A Regular Day

I frowned when the first rays of light entered through the window and filled the small room with light. I couldn't even recall what time it was when I finally came home and dozed off, but it certainly wasn't all that long ago by the way my brain was refusing to wake up. Turning away from the light I cracked one of my eyes open to look at the clock set by my futon, groaning when I realized that I might as well get up now because it was almost time to head off to the Yomogi Nursery School.

Pushing myself into a seating position, slightly wobbly, I turned the alarm off since there was no point in it ringing in a couple of minutes anyway. As I got up and became more alert I heard running footsteps a sudden cry and the sound of someone falling over, from the room next to mine.

'Guess that means she must be up, then,' I mused, heading to my closet to pick up some new clothes. It was only then that I realized that I'd slept in my clothes. 'Man, I must've been really tired.'

As I began to dress I took notice of her voice groaning and then saying something, before beginning to hum in happiness.

'Probably talking to herself as usual…'

Just as I finished dressing I heard her skipping towards the door and opening it, somehow managing to fall again. She sure was a klutz. I snatched my bag and made sure my latest paycheck was inside before heading to the door and putting on my shoes as I heard her start skipping downstairs, humming again. Shaking my head I headed out and locked my door, wondering how could she be so lively first thing in the morning.

When I reached downstairs she was already by the gate; no point in trying to keep up her pace, I was too damn tired to run even those few meters between us. I kept walking at my regular pace, and I noticed that I almost did catch up to her along the way. Maybe because my legs are longer? I dismissed the thought; no point in dwelling on it.

When she entered the Nursery School she picked up her pace a little, putting some distance between us again. When I entered the school I could hear a door sliding and her distinct voice yelling out 'a bazaar!'. I listened to Sayaka's confuse voice before she insisted.

"Let's hold a bazaar, Sayaka-sensei!" she exclaimed in a keyed up voice.

'What the hell is she plotting?' I asked myself.

"What?" I heard Sayaka's now surprised tone.

"We'll hold a bazaar and we'll sell loads of stuff and you'll be able to pay your debt!" she continued, apparently thrilled at the thought.

'Too bad she doesn't have common sense. Doesn't she realize…?'

"Kobato-chan…" Sayaka continued in a slightly surprised tone.

"If we sell enough stuff, you'll be able to stay here!" she persisted, happily.

'How can she be that naïve?' I ask myself, slightly pissed.

"You know, Kobato-chan…" Sayaka began in a saddened tone.

'Probably feeling guilty since Kobato's so worked up over nothing. As if a simple bazaar could help raise enough money to pay off the debt to the Yakuza,' I frowned at her thoughtlessness. Couldn't she see that she was hurting Sayaka? I paused by the door.

"If we could make enough to stay off of a bazaar, we would've done it by now," I finished in a sour voice, catching their attention.

"Fujimoto-san…" she whispered, turning to look at me, her smile faltering.

I continued, stepping into the room.

"We hardly have any kids enrolled here in the first place; we're such a small school. Who'd show if we held a bazaar? Nobody'd even know about it." I listed some of the reasons why her plan obviously wouldn't work out at all, before finishing with a plain and discouraging, "There's no point."

When the silence and sudden heavy atmosphere got to me I looked up at her to find her head bowed in depression. I kind of felt bad for her, but I wouldn't take it back; I'm that stubborn. Suddenly she raised her head again, smiling as if nothing had happened in the first place.

"Eheh… You're right. I'm sorry. I got carried away, that's all!" she replied to me, with the fake smile still in place, making me feel that much worse for crushing her hope. I was frozen on the spot.

'I'm such an idiot… it's not like she knows, and with that childish personality and no common sense whatsoever, it's not like she could help but come up with that kind of idea, even though it's pointless,' I berated myself for hurting her feelings, though why was I worried about that eluded me.

"I'll go sweep up out front!" she called out as she ran by me, out of the room, fake smile still plastered in place.

The sound of the door closing behind her seemed to eco in the room for a few seconds.

"Fujimoto-kun," Sayaka began, in a dismayed tenor, getting up from her chair, "Kobato-chan looked so disappointed just now when you told her there was no point to a bazaar."

'I know that,' I thought, frowning. But she wasn't done yet.

"I know that ultimately, you're right, but… try not saying it quite like that next time, alright?"

I bowed my head in shame, keeping my eyes on the floor. Sayaka walked towards me and pat me on the shoulder lightly, smiling vaguely even though she was still frowning slightly, probably worried about the girl.

"If you're always that blunt, you're going to end up feeling bitter."

'I guess it's too late for that, I'm already feeling sour,' I thought to myself as she walked past me and opened the door.

As she left the room, no doubt heading to Kobato to cheer her up, I picked up the envelope with my latest paycheck from one of my several part-times and left it on top of the account book on her desk before I left to do my chores.

"A bazaar?" the kids chorused.

"We're going to be selling things here at school. You can sell anything at all, something old from home you don't want anymore, something you've made, anything." Sayaka explained to the kids while I entered the room, finally finished with my chores from that day.

'Well, most of them, at least,' I thought as I sat in my chair, by the piano.

"Oh! You mean like we're playing store!" one of the child exclaimed.

"We can bring whatever we want?" another asked.

"If we're playing store, I want to sell crepes!" one more enthused.

"That's a wonderful idea," Sayaka smiled, "I'm going to write a letter telling your families all about it. Make sure you show it to them, alright?"

"Okaaay!" the joyous choir chanted.

"All right! Now let's all sing our 'See you Tomorrow' song," Sayaka said as I began to play.

See you tomorrow!

I'll be so happy to see you again!

I let my eyes leave the piano, since I knew the keys by heart, and gazed around the room.

All the children were singing and dancing to the song.

My eyes focused then on Kobato.

My frown lessened as I stared at her; I was reassured to see that she no longer wore a fake smile and that she was having fun with the kids. Apparently the talk she'd later had with Sayaka had helped some; or at least I assumed so, since Sayaka had decided to go along with her idea. Well, if anything, the kids looked pretty hyped about it, so maybe it wouldn't be such a bad thing.

"What a relief to see Kobato-chan looking so happy again, hm?" Sayaka whispered to me, surprising me out of my gazing and making me lose my concentration, messing up the music, though I carried on anyways.

"Whatever. It's got nothing to do with me," I replied, frowning and slightly pissed at being caught staring at her.

Sayaka giggled at me.

"Looks like growing up hasn't made you any less stubborn, has it?" she smiled.

I promptly messed up the keys again. I didn't need her to remind me of that.

This time the kids noticed my fluke.

"Kiyokazu-sensei messed up! He messed up!" they declared, laughing. I saw Kobato giggling, though I had no idea if it was at my fluke or the kid's reaction.

'Geez, I've sunk low… being made fun of by little kids,' I thought in slight embarrass, blushing slightly.

"Right, right. Let's keep going!" I continued from where I messed up, thinking of Kobato giggling and wondering if she was laughing at me after all.

See you tomorrow!

I'll be so happy to see you again!

I'll see you tomorrow,

I'll be so happy tomorrow!

See you tomorrow!

The kids chorused, but I was far too concentrated in my thoughts to notice.

'She was laughing at me, I'm sure of it,' I made up my mind, not realizing that in my frustration I was playing the song too fast. By then the kids had stopped dancing and were staring.

"H-he's playing way too faaaast!" Kobato cried out, trying to keep up with my frantic pace.

I glanced briefly at her, before I speed it up a notch, amused that she was still trying to keep up. The kids cheered her on and looked at me in amazement. Little wonder, they'd never seen this side of me.

"Go, go, Kobato-chan!"

"Wow, you're fast, Kiyokazu-sensei."

"Kyah~" Kobato kept dancing to the music.

I was honestly surprised that with her far less than perfect coordination she was still able to keep up - I'd expected her to have fallen by now. Finally I decided to take pity on her and finished the music.

She finished dancing as soon as my fingers left the last keys and the kids ran to congratulate her. She laughed and thanked them, smiling brightly.

'Well, at least I made something right today,' I thought, getting up from my seat and helping Sayaka and Kobato to take the kids to the gate, successfully covering up my previous amusement.

Some kids ran along to the waiting parents, while others walked more slowly waiting for their own to show up. I noticed as Kobato waved them goodbye enthusiastically, just as she seemed to do right about everything, while I settled for a more normal pace.

"See you tomorrow, sensei!" some of them enthused while walking out of the gate.

"Right! See you!" Sayaka answered smiling and waving joyfully. Truly, if I didn't know any better, I'd swear nothing was wrong. She was a bit too good at keeping her secrets and I worried about her.

"See you tomorrow! Try and find something for the bazaar!" Kobato cut in cheerfully, before sobering up a little and turning to face Sayaka, "Er! Which reminds me; what exactly should I be doing to help!"

I watched from the corner of my eyes as Sayaka pretended to think about it for a bit, but she'd obviously already thought about something. We all turned around to enter the nursery school again, Kobato keeping her attention focused solely on Sayaka, awaiting her instructions.

"Hmm. Why don't you make us up some posters?" she answered smiling at the younger girl beside her, while I kept my usual glower in place, still staring at them from the corner of my eyes.

"Leave it to me!" she called out, clearly motivated.

As I finished checking out all the rooms and verifying the locks on them I made my way to the teachers room, where Kobato had rushed to a few minutes ago with a bunch of paper sheets, paint tubes and a brush. As I entered the room I noticed her sitting by the table, materials scattered all over it, happily painting away.

Unable to stop myself I leaned over her to peek at her work, and gave it a long appraising look before the only word that came to mind seemed to spill from my lips breaking her cheerful humming.

"Wuzzat?" I asked pointing at one of her master pieces.

"A-a puppy dog," she replied, clearly proud of herself trying to keep the mirth out of her voice.

I paused for a second before pointing to her other painting.

"And that?"

"A kitty," she continued to paint through it, trying to perfect some of the previous brushings. Not that it would do her any good…

"Wow. I feel sorry for all the cats and dogs out there," I exhaled purposefully, heavily, to better convey my disappointment, turning my head away from her 'work of art' with a dissatisfied expression in place.

She quickly turned her head to glower at me; her happiness draining from my obvious less than enthusiastic response to her work. Her cheeks were flushed with what I guessed had quickly turned from innocent girlish pride to embarrassment thanks to my reaction. She growled lightly at me and I refrained from telling her that she wasn't menacing in the least.

Surprisingly, aside from the light growl, she didn't even try to defend her labor from my verbal assault as I thought she would. Maybe she herself knew she didn't drew all that well.

At that moment Sayaka entered the room carrying a tray with what seemed like three steaming cups of tea in it, closing the door behind her, and I took a few steps back from where I was and turned to face her.

"Looks like you're working hard in here!" she commented.

I suppressed the will to roll my eyes at that and let my eyes wander again to Kobato's works. Sayaka came closer stepping in between us, put a cup of tea in front of each of us and sneaked a peak at Kobato's posters.

"Thank you," Kobato answered, both for the compliment and the tea cup, lowering her work onto the table and smiling happily at Sayaka, her bright mood restored.

"Thanks," I replied as well, more absentmindedly. I really didn't have it in me to understand her mood swings.

Sayaka leaned closer putting the tray with her cup down on the table and picked up the closest poster.

"These are your drawings then, Kobato-chan?" she asked as she smiled gently.

