The halls were filled with a nauseous smell of antiseptics, most probably from the ever-use of sanitiser or some alcohol based cleaner. Some people sat at the edge of their seats, some praying, some dazed, lost in thought. Occasionally, the sound of wheels rubbing against the white tiled floor of the halls can be heard. Shouts and Pleas mixed in the air along with that smell. In that chaotic atmosphere, I saw a boy no older than 5 years sitting with his Father. That boy was me, or rather… used to be me, and the man beside him used to be my Father, though his name… I don't remember, his face… I don't remember that as well. I just remember waiting along with him for someth… someone.
"You nervous, son?"
"A little… Will Mom be Ok, Dad?"
"Don't worry, son, she will be fine. She is a really strong woman."
"Umu, Yes, she is. She even beat away my pain when I scraped my knee."
"Hahaha… Is that so? Then we both are worried for nothing."
Should I be sad that I don't even remember the face of the man with whom the boy was talking so happily, calling him Dad, while I, who should at least feel nostalgic, can only find this 'a scene from a film'… completely indifferent to my lost past self. Though I convinced myself that I had moved from my past life. These dreams or fragments of my memories that I still hold dear clearly want to prove me otherwise. And this indifference really leaves a bitter taste in my mouth.
While observing both Father and son, a door creaked open from behind me, and a female doctor in a green robe-like gown walked out toward the father-son duo. She smiled and extended her hand toward the man for a handshake.
"Congratulations, it's a girl. Both the child and Mother are in optimal condition, and you can meet them in a while."
The man with tears brimming in his eyes extended his hand in the form of a shaky handshake, while his other hand patted the head of the boy beside him.
"Thank you, thank you so much… @#$!#$, you are big brother now."
"Really! Mom and baby are safe. Umm… Thank you, Doctor Nee-san."
"Hahaha… Aren't you a cutie? Well, you are a big brother now, so you should take care of both your Mom and your little sister."
"Yes! I will."
"Well, good luck then."
The doctor patted the little child's head, bowed to the man beside, and walked away. Seeing their happy expression and hearing the doctor, it was clearly the day my sister was born. After the doctor's departure, the memory as if finished stopped like someone pressed the pause button. Staring at the faces of both father and son, who were completely blank with only smiles, was truly creepy. Shuddering a little, I turned and walked inside the rooms from which the doctor emerged, and the next memory began to play.
Same nauseating smell of hospitals, though this time there were scents of flowers mixed in the air, lessening the gloominess of the hospital. Sunlight slipped through the gaps of the curtain spread across a large window directly in front of the door. A bed just a few steps away, on which a woman with the same blank face is sitting with her back supported by a backrest. A crib was placed just beside her. The woman called the boy with a soft voice, who seemed to be my Mother. Unfortunately, I didn't know her name or face either. Actually, I don't know anyone's face and name or anything of that matter from my past, except my sister's, and that too in the form of a trauma.
"Come here, sweetie."
"Mom, you are… Ok, right, and how is the baby?"
"Fufu~ Everything is fine, Sweetie, and the baby is sleeping in the crib here."
"Really… Then can I see the baby?"
"Of course, honey, but be sure not to wake her up, otherwise she will start crying."
"Ok, I will be quiet."
Watching the boy move closer to the crib, I also followed him to see the baby and suddenly found myself feeling the emotion of the boy beside me or rather remembering the same emotions I had when I first saw my baby sister. Nearly all memory of my past self was lost but this was one of the memories I still carry in my soul as if it was imprinted from the very moment I actually lived this memory… my sister was sleeping peacefully, her tiny hands curled together were like gripping something precious, her supple cheeks with a tint of reddish pink glow add a hypnotic effect around her and her little cooing in sleep pierced my heart with a heart arrow a new feeling emerged at that point… a feeling of protectiveness.
Though not said aloud at that time, a subconscious vow was made for always be there when she needed me, to always protect her and be sure to make her the happiest person.
After a few minutes of trance, I realized that this memory also reached its conclusion. I cast a last glance at my sister and turned to move to the next one by the very same door. Which led me to the front of a house that I assumed to be the boy's. I walked toward the front door and opened it.
Entering the living room, I found the boy and my sister together watching TV. Looking at the now toddler girl, it was likely that there was a 5-year gap between the two memories. The toddler kept jumping with excitement as she watched One Piece. Yeah, that was both of our favourite anime, and we used to watch recordings of old episodes, and every time she would say the same thing.
"Onii-chan! Onii-chan! When I grow up, I will also become a pirate just like Luffy and travel with all my friends all around the sea."
"Then I will also join my cute imouto crew. But, what will be my role…Hmm?"
"Of course, you will be vice-captain, Onii-chan. Together, we will defeat everyone and become Pirate King."
"But only one can become Pirate King, silly…hehehe"
"Uhm… Then I will become Pirate King and… Yes! You can be Pirate Queen."
"Huh? Shouldn't it be the opposite? You become Pirate Queen, and I will be Pirate King."
"Nope~ I will be King… Please, Onii-chan."
"Ugh… stop with those puppy eyes. Fine, you can be the King."
"Hehe… I love you the most, Onii-chan."
"I love you the most, too, Kaori."
Ring~Ring~Ring~
"Hmm… Looks like Mom is calling. She sure is late today, Kaori. Let go, I need to pick up the call."
