This story was written in the fashion of a role play. Some parts will be edited to flow better in the style of a story, but it will mostly remain in the same format. I wrote the parts of Yoshiki, Naomi, Yuka, and Daichi. My friend is responsible for the parts of Ayumi, Ayame and Satoshi. The writing was done by us, but we do not own the franchise or characters included.
Yoshiki awoke later. How much later he didn't know. For the moment, he couldn't exactly remember what had transpired to get him into the room of a hospital. He glanced around with blurred vision, but couldn't move. His body refused to. His eyes rested on a clock, that read two o'clock. In the morning or afternoon? Either way, he could tell he had been there awhile. Last memory he had was during the day time, after school, so he had either blacked out for a few hours, or a whole day... Either way, it definitely wasn't a small amount of time. He attempted to move, but a sharp, hot pain shot from his side, demanding that he lay still. With a groan of pain, the memory of what happened came back to him. Ayame... had went insane and stabbed him, she had said... that Ayumi was gone... He couldn't recall Ayumi taking back control clearly, but he did remember her voice... It was true they spoke in the same sounding voice, but they had very different tones, especially in that moment. So she was... okay?..
From the other side of the room, he heard someone clear their throat. He turned his head to see a man, a policeman from the looks of it. "Good to see you pulled through... I'd like to ask you some questions," he said, coming closer to the bed side. Without any questions asked, Yoshiki knew what he wanted, and a slight dread seeped in. Ayumi had been the one who stabbed him, in the eye of anyone else. He had to cover for her... He was the only witness, and being the victim, he was the most important one. Whatever he said, they had to take as truth... Ayumi didn't deserve any kind of record, and since they wouldn't believe the story about Ayame, he'd have to lie. He was fairly certain, being eighteen, he'd have to press charges against Ayumi anyways, but just in case that wasn't how things worked, he would make a point to make them see it as an accident.
"I guess... you want to know what happened?" Yoshiki asked, his voice weak, and each breath taken ailed him, but he wanted to get this over with. The policeman nodded. "Shinozaki came to help with cooking something for my little sister. While I was taking care of the cat, she came to ask me something. I guess she wasn't thinking about the knife..," he answered, finding the fake story fit pretty well, given how quickly he had come up with it, "Basically... it was an accident... she doesn't deserve a police record for an accident... So just leave her alone about it, okay?"
The policeman had a few more things to say, which were covered in a few minutes, before he left, unable to arrest Ayumi if nothing was pointing towards intentional harm. He left, and on his way out, looked at Ayumi. He was amazed she had stayed this late... Two in the morning wasn't an easy feat, but he guessed the worry made it impossible to just go home and sleep it off like nothing happened. "You're clear," he told her, even though he was skeptical... Still, she looked genuinely upset, and was having a hard time herself... That, and he couldn't do anything past this point if the victim didn't press on it. He left, eager to get home and rest. He hated getting late night calls...
Ayumi looked up at the officer, nodding slightly. She didn't feel like it was something verbally had to acknowledge. He had left quickly, and a nurse replaced him. "You can go in for a few minutes, if you want," she told Ayumi with a light smile. Ayumi nodded once again, and thanked the nice woman. She stood up, her hands fidgeting with one another. Her heart hurt, the pang of pain vibrated down up and down her spine. All she wanted to do was crawl into a hole and cry, because she knew what she had to do. She had thought through the surgery of what she'd do if he didn't pull out. Since she wasn't family, she got no reports through what was happening. Finally a nurse assured her he'd be fine, and that he pulled through the rough of it. She approached the door, anxiety hitting her hard. She didn't want to see him in pain, she really didn't want to face what was going to happen. She owed him this, though. She couldn't just disappear...
She tapped lightly on the hospital door, since it seemed rude to just barge in. She opened the door slowly, her expression worn exhausted from the worry and stress of the past hours. "Kishinuma?" she questioned lightly, unsure if she should come in completely.
Yoshiki sighed, letting his head hit the pillow and his eyes wander listlessly over to the television. He was tired and would've liked to sleep, but something told him it wouldn't be that easy... So, he decided to just land his attention on the meaningless show that was on. That is, until he heard a light knocking, and then Ayumi's voice. He had the urge to sit up, but even the slight attempt to carry that out made his breath shorten for a moment. He settled for just turning his head to look at her, relief hitting him over the pain. "Shinozaki..," he muttered, not helping but to smile slightly at the fact that she wasn't gone.
