Akemi
When I woke up, something felt strange. Not just the sensation of the cheap motel-issue bedsheets or even the way the sunlight looked as it shone through the window, but something else. Seeing that the other girls were asleep, I took care when getting up, creeping extra slowly to my suitcase to get a fresh set of clothes. I tried to not look at them for too long-it felt so strange, sharing my room with people rather than workshop set-ups or gadgets. The only time I'd ever shared a room with anyone was when it had been in the pursuit of a new skill. That, and that time long ago in the days after my accident, when my parents still loved me enough to not want to walk away from my bedside just in case I stopped breathing, even when I was long out of danger.
I headed into the bathroom and got ready quickly. Glancing at my reflection as I combed my hair, I marvelled at how easily I had slipped under the radar. I found it just as amazing as the rest of them did that all it took was a haircut, slightly less polished clothes and a complete lack of make-up to suddenly stop being Akemi Koizumi and be some sort of nobody instead. All the flaws that normally got hidden under make-up were out there for all to see, and with the extra time I now had because of that, I spent looking at those flaws. Faint scars, slight lines across my brow, the bags under my eyes. Though, come to think of it, did they not seem a little less prominent than they had before? I leaned in closer to the mirror, frowned, and realised that was so. I opened my mouth as if to yawn, but then realised that I didn't need to yawn. I didn't need to yawn, because I wasn't tired.
I wasn't tired.
We'd travelled most of the day yesterday, and hadn't really had much opportunity to rest in between that. On top of that, when we'd got here the four of us had spent an age first debating sleeping arrangements and then talking about the journey ahead. There had definitely been days when I'd gotten much less sleep than this one, and many where I'd had none at all, but even so. It felt as if I'd gotten the full eight hours that was always recommended by health experts, that even my doctor had tried gently to get me to have (though she knew better than anyone why it was impossible). It didn't make any sense.
Yet, at the same time, it did.
I couldn't hold back the grin as I finished up getting ready and left the bathroom only to see that Ritsuka was awake too, sitting up in bed and doing something on her phone.
"Ah, good morning, Nishimiya-san."
She looked up and raised an eyebrow.
"Morning."
I stood there for a moment, holding my pyjamas before doing what I usually did-smile, and ask a polite question:
"Did you sleep well?"
"Yeah, sure."
I was pretty sure at this point that the flatness was more or less just a Ritsuka thing, but it stung a little. I knew full well that she did not like me, and I knew full well why. It was for the usual reasons that people did not like me. Or rather, the reasons that they did not typically like the person they thought I was. The pretty, perfectly-made up person with the perfectly coordinated clothes. I looked down at myself, at my t-shirt with a repeating pattern of planets and stars and my dark leggings and then looked up.
"Well, the bathroom's free now, if you need it."
"Mhm."
Ritsuka fiddled on her phone for a moment longer and then stretched, yawning a little as she went to tuck her phone back into her own bag. She knelt there getting her own clothes and then headed to the bathroom, but just as she was about to slip inside she stopped and turned to me.
"Say," she asked. "You didn't notice anything strange yesterday, did you?"
"I…how do you mean?"
"Unusual cars, say?"
I frowned at Ritsuka, considering my response carefully as I gave it:
"I…no, I don't think so? Wait, do you mean like…following us?"
"If you didn't see anything, it doesn't matter."
"I didn't see anything, but if you thought you did-"
"No, seriously, drop it."
I was taken aback at how harshly Ritsuka had said it, and felt stung by the way she rolled her eyes but I said nothing, just nodded. Ritsuka didn't respond to that in any particular way, instead disappearing into the bathroom. The dismissiveness of it stung me, but even as I felt myself shrink a little in hurt my mind mulled the day over. The more that I went unrecognised, I had relaxed but that did not mean that I had stopped being entirely vigilant and so, as far as I could remember, there hadn't been any kind of unusual attention. People had stared at Otsuka and Ritsuka and Mitsuhide when they'd squabbled and some had gawped at Akagi when they noticed that he was blind but that was it.
Oh well, I thought, I will just have to keep an eye out.
Otsuka and Rieka woke up just as Rieka came out of the bathroom, and suddenly I found myself in the middle of a dispute about who could use the bathroom first. I wasn't sure how we managed to sort it, but eventually it was managed and we went down to have a quick breakfast with the boys before we grabbed our things and checked out.
It was my turn to drive, so after putting my bags back in I went to the driver's seat, settling myself in as I waited for everyone else to get seated.
"Alright, are we all ready?"
"Yep." Akio said.
"Yeeeah." Rieka said.
"Yes, yes, let's get on with it." Otsuka said testily.
