(me: damn this life…hell I don't think I can handle this…)
Yeah…like hell I care!
(me:*glares* no one's asking you!)
Hey! I'm the reader, damn it!
(me: okay, okay… there you go… read on)
CHAPTER THREE: IN THE CATHEDRAL
(me: uhm…there's a little detail you ought to know. I forgot where or what is the place which the Second Hand of Time is kept so I hope you don't mind me naming a place for it…That's all *bows*)
Now this is awkward. We sit on a table on the school grounds. Daisuke and Saehara are sitting across where I and Hiwatari sit. And just like on the "pair up", many passing girls are sending their glares to me.
While we are eating our own bentos, I notice that Hiwatari only eats a slice of bread.
"Don't you have your lunch with you?" I ask.
"I don't have time to prepare one," he simply replies.
Then Daisuke gives me a look which I know it means 'He's the Head Commander of the Police, remember? He's busy!'
I just shrug at him and suddenly push my unfinished bento across the table in front of Hiwatari.
"You can have mine, then," I shyly say, "I don't have much appetite to eat much after all."
Then Saehara and Daisuke give me a surprised look. They know too well that I'm too shy to offer my food to anyone while Hiwatari who has the slightest surprised look in his eyes looks at me as if asking if I'm sure.
"It's alright, you can have it," I slowly smiles.
"Thanks," he murmurs as he takes it.
As Hiwatari eats, I see Daisuke is mouthing me 'What is that about?' I furrow my brows at him, 'What's wrong?' I mouth back while Saehara is grinning at me, hi eyes shifting from me to Hiwatari back and forth. I know what's in his mind: his 'new scoop'. But Hiwatari and I aren't like THAT! I don't even know his first name! Gah! I'll just persuade him to not even think about it.
FF~~~~~After Lunch~~~~~~~
"Niwa-kun!" Riku run towards us as we walk in the room, "Omedatto Niwa-kun!" she greet s as she stops in front of us.
"Eh?" Daisuke is clearly confused. "What do you mean?"
"The results for the votation of roles in our play, Ice and Snow, are now revealed!" she says.
"And what does it has to do with Daisuke?" Saehara asks.
"Omedatto! You've got the role of Freedert!"
"Eeehhhhhh?!" Me, Saehara, and Daisuke exclaim except from Hiwatari who is quietly standing behind me.
"And, oh, Hiwatari-kun! Omedatto, you've got the role of Elliot!"
"EEEEEHHHHHH?!"
It turns out that Daisuke who got the role of Freedert, the main 'female' character while Hiwatari got the role of Elliot, the main 'male' character, and as for Saehara, he's the assigned director of the play.
"Wait! Let's make this more interesting, shall we?" Saehara beams as he stands in front of the class to lead the meeting of the play. "Instead of having Elliot, let's change it! Let's apply someone who I'm sure that many girls are dreaming of—Dark Mousy, the phantom thief!"
And out of the silent crowd, many girls squeal led by Risa's, many boys cheered and it seems that they really like the idea. No one dares to disagree, not even Hiwatari.
I look towards my brother and I see that he' not comfortable with this. We know that Hiwatari is the one who wants to capture Dark whatever is the cost and he is very well aware of my brother being Dark's alter ego at the present time.
"And also, I was thinking," Saehara continues and he looks to my direction at the back then to Hiwatari, "I was thinking if we can change the actor for the role of Freedert!" Many girls obviously cheered, "I was thinking if Namine-chan can be Freedert!
As I've thought. I immediately blush different shades of red. Many girls—or rather, all of them—disagrees in unison.
"What?! No way!"
"She isn't good enough!"
"She's just a stupid freak!"
"I will never allow it!
"That girl is too ugly!"
"FREAK!"
Their words strike through me endlessly. Even Risa who is supposed to be my friend is disagreeing but at least she's not saying anything about me. Riku is arguing with some girls, defending me. Daisuke is sending me his worried face. I can feel tears build up in my eyes but I won't cry. I refuse to cry in front of them. I stand up and slam my hands to my desk. They all grow silent as they turn to me.
"You all don't have anything to worry about because I don't have any plans to participate in the play!" I scream. Just that I run outside the room with all of their eyes trailing after me. I run and run without any particular destination. Until I realize that I'm standing in front of the cathedral where Dark took me last night. There's no one around so due to my unwavering curiosity, I decide to go in and check out the artwork that my phantom thief friend is going to steal.
When I arrive to where it is kept, I feel something in the air. I feel like something's calling me but with a different name. I continue to walk inside the room but I can't see anything. The room is empty. So I stop in the middle of the room trying to find the said artwork. Then something happens.
