A/N: Hi everyone! It's been five months since my last MaYuki one-shot so, you've guessed it, it's about time I release a new one. I have always been fascinated by Japan’s Aokigahara Forest (aka Suicide Forest) since I read about it years ago. Recently, I watched a documentary about it on YouTube and it intrigued me so much that I wanted to write a story based on this hauntingly beautiful sea of trees. I’ve made references to the video so you may want to check it out
here before reading the one-shot.
This story is also a shout-out to my wonderful buddy at this forum who is my inspiration. You may think that you haven’t done much but really, I wouldn’t have embarked on this AKB48 fanfic writing journey if not for you. Thank you for everything!
Of course, I hope that everyone else enjoys this story too
Warning: Contains suicide, character death. If you are not comfortable with the aforementioned subjects, I suggest that you turn away from this page now. For the rest, please proceed at your own risk.
---
Abyss of MemoriesBeeps emitted by a fax machine in a corner. Furious typing on a keyboard. Restless taps against a wooden desk. Shuffling of shoes pacing around the room. Underneath the hustle and bustle that seemed typical of a day at the Tokyo Police Headquarters, there was an unmistakable sense of dread that hung in the air.
The phone rang.
A hand shot out, snatching the receiver. And the room went deathly still.
“Criminal Investigation Bureau, Takashashi speaking,” a lady of short stature spoke evenly into the phone. The deepening crease etched into her brow, however, betrayed the worry building in her gut. The corners of her mouth were downturned. She replaced the receiver after a quick exchange with the caller and turned to meet the pairs of expectant eyes boring into her.
“Did they find out where she went?”
Calloused fingers tightened their grip on the phone; their owner’s lips pressed firmly into a thin line.
“Aokigahara.”
Eyes widened and loud gasps left their mouths.
“Isn’t that where-”
“Come on,” Takahashi Minami cut off her subordinate’s question, “we don’t have time to waste. Let’s go.”
Akimoto Sayaka, the second-in-command after Minami, nudged her stunned teammate. “We’ll find her and get her back, Sae. She’s never been the reckless kind anyway.”
The short-haired woman who shared the same towering height as Sayaka rose to her feet and squeezed the hand on her shoulder – but the slight tremble that shook her skin was nowhere near reassuring.
---
How long have I been driving? The trees seem to be getting denser and taller. The sun doesn’t blind me as much anymore.
Good. It means I’m almost there.A black sedan swerved into the deserted parking lot, worn-out tyres crunching over parched twigs and leaves that had seen better days on the impressive trees looming over the only moving object in the vicinity. The car slowed to a stop beside a white hatchback and a lady in her early twenties stepped out. A scrawny twig easily snapped into two under her black sneaker. She removed her shades, tossing them onto the driver’s seat haphazardly… only to be slapped in the face by a gust of biting wind. Something sharp nicked her cheek. Then, just as suddenly as the wind came, it stopped. She touched her right cheek.
Red stained her fingertips.
When the leaves and dust ceased swirling at her feet, she scanned her surroundings. There was not a single person in sight but the deafening screeches of crickets were enough company for the living, and perhaps the dead too. It was as though they were screaming for attention on behalf of the lost souls who had ventured into the forest and never emerged. An eerie cold crept upon her skin, making the hairs on her arms stand underneath the sleeves of her black jacket.
It’s just the autumn air.She reached over to the back passenger seat and heaved out a black rucksack. A roll of thick brown rope fell out with a heavy thud. Suppressing a grunt, she picked it up and stuffed it into the bag.
“Now… where do I start?” She gazed into the dense foliage, fingers tightening their grip on the bag strap.
Where are you, Mayuyu?Yuki took a few tentative steps away from her car, not bothering to close the door. As she walked past the white hatchback, she brushed her fingertips against its hood, leaving a smooth swipe on its dirt-covered cool surface. Dead leaves had piled up at the bottom of the windshield. She estimated that the owner must have abandoned the car months ago.
