“I’m really fine. You don’t need to worry, Umika,” Yamada Ryosuke spoke to his little sister in the other end of line.

He was talking with Umika by phone, trying to reassure her that he was already fine, and that he wasn’t mad at her anymore.

“I’ll be there a week before and after your wedding, so we’ll have much time to spend together. For now, Chinen will take care of you. So, don’t be afraid, okay?”

He received a rather hesitant affirmative answer, and then he replied, “Remember that I love you, little sister. Good night, and have a good rest.”

The call ended.

He put down his phone, yet another thing caught his eyes. The scrapbook. It was as though his hand had its own mind that he reached out to take the book.

He opened the last page, and found it empty just as he already knew. The caption of the page written with “Graduation Day”. When Mirai delivered the scrapbooks to each of class member a day before the formal graduation ceremony, she left that page empty. It was supposed to be filled with their class pictures on the graduation ceremony, yet he never managed to complete the album. He didn’t want to. That graduation ceremony was the point when one of the upsetting parts of his life started, and he didn’t want to be reminded of that. Moreover, there was no point in putting in the incomplete picture because it was taken while one of their classmate was missing. Shida Mirai never showed up on that graduation day.

Another call had him ended his wandering mind.

“What is it Chii?” he directly asked, recognizing the caller.

“Help me,” Yuri said without further ado, tone commanding.

“About what?”

“You apologize to Mirai, and ask her to resume her job for the wedding.”

He perked up, shifting uncomfortably, “Is it another trick you try on me?”

“No,” firmly Yuri answered. “Umika really wants Mirai to be the photographer for our wedding. She has repeatedly asked me to bring Mirai back. I don’t want to disappoint her.”

“Why not trying any other way? Offer her a higher fee or some bonus?”

“Do you think I haven’t tried?” Yuri sighed. “Listen, I’m desperate now, Ryosuke. I strongly suspect that the real reason she quitted was because of that unpleasant treatment she got from you. So, won’t you take the responsibility?”

He knew Yuri taunted him, but he could not deny the suspicion that perhaps the reason was indeed his rude act towards Mirai the last time they met.

“Anyway, Mirai is back to her town,” Yuri suddenly added. “She is visiting Suzuka. Also, there is invitation from Yuto, for you and me. He is getting married to Suzuka.”

That was enough to trigger his impulse decision.

“When will be their wedding?”

“A week after mine,” Yuri simply answered. “So?”

“I’ll reschedule my agenda first,” he indirectly agreed to Yuri’s demand.

*****

“You really don’t want to go watching movie with us?” Ohgo Suzuka persuaded her friend, Shida Mirai, for the last time before she went with her fiance, Nakajima Yuto.

Mirai shook her head while chuckling slightly, “No, I don’t want to be the third wheel. Just go and enjoy your date. I’ll be resting for the time being.”

“Alright if you insist,” she eventually relented. “Call me if you need anything.”

“Okay,” Mirai gave a thumb up.

She then hurried her steps, heading to her fiance’s car in the yard. Yuto had waited for her, so when she arrived they didn’t delay any second to depart.

They just got off the car in the parking lot of the movie theather when suddenly a talk started.

“Suzu-chan, does Shida-chan still not remember anything?”

She heard Yuto asked.

“She better not,” she answered. “And don’t you dare to even mention about that to her.”

“But isn’t it sad to not knowing about her own life? I mean, no matter how horrible it was it is still part of her life. She should’ve just—”

“Yuto-kun!” her tone became firmer, cutting Yuto off. “You don’t know what she had been through! You don’t know how she felt! So please stop saying like her decision was wrong. I supported her. If she wanted to forget her past, then so be it. If it could make her a bit happier, then I’ll do anything to assure that she wouldn’t remember anything about that incident.”

“Hey, hey, Suzu-chan, please don’t be mad,” Yuto pleaded, bringing his hands together asking forgiveness. “I promise I won’t say anything related to that. I’m sorry.”

She sighed to let go of her sudden anger, “Sorry,” she apologized back. “I didn’t mean to shout at you. Just… you should see how she is now, Yuto-kun. She is happy without that memory. I wish her to stay that way.”

