THANK YOU ALL! That's all I have to say ^^ You guys always make my day and I am left with a huge smile on my face whenever I read your comments :D Hope you will enjoy this chapter ;)
She was walking side by side with him, chatting merrily about school and college applications. It was a beautiful day, with the sun shining down on them and not a single cloud could be spotted in the deep blue sky above them. Shibuya was as crowded as ever, with people rushing to their offices and students waiting for their trains or buses. But they had a day off, although she couldn't remember why.
Akechi stopped suddenly and looked straight ahead, then around them. She was so busy studying his odd behavior she got quite the shock when she finally noticed people around them had suddenly vanished into thin air. Then a pair of strong arms grabbed hers painfully and dragged her into a dark alleyway, just as the sky turned a deep shade of grey and the clouds obscured the sun. Akechi slammed her against the wall behind her, making sure she had no escape route. His kind smile and the peaceful expression he had been wearing moments before were replaced by a menacing look, his eyes flashing dangerously as a twisted smirk curled his lips.
She was so scared as everything happened to fast, and was sure her time had come when he lifted his left arm. She shut her eyes closed, waiting for him to strike. But that never happened. Instead, something warm was resting on her cheek. When she opened her eyes again, she realized it was his hand, massaging her gently as he studied her with a frown. What the hell was happening?
She was completely overwhelmed by his constant change of personality and, no matter how hard she tried, her limbs would not respond to her commands. She simply stood frozen against the wall, waiting for his next move.
Her shock became even more evident when he leaned in, his face getting way too close as his lips parted. His face was literally a couple of inches away from hers…
"…Makoto, you're going to be late for school!"
Makoto opened her eyes, a shriek almost escaping her mouth as her heart pounded crazily against her chest. She was so confused it took her at least a minute to realize it had only been a dream and her sister was calling her name. She checked the time on her phone and muttered a curse as she shot up from her bed and hurried to get ready for school.
When she finally took the train to Shibuya and got off to catch her connection, she saw Ann was waiting at the same platform. Makoto smiled relieved and approached her friend. Maybe Ann could explain the meaning of her dream much better than her.
"Good morning" she greeted, and the blonde turned to give her a broad grin.
"Oh, hi!" Ann then observed her friend and frowned slightly. "Did you sleep at all tonight? You look tired…"
"I did" Makoto nodded as her smile faded. "But… I had this dream…"
"Oh, tell me everything about it! I'm like, an expert when it comes to interpretations of dreams and stuff" the other girl giggled excitedly.
Makoto then proceeded to explain in details what her dream had consisted of, carefully avoiding, however, to mention that the boy who had almost kissed her was Akechi…
"Oh Makoto" Ann smiled tenderly "Don't you get it?"
"Get what?" the dark-haired girl widened her eyes, relieved to hear Ann could explain her the meaning of her dream.
"You… I think you like someone" the blonde finally said, but Makoto stared back at her blankly.
"I like many people" she said confused. "In fact, I like all of you guys."
"Not in that way!" Ann shook her head and giggled. "When I say like I mean… like."
Makoto blinked a couple of times before realization hit her square in the face, her heart sinking in the depths of her stomach. "No…" she smiled nervously. "That's impossible…"
"Aww Makoto, of course it's not! It is a perfectly normal thing to be attracted to someone at your age! In fact, I do fanc- nevermind" Ann blushed and cut off the topic just as their train stopped by the platform.
Makoto followed her friend mechanically, her brain way too busy processing the whole conversation: if Ann was right, did that mean she was attracted to Akechi? But she couldn't possibly be! Yes, the boy had proven to be willing to repair the damage done in the past, and yes he had constantly been manipulated and turned into a hitman, but the fact that he was indeed a murderer remained.
However, she did have to admit that, whenever she thought of him or heard his name out of the blue or was with him, she felt strange: her heart would start beating faster and she'd blush for no apparent reason. Even in that exact moment as his face flashed through her mind, she felt something like butterflies in her stomach…
"Nah" she whispered determinedly. "It's surely just a stupid coincidence."
