Her hands tremble as she presses each of the buttons on the control panel. As soon as she finishes entering the code, the door starts to unlock. She turns the knob and proceeds to enter. The room was dark, except for some small lights, some blinking, others staying static. It was quite hard to figure what was going on inside and her eyes, which were dulled from her past years, didn't help at all. She starts to search for the light switch beside her.
"How many times do I have to tell you not to work in the dark?"
She reprimands him gently.
"Oh, you've finished early? How are the kids?"
"Never mind the kids."
Why did I ask about the kids first?
His senses come back to him.
"Are you okay? You look exhausted. Here, let me-"
He stops. She just looks at him, hoping for him to understand what she meant.
And he did.
He reaches for the remote and proceeds to turn the light on. The dark room was now illuminated just fine. The walls were dirty white, and the floor was covered with white tiles, some of which were stained with thin patches of grime. But the most interesting thing about the room was that it was full of huge cables connected to the enormous contraption at the middle. Right by the side is a man wearing a headpiece-like device connected to the machine. He had short, unruly hair, metallic eyes, and the contours on his face were fine and sharp. He wore a white shirt with a necktie underneath and a long, white lab coat on top.
"Better?"
He grins.
"Yes."
She gives out a caring smile.
"How's the progress?"
His face loses the smile quickly.
"I should be finished by a month more. But I need you to keep your promise. Please."
She sighs.
"Okay, I will. But promise me that you'll be fine."
He turns his head down.
"Sorry."
At this point, even the kendo master couldn't dodge the blades of emotion.
"If you need anything, I'll be in the bedroom."
Just as she starts walking away, a sound of metal against wood can be heard softly. She finds two hands holding her by her shoulders. She turns around to face the doctor.
"Rinko. Sorry, I didn't have the chance to thank you for everything."
He puts a microchip in her hand.
"Here, have this. Its the least that I can do."
He holds both of her hands.
"But back then, why? Why didn't you kill me?"
She laughs, half joyfully and half sorrowfully.
"You were always an idiot, Akihiko."
He kisses her lightly on the forehead, which surprises her slightly.
"Thank you, Rinko."
She exits through the back door, while he goes back to focus on his work.
"Forgive me Rinko, but I have to do this."
And with just one touch of a button, Akihiko had already set a straight course for his fate. There was no doubt that he had already gone mad while working on the game, but with the little bit of sanity he had left, and perhaps love, he was able to thank Rinko before leaving.
This is my first fanfic :) yay. Please leave a review if I should create a whole story for this or just leave it as a oneshot. Thanks for reading!