Aftershocks – part II

By: Shunsoku

Disclaimer: See first chapter.

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Niwa Daisuke, contrary to popular beliefs, was not completely clueless about human affairs. He could tell by the way Hiwatari's shoulders slumped and from the glazed, half-there glare that the boy sent at the world that he was not the only one suffering.

Though, Daisuke doubted that the blue-haired boy felt like a piece of his own soul had been forcibly wrenched from his chest. This feeling of aching loneliness reverberated through him, shaking up his thoughts and forcing him to dwell on affairs he'd just as soon forget.

Not that he would ever dare to tell Riku any of this. She was worried enough about him simply because his appetite had decreased. He didn't want to distress her more.

After all, being around her was comforting. She could dull his loss to the point where he could barely feel it, and for that, he loved her. He loved the fact that he could seek her comfort when depressed and that in turn, she would first come to him when she was feeling down.

But, a part of him was gone now. Nothing could be the same, he convinced himself. From now on, every moment spent with her would be tainted with the memory of the time Dark had used him for a host.

And this thought hit him harder than any other. The perverted comments at the back of his mind were gone permanently. His consciousness was silent, without the pleasant claustrophobia he had come to attribute to the joint ownership of his body.

He rolled off the bed lazily and sat down before the mirror on his desk. His own face stared back at him. The reflection was disheveled looking, with bags under teary eyes and tousled hair. The figure's hand lifted to brush salty tears from where they gathered on its lashes.

There was no smirking face staring back at him, no purple-haired figure to converse with.

He had never truly considered what it would be like to lose Dark. But, in retrospect, he should have considered it more. After all, he had been helping Hiwatari rid himself of Krad, which would in turn seal Dark. And yet, he had never actually expected to lose him.

He noticed that his eyes were growing rapidly more and more watery as his train of thought continued, he tore away from the mirror and collapsed back onto the bed. He had homework which he should definitely be doing, especially since now his mother could not send him in a note saying that he had "been up last night" and therefore couldn't do any work. But, he couldn't summon the energy to do so.

Maybe this was why Hiwatari always seemed to brood so much. It was painful mentally but it didn't require movement or indeed very much motivation at all. Daisuke found it hard, especially now, to keep smiling. But Riku expected his smile and so he gave it to her, even when it hurt him.

Daisuke pounded his head into the pillow, attempting to stop himself from getting more depressed. This did him no good! How long was he going to put up with being sad about Dark being sealed? The thief would not appreciate this attitude at all, Daisuke was sure. Riku, his mother, father, and grandfather wouldn't either.

Someone had to solve this little issue of his.

He resolved to do something about it the next morning at school, which eased his mind and allowed him to slip off into sleep.

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Sorry, it's shorter than the last one. For some reason I can get into Satoshi's head much easier than Daisuke's. I think I'll finish this up with one last chapter to sort of tie everything together. Thanks to everwhite,CelestialGlowEquivalence, and Kyuseisha no Hikarifor your wonderful reviews. As always, feedback would be much appreciated.