Welcome back my lovely readers! Thank you to all who Faved & Followed, and a huge special thanks to these wonderful people for taking the time to review: Rebecca315, Einklley, Kuroxi, Colleen, Yeahboyy, Cilenia Alsacia, Mango0flh5, Guest, and PopperPaper! ❤❤

We're finally at the official timeline of this story ya'll! 12 years in the past, to be exact, where things are as they were, and yet, not at all.

There are definitely a lot for Reiya to unpack following her predicament: new beginnings, old friends and family, and most importantly, the Tokyo Manji Gang. But before she can even begin to pierce through the dangerous world of delinquents, Reiya must confront the demons of her past and re-establish her resolve.

For this chapter's tidbits:

※ Concours means "contest" in French, and the term is often used in a musical context.

※ Spiccato refers to the violin style technique that produces a light "bouncing" sound.

〖 Chapter Five 〗

Recounting Purpose

JULY 4, 2005

Applause coming from a singular source. Her body no longer felt like it was being attacked by a million needles but she was hot and cold at once, her skin uncomfortably damp and buzzing with smothering warmth.

Reiya kept her eyes closed and turned her head down, frowning, panting, exhaustion and bewilderment weighing on her senses like a blanket.

'What…on earth? Is this heaven where angels clap for you after you die?'

"That was wonderful, Yunagi-chan!"

Reiya winced and opened her eyes in alarm, fat tears rolling down her cheeks the moment her eyes fluttered open. Light poured into her blurry vision and she gasped.

It wasn't heaven, hell, or purgatory. It had to be a dream, or some bizarre place between life and death that her mind conjured at the verge of her death. For where she was currently standing was none other than the heartbreakingly familiar stage of her violin instructor's music studio, the unforgettable place where she used to spend most of her time in.

The clapping continued and Reiya turned to whoever was making it, only to be instantly petrified. The sound came from an older woman with long light-brown hair wearing a pair of red round-framed glasses over velvet-brown eyes. Behind her sat a dark-haired man with a stubble and with a dizzying pang of horrified relief, Reiya instantly recognized who they were.

'Aohara Toshiro-sensei and…Niseyama Umeno-sensei?' She shook her head and clenched her hands. 'No…why are they here? What is this?'

Her palms prickled at how tight her grips were and her eyes shot down.

Time and fate came to an abrupt halt right then and there. Viomaru and its bow were in her hands, with her left hand no longer splinted and put in a cast. No longer broken.

"Not bad for the midsummer concours, right Aohara-sensei?" Umeno said as she climbed up the small stage.

Toshiro left his seat and began to approach her as well, smiling with a touch of fond pride. "We still need to work a bit more on your intonation, but your spiccato was flawless, Reiya-chan."

She felt another person approach her from her left, someone around her age, and Reiya shivered uncomfortably at the sound of his awfully familiar voice.

"Looks like I have to practice even harder if I don't want to get left behind."

Reiya slowly turned her head to look at him, her heart catching with a nostalgic jolt the moment she saw him. It was her classmate, co-student and rival in the violin, and the person she used to admire back in middle school because of how much he reminded her of her dad.

"Kuroshima-kun?" she whispered.

The peach-haired boy paused, his light-green eyes widening at the sight of her tears. "Yunagi-san, are you okay?"

Umeno drew closer and placed a light hand on her shoulder. Reiya flinched upon contact, her wide eyes frantically flicking up to meet her teacher's worried gaze.

"Yunagi-chan, what's the matter?" she asked.

Toshiro stood beside Kuroshima with concern written all over their faces, and they all kept their distance and held their tongues, waiting for her to say something, anything.

Reiya gulped and spoke like she hadn't talked in years. "I…I…!"

Suddenly it was all too much. The studio, the stage, the concerned looks of the people who used to be her allies in music, the weight of Viomaru in her hands. Even the light began to sting. She couldn't breathe.

Reiya took a step back. "I-I'm sorry…e-excuse me!" She distractedly placed Viomaru and its bow on a nearby bench and dashed out of the room, their worried calls drowned within the ringing inside her ears.