“Hey, if you see a pretty girl with straight black hair, please give me a sign.” The words ghosted past her lips in a soft whisper as she clasped her palms together and closed her eyes for a few seconds. A deep bow later, she continued on her way. The temperature dipped a degree or two as she followed the path into The Sea of Trees.
She remembered all the popular tourist trails. Every year, the police received tip-offs about rotting corpses discovered by the unfortunate forest workers or the local volunteers who conducted annual body hunts. The Criminal Investigation Department had to prowl the crime scenes sometimes lest the dead were victims of murder or kidnap cases that they were working on. Their efforts were, regrettably, often for naught for the deceased turned out to be individuals who chose to end their lives by their own hands in the place widely known as Suicide Forest, the most popular suicide spot in Japan and second only to San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge in the world. Yuki couldn’t help but be reminded of the last time she came to this godforsaken land…
“Yukirin,” a young lady who looked like she should still be in high school instead of the elite Investigation Department of Tokyo Police Headquarters called, tugging the rolled up sleeve of Yuki’s blue flannel shirt.
“Ah!” Yuki cried out as her hand slipped just as she hit the shutter button on the DSLR camera. The policewoman had been taking pictures of the badly decomposed body sprawled over a giant protruding tree root. “Mayu! You made me miss the shot!” she said accusingly.
The shorter woman stuck out her tongue. “It’s a digital camera. You can always delete the bad shot… or are you that hopeless with technology?”
Yuki narrowed her eyes at Mayu, flashing an it’s-not-funny look. She took a quick snap of the skeletal remains at their feet before straightening her back and focusing on her trusty – but smart-alecky – partner of two years. Now, Mayu was absorbed in her own thoughts, gazing up at the straggly branches that hung over their heads. Yuki’s brow twitched.
You wanted my attention and now you are off in your own world, she grumbled inwardly.
“What is it?” she asked, stopping next to Mayu. There was a distant look in Mayu’s onyx orbs which caused Yuki to frown.
“It’s beautiful, isn’t it? Aokigahara,” Mayu finally spoke. Her voice came out as a delicate whisper, vastly different from the smug tone that she employed earlier.
Yuki arched an eyebrow.
“The trees are magnificent and you saw the Ice and Wind caves the last time we were here. Mother Nature’s beauty is so stunning. I guess I can understand why people choose to die here. It’d be nice to become one with such a beautiful place.”
A scowl had formed deep on Yuki’s face. “I don’t like where this conversation is heading.” Her stern voice carried a warning tone. She released the camera and let it hang from her neck before she grasped Mayu’s smaller hand. “Mayu, if there’s anything bothering you, you have to tell me. Don’t you ever-”
“Wait, you can’t be thinking that I want to commit suicide, can you?” Mayu cut her off, her eyes widening with genuine shock. “Yu… ki?” she prompted only to receive an awkward silence as her answer. After realising that Yuki was dead serious, she laughed. Hard. The boisterous guffaws sent heat rushing to Yuki’s cheeks.
“H-Hey! It’s not funny. You didn’t sound like your usual self. Of course I’d be worried!” sputtered Yuki.
The laughing girl wiped a stray tear from her eye, wheezing as she tried hopelessly to suppress her amusement.
“Mayu!”
“S-Sorry… Ha ha… You just looked so… so… constipated…” Obviously, she should not have even tried to explain herself because the second the last word left her mouth, she burst into a new round of unrestrained giggles.
“I’m ignoring you,” Yuki huffed and spun around to get back to work but the hand in hers swiftly pulled her back.
“Okay, okay, I’m really sorry.” Mayu peered up at her with glistening doe eyes; her face was red from laughter. “Gee, you need to work on your sense of humour.”
“I don’t see anything funny at all.”
Mayu shifted her gloved hand a bit, interlacing their fingers. “Fine. I promise you I will never take my own life. Happy?”
Yuki gave her a long, hard stare.
“As long as Yukirin is with me, I’ll keep living.”
“Now that’s better.” A wry smile finally cracked on Yuki’s ‘constipated’ face.