Ayumi entered the room when she heard him, letting the door shut behind her. She flinched slightly at the sight of him with wires in his arms. Her heart was beating quickly in her chest, his indirect confession ringing in her ears. "I'm so sorry," she choked out, eyes casting down as she felt guilt throbbing through her. She knew she wasn't the one who stabbed him, but she still took full responsibility for everything that happened. He shouldn't be in the hospital with a stab wound. It anything, it should be her. Maybe she should have just let herself bleed out when Ayame had stabbed her. At this point, she would have done anything to prevent this from happening. But it did happen. All she could do was make sure it didn't happen again.
Yoshiki watched her come over, easily reading the guilt on her expression before she even began to apologize. She must be beating herself hard about this.., he thought with worry. "Don't apologize," he told her, dismissing the fact rather than forgiving her with an 'it's okay'. Forgiving only came when it was the other person's actual fault. He knew she wouldn't stop, though. She had been blaming herself for a lot, lately... "Don't blame yourself, okay?... I don't like it," he added with a soft smile.
Ayumi's heart felt like it was physically hurt with how it ached. His smile was so sweet, and she knew he didn't hold any ill will towards her. He didn't blame her for what happened. Naomi and Satoshi wouldn't either. But, they were being foolish. She knew what she had to do. But, seeing his smile and the reflection on his confession... She had to be selfish one more time. She moved closer to the bed, gently resting the palm of her hand against his cheek. Her heart was beating quickly, a light blush on her face. She tried to force the thought of what would come after this. She needed to just enjoy this moment as it was before she ripped it away. She leaned down so her forehead rested against his, her throat felt like it was tightening. "I love you, too," she whispered, her voice cracking in the middle. She leaned forward even more, shifting her head so their lips could press against one another. Tears slipped from her closed eyes, as she pressed into the warmth.
Yoshiki waited for a response, but was taken a bit off guard as she came closer and placed her hand on his cheek. His cheeks warmed and his heart's pace quickened, which was embarrassing to hear on the monitor, but he hardly had the time to dwell on that as she leaned in closer, touching her forehead to his. At her next words, his mind went blank for a moment. Too? Does that mean she heard him? "Y... you-" he began to say, but was cut off as she brought her lips against his. The sensation was unlike anything he had felt before... He loved it... The first, real kiss... His hand slowly rose to hold onto the back of her head gently, all thoughts and worries washing away. She... loved him too... That's all he needed to be content with his life.
Ayumi had to break the kiss, she couldn't allow it to deepen any further. Her heart felt like it was snapping already. She pulled back a little, then rose to stand up straight again. Tears were already falling, as she struggled to find her voice. "But... we can't see each other anymore. We can't have any contact," she felt like her own words were choking her. She hated having to do this, but this is what was necessary. Just because he didn't die this time didn't mean he wouldn't next. Especially since Ayame had it in her mind he may actually desire her if he was dead too. It was too dangerous, Ayame was even more of a potent force. Ayumi had an opportunity to detach and separate before anyone died. She had to take it, no matter what she was feeling. "Not while she's inside of me," she explained further, stepping back to guarantee she was out of his reach.
Yoshiki felt confusion as she pulled away from him, much too soon in his opinion. His hand laid back down next to him, but at her next words, he felt a different kind of shock hit him. What did she just say? Can't... see each other anymore? The fear of abandonment caused him to jolt upwards, his wound giving an intense, hot pain in agitation, but he didn't settle back down. His hand gripped at his side, while his other kept him propped up despite the agony in his side. "Ayumi! Y... you can't-" He was forced to stop his sentence, his deep, uneven breaths returning at the stress, both physical and mental.
Ayumi flinched as he jolted upright, watching his hand hold the area that was stabbed. She knew it hurt, and she was tempted to rush back over to him but she resisted. She took another step back, the use of her first name caused a rippling jolt. This was all too much. She choked back a sob, trying to keep some control of herself. "Please, Kishinuma, try to understand. I'm too dangerous," she tried to explain. "I can't - I can't let her kill you!" she said, her voice hushed as she would hate for someone to over that. She couldn't bear to look at him. She was hoping that she would take care of Ayame quickly, that they could get back to their normal lives. But, at the same time she realized it wouldn't be that simple. She couldn't begin to guess how long she was separating them for.
