Beginnings

Lisa shivered, wrapping her arms around herself, looking every two seconds at the clock on the platform and keeping an eye on her luggage. She never thought she'd be leaving Tokyo. All she had ever known rested in the confines of this city, her home, the apartment she had shared with Nine and Twelve, the amusement park, her old school, the people she had met—good and bad—, the memories of a hot summer day that took place more than a year ago but that would remain as the most important, most vivid memory she'd ever hold. Her real life had actually started the moment she had met Nine and Twelve, she had found a family, a purpose, the strength in herself that she didn't know she had. She had gained a new perspective on life.

And that was exactly why she was leaving those familiar streets behind, willingly. Nothing held her back anymore and a fresh start was just what she needed.

"Students move to Tokyo for university, they don't move out of Tokyo and to some far away prefecture!" her mom had stated during one of her final fits. She was losing Lisa again, and she knew there was nothing she could do to stop the girl.

Her mother didn't understand, Lisa thought. She didn't get that her face, Twelve and Nine's had been on the public eye for too long and it was time to break away from that. To start fresh. She deserved it, they deserved it. You couldn't turn the page and start anew when there was always someone whispering when they saw you on the streets, when the questions still wouldn't stop, when condemning looks were casted at you even when the reasons behind the attacks were justified.

Also, she was eighteen now. Her mother had no authority over the decisions she made, she had actually lost that right long ago.

"Nervous?"

She felt Twelve's warm breath against her cold cheek and she pressed her lips tightly, shaking her head gently and welcoming the warm embrace as he wrapped his arms around her from behind. She closed her eyes for a moment, focusing on the calm, soothing waves that his presence always evoked.

"This is for the best, you know that, right?" Nine's voice came to her as cool as ever from her right, and her lips twitched, almost forming a smile. Cool, rational, always-so-sure-of the-next step-Nine. It was hard to feel unsure about the future when he always exuded such confidence.

It is a big change. Moving on and away from all she ever knew. But she needed to let go, they needed her to be able to let go of everything. And she was willing to do that for them. She would embrace the change.

"It's going to be great, you'll see," said Twelve, his lips moving close, so very close to her ear "New faces, new people, new friends. A chance to leave all the ugliness of last year behind, it's a good thing, a really good thing."

"It wasn't all so bad," she said under her breath, knowing both Nine and Twelve could hear her perfectly.

"Right, of course. No one can take those good memories away, but they should never hold you back, be sure to remember that,"

Lisa felt his lips against her cheek for a brief second before he pulled away.

She heard the incoming train and the female voice on the speakers announce its arrival. She felt the movement of people around her but she refused to open her eyes for a couple more seconds.

When she finally did she saw Twelve already hurrying to the doors and stepping eagerly inside, waving at her to hurry. She looked up at Nine, who hadn't moved yet from his spot and he gave her a small, curt nod, taking a step ahead of her.

She shouldered her bag, and with some effort dragged the rest of her luggage to the train.

"These look like good seats," said Twelve, and he motioned at Lisa to sit next to the window looking out to the platform. He sat next to her and took her hand. "It will be okay,"

Lisa nodded, closing her fingers around his to give his hand a squeeze. She wondered if he had sat next to her to prevent her from bolting to the door at the last minute. Nine sat in front of them and he regarded Lisa for a moment before pulling out his mp3 and placing it on her lap "Listen to some music if it'll help you soothe your nerves,"

"Thank you," she let go of Twelve's hand to work the device and put the earbuds on, she scrolled through the list of playlists until she found Nine's favorite and pressed play.

She took a long breath, relaxing back on the seat and letting her shoulder slump, trying to free the tension in her body.

It wasn't long before she felt a tap on her shoulder and she looked up to see a girl with a shy smile mouthing something at her.

"Excuse me, is this seat taken?"

Lisa looked blankly at the stranger, gradually stepping out of her mind's eye. Slowly, very slowly, she followed the girls hand gesture and her eyes froze on the empty seat before her.

Nine's seat.

She blindly reached to her side for Twelve but her hand came in contact with her lone bags instead, snapping her abruptly back to reality.

"Are you okay?"

"I-ah…" Lisa swallowed hard, knowing this was the moment to plant herself firmly on her seat. She wouldn't run to the doors. She wouldn't run back to the platform.

They were gone, they were gone and they still had stuck around long enough to help her get here, to this moment, to this point in life that she so desperately needed. She had no right to keep clinging onto them. She needed to let them move on as well.

"I am fine," she finally said, fingering the watch on her wrist—Twelve's watch—for comfort "You can sit here, I am traveling alone."

"Great, so am I!" The girl beamed at Lisa, taking the seat in front of her and staring curiously as the raven haired turned to look out the window

Lisa swallowed hard when she heard the doors closing. There was no turning back now.

Nine and Twelve were now standing on the platform, waving at her with proud smiles on their faces, paying no mind to the people walking around them, through them.

She placed a hand against the chilly window and offered them one last smile as the train pulled away.

"Goodbye, Twelve…"

"Goodbye, Nine."

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Dolce S.- Okay, so I cried like an idiot writing this. I don't know what came over me because it's not even that sad. I barely made it to day two of znt week and I will have to make up for day one later in the week. I will update my Christmas fic probably once znt week is over. Thanks for reading.