Reality clashed and tumbled around her head in jagged, clamoring pieces as she ran through the corridors...the studio, Viomaru, her left hand, her teachers, Kuroshima, Hanma, the cloying smell of chrysanthemums, blood, broken remnants of Piazzolla's Oblivion, the frightening void of nothingness, and Manjiro...

Reiya burst through the comfort room's door and immediately threw herself over the counter. She gripped the edge with trembling hands and pressed a hand against her navel, breathing hard. She was frightened to find that she was no longer wearing her gray cami lounge dress but her middle school uniform, the material no longer soaked and sticky with her blood but clinging similarly to her skin due to cold sweat.

The abrupt shift of her fate made Reiya sick. She could still feel it…the plunging strike of the knife twisting and boiling deep in her guts.

The memory assaulted her. The lingering smell of blood rose heavily in her nostrils and she gagged. Reiya ducked her head low into the sink and threw up, gasping desperately and screwing her eyes shut. She staggered to right herself after emptying her stomach and struggled to turn the faucet on, washing her face and mouth twice before letting out a heaving sob, shaking like a leaf in the wind as she sunk to the floor.

'I…I was killed. I'm supposed to be dead! But this…how…'

She looked at her hands and trembled. They were hers and yet they weren't. They were better, younger. She touched them against her wet cheeks and slowly pushed herself on her feet, hesitantly lifting her disoriented gaze towards the mirror.

For a second Reiya could barely recognize herself. Her features were softer and her ash-lavender eyes were bigger. Her long black hair was now shorter and her dangling cherry earrings were shining with an unscathed gleam, clearly not yet worn by age.

Her appearance, the studio, and the mention of the upcoming midsummer concours that ended up being her last…

It was who she was twelve years ago.

Reiya's hands slipped from her face as she continued to stare at her own reflection. This was not just a dream, or a specific montage of her life flashing before her eyes. Her gaze flickered back to the reflection of her cherry earrings, and one word resounded vividly in her mind…

Revival.

Reiya was supposed to stay in the studio and practice with Kuroshima until 6 PM, but they all saw she wasn't in the right condition to play. She was shaky the entire time, and it took all of her energy trying to reassure them that she was all right when she couldn't even reassure herself. She was beginning to accept that she returned to the past, but it felt as if the floor was going to give out at any moment.

Worried for her safety, Toshiro offered to drive her home in his blue SUV. They sat in companionable silence with Oshima Michiru's The Water Lily playing from the audio system, the melody helping to soothe her troubled spirit.

Aohara Toshiro was Kaname's closest friend, and he had known Reiya since she was a child. He taught her what she needed to know when it came to the violin alongside her dad and he was one of the few men that she was comfortable with. In her previous life, Toshiro had supported her after the accident and had remained a steady supporting presence through it all.

They lost touch, however, when Reiya graduated from highschool and moved away, and their relationship dwindled down to mere annual holiday greetings. Back then, she was convinced that the things that used to bind them together were already gone, but now Reiya was beginning to realize that she was the one who had inadvertently distanced herself.

"I'm sorry, Toshiro-sensei." The apology came out without much thought, but she meant it.

Toshiro's brows rose, thinking she was apologizing for what happened earlier. "You don't have to apologize. Although I can't help but think it's more than just the piece making you cry all of a sudden." His voice softened with concern. "Is it just the nerves getting to you, or did something happen at home?"

Home…

Just the thought was enough to fill Reiya with indescribable anxiety. By this time, there shouldn't be anyone else in the house but their four-year-old Shiba Inu, which calmed her nerves a little as it would give her time to prepare meeting her family again.

Her mother, Natsukage Sorako, was a paramedic whose shift wouldn't end until 6 PM while her stepfather, Natsukage Ittetsu was a doctor who worked in the same hospital. Finally, her five-year-old half-brother Natsukage Taito would still be at the local daycare.

She hadn't seen them for about a year in her previous life, as her relationship with them finally reached a point where they didn't even communicate regularly anymore. Reiya officially became an outsider when she moved away, but the schism officially began when she found out her mother withheld her dad's death from her for about a month. The one who actually told her the news was Toshiro himself and it had been a slip of the tongue, mistakenly thinking that Sorako already informed her.

