Chapter 15 - Daisuke KuroganeTuesday, October 17thI came to a decision.

  If anybody whose name I knew caught me here, I’d end myself. Right here, right now, using whatever tools were avaible.

  As my hand reached up to pull my hood further over my face, the person in front of me, a mother with two children, shuffled her offspring forward, guarding their rear from the acute serial-killer vibes I must’ve been giving off.

  Understandable – if I was lining up to see the fifth instalment of an award-winning animation franchise and some creep behind me was dressed in all bck, stealing gnces all around like that, I’d be reminding my kids of ‘stranger danger’ too.

  Unfortunately, due to the absolute ck of fucks I had left to give, they’d have to put up with my antisocial vibes for a bit longer. Boo-hoo.

  To be honest, I can’t say what exactly brought me over to Flickz, the most frequented cinema this side of the city, much to my disdain.

  As such, I was seeing brats in Himawari, Tsukioka, and of course, Tensei uniforms swarming the streets like they hadn’t got anywhere else to fucking be. I hadn’t seen any of them, thank God, but I didn’t know how much time I had left.

  Shit, who knows? Maybe they were having a grand old time of discussing how much of an asshat I was. Can’t bme ‘em – might just be the first time someone went and put them in their pce. Or attempted to, anyway.

  I underestimated that Katoru kid – though from the st moments that I’d remembered, that excruciating pain that had hit me – I didn’t think that was his doing.

  That was fine. One way or another, I’d get to the bottom of what – or who – had done that to me, and make them regret their sorry existence.

  All I needed were more of those orbs – and I think I knew just how to get them.

  Eventually, I managed to make it to the front of the queue. An unbearably chipper-looking girl about my age, if not slightly older, beamed at me.

  “Hey, welcome to Flickz!” She cheered. “What are ya seeing today?”

  “One ticket for…” I cleared my throat, and stared at her intently. “One ticket for Laser Cats please.”

  If she was judging me, she must’ve been real good at it, because I didn’t sense an ounce of disrespect in her tempo.

  In other words, she was either an immacute soul or a professional bitch. It was usually the tter.

  Ticket in hand, I got it punched through and was making my way down to Screen 6, when my phone buzzed for what might have been the first time in months – I couldn’t remember at this point.

  Reading the text from the unknown number, I had to loosen my grip on the mobile device before I crushed it.

  This was bad.

  With a few swipes, my thumb now hovered over Rusuban’s contact.

  I remember when he’d given it to me; at the start of the school year, when I somehow got elected as his Vice-Rep.

  Back when I still had some hope left.

  We’d exchanged numbers, all giddy and excited with the prospect of being important, of having worth. Of alleviating our fears.

  Of course, that was before I came to know who he really was. Who I really was.

  The green, glowing ‘call’ button enticed me.

  After some time, my index finger found the power button.

  Believe it or not, that very well might’ve been the best entry to the Laser Cats series, serving as the perfect conclusion to the Whiskerboom Saga.

  It did everything the franchise was renowned for – making you ugh, cry, and think - at least that’s what she used to say.

  The thought of her surprised even myself, especially given the trainwreck that was our st meeting.

  My shoulder was aching for a whole week, for fuck’s sake. But she wasn’t the girl I knew – not anymore. Whatever was left of that bridge, she’d watched it burn with her very own eyes.

  So when, after pushing through the double doors outside, into the orange evening glow, I caught her directly in front of me glued to her phone, I figured I’d tell her exactly that.

  “I-ah-um-“

  Fuck. She noticed my spasm.

  “Daisuke?” Chinami’s eyes were wide with surprise, swiping her phone behind her back. “W-What are you doing here?”

  I saw this going one of two ways – I tell her that I, as a grown-ass dude, went to watch the final entry to the movies we’d spend those peaceful summer afternoons at her house lounging around watching.

  I tell her that I, at one point, found myself recalling our first meeting towards the end of elementary school, the sound of her voice as she joined me on the pavement.

  “Y’know, girls don’t find the whole ‘loner’ thing as cute as you think,” She’d said to me. “I can help you change that. But no matching outfits. If I ever tell you that we should dress alike, you have full permission to knock me unconscious.”

  I tell her about how quiet it had gotten since we’d stopped hanging out. How empty and useless everything has become since.