"Um! Y-yeah, err, but…" Kobato seemed to panic slightly, frowning in apprehension as Sayaka took the poster and assessed it, choosing then to stare at the floor between us probably worried that she'd react the same way I did, though I was sure she wouldn't even if she didn't like it.

"They're very good!" she praised it finally.

"Uh?" Kobato turned honest wide eyes in her direction, probably shocked. I had to admit I felt rather surprised myself as I stared at Sayaka too.

"What a cute little duck and sheep." She continued, unaware of Kobato's shock beside her and her silent 'What!' expression.

I shook my head at them before picking up my bag.

"Well, I'd better get going," I announced as Kobato stared at her poster trembling in shock muttering about ducks and sheep's. That had probably hurt her more than my act, since she seemed to yearn for Sayaka's acknowledgment.

Sayaka turned to me in concern.

"Another part-time job?" she asked in dismay.

I kept silent for once forgetting Kobato was in the same room.

I gave Sayaka all my attention; she knew why I did this, it wasn't anything new.

Well, the only thing new was probably my ditching classes to work on several part-time jobs to help. Not that I minded or even planned to tell her, even thought she'd already figured that out. I was young, and could finish my law studies later. The debt came first, and I wasn't going to allow Sayaka to carry this burden on her own. I wouldn't leave her like he had.

"…I saw what you left on my desk for me," she continued, her voice clearly laced with guilt, "Are you sure you're alright with this?"

"It's fine, really," I tried to appease her once again.

"Don't let yourself get overworked," she refuted, still worried, hands clutching unconsciously.

I had to smile at that.

"I won't," I answered, "Just make sure you don't overwork yourself either Sayaka-sensei."

I stared at her for a few more seconds before turning my eyes back to Kobato, finally remembering she was still there and caught her looking at me with a weird dazzled expression on her face.

'Maybe I should help her,' I thought to myself mischievously as I picked up a post-it block and a pen and scribbled some words on it.

Coming closer to her I shoved the little square piece of paper in the top left corner of her poster. She looked at it in confusion before she read what I had written.

I watched as her eyes widened and she blushed in mortification once again, starting to tremble in fury. Patting myself on the back for a job well done, I turned on my heels and walked away. After all, I was getting late for work. I just hopped I could make it on time, or that at least Kinomoto would cover up my absence or think of some excuse I could use.

Still, as I opened the room door and walked out I couldn't help smiling to myself.

I really loved riling her up.

"See you tomorrow," Kinomoto yelled back at me as I walked away from one of our local part-time jobs.

"Right," I answered not looking back, waving my hand so he'd know I'd listened.

The night was pretty cool and there was a small breeze blowing that even made me shiver a couple times during my way back to the apartment, so I speed up my pace a little and dressed my jacket to keep warm and get there faster.

I yawned.

I hadn't even realized I was that tired.

'I guess I'm so exhausted on a regular basis that I can't even tell when I'm tired anymore... Oh well, nothing a good night of sleep can't fix,' I thought to myself as I crossed the street and made my way to the residence.

As I came closer I noticed someone coming on the opposite direction. A woman, judging by the long dress and blowing hair. Odd. It was pretty late; I didn't think I'd meet anyone on my way back in the suburbs, much less a woman on her own. Didn't she know it was dangerous around here this late? I checked my watch.

'Yep, pretty darn late.'

When I looked up again I was finally able to distinguish the lithe form.

Kobato.

'I should have known,' I rolled my eyes, 'Only she would walk around this late and be totally ingenuous about it. She's damn lucky if she didn't run into any trouble.'

I suppressed my sudden will to make sure she was alright. After all, it had nothing to do with me and she seemed fine.

As we came closer I noticed she was looking at the ground, in a preoccupied pose and a worried frown on her face.

'Ok, so maybe she's not as fine as I thought, but there's no need to make a big deal about it. Maybe she's just still pissed at me for my 'bizarre unidentified life forms' joke…' I assumed. But then I thought… 'Was she really that disturbed about it? It was just a joke. No way she'd be this worried about it. I tease her on a daily basis and she never reacted like this before. Did something happen, then? After I left?'

Since she still hadn't noticed me she entered the gate and kept walking on. As I was close enough now so I could listen to her worried voice. She seemed to be talking to herself. Curious, I speed up my pace a bit more but kept it silent, so I could listen.

She was walking up the stairs when I could finally distinguish her words clearly.

"… He really meant all that?" She asked herself in a small voice.

Ok, now I felt guilty. Maybe she was like this because of me after all.

"How could he do something so cruel to children?"

Wait a minute. I hadn't done anything cruel to anyone, much less to the children. I decided to listen more carefully, taking care so she wouldn't notice I was right behind her.

"He might hurt Sayaka-sensei, too." she continued, unaware of my presence.

I frowned. There was only one person I could think of that would hurt Sayaka, and I didn't like that one bit. I clenched my hands in anger, but kept silent. I needed to make sure of whom it was before I could beat up the target.

"Do you think he'll actually close the school down? He must be serious if he came to check up on it, right?"

Her worry had lessened my anger a bit, though the news weren't good at all. Maybe she could be trusted after all, if she was this worried about Sayaka, the kids and the school. Not that I was completely convinced of her innocence, but maybe I could lessen my teasing a bit. Still, I had to know who had shown up at the school while I was away.

"'He' who?" I asked, making my presence known.

She gasped in surprise and turned around to face me.

"Fujimoto-san!" she cried in astonishment.

It looked like she really hadn't noticed me behind her at all. I continued to look into her eyes seriously waiting for her answer.

"W-were you listening to me?" she asked, her voice wavering with what I guessed was apprehension.

"I overheard," I replied simply. No way was she getting out of this. "S'hardly my fault if you're talking to yourself out loud like that."

She frowned at my accusation and glowered at me half heartedly as she stood closer to the wall, her back facing it.

"I wasn't talking to my-"

I cut her off by slamming my left hand open on the wall beside her head, effectively trapping her.

"'He' who, I asked." I stood closer to her, lowering my head so I could look her in the eyes.

She pushed herself against the wall behind her as I advanced, probably trying to make space between us, but I only stopped when there was only a palm of distance between our faces. Her eyes were wide in surprise and there was that weird dazzled look in them again, though I couldn't figure out why. She was a little flushed as well, but I brushed it off; it didn't matter. What did matter was the answer I was still awaiting.

"I-I didn't get his name…" she began, weakly, probably still stunned by my actions, "He was smoking. And he smiled a whole lot." She continued.

'Okiura.' I growled mentally. I was sure she could see the recognition in my expression and the furious gleam in my eyes as I let my hand drop from the wall and walked away from her.

"That bastard," I growled more to myself than her benefit.

She seemed to snap back to reality as I walked away because she turned to me again with worry in her voice.

"Do you know him?" she asked, though I was sure she could guess I did.

I suddenly remembered something.

"Did Sayaka-sensei see? Did she see him?" I asked over my shoulder, frowning at the thought.

"No. I was going to let her know," she said, following me, "He said he would close down the school if she-"

"Don't tell her he showed up," I ordered as I opened the door to my apartment.

"Huh? Wha-? But…" she asked in confusion, obviously distressed.

"Just keep it to yourself, understand?" I scowled at her, entering and slamming the door behind me.

"Fujimoto-san!" she called out in concern.

I didn't answer.

I didn't have anything more to say to her for now.

She seemed to understand it, because she didn't push it or even knocked on my door. I appreciated that. I needed time alone to cool off.

I heard her open her door and close it softly, probably afraid to disturb me. But I pushed that thought away.

The only thing on my mind was how that bastard had showed up at the school and how fortunate it was that Sayaka had apparently already left. Thought the fact that he'd been calling the school nonstop was bothersome as well.

'Damn, this all mess was the reason I wanted to go to Law School in the beginning, and now I still can't do anything to help!'

I punched the wall in frustration.

Kobato yelped on the other side. I'd startled her.

I cradled my fist in my other hand and let myself fall onto my futon.

'Then again, the fact that he's been talking to Kobato can't be good either,' I continued my trail of thought, 'I know he's been calling before, since I check the phone bill, but I haven't answered any calls from him, and it doesn't look like Sayaka has either, so that means that Kobato's the one who's been answering. Damn, she shouldn't get involved on this.' I thought, worried for her naïve nature, 'This is the Yakuza we're talking about, the girl's nuts! And he's met her today. What if he'd hurt her somehow? Just what I needed... One more person to protect from that bastard.'

My cell phone rang in my pants pocket.

I reached for it and checked the receiver. I frowned when I saw who it was.

'Doumoto Takashi calling'

'Great, just what I need after a long day of work; someone nagging me to get back to college,' I scowled and turned on my side, dropping the cell phone on the floor beside the futon.

I didn't feel like answering. He'd say the same things he always did, with his unwavering logic, trying to convince me to go back, and I'd stubbornly refuse to do so, because that'd mean I'd have to leave Sayaka on her own.

I wouldn't ever abandon her.

Not like he had.

Until I could find a way to finally help her pay off her dept, I wouldn't leave her. Not even after that. After all, we were family.

'I should be extra careful and pay more attention to the phone tomorrow. I need to be the one answering. I have a few things to say to the damn bastard.'

I sighed.

'I just hope Kobato keeps her trap shut about it.' I frowned, 'Well, might as well change into something else before going to sleep.'

"Good night." I heard her soft unmistakable voice from the other side of the wall, as if she'd read my thoughts.

I got up and changed into a t-shirt and shorts, promptly crawling back onto bed. After I got myself settled I gazed at the wall that separated our apartments before rolling over and closing my eyes stubbornly.

"Hmph."

...

'Good night.'

Like Fat's Rate String Tied Together

"Yuzuru, I came to this world because my longing to thank you for the new lease of life you had given me so immensely… But I'm glad, because I managed to fulfill that, and it also gave me a chance to realize that…"

"I love you, Yuzuru."

"I'm going to be late…" The white-haired girl whispered under her breath as she quickened her pace, causing her hair and white sundress to flutter in the breeze. She didn't want to be late – she had already made an appointment with her best friend, whom she hadn't gone out with for more than a month, and she only had five minutes left to reach their promised meeting place.

The constant clicking sound of her heels against the floor reminded her about the dull, throbbing pain at her ankle. She had sprained a few days ago during Gymnastics, but she decided that she couldn't wear sandals with such a pretty white dress, could she? Not that Yuri would mind, though, she had never cared much about looks. All she wanted was a true friend that she could trust.

Just then, someone had gently grasped her shoulder, causing her to flip her head around. She saw a red-haired boy looking at her with confused, but determined-looking eyes. "Have I met you somewhere before?" was the first thing he said, his voice deep with genuine curiosity.

She looked at him and blinked. Nope, she didn't think she had ever seen someone that looked like him before. "I'm sorry, you must've gotten the wrong person." She smiled at him, unknowingly dazzling him and leaving him stunned for a few seconds. I have to hurry… She turned and began to walk away briskly, only to be stopped by him once again, his hand firmly clasped around her wrist. "Don't go." That one touch, seemed to spark up something in her mind. Only what? She couldn't recall. A faint memory attempted to surface in her head, but quickly disappeared once again, leaving her head throbbing slightly.

