:)


The funeral was small, but impacted the Ayase's greatly. It was a nice closure. The few other people were friends of their grandmother, and Eli was shocked when no one else in the family was seen at the funeral. It consisted of a simple ceremony and small talk amongst the guests afterwards. Arisa and Eli received many condolences, and Nozomi even managed to get some flowers for the two. By the end, they were ready to say their final goodbyes and were satisfied with the closure.

Afterwards, it was Arisa's plan to sightsee, so Eli scheduled the plane trip home later that night to equal out their jet lag. With their remaining time in Russia, the two introduced Nozomi to more Russian meals. They visited the most beautiful mountain in the area, explored Russian fashion, and visited some historical sites. It was such a great end to their experience together, Nozomi knew this was just the start of the adventures and journeys her and her Elicchi would go on. She could only daydream at the thought of them exploring the world together.

Sadly, their first adventure had to come to an end. Nozomi entered the plane with a strange feeling, one that she couldn't pinpoint. She zoned out walking through the gates, trying to decipher her emotions, something that she is usually good at. The spiritual girl couldn't differentiate her sad feelings of the end of her trip to some sort of building anxiety. It was a concern that she noted, but brushed it off for now.

They secured their carry-ons and settled in their seats, Nozomi had the window seat, Eli was in the middle, and Arisa was closest to the aisle. Arisa, similar to the trip here, plugged in earphones and rested her head back, eagerly trying to get some rest. Eli noticed Nozomi gazing out the window, seemingly in deep thought.

"Nozomi? You okay?"

She blinked a few times but managed to find Eli curiously leaning over.

"Oh yeah, sorry."

Eli knew Nozomi often went off into gazes, she figured it was because of her spiritual powers. But something about her felt off, and Eli was right. Nozomi wasn't okay. The anxiety in the pit of her stomach twisted and turned, her lungs felt like they were tightening. She took a few deep breaths and tried not to draw attention to herself. She knew Eli would notice, but still tensed when she felt the hand on her shoulder.

"You don't seem okay."

Running a hand through her hair, Nozomi said, "I think it's just air sickness or something."

Eli put a hand on Nozomi's forehead and was shocked at the results.

"You're burning up!"

Nozomi remained silent, knowing she wasn't actually sick. However, she accepted the offer of Eli's water bottle, hoping a drink would help clear her thoughts. Eli called for a flight assistant and managed to get her some medicine as well. Nozomi hesitated to take the pills, but hoped they would at least put her to sleep. They seemed to cool her down a bit, but Eli continued to ask how she was feeling every minute. The incessantness, along with the awfully strange vibes coming from the plane were enough to make her annoyed.

Eli shifted in her seat and opened her mouth to check on her best friend again,but was surprised to be interrupted by a pointer finger in front of her lips. She slumped back in her seat, a little hurt from the motion that she thought Nozomi wasn't capable of.

Ten minutes. Nothing changed with the pain in Nozomi's head. She attempted to mentally conduct one of her spiritual rituals, but she wasn't able to finish. One of the motors coming from beneath them began stirring. No one else thought much of it, but Nozomi instantly reacted by throwing her head between her knees and gripping onto her hair.

"Nozomi!", Eli called out to her, but she never heard her.

She sat up frantically and her eyes scattered around the area, not focusing on anything. Her hands flung out, one hitting the window and the other grasping onto Eli's shoulder. Her breathing quickened and sweat became visible on her forehead.

"We have to get off this plane."

At this point, Arisa had taken off her earphones and her full attention was on Nozomi, just like many others in the seats around her. Eli was aware of the attention and tried her best to calm Nozomi down. Although she tried to stay put together, she was fearing for her life. Not once has she ever seen Nozomi like this, it's like something has taken over her. She took off her hand that was death gripping her sweater, and secluded it between her own hands.

"Nozomi.. Calm down, deep breaths, everything is fine."

She looked at Eli with tears in the corner of her eyes, but she obliged and started breathing slowly, not losing eye contact with Eli. It seemed to work for the time being, however as soon as Eli took a deep breath herself, Nozomi ripped her hand from Eli. She covered her face recklessly, as visions of fire and screams consumed her thoughts. She realized the spiritual signs surrounding her were nothing but despair and destruction. She had to be dreaming, but this felt a little too real to be a dream.

"Gaah!", Nozomi's voice was raspy and low, terrifying Eli.

If Eli didn't jump in, Nozomi would've ripped out her own hair. The blonde took hold of her vice's wrist, and battled her strong force to remove her hands from her face. Suddenly, she jerked toward Eli. Her face was covered with tears, streaming harder than Eli has ever seen. Nozomi gripped both of Eli's shoulders, so hard that Eli swore it would leave bruises. Eli doubted Nozomi's sanity as soon as she laid eyes on her pitiful, desperate face. Roughly, she was pulled towards Nozomi.

"Eli.. Eli… please listen to me.. We have to.. We must get off this plane.. We-"

Eli felt Nozomi's hand on the back of her head, and a grip around her back she knew she couldn't get out of.

