Don't own Oregairu and Watchmen.

Chapter 9: Putting Everything in a Letter

Tsurumi Rumi was a fine reporter by any standards but with how things were going she was seriously thinking about quitting her job. People she knew kept dying all around her and the only thing she was asked to do was get enough material to run on prime time. She often wondered why she became a reporter, of course the camera dangling from her neck answered this question for her. She liked taking pictures and when she found out a way to take pictures for a living and have the satisfaction of knowing that you are making the world a better place, becoming a reporter seemed to be the perfect job for her. But the previous stories she covered had always been handled with a form of professional disenchantment. Of course this didn't mean she stopped sympathising with the victims but this particular month, starting from October 10, everything had been hitting her close to home. Of course she never knew all of them in a personal sense but she knew one Hikigaya Hachiman and watching him on a collision course towards his own demise was a painful experience. She tried to stop him, tried to help but when Saki Kawasaki failed, then she had no chance. She never admitted this to him but she looked up to him, sought his approval and on a fundamental level wanted to make him proud. Of course Hikigaya Hachiman was easy to please. He was a realist and a pessimist. He always felt unsteady when something good was about to happen to him because in his twisted mind, good news was always a bad sign. He loved Saki Kawasaki, she knew this no matter how much he denied and she also knew Saki Kawasaki loved him back. But fear stopped him but now he was branded a psychotic murderer and she didn't knew what was stopping him from telling the world otherwise. Hikigaya Hachiman is missing. The police have setup a manhunt to capture him before he kills anymore people but she already knows if he doesn't want to be found then the police might as well give up. He is that good.

"Stealth Hiki"

She smiled a little on imagining him saying this in his lazy drawl, listing one of his so called loner skills and with that happy thought she opened what seemed to be a love letter. It said it was from a secret admirer. She didn't recognize the handwriting but she wanted a good laugh after all the unhappiness she was having to deal with in the real world and she thought reading a love letter and pointing out all the mistakes and idiosyncrasies associated with the false notion of love without bothering to have the courage to face the person you are addressing might be a good pass time. Yes she admitted, she learned this from Hikigaya Hachiman, not that he ever received any love letter.

She opened the envelope and took out the letter:

"Not a love letter"

She immediately knew who wrote this. There was only one man who was capable of skipping over pleasantries all together even when writing a letter. She began to pay attention and started reading anew:

"Not a love letter.

RumiRumi getting careless. Could have been a letter bomb, could have contained Anthrax. Check carefully before opening anonymous mails, always told you so, you never listen. Listen now. Important. Very important. Didn't kill anyone. Tobe was already dead. Totsuka, Isshiki, Haruno all were killed by someone else. Not me. Can't bring myself to say I'm innocent. Would be a lie. Could have done something. More security cover, more police personnel, something different. Didn't. I am at fault, but not killer. Was framed.

Next topic is personal. Will address everyone on a first name basis. Need to feel like my life meant something. Going to die. Not alone, only hope. Bad grammar, wrong wording. Very embarrassing. Have patience."

And the letter ended there. She looked inside the envelope and found two more scraps of paper. She took one out and began to read.

"Tore pages. Thought they would make more sense.

Tsurumi, trust you to know I am not mad. Hopefully. I have formed a habit of writing in a journal, not an actual journal, which would cause safety issues if it was stolen by someone. No. I began to write in a mental journal. Of course telling you about this right now makes no sense, but I felt like writing about it anyway. Never knew writing was this difficult, remembering essays in high school. Getting sidetracked. Tsurumi, consider this letter a final entry in my mental journal in writing. I know having the full journal would have been helpful but I am trying to make do with what I have. The first journal entry in paper turned out to be the final. Anyway onto important things:

Yukinoshita Yukino is behind everything. Now I could say how I know this but that would make you an accessory of sorts, not really good with law but regardless she is behind everything. Now how many more people are involved I don't know but we are going to find out.

Yes. I said we.

Zaimokuza will be giving me a lift in his Ferrari. We have a long way to go and he decided to tag alone. Not sure why I am taking him but he is broken hearted and wants to die and when I said I am currently embarking on a suicide mission his 8th grader syndrome came back with a vengeance. He had a surprising amount of inventory, again won't be saying what, because we are in a grey area, but don't worry we will have some fire power. Not that it will help any.

Yukinoshita is in a safe house. Have to drive their and expect heavy security. Expect both of us to die before even confronting her. Alone, she is nothing but she has learnt to utilise her resources properly. She has learned to use others to save herself. This is nothing to be ashamed of and she knows this now.

Anyways moving beyond our impending doom, I broke up this letters into various scraps because they showcase my different moods. They are mostly disconnected but you can read the in whatever order you want. The first one was this, you know, you can almost feel the forced humour reeking from the pages, the second one is personal and a bit difficult to read because of faulty grammar and the last one will be a warning about how you opened this letter carelessly. Anyway, happy reading."

Tsurumi was beginning to think Hachiman was drugged. He was suffering from a serious case of mood swings. But she finally took out the last scrap of paper:

"Forgive bad writing. Final journal entry. No questions. Certain this is final. Left with Zaimokuza, know where we are headed. Ferrari is the worst vehicle made by man, never getting in another one. Zaimokuza is certain in his driving skills. Checked his license and registration. Everything perfect. Ready and prepared to take down Ice queen in her own fortress. Don't mention where. Everyone will know where when we get there. Expect something big to happen. Hate ruckus but no other options. Other players in this conspiracy? Don't know. One thing is certain Yukinoshita Yukino fooled everyone. She is responsible. My death will change nothing. Have many regrets but my death will change nothing. In last moments, writing this down, made me realise many things, not much time to write everything down. Bad handwriting, car bumping a lot, hope this is readable. Other things to worry before darkness and shadows swallow me whole. Listing regrets starting now.

I am responsible for my own death. Don't blame it on yourself and stop blaming others. No one has anything to do about it. Zaimokuza left a will. Hope it is found. Hope his fans forgive me for taking him along on this suicide mission. Hope everyone remembers me and forgives me for being so stupid.

Addressing everyone by first name now, want to show you I was made of flesh and blood and had feelings. Rumi you made me proud, you are the best reporter there is but I only hope you never become like me. Cherish your friendship with Keika, she will stop you when you get close to the edge. Taishi can marry Komachi. Sorry for missing out on your wedding and sorry for never meeting my nephews and nieces and Komachi, sorry for missing out on walking you down the aisle and giving you over to Taishi. Keika sorry for making you cry. You are the best little sister I could ever have, even better than Komachi, no I am not lying. You kept our broken home from falling apart. Hope you keep doing that.

Lastly, love ya Saki

Love ya

-8man, October 24, 2035

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This concludes my first fanfic project.

Read, review, follow and fav.

And be on the lookout for some more stories.

Hope everyone likes it. I know the ending seemed rushed but I planned to have nine chapters from the very beginning. I know the chapters got short and the quality dropped but the common consensus is that this was not a popular project. But I couldn't leave this incomplete, so I finished it and gave it a much needed sense of closure. Hope everyone has no complaints and find this enjoyable.

Till then, goodbye.

Won't betray your dreams.