Yoshiki couldn't speak, only look at her. When she insisted on this path, and tell him to understand... He felt a different kind of knife plunge into him. He only shook his head, unable to respond as his breaths turned into gasps. She was leaving... She was turning away from him... and wanting him to understand? He shut his eyes, attempting to force down his tears and pain, but to no avail. No matter the reason, she was talking about separating them, moments after confessing to him and kissing him. It felt horribly cruel, but he couldn't speak out against it, no matter how hard he tried. Only raspy breaths found their way out, and tears began to escape his shut eyes.
Ayumi felt her heart sink, her throat and eyes hot as glanced over at him after a stretch of silence. She regretted looking immediately. A sickness hit her, her stomach tossing violently at the emotional weight she had placed on them. She knew she shouldn't have confessed... she shouldn't have kissed him. It had been selfish, it was making everything that much harder. And seeing Yoshiki cry made it harder to swallow back sobs. Her body trembled lightly, she had to get out. This wasn't going to get easier, it was going to be harder. "I'm sorry," she choked out, and turned away to pull the door open. She exited quickly, the door shutting quietly behind her. She walked down the long, quiet stretch of the hospital hallway, the sobs finally escaping and echoing for her to hear clearly. Once out of the hospital, she ran down the snowy streets, as if she could escape what she had just done. "It's for the best," she panted to herself as she approached her house. Her tears were still falling, her chest heaving at the exercise. "It's for the best."
Yoshiki heard the apology, but couldn't take it seriously at all. All of this had been dropped on him like a bomb, and he refused to accept it. He opened his eyes to see Ayumi through cloudy vision leave. Terror gripped at his heart, erasing any sense of reality or rationality from his mind. He pushed himself off the bed, but he could barely move a step before the pain in his side crippled him, putting him on his hands and knees, panting. The quick jerking he had done had ripped IV from his arm and his side boar a new, intense pain, but he couldn't focus on external pains as it felt like his insides were being shredded to pieces. "AYUMI!" he cried out in a pleading voice, even though she was probably already long gone. He fell onto his side as all energy left him in a swift moment, his hand quickly clinging on the clothes that covered the wound, blood seeping out. Soon after, a nurse had been attracted by the voice, finding him collapsed and unconscious, which wasn't a shock, as he was still weak from the prior experience. She called in the doctors and other nurses to help stitch back up the wound and reinsert the IV.
Satoshi received a text around noon-ish the next day from Ayumi. It was quick, but she expressed that Yoshiki was in the hospital and Satoshi needed to go see him. He texted back, asking for more information, but each time his message was bounced back. 'Did... she block me?' he had to ask himself after the eighth time his text refused to go through. He then tried to call her, and a robotic voice replied: "The number you were trying to reach has calling restrictions which has prevented the completion of your call." Satoshi felt a jolt of panic and confused all at once. He quickly told his mom he was going on, grabbed his coat, and headed to the hospital Ayumi had texted him. His mind was reeling, but considering a stab wound was mentioned, he had to guess it had been Ayame. Which means it had been Ayumi's body. Which meant nothing good was happening. He reached the hospital and went straight towards the front desk. He got the room number and quickly headed to it. He didn't bother knocking, he went straight in. "Yoshiki, what happened?!" he asked quickly, concern in his expression.
Yoshiki hardly acknowledged Satoshi's entrance, his expression blank. He did respond right away, but he eventually made a move to speak. "She's... cutting away from us... because she's scared of it happening again..," he replied, but didn't like in his direction. Even though it probably wasn't the answer he was looking for, that problem was much more prominent in Yoshiki's mind. Losing Ayumi was so much more devastating to him than being stabbed. His body would heal, but his heart couldn't... What if Ayame won..? The last last thing he'd get from Ayumi was a brief second of shared love, and then it would be whisked away forever... And without support, even though it was a little task, the odds of that happening skyrocketed in his mind. "And I... couldn't stop her," he mentioned, his voice cracking as a sharp pain went through his heart.
