WOOT! I'm on vaction mode. Still have school next week though. But I don't care. I don't need to study anymore. I survived the exams. I tried to party by watchong videos (hiimdaisy: Persona 3 & 4, Suki Kirai, Dancing Samurai, etc.). Just really happy.
That aside, I'd like to thank you guys reading this. Thank you so much. I hope you like this chapter. Also, please leave a comment m(_ _)m if you have time though.
MimiZ: Was that Makoto? Yep. Other stuff will be explained soon.
Junpei and Kanji decided to look for the group shortly after they woke up. Locating the group was easier than they expected because the mysterious light - that came from Minako - led them there. When the two arrived, they were greeted by a sight of the panicking group who were desperately trying to wake a pale, sleeping girl. "Her pulse is weak," was the first thing that they heard. It was Aigis' panicking voice.
"We have to get out of here and call an ambulance quickly," Mitsuru said frantically.
Shinjiro searched his pocket and took out a dark marble. He crushed it and opened a portal. "This will take us to that room at the hospital," he said quickly. "Now hurry up and get inside." Aigis ran to the portal with the girl in her hands. Ryoji stayed close, glancing every now and then at the girl. One by one they exited through the portal.
Ryoji grasped Minako's hand tightly. Not once did he let go of her soft hands from the moment he took it in his. He was afraid to let go. He feared that she would disappear if he did. He never once left her side from the moment they took her to the hospital. Even though the doctor said that she was only exhausted, Ryoji could not find it in him to feel relieved. He was too afraid that he might lose her - that he might not be able apologize to her for what "he" did.
Ryoji wasn't the only who has been anxious since the girl fell unconscious. All of them - all eighteen persona-users - were. Aigis kept fidgeting and would constantly check up on the girl after every ten minutes. Ken, Teddie and Labrys would have never gone back to the dorm if they weren't so exhausted. Yukiko, Chie and Rise cried when they misheard about what the doctor said, when they thought she would never wake up. The rest showed their concern for the girl - who was nearly a complete stranger to all of them - in their own way.
"You think she'll be okay?" Junpei asked Fuuka and Yukari. It was the day after the incident. The three decided to visit the girl because they wanted to give their thanks for helping them.
Fuuka was the one to answer. "The doctors said she'll be fine. I don't know why, but I'm feeling really nervous. How about you, Junpei-kun?"
Junpei looked at the girl and then to the one holding her hand. Ryoji fell asleep by her side with one arm used as a pillow and the other outstretched - his hand still holding hers. "I'm worried too. But I'm more worried about Ryoji. He's been there all night."
"By the way..." Yukari looked around. "Where's Shinjiro-senpai? He was here just a second ago."
"Maybe senpai went out to eat," Fuuka said. "It's already noon anyway."
"That reminds me..." Yukari and Fuuka looked at Junpei curiously. "We're older than senpai now."
Shinjiro has at the hospital's rooftop. He sat on one of the benches, feeling the wind against his cheeks. The cool breeze made him drowsy. He was already tired to begin with but he was too concerned for his two friends to get enough sleep. "It's been a long time." Shinjiro spun and saw Akihiko walking towards him. He mentally prepared himself for Akihiko's "nagging" and wished that he would be able to sleep through the whole ordeal. Fortunately for him, the boxer remained silent.
The silenced disturbed Shinjiro and made him uncomfortable. He sighed and broke the awkward silence. "What do you want, Aki?"
"What are you doing here?" the silver-haired man asked, not looking at Shinjiro. He sat beside the younger male and leaned forward to prop his elbows on his knees. "How come you're alive?"
"So you want me dead?" Shinjiro joked.
"That's not what I mean." Akihiko straightened. He looked at his friend seriously. "But still... you're supposed to be dead."
"...I didn't die," Shinjiro said. "At least that's what I remember from where I came from." Akihiko looked at him with confusion. "Maybe I did die here, but in another place I didn't."
Akihiko scrutinized his friend, as though if he stared long enough he would understand what the male said. After seconds of staring, he gave and decided to just ask. "What the heck are you talking about?"
"I'm not really sure. I know my memories were mine but sometimes..." The pony-tailed boy leaned back and rested his head on the bench. "Sometimes I feel like they aren't mine. Sometimes I feel like everything that happened was just a dream; that no one remembers because it was one big dream."
