Another: The Class of 1999

Chapter 6 - The Second Library

(Unlike the other characters in this fanfiction, the character Chibiki Tatsuji is not a character I created. He was a character created by the creator(s) of Another.)

April ended swiftly and no more deaths took place. Perhaps Hisoka's death had just been an accident, maybe it wasn't linked to the curse at all...

All the same, I spent countless hours trying to think of all the reasons why I couldn't be the dead student. For one, I had never heard of the town Yomiyama or knew any of the residents before we moved here. Two, I had absolutely no connection to this town whatsoever. Three, I had my Dad, my aunt, and a whole past that I was desperate to forget.

But Clarissa did say that memories could be altered...

I desperately wanted to ask my father about all this, but he had brought me to Yomiyama to keep me safe, I couldn't tell him about the curse after how hard he'd worked...

But this confused me even more... I was scared of this curse, but I WAS happy at Yomiyama. I had friends, I never went home feeling scared, all my bruises and burns and wounds were healing nicely, and I never went to bed worrying about what troubles the next day would bring.

I headed to school on May 1st, a Saturday. The sun was shining brightly, due to get warmer as the day progressed. There were a few white, clean clouds dotted in the sky, and no sign of rain.

When I got to the classroom, if was empty apart from four students gathered around the desks at the back, one sat down, the rest stood.

I put my bag on my desk, and Clarissa turned to face me. Without a word, she grabbed my wrist. I realised she wanted comfort, so I tried my best not to show the fact that I was uncomfortable with her touching me, and I tried to block the memories that began resurfacing to the front of my mind...

The girl sat down was Sakurai Yuki, the tallest girl I had ever seen - her height surpassed most of the boys in our class. Her skin was fair and her hair had unnatural blonde streaks weaving through. Her eyes were red like she had been crying, her face was stained with tears, and she held a scrunched up tissue in both hands.

The other girl stood next to Yuki was Matsuda Ai. She was about my height - so very short - with black hair in one long plait down her back. Square glasses framed her eyes, and she was comforting Yuki. Akira held a box of tissues, awkwardly standing, hoping to help.

"What's happened?" I asked, slowly pulling my arm out of Clarissa's grasp.

Clarissa whispered to me, "Yuki-san's brother died yesterday." She looked troubled, guilty. Her voice shook. "He was rock climbing, lost his footing, and fell. The rope stopped him from falling, but his head smashed into the rock. His skull caved in and—"

"I don't need to hear anymore, thanks," I interrupted her, covering my mouth with my hands as I tried to make sure I didn't see my breakfast for a second time. "What the hell is she doing in school if her brother's dead? Shouldn't she be at home grieving?"

"She came to let me know," Clarissa looked down.

It couldn't be real. It was all too gruesome, like something out of a horror film. My hands trembled and my stomach was in a knot.

"Yuki-chan..." Ai was hugging her sobbing friend. "It's okay... Ai-chan will look after you..."

Yuki just buried her face in her hands and continues to cry. Clarissa dashed over, and so I followed.

"Yuki-san," Clarissa said sadly, taking hold of Yuki's shoulder. "I'm so sorry."

The way Clarissa apologised caught me off guard. It sounded like she was blaming herself for Yuki's brother dying. I knew that she was the head of countermeasures and was blaming herself, but Clarissa couldn't take responsibility for something she had no control over... Could she?