“Oi! The two lovebirds over there!” A booming voice yelled from a distance. “We need to get out of here before the sun sets so get cracking! And Kashiwagi, stop flirting with Mayu-chan!”
The interrupted couple cast a brief glance in the direction of the familiar voice to see Sae with her hands cupped around her mouth.
“Yes, cuz!” Mayu shouted in response. There was a coy smirk playing on Yuki’s lips when Mayu turned back. “What?”
“I swear your dear cousin pays an unhealthy amount of attention to you.”
“Oh?” Mayu replied in mock surprise. “I thought she’s been stealing glances at you a bit too frequently.”
“Don’t change the subject. I’m a hundred percent sure it’s you,” retorted Yuki.
Mayu simply laughed off the baseless claim. “We’ll see about that. Let’s get back to work.”---
Yuki halted her steps before a web of slackened ropes and a sign that said “No Entry” in bold. She recognised it as a road of no return which led into the heart of Aokigahara that had swallowed many who were once alive – including those who were naively seeking for a foolish adventure. It wasn’t uncommon to hear about curious visitors getting lost and never finding their way out.
Pushing down the weathered ropes, Yuki sucked in a shaky breath.
What happened to your promise, Mayu?She raised her leg and crossed over into the abyss of still greenery. She trudged across the crinkly floor, cautious not to trip over the winding moss-veiled vines. Slivers of light filtered through the ceiling of countless interlaced branches. Aside from the occasional bird chirps – she didn’t even sight a single wildlife – and the snaps of twigs under her feet, the forest was as quiet as the dead.
Whatever happened to the crickets? Yuki felt heady from the overwhelming smell of composting leaves.
---
“Sae.”
The 24-year-old looked up from her phone, a pensive expression making her look years older than her actual age. Sayaka bit her inner cheek when she noticed the photo that Sae was staring at. The two officers were in the backseat of the car that Takamina was driving.
“Are you thinking about that again?”
Hand balled in a shaky fist, Sae nodded. “If only I had been more alert…”
“Don’t blame yourself.”
Sae sighed, turning her attention back to the picture of her with Mayu and Yuki. It was a photo taken just before the last operation that Mayu participated in… before
that incident happened.
Sayaka released a sigh of her own, tearing her eyes away from her partner. She didn’t feel good. No one did.
---
Your life is a precious gift from your parents. Think about your parents, your siblings and your children. Don’t keep it to yourself. Talk about your troubles. Contact the Suicide Prevention Association.Every time Yuki passed by one of the large wooden signs put up by the local authorities, she wondered how many people with suicidal thoughts actually heeded the words on them.
Mayuyu, did you think about me?
Shifting the weight on her back, she made her way around the sign, careful not to slip on the descending slope behind. Her breaths came out as white little puffs as the freezing air stung her face. She checked her watch. It had been two hours since she entered the forest.
A wooden plaque nailed on a tree trunk caught her eye. Its sharp edges and unmarred surface suggested that it was new; the nail even bore a silver shine.
2013.10.15
I tried so hard to achieve my dreams and you ruined it. Now I’ve lost everything. Maybe my next life will be better.
- Oshima YukoOshima Yuko? Isn’t she the famous actress who got into a scandal recently? She’s been reported missing for a week.Yuki reread the note and gasped.
The date… it’s today!She spun around immediately, certain that the fallen-from-grace celebrity must be nearby. Maybe she was still alive. Yuki slid further down the slope, balancing herself with practised ease, and came to a stop before a green tent. A few empty bottles of beer lay around its entrance. Yuki swallowed thickly.
“Oshima-san?” she called out tentatively. No response. Everything was silent save for her own rapid pants. “Pardon the intrusion,” she muttered and raised the tent flap only to be met by the lifeless body of a woman in her mid-twenties. A large pool of blood had gathered at her side from a deep cut in her left wrist. “Oshima-san!” Yuki rushed up to the pale-looking woman and lowered her head to Oshima’s nose and mouth. Weak but still warm breaths caressed Yuki’s ear. A spark of hope ignited in her chest. She ripped off her maroon muffler and wrapped it tightly around the fresh wound before elevating Oshima’s hand to stop the blood flow.