"Toshiro-sensei…Dad's already gone, isn't he?" Reiya found herself asking softly, her unseeing gaze fixed outside the window.

A long pause. And then she heard him sigh through his nose.

"I see…So you just found out."

"Yes," she lied.

"I only just recently knew about it myself," Toshiro replied, his dark blue eyes turning wistful. "I didn't think Kaname would leave us so soon..." He gave her a quick sideways glance. "My deepest condolences for your loss, Reiya-chan."

Reiya briefly closed her eyes as she released an abbreviated breath. She looked at him and managed a faint smile. "Thank you Toshiro-sensei, but I'm all right. I've learned how to accept the things I can't change. Besides…it wasn't just my loss."

The acknowledgment made her stiffen reflectively. 'That's right…I'm not the only one who was affected. I wonder what Mom felt when she first knew…and what her reasons were for not telling me right away. I never even asked her…'

It hit her just then how close to death she was, how close she was to meeting her dad again. The thought of it used to appeal to Reiya, but not now.

Not when she had so much to lose after all.

Her fingers dug into the material of Viomaru's case, a fine tremor running down her spine as she contemplated the present. 'Dad is already gone, but Hina-chan and Naoto-kun are still alive. Today is Monday…and Hina-chan should still be in school right now. She's alive right now…' She closed her eyes in a moment of unspeakable relief. 'Thank goodness.'

Unbidden, the figure of another person entered her mind and Reiya's vision blurred, her heart racing to the cadence of his name. She sat straighter in her seat and stared at the passing scenery with concentrated intent. They might not be in the same neighborhood but possibilities lurked every corner and every street.

He was out there somewhere.

Toshiro flashed her a quick smile. "I'm happy to hear that. I'm sorry for not telling you sooner, but I'm glad Sorako-san decided to tell you before the concours after all."

Reiya blinked. She turned away from the window and gave him a skeptical stare. "You mean…Mom wasn't supposed to tell me until after the concours?"

Toshiro took a minute to reply as he swerved into the next intersection. "That was the plan, yes. She actually asked me not to tell you so you could focus on the competition. I know it's hard to believe since she was originally opposed to you joining another contest, but she knew it was important to you and she didn't want to distract you from giving it your all."

He threw a quick glance her way to gauge her reaction before continuing in a much softer voice. "Sorako-san may have a roundabout way of doing things, but she truly looks out for you. I hope you weren't too hard on her when she told you about Kaname. It will take some time for it to truly sink in and an even longer time for you to get used to, of course, but you're taking it quite well." Toshiro smiled. "I'm relieved."

Reiya looked away, filled with a rush of scalding guilt. She had, in her previous life, absolutely did not take it well. She could still remember that day, about how she immediately confronted her mother and how they got into an ugly argument. She could even remember the furious, shrill sound of her own voice when she screamed "I hate you!" before running out of the house with Viomaru underneath the gloomy, darkening sky.

Their relationship was never the same after that.

All these years, Reiya saw her mother as an antagonist who divorced her dad because he couldn't support them properly; an unfaithful woman who immediately took off with an older, wealthier man and bore his son before they were even married. But now it hit her hard that she never really gave her mother a chance to explain herself. She never even bothered to get to know her properly, nor did she try to understand her mother's reasons for doing the things she did.

Reiya closed her eyes in remorse. 'Mom…'

She was subdued for the rest of the ride. And if Toshiro noticed, he didn't say anything. Soon they pulled over by the stylish black gate of the Natsukage residence, a spacious two-story house with two carports and a side porch that opened up to a small garden, with the entire lot surrounded by a red brick wall and golden euonymus shrubs. The house itself was painted white with white-framed French windows, and topped with a black-shingled roof.

Reiya slung Viomaru's case bag on her back and released a shaky sigh as she got out of the car. She walked around the hood and waited as Toshiro lowered the window by the driver's seat, his expression warm with concern.

"Get some rest. I'll see you this Saturday, okay?"

Reiya smiled and bowed. "Yes. Thank you very much, Toshiro-sensei. I'll see you then."