His most dreaded day had arrived. It was the first thought that crossed his mind as soon as his eyes opened. He sighed loudly as he rolled on his back and stared up at the plain white ceiling.
Today he would save Akira and the others only to lose them forever. He might as well cling onto the happy moments he had spent with them all, because that was all he had left: memories.
It was with heavy heart he went to school, pretending to be the smart and happy-go-lucky boy everyone knew, focusing on what the teachers were saying and trying his best to push away all other thoughts. When the last bell rang, his stomach made a painful flip to remind him it was time.
He left before anyone else and took the first train to Shibuya, where he would change to get to Okumura's HQ. There was nothing he could do to avoid the inevitable, so he might as well be done with it as quickly as possible.
When he arrived at the square with the tall, glass building he went to hide in a dark corner and tossed his backpack onto the floor. He sat down beside it, resting his arms on his knees and waiting for Akira and the others to arrive. His mind felt strangely empty, just like everything else in his life.
They arrived shortly after, looking all very excited. Akechi had to refrain himself from sighing loudly as he watched them enter the Metaverse after making sure no one was looking. No one but himself. When they disappeared he glanced at his wristwatch and waited. He'd give them twenty minutes of advantage, then he'd follow their tracks and wait until they defeated Okumura. He knew he had to act quickly before the Palace collapsed. He had one shot at this.
How was it that, whenever he hated to do something and desperately wanted time to stop, this seemed to accelerate somehow? In a blink of an eye it was his turn to infiltrate Okumura's Palace.
Well, the Phantom Thieves had definitely grown much stronger since the first time he saw them: they made sure to leave no Shadows behind as they proceeded toward the core of the Palace. Akechi, dressed entirely in his dark garbs, made his way to the upper floors undisturbed. He didn't even bother to look around: nothing interested him anymore. Without Akira, Makoto and the others, his life was meaningless. Not even the taste of revenge would satisfy him anymore: all he wanted was to end that nightmare and live a normal life with his friends.
But he was Goro Akechi, the cursed kid, and he would never have a normal life. Or friends.
However, something did get his attention: a robotic female voice announcing the entire place's self-destruction, and encouraging all employees to run to safe areas. Apparently, Okumura was doing all he could to make sure the Phantom Thieves wouldn't put their hands on his Treasure. Well, he didn't have a choice: he needed to speed up. He ran as fast as he could toward the large room where Okumura's Treasure had been, and followed the only way available leading upstairs. When he reached the top and opened the door, he did a double take and quickly hid behind a corner: right in front of him were the Phantom Thieves of Hearts themselves, luckily very busy fighting a group of Shadows.
"Dammit" he muttered as he watched the others dodge and attack. According to his watch, they only had seven minutes left before the whole place blew up. Furthermore, the Phantom Thieves were strong but still not as much as him to get rid of those enemies in a matter of seconds. If they didn't hurry, they'd all die.
Akechi looked around to find an alternative route to the opposite side without being spotted, and finally found a vent -large enough for someone as slim as him to crawl through- a few feet away from the battle. He approached carefully, hoping with all his heart no one would see him…
He managed to sneak through and finally emerged to the other side. They weren't too far now, but a group of Shadows was still patrolling the path.
"Loki"
His Persona appeared right behind him and waited for his command. "Incinerate those nuisances."
It took Loki one swift move to wipe them all out, clearing the way to Okumura. Now there was nothing more he could do until the Phantom Thieves defeated the ruler.
"That was the last one of them, come on everyone!" he heard Ryuji shout to the others and shortly after saw the whole group running towards the platform leading to a safe area of the facility, where Okumura was hiding.
He waited for the platform to come back, his heart pounding against his chest as the clock ticked time away. Thirty seconds until the explosion. Twenty-nine. Twenty-eight- Twenty-seven… The platform was approaching… Twenty-six… it finally arrived and Akechi quickly stepped onto it and pulled the lever. Twenty… Nineteen… it was finally moving… Eighteen… Halfway there… Ten… nine… eight… almost there… five… four… three… Akechi jumped off the platform before it had fully arrived to its destination… two… one… The explosion that followed was so intense that the shockwaves actually sent him flying several feet forward, the boy landing painfully onto the floor and rolling over multiple times until the world stopped spinning. He was going to feel it tomorrow…
He heaved himself up with a grunt before making sure he was not badly hurt. He could hear the sounds of a struggle somewhere ahead, and he approached the new area carefully, hiding as much as possible in the dark as usual.