Satoshi came closer, pulling a chair closer to the hospital bed to sit on as he listened to Yoshiki. 'That explains why she blocked my number' Satoshi thought, but wouldn't want to say aloud. He sighed, ruffling his hair as he tried to think everything out. Yoshiki looked awful, broken. "C'mon, man, she can't do that. She's in a classroom with us for hours every day. This is just a knee jerk reaction to a bad event," Satoshi said, figuring what he said was the truth. Ayumi wouldn't just abandon all of them. She couldn't, really. They were always around one another. "Shinozaki will come back around," Satoshi said with confidence. She was just scared of herself, but she would eventually calm down.
Yoshiki would've liked to believe in Satoshi's words, but he didn't feel the same. She had sounded dead set on breaking her connections with them, even if it took desperate measures. "Maybe..," he responded, but his voice lacked hope. In fact, he was dreading on what he'd be faced with back at school... He could only think of the worst, and his heart ached with the ideas filling in his head. Part of him still wanted to call the whole thing a dream... He'd even take back the kiss if it meant he could still cling onto their friendship...
Satoshi frowned at Yoshiki's response. He didn't sound like he had any hope at all. But there was no way, after everything they had all been through together, that Ayumi would abandon them. They made it through Heavenly Host together. They could make it through this together. "Don't forget, we know where she lives, too. She can't avoid us," Satoshi added as he leaned back in his chair. They had lost enough friends, he refused to accept they were losing Ayumi. Especially since she was still there, and they could still help her.
Yoshiki just made a small noise of agreement, but still didn't look like he would get his hopes up. He'd like to be optimistic like Satoshi, but he couldn't find it in his heart to be... He also felt... torn between too emotions... He longed to see her again, but the other half of him... felt betrayed... and abandoned... Not wanting to see her again... He didn't like this feeling, but he couldn't deny that it was there... A sort of resentment, that was slowly building.
Satoshi made it to school late, through no fault of his own. His alarm clock just didn't ring, and then he was woken half an hour later than he normally got up by Yuka jumping on his chest. It wasn't the most pleasant way to wake up, but it certainly snapped him into awareness. He rushed to school, getting into the 2-9 classroom moments before the bell would ring. He let out a breath of relief. He had wanted to talk to Ayumi before school, the stunt she was playing was killing Yoshiki. He looked to the spot Ayumi normally sat, noticing it was empty. She wouldn't miss class to avoid them... she'd never be able to come to school. The teacher came to the front of the classroom.
"I'm sorry to inform all of you that it appears that Shinozaki has transferred," she told them. The class began to chatter, confused. 'She has seemed off', 'who's going to be class rep', and various other questions and statements were launched at the professor. Satoshi's expression grew grim, his heart sinking. Yoshiki hadn't been kidding. She was really cutting all contact.
Naomi was more out of the loop than Satoshi, startled by Yoshiki's absence and Ayumi's transfer. Why... had she done a thing like that without telling her in advance? She glanced over at Satoshi, worried. He seemed to wear a similar grim expression, only it seemed different somehow. Did he know what in the world was going on? She'd seriously need to talk to him about it, as soon as possible.
When lunch rolled around, she wasted no time in going over to Satoshi's desk. "What in the world is happening?" she asked frantically, "Where are Kishinuma and Shinozaki?"
Satoshi looked alarmed when he realized he hadn't kept Naomi in the loop. He felt a jab of guilt, so he wasted no time to explain. "Okay, so two days ago she stabbed Yoshiki," Satoshi explained, his voice as hushed as he could manage. That was something that the rest of the class didn't need to know. "Of course Shinozaki feels guilty about it, and now she's afraid it may happen again, so she's cutting off from all of us," he explained, trying to make sure he gave her any necessary details. "So, Yoshiki is still in the hospital... and apparently Shinozaki's is really cutting ties with us," he said, his voice devolving into a groan at the end. He was going to have to tell Yoshiki this, which wasn't going to help with his already flat-lining spirit. At least she couldn't just move away...
