Chapter 35,5
It was probably very late at night. Neither An nor Haruka could tell. They sat on the cold floor of An's cell, talking.
Well, that was what they were doing, catching up after such a long time of not seeing each other.
Haruka didn't have much to say, because, well, she was dead, so An was mainly telling her what she'd missed.
Telling her about VBS, about Kohane, about Mizuki too.
About what actually happened to Nagi…
It was fun, whispering about life with the ghost of your friend, as weird as that sounded.
…Until she got to Akito.
"Akito… he's my teammate. He's here too, but…"
She frowned slightly, quickly brushing whatever she was thinking off.
"..but? Is everything okay, An?"
Haruka asked, putting a hand (or at least trying to) on An's shoulder.
"Oh… yeah. I just--
An choked up all of the sudden.
"Remember how I told you about how I almost killed her? Um… Hanasato, I mean."
Haruka nodded, looking a bit taken aback by the mention of her murderer.
"In the middle of all that I… I really hurt him too… like… he can't talk because of what I did…"
Tears started to form in her eyes as she ran her hands through her hair.
"I've tried approaching him but he just runs away… it's understandable though…"
Haruka wrapped her arm around An's shoulder.
"Look… I'm not sure how to help but… you should give it some time… this happened pretty recently, right? He's probably still shaken up about it. I would be too…"
Haruka suggested, remembering the day she came back after her death.
"Still, you can do it, An…"
An sighed.
"I guess you're right… I don't even know what I'm going to say to him… I mean, of course I'm going to apologize but… what else…? I can't just say that and leave, right, Haruka?"
Haruka thought for a moment.
"There's time to think about it…"
An stayed silent, looking absentmindedly at the floor.
"But… what if something else happens…?"
…
"What?" Haruka thought.
"What does that mean, An? Nothing will happen, I'm sure-"
"We can't be so sure that nothing will happen… you're dead, I am a murderer, I… probably won't get out of here… my best friend won't even talk to- …doesn't even talk… Hanasato is in such a bad state because of me… what tells you everything will be alright?"
An sighed after saying that, standing up.
"I'm going on a walk…"
Haruka didn't move as An walked away. Sitting down on the cold floor.
She was exhausted, and eventually closed her eyes.
It was so silent she could fall asleep.
"Haruka!"
She was standing right on that stairway.
. . .
"...?!"
Next thing she knew, she was falling. The sun lit up everything around her, she could feel the glass from those endless window panes behind her back touch her fingertips slightly.
Everything was upside down, she was reaching the ground already, reaching her forceful, final leap.
Was that really her end?
There didn't seem to be an escape from it. She was destined to die there it seemed.
The chance to survive was none, and, as soon as she realized it, with her life flashing before her eyes before going away,
Haruka closed her eyes.
A nightmare again. Just a nightmare.
She was dead already. Haruka had been dead for a long time.
Just the same nightmare, only this time it wasn't real.
She grabbed her arms tightly, hugging herself as she took deep breaths.
They were useless, of course, she could hold her breath forever with no effect now that she didn't need to breathe. However, just doing so convinced her that maybe she was still there, alive and well with everyone else.
"This is useless but…"
She was startled by a sudden voice in the corridor, coming towards the cell.
She would recognize it anywhere. The other person she held so dear in the prison.
Another idol, just like her. She wouldn't be able to see her, but Haruka knew exactly who she was.
"I have to try…
are you there…
…Haruka?"
Shizuku…
She was staring right at the wall in front of her. Haruka was right, no one but the one who brought her there was able to see her.
Not even Shizuku…
It was late, Haruka wondered just what she was doing at that hour.
"I don't even know if you're truly here…"
Haruka spoke up.
"And I don't even know if you can hear me…"
Shizuku stayed in place, Haruka stood up next to her, placing her hands on hers.
"Shizuku… I--
Shizuku unknowingly interrupted her.
"I'm sorry, Haruka… I'm sorry for not being able to protect you against whoever killed you… I was perfectly capable of doing so and I didn't…"
The former idol fell to her knees, Haruka kneeled down next to her, wrapping her arms around her.
"Why… why are you apologizing for that…? Shizuku, it wasn't your fault… you weren't even there…"
Haruka replied, looking at her friend.
"If only I had known… you'd still be here…"
Haruka hugged Shizuku as tightly as a dead person could. She'd never seen her like this, not even when she retired from Cheerful*Days.
Shizuku chuckled dryly.
"Why… you and Shii have both gone away…"
Shizuku was outright sobbing now, Haruka started patting her back.
"I'm right here, Shizuku… I'm right here… I won't leave this time."
But Shizuku couldn't hear her at all.
"I'm happy Shii is back but… deep down, I wonder if it's really her…"
Shii… that's how Shizuku called her younger sister…
Did something happen to her?
"What happened to her?"
Haruka asked, not pulling out of the hug.
"Goddammit… there must be some way to talk to her…"
Haruka whispered to herself. Turning around to look for alternatives inside An's cell. Anything she could interact with.
She pulled out of the hug, quickly trying to grab onto something, anything that might be of use to communicate with Shizuku. but nothing stayed, her hand went past everything.
Sighing, she took off running outside.
An must be somewhere. She had to find her quick.
"An!"
Haruka ran through the halls of the prison.
"An! Where are you?!"
She eventually found her, looking at a calendar at the end of the hallway.
"Mh… Haruka?"
An turned around, concerned.
They started running back towards her cell, well, more like An followed the very desperate Haruka.
"What's going on-?!"
Haruka stood outside An's cell, pointing at the insides of it.
An got closer, jumping slightly at the sight of Shizuku.
"Uh- Hinomori?"
Shizuku immediately stood up, wiping the tears on her face and giving An a small smile.
"Oh, Shiraishi… sorry, I uhm…"
"No need to apologize…"
Shizuku nodded.
"Alright, I think I'm gonna go now, Shiraishi… see you!"
Shizuku started walking away, before An suddenly stopped her, glancing at Haruka's worried expression.
"Hinomori, wait..!"
An didn't plan that far ahead.
"You want to talk, right?"
An grabbed a used paper sheet and a broken pen.
"With her, I mean."
An pointed to seemingly nothing, aka Haruka.