College is killing me. It's been three weeks since college started and I barely had enough time to squeeze this one in.
So let's talk about the Forest of Drizzling Rain. I love horror games, but only enough to watch people play it, not play it myself. So I watched a playthrough of the game from somebody on YouTube (ManlyBadassHero, ring a bell to anyone?). And while it was quite predictable in a way (I mean, it was pretty obvious from the beginning that the nameless boy is Suga, right?), I developed a soft spot for the couple. They're just so cute. Especially an embarrassed Suga.
Shoutout to the authors of the first two English Forest of Drizzling Rain fanfics! You guys are awesome!
And special mention and thanks to Marjoriepop from deviantart for letting me use her wonderful SugaXShiori fanart!
Keep staying awesome, people.
Warning: Do not read if you haven't finished playing the game, or watched people play it.
No More Worries
"No...don't come nearer...scary person!..."
"We won't let you pass...mother said..."
The sight of the deformed children was horrifying, and their high-pitched screams as Suga cut through them was enough to send chills down his entire being. He knew the story of the Kotori Obake, the origin of the children that kept blocking his way, how they must feel. And yet, while he felt deep remorse, if he didn't cut them down, kill them once more, the person most important to him will...
Another scream. He didn't have time to watch the child's form dissipate into dark smoke, but the words it spoke before it disappeared haunted him.
"If only you didn't exist..."
'If only I didn't exist...' Suga repeated the words inside his head.
"If only you didn't exist..."
Suga mentally pushed the voice away, but it kept ringing at the back of his head as he continued to traverse through the forest and towards the Kotori Obake's lake.
"If only you didn't exist..."
"If only you didn't exist..."
'If only I didn't exist...then Shii-chan wouldn't have...' Despite how much he wanted to ignore the voice, it didn't stop his thoughts. 'Shii-chan...'
His breath was getting heavier as he ran, hoping to save Shiori before the Kotori Obake could get her, but as he approached the lake, he knew he was too late. Too slow. The Kotori Obake was floating on top of the water with the limp body of Shiori in her arms.
He wanted to shout out her name, tell her to wake up, but no voice came out. He forgot that he had no voice. But that didn't stop him from trying. He went to edge of the lake and tried shouting her name, he was even prepared to jump into the water if he needed to, but he knew that if he did, his body would be pulled down by the murky water and he'd drown, all the while the Kotori Obake would take Shii-can's life as his own would slip away.
As he watched the Kotori Obake slowly fade away together with Shiori's body, he continued to try to shout, say something, anything, while he desperately thought of what to do. Remembering the weight in his hands, he threw it towards the Kotori Obake as a last resort, knowing that it is her only weakness, but still, he was too slow. The katana flew past the Kotori Obake's already half-transparent body and fell into the water, creating a loud splash. His vision started to blur, and he realized he was crying. There was nothing he could do, nothing else but watch Shiori's body disappear completely, together with the Kotori Obake.
He couldn't keep his promise.
He couldn't save the one most important to him.
If only he didn't exist, then none of this would've...
"Suga-kun!"
Shiori's voice forced him to open his eyes, and he was back to reality. He was lying on his bed and Shiori was standing beside him with a very worried look on her face.
"Suga-kun, are you alright? You seemed like you were having a really terrible dream..."
Suga immediately sat up, surprising Shiori. He realized he was back in his own room, in the museum, and then he gave a deep sigh of relief.
Worried, Shiori asked if he would want a cup of tea to relax, and Suga, not wanting Shiori to worry even more than she has, reluctantly accepted. At the kitchen, after Shiori has given him a hot mug of freshly made tea, she sat down in front of him with a serious face.
"Suga-kun, were you...having a nightmare?"
Suga knew he couldn't fool her no matter how hard he tried, so he decided to be honest and nodded as he took a sip of the tea.
"I see..." Shiori looked down into her own mug. "Is it...is it about the Kotori Obake?"
Once again, he nodded. Silence came down over them, and Suga looked up at her. She was still looking down into her own mug of tea and looked as if she was battling with herself. Even without spoken words, Suga knew what Shiori was thinking about, and he sighed as he reach out for the pen and paper on the table. He already has his voice back, but he has lived without it for so long that it felt strange hearing words coming from his own mouth. Besides, it made his throat feel itchy.
'Do you want to know about it?'
"Ah, well, it's alright if you don't want to tell me, but, um, I heard that it's better to talk about such things with people..."
'I dreamt that I wasn't able to save you. That I couldn't fulfill the promise.'