The amber-haired boy seemed to be confused at his own actions as he awkwardly let go of her hand, "Nevermind. I just thought you looked so familiar… even though I can't recall…"

"I'm going to meet my friend, if you have nothing on, would you like to come along?" The words left her lips before she could consider them properly – What on earth was she thinking? Bringing a complete stranger to meet her best friend, who would certainly not appreciate the extra company. Nonetheless, the words had already been spoken, so she had to stay true to them.

"S- sure…" He followed after her as they walked at a face pace, but in silence.

"By the way, I'm Kanade. Tachibana Kanade." She said, turning her head and smiling.

The boy stopped for a second. Tachibana Kanade… that name echoed in his head, seemingly trying to remind him of something, trying to make him realize something very important. "What's wrong?" Her words broke his train of thought.

"Nothing. I was just thinking about how pretty that name was." Gah, there was it all over again. He didn't even know what he was saying anymore, quickly adding something to cover up the embarrassing situation, "I'm Otonashi Yuzuru. Pleased to meet you."

"I'm pleased to meet you too. Now, if we don't hurry, I'm afraid my friend would be very upset." She muttered, motioning for him to walk faster.

"Yuri!" Kanade waved cheerfully at a silky red-haired girl, who was wearing a small frown on her face and scowling at her. "You're late!" She lifted her hood from her head. A white, ribbon blouse, a black hoodie and grey shorts. Like always, Yuri always liked to dress up in her own style.

"I'm sorry… I had some… Issues." She said as she looked at me. "And uhm… this is Otonashi Yuzuru. And my friend here is Yurippe, even though she's mostly known as Yuri."

Yuri raised an eyebrow at Kanade, but then turned her attention on Otonashi and stared… for a long time. "Eto… Yuri? I think you're scaring him." Kanade said sheepishly.

"Oh. Don't take it to heart, yeah. I was just wondering why you looked so familiar." Yuri said casually, slapping Otonashi on the shoulder. "It's like I know you from a past life or something. Funny, huh."

Past life…? Another thought sprung into Kanade's head… this time clearer, still blurry, but she thought she could images of her laughing… fishing, probably, with some friends. Only that she didn't know them – for sure, they looked familiar, but she didn't know them. Maybe she had forgotten, but she had never gone on a fishing trip.

"Well then, I shall just overlook the fact that you decided to bring someone else to our lunch date." Yuri rolled her eyes as she picked a table nearest to the window. Both girls briefly glanced at the menu, flipping the pages at lightning speed, but never really reading them.

"Well, you want Mapo Tofu, don't you?"

"And you, Beef Stew, am I right?"

And they both burst into hearty laughter, simply enjoying being in each other's presence.

"Otonashi-san, what would you like, then?"

"Well, I'm fine with anything, but Mapo Tofu… I guess I'll try something new for today then. I'll have the same as you, Tachibana-san."

But when the tofu entered his mouth, the flavor burst in his tongue so strongly that he had to gulp down mouthfuls of water. Now why then, did he find the taste so nostalgic? It didn't taste entirely new to him – fresh, but it's taste was somehow locked in some distant part of his mind. Did he ever try eating Mapo Tofu before? The dish that was well-known for its utter spiciness.

And as the day passed, he watched as Kanade and Yuri chatted leisurely and laughed, caught up in their own world, apparently forgetting about his existence. He didn't mind, though, somehow he found himself contempt listening to them, their voices ringing in his ears. Like church bells… they seem to radiate a soothing feel. A smile crept up onto his lips.

"Ah… it's already so late." Yuri suddenly stood up, staring at her watch anxiously. "I'm sorry, Kanade, I need to rush home. My siblings are waiting for me to read them another story book, and I can't possibly keep them waiting, I have to be a good older sister, after all, don't I?" And with that, she promptly paid the bill for the whole table and ran off.

"Well, now it's just you and me." Kanade smiled, grabbing his hand and walking out of the shopping mall, towards the train station.

And for some reason, Otonashi thought that he wasn't going to wash his hand when he got home.

"It's never been so crowded before." Otonashi groaned as the duo tried their best to keep sight of each other while jostling in the crowd. "mmsfsiyoa."

"What?"

"I CAN'T HEAR YOU!" She nearly shouted across to him, a few people separating them now.

"NEVERMIND!" He shouted in reply, as he reached his hand out towards her. She nodded and reached for him too, desperately trying to get closer. And when their fingers touched, he pulled her towards him, unfortunately with too much force, as she landed squarely on top of him.

"Itai…" He rubbed his head and looked down to see Kanade, her ear pressed against his chest.

"I hear you." The whole world seemed to come to a stop at the moment, as if someone had pressed the "stop" and "mute" button. Her whisper was so audible in his ears. "I hear your heart beating." Tears streamed down from her eyes as memories flooded their minds, playing the times which they used to have together, the obstacles that they overcame together, and the very last moments that they had spent together. It was only then that they realized. Maybe this was all meant to be, their seemingly coincidental meeting, her acquaintance with Yurippe, everything, was all already set in fate's hands – a love so powerful, that it could even transcend time.

And so, she thought, she would tell him the very same words that she had told him that day. Those words that bound their souls to each other for all eternity.

"I love you, Yuzuru."

Not Yet Broken

Part One – First Sign

When I opened my eyes, I simply looked up at the ceiling for a few moments, still dreary from sleep. In the chair beside my bed, I could hear Hinata's soft snores as he slept. Turning my head, I could make out his shape in the darkness, and I smiled. I'm glad that he's with me... I thought happily.

I then began to look around the room, feeling that something was...Off. Suddenly, it began to dawn on me...

I...I'm moving? I thought, shocked. I turned my head each and every way, doing facial expressions that I hadn't gotten to do in so long. This has to be a dream! I thought, not able to comprehend what was happening. I started to move my lips, and I began to wonder, Can I talk?

When I opened my mouth, I was unable to make a sound. However, once I tried it again, I was able to make a small noise. I haven't talked in so long...Maybe my voice is gone? I wondered. I decided to start by trying and say my name. It took me a while, but I finally began to form it...

"Y...Yu...Yui." I finally said softly, surprised that I had actually managed it. Turning my head towards Hinata, I began to pronounce his name, "Hi...Hina...Hinata?" He stirred in his sleep, muttering something, and I raised an eyebrow. I should try saying it louder, I thought.

Bracing myself, I breathed in, and said as loud as I could(Which wasn't really that loud), "Hin...Hinata!" He suddenly jumped up out of the chair, looking around. "Wait, wha?" he said, confused. He looked down at me, and I could make out a smile on his face from the darkness.

"Oh, Yui, you're awake?" Hinata said, looking down at me. "I swear... I think I heard something." he said, scratching his head. "You did." I said plainly, and he stopped scratching his head, and his hand dropped. "Wha-...What was that?" he said. "You heard me." I said, irritated.

Hinata suddenly came to my side, flustered. "Y-Yui! You can talk?" he said, and I nodded. "And you can move! Can you move your whole body?" he asked, and I looked down at the rest of my body, and shook my head, still not feeling anything else.

"This is...Amazing!" he said, standing up and starting to make his way out of the room, heading over to the doctor's office, but he stopped when I said, "Hinata!" He turned back towards me, and I shook my head. "Th-There's no need to make a big deal out of it..." I told him, "Just... Stay with me."

I felt myself blushing, and he looked over at me and sighed, closing the door and walking back over to the chair, sitting down. He leaned over the bed and let his hand run along my face softly. "I...This isn't a dream, is it?" Hinata asked, and I shook my head. I turned my head towards him, and I could see him smiling.

For a few moments, we stayed like that, staring at each other. "Yui..." he said. "H-Hinata..." I muttered. I felt myself beginning to blush even harder as I could see him leaning in towards me... And our lips touched. I-Idiot... I thought, blushing hard, If I could move my legs...I'd kick him for this. Although I knew I didn't mean it...And as the kiss broke, Hinata and I looked at each other...

"There's still that promise I have yet to fulfill to you..." he said, and I tilted my head slightly. Hinata grinned, and began to pull something out of his pocket. "Since you couldn't move before...I didn't know the right time to do this," he said, "But now I get to hear what you're answer is." I was surprised when he knelt beside my bed, and he held up what appeared to be a small, black box.

Opening it, my heart nearly stopped when I saw the ring inside of it. "Yui..." he said, looking at me.

"Will you marry me?" I was unmoving for a few moments, and a few tears started to form in my eyes. "Y-Yes..." I answered, starting to sob. Hinata grinned at me, and ran a hand along my face. I could see some tears in his eyes as well, as he said, "I...I love you Yui..."

Part Two – Happy Days

I made sure to contact Yui's mom as soon as morning came. It didn't take long before she came up to the hospital, and, once she saw it for herself, she began to cry. "Yui..." she said, sobbing, rubbing a hand through Yui's hair. I smiled. Now Yui's mom can be happy, I thought.

The doctor had come in shortly after that, amazed by Yui's small recovery. "It wasn't believed that you'd ever move again..." he said bitterly, but he smiled once he saw Yui moving her head. "Its...Incredible." I grinned, and looked down at Yui, who smiled at me. I slipped my hand underneath hers, and let our hands entwine...

A few days passed, and, after the doctors and medical examiners stopped being hectic, we told Yui's mom what we were planning. She began to cry again as we told her that we were going to get married. "I never thought I'd see the day..." she said between sobs, and, looking up at me, she told me, "Thank you..." She came over to me and gave me a hug, and I could see Yui giggle. I couldn't help from chuckling slightly also, and I could feel a warmth form inside of me...One I hadn't felt before.

A few weeks passed, and Yui had started to move the top part of her body; Her shoulders, arms, and stomach. As the time progressed, I could see Yui become happier and happier, which made me happier in return. We were able to plan out our wedding date, and we decided that we would have it back at Yui's home, since she hadn't been there in so long...

Another month passed by in a flash, and the muscles in Yui's lower body began to rebuild, and she found herself able to walk, although only for short distances. Eventually, she could take walks through the hospital, and, finally, she could join me for walks outside. While we were walking one day, I saw a familiar person across the street, his orange hair gleaming in the sunlight...

"Otonashi?" I said, tilting my head. Yui looked up at me and asked, "What is it?" I shook my head and looked at her. "Oh, uh...Nothing." I assured her, and, looking back, I could see that the person was gone. Must be my imagination, I thought, shrugging, The chances of us meeting again...That's almost impossible.

As another month passed, it became time for Christmas, and I spent it happily with Yui. "Look, Hinata!" she said, pointing out the window. I looked outside, and was surprised to see that snow had started to fall. Yui looked up at me and smiled, "Come on, let's go outside." I looked at her, and nodded. Together, we both walked out of the hospital, and felt the cold snow fall onto us.

Looking down at Yui, I could see her eyes gleaming with happiness, and she stuck out her tongue to catch some of the snow on it. "This is the first white Christmas I've seen..." I said, and Yui nodded. "Me too..." For a few moments, we were quiet, and our hands entwined together, and I could feel the cold-metal of the ring I had given her on her hand...

I turned towards her, and she turned towards me. We looked at each other for a few moments... Before we leaned in... And our lips came together. Then, we embraced each other and watched the snow fall from the sky...

Merely a week later, we had the wedding. It was good that Yui's mom could help us out, since, well, I had no idea what was going to happen. To be honest, all I was waiting for was the moment when I could say, "I do", like I had seen many times before in movies and such... When it came, I was glad, and I could see that Yui was glad, as we leaned in and kissed, the attendants at the wedding starting to clap, and I could hear Yui's mom weeping.

