Always Be There

3

An otome game.

That was why the world was only vaguely familiar. This was a game that Kaiya had played before, some dating simulation that she had borrowed from the library when she heard some girls talking about it. Kaiya only played the game so she could make some friends, but Kaiya eventually grew genuinely interested in the world the game had set up. The catch of the game, besides the amazing quality that left the characters to be drop dead gorgeous, was the fact the interactive world. The main game was all about dating one of the four conquerable characters, with the casual players doing just that while hardcore fans could find secret endings or hidden images and information. Kaiya knew there was many DLCs that allowed people to play differently, examples including dating side characters or making the main character a yandere. Kaiya didn't care about the not canon DLCs, instead finding herself drawn in by the new and different way of experiencing the virtual world. Kaiya didn't make any friends, but at least the game was fun, even though Kaiya was never good at getting a partner.

With the realization that this was all a game, Kaiya had something akin to mental breakdown. Everything she thought that she knew was crumbling apart. The blank space in her memories was slowly filled with the freezing cold waters that had taken her life. She wasn't reborn into the otome game, per say, but instead took over the virtual life of one of the characters. Chieko Kaiya wasn't even her real name, it was the character's name, and that was the only thing rewritten in her memories. Something had to have gone wrong. Kaiya was supposed to forget about her past life, to only know what this world's Kaiya went through. That didn't happen. Kaiya remembered everything from before, but had no idea what was happening with this girl.

Coming to her apartment, or the one she woke up in, Kaiya looked around for something. She threw the boxes around, creating a mess that she couldn't be bothered to care about. After her living was practically destroyed, Kaiya found it, a picture book. Flipping through the pages, Kaiya slowly sank to the floor. In each photograph, Kaiya was there, but her sister wasn't. Some of the pictures looked awkward without another person in them, all because the stupid game only bothered to take Shisutā out, not fix the pictures. Kaiya grasped the book, tears falling into the paper as reality hit her. This may have been an otome game, a place where a person's fantasies were guaranteed to happen, but Kaiya knew that without her sister, without anyone she knew, it would be a miserable existence.

Kaiya remembered the lore of the game, something she paid attention to after she couldn't get any of the characters to fall for the heroine. She was the childhood friend turned rival of the heroine, and in most endings, she was killed in some "accident". Chieko (as Kaiya would refer to the character) and Kanpekina grew apart after the guy that Chieko liked confessed to Kanpekina, calling Chieko a few mean names during the confession. Chieko was jealous of her friend to the point of actively sabotaging a lot of the "dates" the heroine had with the guy she was romancing during that play through. Most accidents weren't explained, but Kaiya recalled that it was explained once to be drowning.

Drowning...

Kaiya took a deep breath as she remembered the feeling of her life being washed away as if she was a grain of sand in a tornado. Kaiya didn't want to think about it, but it kept springing up as she tried to piece together what to do. Kaiya wasn't going to die like that again. She would take dying in a fire or even a car accident, but not that cold river water filling her lungs again. Kaiya wanted to change the fate of her character, even if a little bit. But how should she do that? Maybe she could befriend the heroine, since a falling out because some third party called you mean names was stupid to Kaiya. Would Kanpekina even want that, though, since Kaiya acted so cold that day at school? Kaiya didn't even want to deal with the pain of trying to remember whatever past Chieko had in this world. It wasn't explained in the game, other than Kanpekina admitting that Chieko was an old friend turned mildly offensive classmate.

"Kai-chan...? I brought you a piece of tiramisu! I've come to apologize!" A voice spoke, the door opening slightly. Kaiya tried wiping her eyes, not wanting the person to see her crying. Kaiya didn't feel like talking to anyone, not when she felt so horrible about what was happening. In her world, how was Shisutā reacting? Did Shisutā blame herself? If Shisutā and Kaiya (or whatever her real name was) hadn't been fighting, if Kaiya hadn't run off, Kaiya would still be alive. Kaiya really wanted her sister there, disregarding all of that. Kaiya wanted her older sister to wrap her in a big hug, warming up Kaiya's cold heart while whispering that everything would be alright. Kaiya wanted to see her sister one last time, if only for a moment.