Shiori read it silently, and the only sounds they could hear was the ticking of the clock. Suddenly, Shiori stood up from her chair and approached Suga. As he looked up at her and wondered what she was doing, she suddenly embraced him, making him almost drop his mug.
"Eh...ah..." He heard his voice come out from surprise and he knew that he was blushing really hard.
"It's alright, Suga-kun." Shiori's voice came out really soft, he could barely hear her. "The Kotori Obake's gone. There's nothing else to be afraid of. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't be here. But I'm here, because you saved me. So no more worrying, alright?"
Hearing her words, he could feel a twinge of pain behind his eyes, but he stopped the tears before they came. He didn't want to cry in front of Shiori again. Instead, he wrapped his arms around her tiny waist and hugged her back. She was really soft and warm, and most importantly, she was there.
"Thank you, Shii-chan." It was faint, but Shiori heard it, and she was happy that she was able to comfort him.
"Alright, let's finish our tea and return to bed." Shiori patted Suga's head and went back to her seat. The tea has cooled down a bit so it was easier to drink.
'Not yet.'
"What do you mean by that?"
'Why were you in my room?'
Reading Suga's memo, Shiori cursed her luck. She hoped that Suga wouldn't notice it, so she didn't have to explain such an embarrassing thing. Looking at Suga, he was worried for her as well, and she felt bad if she didn't tell him.
"Well, um..." Shiori started as she tried to construct the proper sentence as Suga sipped his tea, waiting. "I couldn't sleep, but it wasn't because of a nightmare or anything. I went to your room because...I was...feeling lonely."
Suga almost spit out his tea at her words. At first, Shiori didn't understand his reaction, but when she realized how it sounded coming from a person of the opposite gender, she started waving her hands around in a panic. "W-wait! It's not how it sounds like, okay! D-don't get weird thoughts! I'll explain!"
Suga nodded as he wiped his mouth with his sleeve, waiting for Shiori's "better" explanation.
"Y-you see, I told you that I decided to sell the mansion, right? Well, after all the paperwork is done with and after I return home, I remembered that...nobody will be back home greeting me...and then I felt really lonely I couldn't sleep. And then...I had the urge to go to your room, so I wouldn't feel as lonely...because you're the only person that's closest to me..."
Realizing where this is going, Suga stopped Shiori by gently grabbing her hand.
As she felt the warmth of Suga's hand covering hers, she sniffled. "Sorry. Anyway, I have to return home after all this, since I still have university and other stuff, but the thought of saying goodbye to you right after our reunion is..."
'Then why don't I go with you?'
Shiori was surprised by this sudden note, and she looked up at Suga. "A-are you serious? I've always wanted to ask you this but I didn't think that you'd..."
'I don't have much ties to this place other than you anyway. The only reason I stayed here is because of the Kotori Obake, but now that she's gone, I'm free to go wherever I want to. Maybe I could even attend university with you.'
"T-thank you so much, Suga-kun. I'm so happy I could cry..." Shiori covered her face as she felt her eyes water up. She sensed Suga standing up and stood beside her, and then gently rubbing her back.
'For now, let's go to sleep. We can work out the details in the morning.'
"Ah, wait!" Shiori said as Suga went to put the emtpy mugs in the sink, surprising him. "C-can I...sleep with you tonight...?"
That almost made Suga drop the mugs, again.
"Uwah, what am I saying?!" Shiori immediately regretted blurting it out on a whim, and she covered her face with her palms again. But as soon as she did, she heard Suga writing on his memo again and he gave it to her to read.
'You sleep on the bed, I'll go get another futon for myself.'
"Thank you, Suga-kun!" Shiori beamed as Suga looked away, attempting to hide the luminescent blush on his face.
So as Suga laid down on the futon in his room, Shiori plopped herself down on his bed and rolled all over it.
"Uwah, Suga-kun's bed is so soft!"
Suga just sighed as he pulled the covers on himself. Suddenly, Shiori's hand shot out from the edge of the bed, and Suga wasn't sure what to do with it.
"You can hold my hand, you know." Shiori said. "So you won't have anymore nightmares."
Suga chuckled as he wrote a memo and passed it to Shiori before taking Shiori's hand in his own.
'I'll hold your hand so you won't feel lonely.'
Shiori squeezed Suga's hand as she read the memo, and the she turned to face him. "Good night, Suga-kun."
"...Good night, Shii-chan."
Ah, I'm not good in naming things. I'm lazy, too. Hahaha.
Anyway, I had a blast writing that. After this, if time permits, I will go back to writing my other fanfics. I really should get back to it, but, ugh, college. And also, I procrastinate a lot. Sorry about that.
What do you guys think about the fanfic? Please leave a review! Thanks~!