5
Chapter Thirteen
Her name was Mikka EndÅ. Everyone knew her as the quiet girl. Even the teachers didn't bother calling on her. She didn't really talk at all, not even at home. She was passive, she did whatever was asked of her. She was so incredibly shy.
If you were to ask any of her classmates about her, they would say, "Oh, she's in my class, but I haven't talked to her very much." and the truth is no one talked to her at all. She didn't have many friends.
She figured out right away that she wouldn't last long in the Program. She had no allies. She ran as fast as she could and hid. She did not cry, she didn't really want to. She had no need to cry. They weren't her friends, were they?
She figured if anything, she could sit and hide and wait it out. Yes, it would involve killing the last person standing, but they'd already be weakened due to their fighting. She could do it. She could go back home and be all by herself all over again. She didn't like it, she didn't hate it, she did not care.
So, she did just what she said she would do. She hid. In her bag, there was some food, some water, the map, and her weapon. She could have used it. If she had, she could have won. Instead, she swore that there would be only one target, whoever was left in the end. There would be only one life which would be ended by her hands. She threw the gun away. She threw it far into the jungle, she didn't know nor care where it landed. She walked in the opposite direction.
She sat and thought of nothing.
. ~ .
Kama Murakami was looking for someone to kill. It was the early evening of the second day and she was ready to kill again. The sun was slowly beginning to set, leaving an orangey glow.
As Kama walked she saw a girl. This girl seemed to be minding her business. She was sitting on a log reading a book. Kama had never talked to this girl, and she wasn't sure if she had ever even seen her before.
The girl looked up and looked over at Kama. There was no expression on her face. She offered a suggestion, "Keep walking."
Kama just stared. The girl stood up, turned and ran. Kama chased after her.
She then knew. This was a student. How could she have forgotten them? How could she have begun to forget their faces?
The girl running ahead of her was small and quick, like a fox. She kept taking turns, running this way then that. She got too far ahead of the one following her, and soon Kama didn't even know where she was.
Kama yelled. She hated letting her prey get away so easily.
. ~ .
Mikka was out of breath. She was leaning against a tree, panting. She held the book tightly in her hands. She was paler than usual, and she was shaking.
She was so scared. She was terrified. She had never felt like this in her entire life. At least she kept her cool. She had gotten away. She'd have to be much more careful in the future.
"Mikka?" a girl's voice asked, scaring her out of her thoughts. The girl started to turn around, only to be hit in the head with something metal, something hard. Everything went black as she felt herself falling to the ground.
. ~ .
Ruriko was singing a song. She sang quietly, of course. She did this for a number of reasons. Obviously she didn't want someone to find her and kill her, but at the same time she didn't have enough confidence to sing loudly.
"Because girl, I'll be your friend
but will it even matter in the end?
The fall, the fall
it happens to us all,
but girl, let's delay it for as long as we can."
"You're a good singer," Erisa said from behind her.
Ruriko would have been afraid, but she figured it was Erisa. Besides, she knew that Erisa wouldn't let anything happen to her.
Ruriko related their friendship to a book that had come out only ten years before. It was an American book, but it wasn't banned in their country. She didn't know why, and she didn't care to know why.
Anyway, it was a book about two friends. That's all Ruriko could remember. She knew that the two were like brothers, and she knew that something bad happened. She had forgotten the rest, though. She had even forgotten the title. It infuriated her.
"Erisa," she said slightly angrily.
"Hm?" Erisa asked with sound, without words.
"What was the name if it?!"
Erisa looked at her strangely. Ruriko hated it when people looked at her that way. "The name of what, Ruriko?"
Ruriko's anger escalated. "The name of the book."
"You have to be more specific," said her friend.
"Damn it, Erisa. You know which one I mean. The one about the two friends who travel alone together and care for each other and keep each other out of trouble and we read it in class and it's American and you really liked it and you kept talking about it and I thought it reminded me of us but I never told you that and it was a short book but it was good and the point was too vague and - "
Erisa cut her off. She put her hands on Ruriko's shoulders and looked her in the eyes. "Stop. You're rambling."
"I'm not crazy," she said. "But what was the name of it?! You know what I'm talking about. Right?!"
Erisa moved for Ruriko to sit down. "Yes, I know what you're talking about."
Ruriko instantly felt better. "Good," she said.
She immediately began to cry. She didn't know why, she knew it was stupid. Still, she couldn't stop. In that moment, Erisa did something strange. She sat down next to Ruriko and wrapped her arm around her. "It's okay," she said softly. "Everything's going to be alright."
"Do you promise?" Ruriko asked through her sobs.
"I promise."
Ruriko knew right then. She knew. Erisa was never, ever wrong. Erisa never made a promise that she couldn't keep. Everything was going to be okay.
. ~ .
Kama stomped around angrily. "God, you're so stupid!" she whispered to herself. "How could you let her get away? You have to be more careful."
"Stop!" said a girl who jumped out in front of her. "Who are you?!"
Kama knew this person was stupid. Never take action unless you know what's going on. "It's me. Kama Murakami."
"We're a team now," said the girl.
Kama searched her mind for a name. It came to her slowly. "You and me are not a team, Hayashi."
"Call me Hideka. You can because we're friends now. We're a team. We're going to win this together, I know it. We're friends," said Hideka. Kama knew. She hated dealing with people like this. With people who have snapped.
"We're not friends."
"You're my new friend. When this is all over we can go get ice cream cones. Chocolate or vanilla?" Hideka asked. "Oh, I guess it doesn't matter. We don't have to have everything in common, you know. Just enough teamwork to win it."
"Alright," Kama said. "We can work together, Hideka. I think it's actually a good idea, but you have to be willing to do everything I say."
"Everything?"
Kama nodded. "Everything."
"Okay!" Hideka said with a happy smile. She hugged Kama. "I'm so glad we're best friends!"
"Were you hiding somewhere?" Kama asked.
"Yeah!"
Kama said extra-sweetly "Do you want to show me?"
Hideka nodded and excitedly said "Sure!" but she did not move.
"Please, lead the way."
Hideka turned around. She heard a bang. She felt a pinch. She had lost the game.
"Oops. . . ah, well . . . it's okay. . . good luck, bestie!"
Girl #7, Hideka Hayashi - Dead
11 Students Remaining
. ~ .
Kama felt a little bad. She hated herself. She was weak, she was a wimp.
She had made a friend. Someone went out of their way to become friends with her. They trusted her and they had hope in her.
The least she could have done was kill her to her face.
AN: I know this chapter's a bit shorter than usual but it's very important! Just a few things now, yes I made up that song (so no, this doesn't classify as a "song-fic", is no way involved in copyright infringement, and follows all the rules of this site. Just pointing that out now). And did anyone get what book I was referencing? I originally wanted to reference "Lord of the Flies" by William Golding, but that didn't come out until the 1950's. If someone can guess correctly what book I meant, I can give a small spoiler in the next author's note. It won't ruin the ending, but it will be a hint. Good luck!
Sami: I can't wait! Is it modern-day? Does it involve America students? Share as much as you can! Also, about deadlines, can you start giving shorter ones? And please just don't go "Okay, next update is tomorrow!" because I just feel like I procrastinate too much.
Lastly, this story will be finished before the end of the summer. There are only seven chapters left, guys! Finishing this is going to be bittersweet.
But thank you for reading, please review. Have a nice day!