Naomi couldn't really believe what she was hearing. The spirit was seemingly getting more violent, and Ayumi... was distancing herself from them to the extreme... That wasn't good... They could only survive as friends. Going solo was never the thing to do... "That's... a lot of bad to happen so quickly..," she muttered, lost on what else to say. They definitely had to put a stop to this cutting ties thing... But even if they did know where she lived, it wasn't definite that she'd answer. In fact, she was more likely to ignore them, no matter what... Same thing with phones. But if Heavenly Host had taught her anything, it was that being alone was a horrible, deadly thing. Ayumi needed to understand that this was not the right thing to do. "We have to get some sense into her... but how, when she's transferred out? It's not like we can break into her house and force her to talk to us..."
Satoshi took a deep breath, trying to figure out how to get back to Ayumi. She'd be worse off without them. Isolation wouldn't help, especially with a matter so attached to her psyche. "She blocked my number too, so I can bet she's blocked yours and Yoshiki's," Satoshi reflected. He rubbed hand over his face and eyes wearily as he tried to get his creative side working. "Well, we can always try to catch her before she gets into her house," he suggested. After all, once she was inside the house, he agreed that Ayumi wouldn't answer the door for them. "Shinozaki's done a pretty good job at separating herself, though," he observed with a sigh. There weren't many opportunities to get to talk to her.
Naomi took out her phone with curiosity, calling Ayumi, but got the same message Satoshi had received. "Yeah... she has..," she confirmed with a frown, clicking the phone shut. She considered his next idea, wondering if she would let her guard down enough... Plus, to catch her before she got home meant leaving school early, and that was only if their schools were similar time-wise. Ugh, why couldn't she tell that this would not help anyone? Especially herself... and she was extremely terrified of losing another one of her friends, when she could have been saved. "That sounds like our only bet... or we could find out what school she goes to and catch her there... Either way, it probably calls for leaving school early, or ditching, if we can't find a good enough excuse," she mentioned, shifting nervously. This whole situation was awful... and would only get worse if they couldn't show Ayumi how wrong this path was.
Satoshi looked a little nervous about the prospect of skipping, but he'd do it if he had to. "Alright... we'll do something along those lines. One of the teachers may be willing to tell us which school she transferred to. After all, her paperwork would've had to be sent over," Satoshi reflected. Knowing the school would help them a lot. They could find out the hours and distance from Ayumi's home and make a game plan from there. "Actually, I'll go ask now," he said, noticing the teacher hung back from going to her lunch to talk to a student. He quickly stood up and went over to the teacher, greeting her before she could leave. She looked a tad annoyed at being stopped again. "Ms. Mori, I was just wondering if I could have the name of the school Shinozaki transferred to? She told me and I just can't remember," he explained with a sheepish smile. Ms. Mori was relieved at the quick question. "It's called Tagara High School, Mochida," she told him. He thanked her with a smile and she left. Satoshi went back to Naomi, happy that the information was an easy grab. "It's called Tagara High School... which I've never heard of before," he informed Naomi. Satoshi wasn't really aware of the other school's around them, though. He might recognize the school uniform, if he got the chance to see it.
Naomi watched Satoshi ask the teacher quickly and come back, looking up pensively. She didn't find any familiarity in the name, but the internet would be a great help in this. "Alright... I'll look up the school website when I get home. Then I'll call you and we'll discuss how we're going to do this,"she told him. There was little they could do right now, so she began to use the time as it was intended, but she couldn't find the food filling with all this stress. Satoshi would probably have to go and tell Yoshiki about the current happenings, but something told her that might not be a good idea... If he had been stabbed, he needed to rest, and this news about a transfer would probably only give him a rougher time than he was already having... Eh, she'd leave that decision up to Satoshi.
Once school was out and she got home, she looked up the school and searched the website nervously. She eventually found the tidbits of information she needed. The school let out about thirty minutes before theirs did, and it was located about ten or so minutes away, depending on the speed of Ayumi's walk. They'd definitely have to leave early. How early was up to how their plan was worked out. She picked up her phone and called Satoshi, waiting anxiously as it rung.
Satoshi laid on his bed, debating with himself if he should give Yoshiki the information. It would stress him out even more, and Satoshi didn't want to slow down his recovery. Plus, there was a chance Naomi and him could get across to Ayumi and she'd be back at their school in no time. Yoshiki had been so depressed and hopeless whenever Satoshi went to visit, he couldn't bear to add onto that. He wasn't lying to Yoshiki, he was just avoiding the subject. He jumped slightly as he heard his phone, and he grabbed it eagerly. "Hey, Naomi," he greeted first as he sat up. "So, what's the plan looking like?" he asked, since she was the one who was going to look up the location.