He gave her a quick smiling nod before rolling up the window, and left with a singular honk of the horn.

Reiya turned on her heels and slowly approached the house with equal parts nostalgia, apprehension, and a gnawing sense of estrangement. The last time she was there was about two years ago in her previous life, when the family got together to celebrate Christmas. She successfully unlocked the gate with her spare key and was about to open it when a familiar bark erupted from somewhere around the house.

Reiya hurriedly entered and locked the gate close. She barely had time to pocket the key when a huge black and tanned Shiba Inu seemingly burst out of nowhere and jumped on her.

"Panpan!"

She couldn't help but laugh as Panpan welcomed her with lots of doggy kisses and whimpering headbutts. But then the dog suddenly stopped and jumped back, his tanned snout twitching incredulously as he took a whiff of her scent. Panpan's expression changed, and he tilted his head as he studied her, his big brown eyes shining with an intelligent gleam.

Watching him filled Reiya with the craziest sense that Panpan somehow knew she was not the same person he was accustomed to. She crouched down to his level and held still as he cautiously drew closer, letting him sniff her some more.

The dog gradually relaxed and he tenderly drove his head against her chin, his actions decidedly milder compared to his usual behavior.

Reiya chuckled and gave him a pat before cradling his head in her hands. Staring into Panpan's soulful, knowing eyes, she was suddenly overcome with tremendous emotion. He licked her on the cheek and she laughed, bringing him close and sagging against him.

"Yes, boy…I'm back," she said, her voice trembling by the edges as she closed her eyes and pressed her face into his fragrant fur.

"I'm back."

Being alone in the house gave Reiya the time to reflect and adjust. She didn't know how it happened, but this was her new present now. She was alive, she was here. Her left hand was perfectly all right and she was free to start over again.

These were the days she used to navigate with surefooted self-possession. Everything was exactly as she remembered it but this time, Reiya knew things would be different.

There would be changes, and they were going to start with her.

The time was 5 PM and the sun was beginning to set. Reiya had changed into a simple yellow day dress with short sleeves and a pair of white sandals. She went out of the house and took Panpan with her, deciding that the place she was heading off to wasn't that far, so it was probably fine to take the dog out for a walk. She almost got lost but after asking a few locals who readily supplied the directions, her destination was well within sight.

The daycare was practically empty by the time Reiya arrived. She passed quite a number of people with their respective children on the way there and her heart clenched at the thought of those who still had to wait for their parents and guardians, especially as Taito was one of them.

An amiable attendant greeted her by the door and bade her to wait by the lobby as she went to retrieve her younger brother. Reiya sat on one of the benches while Panpan lounged outside with his head atop his paws, his cinnamon roll tail swishing side to side in relaxed anticipation.

Meanwhile, Reiya kept her head down with her eyes on her balled hands. She felt incredibly nervous. She felt it her duty to come and get Taito as she had nothing else to do after getting off from practice early, but now she was beginning to second-guess her decision.

How on earth would Taito even react to seeing her there? She hadn't seen or talked to her brother for a really long time prior to going back to the past and she wasn't entirely prepared to meet him again. In fact, Reiya rarely, if ever, took her brother home from daycare. Her practice sessions would run until 6 PM and she had cram school on the days she didn't have violin lessons. She was a busy bee who barely spent enough time in their home.

But the cold hard truth was that Reiya felt no special attachment for her only brother. It wasn't that they had a terrible brother-sister relationship, but they weren't particularly close, either. Any interaction she had with Taito was purely out of politeness. They were siblings in name and shared the same mother, but that was it for her.

In addition, the reason why she intentionally kept herself busy was all because she didn't want to get involved with her mother's new family with more than what was expected of her. It was a tacit agreement between her and her mother. Sorako didn't force her to do what she didn't want to do and in return, Reiya did her best to act her part and cooperate. It was a deal formed to uphold their fragile bonds.

Now, however, Reiya felt it was time to take proper responsibility, time to begin anew. It was not a stretch to say that she was, at worst, had been indifferent towards her brother. In her previous life, Taito was similarly disinclined to like her. He used to make fun of her and give her a really hard time, but Reiya realized now that the reason Taito turned out that way was because she treated him like an outsider first.