“Why…” a feeble voice asked, startling the officer.
“You are conscious!” exclaimed Yuki. Then, remembering the actress’ question, she said, “There’s no problem that can’t be solved. I’m a big fan of yours, Oshima-san, and I don’t believe in those rumours.”
“… Is… it?”
Yuki nodded ardently and flashed a smile at the half-lidded eyes. “I’m going to get help for you. Is your phone with you?” She watched as Oshima lifted a frail finger to a white object in the corner. Without wasting another second, Yuki grabbed the actress’ mobile phone and punched in a number. After a few rings, the familiar voice of an elderly man answered.
“Hello, Hayano-san. It’s Kashiwagi here. I’ve found a lady who has just attempted suicide in Aokigahara. She’s still alive but barely. Please get help for her. She’s in a green tent somewhere off the northern main trail. Thank you.” Yuki ended the call once she had conveyed her intended message. She turned to Oshima and gently placed the phone in her right hand, closing her cool fingers around it. “That was lucky. Many times, phones don’t work in here. By the way, Hayano-san is a geologist who patrols this forest frequently to help people with suicidal thoughts. He should be here with aid soon.”
Oshima showed no sign of objection. Perhaps she was too drained to protest or she had decided to give life another shot thanks to Yuki’s intervention.
“I’d love to stay and help you but I’m in a hurry to look for someone.” Yuki was about to stand when a thought struck her. She dug into one of her jacket’s pockets and fished out a photograph of Mayu. “Have you seen this person?”
It took a few seconds for Oshima’s languid eyes to focus on the youthful smiling face. When they did, they widened by a fraction.
“I guess not.” Yuki laughed stiffly, mocking her own ludicrous hopefulness. “Hang in there, Oshima-san.”
A look of concern took over Oshima’s ashen face as she watched the young officer exit the tent.
---
“I’m sorry, Sae.”
Sae’s head shot up to catch Takamina’s guilty expression in the rear-view mirror.
“I should have listened to you back then and come up with a less risky plan,” the Captain spoke, remorse evident in her low voice.
Sae bit back a sob at the painful memory and squeezed her eyes shut, willing herself not to cry again.
“It wasn’t your fault,” Sae managed to choke out. “Mayu… she wanted to take up the responsibility. None of us could convince her otherwise, not even Yuki.” She buried her face in her hands, hunching over as the scene flooded back to her mind.
“What?!” Both Yuki and Sae gaped at their leader in disbelief.
“That’s absurd!” Yuki pressed on, stepping up to the shorter but higher-ranked woman. “It’s too dangerous. We can’t let Mayu be the bait! Let me go. I’ve always been the one taking up such undercover jobs.”
“Our target preys on school girls. Mayu is the only one who can pass off as a student. You look too mature, Yuki,” reasoned Takamina, unfazed by the intense glare piercing into her bones. “Besides, Mayu has agreed to it.”
Yuki snapped her head towards the officer in question. “Did Takamina put you up to this?” she gripped the younger woman’s shoulders hard.
“No.” The reply was honest.
“Hold it right there,” Sae interrupted. “I’m sure we can come up with a better plan that doesn’t need Mayu-chan to be the bait.”
“We don’t have time,” Takamina said curtly. “Every week, he rapes and kills a girl. We can’t afford another victim. The public is on our case.”
“Takamina’s right. We can’t be so selfish to think of ourselves now. We need to capture this guy,” Mayu agreed.
“But Mayu-”
“Trust me, I’ll be fine,” Mayu cut Yuki short. “And I trust Yukirin to look out for me too.” She beamed up at her worried partner; the toothy smile burnt into Yuki’s mind.---
A lone tear splattered onto the photograph. A hasty hand wiped the droplet lest it damaged the radiant visage of the girl in the picture.
