I sat in my room writing a letter to Himiko, for us to meet up later tonight. I went over what I wrote three times before going to her room and sliding the letter under the door, going straight back into my room afterwards. Spending an hour drawing in a journal I found, I miss the first knock on my door, then the second, until finally jolting to awareness on the third. Curious, I get up and open my door. The moment I lay eyes on Shuichi Saihara's face I go still, my face blank before I put on a small smile, tightly gripping the door.
"Hi, Shuichi. What a surprise!" My lips twitch as I let him into my room, clenching and unclenching my fists, I sit back on my bed, "What's up?"
"Angie, I was wondering if you'd umm, mind if we hung out?" Shuichi falters as he speaks, looking down to fiddle with the sleeves of his jacket, occasionally glancing up at me through his eyelashes. "Is that okay? I, ah, Know we haven't talked much, but I'd like to try and get to know you."
My mind goes blank as I watch him. We'd spoken once or twice before, both times were out of necessity. I'm... scared, of talking to him, being near him, he scares me. In another world, my world, I saw everything through his point of view, I thought I understood his character but seeing him so shy and cautious is like a slap to the face. My stomach drops when I'm near him, I-I can't help it. But...
"Okay," I whisper the word so quietly that I hope he doesn't hear it, yet as his head whips up to stare at me, I know that's not the case. I close my eyes and take a deep breath, trying to rid my mind of the image of a different Shuichi, "We can spend some time together and...talk..?" I look away from him while biting on my lip, completely unprepared and not ready for this, I move over to let him sit next to me.
Shuichi smiles hesitantly and sits on my bed, looking for something to talk about, his eyes are drawn to the still open notebook, "What's it like being the Ultimate Artist?"
"Fine, um, what about you? What's it like being the Ultimate Detective?"
Shuichi pauses, his eyes looking thoughtful before he replies tersely, "Difficult."
"Great," I look away from him again as we sit in silence, neither knowing what to say. What do you say to someone you've never spoken to before? I'd like to know because I have no clue. "How's your day been..?"
"Oh, um, n-not too bad. You?"
"...Good..." I stop talking.
"Angie, why... why don't we get along?" Shuichi asks sadly, reaching over and grabbing my notebook, flipping casually through the pages fo my journal. "I mean, we never talk and when we do..." He trails off with a sigh.
I watch him warily, weighing my options before deciding to wait and to have a bit of fun. "Maybe I'll tell you someday." He deflates at my words, "I would tell you now, but... where's the fun in that?" He looks up at that, staring at me in shock. "Oh, don't look at me like that, it's no fun to tell you now." I tap a finger to my cheek, "I hardly know you, maybe if you come back another time, I might tell you." I stand up and walk to the door, "It wasn't too bad talking to you, Shuichi." I walk out of my room, turning to him with a smirk. "You can keep the journal, it's just filled with drawings. You can give it back next time you want to hang out!" With that, I go outside and leave Shuichi to sit in dumbfounded silence. Life is good.
"This is an official announcement from the Ultimate Academy... it is now 10 p.m."
The late-night special at the exclusive Monokub Kitchen inside the dining hall is..."
I walk out of the casino the moment the announcement starts playing, I have no interest in listening to them talk about absolutely nothing. The fresh air slams into me as I shiver, walking towards the Academy at a slow pace. I needed to get a coat or something, I'll end up freezing to death if I don't.
"Hey, Angie!" Kaito greets as he jogs past me, a goofy grin on his face.
"Hey, Kaito..?" I stop and watch as he goes over to a bench and starts jumping in front of it. He reminds me idly of a lost puppy. I shake the thought off and turn back around, coming face to face with Shuichi.
"Oh." My brain finally starts moving as I glance from Kaito to Shuichi. Training group. Duh. "Well, I'm an idiot." I swiftly turn on my heel and stroll away, waving a hand over my shoulder, "Enjoy the pain, Shuichi!" I open the doors to the Academy and start walking towards my destination with new thoughts circulating. Tonight must be the first night of the training group, so that means Kaito and Shuichi are going to be outside every night. A smirk tugs at my lips, that's useful to know.
"Angie." I turn my eyes towards Himiko, standing in front of her lab door with determination on her face, "I got your note."
"Good." I nod at her and pull out my Kubspad, "You know what I want." I outstretch my hand and wait for her to drop her KubsPad into my waiting hand impatiently.
"That's definitely mine, right?" Himiko glares at me under her eyelashes, "If it's not I'm gonna cast a curse on you!"
I roll my eyes at the thought, "It is, you can watch it when you're alone. Now, give me mine." She drops her KubsPad into my hand and grabs mine when I offer it to her. "Thanks." I pocket the KubsPad and turn away from her, already walking away. "Enjoy and don't tell anyone about this."
I leave her in the hallway, where after a moment, she walks into her lab and plays the video.
I stroll back to my room and close the door with a satisfied smile, eagerly grabbing at the KubsPad and turning it on as it illuminates my dim room.
"Alright! Back by popular demand, it's time for the motive video!"
"Who's the most important person in your life? And now, without further ado..."
The screen changes to a picture of...
"Angie Yonaga, the Ultimate Artist..."
"Angie grew up on an island where she was worshipped for being an oracle of the god Atua! She was said to have been the only one who could hear the God's voice, everyone on her island loved her!"
"Tragically, a great misfortune has caused her island to suffer and slowly lose hope in their God and Oracle, who mysteriously disappeared! Leaving them to believe she abandoned them!"
"Oh, what a tragedy! What kind of misfortune? Puhuhuhu. Find out yourself! If only their Oracle will come back and save them all!
I gaze blankly at the screen as the device turns off. A whole Island. It's similar to Kirumi's video, a whole lot of people to save. I dig my nails into my hands unconsciously, feeling sick to my stomach at the magnitude of it all. Even if I don't know any of them, I feel responsible for them. They were Angie's people, and if all of this is real, they're my people now, and I'm leaving them to suffer. I scramble towards the bathroom and throw up in the toilet, losing all of the food I ate today. I spend hours sitting there until I fall unconscious, my dreams filled with images of thousands of people dying.