She pushed him away before he could even grasp the fact that they came from different fathers, and in time he seemed to understand that she would never care about him, so he acted coldly in return.

All those times he behaved badly around her were simply his way of trying to get her attention. All he wanted was to have an older sister, and she withheld that from him.

All because she was a coward.

"Here he is, Yunagi-san," called the attendant.

Reiya stood up and her eyes immediately fell on the little boy walking casually alongside the older woman. The boy had his father's silver hair and his mother's green eyes. People wouldn't even believe they were siblings with how different they looked from each other, and right now the only thing they had in common was that they were similarly uneasy meeting with the other.

Taito looked at Reiya with confounded eyes. Then he turned to the older woman beside him and said, "I didn't think you were telling the truth when you said my fatty Nee-chan was here."

Reiya flushed and sighed through her nose with a small self-deprecating smile. 'I forgot he used to call me that.'

"Tai-kun, your sister is not fat," the attendant chided.

"But she is," Taito insisted, pointing his small forefinger at her. "Look at how big she is. She even gets stuck sometimes and—" He broke off and dashed behind the attendant as Reiya approached with red-faced indignation.

"W-why you…! I've never been stuck!"

Taito peeked from behind the attendant's legs and stuck his tongue out. The older woman watched them with a bemused smile before stepping out of the way with a grin.

"He's all yours, Yunagi-san~."

Taito yelped and Reiya immediately bent to capture his small head in her hands. "Uwaaah nooo!" He pushed at her and tried to break free but it was no use.

Reiya leaned close and gently pressed his cheeks together. "Dummy," she murmured into his squished face before releasing him with a small chuckle.

Taito glared at her while he rubbed at his cheeks and he looked so cute and suspicious of her that it filled Reiya's heart with genuine tenderness and guilt.

'This is my brother,' she thought. 'And I'm going to take care of him properly this time.'

She took his bag from the attendant with one hand and offered Taito the other with a warm smile on her face.

"Let's go home."

Taito stared up at her, then down at her hand, with disbelief. Slowly he reached for it, his expression softening.

But then he began to frown. Taito dropped his hand and planted it on his hip in defiance. "I'm not some kid who needs their hand held," he sniffed.

Reiya bit back a smile as she lowered her hand. "Taito…you're five years old."

"Almost six!"

Panpan suddenly barked and he gasped, his eyes sparkling with excitement. "Panpan!? You brought him here!?"

"Well, it's been a while since I last took him out for a walk—"

"Awesome!"

Taito ran out of the door and was immediately intercepted by the dog. Amazingly, the boy held his ground against Panpan who was easily twice his size, laughing and squealing cheerfully as the dog tried to lick him all over the face.

"Thank you for coming to get him," the attendant said as she stood beside Reiya with a worried smile. "Taito-kun won't show it, but he was getting lonely watching all his playmates get picked up one by one. He's usually the last one who gets to go home, but I'm glad that isn't the case today."

Reiya held still as she absorbed the information, her eyes softening as they watched Taito try to calm the bounding Shiba Inu down. "Me too," she responded quietly.

The boy raced with Panpan to the gate and called out behind him. "Come on, fatty Nee-chan! You're so slow!"

The attendant chuckled while Reiya released a soft sigh. She turned to face the older woman and bowed. "Thank you for everything. We'll be off now."

The attendant waved in return while she hurriedly went to the door, but Reiya paused before crossing the threshold and looked back with a smile.

"Oh, and, today won't be the last. I'll see you again soon."

As it turned out, Reiya was right to bring Panpan along. Taito was still wary of her but his guard was slowly falling away with the dog acting as the buffer between them, and he was especially thrilled when she let him hold onto the leash on their way back.

"Mama never lets me hold the leash," Taito grumbled before breaking out into a grin as he deftly guided Panpan around a light post. "But I can walk Panpan just fine all by myself, see?"

"Yes. Even though Panpan's much bigger than you, I'm surprised you can handle him so well," she said with genuine awe.

