinets and drawers, looking for a pocket knife, and eventually found one. She packed it into one of the backpacks.
“Uhm..so, I think we can take the bus to Osaka. I think I have enough money to do so. And we won’t need to worry about where to stay for the night because we can sleep in Sekai.” Kanade fiddled with the bags as she spoke.
Mafuyu looked up at Kanade and said, “Thank you.” Mafuyu didn’t say why. Maybe it was because Kanade was going with her, or maybe because Kanade was doing everything she could to keep Mafuyu alive… Like always.
On the way to the bus station, the two shared a pained expression through the masks they brought to hide their identities. Kanade paid 10,045 yen to get on the bus. It would take nearly all morning and part of the afternoon on a bus, but it cost less. They found a pair of seats by each other. They sat down. Mafuyu’s eye bags were dark and large. She might’ve woken up and not fallen back asleep. She never looked so horrible. Kanade intertwined her fingers with Mafuyu’s, letting her know she was still there. Mafuyu rested her head on Kanade’s shoulder. Silent tears fell down Mafuyu’s face and she shivered. Kanade rested her head on Mafuyu’s in return. “It’s okay. Everything’s going to be okay.”
Kanade pulled out her earbuds and shared one with Mafuyu. Kanade hit play on an N25 playlist on Niconico. Mafuyu relaxed. Her shoulders weren’t tight anymore and she got more comfortable with Kanade. Mafuyu had soon fallen asleep to the melody.
Kanade finally opened Nightcord to see if Mizuki and Ena had said anything. They had.
Mizuki said how she and Ena noticed neither Mafuyu nor Kanade were online last night and was asking why. Later, Ena had re-asked the question. Kanade wasn’t sure what to do. She stared at the screen for a minute and finally typed, We’re okay. I’m not sure when we’ll be able to tell you what’s going on.
Kanade set her phone down and immersed herself in the music. Mafuyu’s lyrics always put the right emotion into Kanade’s music. Kanade zoned in on the lyrics.
Where am I?
Who am I?
What am I?
Suddenly, Kanade wasn't focused on the music, but on the blaring sunlight from the sunrise. Kanade shut her eyes, trying to distract herself. Tiredness overwhelmed her. Though she had slept through the night, Kanade felt exhausted and only wanted to sleep forever. She laid her head on her already asleep friend and drifted into sleep.