Light in the Dark
Chapter 1
~Some time after the accident~
~Yamaoka Residence~
"I'm home!" Masame said as she shut the door.
"Welcome home dear." Her mom smiled as she met her at the entrance.
"Nee-chan! Play with me!" Her 10-year-old brother Daichi said with eagerness. His blue eyes showed his excitement while his short, brown, messy hair showed just how active he was.
"Daichi-kun, please go fix your hair." His mother requested.
"Okaa-san…" He groaned.
"C'mon bozu, go fix your hair." Nagame, their 15-year-old sister said. She was still in her uniform and her shoulder-length brown hair was neatly fixed in a headband.
"Will you play with me too?" He looked at her hopefully.
"If you go fix your hair. C'mon." She laughed.
"I guess I'll go with them." Masame told her mother.
~Daichi's room~
"Why do I have to fix my hair anyway? It's just gonna get messy again…" He whined as Nagame combed it.
"Because okaa-san said so, Chi-kun." Masame giggled.
"Alright, we're done!" Nagame grinned, proud of how she was able to tame the unruly mess of chocolate-brown hair.
"So we can play now?" He jumped in excitement.
"Hai, bozu. So what would you like to play?" Nagame smiled.
~A few hours later~
"Ah! I'm tired." Nagame said as she fell on the bed.
"Me too." Masame sighed and sat down next to her sister.
"Aw, already? But I wanna play some more!" Daichi jumped onto the bed.
"No…more…" Nagame said through her laughs.
"Kids! It's time for dinner!" They suddenly heard their father shout.
"Oto-san's home!" Daichi said and he disappeared in an instant.
"Well, let's go eat. I'm starving!" Masame helped her little sister up.
Yup, it was a regular day at the Yamaoka residence.
At least… until…
~Late that night~
"….cha…" Masame could faintly hear.
"Nee-chan…" It was getting clearer.
"Onee-chan! Wake up!" Nagame shook her sleepy sister.
"Wh..what's *yawn* wrong?" Masame groggily sat up.
"Fire!" She was obviously terrified.
"What?" She rubbed her eyes unaware of what Nagame was trying to tell her.
"Our house is on fire!" She said shaking her shoulders.
"WHAT?!" That shocked her wide awake.
"C'mon, we gotta get outta here! Okaa-san, oto-san and bozu are all in the kitchen. C'mon!" She frantically pulled her sister as a signal for Masame to follow her.
They made it to the kitchen where their father was trying to open the door.
"Oto-san… What's gonna happen to us?!" Daichi cried.
"I don't know son…" He said, giving up on the doorknob.
"Have you tried every exit there is?" Their mother said.
"I have. It's no use. We're trapped in here. The phones are dead and the windows are stuck so we can't call for help either." He sighed and slumped down onto the floor.
"O..oto-san…" Masame went over to hug her father.
"Is there really no hope of escaping okaa-san?" Nagame started sobbing as well.
"I…don't know…" She replied before the thick black smoke got her to start coughing.
"Okaa-san!" Daichi hugged her.
"I'm sorry… You…know that I was… always quite… weak... didn't you?" Her knees started wobbling and she fell to the floor, still in a coughing fit.
The fires grew larger and larger while the smoke got darker and thicker. Some neighbors tried to contact the fire department but the Yamaoka family was still stuck inside. The house started to collapse. They were going to get crushed under their own home for sure.
"How much time has passed…? How long can we still…keep this up…?" Masame thought as she fell to the floor.
"Oto-san… okaa-san…" She murmured.
"We're…here…" They were getting weaker.
"Me-chan… Chi-kun…"
"Onee-chan…" All of them were scattered on the floor of the burning mahogany entrance hall.
"Ai…shi…te…ru…"
Those were the last words she was able to utter before everything had blacked out…
…
"Unnngh…" she stirred.
"Ah! Sh…she's waking up!" She could hear unfamiliar voices.
"Wh…where…" She struggled to open her eyes. She was surrounded by many faces and through them she only saw one she recognized.
"M..Mi…chi…no… nee-chan…" Her voice was weak and hoarse.
"Masame-chan!" She cried out and went over to hug her best friend, whom she called her "little sister".
"Where…am…I?" She asked her older friend..
"You're in the hospital, Masame-chan... You've been asleep for over a month now..." She sighed.
"A month...? I... was I... in a coma?" She asked, eyes still half-closed.
"Yes... We were afraid that you were never going to wake up, to tell you the truth..." She said with a shaky voice.
"Nee-chan... Did you... come here often in that month?" Masame sat up.
"Everyday. I didn't want my best friend to wake up without me there to greet her!" She smiled.
"Arigato, onee-chan." She smiled back.
"Masame-chan... Tell me... What's the last thing you can remember?" Michino asked.
"I..." She said and suddenly gasped at the image that appeared before her.
"Ai...shi...te...ru..."
The memory caused her tears to suddenly flow.
"Ah! M..Masame-chan!" Michino went over to comfort her younger friend.
"Okaa-san... Oto-san... Me-chan... Chi-kun..." Her eyes dilated and she started to tremble.
"Where..." She continued to shake, hesitating to ask the question that could make or break her.
"Where are they?!" She screamed at the doctors.
"Masame-chan..." Tears started to well in Michino's eyes as well.
"N... Nee-chan...?"
"They..."
"Where are they?"
"Masame-chan..." Her tears flowed down her cheeks as she hugged Masame.
"Wh...what's going on...?"
"Masame-chan... They're... They're gone..." She finally said.
"N..no… NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!"
~To Be Continued~