Melancholy morning.

A light, breathless morning to describe it that way. If it's still more and more, and if it's going to rain lightly, it's going to be a little distracting. But don't even know people's minds, the sky is blue and clear.

"It's been another year..."

On the other side of the sky you can see beyond the window, you see him no longer present, and my new day begins.

"... terrible face"

My face in the window looked too scrupulous, and I squealed so unexpectedly.

Bloodless may be too much to say, but she was born with white skin and lightly colored silver hair. Besides, the bear that comes from lack of sleep is in my sight, and he looks so terrible. It's like a dead man.

But maybe he still has a worse face than a bright one today. Act bright, I'm sure he will grieve. I wondered if I had already been forgotten.

I wake up a careless body and get in touch. Today, I feel like using it and taking a rest, but that's not how it works.

If you don't go to school, there are things you can't do. And that's probably the only connection left between us and him.

When I was in good hands, I went to the front door without breakfast. I really don't understand my appetite today.

"Knitting, are you going to school already?

My mother sounded worried when she tried to make it to school without even looking at me.

"Yep.... today, because it's one of his peripherals"

"Yes...... right. Can we get one of ours, too?

That's what my mother handed me, it was a bouquet of flowers. It's not as glamorous as giving away during a celebration. A white bouquet of flowers that pray for the blessings of the modest dead.

I silently receive it,

"I'm coming."

Quiet. That's all I said, I left the house.

Never thought that would be a long goodbye as much as dew...

- 1 year ago.

There was a murder near my house. It was a high school student who attended the same high school as me who was killed.

Just a year ago, this morning. During his attendance at school, he was stabbed by a passerby and left the world. At the time, it was featured in many news stories as a tragic incident, and his death was known all over Japan.

But in less than a year, few will remember his death. Besides, there was a brave young man who, even though he remembered, was seriously wounded dying, stopped the damage from spreading to those around him.

That's about all I'd have in mind.

His face, his name, he remembers what kind of person he was, if only there were 10...

A cold cut wind in the winter morning flows over an inorganic asphalt. Kids heading to elementary school, unbeaten by that cold breeze, pass by as they happily converse about Christmas, which is well approaching next week.

Unlike their bouncing footsteps like that, my legs are tucked away like tobotobs and floaters.

A bouquet of flowers in my hand and a circle of flowers stabbed in a school bag.

With it, the last place I was headed was where he was.

There's an intersection on the way to school. Always noisy with the sound of automobiles and motorcycles. It's a slightly unworthy place to mourn death.

At the intersection, elementary, middle and high school students headed to school were waiting for a signal. Its gaze was directed at a young man sitting hand in hand, in front of a pole beside the road. Before him, flowers were supplied secluded.

I approached Haruki Kujo from behind. Then you noticed my footsteps, hands down to your knees and Haruki slowly looks back.

Haruki looks at my face once, then immediately drops his gaze to the sidewalk.

"... are you here too? To see him."

"Oh...... sorry. Something about me..."

Nor can I look directly at Spring Tree's face, and I turn away.

"Nothing... I wouldn't have said that..."

Haruki shrugs as she bites her teeth as she scratches her head, but her misguided eyes never turned on me.

"May I pray for his blessings too...?

"You're not asking me... if you want to, you can do it yourself"

When Haruki said that, he stood up and gave way there. I said thank you and then arranged a bouquet of flowers handed to me by my mother and a round of white flowers over the ground of asphalt.

And when I try to pray hand in hand, a voice can be heard from behind.

"Hey... I don't know what to say... why don't you stop, like this? I'm so freaked out about him... No, I blame him for that too, don't you?

…………

I take the word of Spring Tree silently.

"Ever since then, you've been so different, you look like someone else, and he's gone, and I know you can't do it like you used to... but I, I don't want to stay giddy with you like this"

Yes, honestly, Spring Tree makes my feelings into words, but I can't answer them in silence.

…………

"Say something. It's like talking to yourself, you're embarrassed."

Yes, Haruki, who urges the answer. My eyes were directed to a bouquet of flowers to find answers.

"I... am weak. Haruki or can't be as strong as he is"

"Me and him, we're not strong."

Haruki immediately denies my words, but Haruki's attempt to move forward in accepting his death was a very strong reflection from me. That's the same for him who's not in the world.

"No, it's strong. My contents have been the same for a long time, trying to change my attitude. He remains just a bully. That was my mistake with Haruki and him. So this is what he's doing..."

"Come on!

Haruki yelled at me as I tried to blame myself.

"He's dead because he was attacked by a passerby! There's no other reason! Whatever it is, blame yourself, hunt yourself down, what are you doing!