"Of course!"
But as I started the minivan and pulled out of the parking lot, I spotted a car ahead of us in the parking lot, also leaving, and that would not have been strange except that Ritsuka's words were on my mind still and I found myself looking a little closer, noting how it seemed like the windows were tinted. It was not something unheard of, but still unusual. Was this what she had meant? I watched it zoom ahead and then turn a corner, which I drove straight past.
Ah, maybe it's nothing…
"Would anyone like to put some music on?" I called out.
"Oooh yes!" Rieka said.
"Whatever you're choosing, I don't want it." Mitsuhide responded immediately.
"Oi, you…."
"Let's let one of the others choose. Arisato?"
Ritsuka's suggestion managed to cut off the argument before it started, although Rieka huffed and puffed a few times. Akio suggested a song, and Mitsuhide played it on his phone, which had pretty good speakers.
"If you like," I said. "When we stop we can put together a playlist on someone's phone and then plug it in at the front. "
"We can do it on mine," Akio said immediately. "It's a great idea, Koizumi-sempai! I wish I had thought of it earlier."
I blushed slightly at that as I thanked him, and then concentrated on the driving as the others chatted. The drive went on smoothly for a little while, until we hit a motorway and ended up in a long line of traffic. I noted with some amusement that most of the traffic in the other lane seemed to be minivans, coaches, or cars with suitcases tied tightly to the top. Though, those people are probably just going on ordinary trips, huh? As the lines of traffic inched slowly forward, I amused myself by making up stories for where everyone was going and what they would be doing, but of course I didn't take my eyes off the road.
And then, as the traffic finally eased, I saw the car again.
It was in the next lane, but more or less next to us, and even as I was able to speed up it kept up that same speed. My heart in my throat, I kept a careful eye on the car, and wondered if anybody else had spotted it. Judging by the chatter-something about TV shows-this did not seem to be the case. Yet, I knew I had to say something.
"Hey-"
I turned to the left, leaving the motorway and ending up on a narrower and much quieter road, and checked the side mirror. The car continued on behind us on this road, but the next road was busier and I soon lost sight of it again. I did not see it next to us, or behind us in the mirrors. I didn't see it anywhere, so I swallowed my fears and kept driving.
…
The issue of the car kept playing on my mind, but I did not see that car or even any like it for the remainder of the journey we took until we collectively decided to stop somewhere for lunch. There was a nice park with a café on our route, according to Rieka, and so we decided to stop there. The sun was shining brightly at this point, and the café itself was busy so after we'd bought our lunches we decided to sit on the grass beneath a cherry tree rather than hope to grab a table.
"We just need a blanket, then this would be an actual picnic." Rieka mused.
"Oh, we have some, don't we? I can get a couple from the minivan!" Akio offered before I could.
"Oh, yes please!" Rieka exclaimed.
"Do you need help?" I asked.
"No, it's fine, it's just a couple of blankets."
I nodded and went to sit down with the others. It didn't take long for Akio to come back with a couple of blankets, which I then helped him to lay out, before we put all our things on it and sat back down. The time went by peacefully, as we discussed our route for a little bit and then moved onto more casual conversation as we had our lunch. Otsuka was thankfully willing to take a little more time with lunch, as we'd made good progress on the journey so far, so the atmosphere was a little more relaxed. Eventually though, we decided that as nice as this park was, we did have to go, so we started clearing up and having bathroom breaks, making use of the toilets in the café.
When I was coming back from the bathroom, I thought about checking my phone. I wasn't sure what made me think of it, but nonetheless I took it out of my pocket. To my surprise, I saw that not only did I have many missed calls, and an alert stating my voicemail box was full, but that there were a whole tonne of text messages. Every single one of them from my parents. Heart in my mouth, I unlocked my phone. But there wasn't anything on the calendar…, I thought in a panic as I fumbled to open my messages, scrolling through them hurriedly. But, as it turned out, I
Mum: What are you playing at?
Mum: Answer your phone! We are trying to prevent you from being irrelevant!
Dad: Contact one of us immediately and explain what you are doing immediately. You do not have the right to just go off and be lazy just because you have now been given an invitation to what will be the best school in the country.
Dad: After everything we do for you, this is how you respond?
Dad: Do you know how humiliating it will be if we have to decline these events because YOU cannot be bothered to carry out the bare minimum.
Dad: People are going to think badly not just of you but of us-you need to think about how your actions affect others, you do not just get to only think of yourself because you're a celebrity.
Mum: SHSL Aptitude? More like inaptitude. I am disappointed in you Akemi, after all we have done to ensure that you are successful in life.