There they all were: the eight friends wearing their rebel masks fighting against Okumura. Or better, against his puppets, for the man seemed to be too much of a coward to be standing on the first line. Akechi could almost feel their pain as they occasionally got injured during the fight, and he was relieved to see Morgana, Akira, Ann and Makoto all possessed a Persona with healing skills.
He kept watching enthralled as the eight Thieves fought against the many waves of enemies Okumura threw their way, and how they managed to defeat them all despite outnumbered and tired. He was particularly focused on Akira and Makoto: the former was now confident of his skills and could easily call forth different Personas and command them as he dodged the enemies' attacks, while the latter would strategically spot the opponent's weak spots and exploit them to her advantage, as well as keeping an eye on her comrades in case they needed her help. Even if they were weaker than him, their team was extremely functional, and he could sense their strong bond of friendship as Futaba provided support from above them, and the others fought harmonically together. Oh, how he wished he could help with his Personas, but he knew he had a duty. His strong desire to become a member of the Phantom Thieves would never come true...
When the last one of Okumura's lackeys had been defeated, the ruler was left speechless and frozen with fear in his chair, slamming the button on his 'throne' to summon more of his "employees", but no one ever came to the rescue.
His daughter, Haru, gave Akira a determined look and nodded, as if giving him allowance to strike her own father. Akechi had to admit the newest member of the Thieves was one strong-willed young lady, and wondered if she was feeling what he would feel once he'd finally take down Shido. Joker summoned the weakest Persona he'd had - probably as a way to feel less guilty for hurting her friend's parent- and ordered it to attack. A few seconds later and Okumura was left kneeling on the floor asking for mercy.
He wasn't really sure what Haru and the others were telling him, because the Palace had already started to crumble and the noise was almost deafening. When they finally left, Akechi knew there was no time to think it through: it was now or never, so he stepped out of the shadows and quietly approached Okumura, still crouched on the floor sobbing. The boy extracted his gun and aimed it at Okumura's back, then to his head. His hand was shaking violently, and not because of the Palace collapsing all around him. He simply knew what the consequences of what he was about to do would be…
He thought of Ann, Ryuji and Yusuke back when they were in Hawaii and how they had seemed to sort of accept him as a new friend; he thought of how he could have gotten to know Morgana, Futaba and Haru better in different circumstances; he thought of Akira, giving him a chance no matter what he had said about the Phantom Thieves and even after discovering who he really was; and then he thought of Makoto, the strong-willed and yet sweet girl he had hurt so many times before and who would still let herself forgive him. The same girl who would spend time alone with him –Japan's most wanted criminal- and yet who couldn't stand to be in the same room with a spider…
"Only for you" he whispered, keeping the image of a smiling Makoto clear in his mind.
He pulled the trigger.
Eight teenagers were celebrating around a large table loaded with all sorts of food and beverages, laughing and chatting merrily as they enjoyed the beautiful night view of Destinyland, the most popular amusement park in Japan. One of the advantages of being close friends with Haru Okumura was the fact that the girl could easily rent the entire park for as long as they wished, completely free of charge.
Makoto congratulated once more Haru for becoming the newest member of the Phantom Thieves and, making sure the others were distracted, took out her phone and checked the message inbox once again. Still nothing.
She frowned as she wondered why Akechi had been ignoring all her texts and suddenly stopped replying. She was getting slightly worried, what with him suddenly showing up at her place the night before changing Okumura's heart and acting all weird around her.
"We did it! Haru just told us her father has requested a panel on TV tonight at 8. Make sure to tune in!"
When he hadn't replied to that straight away, she'd thought he was probably busy with school and that he'd reply later. But he never did, so she sent a few more messages.
"Akechi-kun, is everything OK?"