The boxer's brows furrowed. The more Shinjiro said, the more bizarre the situation looks to him. "Since when did you start talking like some philosopher?"
"Since your brain got even smaller than a peanut." And so their friendly bickering started - just like how it was before.
Aigis, Ken, Labrys and Teddie came to visit that afternoon with some clothes for Ryoji and Minako. Ryoji reluctantly let go of Minako's hand and decided to bathe.
"He seems to be hopelessly in love, don't cha think?" Labrys said as she sat at the chair beside the bed. "I don't think Minako-chan knows though." Her crimson eyes lazily traveled across the room and stopped when it caught sight of and MP3 player and red headphones. "This is kinda old," she said. She grabbed it and began inspecting it.
Aigis began to panic. "Sister, you shouldn't do that! It's -"
"It's broken." Aigis stared at the gadget and her sister in horror. "Don't worry I didn't break it. Seems to have been broken a long time ago."
"Can you fix it?" Ken and Teddie, who were watching the sisters, flinched when Ryoji suddenly spoke. A towel was on top of his head, covering his wet hair that clung to his face. He swept his hair back so that it wasn't covering his face. Teddie smiled triumphantly and mentally congratulated himself for choosing clothes that suited the boy. And Labby-chan said he'd look like a nerd.
"That was quick," Labrys said. She scrutinized the device in her hands again. After inspecting it she turned to Ryoji. "Yeah, I can. Want me to fix it? It's really simple."
"Do you think you can teach me?" Ryoji asked her hopefully. Labrys just looked at him and said, "yeah."
"Thank you."
"Just make sure ya listen properly or I'll kick your ass."
Ryoji gulped. "I'll keep that in mind."
"If it was broken, how come Minako-san is always using it?" Ken turned to Ryoji curiously. The black-haired boy looked at Minako kindly. The girl was smiling. It seems that she was having a good dream.
"Someone special to her gave it..."
All of them were starting to think the girl would never wake up. Three days has already passed and the only response they received from the girl was the slow rise and fall of her chest.
"Why isn't she waking up!?" Chie said in distress.
"Don't worry Chie-chan," Teddie said, trying to reassure the girl. "We're already used Yosuke down for a whole week so this is nothing."
"You expect me to listen to the boy who cried when he found out that she was still unconscious on the second day!"
"Calm down senpai," Rise intervened. "You too Teddie!"
"I can't take it any more!" Chie and Teddie both said.
"Aragaki, what are you doing?" Shinjiro's back was facing all of them. Suddenly the scent of ramen spread throughout the room.
"What day is it today?" a groggy voice asked. They all turned in surprise. "Shinji, give me that."
"Minako!" "Minako-san!" "Mina-chan!" Aigis, Ryoji, and Teddie attacked the girl with a hug. "I... can't... BREATHE!" They hastily released the girl.
"I knew food would bring you back," Shinjiro flatly said. "Eventually." He sat in front of her and ate the instant ramen. Minako watched him - her heart breaking as Shinjiro consumed the noodles.
There was only one word everyone could think of as they watch Shinjiro's interaction with the girl. Evil.
"You knew she was going to wake up now, didn't you?" Mitsuru stated.
Shinjiro just hummed. "Just an experiment to see if food could really wake people up." They turned to the group that huddled around the girl. Minako was at first mesmerized by the fact that Risette was right in front of her, but then she suddenly realized about that she might've missed Phoenix Ranger Featherman R. She asked the nearest person to her - Ken - what the day it was and sighed in relief when she found out that she didn't miss anything.
"Did you know Yuka-tan is the pink one?" Junpei asked her. He was acting like a proud father showing off his daughter to his friends.
Minako chuckled. "I always knew it was her."
At the corner of the shrine, a little girl with a pink mask is curled up into a ball.
"I found you!" A boy, her age, ran to her. He stopped a few inches away from her to catch his breath. "Why are you here?" When he noticed her shivering he decided to kneeled to her level and removed her mask. Once the mask was gone, he was able to look at the girl's tear-stained face.
He gently wiped the tears falling down her flushed cheeks and then softly stroked her head. "Don't cry Minako-chan," he said tenderly. "I won't leave you."