  Or, I could not.

  “I was with a friend.” I lied. “They took off just now.”

  “Huh.” She pondered. “I wonder what they thought of Whiskerboom’s final moments?”

  Fuck. Again.

  At what must have been the distress present all over my features, she let out a giggle.

  “Rex. I know how much you like – liked – those films. Obviously, I just came from watching it too. I can’t even count the amount of times we used to…”She trailed off, as if she’d suddenly become aware of the canyon that y between us.

  “About the other day, I’m…I’m really sorry. I don’t why he gets so-“

  “Did you break up with him?” The words left my lips before I could think twice.

  A thick silence rafted through the air between us, the commotion of passersby our only respite.

  “It-It’s not that simple –“

  “Isn’t it though?” I always hated that about her – whenever it came to doing what needed to be done, she could never grow the balls to do it. “Those the kind of thugs you associate with these days?”

  I felt a tightness in my chest, and the words were spilling out of me now. I couldn’t remember the st time I’d felt like this, and I much preferred it that way.

  “Daisuke, I…” She squeaked, her eyes becoming wet with remorse. Shit. I forgot how sensitive she could get. “I’m really, really sorry.”

  “Not really, are you?” I thought of saying, but the sincerity in her speech served to cool the fmes of my indignation.

  I heaved a sigh.

  “Look, it’s fine.” I spoke, breaking eye contact. “I should get going.”

  “Wait!” She called after a few seconds of me taking my leave. “C-Can we talk? Thursday at four-thirty, Cutie Pies?”

  The dessert pce on Takeshita Street? As if I’d be caught dead in that girly-ass pce.

  “Fine.” I replied.

  On second thought, perhaps I should just end it all here and now as agreed. I knew her name, as agreed, so now my life was forfeit, right?

  In any case, I decided to speed off before this mouth of mine got me into any more trouble.

  Perhaps it would’ve been a good time to inform her I may not even live to see Thursday – though I doubt she’d believe me even if I told her everything.

  Once I’d gotten some good distance, I reached inside my jacket pocket for my phone, reminding myself of the location detailed in the text message.

  Deciding to follow in the footsteps of that cautious mother, I also charted the route from the rendezvous point to the nearest police station.

  Just in case.

  Laughter fell softly as I entered Miyashita Park, a swath of precious green in the heavily industrial and technological kingdom that was Tokyo.

  As legions of cyclists whizzed past, I drank in the crisp evening air, my encounter with Chinami still fresh in my mind.

  I had never understood it – why people pretend to be things they clearly aren’t. Why they put on masks and py mind games with each other endlessly.

  To mask their fears? Who said fears needed to be covered up to begin with?

  Why shouldn’t they be brought out into the open, showcased for all to see without judgement?

  Eventually, I’d arrived at the meeting spot. I hadn’t yet seen anybody wearing a bck and white ribbon, so it looked like they hadn’t yet arrived.

  I leaned my forearms onto the bridge’s wooden railing, looking down below at the gently rocking waters.

  The pretences, the deception – I’d grown so fucking sick of it. I’d swore that no matter what, I’d never become one of them. I’d never sell myself out to try and ‘fit in’, like she and so many others had.

  Even if it meant that I was alone for the rest of my life, I didn’t care. Nobody would miss me anyway.

  Shit – ‘the rest of my life’? The thought almost made me ugh.

  Thanks to the mess I’d gotten myself into, I didn’t know how much ‘life’ I actually had left. For all I knew, this was it.

  But I’ll be damned if I let any of those pricks think they’re good enough to take me down. If I’m going down, it happens on my terms and nobody else’s.

  My fingers were disturbed by a cold, metal sensation. I gripped the pin, the image of a scarecrow with menacing red eyes gring back at me.

  That’s right. I was going to be exactly who I was – and y bare all their fears.

  Let’s see how arrogant they get once they don’t have any guises to hide behind anymore.

  “You’re early, Scarecrow.” A voice spoke. I managed to stifle the reaction to jump, but my heart momentarily stopped nonetheless, leaving a deep ache still lingering in my chest.

  “I happened to be nearby,” I responded, finding my feet.

  I had to say, they didn’t look anything like I thought they would, but they had the ribbon, so it must’ve been them.

  “So,” I began. “I take it you’re Reaper.”