"Hey, Earth calling Akechi!"
After waiting for hours for an answer that never came, she started to believe Akechi was in trouble. That maybe Shido had found out about his betrayal.
"I really don't want to sound like a pestering person, but could you just tell me if you are OK? I am getting slightly worried to be honest…"
She had sent that last message a few minutes before, right before the desserts arrived. Apparently, he hadn't yet answered, which was suspicious knowing that he normally answered within few minutes. Her mind could no longer focus on the happy event she was currently living, because all she thought about was Akechi being stuck somewhere with a dangerous man like Shido. The possible scenarios were so many and all so horrible, she shivered at the very thought.
"Excuse me for a second, everyone. I uhm… need the restroom" she announced as she stood up and went inside.
"Hurry up, though! Haru's father's panel is beginning in a few minutes!" Ryuji shouted after her, and she gave him a thumb up.
Once alone inside, Makoto scrolled through the list of all contacts on her phone until she found his: Akechi Goro. She bit her lip and then tapped the Call button, her heart beating slightly faster.
The phone was ringing, but no one picked up. When the automatic message saying the person might be unavailable played next, she tapped the End Call button and sighed. "What the hell, Akechi…?"
"Makoto, it's starting!"
She looked outside of the tall window, where her friends were still gathered around the table, looking excited as Ryuji placed his phone at the center for everyone to see.
She decided it would be pointless to keep pressing Akechi if he was not answering, and she had no way to find out where he currently was at. She therefore returned outside and joined the others just as Okumura made his entrance, looking pale and saddened.
He started his speech, a silence full of expectation falling on the eight friends as they watched, with Okumura sobbing so loudly it was almost impossible to discern what he was saying. However, he did confess his crimes but there was something else he was about to say…
"He's going to say it!" Ryuji gasped. "The name of the murderer!"
Makoto felt the blood in her veins freeze as Okumura, seconds away from revealing the name of the true culprit, brought a hand to his head and gently closed his eyes, as if being plagued by a light headache. The people around him approached the president and whispered if he was feeling alright. The journalists muttered all around the room…
When he opened his eyes, everyone screamed and jumped backwards: the color had completely faded from his eyes, leaving them plain white as a trail of viscous black liquid streamed down his chin from one side of his mouth.
"…what the?!" Ryuji yelled shocked, voicing what everyone else was thinking but too horrified to speak up themselves.
"Father!" Haru exclaimed, a hand over her mouth. "I… I need to check up on him! Feel free to stay here for as long as you wish. I will see you all later." And with that, the fluffy-haired girl was gone, running madly toward the park gates.
"What's going on?" Yusuke asked, visibly shaken. "Morgana, did we do something wrong?"
"No…" the cat shook his head, but everyone could tell he was just as confused. "I… don't think so. We did everything as always!"
"But then… why…?" Ann whispered, tears dancing in her bright blue eyes. Ryuji wrapped an arm around her shoulders and she didn't even complain.
"Akechi" Futaba said calmly, however her eyes were flashing dangerously.
"What?" Makoto frowned at the red-haired girl.
"It must have been him" the hacker continued determinately. "This looks exactly like what happened to my mom. And we do suspect he is behind the mental shutdowns, no?"
"But it can't be!" Makoto was almost shouting. It couldn't have been Akechi: he had told her he had a plan. He had promised he would save them all and make Shido pay for his crimes! There had to be another explanation, or even another culprit. Maybe this proved Akechi was not the one behind all the murderers in the first place. But no, she knew she was lying to herself: she had read the texts on his phone and he had confessed to it, right?
"I would recognize the symptoms anywhere" Futaba explained severely. "You guys are all idiots, allowing him to join your group in Hawaii. He's been deceiving you all along."
Buzz.
Makoto's and Akira's phones received a message at the exact same time, and both teenagers went to check who the sender was.
"Whatever you do, do NOT reveal Akechi's true identity to the others!You'll thank me later -Someone who wants to help you."
Makoto and Akira exchanged an alarmed look, but when the others asked what was happening, they decided to lie and keep quiet. They could look into this later.