As we left Yui's home, our hands entwined, I could feel warmth inside of me, and I thought to myself, I don't want to ever be apart from her. ...But I wish that could be true. As we were walking, Yui suddenly stumbled, and fell over. "Yui?" I said, kneeling beside her, "What's the matter?" After there wasn't a response, I was quick to react, calling for an ambulance, and trying to wake her up...

"Yui..." I said, looking down at her, unmoving. "YUI!"

Part Three – Broken

Yui had been rushed to the hospital once the ambulance had arrived... Once there, the doctors told me that the recovery was starting to reverse...And Yui was beginning to become paralyzed all over again. In my anger, I grabbed the doctor's collar, and shouted at him, "No! That can't be true!" … But I let him down, and I started to cry, unable to comprehend what was going on...

After all the happiness we experienced, I thought, looking at the ring on my finger, Why does it have to end up like this? I punched the wall, and I suddenly felt a hand on my shoulder. Turning, I could see Yui's mom beside me, a sad look on her face. "It's not fair..." I muttered, and she came forward and hugged me. "Thank you..." she said, as she started to weep, "...For giving her happiness."

Yui went into a sort of coma for nearly two weeks... I sat by her side every day, speaking to her, and hoping that she could hear me. When she woke up, I was relieved, and it felt like a ton of weight had left my shoulders. "Yui..." I said, setting my hand over hers...

...But all she did was blink. "Y-Yui?" I said, and, after a few moments of no response, I felt myself begin to tear up. N-No...This can't be happening, I thought as I put my head down on the bed and started to sob. After a few minutes, I looked up at Yui, seeing no expressions in her eyes...

I leaned forward, and, once I was merely inches away, I whispered, "I love you..." … And I kissed her. For a few moments, I stayed there, looking into her eyes. I was surprised when I saw a tear begin to form... I could imagine that she was fighting to speak...

"It's alright..." I assured her, running a hand along her cheek, "I know what you want to say." I hesitantly moved back into the chair and sat, starting to cry harder than I ever had before...

I love you too... Yui thought, as she sat there, unmoving, merely blinking, and barely able to squeeze a tear out of her eyes, as it streamed down her cheek.

And they sat there... The familiar silence washing over them...

The happy days may be over, Yui thought, But I want to stay with him...

Forever.

Untouched

Chapter 1
Second Awaking

I fell to my knees, my tears starting to stream down my face, and my hands reaching forward for the girl who had been in my arms merely a second before. I stared forward in disbelief, not ready for her to be gone yet. I braced myself, huddling up slightly, and gripping my shoulders.

Then, I looked up at the sky, seeing the sunlight starting to fade along with my vision, as I yelled as loud as I could, "KANADE!" …. …. And the visions of everybody I had met in the After-Life...The memories I had gained there...The Tears...The Laughter... The Happiness...

Disappeared... "Just how I got here, waking up in an unfamiliar place... So I shall leave..." I muttered softly as the light enveloped me...

When I woke up, I could see a faint light begin to come from the wall nearby. Hunger and thirst washed over me, and I couldn't move my body. All I could do was watch as the light got bigger and bigger, until it consumed the wall of dirt and rocks, and the figures of a few people emerged.

"There they are! Quick! Get them out of there!" I could hear a rough voice say, and, before I knew it, I was being dragged from the darkness, and out into the bright sunlight outside. Somebody knelt over my body, looking down at my face. "Hey!" he shouted at me, examining my body. "Are you alive?"

I was able to produce a nod, and the man signaled over to two paramedics who came over to me, picking me up and putting me onto a stretcher, then hauling me over to an ambulance, followed by another person who was set beside me. As the doors to the ambulance closed, I looked to my left to see who was beside me...

"Igarashi..." I said softly, and somebody turned my head back to where I was looking up, and began to shine a light in my eyes. After a few moments, a voice said, "This one is suffering from extreme exhaustion... But he'll be alright, let's get him some fluids, and..." the voice began to trail off as my eyes began to close...

I woke up suddenly, sitting up and looking around, confused as to where I was. After a few moments of recollection, I could remember everything... The tunnel collapsing... The train crashing... All of the people I had helped. Sighing, I laid back down, the sunlight from the window behind me pouring into the room, filling it with light.

The door to the room opened slowly, and I sat up once more, watching as a doctor walked inside, closing the door behind him. "Yuzuru Otonashi?" the doctor said, and I nodded. He came over and pulled up a chair beside the bed, sitting down. "My name is Dr. Yurino. How are you feeling at the moment?" he asked, and I shrugged. "Better than before..." I said, realizing how plain it sounded afterward.

Dr. Yurino nodded, and flipped through his clipboard, reading a few things. "Hey," I began to ask, and he looked up at me, "How is everybody else?" Dr. Yurino looked at me for a few moments until he set the clipboard down and stood, walking over to the window and looking outside. "You're really brave, you know that?" he said, not answering my question. I nodded.

Suddenly, he looked down at me, a grin on his face, "Thanks to you, everybody made it out fine...Except for one man, whom had died from blood-loss and exhaustion..." he said, the grin fading. "But you did all that you could... Saving that many people, you should be proud of yourself." Dr. Yurino told me, setting a hand on my shoulder.

I could feel my heart begin to beat hard, and I clutched my chest. Dr. Yurino suddenly bent down and asked, "Are you alright?" I nodded, and Dr. Yurino forced me to lay me down, saying, "You should get some more rest... Your body still isn't back to itself yet." He then picked up his clipboard and left the room, closing the door softly behind him.

Before I knew it, I was back to sleep...

One Month Later...

I had been out of the hospital for a week, and I had gotten to meet those I had helped in the tunnel, and some of their families... All of those whom I had saved... Those who I was able to give a purpose... Why does it sound so familiar to me? Giving people a purpose...

My heart began to beat hard as it had when I had awoken in the hospital. I clutched my chest for a few moments before it subsided. When I looked up, I could see a boy about my age walking past, pushing a girl in a wheelchair, whom had long, pink hair. As he passed, he looked over at me and gave me a polite smile, and I returned it, feeling something familiar about it...

But I shrugged it off, and began to walk towards a nearby hotel, where I was going to stay for a while until I could truly get back up on my feet and go back to my goal of becoming a doctor. Once at the hotel, I payed for a room, and took the elevator up to the third floor, and made my way to my room. After a few moments, I arrived at it, the left room at the end of the hallway. Looking up at the number above the door, which said '#39', my heart beat hard once more.

Suddenly, the number seemed to change into a sign, which stated, "Principle's Office'. After a few seconds, it changed back to saying '#39', and I looked around me, wondering what had happened. What was that? I thought before unlocking the door and walking in. Once inside, I flipped on the lights, and looked around the room. Not too bad, I thought, throwing my bag down onto the bed and heading over to the window.

Looking outside, I had a pretty good view of a lot of the town I was in. I sat there for a while, gazing down at the people walking by, and the cars driving along the road, and I felt a sort of calm wash over me... However, the door knob to my room began to rustle, and I walked over to it, opening it slightly.

Looking out, I could see a serious-looking guy with brown hair looking at me. "Hey, whats the deal? I was given room #39." he muttered, glaring at me. I opened the door and examined the person standing in front of me. "Well...It must be a mix-up." I told him, and he sighed, walking back down the hall. "Whatever." he said. However, he stopped halfway down the hall, and turned back towards me.

"By the way..." he said, "You look familiar...Who are you exactly?" I tilted my head slightly, and told him, "Yuzuru... Yuzuru Otonashi." He nodded, and looked up in thought for a few moments. He then shook his head and said, "Nevermind then..." before walking off again. "My names Fujimaki." he stated without looking back, as he entered the elevator and descended.

Closing my door, I stood there, thinking for a few moments. Fujimaki...I thought, That name does sound familiar... I walked over to the bed and laid down on it, feeling my chest pound hard for a few moments once again. Setting my hand onto my chest, I could feel something on the edge of my memory...As if I had forgotten something...

As my eyes began to close, and I started to drift to sleep... I unconsciously muttered, "Kanade..."

Untouched

Chapter 2
Remember Me

When I woke up, I took my time before standing up and getting dressed, just throwing on a t-shirt, pants, and light jacket. Slowly, I opened the curtains, allowing the sunlight to pour inside the room, and causing me to squint my eyes, which were still blurry from sleep.

Looking outside, I could see people making their way to school, work, or wherever they had to be in the morning. I sighed, feeling a pang of loneliness wash over me. I wish I could go back to those days, I thought before I closed the curtain and headed towards the door.

Locking the door, I headed down to the elevator, which was already ascending to the third floor. My heart began to beat hard again as the doors opened, and I could see the same guy I had seen the day before standing there. He raised an eyebrow and looked at me for a few moments, before walking past.

I turned my head and watched him walk over to one of the first rooms on the left, before shaking my head and walking into the elevator. I descended, then stepped off, walking over to the counter and telling the person I was heading out for the day. Then, I stepped outside and began to walk along the sidewalk.

I had decided to get used to surroundings, since I was in a totally new town. It didn't take long before I knew where most of the hot-spots were. Eventually, I came across a cafe, by the name of 'Mattekou Cafe', which caught my eye, so I went inside to see what they have, since I was feeling extremely hungry.

Once inside, I was seated at a table near the front door. Looking around, I could see that the cafe was empty, besides me being there. I hope this was a good choice, I thought, raising an eyebrow. After a few moments, I was finally served by a young waitress that came up to the table quickly, panting slightly, her long, orange hair

"Sorry for the wait," she said, as though being there in a few seconds was a bad thing. "My name is Sekine," the waitress told me, "What would you like?" I glanced down at the menu for the first time, and eyed over it for a moment. "Uh...What do you suggest?" I asked, and Sekine looked up in thought for a few moments. Then, she nodded, and told me before walking off, "I think I know what you'll like!"

As she walked off, my heart began to beat hard for a second, and I looked down at my chest, still unsure of why it often does that. When I had been in the hospital, I had asked Dr. Yurino, but he told me I was perfectly healthy. Setting my hand on my chest, my thoughts were interrupted when the door opened, and a girl with short, white hair walked inside, and was seated at the table near mine

I glanced over to the girl, who's eyes were downcast towards the table, and something in my mind began to wash over me. For a few moments, the gray table she was sitting at became a tan-colored one, and her hair became longer, and she was eating a sort of red-looking soup, with what appears to be tofu in it. I unconsciously began to reach out a hand towards her, watching her eat with a lonely look on her face...

When Sekine returned, and the vision faded. Looking up at her, she set down a tray on my table, and, when I looked at what was on it, I raised an eyebrow. "This is-" Sekine began to explain, but I said, "Mapo... Doufu.", although unsure as to how I know the name of it. She tilted her head slightly, then nodded. "Have you had it before?" she asked, and I shook my head, although I had a feeling that I had.

I got a spoonful of it, and examined it for a few moments before bringing it to my mouth. "Although it's extremely hot," Sekine began to explain as I dropped the spoon into the bowl and started coughing, feeling like my throat was on fire, "It's got a delicious taste afterward!" She handed me a glass of water, which I half-way chugged down. Licking my lips, I nodded. "You're right." I said, taking another bite, and having to chug the rest of my water down.

Sekine giggled slightly. "Here, I'll get you some more water." she said, picking up the glass. "You should bring back a pitcher..." I muttered, watching her walk away. Then, I felt a pair of eyes on me, and I turned to see the girl with the white hair looking at me. For a few moments, we stared at each other, although I couldn't think of a reason as to why I couldn't stop.