Mist suddenly appears. Then, I start feeling that the temperature Is decreasing but I don't feel any cold, as if it's normal for me.
"Please…" a voice that other people may say as cold as ice, "Freeze time…"
I look around frantically, searching for the owner of the voice. "What?"
"Freeze time…" it says again, "And we might be able to be together…" it pauses, "Again…"
"What? Who are you?" I whisper.
Then I feel hands on my shoulders as the mist thickens. I want to turn around but I can't.
"In exchange, I'll return and create time for your parents," the voice is now clearer and not distant.
Then the hands move to my head and I feel my memories pouring. My memories replay inn front of me. The time I spent with Fionn, with the Hikari woman and her son, Satoshi Hikari, and lastly, with my parents. The memory of my parents' murder replays itself, too, including how I froze everything especially my aunt and uncle.
My tears pour relentlessly without me knowing it. The hands release me and I fall to my knees. The mist is starting to disperse and the voice is saying something but it is fading.
"…one of us…" that are the only words I hear and I black out.
I wake with some beeping sounds. My eyes are suddenly met with computer screens—obviously security camera monitors. I realize that I am sitting comfortably on a chair with a shirt covering me to keep me warm. I notice that it's a uniform from our school.
"You're awake," I hear a voice and footsteps coming near to me.
I look up and blush faintly as I see Hiwatari looking down to me in his sleeveless black under shirt. I suddenly look down to the ground. I feel that he crouches down to me and he lifts my chin so that I'll face him.
"What were you doing here?" he asks with his hand still under my chin.
"Uhm..." my eyes are avoiding his gaze, "i—I don't know. I just k-kinda ran off randomly and the next thing I knew is…" I sigh, fighting back my tears as I remember what happened with the memories replayed. My eyes return to his gaze, "What time is it?"
He lets go of my chin and stands up, "It's 8:30 in the evening."
"Eh?!" how long was I out? Emiko-san will kill me.
"And you can't go out yet," he continues, "The police are preparing for dark's arrival. Also , I already called your family to inform them of your current location. And after this, I shall escort you home."
"A-arigatou…" I murmur then I notice his shirt is still on me. I reluctantly take it off and held it out to him, "Uhm… also, thank you for this.
"Aren't you cold?" he stands up.
I shake my head and smile faintly, "It's not cold at all."
So he takes his shirt back and wears it, leaving it unbuttoned, though. Then someone opens the door.
"Commander!" says the man in a long overcoat, he looks like Saehara, "All of the men are ready! We're only waiting for Dark."
"Right," Hiwatari mutters, "You go ahead. I'll just follow."
Then the man leaves the room. I stand up from my seat.
"Uhm…Hiwatari-san…" I say and he turns to me, "Why do you want to capture Dark so much?" I randomly ask.
I can see in his eyes that he's a bit taken aback but then he smirks, "why? What did Niwa say to you?"
And yes, I'm caught off guard. Why did I even ask him? "Uh…"
I look to the ground, "Nothing much, just you being eager in catching dark."
"So you know the Niwa's secret?" he asks, taking one step closer to me.
"Yes," I take a step back.
"You know that Dark's host is your brother?" he takes another two steps towards me.
"Yes," and I take a step back but only to find that my back is now against the wall.
"Namine," he takes one more step and he's already in front of me. His hand is under my chin, forcing me to look at him. His face is serious, "Can I ask you a favor?"
I somehow blush, noticing that his face is centimeters from mine, "Well…it depends."
"Will you help me catch Dark?" his eyes are intently looking in mine. They're not begging. They're expecting me to say 'yes'.
"I—"
"Commander! Dark is here!"
Soatoshi just sighs and swiftly turns away, "Just forget what I said," he murmurs as he leaves the room.
I draw a breath that I didn't know I was holding. I look at the computer monitors and in one of them is the room where the artwork is supposed to be. Hiwatari goes in there and it seems that he's waiting for Dark. And since Hiwatari didn't tell me if I should stay here or not, I decide to go in that particular room and just wait for Dark to come and get me before Hiwatari will start asking questions regarding Dark and how to capture him.
When I arrive, I am greeted with a massive light coming from the center of the room. Though it is blinding, the light is not that harmful for my left eyes. And I can feel that something is calling me. And before I know it, I am already walking into the light,
"Namine!" I can hear Dark's voice calling me. So he has arrived huh? "Namine what are you doing?! Stay away from it!"
But still, I continue until I can clearly see an outstretched hand from the light. I take the pale hand and everything faded around me.
The next thing I know is I'm standing in the middle of a field of an endless snow.
(me: well, that's where I shall leave you reader….bye see ya later, maybe? *waves hand* *runs away*)
Don't you dare! *runs after me*