"Hey Satoshi," Naomi greeted back, then stood up to sit on her bed, "Well, we're definitely looking at leaving school early... It might be best to just not show up at all, since we don't know if we can find an excuse to leave early or fail at sneaking out... Shinozaki's new school lets out thirty minutes before ours, and it's a ten minute walk away, give or take a few." She didn't like the idea of having to play hooky, but it was a lot safer than just hoping they could get out of school in time to get to her. Plus, this was much more important than missing a day of school. Ayumi's life was at stake! And she couldn't let the number of her friend's drop again! She didn't want to have Ayumi, so close and within their reach to help, disappear right before them.
Satoshi listened, occupying his free hand by grabbing a pen and spinning it around between his fingers. Missing school wouldn't be a difficult thing to do. He would just have to leave the house like he was going to school and just not go. Playing sick wouldn't work, considering his mom was home most of the day. And, if his parents found out, it wouldn't be the end of the world. "Alright, it shouldn't be too hard to catch her," Satoshi concluded. "I guess we'll do this tomorrow?" he questioned, his tone giving away some of his anxiety towards proceeding with the idea. He was mostly nervous about talking to Ayumi, since she probably wasn't going to be in a great mental state.
Naomi made a small noise of agreement. Sure, catching her wouldn't be hard. But making her stay, and listen to reason was going to be rough. "Yep... I just hope she'll listen to us," she mentioned with a soft sigh, "I guess we'll find out tomorrow... We'll meet up at Shinozaki's house at around 1:30, so we have some time to prepare... See you then." With exchanged goodbyes, she clicked her phone shut, leaning back onto her bed. One bad thing after another... Would they ever be free of misfortune?...
Satoshi left the house as he always did that morning, a little lost on how to kill time until 1:30. He considered visiting Yoshiki, but that would be a red flag that something weird was going on. He really just wanted Yoshiki to get better and for Ayumi to come back. He wandered around the city, killed some time at the arcade and getting lunch before he figured he was good to head to Ayumi's place. He hadn't been there very often, but it wasn't hard to find. He was a few minutes early and he didn't see Naomi yet. He sighed, leaning against a fence as he realized he didn't really have any idea what he was going to say to Ayumi.
Naomi had an equal amount of trouble at finding things to do before it was time to go to Ayumi's house. Though, since she was horribly nervous about the whole thing, time seemed to go much too fast for her. Even as she was coming towards the house, her stomach was doing flips... As she approached, she noticed that Satoshi was already there, giving him a small wave to greet him. "So... what are we going to say?" she asked, trying to appear confident, but really, she was sick from this anxiety. She was certain stabbing Yoshiki had scared Ayumi away from them, and made her adamant in her choice... With her so dead set on separating herself, this was going to be really difficult...
Satoshi rubbed the back of his head nervously at the question. He wasn't sure he was great at talking people off ledges. "Well, I guess we'll point out she really isn't helping anyone by doing this? But... she thinks she's protecting us by separating herself," he realized with a heavy sigh. He was beginning to doubt that they'd be able to convince her, but they had to try. "But, she's probably making it easier for that spirit to take control," he guessed. It was hard to be alone, especially with such a heavy weight.
Naomi sighed, grabbing her arm nervously. "She needs to know... That she isn't helping us or herself at all... But I have no idea if she'll even try to listen to us, especially...," she paused, looking around them, "... since the absence of Kishinuma will make her think only about what happened..." This problem had just sprung in her mind the second she mentioned it. Would the fact that Yoshiki was still incapacitated make this harder than it already was going to be?
"Yeah, but... I think we may be better off trying to talk to her without Yoshiki," Satoshi admittedly, a little nervous. While he didn't know about the brief confessions between the two, he was aware of Yoshiki's feelings for her. "You know how his temper can get the best of him in high stress situations," he mentioned. This situation was even more high stress for Yoshiki because of his feelings, which Satoshi could completely understand. While Naomi never cut herself off like this, she had felt like she disappeared for a while there.