"I-I don't know what's going on.. But try calming down for me Nozo-"

"No no no.. I c-can't Eli please.."

Her whimpers intensed, all eyes around them were on the two. Not knowing what else to do, Eli ran her hand up and down Nozomi's back.

"Everything's fine.. You just need to calm down Nozomi.."

"We're going to die.."

Her voice was broken from the lump in her throat and the fact she was holding back from screaming. She needed to protect Eli and Arisa, she needed to get off this plane.

"Nozomi we are all okay. We're right here, we're perfectly fine."

She let go of Eli. Maybe she was wrong, she thought. But she never was with her visions. But this could be a first, right? She had to believe that, she had to ignore all the terrible things playing out in her head.

She stayed silent for the next few minutes, she felt Eli's fingers lock with hers. A light squeeze came from Eli, which Nozomi returned after a few more deep breaths.

"Nozomi."

She look towards Eli, who urged to wipe the tears from her eyes. Eli's touch comforted Nozomi, the feeling of her soft hand around her's helped her think of nice thoughts. They settled back in their seats, however all three of them remained uneasy.

In Nozomi's eyes, everything that happened was extremely fuzzy. The next thing she remembers is the power in the plane going out, Eli's petrified scream at the dark, and a couple ear-ringing noises from the interior of the plane. Then, she felt the deathly powerful impact of the plane hitting the ground and the pain sweeping over her entire body.

When she opened her eyes and understood her surroundings, everything was still blurry. Her head was pounding and she felt faint when she saw the blotches of red all over her body. Before she even produced any thought, she turned to Eli. Her eyes found the blonde huddled in the aisle, or what was left of the aisle with all the rubble surrounding it. Without noticing the pain, she made her wy over to Eli. Nozomi felt like this was all unreal, it couldn't actually be happening. She realizes Eli is hovered over Arisa's body. She didn't want to look, but her eyes fell upon the young body sprawled on the floor, limp and not moving.

"Arisa… wake up..", she heard Eli whispering.

"A-Arisa… come on now…"

"Open your eyes… please…"

"ARISA!", Eli painstakingly cried out, now laying on her body.

Nozomi stood back and just stared at the dead body, petrified and doubting reality again. The scent of gasoline hit her, knocking her out of the gaze. Her thought process was slow, but she came to realize that they needed to get out of there. She gave the last ounce of sanity she had to step up.

Her voice shook and her body was trembling, but she managed to get out, "We have to get out of here."

Eli didn't respond, she just kept staring at Arisa's cold face.

"Eli! We need to leave right now!", she yelled desperately.

She knew she wasn't in her right mindset but instantly regretted lashing out. However, it seemed to work. Eli's eyes scattered around and she managed to gulp down the lump in her throat and stop the tears temporarily. She picked up Arisa's body and followed Nozomi out of the destroyed plane. They both tried to not look at the other bodies or cut themselves on the loose metal and rubble obstructing their every step. Nozomi looked back at Eli and signaled for her to pull her shirt over her mouth to prevent breathing in all of the smoke and fumes.

They found an exit, but as soon as they touched ground, Eli collapsed from the weight of her sister's body. She helplessly sat on the ground, sobbing while staring down at her frail sister in front of her once again. Nozomi knew they still weren't in the clear if the plane exploded, so she had to choose safety over her and Eli's mental well-being. She attempted to grab Eli's arm and pull her up. However, Eli just wouldn't let up and she stayed put in front of Arisa, continuing to weep her name. Nozomi kept trying, she just needed to get Eli out of there.

Looking down, Eli said through her tears, "Just leave me. I'd rather die."

Those words shivered through Nozomi's body. This couldn't be happening…, she told herself again. She stared at the debris of the plane and the darkness around her. She saw a light coming from inside the plane. Light meant fire, there were only minutes left until they would be burned from the combustion. She looked down at Eli, whose expression was dark and terrified. Nozomi barely recognized her.

"No.. No Eli please, you.. You have so much to live for.. Just..," Nozomi didn't know how else to convince her, "... just live for me, we'll live. I promise."

"I-I can't", Eli clenched her eyes shut, with one hand over her mouth and the other on Arisa.

"Yes, you can!", she screamed like mad. She shot her hand in front of her, just wishing for Eli to take it.

"Can we come back for her?"

Nozomi was silent after hearing the despair in Eli's voice. It crushed her, knowing that Eli still believed Arisa was alive and the fact that the smartest girl she knows is so out of it that she hasn't figured out what happens when fire meets gasoline. Nozomi made a quick decision, having to choose between giving up or dealing with the emotional trauma and never being able to go back to the life they once had.

In response to Eli, Nozomi made her choice.

"Yes."

Eli took a hold of Nozomi's hand and the two ran off into the dark forests, leaving her sister's body behind. They heard the deafening explosion and felt the heat it has created. The pair looked back, watching the massive flame incinerate everything in the area.


Arisa Ayase- passed away from extreme impact from a plane crash on the way back from a trip to Russia, her hometown. A middle schooler whose life has been ended short by tragic fate. Quote- "T-Thank you so much for letting me come along! It means so much to me, honestly!"

Death Count: 2