We didn't break our gaze until I took another bite of the Mapo Doufu, and I started to cough and wince at the burn in my throat. Sekine returned with a pitcher of water, and I raised an eyebrow. I was joking, but that'll work I guess, I thought as I took a drink. After a moment of recovery, I looked over at the other table, and saw that the girl was gone.

Who is she? I thought, trying to dig deep in my mind to see if I had met her before... But nothing came to mind.

After I had finished the Mapo Doufu, and chugged down nearly ten pitchers of water, I decided to just walk around some more, looking inside shops and other buildings as I went. Once the sun started to make its way down from the sky, I decided to stop at a small park, sitting on a bench and watching the sunlight as it faded.

While I was sitting there, a particular person who passed by caught my eye; A person with blonde hair, with a red bandanna on his forehead, doing a sort of odd dance along the sidewalk. I raised an eyebrow, noticing that the person looked like he might be American. "Uh..." I said to him, and he did a spin and pointed at me, saying, "Come on, let's dance!"

My heart pounded hard once again, and the scenic view of the park changed to a room for a few moments, in which the person in front of me, along with a few others, were standing there looking at me. "Come on, let's dance!" the person said, doing a similar thing as he did before. What is this? I thought, but my vision changed as I was suddenly grabbed by the arm and forced up.

Looking forward, I could see the guy's face, merely inches away from mine. He was looking at me with intrigue, examining me. He then let go of me and stepped back, spinning and point at me once more. "Yo, Otonashi?" he said, and I tilted my head. How does this guy know my name? I wondered. "Uh...Yes?" I questioned, and he set a hand on his chin and nodded.

He then reached out and patted my shoulder, then pointed at himself and told me, "TK! Remember me?" I tilted my head slightly, finally realizing that 'TK' must be his name. "Have we met before, TK?" I asked, and he nodded, then tilted his head, puzzled. "Amnesia man..." TK muttered, taking his hand off my shoulder and shaking his head, starting to walk away.

"Wait!" I said after him, but he kept on walking. "Who are you?..." I muttered, confused. After he was out of sight, I sat back down on the bench and looked around, just then realizing that it was night-time. It's not every day that you see that, I thought with a sigh. A dancer in the dark...

With that, I looked up at the stars up in the sky, seeing some that were dull and some that were glowing brightly. After a few minutes, my eyes began to slowly close, as I began to drift to sleep...

"Thank you, Yuzuru..." I could hear a voice say as I fell over onto my side, asleep...

Untouched

Chapter 3
Memories

"Sleep Yuzuru..." I could hear a soft voice say, "I'll be with you soon..." I could see somebody standing alone in the darkness... A girl with long, white hair, and golden eyes. Kanade... I thought, Kanade! But her image began to fade in the distance, until it fully disappeared...

Suddenly, I woke up, sitting up and looking around me. Rubbing my eyes, which were still dreary from sleep, I took out my cellphone to check the time. 6 o'clock exactly. I must have fell asleep here, I thought with a sigh. Suddenly, I remembered the voice. Looking around, I couldn't see anybody there besides me. Who's voice was that? I wondered, standing up and giving a stretch.

I decided to head back to the hotel, although by the time I got there the sun was already starting to rise. So, I instead decided to head over to somewhere to get some breakfast. Most of the places I had seen on my previous walk opened at about eight, so I didn't think I'd find anywhere that would actually be open. However, luckily enough, there was one place that was open: Mattekou Cafe.

Once I stepped inside, I was startled when Sekine suddenly popped out of seemingly nowhere saying, "Welcome to Mattekou Cafe!" I looked at her for a few moments, and she did the same. Sekine then pointed at me and said, "Oh, you're that guy from yesterday!" I nodded, feeling odd to be referred to as, 'That guy from yesterday'.

Sekine led me to my table, which was actually the same one I had been at before. Looking around, it was, once again, completely empty. "Is there much business here?" I asked, and Sekine looked around, then shrugged. "Sometimes, but not often." she answered. I then raised an eyebrow at her and asked, "And are you the only person working here?"

Sekine looked up in thought, and I sighed. I'd think she would the answer to that, I thought. She shook her head, and told me, "Nope, most of the people here are either cleaning and cooking over in the back." I nodded in understanding, then told her, "Can I get... Some coffee?" Sekine nodded, then retreated back to the kitchen. I sighed, not sure exactly when I got the liking for coffee.

After a few minutes, there was a crash! And the sound of breaking glass. "Iwasawa! What the hell was that for?" I could hear a deep voice growl from the kitchen. Leaning across the table, I peered through the doorway, and I could see a large-figured man towering above a girl, obviously displeased.

"I-I'm sorry." the girl said, although it didn't sound like she was. I could see a stain on the man's shirt, with what appeared to be coffee. "You can make it again, and you're going to go take it to the customer!" the man said, and Iwasawa glared at him for a few moments before walking off.

After a few moments, Sekine came to my table. "Sorry about that," she stated, "That was the owner, and he's, well..." she started to look for the right way to put it, when I could see the girl starting to make her way to my table, a cup in her hands.

Sekine turned to where I was looking, and she took a few steps back, letting Iwasawa come to me and set the cup in front of me. "Sorry..." she said, not even looking at me. For a few moments, I could sense a sort of familiarity about her, like I'd met her before. "Uh..." I began to say, and Iwasawa finally looked up at me, and my heart began to beat hard...

I had a sudden vision of the girl in front of me, on a stage, in the lone spotlight... An acoustic guitar was in her hands, and the look of depression and sadness was obvious in her eyes...What is this? I wondered as I watched the scene. To my surprise, she looked up, tears forming in her eyes... And she disappeared, leaving behind the acoustic guitar she had been playing...

I was snapped back to reality when I heard my name being said. "Otonashi?" I heard, and I was whipped back to the cafe, and I could see Iwasawa looking at me with surprise in her face. "Uh...Yes?" I said, and Iwasawa suddenly smiled slightly, which was a change from what I had seen earlier.

"Have we met before?" I asked, and Iwasawa nodded, then looked at me and tilted her head slightly. "You...Don't remember me?" she said, and I thought about it for a few moments. "I...Don't think so." I said, and she sighed, sitting down in the seat opposite of mine.

"It's just like when you got there for the first time..." Iwasawa muttered, and I raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?" I asked, but she did a sort of wave as if dismissing the topic. "I guess I'll let you figure it out on your own time." she told me, grinning slightly.

I was going to ask her more questions, when a booming voice suddenly said, "What's taking so long girl?" Iwasawa glared over at the door to the kitchen, then she muttered, "I wish I didn't work here..." I looked over at the kitchen, then said, "Then why not quit?" She shrugged, and told me, "It's just part-time...Once I graduate, I'll move to the city, and let my music lead me on in life."

Those words felt familiar...And I suddenly had a vision of her and myself, speaking to one another...When did this happen? I wondered, and I snapped back to reality as Iwasawa stood up. "Well then," she said, "See you later, no-memory boy." As she passed me, she gave me a pat on the shoulder, and I turned and watched as she walked off.

"Well, hurry it up!" I heard the voice say again, and Iwasawa said irritatedly, "I know, I know." For a few moments, I was lost in thought, wondering how I could know that girl, without any memory of meeting her at all. "Um..." I heard, and, for the first time, I realized Sekine was still standing there.

"Oh, you're still there." I said, and she nodded. "What was that about?" Sekine asked me, and I shrugged, looking down at my coffee. Lots of odd things have happened lately, I thought, It's as if I've forgotten something very important...

I turned my head to look out the window, and I was surprised to see a familiar person standing across the street. It was the girl I had seen the day before, with the short, white hair, and the golden eyes. I suddenly remembered the image I had in my dream...

Standing up, I put some money on the table, and I made my way to the door. "Whats the matter?" I heard Sekine say as I left the Cafe. Once outside, I could see the girl walking away down the sidewalk. I tried to cross the street, when a car suddenly passed in front of me, honking. "Sorry." I said, as if they could hear me, as I made my way to the other side of the street.

Once there, I looked around, not seeing the girl anywhere. Where is she? I wondered, as I started to make my way down the sidewalk, hoping to run into her. After a few minutes of walking, I stopped, as a sudden memory washed over me...

I could see myself, and the girl, standing in the fading sunlight... "Even now, your heart is beating in my chest..." I heard the girl's familiar voice say, as she set a hand over her chest. "My one regret was being unable to say thank you to the person who saved me..." My eyes widened, as I couldn't believe the sight I was seeing. What is this? I thought, as memories started to slowly seep their way into me...

I started to see things... Somebody with a large halberd... Noda, I thought suddenly, remembering him. I then saw the girls on the stage, playing and singing to their heart's consent... Girls Dead Monster... I could see the rocky tunnels, with traps coming from every way, leading to a large factory... Guild...

All of these memories... I thought, Where are they coming from? Suddenly, I could remember the school in which nobody could die, and in which lived NPCs, which were soul-less people. This place, this Battlefront in which I had fought with many others...

The tears... The laughter...The Happiness... It all began to come back to me. Suddenly, I could recall the people I had spent time with...The people I had helped move on...

Yuri...

Hinata...

Naoi...

Yui...

TK...

Fujimaki...

Noda...

Irie...

Sekine...

Hisako...

Oyama...

Takeyama...

Shiina...

Matsushita 5th Dan...

and...

"Kanade..." I said, a tear forming in my eye. "KANADE!" I shouted as I began to run down the sidewalk, wanting nothing more than to find her... The one I had saved...

And the one that had given my life meaning...Thank you so much...Yuzuru...

Untouched

Chapter 4
Our Song

After running for what seemed like an eternity, I eventually gave up, and began to walk back towards the hotel as slow as possible, every step full of agony. If I had remembered earlier, I thought, angered with myself, Maybe I could have gotten to her.

As I was walking, with the memories still lingering in my head, I suddenly heard somebody humming a familiar song. My song? I thought, turning my head. I could see a girl leaning against the wall... One whom I had been looking for... Kanade? I thought, quickly turning around right as she stood and began to walk off.

"Kanade!" I said, running up to her and reaching out towards her, everything around me seemingly going in slow motion as my heart raced. As I touched her shoulder, she stopped, and looked down. For a few moments, there was only silence. Finally, she spoke, "Yuzuru..."

The voice was unmistakable. I ran around to her front, and she looked up at me, with her golden eyes that glowed in the sunlight. I was speechless, because of the extreme happiness that was swelling inside of me. I...I didn't think this would really be true, I thought.

"Kanade..." I said, "It's...Really you." She nodded, and set one hand onto my chest, right where my fast-beating heart was. "But...How?" I asked, setting my hand over hers. Kanade closed her eyes, and was silent for a few moments, before answering, "Yuri..."

My eyes widened. Yurippe? An image of the SSS leader came into my head. "But...What do you mean?" I asked, and Kanade looked down at the ground. "Yuri gave me her heart so that I could live..." she said, and I found myself not believing what she was saying.

"So Yurippe..." I began, and Kanade nodded. "But...How?" I asked. Kanade looked up at me took her hand, running it along my face. "I'm not sure exactly how it happened," she told me, "But when I woke up... She was in the bed beside mine. The operation was already done..."

