Kana's final concert was a total disaster. She made more and more mistakes as the time passed by, messing up her own act and eventually affecting Ruby and Mem-Cho too.
The fans also noticed Kana's poor performance; some of them started to boo her out, but the vast majority ignored it, just enjoying the last moments of the new B-Komachi trio.
26th of December, 1:00 am, Tokyo, after the B-Komachi concert
The three members of the group are sitting in the car as Miyako drives down the mostly empty streets of Tokyo.
The car is completely silent apart from the radio playing some old Pop song; the awkward silence lasts on, none of them knowing if they should break it.
Kana is completely oblivious to the world around her.
Was he really not there? Why did he promise it then? Like I can understand him, I wouldn't want to see myself perform either, but lying to me and making me worry so I sing even worse? That's not okay.
No, Kana, think about it, you might've just missed him. I mean, there were quite a lot of people there.
That has to be it, like why would he miss my last concert after promising he'd come? Aqua is sometimes scummy, but this would be a new low even for him.
He was just not waving his glowsticks hard enough; there were so many people that he didn't stand out enough. Next time, when I see him, I'll tell him off for his half-hearted efforts.
Still, maybe I should still call him later, just to make sure nothing happened to him.
After a few minutes of silence, she snaps out of it, seeing Ruby and Mem-cho looking puzzled at her, but neither Mem-cho nor Ruby gets the chance to speak up since Kana is the first one to say something.
"Why do both of you look at me like I'm an alien? I know my performance wasn't the best, but you two should already be used to that so where's the problem? You should be happy, you've finally managed to get rid of me."
Her voice is barely any louder than the quiet radio, yet it carries a certain level of venom behind it.
Ruby: "Kana-"
Kana interrupts Ruby; the outside world is filled with bright lights and loud noises.
"I KNOW, AND I AM SORRY…"
Kana turns a bit red and looks down.
"I'm sorry… for screaming, could you just drop it, please? I will take the blame online, I will apologize on my own account and save you the hassle, I already know how it is."
The car falls silent once more, as Kana leans her head against the window of the car.
She can see the sudden rain landing on the glass when tilting her head a bit to the left. She looks at the passing buildings, but her eyes are not registering them.
But what if he really didn't come,
I mean, I searched for him the entire time.
Should I ask if Ruby or Mem saw him?
That could put my mind at ease…
But what if they haven't seen him either?
What if he's really somewhere else?
What if something happened to him?
Damn you, Aqua,
You could at least send me a message…
anything…
Are you really that socially unaware?
Or do you just not care?
Ruby, who is sitting right next to Kana, looks helpless around in the car.
Ruby slowly shifts a bit to the side and places her head on Kana's shoulder while her eyes stay aimed forward.
"Kana, you might've graduated from B-Komachi now, but we are still friends, I don't care about any hate, I only want the three of us to have lots of fun… But you looked like you hadn't had any fun the entire time, which is weird, I mean this should be a happy day, a new chapter in your life begins today. You want to tell me what's wrong?"
Mem-cho, who is sitting in the front seat, is looking back at Kana while nodding enthusiastically at her. Her expression is sincere and filled with understanding.
"She's right Kana, you don't have to take any blame for this, you aren't on your own anymore."
Kana initially wanted to push Ruby away, but ultimately decided against it and to accept her closeness.
Please just be safe, Aqua…
December 26th, 2:00 am, Miura city
Aqua and Akane walk down the dim streets of Miura City. They walk in silence. Akane is trying to find a place that will keep them safe for the night, while Aqua's thoughts are still spiraling about what he could've and should've done.
It's 2 am and we are stuck in an unknown city.
Okay, Akane,
calm down.
You need a clear mind.
You need to be strong now.
For him…
We need a place to stay…
Maybe a hotel.
No, they will all be booked out.
Or a manga cafe.
They are always open.
No, there are basically none in Miura,
Or maybe just in front of a Kobini,
It's warm and safe there.
No, we need something secluded.
If anybody would see us like that…
I got it.
Aqua and Akane haven't spoken to each other in nearly an hour now, both lost in thought, as Akane finally speaks up.