“Don’t smile at me like that, Mayuyu. I’m so useless. I don’t deserve your trust.”
Yuki’s legs collapsed under her. She was cold, tired, hungry and desperate. It had been three hours since she left Oshima Yuko’s tent. She lay down, not caring if she was squashing her rucksack under her weight – there wasn’t anything important inside anyway. She spied something tiny and pea green dangling off her shoulder strap. Reaching up, she unhooked the plush keychain from the aluminium carabiner. A forlorn smile stretched across her dry lips as she grasped the mascot character in her hand.
It was the day before the dreaded operation. Yuki was spending some much needed quality time with Mayu on the streets of Shinjuku after work. The two lovers were holding hands with Mayu strolling with a spring in her steps.
“How can you be so carefree?” probed Yuki. Mayu paused and set her gaze upon the tightly knitted brows on Yuki’s face.
“You will age faster if you worry so much,” Mayu quipped.
“Mayu, please.” Yuki was not in the mood for jokes.
The teasing smile dropped and a sigh escaped those light pink lips.
“I’m not that weak, okay?”
“Unarmed combat has always been your weakest area. How do you expect me not to worry when you’ll be alone with that monster?” Yuki was about to throw her hands up in exasperation but she resisted.
“Sayaka-san has been giving me intense training.”
“That won’t make much of a difference,” insisted Yuki. “You are physically weaker than any of us. Your strength is your intelligence, not your fighting skills. That’s why you were partnered with me in the first place.”
“Ouch.” Mayu winced. “That was harsh.”
“It’s the truth.”
“Then does that mean you are not so good up here?” Mayu tapped Yuki’s skull, spiking the older woman’s frustration. Before Yuki could make any form of retaliation though, Mayu added softly, “I’m scared. I won’t deny that… but knowing that you will be watching me every step of the way, that gives me the courage to follow through with this.”
Those words only served to harden the lines on Yuki’s face.
“Aww… this face again.” Mayu placed a palm on Yuki’s cheek, stroking the tense muscles fondly. Suddenly remembering something, she rummaged through her small sling bag and thrust something soft into Yuki’s hand. The woman who had her hair tied in a ponytail scowled at the obscene-looking object.
“Why are you giving me this?” She eyed the green mascot character with distaste. Oh, she recognised it just fine, alright. It was Marimokkori, a character based on Hokkaido’s marimo, which was notorious for the vulgar and, in Yuki’s opinion, absolutely unnecessary bulge in its groin area.
“I saw it the other day and it reminded me of you.”
“No, it doesn’t.” Yuki crinkled her nose, feeling rather offended.
“It does. You two have the same eyes and,” Mayu flashed a sly grin, “are equally horny.”
“That’s not true!”
“Don’t deny it. Last night was proof.” A faint red hue spread across Mayu’s cheeks as she spoke. The other woman fell silent.
“… Fine,” Yuki relented, feeling embarrassed at being called out so openly.
“But there’s one difference between the two of you. You don’t smile as much,” Mayu said with a pout. “Come on, give me a smile.”
Yuki’s mouth twitched horribly as she attempted what ended up more like a look that appeared when one stepped on dog poop. Mayu nearly facepalmed.
The next thing Yuki knew, merciless fingers were pinching and tugging her cheeks in opposite directions. She struggled to escape the vice-like hold only to feel the pain double.
“Smile~” The voice was sickeningly sweet but Yuki knew more than anyone else that an impish devil hid behind that innocent façade. Defeated, she surrendered and gave the brightest smile she could muster.
Mayu grinned in satisfaction and tip-toed to plant a kiss on her girlfriend’s goofy face. Strong arms wrapped around her lithe waist, closing the gap between their bodies.
“Not enough,” Yuki groused.
“Horny.” Mayu poked her nose but complied anyway, pulling Yuki down to savour those pursed lips that yearned for a deeper touch.
“I love you, Yukirin.”---
“I love you too, Mayuyu.”
Yuki held the well-worn plush to her chest as tears leaked past her closed eyes, leaving hot trails on her icy skin.
