Hey, Ari...
IA stared up at the figure standing atop the building, ignoring the growing mass of students that jostled about her.
If I really did it... can you, will you be there for me?
A hand suddenly yanked roughly on her shoulder, but she ignored it, still fixated on the person standing against the sky. A loud voice broke above the rest, shouting right into her ear: "What the hell do you think you're doing?! She needs you up there!"
…
She couldn't say that she didn't have the urge to run up there, to shake sense into the girl balancing precariously on the edge. But no, she couldn't be up there, she needed to be down here, waiting.
Sure, I'll be there for you.
Gasps and screams erupted as the body fell forward. The grip on her shoulder tightened, fingernails digging through the fabric right into her skin. Most turned away, but she kept her gaze on the girl as she plummeted towards the ground. Their eyes interlocked, blue meeting purple for a flickering moment, and a small smile passed between the two of them.
And then she averted her gaze, unable to bring herself to watch as the body slammed against the hard ground. There was a sickening crack, followed by a deathly silence. The metallic telltale smell of blood wafted towards the crowd, and IA had to force herself to hold her breakfast down.
A long time seemed to pass before she could bring herself to open her eyes. Around her the students and teachers were absolutely quiet, some pale from fright, some burying their faces into the shoulders of their friends or lovers. IA ignored all of them, focusing instead on the unmoving body within the crude half-circle of people. Legs threatening to give way, she attempted to walk forward. The hand on her shoulder fell away, not preventing her from doing what she intended. As she got closer, her every step grew more painful, but she knew she had to pull through—to get to the girl's side—because that was all that mattered now.
Finally she made it. Collapsing onto her knees upon the blood soaked grass, IA stared at the girl, dumbfounded. She looked so broken: limbs at odd angles and broken bones sticking through torn skin. It looked too unreal, like something out of a story or movie, not something that could happen right in front of her eyes. Yet she couldn't deny it, the girl before her was dead—no, dying; the weak rise and fall of her chest indicated that, despite her having sustained so many grievous injuries.
"...Ari...?"
The fragile voice caught her attention, and IA turned her bewildered gaze to the other's face. Eyelids only slightly parted, the amethyst eyes stared at her dully from underneath. There was a slight movement in the corner of her vision. Quickly, IA responded, catching the girl's hand in her own. The arm was covered with injuries, recent ones, but not from the fall, she knew that. "I'm here, Yuyu. I'm here." Her own voice was barely more than a whisper, herself not finding the strength to speak any louder.
Yukari seemed to relax under her, but her smile carried with it remorse. "I'm sorry... I was a coward in the end."
IA brushed the stray strands of purple hair away from the girl's eyes before running her hand along the familiar contours of her face. "Please don't be, I already said if you couldn't take it anymore, you have every right to end it."
The girl gave a weak giggle. "I love you, you know that?" Her voice had a cheerfulness that IA hadn't heard in a long while.
"Yeah, I know that. I love you too." She managed a smile as she leaned down, brushing her lips gently against Yukari's. As she pulled away, the hand she held seemed to lose its strength. The sounds of breathing were reduced to one, and when she looked again Yukari's eyes were closed. "Sleep tight, okay?"
There was no answer, but that was fine, because she knew she wouldn't get one anyway.
"Sweet dreams, Yuyu." She kissed the girl again, this time on the forehead.
Hey, do you mind if I called you Ari?
An empty void grew inside her.
Heehee, you're a really nice person!
Her eyes started to sting.
We'll be best friends forever, right?
She shut them tight.
I'm really sorry, Ari, but I think... I think I love you.
A tear rolled down her cheek.
N—no, it's alright! Dad just got a little angry, t—that's all.
Another followed.
It hurts, it really hurts...
She couldn't stop them now.
I hate it! I just want to die! It hurts so much!
IA coughed out a sob, and suddenly the lost hit her. "I'm sorry," her voice was broken by her tears, "I'm so, so sorry! I couldn't help you when you needed it most, and I even had to let you kill yourself..."
Crying hard, she could only hold onto the cold hand tightly for comfort as the blaring sirens from behind her grew louder.