(Drum roll) ...Preeeeeseeeenttttiiinggg, chapter 8. Sorry it took so long but tadaaaaa~ here it is. I do hope you all enjoy it! :"3


Eight

...

It's a curse; whatever's happening here is a curse. The girl, the one whose gone missing is the same girl Rima had walked into that day at the fair.

"Mashiro-san."

Looking up, gold crashes into mahogany. Tadase offers a smile taking in the dark circles beneath the blonde's eyes. His smile softens as he settles on the bench beside the girl. "The missing girl case must have you rather shaken up." He says.

Body curling forward, Rima buries her face in her kneecaps. Tadase's gaze drops to his black trousers then, fingers splayed over his thighs.

"Are you still having those nightmares?" Rima stares at the boy's profile.

Hotori Tadase's the only one who knows about the nightmares. He's the only one who understands what's going on in Rima's life – he's the only one she's allowed to share her fears – the confusion. She bites at her lip, looking away.

"They've stopped." She croaks, Tadase leans back staring up at the orange sky. He smiles somberly.

"Is that a good omen or bad?"

"I don't...I don't know."

Tadase hums, narrowing his eyes ever so slightly. "For now things are good...if they start again we'll have a problem –"

"And the girl?" Rima interjects, gold eyes shaking as she stares at him. Tadase's smiling again as he rises to his feet.

"I'll take you home, Mashiro-san." He takes a step forward, a pale hand shooting out and clutches onto his blazer.

"Tadase-kun, what's happening to me?" Rima's voice is so soft – so broken. Tadase doesn't turn to face her – he can't bring himself to.

"You'll make it through, Mashiro-san."

...

Sleep is a luxury; one Mashiro Rima has been deprived of for months now.

Lying there, limbs sprawled across the mattress, Rima stares at nothing, vision blurry. The frozen ceiling fan casts long, thin shadows across the walls. Eyes narrowing, she listens as the front door clicks shut.

Dad's home.

Tearing her eyes away from the ceiling fan, they find her alarm clock - 3:57AM.

She sighs.

It's pointless trying to sleep, she'd spent the last six hours lying here willing sleep to consume her only for her to feel even more awake with every passing second.

Sitting up, blonde hair falls into her face, short legs stretched out in front of her. Rima listens to the clanking of dishes before crawling off her bed and moving on light feet she pulls a dress over her head and slipping into a pair of leggings, snatches her mobile, sweater and boots before she ducks out into the hall.

Her dad's still in the kitchen, the microwave going as Rima hurries down the staircase. She stops in the front hall, quickly pushing small feet into her shoes and pulls her sweater over her head. "I'll be home soon." She mutters, opening the front door and slips out into the chilly morning.

It's dark out, footfalls light as Rima scurries along. She's being reckless – wandering the deserted streets alone with a kidnapper on the loose. A shudder runs down her spine. It's like déjà vu the only difference is this time Mashiro Rima wasn't the one being hunted.

This time, she'd do the hunting.