My eyes opened wide, and I felt a tear come to my eye. Shaking my head, I thought, That must be repayment... For mistakenly fighting Kanade for so long... I felt Kanade wrap her arms around me in an embrace, and I did the same back. We stood there for a few moments, and I wanted it to last forever...

...When I heard a familiar voice from behind. "Well Well, Otonashi," I heard someone say, "Isn't this a sight to see?" Turning, I was surprised to find Hinata standing behind me, with a wheelchair in front of him, and on it, was none other than Yui...

I couldn't help from grinning. "You...Did it?" I said, and Hinata nodded. "When I got back...I caught that ball," he explained, "As soon as I did... I could remember everything, and I did what I promised her I would." I looked down at Yui, who, although she couldn't move, I could see happiness in her eyes.

"You know, it's weird to see you like that," I commented, "I'm still used to the over-excited Yui." I looked at her for a few moments, and was wondering whether or not I would get a kick in the face for that back in the Afterlife. Hinata let out a chuckle, and said, "Yeah...But, to be honest... I'm happy this way." I looked up at Hinata, whom had a serious look on his face, for the first time since I met him.

"It's all thanks to you." he said, giving me a smile. I rubbed the back of my head, and said, "Eh, it was nothing." Hinata grinned, then looked down at Yui. "Well, Otonashi," he said, "We've got a baseball game to get to." I nodded, and walked over to him, setting my hand on his shoulder. "It's good to see you again." I said, and he nodded, putting his hand on my shoulder as well. "You too." he replied.

After Hinata and Yui had left, Kanade said to me, "It's thanks to you that they're together" I looked at her for a few moments, then I gave a smile. "Yeah...I guess so." I said. Kanade suddenly entwined her hand with mine, and looked up at me. "Yuzuru," she said, and I looked down at her, "We have a game to get to."

I tilted my head slightly. "What game?" I wondered out loud as she started to lead me down the sidewalk toward somewhere unknown to me.

I was surprised when we arrived at a baseball field. We headed for the dug-outs, and, once we were there, I was shocked by what I saw:

Everybody. In the dug-out sat Irie, Sekine, Iwasawa, Shiina, Yusa, Takeyama, Hinata, and Yui. I turned my head towards the field, where I could see even more familiar faces playing baseball... Noda, Matsushita 5th Dan, TK, Hisako, Fujimaki, Oyama, and Naoi...

"What..." I began to say, speechless. Everybody on the field stopped and turned towards me, and everybody in the dug-out stood up. I looked over at Hinata, who was grinning. "Come on Otonashi," he said, "We've been waiting for you."

Looking around, and seeing all the faces of those people I had met in the Afterlife...It gave me a warm feeling on the inside. As I headed into the dug-out everybody began to greet me. Irie and Sekine simultaneously said, "Hi Otonashi!", while Yusa and Takeyama settled with just a small, "Hello.", being the non-talkative people they were.

I looked over at Shiina, who was sitting in the corner, still looking bored and uninterested. "Hi, Shiina." I decided to say, and she looked up at me, before looking away and saying, "How shallow-minded..." I grinned, thinking that was probably the best I would get out of her.

"Hey, kid!" I heard someone yell. Looking out onto the field, I saw Noda standing there. "Are you going to stand there, or are you going to play with us?" he said mockingly. I raised an eyebrow, then looked over at Kanade who nodded. Turning back to Noda, I yelled back, "If you insist on losing!" Taking off my jacket, I ran out onto the field, and I began to get greeted by the others.

"It's nice to see you again, Otonashi." I heard a voice say, and I turned towards Matsushita. "Same for you, Matsushita 5th Dan." He grinned, and TK came up to me, doing his sort of odd dance as usual, and said, "Yo! Otonashi!" I tried best I could to copy his moves, and said, "Yo! TK!" The three of us began to laugh, and I could hear somebody clear their throat from behind me.

Turning, I saw Fujimaki standing there, looking at the ground. "Well," he said, walking over to me and looking at me, "I guess the least I can say is...Thanks." For a few moments, we stared at each other, then we both gave each other a grin, and shook hands. "O-Otonashi..." I could hear somebody say, and I turned to see Naoi standing there, tears in his eyes. "I-I never thought I'd see you again." he said, sobbing.

I walked over to him and put my hand on his head. "Well, here I am." I told him, and he looked up at me and smiled. "Well well, if it isn't the no-memory kid." I heard, and, turning around, I could see Hisako standing there, with a grin on her face. "I know I said it before, but...Thanks." she told me, and we brought our hands together as we had done before she left the Afterlife.

"This is all touching and stuff," I heard Noda's voice from behind, "But are we going to play or what?" I turned around, and walked up to Noda. "Hm...You don't seem as tough without your halberd." I commented tauntingly, and he had an annoyed look on his face for a moment. "Why you...You're lucky I can't kill you a thousand times here." he said. For a few moments we glared at each other, until he suddenly busted out laughing, and I followed suit.

He gave me a punch in the shoulder and said, "Although you're a brat, you did help me out, so...Thanks." I was surprised to hear that from Noda, seeing as he'd been hostile towards me a lot of the time in the Afterlife. His face suddenly changed to a sad one. "Although...Yuri..." he muttered. I set a hand on his shoulder. "I know you looked up to her," I said, "But I'm sure you'll always be in her memory."

Noda looked up at me and grinned, nodding. "Well, whadda' ya say we get this game under way?" he said, "You can bat first, Otonashi." I nodded, and headed over to the batter's box, where Oyama was being the catcher. "Oh, hey Oyama." I said, and he nodded towards me, saying "Otonashi, it's good to see you again!" He handed me a bat, and I took position, copying the stances I had seen on TV.

Everybody started to take their positions, and Noda stepped up to the pitcher's mound. "Alright squirt," he said tauntingly, "Here comes the heat!" From the dug-out, I could hear everybody beginning to chant, "Otonashi! Otonashi!" I looked over to it, and I could see Kanade standing there, smiling. She gave me a wave, and I waved back.

Turning my attention back to Noda, I began to feel at home... These people...My friends...This is my home now, with all of them...

Noda brought his arm back preparing for a pitch. As long as mine and Kanade's love last...And the bonds between all of my friends lasts...

He brought his arm forward, and the ball flew at me. I swung, and, at that moment, it seemed to go in slow motion...

Clink! The bat collided with the ball, and it swooped up in the air.

Our hearts will beat as one...

Three Strikes, You are Mine

Hinata Hideki considered himself to be a pretty good player, really. He couldn't say he was professional, not yet, especially not as the child he was, but he had his dreams and that was what was important.

His laid back attitude on his playing, however, did allow for some off days.

This was one of them.

Hinata traced the baseball's trajectory with his eyes and felt his lungs creep into his throat. It was going, going, falling, falling...

"Ow!" The little girl at the crosswalk shrieked, hand instinctively going to the point of impact on her skull. She spun around so fast Hinata didn't even have it in him to think about running, hiding, or ducking for cover. The sudden absence of warmth at his side told him his practice-buddy didn't have any such problems.

The only word he could use to describe the girl he'd hit was pink. From her neon pink sandals to the very top of her head was pink. Her hair, her eyes, her tank top, her skirt, her socks. The overall picture made her look over the top girly, but Hinata met her angry eyes and saw a spirit that couldn't be tamed by the limits of her appearance.

"Did you hit that ball?" The girl shrieked at him. Her bespectacled friend beside her glared at him, looking just about ready to scold him until his head exploded, but she didn't step forward. The offended, though, looked just about ready to snap his neck and save him the trouble of a good finger-wagging, anyway.

Hinata was stuck with two choices: take responsibility for what he'd done, like Mommy said to, or deny it all the way.

When the girls' eyes locked onto the baseball bat his fingers limply clung to, he realized that his two choices were merely an illusion.

"I'll kill-!"

The girls enraged proclamation was cut off by the red sports car that sped down the street at a reckless, breakneck speed. Both girls lost their angered expressions, her friend's face falling short of any emotion at all, but the pink girl's expression betraying a twinge of terror.

Hinata didn't know those two girls. Those two girls didn't know him. But all three of them realized what had happened.

"If we hadn't stopped..." the pink-haired girl murmured, her back to the street, eyes wide, taking the boy before her in with a new light.

"...that could have been really bad." Hinata finished with a harsh exhale. He hadn't realized he'd been holding his breath.

The two girls' near-accident made him very aware of his heart beating, of every slow, full breath he took.

"...I suppose I should thank you."

Hinata blushed slightly. "Um, you don't have to-"

The girl in pink suddenly smirked something awful. "I said I should, but I'm not going to. That ball really hurt, you know!"

Her voice was strong, not a trace of her earlier trepidation remaining in it, but somehow, Hinata knew she was covering it up. He wasn't like his mother, couldn't read people like her, but he knew, somehow, that she was a mess of confusion beneath her exterior.

"Perhaps we should go, Yui-nyan..." her friend coaxed, gently pulling on her friend's arm. The girl in pink, Yui, for Yui-nyan couldn't seriously be her name, seemed a little hesitant before she nodded.

Before they left, however, Hinata watched Yui pick up the baseball. She examined it for a second or two before that wicked, unruly glint resurfaced in her eyes.

He may not have been able to cover for himself earlier, but he somehow managed to scrape up some sense to avoid the baseball zipping towards his face.

"That's strike one! If you get three strikes, you are mine!"

Hinata Hideki really, truly, hated his off days.

"Man, you really gotta stop doing this," his friend commented dryly. The both flinched when the baseball connected with the glass, flinched harder at the cracks that spider-webbed across its surface, and flinched hardest when the glass ultimately shattered.

Years ago he'd hit a girl with a ball. He figured his off days wouldn't be so horrific now that he had entered high school.

"Ah, crap!" Hinata screeched, throwing the bat down onto the plot of land with more force than the tool required for use.

"You hit the ball, you go get it."

Hinata really, truly, hated his friends on his off days.

He wasn't sure if the walk to the victimized house being short was a curse of a blessing. On one hand, he wouldn't have long to stew in his own guilty, fearful thoughts, but he was also cut short on time to think of a way to lessen the fury of the house's residents.

He knocked with stiff knuckles, steeled for the eruption about to overtake him.

There were footsteps behind the door. Hinata braced himself and silently said a prayer. When the door opened, Hinata cautiously looked up at the woman before him with her pink hair and pink eyes that looked almost eerily familiar.

She looked surprised to see a teenage boy at her door, and asked with curiosity and weariness in her voice, "I'm sorry, we're a little busy over here. Is there a reason you stopped by?"

Hinata would have loved to just walk away. This lady didn't realize that they were probably busy cleaning up after him, and he could walk away, free as a bird.

However...

"What is this?"

"M-mom...um...the guys from the team gave it to me..."

"No. No! How long have you been taking this?"

"O-only a couple of times."

Slap!

"You told me you weren't...Stop. Don't take them. Please don't. If you do, I'll...I'll make you quit...My baby...my baby can't..."

He refused to lie anymore. Making a grown woman cry was inexcusable, and if a simple lie had the power to bring such a strong woman to her knees, Hinata would stop.

"I'm sorry, ma'am. That's...that's probably my fault." Hinata wanted to sink into the flower-decorated welcome mat.

"Pardon?"

"It's...because of the baseball, isn't it?"

The woman's eyes grew wide and nostalgia struck him again. "Did you break our window?"