My ear hurts. His words hurt.

After all, I haven't changed anything since then. In essence, I'm weak.

I was so pessimistic and weak that I couldn't face death after a year, let alone be yelled at by childhood taming, that I didn't like myself in the bottom of my heart.

"... how long are you going to do that? You, I told you. When he died."

…………

"If I had only a little courage later, this might not have happened. So you're not going to do something about it?

"... it's too late. So it's not like he's going to come back to life."

Yes, everything is too late already. We just talked about it, and when we lose it, we don't go back.

"Then why did you come here today? Aren't you trying to face each other?

"... I did something I was not allowed to do. To Haruki, to him. So..."

Yes, it's all my fault. That day, because I ran away, our relationship changed. Everything around it, too.

The gear that drove me insane led him to death.

"I'm not mad anymore. I know why you've been avoiding us. But that's enough. How long are you trying to be alone? He's not here anymore, but if we don't get back into a relationship where the two of us can laugh like we used to, he won't float either."

It was the thought of my chest tightening cuddly.

I tried to hold my chest like that with my hands and revealed my sincere thoughts with a trembling voice.

"... I know. I know that with my head. But I'm scared. It's horrible. Being with Haruki is going to remind me of him... I'm scared."

I am so timid.

So I was afraid to be with him. I was wondering if that would have happened again.

If I noticed, I avoided the two of them and became alone.

But I couldn't forget my love for him, and my days of boredom went on.

One day I thought I had to be strong.

Because Haruki was the same as before, and when I saw him dealing with him, I thought that was strength.

So I abandoned my ever weak self and tried to be reborn. He falsified and suppressed his weak personality with a strong attitude and language. I tried to be strong by doing so.

But my essence remained a weak bully no matter where I went, and I was no different from the old days.

If I had noticed, I would have been in tears from time to time. Worn out and Shizukuishi fall to the ground, whimpering leaks out of his mouth.

"... well... maybe so"

Haruki spoke quietly to me like that.

"But when you have the courage to stand up to it, talk to me from you. Just until you feel better."

Haruki, instead of handkerchief to me, hands me a towel to use at the club and walks to a crosswalk that turns blue.

"It's been a long time since I've seen you back in the day, and it's been a pleasure"

Leave me that word.

I was left unable to move from that place where he died until the tears stopped.

People die easily.

If you don't eat, you die of malnutrition. If you are hit hard in the head, you will suffer brain damage and die. Include the poison in your mouth and you will die without realizing it.

People die easily.

But the grief caused by a man's death cannot be easily expressed.

As long as the person is important to me, the grief is profound and difficult again.

"Well, let's all wish him luck"

Silent prayer.

Following the words of our teacher, we close our eyes quietly and pray to him.

But in all this, how many of you remember?

Always in the window seat, looking at him somewhere far away.

Lunch break was decided, he was gone from the classroom, about him having lunch alone on the roof.

I didn't participate in any of the events, I didn't go to the club after school, about him who was on his way home right away.

Maybe the only two people on this scene right now are me and Haruki.

No one had anything to do with him.

The wall between him and his surroundings was thick and no one could break it.

Only one person, Haruki, who had gotten over it, instead of breaking the wall, also had a mundane, sunless look on his face.

I just watched the two of them from afar.

He has no family. We both died already.

He has no friends. I was avoiding people.

So maybe the only proof of his life remains with me and Haruki, who are childhood tamers.

- I want to see you again.

The voice of the heart was not a blessing, but just a prayer.

The lid is opened and his remains placed on the table are reflected in the eyes. The faceless look on his face taken at school.

I guess I'm the only one who's seeing that face in this room right now. Other classmates, including the teacher, are still silently praying.

So I'm the only one who could see it.

His picture distorted and his mouth cheeks held up as if he had laughed for just a moment, or so he looked.

And in the next moment, we were swallowed up in a dazzling light.

"Hey, what happened?"

"Ah, oh, his curse. ⁉⁉ə"

"Isn't that a bomb?"

In the light, I hear only the screams of my classmates. All of a sudden, no one kept calm.

In that, I'm the only one...

Are you from the Ridge...?

I was putting such a stupid idea around.

- When the light clears.

We were on a geometric floor. Around us stood men with wands as wizards with one hand, swords with armor on their hips and spears on their backs.

In it, the only woman who did not wear anything noisy and dressed like a princess smiled gently at us in confusion and fear, in a quiet but clear tone, she said.

"Welcome. Dear brave men of different worlds,"

I had a different world, and I understood that a week had passed since then.