Part 1: The Problem – A Missing Person
This was not the way things were supposed to turn out. Whoever it was that had been put in charge of dishing out his fate was playing cruel tricks on him, Kazahaya was sure of it – listened to all his requests then forgot the details. Gave him what he said he wanted, but in a twisted and superficial way.
He had wanted to keep away from Kei to keep her safe. Now it was impossible to see her ever again.
He had wanted to live on his own. He hadn't expected to be living above Green Drugstore alone. Never had it crossed his mind that Rikuou would be the one to move out first.
He had wanted to end his reliance on Kakei's weird jobs. Now with Kakei and Saiga recently taken off to who knows where, Kazahaya had begun hiring himself out for his own weird jobs.
Rikuou still went with him of course. Just like his ex-roommate still came to the drugstore everyday to help him run the place during Kakei's extended absence.
Only one thing turned out the way he had thought he wanted it: his relationship with Rikuou. All he had ever really wanted from the other boy was his friendship. No matter how many times he had decried his hatred, insulted him, or pledged to reveal to the world Rikuou's true, evil nature, he had always been ready with soothing words or an apology whenever he thought Rikuou was truly angry.
Rikuou had been the first person he had been able to trust after he left home. The first person he had ever actually needed to build a relationship with – the only person apart from Kei with whom he ever shared his day-to-day life. When his mind had not been clouded with anger, he had developed a determination to find a middle ground.
Now, he had that. They didn't fight often anymore and Rikuou had let up with his teasing. It should be perfect, but it felt wrong.
Their relationship was strained. Awkward, sometime. Increasingly so of late.
It all started on that day, that one day that changed everything. The day Rikuou found Tsukiko. The day his roommate found the missing piece to his life and the day Kazahaya lost a piece of his. The day Kei sacrificed herself.
One minute Rikuou was standing between him and the one who had taken his sister. The next, it was Kei lying on the floor bleeding her life away. And what was it she had said to him then?
Be happy.
Happy? How was he supposed to be happy when his sister was gone forever? An unwelcome voice in his head reminded him that if she had not acted as she had, it would have been Rikuou who had died. His brain supplied him with the image – Rikuou lying in a pool of his own blood. Would that have been any better? He felt guilty. He didn't want to contemplate the possibilities.
It didn't matter. He knew now that it was all the same. Knew that losing Rikuou would have been just as bad as losing his sister. He tried his best to move on, not to dwell on things he couldn't change, to do as his sister wished. It was a task that was proving to be even more difficult than he had imagined.
Tsukiko had been traumatized. She still refused to speak about the things those people had made her do. Rikuou had moved out to help her recover. He thought a return to their previous life would help bring her back to the way she had been before she was taken. And he had been right. For as horrible as things had been for her, she was a strong young woman. Once back in a safe atmosphere, she seemed to spring back to life. Rikuou still worried though. Worried about her emotional well-being. Worried about how she got on without the use of the fingers on her right hand. Worried that the same thing would happen to her again.
His fears turned out to be unjustified. Time passed. Tsukiko got back to her life. Started taking classes at a community college. Made new friends. Learned to use her left hand for everything. And nothing suspicious happened. Everyone was safe.
The apartment above the drugstore changed little. Kazahaya had taken down the curtain that divided the sleeping quarters, but hadn't removed the extra bed. The place would be empty without it there. Some nights he would stare at that empty bed until he could fall asleep. Some nights it was the staring that kept him awake.
He missed breakfast. And not because Rikuou could cook far better that he. It was the company. The arguments over the newspaper. The jabs at his culinary abilities.
How was it possible that he could spend hours with Rikuou every day and still feel completely alone? Why was it that everything had turned out so horribly?
Author's Note: I'm happy to say that you can expect frequent updates to this story. It will be posted in five parts.
Also, I have a short companion piece to this called "To Survive the Nightmare." It explains something I gloss over in this chapter.