Hinata bowed deeply. "I'm so sorry! I really didn't mean it! I'm usually not so sloppy, I didn't know I'd hit your house!" The apologies spilled passed his lips with incredible speed. He almost wished he could hit a ball as fast as he could eke out embarrassed apologies.

The door opened wider. Hinata looked back up to see the woman smiling warmly at him. "I'm glad that you would come in person to apologize. What might your name be?"

"U-um, it's Hideki Hinata."

"Well, then, Hideki-kun, would you like to get your ball? Oh, and it was my daughter's window you broke, so I'm sure she'll have some things to say to you, as well."

The way she said that caused a current of fear to travel his spine, but Hinata choked it back and took a cautious step into the house, slipping out of his cleats and into a pair of guest slippers.

The woman led him to a room towards the back of the house and the first thing Hinata noticed, with a cringe, was the broken window looking out to the empty lot he often used to play at.

The second thing he noticed was a girl with pink hair, pink eyes, and just how well she blended in with the pink wallpaper.

"Yui, this is Hideki-kun. He's here to apologize for the window." When the girl looked affronted, her mother smiled. "Go easy on him, okay?"

The girl stood from her crouched position over the baseball-of-ruining-Hinata's-life and shards of glass. Her mother backed out of the room, leaving Hinata alone with her daughter.

"Yui..." he mumbled. The name and face of the girl was familiar, but he could hardly remember from where.

"You...you...you idiot! Look at my window! Look at my floor! Way to go, Captain Failure of the Failure High School Team of Failures!"

"Ah! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to, honest!"

And then Hinata remembered. He remembered a girl who seemed to be genetically all pink with a spitfire attitude. He also remembered how she could have died the day he met her.

"Um...do you want me to help you pick up?"

"Whaaaat? No way! You're an idiot, an idiot that's either just gonna stand there or leave. I can do it myself."

Could it really be her? Really?

Yui bent down again and began gingerly picking up the bigger shards and discarding them into a trash bin (pink, like the rest of the room, and adorned with stickers that matched the Girls Dead Monster posters along her walls).

"Hey...Yui-san, can I ask you a question?"

"No."

Hinata frowned. If she was going to be that way...

"Well, I think I can. It's not like I need your permission."

"Why are you still here, idiot?"

Hinata bent down next to her and removed his baseball cap. He began scooping up the smaller pieces of glass with the visor and dumping them into the bin. He'd have to remember to make sure he got all the tiny pieces out of it later. "When you were younger, did a baseball stop you from getting hit by a car?"

"Ow!"

Hinata jumped and looked over at Yui, the girl having dropped all the shards she was holding, sticking her fingertip into her mouth. "Did you cut yourself?"

There was a pause before Yui nodded hesitantly. After another second she got up and crossed the room to a bedside table, pulling open a drawer and pulling out a box of band-aids. Hinata was surprised that the adhesive strip wasn't pink, but instead a baby blue.

"Hey...Hideki-kun, how did you know about that thing with the baseball?"

Hinata picked up his baseball and tossed it lightly at her after he saw the band-aid was applied. She caught it without preamble, but stared at him in question.

"Well, you see..."

"Oh my God!" Yui screamed suddenly. "It was you! You're the stupid punk that hit me!"

"Didn't I already apologize for that?" Hinata yelled back, consciously moving himself away from the scattered glass.

"You did not!"

Hinata felt something strike his head, hard, and for a moment he saw stars. "Ow! What was that?"

He looked down at the floor and saw his baseball rolling slightly before the carpet forced it to a stop.

Yui sneered at him, a fangy, smug expression that Hinata didn't like. "That's strike two!"

Hinata Hideki did not have any off days. Not since he joined the major leagues.

He swung the bat, warming his muscles.

"Just watch, you pink brat, I'll come out on top of every player when I get famous. And think, then you'll know a famous sports star. Maybe I'll get you free merchandise...if you're nice."

"Hinata, I'll go to your games, okay, but just know that you'll always be the stupid kid that sucks with a baseball to me."

"So mean. Even after all those years we spent trying to be friends in high school..."

"Shut up, we're not even friends! German suplex!"

"Ow! You're crazy, stop!"

"Hahaha! And Yui-nyan strikes again!"

"Enough with the Yui-nyan!"

Hinata grinned. He wondered if she would really show. Then, he wondered why it mattered.

He just knew that it did.

0000000000

When he saw her out in the audience during the last inning, he noticed two things: he wasn't sure how he found her at all and that it was astounding that he did, and that any recollection of what he was doing was completely gone.

Under the gleam of the stadium lights, her hair and eyes seemed to radiate something wonderful.

"Hinata!" one of his teammates cried. He turned just in time to see the pitcher wind up.

When the ball began to soar at him, Hinata knew he had it in the bag.

He also knew he had an evil, ingenious idea.

Doing one last, quick calculation, he swung the bat.

And he ran.

Someone was suddenly shouting, "It's out of here and into the crowd! Home run!"

He smirked. "Yeah, definitely into the crowd."

He looked up just in time to see Yui rubbing her head, clutching a baseball.

When the game was long over, Hinata stood alone at the pitcher's mound, staring at the dead lights and the empty stands.

Something cracked against his skull.

He didn't have to look to know it was a baseball. He didn't have to look to know who threw it.

"Well, Yui-nyan, is that strike three? Guess that means I'm all yours."

He turned around to look at her. She looked dumbfounded for a moment, but then her eyes became suspiciously moist. Hinata knew that he hadn't done wrong, though, because she was smiling.

My Most Precious Treasure

No shy touch of the hands. No embraces. No kisses.

Strangely, they didn't feel too bad about this. Long strolls to view the blossoming flowers of the springtime's womb or to gaze fondly at the seagulls flapping their wings in the caress of the wind meant much, much more than a modest touch of the lips would have.

She couldn't walk, stand, or even move her arms. She was fully aware of her tragic condition. But he didn't care at all. Because she was Yui, and as long as she was Yui that was all that mattered to him.

It was evening, in a baseball field.

Yui watched in fascination as he swung his bat, and the baseball disappeared into amber skies. "Home run!" she shouted excitedly. Hinata caught her eye and grinned proudly in a boyish manner.

When the night-time chorus of the frogs and crickets began, and the sound of wheels and footsteps on asphalt was just barely heard in the boisterous concert, Hinata suddenly stopped and gazed up. Yui followed his example, and tilted her head upwards towards the dark heavens.

"Wow..." Hinata murmured in awe at the sea of priceless jewels that loomed high and proud above the world.

"Incredible!" Yui gasped excitedly. "It's always been one of my dreams to see the stars like this!"

"Dreams..." Hinata said hazily. "Say... Yui..." she momentarily focused on Hinata with a small smile. "What's your number one dream?"

She took a deep breath, deciding whether or not to tell. Finally, she uttered one word, "Marriage."

"Marriage... huh?" Hinata repeated, turning his gaze back to the stars and then to Yui once more. "Say... um..." He ran a hand through his hair nervously, his face heating by the second. "Yui... um... how to put this..." He shifted uneasily, unable to meet her eyes. "I... may I ask for—no... will you—" he met her eyes with a red face. "Can I... can I marry you?"

"Huh?" a blank expression came over her features, until she realized what he was asking. Her face turned pink with embarrassment, and she squeaked nervously. "But... but... why would you want to marry me o-of all girls? I-I can't do anything. I can't have ch-children. I can't move my arms or legs at all! I'd just be burdening you!"

Much to her shock, Hinata came closer and leaned down.

He hugged her.

"I don't care," he whispered in her ear.

No shy touch of the hands, no kisses, one hug, and one (accepted) marriage proposal.

Even After

"I might have said it before, but I want to be with you," intoned the orange-haired boy solemnly as the sun streaked down the horizon in the distance, its rays slowly bearing down on the boy.

In front of him was a small, white-haired girl, looking at him passively with great interest in his words. She was standing on the stone steps on a level above him, looking down at the baseball diamond in the distance, where a few students could be seen playing a game. At the level she was standing, her eyes were level with the boy's eyes, looking at him intently as he began to speak once more.

"It's because I…" trailed the boy off into silence, courage not coming to him momentarily for him to say the words he so longed to tell the girl.

The girl took his fumble as an opportunity to walk down the steps past him, stopping a meter away from him as his eyes tracked her progress.

"I… really… love you," the boy said suddenly, an imploring look on his face.

Without waiting for the girl to react, the boy took a big step, in more ways than one, and hugged the girl, gently cradling her in his arms, leaning her against his chest.

"I love you," he whispered once more, loud enough for just the girl to hear him.

She didn't react despite being hugged, but after a short while, she closed her eyes and a small smile appeared on her lips. She snuggled further within his embrace, and she continued to smile serenely for a short while.

"Why aren't you saying anything?" asked the boy tentatively, afraid that his actions may have ruined their current friendship. The thought of losing her caused him to unconsciously raise his voice by an octave.

"I will not accept your feelings," said the girl softly.

The boy felt stunned to his very core; his worst fears were confirmed. Right here and right now, the girl he had grown to love over time, a time whose length he didn't even have the slightest idea of, bluntly said that she was not going to accept his feelings.

In a pained voice, he asked her, "Why?"

The girl opened her eyes, still not looking at the boy, yet still locked in his embrace.

"If I accept your feelings, I'm going to disappear from this place."

Confusion punctuated the boy's facial features, as he could only ask, "Why?"

"The reason that I came here to this place, this 'afterlife'… it was all to thank you, Yuzuru," said the girl.

"What do you mean?" asked Yuzuru, still gently cradling the girl's head in his hands.

"In my life, I was able to remain living because of your heart," said the girl softly, gently placing her hand on Yuzuru's chest.

She wriggled out of his embrace, and looked at the boy in front of her.

"Even now, your heart is beating in my chest," said the girl quietly, placing both of her hands on her chest. "My reason for being here… my life's regret was that I was never able to properly thank the person who saved my life by donating their heart for my operation."

She paused momentarily, and then continued.

"I wanted to tell that person badly how much I was indebted to them. I wanted to completely express my heartfelt thanks to the person who had donated their heart to save my life. That regret was so great that I was able to enter this 'afterlife', a place originally for people who weren't able to live out good lives due to the skeletons in their closets."

"No way…" whispered Yuzuru, completely stunned and blindsided by this revelation from the girl he had grown to love. As he died in the previous life due to starvation and dehydration following a train accident, he had indicated that his organs were available for recovery and transplanting on the health card in his wallet. The odds that the person he had saved in the previous life was the person he had fallen for in the "afterlife" was too staggering to consider. Some people would like to call such a thing as "destiny", or "fate".

"But… how did you know that my heart was the heart used in your transplant?" asked Yuzuru.

The girl walked by him and said,

"I realized it when you first appeared in this world, not knowing anything. You asked me to prove that you couldn't die, so I stabbed you, as you may recall. When that happened, there was a gaping void where your heart should have been. Even now, you don't have a physical heart; that heart is beating within my chest, a clear sign of the regret that led me to this world to begin with."

Yuzuru moved to stand beside the girl, who was looking down at a pool of shimmering water that was located on either side of the wide stone steps that led down to the terrace.

"But how were you able to pinpoint that the heart you received was mine?" asked Yuzuru.

"In the infirmary, when I was recovering from an internal battle that came about from absorbing the five-score of aggressive clones that Harmonics created. While you looked after me, you fell asleep on my chest, right above where my heart is located. Your body recognized the beat of its own heart, and you recovered your memories, which you told me about the moment you woke up," said the girl simply.