The silence that followed was so intense and filled with doubt and sorrow, it was unbearable. Makoto turned the other way and left without a single word, and no one even tried to stop her or ask her where she was going. Every single one of them was lost in their own world, wondering if confirming their true identities to Akechi had been a terrible mistake after all.
She was so disappointed and mad she wasn't even paying attention to where she was going. She was wandering around the empty streets of Tokyo, not caring that it was the middle of the night, or that shady people were lurking in the dark. All she could think about was Okumura having a mental shutdown and who had provoked it. She gritted her teeth and stopped by a dark alley with shabby apartment blocks and punched the wall with all the strength she had, only to cause a sharp pain to shoot through her hand as she cursed loudly.
"Damn you, Akechi…!" she whined quietly.
"That looked painful."
The voice of the person she had been thinking about the whole day and night just resonated in the night air, and she turned to glance at him as her eyes widened with surprise.
"…you!" she groaned and gave him a look of pure hatred.
"Hello, Makoto-chan" he greeted mockingly, his arms crossed over his chest as he leaned against the opposite wall. He was eying her amusedly, as if he hadn't just killed a man and broken the promise he had made her.
"Don't call me that ever again!" Makoto breathed heavily as they both stood in front of each other, the only sound that of the wind and cars' engines in the distance.
That amused sparkle in his reddish-brown eyes, his lips curled into a challenging smirk, his whole composed posture: she would erase each one of those features for what he had done to her friends. And to her.
She strode toward him, her eyes flashing with rage and hatred, not caring he was much stronger than her as well as a dangerous assassin. She didn't even register the fact he had untangled his arms and was now looking at her with curiosity. All she did was lift her right arm high up in the air and slapped him across the face with all the strength she could muster. The smacking sound echoed all around them as Akechi's face shot to his right, as strands of brown hair partly concealed it after being hit so violently. A gust of wind blew over them as their hair and clothes fluttered to the same direction as the wind, and then everything stopped. Deafening silence as they stood motionless in the semi-dark.
"Why… did you do it?" he questioned softly without looking at her.
"Because you're one hell of a bastard!" she cried out, balling her hands into fists.
"Well" he finally turned to face her, a small smile on his lips. "Are you surprised?"
Makoto took a step back and glanced at him questioningly. "I am afraid that answer is not enough. I will try again. Why did you do it?"
"I told you" she said, her voice shaking with anger. "Because you're a bastard undeserving of love."
Akechi lifted his chin defiantly and then chuckled after a short silence. "Undeserving of whose love?"
Makoto was actually taken aback by his words as a wave of confusion assailed her, and Akechi took a step forward. "My parents' love? Friends' love? Or your love?"
"What?" she replied coolly after collecting enough strength. "My love? How could I ever love a twisted freak like you?"
Maybe the darkness around them was playing tricks on her mind, but she could swear something like hurt flashed behind his eyes. However, when he took another step towards her and under the light emitted from a nearby lamp post, it was gone. His face was now a blank mask, unreadable.
He stopped only when her back touched the wall behind her and seemed to be studying her as if he had never seen another human being before.
He was standing inches away from her now and, just like all the other times she'd been stuck in a dangerous situation with him, she lost control over her body: her legs shook violently with fear but refused to move and bring her to safety; her eyes were locked onto his bottomless ones; her heart was pounding like never before and she was actually surprised no one in the proximity had come to investigate the source of the noise.
Suddenly, his back curved and his head bowed to meet hers, and he was so damn close she could see her own reflection mirrored in his eyes. He extended both his arms and rested them against the wall, one on each side of her head so that she had nowhere to run. Then, slowly and gently, his arms trailed down and went to touch the skin on her shoulders, then further down until he was caressing her forearms and stopped at her wrists, his fingers curling around them in a soft grip oh-so different from the one he'd used on her back in Shibuya or at the hotel in Hawaii.
She was fully aware of every single heartbeat and her shallow and irregular breathing, as well as his warm touch. And she knew perfectly well she could be seconds away from death, but she was sure her frantic heartbeats were not caused by fear.