Naomi nodded slightly, but wasn't so sure of their success, either way. Yeah, having Yoshiki was a bad idea, but not having him was bad too, for different reasons... The only thing they had on their side was hope, it seemed. "This whole situation is awful...," she admitted with a sigh of dismay, looking over to the side. She had a very good feeling this was not going to go their way at all...
Satoshi agreed with a small grunt. It was so frustrating that even after Heavenly Host they were dealing with the damn place. Also, watching as Ayumi let herself fade away was torture. He let a silence for over them as he tried to think out something that would reach her. His eyes were focused on the path she would be coming from. He perked when he saw her appear in the distance, though it was really weird seeing her in a new school uniform. She saw them, he knew it, but as she approached she just looked tired. "Shinozaki," Satoshi said quickly.
"No. Stop," Ayumi responded to Satoshi sharply. She wasn't surprised by the two of them being there. She had pretty much been expecting it. She knew what she was doing was right, they were just being foolish. "Whatever you've come here to say, don't bother," she told them flatly, her eyes narrowed with dark circles under them. She knew what they'd say before they said it, none of it was going to change her mind. She was doing what was best.
Naomi felt her heart beat faster as Ayumi came towards them. They were in for a rough ride... She flinched slightly as Ayumi already shot them down before they said two words, but she wouldn't give up so easily. She grabbed Ayumi's wrist, in case she was going to try and slip past them before they were finished with her. "We have to bother, Shinozaki. You're making a horrible mistake!" she told her sternly, her eyes narrowing at her. "No one survived in Heavenly Host by themselves! Closing yourself off to those who want to help is the worst thing you can do! You're making it easier for that spirit to win, and I will NOT lose another friend!" she told her with a raised voice, tears forming on the brim of her eyes.
Ayumi looked irritated as Naomi went on to say nothing she didn't expect. "We're not in Heavenly Host anymore," she stated. The school literally ate away at one's sanity faster when the person was alone. Being alone out in the real world wasn't as dangerous. "And I can do this by myself. It's not like any of you can help me,"she scoffed lightly. They weren't psychics, they had no knowledge in the supernatural, and what she lost in support she could make up for in drive. She moved to walk past them.
"Shinozaki, you can't do this alone!"Satoshi said to her as he grabbed his arm.
"Don't touch me!" Ayumi snarled, yanking her arm out of a stunned Satoshi's grip, glaring at him. "I can do this alone. I can only do this alone! You two have no idea what you're talking about!"
Naomi was getting frustrated with Ayumi. How could she think this was the right thing? "We mys well be in Heavenly Host!" she yelled her tears slipping free down her cheeks. She grabbed onto Ayumi's shoulders, desperate for her to listen. "You're even more clueless than us! This is the worst decision you've ever made! Being alone suffocates you, your spirit!" she said, speaking from experience. Yeah, they weren't in a cursed school anymore, but life still went by the same principles! No one could survive without anyone, "You can't do this alone! So what if we aren't spiritually experienced? We do know how to be friends, and we know how important it is that you get off this path of thinking!"
"You don't get it!" Ayumi snapped back, trying to pull out of Naomi's grasp on her shoulders. She didn't want anyone this close to her, it was too dangerous. "Yoshiki almost died because of me! she yelled, her throat and eyes burning but she refused to cry. "I have an unstable spirit in me and I'm not going to let her hurt anyone else!"Her chest was heaving in pants, her breath taken away by the yelling.
"Shinozaki, Yoshiki doesn't blame you,"Satoshi interjected, though he made no movement to touch her.
"I know that! But he should! I let her into my body and- and-" Ayumi's voice fell away as her expression hardened. No, she couldn't get them to understand. But, she wouldn't change her course of action. This was necessary to avoid any more bloodshed on her hands. "I'm done," she stated, moving to get away.
Naomi backed away a little, not wanting to hold her hostage or anything, even though such an action was probably necessary. She got a little scared as Ayumi moved to retreat into her house. "Shinozaki!" she yelled nervously, fidgeting as she tried to think of something to make her stay. "You may not be letting her hurt us, but you're hurting us, and yourself, by your own hand!" she cried, not really thinking as she became more distressed. Though, as expected, she failed. She sniffed lightly, wiping at her eyes. She was a little embarrassed that she had started crying, but that wasn't really a prominent thought in her head. "That... was awful..," she muttered quietly, still rubbing at her face to dry it.
