Hope Always Dies Last | Chishiya [English]

Ignorance

A/N: I made up Aguni's age! No guarantee it's true!

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Nanami and I couldn't finish our conversation because the next moment someone from the military wanted something from her. I took the opportunity to make my escape.

As Chishiya said, I was easy to read.

Nanami had known me for a long time now, she would find out in a flash what I was hiding. I'd rather not find out where the level of friendship ended. I waved to my friend again, who looked at me with a disappointed and tortured look. My fear that she would have squeezed me out was confirmed and I was glad that I could hiss off.

My way led me to the roof. I was looking for some rest that I wanted to give myself before the big storm. Yes, I would play again tonight after using up almost all visa days. Just the thought gave me pure horror.

Does Chishiya also have to play tonight?

Oh damn, why was I even bothering? I didn't care what he did, did I? Yes, subconsciously. It only showed me that something had changed. It scared me.

"Here you are," a voice made my head turn towards the door and I spotted Kuina walking towards me smiling. I waved at her, and she dropped onto the edge of the roof next to me. We let our legs dangle together.

"A beautiful view, isn't it?" I asked her and she hummed in agreement. Together we stared at the horizon and watched as the sun slowly approached the ground.

"You're playing tonight, aren't you? Chishiya mentioned something like that," she finally broke the silence and I looked at her briefly before finally staring down at the pool. "Yes, but how does he know that?" My question was out of pure curiosity, at least I thought so. I didn't miss the faint smile that played around her mouth.

"You always seem to forget that Chishiya is in the executive branch," she brushed her dreadlocks away from her face, "although it's rather unusual that he remembers the names. He's always amazed when I tell him that I'm going to play even though he saw the lists."

Okay... Why did I suddenly have such a funny feeling in my stomach?

"Will he play today too?" I tried to ask the question as casually as possible, but Kuina's smile got even wider now. "No, he still has enough days in the account", she cleared her throat, "But something completely different, Shiraishi. What's going on between you guys lately?"

My heart suddenly seemed to sink into my pants when she asked the seemingly innocuous question. Actually, I could have answered without thinking, but... why was I still hesitating? What made me think about it?

"Hahaha, your face, Neiru-chan!" She leaned back laughing, "You should see yourself in the mirror, priceless!" I swallowed, trying to hide my embarrassment. I finally found my voice again.

"There's nothing going on between us, Kuina," my voice was a little scratchy, "What could be going on between him and me? We're 'Partners in Crime', but that's about it."

She showed me the bird, which didn't leave me cold. However, she didn't reply to that, which wasn't a big deal, because her question had made me think one way or another. I was sure that I had to wait for the answer a long time...

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3

That was my number that was assigned to me. When I received the note, I was on the lookout. For whom? I have no idea, but I had a hunch.

Anyway, I turned around pretty quickly and grabbed my legs to scurry out of the building before the onslaught, which is why I was the first to get to the car. To keep an eye out on the area for a bit, I leaned against the vehicle and looked around. Every now and then I would catch sight of a familiar face, including Kuina, who would smile at me before disappearing into a black car. I had learned during our conversation this afternoon that she too would throw herself into the daring world of games today.

"Shiraishi," I looked at the person saying my name and realized it was Kurako. Military #3 goose-stepped toward me, and I had to stifle a sigh. I didn't like the guy, so I preferred not to play with him, but apparently my luck ran out again. Everytime... I hated it. Fate was a little b*tch again, as always.

Great.

He stood right in front of me and looked at me with his staring eyes. It was difficult to judge him correctly. Even the age was hard to guess, but I still thought he was near the thirty-five. He was definitely older than Aguni, who turned twenty-seven this year (yes, I couldn't believe it either, he looked much older).

"Kurako-san," I tried to hold his gaze, which I succeeded at first, but a new voice threw me off balance.

"Neiru?", Nanami approached us with Inuoe, and I widened my eyes before turning to them both. No doubt, I would play with them too. The entire team was military, two of whom I couldn't stand. Inuoe squinted at me before turning away and getting into the car. I swallowed, knowing what made her tick: she would love to kill me, even in the real world there had been a kind of animosity between us, of which our professors were not entirely innocent.

Kurako climbed into the driver's side and signaled that we were complete before Nanami and I struggled into the vehicle as well. Her look spoke volumes.

I took one last look at the building, then-

My eyes met someone else's. We looked at each other, he nodded briefly, then he disappeared from the entrance. Chishiya had been standing there... Why?

However, I didn't have time to think anymore because the next moment we drove off. Kurako apparently didn't want to waste any more time.

And so, we disappeared again into the darkness of Tokyo without even having any idea what to expect.

No matter where I looked, this country, my life, the situation... It was all ignorance.