Beautiful Disasters- Hawks x OC

Chapter 120

           Being dead was strange, to say the least. All of the different theories about what happened after the fact- whether you go to heaven, or hell, reincarnate, or just decompose into the earth – she still didn't know what was really supposed to happen. At first, she hadn't even registered she was dead. She knew she had been dying, she could feel her body shutting down, but one moment her eyes closed and the next she was sitting in the living room of a house she didn't recognize.

        She looked around the room, trying to figure out where she was. The walls were painted a warm cream color. Floor-to-ceiling windows looked out to a mountainside forest. The sun streamed into the room, bathing it in an additional warmth that made her want to curl up on the plush couch she was sitting on and take a nap. She didn't though, she continued to look around, noticing how there were numerous toys strewn around the room, left haphazardly on the coffee table and shelves, some on the area rug in front of her.

        A familiar laugh resounded behind her, and Mariko turned around to see Keigo run into the dining room and hide behind a chair. If it hadn't been for the unmistakable smile on the blonde's face, she might've been worried. Before she could wonder what was going, she saw herself run into the room. Seeing herself in the third person was a weird experience, but seeing a toddler propped on her hip was even more so. The little girl giggled, her wavy blonde hair tied into twin tails and swinging around a bit as she scanned the room for something. A moment later, Mariko heard the sound of footsteps quickly padding towards them. A young boy, six years old at the most burst into the room, bumping slightly into the other Mariko. Feathery brown hair and a familiar pair of golden eyes glanced around and quickly settled on the male as he tucked himself further behind the chair. Mariko's eyes widened as she caught a glimpse of the pair of vermillion wings sprouting out of the boy's back.

       "What is this?" she wondered aloud.

       "It's a glimpse of what life would've been like if you hadn't died," a familiar voice said.

         Mariko whipped around, her eyes widening to see Mineko sitting next to her. Gone was the look of madness on her face and the evil look in her eyes. In its place was a stern, but still kind expression, and a slight smile that made her lips curve up just the tiniest bit as she looked at the scene unfolding in front of them. This was the Mineko she knew- the one that had taken care of her when she couldn't and the one who wanted her to be a good person above all else. This was the person she'd known and loved- her sister. Mariko would've burst into tears if she could, but all she could do was stare at her in shock.

         "It's nice- a lot nicer than what I saw. I'm glad at least one of us turned out all right."

She chuckled slightly as she saw the boy "sneak up" on Keigo and scare him. The blonde screamed dramatically and fell backward as his family attacked him with tickles.

        "Cute. You make some pretty cute kids."

        Mariko stared at the blissfully domestic scene. Her chest ached slightly as she saw the images of her would-be children, and dealing with the fact that she would never get to know them.

        "Why am I seeing this?" she asked.

        "If you walk out the front door it'll all go away. You don't have to watch it. It just... helps some people. Helps them deal with being dead that is."

         Mariko turned around to look at the front door. She took a step towards it but froze hearing Keigo's breathless laughter sound through the house. She was dead, Keigo wasn't. Somehow, she knew that if she walked out of the house, she wouldn't get to hear that laugh again.