Ayumi grimaced as Naomi's words, but she did not stop her pace as she entered her house, the door slamming shut behind her. She leaned against the door, sliding down to the ground until she was curled into a ball. She buried her head in her arms as tears began to spill. She didn't want to hurt them, but if she had to... emotionally was better than physically.
Satoshi flinched at the slamming door, his attention turning to Naomi. He wanted to do something to comfort her, a hug or something, but it didn't seem right. "I know... but, we had to try," he said, knowing that what they did was really their only option. He'd like to say they made some type of progress, but Ayumi seemed such as firm in belief in her actions as she had before. "She... really believes she's doing the right thing," he sighed, which made everything so much harder. He was definitely going to have to tell Yoshiki about her transferring soon...
Naomi turned and leaned on the wall of the house. Eventually, the tears stopped, and she could finally erase any trace that she had been crying. "What are we supposed to do? I don't want to lose Shinozaki...," she said, her voice quivering with fear. Her arms wound around herself in a vain attempt for comfort as she sniffed, forcing back tears that were trying to resurface. "I don't want to lose anybody else..."
Satoshi looked at Naomi, seeing she was already fighting back more tears. It was a stressful, awful, frustrating thing that they may lose Ayumi when there was a chance they could do something. He moved besides Naomi, slipping an arm around her and resting it on her waist, since it felt like the most natural spot for his hand to fall. "We won't. We just need to make her understand..." he said quietly, his normal optimistic vigor was deflated slightly. "And we should probably talk to Yoshiki about all of this," he added, since Yoshiki was the one who has been helping Ayumi the most, support-wise.
Naomi was slow to realize that he had his arm around her. While it made her blush slightly, she took it as a friendly, comforting gesture. She leaned into him slightly, sniffing sadly. "Probably... I hope he takes it well," she muttered, wiping away a single tear that escaped, "I hope he gets better soon... we might need him if this is ever going to work..." Even then, her hope was low. Ayumi seemed so dead set on this... It was getting more difficult to imagine her coming to her senses, even with the whole group.
Satoshi felt a small blush creep onto his face as she leaned into him. Sure, it wasn't exactly a great time for those feelings, but it wasn't like he had any control of them. Satoshi frowned slightly, he knew Yoshiki wasn't going to take the news well. But, in a way, he may be expecting Ayumi to pull something like this. "The hospital is letting him go tomorrow, I think. But, he's going to be on bed rest for a week or so," Satoshi informed her. Over a week of waiting to get this moving again seemed like an eternity, but it wasn't like they could see her like this every day. They were supposed to be in school, after all. They could always try talking to him when he got sent home, but Satoshi didn't want Yoshiki pushing himself.
"So... we're waiting a week or longer before trying again?" Naomi asked with fear in her tone. Any day, Ayumi could be taken over by the spirit... She didn't want to wait... especially for what seemed like such a long period... But, she did want Yoshiki to get better before putting him in such a stressful position... She guessed waiting was their best option, but what if they were too let? At the thought, she let a small sob slip out, seeing the idea as very possible.
Satoshi looked solemn at the question. There was really no way around it, they had to wait for Yoshiki at this point. And trying to talk to him before he was fully healed seemed like a dangerous idea. Yoshiki wouldn't think about his stitches if things came down to it. He jumped slightly as a sob broke from Naomi. He quickly moved to give her a proper hug, wrapping his arms tightly around her and rested his head on the top of her's. "Sshh, it'll be fine. Shinozaki won't lose herself so easily. We'll keep brainstorming, too... Things are going to be okay," he assured her, refusing to give in to the idea Ayumi would lose.
Naomi let out a small gasp as he moved to hug her, resting his head on her's. Her heart jumped, but she went past her shyness as she buried her face into his shirt, to wipe the tears that were slipping from her eyes. "I'm sorry...I shouldn't be losing hope so easily..," she apologized, sniffling. The last thing she should be doing is giving up, or not believing that they would all make it out of this ordeal.
Satoshi could feel his heart speed up as she buried her face into his chest. He smiled lightly as she spoke. "I know it's hard. But, we have to keep our chins up," Satoshi replied simply. Optimism was really all they had at this point, but, he truly believed that they'd pull Ayumi out of the abyss.