---
The operation was a disaster.
Mayu had successfully lured their target out and allowed herself to be dragged into an empty public men’s restroom in a secluded park. Through the bug concealed under Mayu’s uniform collar, the team heard the evidence needed to nab the serial rapist and burst out of their hiding place instantly. Their blood ran cold upon finding the entrance locked. Frantic scuffling and screams sounded from behind the door.
“Mayu!”
“Stand back!” Takamina commanded and fired a few shots at the door knob before kicking the door. But it didn’t budge. Exchanging looks, Sae and Sayaka slammed their bodies against it at the count of three.
“Shit! He’s jammed the other side with stuff!” Sayaka cursed.
“Didn’t you say this park was clear of places that could be locked?” Takamina grabbed the front of Sae’s shirt, yanking the tall woman down to her level. Colour drained from Sae’s face at the question.
“I was too worried about Mayu that I… I…”
Yuki shoved her shell-shocked colleague aside and banged on the door incessantly. “Police! Open up! We know you are inside! Stop what you are doing right now!”
Her demands were ignored completely. Mayu’s screams grew louder, more strained, more desperate, and each excruciating call of Yuki’s name was equivalent to putting her heart through a grinder.
“Yuki…!”
Her head was doused in cold sweat.
"Help... Yukirin!"
Fear churned her stomach in waves and she nearly puked.
“Yuki… save me!”
Flames of despair smothered her chest and she forgot how to breathe.
“No… no… Yuki… Yuki... YUKI!”
Then silence.
Yuki felt something inside her die when the cries stopped suddenly.
By the time the team broke the door down, it was too late. Yuki would never forget the image that greeted her eyes. Once a promising young lady with a positive outlook on life, Mayu sat slumped against the wall of one of the cubicles.
Bruised arms lay limply by her sides. Blood oozed from a cut on her lip. Blouse mutilated and flung to a corner.
The vacant look in her eyes was reminiscent of a broken doll’s.
Something snapped in Yuki and she hurtled towards the beast of a man with an anguished roar – cracking his skull against the sink, breaking rows of cigarette-stained teeth, shattering every finger bone under her boots, twisting his arms till the joints popped, and finally, ramming her foot into the very organ he used to sully Mayu’s purity. Every crunch and snap fuelled her thirst for blood. She would have killed him if not for Takamina’s intervention.
Sadly, no amount of blood spilled could make up for the damage done.
With spasmodic steps, she approached Mayu’s unmoving body. Words of comfort were lodged deep in her throat, choking her. Two heavy thuds sounded as she dropped to her knees and cradled Mayu in her arms and sobbed; but Mayu’s eyes could cry no more.
After Mayu’s discharge from the hospital a few days following the incident, Yuki brought her to her apartment. She didn’t dare to – and wouldn’t – leave Mayu’s side for even a minute, afraid that she would do something silly. Her girlfriend was a shadow of her former self. Not speaking, not eating, not moving. The tragic fate of the officer was reported all over the national news. Some tabloids managed to get Mayu’s photo and had it splashed across the front pages, making matters worse. After days of surviving on less than a total of four hours of sleep, Yuki’s body finally succumbed to fatigue. When she woke up with a start, Mayu was gone from the bed they shared.
A letter lay in her place.---
Yuki lost her footing and stumbled down a sharp descent. Her weary body rolled to an abrupt stop after smashing into a tree. The blow knocked the wind out of her lungs. Coughing loudly, she rubbed the back of her head. She looked to the side and found herself staring into the beady black eyes of a pink alpaca soft toy.
“Ah, Mayuyu’s here.”
Slowly sitting up, she detached the Marimokkori plush from her bag strap again and set it next to the alpaca toy.
---
Takamina and her team bundled out of the car once it skidded to a halt at Aokigahara’s parking lot. They ran up to a scrawny old man in his sixties who was waiting by the path leading into the forest.
“Hayano-san! Where is she?”
