𝗟𝗜𝗧𝗧𝗟𝗘 𝗗𝗔𝗥𝗞 𝗔𝗚𝗘

𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐄𝐄 - SEE YOU AGAIN

I knew well that the dark held its secrets, hiding them in the depths of the midnight colour and whispering about with cold suspires. I was always scared of the dark and what it had to offer but at the same time curious. What was within it? What was I so scared of? These questions ruptured different worries and enhanced my interest only to be replaced when that nervous pit in my stomach grew large the closer I got.

I didn't like the dark because I didn't understand it. Why was there something created just for provoking fear of others? I didn't like that, and I did avoid it. The experiences as a young child enough to prove it wasn't often something good came from the dark. I'd deny any reason for the pitch black shades that hide what lurks well to actually be of use, the intense fear and stress of the nights had left me useless and scarred.

I had gotten tired of the endless struggle and the pity my parents looked to me with, I needed to figure out something to do — anything. It was the unfavorable looks people gave me when I'd hide that convinced me I needed to fix myself.

I had to understand that fear wasn't supposed to shut me down.

It was going to wake me up.

"Hey..."

A voice rang in through my ears and painted the insides of my head with a calm colour. It was hazy to me, but I could sort of understand with the worry in the voice.

I remained still, a soreness scarred my throat making it too achy to build up a response — my clouded mind almost completely blocked every word. I lifted my hand slowly, a strange pain emerging from my vessels and shooting through every cell in my body — like electricity — making me heave out strained breath.

I screwed my eyes shut in pain after briefly opening them and catching a glimpse of who the voice was, curiosity often lead those to pain, but I just couldn't help my inquiring thoughts. I first noticed a pair of worried eyes and the familiarity they held, but I couldn't pinpoint exactly who exactly it was. I felt too uncomfortable to think and process; the churn of my stomach and the pain surging though me — I only felt my thoughts become more disorganized as seconds passed.

My body was pressed against an ice cold floor, smooth but hard as concrete. Lockers decorated the walls beside the few murals or posters that hung only seasonally. I recognized the fact I was still at school a few shaky breaths later.

"Please remain still, I don't want you to hurt yourself anymore." His hushed voiced was serene, but I still took note of how worried he still managed to sound through his considerate tone of voice. I felt my head spin countlessly in circles as I tried lifting my body from the icy ground, my hands placed themselves firmly against the dense floor and elbows shook as I tried putting more weight on them. The bitter light I opened my eyes to stung my retinas and my neck felt painfully stiff as gravity acted against my weak muscles. A rough and discomforted thickness rose through my esophagus and stopped when I let out a few coughs, my eyes screwing shut once more.

"Hey — it's okay, there's no need to rush." The voice spoke carefully, they quickly placed an hand on her back to reassure me. His voice rang out calmly at me a few more times but all of what he said entered one ear and left through the other without a second thought to process it. I built up the strength to put my knees under my upper body, hunched over but a step closer to sitting up fully.

"Take a few breaths — yeah, that's good."He seemed relieved being able to help even if he hadn't known them at all, I wondered if anyone else would have done the same. He let out a eased suspire, his head leaning down to my peripherals carrying a small smile to reassure me I assumed. "You're okay... I've got you..." He mumbled generously helping me sit back with a solemn look in his navy blue hues. "I..." I swallowed bringing my hand to rub my dirtied face and retrieve a breath from the bottom of my lungs; they felt full of rough dirt, sandpaper scratching against my flesh.

"I don't know how badly you're hurt..." He began letting me lean my weight against his stern arm, steadying me with his strength. "So I really advise we're cautious." He muttered quietly near my face, a wary look in his eyes told me he'd monitor my movements with the most caution.

I couldn't help the shock from seeing him, the last time we met I had only just thought of him as a unique memory. "You..." I blinked a few times, squinting with disbelief at his familiar face. The raven locks fell from his head in patterned darkness, the same colour of his wondrous eyes. There was a small smile that tugged back his lips, a nervous glint in his eyes that told me he was still a little anxious even if his heart beat at a neat pace.

"Yeah, it's me... again." He hummed quietly a look of satisfaction painting his eyes with a glimmer of kindness. "What are you doing here...?" My voice trailed off and all I could do was try and clear my throat from the hoarseness — I didn't understand why the scarring came so quick or where it came from.

"Well... it's quite a long story actually." He averted his gaze elsewhere, I followed it to a object in the distance. It held a shine of silver in the light and with it was a leather handle — the end sharp and piercing to look at while the opposite side remained blunt and tough. My face held creases of deep confusion, a sword like that wouldn't be left around a school — it just had to be his... but why?

"And we really don't have the time."

I heard a few distant steps echoing in through the empty halls, my head turning to a new face — a female with dark green hair and rounded glasses with purple rims, she had a unamused expression on her face and carried a long stuff easily in her palm. When she spoke, it was stern. Not a sign of hesitation or falter in a possible façade — she seemed intimidating and genuinely someone I'd rather avoid conflict with.

"Maki...! Should we take her to Ieiri?" The boy began looking to her with a questioning gaze, his arms still firmly in place with me. "A normal hospital would do fine." She responded reaching us with a disapproving look in her face. "But what if — " The girl shook her head and interrupted him with a strict tone. "There isn't anything we can do for her at the moment..." She looked at me without much of an expression, I had kept my gaze on the ground — many, many thoughts trying to piece themselves together and give me a solid answer to what happened.

"Can't we — "

"It's not our place, Okkotsu."

"Right..."

Their words left me a little lost — and I knew for sure there was more to this, but I couldn't question, a strange tiredness washed over my body and I could barely keep my eyes open. I wanted to inquire more and I wanted to piece the puzzle back into place — but my mind started to shut off and only the call of my name was heard.