Reiya knew how close the two were in her previous life as they practically grew together, but this was the first time she saw just how adept Taito was with the dog despite his young age.

'There's still so much I don't know about him…'

Taito caught the way she was looking at him and deliberately put his chest out with a smug smile on his face. "That's because I'm strong."

In the next second Panpan lurched forward after spotting a stray cat, bringing Taito with him.

"Woah!"

Reiya caught her brother around the waist before he could topple over. She couldn't stop herself from laughing out loud as they pulled on the leash together, Taito with both hands and she with her free one while Panpan continued to bark after the scurrying feline.

"T-this doesn't count! I was caught off guard, okay!?" Taito yelled with a furious blush.

"O-of course," Reiya managed, struggling to contain her laughter. "Panpan just got excited over a…a cat, that's all!"

Taito fumed in her hold but didn't struggle. "Panpan! Down, boy!" he commanded.

Panpan immediately subsided once the cat was no longer in sight, panting happily as he trotted back to them. Reiya set her brother back on his feet and steadied him with a hand around his back while he attempted to repossess his superior composure. Taito tried so hard to look like a miniature adult that she couldn't help but chuckle again.

He sent her a quick frown before turning away and jogging a few paces ahead of her, Panpan ambling obediently by his side. Taito was blushing, Reiya saw, and for a moment she was tempted to run her hand all over his spiky hair.

Now was not the time yet, however. Winning Taito's trust and fixing their relationship wasn't going to be easy, but Reiya had time on her side this time.

And she was determined to make things work.

Reiya was in the kitchen when she heard her mother's car pull into one of the carports.

"Mama's here!" she heard Taito scream, followed by Panpan's ecstatic barks and the frenzied sound of their feet on the floor as they raced to open the door. She heard Sorako's voice next, scolding her brother for eating dessert before dinner – a.k.a the ice pop he stole from the fridge when Reiya wasn't looking – and the familiarity of the strict but melodic quality of her mother's voice almost made Reiya smile.

"Reiya?"

Her heart thumped in quick, anxious leaps. "I'm in the kitchen!" she answered back, and Reiya inwardly braced herself as Sorako walked into the kitchen with Taito in her arms, balancing him on one hip as he gnawed on the ice pop. Panpan followed closely behind them.

Reiya paused from setting the table and looked up to greet her mother. For a moment it nearly startled her to see how young Sorako looked. There wasn't a single white strand in her long dark hair or a wrinkle in sight, and Reiya found herself giving the older woman a genuine smile as she realized how they were back to where their relationship hadn't yet taken the turn for the worst.

"Welcome home, Mom."

It took a while for Sorako to reply, her pretty features tempered by a touch of astonishment.

"You're early," she remarked.

"And you're a bit late," Reiya returned, still smiling as she looked back down to finish setting the plates.

Sorako hefted Taito higher on her hip before looking at her with a grateful glow in her sharp green eyes. "Yes…which is why I was so relieved when I read your message about picking Taito up from the center. I thought you'd be out until six?"

"I got off early," Reiya answered sheepishly as she took off her apron. "I already made dinner. I hope beef stew is fine."

"I helped with the carrots," Taito volunteered proudly.

Reiya shot him an incriminating glance. "You gave most of them to Panpan."

Panpan confirmed the statement with a joyful bark.

Sorako shook her head with a smile as she bent to set Taito on the floor. "That's fine. Now go wash your hands. I'll join you after I change."

Reiya had her back to them as she moved to put the apron away. She thought her mother had already gone upstairs but was surprised to find Sorako come up beside her with a small smile on her face.

"Thank you," she said simply.

Reiya colored and strove for a casual reply. "It's nothing. It's the least I could do after getting home early."

Sorako placed a hand on her hip and regarded her with a skeptical frown. "I'm not looking a gift horse in the mouth, but isn't today your first day of practice for the midsummer contest? And now that I'm close enough, you look quite pale, Reiya. Did something happen that made you go home so soon?"

Reiya froze. She completely forgot how perceptive her mother could be when she wanted to.

