✔ | At Least We Have Forever

Chapter 35 - Bearing The Loneliness

It has been a week that passed since Keiko told the truth to the gang and it was quite obvious to see a lot of changes not just to Kurama but to Riya and the rest of the gang, as well. And of course, the whole school could see that which the fangirls, particularly Reina, took as an opportunity to be with Kurama and steal him away from Riya. Though she didn't know about Riya not being able to remember the one man she loved, Reina knew that something happened for the couple not to talk or even glance at each other for the whole week. And she just thought that Riya and Kurama broke up or something.

Fortunately, the whole Class 2-C and Class 2-D were all "geared up" to stop Reina from doing anything surely sinister for their favorite couple. Yumi allowed Ayako to tell the altered version (without the battle and others) of the truth about Riya not being able to remember Kurama exclusively to Class 2-C and Class 2-D only. They wanted to feel sorry but it would only make matters worst. So instead, they wanted to do what they could to bring Riya and Kurama together once again though they knew they had to wait until one of those two dared to talk to the other. In other words, either Riya or Kurama should make the first move to renew what they had lost.

But would that be even possible if Kurama refused to have just a glimpse of Riya?

No one knew how Kurama bear the tormenting pain in his heart for a week now. He even forced himself not to talk to or look at Riya in order not to intensify that pain even more just because the love of his life couldn't remember him at all. And probably, she would never be able to remember him at all no what he would do.

He didn't know how long would he have to go on like this. He never knew how did he manage to endure this torture without losing his sanity in this painstaking process. He probably needed to thank Ayako and Soujiro for doing what they thought they could to divert his attention to something else. Keiko came to talk to him twice and said the same thing: I'm sorry.

But Kurama could never blame Keiko for what happened to Riya. She didn't do anything bad in the first place. She just obeyed her mistress' orders and allowed Riya to do what was necessary to shield the latter's heart from any more pain. And he understood that now, more than ever.

Though he said to himself that he understood, Kurama couldn't still deny the fact that it hurt him to the core. Waking up feeling the pain intensify, it was too much. And each night that passed, memories of his love for Riya appeared in his dreams over and over.

It was like a movie of his life played non-stop. Unfortunately, this movie didn't have a happy ending... unlike how he wanted it to end for him and Riya—all because she left him for his sake.

Riya left him. Not in a physical sense, though. Her heart was the one that left and it took a part of his life along with it. Now he couldn't figure out a way how to live his life the same way again without remembering the most precious memories that he ever had.

And at the same time, without feeling the pain it could cause to his heart...

It was hard, nevertheless, he has to deal with it. A lot of people were willing to do what they could to help him recover, though that would surely take him a long time to do so.

Kurama hadn't anticipated any of these tormenting events to happen. And surely, he didn't prepare himself for that kind of possibility at all. This was what he had feared all this time. But in the end, he failed to overcome his fear.

More than ever, he hated himself because of it.

Tears fell from his eyes as he remembered the words written on Riya's note. It was the note she had written the night before the battle that made everything turn out like this. His heart ached even more as he remembered them as if it was just spoken to him personally by Riya.