Hayano Azusa pointed to a spot on a map where he had marked with a red ‘X’. “She was last seen here with Oshima Yuko-san yesterday afternoon. You can take-”
Takamina snatched the map and took off into the maze of trees with her team without waiting for Hayano to finish his sentence.
---
Yuki removed her sneakers and placed them neatly together at the foot of the tree. Raising her head, she squinted as she made out the weathered remains of a rope tied around one of the tree’s sturdy branches. She unzipped her bag and retrieved the roll of fresh rope that she had dropped at the car lot earlier.
---
Hurried rustling of leaves and noisy crunching of vines and fallen branches shattered the tranquillity of Aokigahara as the group of investigators barrelled their way through the thick vegetation.
“On the double! I have a bad feeling about this!” Takamina yelled, beads of perspiration trickling down her temples as her lungs burned from non-stop running.
---
There’s no problem that can’t be solved. Hah. I’m such a hypocrite.Deft hands tied a rope next to the cut noose on the low branch that Yuki was perched on. She chuckled.
You’ve always been on the short side.She took one last look at the crumpled paper in her hand before letting it drift to the forest floor.
A loud snap echoed through the trees.
---
“Faster, faster! We can’t afford to lose another!”
“We are near where Mayu killed herself last year!”
“Fuck, I see something hanging off the tree at two o’clock!”
“Damn it!”
The trio froze when they got closer and made out the identity of the hanged figure. The familiar black jacket. The long brown hair tied in a low ponytail. The pallid face that belonged to their teammate, Kashiwagi Yuki.
Sae sank to her knees and let out a bloodcurdling wail.
Sayaka turned away from the ghastly sight, her shoulders trembling uncontrollably.
Takamina punched the tree beside her, not flinching even though the jagged bark scrapped her knuckles.
“Again… we are too late…" Tears wobbled at the edges of her eyes. “I’ve failed again.” She closed her eyes and muttered a prayer for her capable subordinate, her loyal comrade, her precious friend. When she opened them, she spotted a piece of yellowish paper next to her feet. Picking it up, she read its contents and her hands shook so violently that she almost tore it in half.
Dearest Yukirin,
I’m sorry I’m going to break my promise to you. I don’t know how to face the world anymore. I don’t even know how to face you. Thank you for all that you’ve done. It’s been tough on you and I don’t want to burden you anymore.
I’m going to somewhere beautiful. Goodbye, Yukirin. Don’t look for me.
Love you always,
Mayuyu
2012.10.16---
The End.Thank you very much for reading! As always, reviews are greatly appreciated
I was greatly inspired by films such as “The Usual Suspects” and “The Sixth Sense” and wanted to try my hand at nonlinear narrative and to write a story with a twist at the end that makes readers go, “Why didn’t I think of that?” It’s the kind of story where things appear normal at the start, then they begin to leave readers with an odd feeling in the gut at around middle-to-end point, and finally the pieces fall into place only towards the end. I hope I managed to execute that with some degree of success; I aimed to create something that will give readers the urge to reread the story to pick out all the clues dropped along the way.
Questions: Who did you think Takamina and co. were looking for at the beginning? When and how did you realise Yuki wanted to commit suicide?
It’d be really helpful if you could answer these questions as your replies (the more specific, the better) will let me know how I can improve the way I plant my setups. Thank you in advance!
And erm… just to clarify, I’m not so evil to dedicate a tragic story to someone; rather I’m presenting my maiden attempt at such a writing style to my friend.
With this story, I’ve also completed another challenge to myself: to write a story with a completely sad ending. Even though I’ve killed my favourite girls in previous one-shots, I still relented and gave them a bittersweet ending. (Love them too much
)
The next update for the Dr. Watanabe x Nurse Kashiwagi series may take a while as this is a very busy period for me at work. I miss them just as much as you so don’t fret! The next update will definitely come… it’s just a matter of when
Last but not least, please allow me to leave you with this anonymous quote that I’ve kept close to my heart since my early teenage days:
"Those who commit suicide die but once. Those left behind die a thousand times, wondering why."
- Unknown