Yuto brushed the tears which unexpectedly leaked out from her eyes with the tip of his thumb. “I hope what we see is indeed true, Suzu-chan.”

Yuto give her a small smile, but instead of comforting her as it usually did, this time it ignited worry in her heart.

“What do you mean?”

“Nothing,” he answered. “I just hope that Shida-chan is indeed happy, not just pretending to be happy in front of us.”

“How could you say that?” she pursued.

“Forget it, Suzu-chan. It is probably just me.”

“Yuto-kun!” she used her demanding tone, and it usually worked.

Yuto heaved a sigh, “I should remind you that it is just my assumption. I think, she is observing you.”

“Observing me?”

“I’m not sure. I just feel that sometimes the way she looks at you was similar with the way an investigator looks at a suspect... like she wanted to find something you’re hiding.”

“Yuto-kun...,” she trailed off as suddenly a shiver ran down her spine.

“Don’t get into panic, Suzu-chan,” Yuto took a hold of her hand. “I told you I’m probably just overanalyze things.”

She gulped down to calm her nerve.

“Let’s go?” Yuto suggested, a gentle smile on his face.

She nodded while letting herself guided by her fiance.

*****

Mirai hugged her knees to her chest, rocking back and forth to calm herself. She just got nightmare, but it was different than the usual. She didn’t see anything. It was all black. However, she heard voices.

“Mirai! Run!”

A high voice of a woman screamed in her head.

“Run! Quick!”

It was the same woman’s voice.

She also heard a laughter; a sickening laughter. Some people laughing while someone crying.

“Don’t be afraid.”

This time it was a soothing voice of a man.

“I’ll be here, Mirai-chan.”

Another woman’s voice, different from the previous.

She just had had a short nap and got woken up abruptly by that nightmare. It was new for her. It was the first time she got that dream. Many voices overlapped, and she couldn’t recognize which was whose. Worse was the fear left in her became so much more intense. She was trembling hard and she didn’t know why.

She looked at the clock. It’s still 5 p.m. and Suzuka said they would return home after dinner. She was completely alone, and somehow it scared her.

She jolted from her fetal position when she heard the bell rang out. The first time she heard it she thought she heard it wrong, but when it rang for the nth time followed by a voice of a man, she rose up. Hesitantly she walked up to the front door of Suzuka’s house. She dared to look at the intercom.

“Hello, Ohgo, are you home? It’s me Yamada Ryosuke. Anybody there?” the voice came from the machine.

She could not even describe the shock she got realizing who was behind the door, but in split of a second that shock was washed away. She didn’t understand, but all the fear suddenly disappeared, evaporated the moment she convinced herself that it was indeed Yamada Ryosuke from high school not anyone else.

She inhaled and exhaled deep breaths before eventually unlocking the key and opening the door.

“Oh, finally!” he exclaimed when the door opened, but when she revealed herself, he widened his eyes. “... Shida?”

Meeting his concern gaze was as though pulling her to him, and she did unconsciously take a quick stride and wrapped her arms tightly around him. He stilled for a moment, and she herself could only hear her heavy breaths.

“Hey, what’s wrong, Shida?” he put a hand on her back, his voice soft.

Instead of answering, she buried her face onto his shoulder. She wasn’t crying, but there was this urge to stay within his warm embrace.

“Hey,” he her head, slightly pulling her closer. “Whatever it is, it’s alright now. Don’t be afraid.”

Don’t be afraid...

That exact phrase snapped her into reality. Her sense returned, and she realized what she was doing. As abruptly as she threw herself to him, she pulled away immediately.

Blushing in embarrassement, she stuttered an apology, “I... I’m sorry... I don’t... I don’t know what got into me.”

She dared not to see him in the eyes, but she heard clearly when he replied, “It’s okay, but are you alright?”

A worried tone wasn’t masked as hecontinued on asking, “What happened?”

tightly shut into a straight line before she forced herself to answer him, slowly composing herself, “Nothing. I’m fine. I’m sorry.”

A brief silence hung in between them.

When she had enough courage to look up and meet his gaze, she addressed the purpose of his visit, “If you’re looking for Suzuka, she isn’t home at the moment. You might want to leave a message for her?”

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