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T h e I r
E v e R L a N d

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He reached his hand toward the sky, ready to carry the burden of every single living being on his frail shoulders.

He wasn't born a natural leader, much less than a king. But that didn't stop him from bearing the punishment for his sins...

...because he knew one certain fact.

'Even the people who hated me were born and loved by someone.'

And then, she appeared before his very eyes, like an angel descended down onto his life.

He should have been happy.

He should have been relief.

Rather, he felt it.

Something was... wrong.

He couldn't exactly pinpoint what was off.

The smile on her face, it was just so kind, so gentle, so beautiful, and yet full of regrets; as if she was desperate for him to accept it...

...accept the cat cradle in her hands.

'Why?'

He wanted to voice up, to ask, to question her about the haste that was barely there in her eyes.

What was it that made her be so persistent on this, despite the situation they were in?

However, even with that question swirling continuously inside his head, in the end, he – always having the unwavering faith in her – decided to take it; because he never wanted to see the smile fading away on her face.

When he realized the meaning of the strings in his hands, it had already been too late.

She was... gone.

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How many years had it been?

5 years?

10 years?

Or was it 60 years?

Surely to everyone, it must have been a long time to live; especially him.

With the healing of time and the encouragement from everyone around him, he was able to move on, despite the hole inside his heart that couldn't filled with anything else...

...anything else other than her.

But he was sure that even she would not want to see him being demoralized because of her.

So he hid everything by using his smile.

He couldn't see how people reacted to it, because he was blind – as an after-effect from that day. He thought that if he showed his friends how acceptance he was to the bitter truth, they would have let him alone. And he was, in a way, succeeded.

Today was like any other day, with him sitting there on his usual reserved bench, looking out into the peaceful view of the city.

On his ears were the same headphones he used to listen to a song...

...her song.

Somehow, along the way, he fell asleep.

His heart's beat steadily came into a halt, and then stopped altogether.

He was... dead.

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He woke up.

He didn't know how long he had spent drifting between dream and reality, or how long he had spent sleeping here, in the middle of an unfamiliar place.

It was a garden with many violet flowers swaying lightly in the gentle breeze that was passing by him, with glittering lights dropping so slowly like a January snow fall.

Some of the lights touched his face, his shoulders, his hands... those tingling lights.

Strangely enough, he didn't feel anything weird at all, beside the warm and tender sensation that each light brought, as well as the rush of memories running through his mind right then.

Memories of the long forgotten past that could not be recovered anymore...

Memories of the ones who had stayed by his side 'til the end...

And memories of the moments which bound them together...

'If only I could live those moments for a bit more'

Suddenly, without the slightest forewarning, he felt young again.

No, to be more precise, he found himself back to how he was 60 years ago, back to how he still had his sight, his right arm, his unwounded heart...

And most of all, he found the silhouette of her standing there, beyond the horizon, with her unchanging beauty that could shake even the mountains and oceans themselves.

She turned back, facing him just like the day she had left him.

However, he knew that this time, instead of her leaving him behind, he would be the one to reach her, to extend and take her hands in his, to embrace her and never let go of her again.

For some reasons, she seemed to understand what he had in mind, as she beamed her rare but pretty smile that was only meant for him.

Without any more hesitation standing in his way, he ran toward her.

She did just the same.

Finally, after a very long time of separation, they were in each other's arms.

Their love might have not been able to surpass time and space, like a fairy tale; but at least they reunited and lived in their own eternity...

...their everland.

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f I n


A/N: First one-shot ever. I have finished watching this anime for more than one week ago, but the ending keep lingering in my mind that I have decided to write a fic about it as well as a small aftermath part. Anyway, hope you enjoyed it, and have a nice day.