"Aqua, we need a place to stay, all things I thought of wouldn't work though, I think we should just look for a quiet spot in a park and wait until the first train to Tokyo leaves again, in 3 hours."
Akane is looking back at Aqua; his eyes are still empty, the usual bright sparkle of his eyes is gone. Seeing this sight makes Akane feel like she was stabbed in the abdomen, but she needs to be strong. If she gives up now, Aqua would trail off the path once again.
After a moment of this, Aqua slowly nods in agreement, or maybe indifference.
Later, after they found a remote bench in a park
The conditions are brutal; the cold winter air, combined with the bench being wet from the earlier rain, is making shivers run down Akane's spine.
She leans closer to Aqua, grabbing his cold hands to warm them while placing her head on his shoulder, trying to be as close to him as possible.
It's still over 2 hours until the trains start driving again. Akane's warm and gentle touch has a soothing effect on Aqua, giving him enough willpower to speak again.
"Do you have any idea how we should proceed now, Akane? This was my only chance, now he is going to disappear again."
Akane gets slightly startled by the raspiness of his voice, coming from not speaking for such a long time, but beneath that, she can hear something in his voice she has never heard before from him, but she can't really make out what it is.
After a long moment, she replies
"I got a few ideas, but none of them are really a full concept. It's just… anything is better than losing you."
"What do you mean? No it's not. If any of you get hurt because of this I could never forgive myself."
"That's not what I meant Aqua, I just meant that we can think about a plan now. You know, if you would've died, that wouldn't be possible."
"If I would've died this wouldn't be necessary."
Akane lifts her head up from his shoulder, looking up at him.
"You're right, I should've been more prepared, but I had no time, if I would've came just 10 minutes later I would've been too late. I mean there was no time for me to make a plan, I already lost countless hours of sleep thinking about what was wrong with you."
Akane lowers her head a bit so Aqua can't see her face, while her tone of voice also shifts slightly.
"Now I am the egoistic one, but can't I just be happy that I wasn't too late for a bit? I know this isn't over, and we probably should come up with a new plan now."
I can understand why he is like that, but can't he just understand my side too? He almost died. Doesn't he understand how much he scared me with that?
But he's right in the end, I'm not done yet, I have to think of something, a plan that could… will save Ruby and everybody else, I owe it to him.
Maybe I… No, really, I don't want to actually do it like that. But what if there's no other option? In that case, I'd have to do it like that.
…
Akane's thoughts continue to go in circles for a while before Aqua speaks up again.
"Akane, I am scared."
The surroundings fall completely quiet as if Aqua's words had created another dimension in which sound doesn't exist. After what feels like hours, the quiet ambience sounds return together with Akane's reply.
"It's okay Aqua, I'm often scared too, you are allowed to feel."
Akane moves a bit closer to Aqua, placing her head back on his shoulder.
"But it makes me weaker, more irrational."
Akane doesn't move.
"Only when you let them control you, but when you suppress your emotions, the same thing happens."
Both fall quiet again, staring ahead, lost in thought. Akane is pulled out of her thoughts a few minutes later, as Aqua wraps his left arm around her.
"You must be cold."
Akane leans close into his warm embrace, only now noticing how much she was shaking.
"Aqua… I love you."
Aqua doesn't acknowledge her confession, but he also doesn't pull away.
"I wasn't certain about it for a while since I never felt like this before, but I am certain now."
Akane snuggles herself even closer to him, feeling his warmth radiating from his body.
…
I really almost killed myself earlier; I would've left all of them behind.
But maybe it would've been good like that… It would've guaranteed Ruby's safety.
Aqua shakes his head slightly.
No, what am I thinking? It wouldn't even have done that; there could've still been things that threaten Ruby, there are so many things, things I did not think about before. I never would have believed my mind could be this clouded. I was egoistic and dumb.
We will find another solution, a solution where nobody will be hurt afterwards, another way of saving Ruby… Sarina, a way where I can be with her…
Aqua smirks softly.
I am still selfish.
Aqua's thoughts turn calmer and less desperate as the minutes turn into hours. He occasionally moves his head a bit to the left to sneak a peek at Akane. She sits so unmoving you could think she was asleep, but Aqua knows better.