Yuzuru was stunned into silence, while the girl closed her eyes momentarily, contemplating her inner turmoil. She also loved Yuzuru, and she had already thanked him. If she accepted his feelings, she would disappear. She didn't know what choice to take; to ignore his feelings so that she could physically exist near him, or to accept his, and by extension her own feelings, disappearing from this world afterwards.

In a heartbeat like that of an angel, she knew the choice she would make. Opening her eyes, she continued to gaze down at the pool of water when she spoke.

"Please… Yuzuru," she said quietly, turning around slowly to face him with a smile on her face. "Say what you told me earlier once more."

The one action Otonashi Yuzuru would not want to repeat. He knew that if he told her what he felt about her once more, she would disappear from this world, leaving him behind. He didn't want that to happen.

""N-No! I can't do that! If I do that, you're going to disappear!" exclaimed Yuzuru in despair. "Your request is leaving me in despair, Kanade!" [1]

Undaunted, Kanade pressed on in her request; to hear the feelings of the person she truly loved once more so that she could finally be at peace.

"Please, Yuzuru!" pleaded Kanade.

A wave of anguish settled over Yuzuru, his hands on his chest.

"No… I just can't do it," he spat out, a pained look on his face, shaking his head vigorously.

"Yuzuru!" implored Kanade.

Yuzuru choked momentarily, and he knew that he had no choice. Tears began to drip from his eyes, while his facial muscles involuntarily twitched due to the bittersweet direction this was headed.

"Prove it to me! I want to also believe what you always believed, Yuzuru!" exclaimed Kanade, looking straight at his eyes. "Living is wonderful, you told me. So please, let me experience what you truly believed in."

And in a fell swoop, Yuzuru was won over against his own personal desires to have Kanade stay with him in this world. He closed his eyes for a few seconds while Kanade looked at him expectantly, the tears continuously flowing from them. Reluctantly, he opened his eyes a short time later; gritting his teeth at the deed he was going to do.

"Kanade… I love you," he whispered gently, belying his fears at what he knew was destined to happen.

He moved towards her and she moved towards him, and they met in the middle, embracing each other, trying to convey the fiery love they held for the other.

"Let's be together forever, Kanade," said Yuzuru, tears pouring down his face onto her shoulders, happy that she had accepted his love and sad that she was going to disappear from this world due to that same thing.

"Thank you, Yuzuru…," whispered Kanade into his chest.

"Stay with me forever… Please…," choked out Yuzuru, dreading the moment she would disappear from his sight.

"Thank you so much… for loving me," whispered Kanade.

"Kanade, I love you!" repeated Yuzuru, the anguish breaking further into his voice, as though he was imploring the heavens not to take Kanade away from him. He felt that the more he expressed his love for her, the more that God would take pity on him and let her remain with him.

She nodded, nuzzling his chest, and replied once more,

"Thank you so much for loving me…"

The two began to slip into calling each others' names, trying to convey the love they felt through saying each others' name repeatedly.

"Please, please, don't disappear on me, Kanade!" wailed Yuzuru in despair, sobbing uncontrollably now.

Kanade didn't mind in the slightest; she was cherishing this moment, a moment that she would surely remember when she crossed over into the next life.

"Promise me… Promise me that we'll meet again, Kanade. I don't care how, when, or where, but I want to meet you again, somehow," spluttered Yuzuru.

"This gift of life that you gave me… Thank you so much, Yuzuru," mumbled Kanade, nodding and nuzzling Yuzuru's chest for the last time.

In an instant, the weight that Yuzuru was cradling in his arms disappeared, and he nearly fell flat on his face due to his awkward position. He knelt on the ground, grabbing at the air, scrabbling for any remains of the girl he had held in his arms mere seconds before, but he found nothing. Not a trace of Kanade. It was as if she never existed, as if she never was in his arms, as if he never told her that he loved her, as if she never expressed that she felt the same way.

Yuzuru breathed wildly, a glazed look in his eyes, the tears still streaming uncontrollably from them. He looked skyward and hugged his own chest, an insurmountable void opening up within himself.

"Kanade!" he screamed in despair, looking skyward to a God he imagined to be there, sitting on his throne, knowing that he took away the thing he cherished the most on this world.

As Otonashi Yuzuru contemplated being alone for eternity in this world with the loss of Tachibana Kanade, he suddenly felt light; in fact, he felt like he was light itself.

"What's happening to me?" he looked at his body in disbelief.

He was rapidly disintegrating into light, and before he knew it, everything in his vision faded to white.

"Mom, I'll go shopping for today's dinner now!" shouted Hanazawa Kanade[2] as she changed from her indoor shoes into her outdoor shoes. "We'll need basil leaves for spaghetti al-pesto, right?"

"The money for the greens is on the counter by the door Kanade-chan!" her mother called from the kitchen as she began to make preparations for kani salad as well.

"Roger that Mom!" called back Kanade as she took the cash from the counter by the door. As she stepped out of the door, the glazing heat of the early afternoon sun bore down on her mercilessly.

"Oh dear; I'm going to need something to shield me from this ridiculous summer heat," she muttered to herself.

She dashed back inside the house to grab an umbrella and a wide-brimmed hat that she placed neatly on top of her neatly trimmed hair that barely reached her shoulders. She noted that it was fortunate that she chose to tie her hair in a ponytail and wear a skirt on this hot day and set out from her house on the outskirts of the city towards the urban shopping district.

It wasn't exactly within walking distance, and to her dismay, her bicycle was in the shop for repairs; an accident the week earlier had left one of the bike's inner tubes busted. She opened the umbrella and sauntered towards the bus stop where she would take a 5 kilometer bus ride to the shopping district.

When she arrived at the bus stop, she saw that it was deserted save for a girl in a tracksuit who appeared to be steadily sweating. Kanade guessed that the girl was jogging to or from somewhere, but under this ridiculous heat? She noticed the girl's yellow ribbon affixed on top of her magenta coloured hair and immediately thought that that ribbon would completely absorb heat. The girl's hair was about as long as Kanade's and something about the girl piqued her interest; it was as though she had seen her before. Oddly, she thought that she had fought this girl before… Oh but no, that was impossible. Kanade was one of the least violent people in her school; sure, she had 1st dan in Shotokan karate but she only fought in self-defense, and ever since she put an unarmed mugger her age in his place did she actually put her skills in combat to use. She sensed that this girl would be really great to spar with, she also felt an onee-chan vibe coming from her for some unknown reason.

Shoving all these irrational thoughts aside, she looked at the girl, who caught her looking at her. The girl with magenta-coloured hair raised an eyebrow, and Kanade looked away in embarrassment.

For the next three minutes she waited for the bus, she felt the girl's eyes appraising her, staring at her, when she finally heard the low rumble of a bus headed toward her direction.

"The Doppler Effect in action," she thought absentmindedly, trying to distract herself from the piercing stare she knew that the girl in the tracksuit had on her.

The bus stopped in front of the station and Kanade got on, giving the tracksuit girl one last look before she boarded the bus. Their eyes met and instantly, both of them knew that they had met somewhere before, but neither could remember the circumstances of this event.

As the bus sped away, Sakurai Yuri[3] was wiping her sweat off, only beginning to wonder where she had met the petite girl in a jacket and skirt before...

Kamiya Yuzuru[4] was late. He was supposed to arrive at the auto-store about ten minutes ago for his shift, yet he was still at his home, hurriedly dressing up in a white shirt, a jacket with the scheme of military fatigues, and jeans.

"Damn, the chief's really going to murder me for being late on a Saturday," cursed Yuzuru.

He had woken up late because he spent the entire evening and twilight hours playing a visual novel. He only fell asleep at 6 in the morning when he was fed up with getting bad ends repeatedly due to innocuous choices such as "watching TV" or "resting and having a snack" after dinner. When he finally got his clothing into order, he left the house in a hurry without bidding goodbye to his parents, cursing the name "Matou Sakura[5]" while he took a brisk walk towards the train station that he lived near to. He had to take a short train ride to get to the shopping district, where he worked in a Mitsubishi auto-store.

Lately, he'd been getting this weird feeling that this day would be an important day in his life, a day that would have a life changing experience occur or something along those lines. As he was standing in the train, he thought about his personal life all of a sudden.

He was quite popular in his school, and he'd often get confessed to by multitudes of girls. He'd always turn them down though, because he was a believer in the single-bullet theory. He felt that his heart had been in someone else's all along, and when he met that person, he would know that she was truly the one.

The train called out his stop and he jostled amongst the other passengers, exiting the station and headed towards the Mitsubishi shop where he worked, dreading the wrath that his boss would have in store for him. He walked briskly, not taking note of his surroundings, when he heard a tune that he swore he had heard once before.

naiteru kimi koso kodoku na kimi koso

tadashii yo ningenrashii yo

otoshita namida ga kou iu yo

konna ni mo utsukushii uso ja nai hontou no bokura o arigatou

He turned to his left and saw a petite girl in a blue jacket and skirt, her angelic white hair in a ponytail, a wide-brimmed hat on her head quietly singing the song while leaning against the wall. She took her phone out from her bag and opened it.

The girl then eased away from the wall and she began to walk away, leaving Yuzuru to ponder just how he knew that song.

"My Song...," muttered Yuzuru to himself.

At that moment, it hit him; this girl was suddenly very interesting to him. He threw away all his worries for being late for work and turned around, walking briskly so as to catch up with the girl who was walking away. He reached her and extended his right hand, gently touching her on her left shoulder.

"Uh, excuse me, do I know you?" inquired Yuzuru in a gentle tone.

The girl turned to face him and their eyes met. In that instant, Yuzuru knew that she was the one, the girl that had his heart. He didn't know how that was possible, but he just knew.

A faint memory stirred within him, and he knew that there was one way to check if he was right.

"Yes?" inquired the girl timidly, looking at him.

"Can I ask you… What is your first name?" asked Yuzuru nervously.

The girl, sensing no hostility whatsoever from Yuzuru, felt that she could trust him enough to tell him her full name.

"My first name is Kanade. My name is Hanazawa Kanade. If it's not too much trouble, could you also introduce yourself to me?" asked Kanade.

Yuzuru's heart jumped in his chest; he was right, she was the one. At that moment, everything came back to him; the events of the "afterlife", his time with the SSS, and most of all, the days where he fell in love with Tachibana Kanade. Though her last name was different, he was sure that it was her. Keeping calm, he said in a steady voice,

"My name is Kamiya Yuzuru. Pleased to meet you… Kanade."

The girl's eyes grew wide and suddenly they shimmered in tears; tears that began to cascade down her face uncontrollably.

"It's you, Yuzuru. After all this time, it's you. I've been waiting my entire life for this moment, the moment where we'd meet again, Yuzuru," whispered Kanade softly.

"It was a promise, remember, Kanade?" chuckled Yuzuru.

"Yes. Yes it was a promise Yuzuru," mumbled Kanade as she moved forward and hugged Yuzuru, dropping the umbrella she held in her hands.

People began to stare at them but they didn't care; against all odds, Otonashi Yuzuru and Tachibana Kanade had met again in the next life.

"Kanade… I love you," said Yuzuru.

"And I love you too, Yuzuru," replied Kanade, tiptoeing and kissing him on the lips.