It used to grate her nerves how suspicious and often demanding Sorako was when it came to her violin lessons since she didn't want her to become just like her dad, but she eventually relented after Reiya showed her how serious she was. She never asked her mother for anything when it came to her musical endeavors, and always strove to pay for her violin lessons and whatever she needed with her own money, which she saved up from winning a couple of contests and from saving up her allowance.

Now, Reiya perfectly understood that the reason why Sorako was so hard on her was because she was only concerned for her well-being. She didn't stop to fully appreciate it before, but she was seeing it much clearer now.

"Everything's fine," Reiya answered. She turned to face her mother with a reassuring smile. "I just feel like I haven't been home in a long, long time…That's all."

After finishing kitchen duty that night, Reiya headed straight for her room and fell face-first into her bed.

She felt utterly drained. She enjoyed, and surprisingly missed, eating at the same table with her mother and little brother again, but she simply had no energy left to deal with more of her family for the day and she was grateful that her stepfather wouldn't be home until later in the night.

Reiya slowly rolled to her back and sighed with her arms spread wide beside her. As she laid there staring at the ceiling, it dawned on her that the course of her life was permanently altered, like a train that had crossed a switch-point heading for a new and entirely unknown direction.

Her heart began to beat with a new purpose and she sat up, stretching her arms over her head before walking over to her desk. She opened the drawer and pulled one of the blank stationery notebooks she used to buy on a whim just because they were pretty.

"I don't even know why I bought this…" Reiya murmured wryly as she ripped the plastic cover off. "I might as well use it now."

She reached for a pen and tapped it twice against her chin.

Then she began to write.

July 4, 2005.

This is not a diary, but rather, a way for me to unburden my thoughts.

I don't know where to start, but I suppose I can begin with this: my name is Yunagi Reiya, and this is my second life.

I was, but come to think of it, technically still am a 27-year-old. It's just that I'm back in my 15-year-old body.

Yes. I am no longer the same person. This may be hard to believe, but…

I died.

To be precise, I was killed. I was killed by a man named Hanma. The memory of it still haunts me, but that's not what really concerns me right now.

It's the fact that I'm here. I should be dead, but by some whimsical twist of fate, I'm back here in the past instead.

Many may think of simply going by the flow, to relive and reclaim what was lost, and what was beloved. Truly, this is a miracle, and I am not at all different from those who would've fully taken advantage of it.

Still…I am scared. What if tomorrow I wake up, and find that this is all a dream?

I sincerely hope not. For whatever reason I was sent here…I wish to stay. I wish to start over and live selfishly once again.

Because I finally fell in love.

That's the reason I died, actually. It may sound tragically dramatic, but...

I fell in love with someone I shouldn't have fallen in love with. As a result, I was disposed of.

Not by him, of course! He cares for me…

He didn't say it, but…

I know he loves me.

But it turns out we live in two completely different worlds. His world is one filled with death and blood, and endless despair…

I realize now that I could never belong in his world. I couldn't even survive.

Perhaps that's why I'm here, and that's why I'm writing this.

What exactly can I do…what exactly WILL I do…to be part of his world?

Right now…I believe it might not be as inaccessible as how it was in my previous life. If I could…I think I might just carve a place for myself in there.

Now, with my new life. With my own hands.

That was a time I can never return to. What happened cannot be changed. It might be better for me to just forget about it all, forget about him…

But I can't. I won't.

Because I am hopelessly in love with him.

And because Jiro-kun…

I think he needs help.

I've never been given the chance to truly be there for him, but now I intend to seize that chance myself.

I've been given this second chance at life, and if I am to relive a thousand yesterdays, then I intend to live for better tomorrows.

I intend to acquire what I want this time around and I am ready to fight for it.

For the people I love, for everything I hold dear. This time, I swear it.

So wait for me…

Jiro-kun…Hina-chan…

I'm going to protect you.

JULY 5, 2005

Reiya was mortified. She was back in her old school, surrounded by old faces in her old Second Year class, sitting in her old desk…

And wearing her old middle school uniform with the same old 36 cm skirt.

She fidgeted and tried to cover the exposed expanse of her thighs with her palms. It never bothered her much before, but it was different now that she was practically older than the rest of her present peers.