His face came even closer until their noses touched and she was pretty sure her heart had jumped all the way up to her throat because suddenly she couldn't breathe at all. She wanted to take control of her actions again and scream to him what the hell he was thinking he was doing, and to get his dirty hands off her, but her mind had gone completely blank and was no longer thinking rationally.
She swallowed hard as his lips parted and then curled into a smirk. "Your words and your heart" he said in a low, seductive voice "They don't seem to agree with each other."
And, as suddenly as it had started, it was over. He loosened the grip around her wrists and withdrew, her whole body feeling suddenly cold and her heart empty as she watched him walk away in silence.
A whirlwind of contrasting emotions assailed her as fear, frustration, sadness, longing and, particularly, realization kicked in.
"My gosh…" she whined quietly as warm tears streamed down her cheeks and her legs buckled, making her fall to her knees. "Of all people… why did it have to be you?"
He was one big piece of shit and he knew it perfectly well. He had deceived his best friends, and yet he was allowed to keep walking on the same earth and breathe the same air as them.
It was all his fault: he had allowed himself to get too close to the Phantom Thieves and Niijima-chan. And he had allowed them to do the same. Now it would be even tougher to let go of all the memories he had with them.
He took his phone and read once more the text messages she had been sending him during the day, messages he couldn't answer in case Shido was monitoring his conversations, and he instantly realized he had taken things too far. With Makoto particularly.
Now they would all hate him, or needed to learn how to with time. He didn't blame them, and he knew it would be for the best. However, his heart was bleeding out and desperately trying to convince him to reply to Makoto's messages, to tell her what he had been forced to do, and that he never intended to break his promise, that what she and the others were about to find out had been absolutely necessary for their own well-being.
A buzzing coming from the phone he was holding made him jump as he frantically punched in the password to unlock the screen and opened the message box. His heart sank with disappointment when he read Shido's name, however he was curious to see what the man's reaction would be.
"Heard about Okumura-san requesting a panel tonight? Well done, my boy. You never fail to amaze me. Now get your dear friend Akira arrested and eliminate him."
Akechi tossed his phone onto the bed with a "tsk" when it buzzed again.
"Oh, one more thing. I don't want to put more pressure on you, but I think I will give you a deadline this time. I want that kid dead within November the 20th. You've got a month, should be more than enough to come up with a plan. Have a pleasant night."
Well, crap. Having such a short deadline to get Akira arrested and save his life while deceiving Shido would prove truly tough. After all, he doubted the Phantom Thieves were willing to forgive him. Again.
Shido was probably counting on the fact he would carry on with their plan, which consisted of Akechi approaching his friends and convince them to infiltrate Sae Niijima's Palace to clear their names after being accused of killing Okumura. And since Shido didn't know that Haru Okumura had joined the Phantom Thieves, and they therefore had a grudge against Akechi for eliminating the girl's father, he was also unaware of the fact he couldn't follow the plan. As if he would care anyway. Akechi was confident the man felt a twisted joy whenever he put him in difficult situations and loved to watch him struggle. The sick bastard...
However, what Shido, as well as the Phantom Thieves, didn't know either was that he did have another friend he could count on.
This would require so much thinking and proceeding with surgical precision, but he could do it with a bit of luck. Akechi smirked as a crazy idea popped into his head: it was not over yet.
Tamiko Fujikawa had finally managed to make her dream come true and got her application approved by her college of choice, where she was currently studying to become a journalist. Even though she hated listening to the news of people being found mysteriously dead, or falling victims to these odd mental shutdowns and psychotic breakdowns, she was hoping she could graduate in time for her to investigate the case herself. After all, complicates cases like this one could take years before the culprit was arrested and so, even if she was still a freshman, she could have a small chance of succeeding.
But the path was long, and she needed money to support herself as well as paying for her tuition fees and accommodation. She was therefore quite happy when she had found a part-time job as a letter deliverer. Not her dream job, but better than nothing. And it was relatively simple and effortless.