"Kai-chan, why's the living room a mess... Hey, hey! What's wrong? Kai-chan, why are you crying?" Kanpekina said, her form appearing at the doorway of the living room. Kaiya stared at her, as Kanpekina left that container of some cake on the kitchen counter before rushing towards Kaiya. Kanpekina seemed hesitant to reach out towards Kaiya, hovering near Kaiya with a distraught face. Kaiya wouldn't take anything of that. Kaiya sprung onto her feet, arms wrapping around Kanpekina's neck, tears falling from her cheeks. With that worried expression, Kanpekina looked like Shisutā, ignoring the appearance differences, and that made Kaiya's heart hurt so much that she was willing to let herself look vulnerable. Kanpekina wrapped her arms around Kaiya's waist, taking the weight of her friend as they sunk into the ground. Kanpekina started crying herself, unsure what was so upsetting but not being stupid enough to see that a bitter aura enveloped the room.

"K-kan...Kanpekina-chan, I... I'm sorry... I really am... Today's been so long, and I feel so terrible, but I want you to know that we're best friends, forever and always. We fought over something stupid, and I shouldn't have been this upset over it. I don't want you to feel bad about this anymore. It isn't your fault," Kaiya whispered, remembering how much Kanpekina blamed herself in the original timeline for the fallout even though it was clearly Chieko's fault. Even though Kaiya was sure that being friends with the heroine was going to end horribly, Kaiya saw how much Kanpekina cared. Call it selfish, but Kaiya wanted someone to care about her, especially now that her sister was practically dead. Kaiya knew this was cruel to Kanpekina, but maybe Kaiya could be a better friend than the original Chieko. Kaiya could even help Kanpekina with whichever suitor she decided on when high school, where the otome game took place, came around.

"No, Kai-chan, this isn't my fault, but it isn't yours either. What that guy said was really mean, and you have a right to be upset over it. I'm glad we made up. I couldn't stand to loose my best friend, you're the best thing that's ever happened to me," Kanpekina said, rubbing Kaiya's head as the girls sobs became quieter. Kaiya doubted that last part. Kanpekina was the main character of an otome game, she was blessed with all the wonderful skills that the world could offer. "But... You said you were feeling bad... Do you feel sick?"

"No... I just... I was hit with this awful feeling of sadness. I think it's because we hadn't really made up yet. It made me realize how hard it would be to loose the most important person to me," Kaiya replied. This feeling was from losing that important someone, and Kaiya didn't want Kanpekina to feel the same way by rejecting her proposal for friendship. Kaiya sat up, pushing a smile onto her face, and she gave a short yawn. That day was really long, wasn't it? Kaiya wanted to sleep for a few days, at least.

"I'm the... Nevermind, how about you get in some pajamas, and we'll watch a movie? I think you might have a bug, or maybe the stress of today is getting to you. You should relax," Kanpekina said, nodding her head. Kaiya smiled at her new friend, going to her room. Kaiya just put on some leggings and a hoodie, clothes that she had copies of in her world. Kaiya didn't want to scrounge around for clothes that the real Chieko would wear, because they all looked like prissy outfits that Kaiya couldn't be bothered to wear. When Kaiya came into the living room, Kanpekina was about finished tidying up, humming a song to herself as she cleaned the mess that Kaiya had made earlier.

"Hey, wait, stop! Kina-chan, this is my mess, you shouldn't clean it up for me," Kaiya said, getting into the role of best friend rather quickly, the nickname slipping out without a lot of thought. Kaiya walked over, putting the last of the boxes away before Kanpekina could. The heroine stared at her friend with confusion and admiration. Kaiya didn't notice, flopping into the couch with a tired sigh. Kanpekina gave a quiet laugh, grabbing the remote and a blanket before sliding next to Kaiya, placing the blanket around her friend. Kaiya purred like a cat, laying down, her head in Kanpekina's lap. The latter blushed with even more laughter as she rubbed her friend's hair, watching the movie while Kaiya fell asleep. After a little bit, Kanpekina fell asleep, the movie playing the entire night.