'This feels inappropriate somehow…I can't believe I'm doing this for the second time.' Reiya sighed and turned to look outside the window as they all waited for homeroom to start. Her lashes lowered over thoughtful eyes as she stared at the sky; a tender shade of blue and nearly cloudless.

'But this is my starting line…Come to think of it, perhaps I can finally become top of the class with my knowledge and experience?' She huffed and smiled to herself. 'As if. That's not even my priority right now…'

She was pulled out of her thoughts when someone stopped by the empty seat beside her. They didn't sit in it right away and turned to stand by her desk instead.

It was Kuroshima.

"Good morning, Yunagi-san," he greeted with a smile.

Reiya looked up to him with a slightly startled gaze. "Kuroshima-kun…"

She forgot they used to be desk neighbors. She immediately composed herself and gave him an amicable smile in return. "Good morning to you as well."

Kuroshima lowered into his seat but kept his eyes on her, his expression wrought with friendly concern. "How are you feeling today?"

"I'm all right. I'm sorry for ditching you yesterday."

He shrugged with an easy-going smile. "It's fine, don't think about it. I'm just relieved you look okay now."

He searched her face, a frown forming between his eyebrows.

"That is...is everything okay, Yunagi-san? You look like you're in pain."

Reiya blinked and cleared her expression right away. "Oh, sorry. I just remembered something, that's all."

It's just that looking at him made her remember how close they used to be, only to turn into complete strangers when she couldn't play the violin anymore.

"Is something else bothering you?" Kuroshima asked gently. "You know you can tell me, right?"

Reiya held his gaze, her heart thumping uneasily as she thought of what to say to dissuade the intensity of Kuroshima's concern. His sincerity frightened her. She depended on him once, only to be left hanging on the ledge when he began to avoid her after the accident. She never knew why he suddenly acted that way, but she suspected that he must've been vastly disappointed when she gave up on the violin and decided to leave the world of classical music altogether.

Because more than anyone else, Kuroshima Yuuma was the one who wanted her to join him on the stage the most.

"Well…" Reiya began, thoughts and reasons rattling around in her brain until she managed to latch onto one that might serve both of her purposes.

"There is one thing," she said. She took a bracing inhale and leaned slightly towards him, making him do the same.

"What is it?" Kuroshima murmured, his eyes growing wide.

Reiya kept her expression neutral and asked him sotto voce, "Kuroshima-kun, are you familiar with Toman?"

As expected, he looked positively stupefied.

"You mean the Tokyo Manji Gang?"

She nodded.

Kuroshima averted his gaze in thought. "I only know about them as much as the next guy. Their home turf is in the neighboring district, and that they've been running around and getting popular around Shibuya lately."

Reiya's eyes widened slightly and she lowered her gaze. "I see…"

'The neighboring district? That's where Hina-chan lives!'

"Why are you suddenly asking this?" Kuroshima inquired with a raised brow. "Wait...Did you get involved with them somehow?"

"Oh, nothing like that. I'm just wondering why biker gangs are suddenly becoming all the rage right now," Reiya murmured reflectively. She relaxed into her chair and gave him a cheeky grin. "It's almost like you're not fashionable if you're not a delinquent."

The peach-haired boy began to laugh. "I get you. Delinquents are everywhere these days. Some of them aren't even worth mentioning, but the most impressive one I know is gotta be our very own Kisaki Tetta."

Reiya's smile froze. The world dimmed. Her mind and pulse bustled with bloodcurdling intensity at the mention of his name.

"Come again?"

Kuroshima strained slightly in his seat at the look on her face and the sound of her voice. "You know…Kisaki Tetta," he repeated tentatively, as if saying his name was enough to explain things. "He has the highest marks in our grade, and always tops the national mock exams." He paused and gave her a quizzical stare. "You've never heard of him?"

Reiya shook her head, feeling cold and sick to her stomach, the sensation clashing with the wrath in her veins.

"I have, but…Is someone like that…really here in our school?"

Kuroshima nodded slowly, his eyes confused but face absolutely serious.

"Un. And he's in the class next door."