However, it was on days like that –rainy and gloomy as the sky painted dark grey- she wished she had an indoors job. With a defeated sigh, she put on her rain jacket and opened the door. She gasped loudly and was quite sure her heart had stopped for several seconds when she found herself face to face with the boy she had had a huge crush on back in high school. And she would be a fool to admit she had stopped thinking about him whenever she saw him on TV or heard his name on the radio.
Unruly brown-hair, reddish-hazel eyes and a tall, well-built physique. The boy who haunted her dreams was standing right in front of her, looking like he desperately needed help.
"A-A-Ake…chi-kun?"
"I know you're going to work and I know you don't have time, but this won't take long" he said quickly as he took her wrist and dragged her back inside her small apartment, kicking the door closed behind him. "Sit down" he ordered, and she gave him a hard look: the last thing she wanted to hear was to be told to sit down in her own flat by a guy who had never set foot in there before. He hadn't even asked for her permission to come in! However, she did as he said and he leaned against a wall and crossed his arms over his chest.
"W-what can I do for you, Akechi-kun?" she asked shakily, hating how adoring her voice sounded. She was supposed to be an adult now, and that guy was still a kid compared to her, dammit!
"I need you to deliver a letter" he said simply, and she lifted her brows and giggled. "Akechi-kun, you could've come to the post office and given me the letter instead of almost killing me with your sudden apparition! By the way… how do you know I work as a letter deliverer?"
"No time to explain. Just do it" he continued roughly and she frowned angrily.
"Where are your manners?" she pouted, but all she obtained was an impatient snort.
"Tamiko-chan, please. You are my last hope…"
Now she was worried. The way he had said it sounded so desperate…
"What happened, Akechi-kun?" she asked softly, standing to approach him but he simply began pacing back and forth.
"It's a long story, and you probably don't want to know anyway" he explained sadly, but she shook her head. "If you don't tell me what's happening, I am not helping."
Akechi stopped and glanced at her for a long time before sighing. "Well, it's going to take a while. Take this SIM card and send a message to these numbers while I think of where to begin."
Makoto sent a text to the number who had messaged her. She didn't find the name of the sender on the yellow pages, and realized this person obviously wanted to stay anonymous. Of course, she could always ask Futaba, but the question was: did she want to? Futaba would ask questions, and then she would be forced to explain why she had received a message ordering her not to reveal Akechi's true identity.
She had been discussing this with Akira on the phone during the night after coming back home, careful to omit her encounter with Akechi himself. Akira believed it was wise to follow this mysterious person's directions for the time being, and reassured her that Akechi was probably innocent. That maybe Shido had discovered something and had come up with an alternative plan to take down Okumura.
She hoped with all her heart Akira was right… Akechi had seemed so genuine and sincere ever since their school trip to Hawaii. No one could be that good an actor, really.
But who else could have killed Okumura-san, then? They only knew of one other Persona-user other than themselves, and that person was Goro Akechi, the black-masked assassin. Furthermore, her intense encounter with him after Okumura's panel had sort of proved he was behind the mental shutdown.
As she had expected, no one replied to her text or her phone calls, and she angrily tossed her smartphone onto the desk, knocking over a plush doll in the process.
She sat on her bed, massaging her temples as she replayed the event of the last few days: the relaxing moments she had spent with Akechi after school sipping coffee and chatting happily; him showing up at her door late in the evening and acting so strangely; the dreams she'd been having about him; Okumura collapsing on live television and her friends' horrified reactions; Haru, from whom they hadn't heard since the panel, and how she must be feeling right now; the mysterious person who had sent her that message, and then her encounter with Akechi. That part in particular concerned her: her heart would still skip a beat and she'd feel butterflies in her stomach whenever she thought of how close his face had been to hers, the look he'd given her, that bloody smirk, his scent…
"Argh, dammit!" she groaned in frustration as she held both sides of her head with her hands. "Get out of my head!"
"…get out of my heart."
Oh, someone is falling in love! But the question is: do you think Goro feels the same for Makoto? *laughs evilly*
And as always, if you like the story so far, have some love to send or simply an opinion you'd like to share, feel free to let me know! Reviews and support are always much appreciated and motivate me a lot! :*