Mum: Come back to us.
"No," I murmured. "I will not."
I could not, I realised. Glancing over at those of us who were still sitting at our picnic spot, I suddenly realised that not only did I not want to go back to my life, but that I could not. I could not go back to who I had been before and I could not go back to the person everyone still thought I was. I just could not. I did not think that I would even go home, after this. I weighed my phone in my hands, and as the thought of what I was about to do took form I winced a little. This phone had been expensive-it was brand new and top of the range. But it was a phone for Akemi Tries It, for a celebrity. Not for me.
So, before I could be overtaken with guilt, I flipped the phone over, popped open the back and slid the SIM card out. I then dropped it to the ground and stepped on it, as I let the phone itself fall to the ground. I watched the case crack, the screen shatter but still stay in place and looked at it for a long, long moment. Then, I bent down and scooped it up. I pressed the two pieces back together and got up again, about to kick the shattered SIM card pieces into the undergrowth when I felt eyes on me, and turned to see Ritsuka coming out of the small café, looking right at me.
I went red, frozen to the spot as she walked over. What would I say if she confronted me, or worse, if she told the others? She came up to me, looked pointedly at the phone in my hand.
"I-"
"I don't really care, honestly."
With that, she walked away and despite the relief that washed over me I felt oddly hollow. I followed her back and helped to finish packing up, and then we went back to the van. Ritsuka did not say anything. Indeed, she was as quiet as usual. But even as I got back into the driver's seat I could feel her watching me, and it sapped all the joy away.
Maybe, I thought as I began to drive away, I don't deserve any of this after all…
…
Mitsuhide
The sun wasn't setting as such when we got to Shirohata, but I could tell that it was about to. Looking at all those trees, I had a feeling that this would surely be a beautiful scene. As much as I liked the fantasy, however, I didn't think we were all going to stand arm in arm and admire it together, strengthening our friendship. It was a shame, that truly would have been glorious, impressive.
"Where should I park?" Akemi asked from the driver's seat.
"Ah…yes, that's a good question," Otsuka said. "People are definitely going to notice if there's some random van hanging around. "
"Gee, d'ya think?" Rieka snarked.
"We also don't want to park on an incline and have the van go and crash." Otsuka said, ignoring her pointedly. "But the main thing is to not be viewed from the road. "
After some arguing and peering out of windows, we all managed to find a place where Akemi could park, where our minivan would be concealed from view of the road, but was next to some distinctively gnarled-looking trees. Akemi parked it elegantly, and then she helped Otsuka to secure it with wheel clamps so that it wouldn't roll away.
"Shall we go down?" Rieka asked. "I know we won't be able to do too much exploring now, but I kind of want to see the place?"
"We'll go part of the way down," Otsuka decided. "I'm not having anyone tripping over and dying."
"Such touching concern." I snarked.
Otsuka gave me the middle finger, but we all slowly made the descent, Akio and Akemi helping Akagi to navigate the trees and bushes that dotted the semi-steep path. Though the forest got thicker the further we got, after a little while we began to see glimpses of a building through the branches and leaves.
"Woah." Rieka said from the front of our procession, stopping abruptly. "Woah."
"We're at the place, then?" Akagi asked.
"Almost," Akemi explained. "There's a little more of a walk to go, but we'll do that tomorrow. From what I can see though, it seems to be in better condition than you'd expect for it being abandoned for twenty years."
"When was this place abandoned again?" Akio asked.
"The 80s, something like that." I replied.
"What, the 1980s?" Rieka asked.
"Well, the 2080s haven't happened yet, have they?"
Rieka stuck her tongue out at me, but I didn't care that much. I found myself transfixed by the sight of Akio wandering off, heading closer to the trees and peering through.
"Are you alright, Arisato-kun?" Akemi called out.
He didn't respond at first, half-disappearing into the trees. Otsuka swore and took in a deep, dramatic breath ready to yell at him when he stopped suddenly, and then turned back to join us.
"I'm fine, Koizumi=sempai, thanks."
"Are you sure about that?" Otsuka said.
Akio laughed awkwardly, running his hand through his curly hair. He sighed and looked up into the slowly-glowing sky.
"I just…this is…it's further down, isn't it?"
"Yes, that's right?" Otsuka confirmed, very slowly. "In fact, I think we might be able to see it if we climb down a bit."
"Can you imagine it?" Akio went on, almost dreamily. "What it must have been like to be marched down here at gunpoint?"
There was a silence, and suddenly the wildness of this abandoned forest did not look so beautiful. I shuddered at the thought that this was the scene of a horrific crime, or close to it. Not just a sensational story from the past.
"I can imagine it…" Akagi murmured. "Mum must have been terrified…yours, too."
"They really must have been, huh?" Rieka said. "But that makes it a good thing we're here, right? Then we can get answers."
"Yes, exactly."
Akemi seemed as if she were about to say something else but then she paused and reached out to put her hand on Akio's shoulder very, very gently. When Akio turned to look at her she let out a little gasp before blushing slightly and smiling. But then, just as suddenly, something seemed to change and the light in her visibly dimmed. She was still smiling though, as she stepped back and said:
"Come on, let's go up. It'll all still be here in the morning."
Everyone agreed, so we all went back up. This time Akemi and Akio went ahead, again assisting Akagi as they did and I looked at the two of them. It was clear to me that Akemi had a serious crush on Akio, but oddly that didn't make me feel particularly jealous, and it wasn't just because I knew that Akio wouldn't be returning those feelings.
When they reached the top, the sun really was setting, and I could see the new vividness of the sky. Akemi exclaimed at it and tugged Akio's sleeve to get him to look at it too but as we all scrambled up and exclaimed at the pretty colours and the brightness of the sun I looked not to that same sky, but to her. And just for a moment, under the golden light, she seemed almost completely see-through. Beautiful as always, but see-through.
And then just like that, the light shifted slightly and she looked normal again. I stepped back and blinked, even more confused than ever.
"It really is pretty, huh?"
These words from Rieka, softer than before, made me look at the sunset, really look at it this time. And she was right. Pretty was not enough to really describe the sight I was seeing, all the gold and red and violet mixed together so elegantly, turning the landscape before us into silhouettes. But that was what it was, all the same. A truly glorious sight that stole my breath away as we all stood quietly, taking it in.
And perhaps we weren't arm in arm, perhaps it was unclear whether our friendship was being strengthened. But we were here, together, and the sunset was glorious. Until we actually started searching and found the evidence needed to solve this case, perhaps this moment would be enough for us.
Maybe. I hoped.
…
Akio
We woke up with the sunrise and got ready quickly. Excitement bubbled all around us and I was convinced that Rieka and Otsuka would butt heads over it but surprisingly, they cooperated as we considered our supplies and decided what to take with us.
"We all need to make sure to have our phones with us," Otsuka said. "Just in case something happens."
"Wait, I thought we were evading the parents." Rieka said.
Otsuka rolled her eyes
"Yes, but if something serious happens, we need to be able to contact someone." Otsuka said decisively. "So, phones. Everyone, show me that you have them."
I reached into my pocket, and as I held up my phone I remembered that I had lied. Well, at least to Dad. I had at least mentioned that I was on a trip, but I had led him to think that I was still with my schoolfriends, not with Akagi and everyone else.
Maybe I should say something…
"Hey, what happened to your phone?"
"U…um, nothing?"
I turned to see Akemi blushing in Otsuka's direction, as poised as ever yet seeming stiffer somehow, shoulders ever so slightly hunched. The reason seemed to be her phone, the screen of which was smashed.
"Um, that's clearly something," Rieka said. "Who's the fucker that did that?"
"No, it was my fault, I dropped it. It's fine, really. I can get it fixed when I get home."
There was a very slight hesitation at the word 'home', but Akemi laughed, tucked a lock of hair back behind her ear. I noticed that Ritsuka, despite looking as blank as always, was regarding Akemi very carefully.
"Do not worry, I'll get it fixed for you!" Mitsuhide declared.
"Are you sure you're fine?" I asked, without really understanding why.
"Yes, of course," Akemi said, with a new smile, more beatific this time. "I really don't want to waste time over this, though. Please don't worry."
"I agree with that, if you're sure you're cool, that is. So let's go and crack this case wide open. "
I tucked my phone back into my pocket. I didn't need to say anything at all. We were already here, after all, and by the end of the day we would already be on our way back. Hopefully with answers that would make all of this right, that would justify everything and make none of it matter. And then my family would be stitched back together again and we could all be happy again.
And that was what I concentrated on as we climbed back down again, the same way we had done the evening before. Indeed, it seemed like the gravity of what we were doing had hit us all, for nobody said a word on the way, apart from when Akemi and I had to guide Akagi down. When we clambered down, we immediately stopped and stared up at the building. Grey stone, with ivy and other climbing plants almost entirely covering it, it seemed as if it was something that had been around for a lot, lot longer than the 1980s. Well, apart from the style of the building itself, I supposed.
Did Mum ever look at this building, when she escaped it, I wondered. Or did she never want to look back? I knew what she had been trying to do all these years but what about in that first moment of freedom? Had she ever been curious about the place she had been in all this time? Had any of them?
"One of these windows has been broken into already."
I turned to look at Ritsuka, frowning at one of the boarded up windows, where some of the wooden planks had come apart, creating a medium-sized hole. I went over and bent down, peering in, seeing only shadows, hinting at some sort of clutter.
"It could just be animals and stuff. I mean, look at the amount of bird poop everywhere." I heard Otsuka point out. "Plus, I am sure the occasional squatter has been in here since. It's probably a good place to shelter in a pinch, especially as the roof-oi, you okay there, Arisato?"
I jumped back, nearly hitting my head on one of the wooden beams. I had to steady myself as I straightened. The smell of the bird droppings that Otsuka had been talking about hit me in full force and I felt sick. Shakily, I reached to my backpack for my bottle of water and took a few sips.
"I'm fine," I said once I'd drunk. "I…are we going to try to find the door, or are we going to try and get in here?"
"Here," Rieka said immediately. "I've tied a scarf around that tree."
Sure enough, there was a length of shiny red material tied around a branch. I blinked, wondering how she had managed that in the few moments we had been here. It had clearly taken a lot of effort, given that her cat-ear headband was now slightly skewed, one of the bells on it now missing. Even as she shook her head to make these bells shake, however, she didn't seem to notice this. She grinned at me and gave a thumbs up as she asked:
"Genius idea, right?"
"Yeah, seems like a good idea to me. I think we should mark the window itself too." Mitsuhide agreed. "Just in case, right?"
It felt a little unfair to be so surprised, but I felt somewhat satisfied that I was not the only one. In fact, almost all of us were gobsmacked by this latest moment of insight from Mitsuhide. Well, with the exception of Otsuka, that was who had apparently come equipped with spray paint. She brandished a can magiced from nowhere (seemingly) and immediately marched over to spray the wooden planks in bright pink. She also sprayed randomly on the inside of the room. My jaw dropped at how casually she did this, and when she turned back she raised an eyebrow:
"What? Those of us with the money can pay to get it cleaned."
"I will be more than delighted to do that." Mitsuhide drawled.
"But please, no more vandalism, if we can help it." I said.
Otsuka just smirked at me. I sighed. Rieka looked between us, and she rolled her eyes, which lit up in anticipation as she marched to the window.
"Okay, okay, enough of this, let's go-wait, are you alright?"
I felt bad for not noticing that Akagi was frowning, staring off into the distance as if he was seeing something. He turned his head to us.
"I smelt something. "
"What do you smell?" Mitsuhide asked.
"Some kind of cologne?"
"Oh, that's just me." He said.
This was true. Mitsuhide had sprayed himself quite liberally this morning, pointing out that as we were 'camping in the middle of nowhere' he would be 'quite stinky', but honestly even if he had been it would have been drowned out by the fumes of the spray paint. Nonetheless, Mitsuhide smiled sheepishly for a moment, fiddling with his hair. However, Akagi just frowned in his direction before shaking his head.
"No, not now. I can't smell it now, because of the fumes. But it was earlier, in the leaves…"
"The leaves?" I asked. "What do you mean?"
"Over there…" Akagi gestured vaguely in the direction we had just come.
At this, Rieka and Otsuka both immediately darted forward, with the latter taking a torch out and sweeping it across the undergrowth, dispelling the shadows but revealing nothing else except leaves and grass and dirt. Otsuka turned, almost blinding me with the torch as she did so. But even though I squinted I could see that her mouth was pressed into a thin line as she put her hand on her hips.
"It might be nothing. Again, squatters probably came here. But…we need to keep careful. Absolutely no Scooby-Doo shit. None at all. You all clear?"
We all nodded grimly at that, me most of all. Yet, I knew that if it came down to it that being together might not be enough to protect us if the broken boards and the smell were enough to mean something. My fingers shook at the thought.
But this isn't the same, it isn't even vaguely the same.
Before my hesitation made me turn back and run away, I reached for my own torch and decisively turned back around. Ignoring the exclamations I aimed it at the window, and then attempted to climb in, struggling to hold onto the torch and get a good enough grip.
"Here, let me."
Akagi stepped forward, and I pressed the torch into his hand gratefully. Then, I turned back, and I started to climb in.
I actually had a different dramatic point that this chapter was supposed to end at, but the chapter started to become a bit too long with those and that scene and the scene before it were ones where it may have been better to make sure I have specific dates clear in my head. Thus, I have cut and pasted those to become the next chapter and just left this one as a nice little Prospectives-only chapter. It does mean that next chapter will be a bit shorter, probably. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this now I managed to get it out! Thanks for your patience as always