"Okay~"
Seeing their interaction really warmed my heart, like someone poured sweet syrup directly into my mouth, but knowing what was coming… I turned and walked toward the landline as I saw the boy with a dazed expression holding the phone to his ear. The same remembrance of emotions hit me again.
I remembered that day when I picked up the call and heard about the death of my Mom after a traffic accident. I didn't know what to say or feel or do as this was my first experience of loss of life. I numbly called my Father, talked something that went out of my ears as I was on autopilot, ended the call, tried to wipe the non-stop tears rolling down all over my cheeks, and walked to the living room and hugged my sister. I don't know what happened next, but I do know that I kept a fake smile to reassure Kaori and told her that Mom would be late today, so we'd better sleep early, ate ramen, and went to bed. After that, I just kept silently crying so as not to wake Kaori up.
Waking up from the trance like state and staring at the paused scene of the boy that used to be me cried with his head pressed to his pillow to suppress his voice made me question. Was I an ungrateful son? I don't remember anything about Mom and Dad but I do for my sister. Was my love for them less than for my sister? I saw my past self crying in bed, but after seeing this, I just felt sympathy for the boy. Did forsaking my past life mean not even mourning for my birth mother's death? Are emotions that heavily dependent on memories? Asking these, I found my vision going dark as I found myself falling in an endless pit until I jolted awake in my room. Breathing heavily I pressed a hand on my head.
"Huff…Huff… Fucking Trauma"
I sat on my bed staring blankly outside the window as the sun ray fall upon my bed, the chirping of birds, drifting of clouds in the endless blue sky, each giving rise to new thoughts in my mind. These further led me to my past life's mistakes. Before, I spiraled more in this shithole, the voice of my Mom pulled me out.
"Ren! Wake up, Nino will be here soon."
"Ugh… Yeah, yeah, just give me a minute, Mom!"
Yeah, I am a reincarnated person, son of a beautiful person with a playful personality Akane Amagiri, Ren Amagiri. Though I say reincarnated, all I remember from my past life are trivial stuff like anime, manga, some news I watched, some game I played and such… and yeah, a fucking Trauma too. Everything else… turned to dust, I don't remember what my life was like there, how old I was, what my name was or how I died. I don't even know if a R.O.B (Random Omnipotent Being) asked me for wishes or did I have karma or something to reincarnate. All I knew was I died, reincarnated in this Slice of Life Anime World and became aware of such and got a trauma when I was 6.
As for why it's a Slice of Life World and not some Modern world with Holy Grail Wars or Devils, Angels, and Gods roaming around, or Shibuya being erased from the map of Japan. Well, my childhood friends are the Nakano Sisters, my best friends are Masachika Kuze and Hikigaya Hachiman, and there are many classmates of mine who are from some anime or manga I read or watched. This world feels like a mashup of all SoL anime and manga. I have met people who have such personalities that they seem like protagonists of some 3rd rate manga that I didn't bother reading.
So yeah, I concluded that this is most likely a SoL Mashup, but still, who knows when my luck just says fuck you and my whole class gets isekai'd in some dimshit world where they can't sort their shit out themselves and call people from a different dimension for pest-control. So, yeah, I took up multiple classes of Martial Arts when I was 8, got bored, dropped all of them at 10, and got into sports, and yep, I was fucking awesome in them. As for what I will do if my luck fucked me… Umm, that's for future Ren to worry about, not my tension.
By middle school 3rd year, I got a great physique due to all the agile sports I played, you know, V-shaped ones… like ones who when clothed look skinny and on beaches they unleash the beast and become a treat for all thirsty ladies, Yep, like those. That paired with my lustrous obsidian black hair, gemlike blue eyes, and proper jawline. Yeah, in simple words, I'm Hot as fuck.
So yeah, I'm socially successful and I do have proper male friends, even 2 best friends who are the most lazy shitheads I've ever met, though both are smartasses with twisted personalities, still though I really enjoy their company. I also have many female friends too. Well, what can I do? I'm hot, so girls can't help but be attracted to me, not my fault.
"Will you stop staring at yourself in the mirror?"
"Wahh!!... Oh, it's just you, Nino. At least knock before entering."
Startled by an unexpected voice, I turned around only to come face to face with a beautiful girl with vivid reddish-orange hair colour. Sighing, I looked at her with a now more relaxed look.
"I did knock, but you were busy admiring your ugly mug, so I just helped myself in. Anyway, let's go."
"Where?"
"Shibuya."
"Why?"
"Hmm…"
"...Fine, just let me eat my breakfast."
"No need, we will eat there."
"Fine…Sigh. At least wait outside so I can change."
"Okay~"
Ugh… why the fuck do I have a crush on her? Just always dragging me around for no reason. Whatever, let's get this done with… and why the HELL AM I feeling chill in the middle of Summer? Did I catch a cold or something?
"Done?"
"Yeah, just there…"
Finally, dressing up casually, I opened the door and turned towards Nino, who looked incredibly beautiful in her outfit. She wore a White T-shirt paired with a red houndstooth-patterned mini skirt. An oversized black jacket was draped over her shirt, and a black choker with a blue butterfly pattern. Her hair was tied in a messy bun with a few strands loose.
"W-what are you staring at?" Nino's flushed face was on full display in front of me, and goddamm, she looked cute.
"Nothing. Well, you are looking as pretty as always."
"O-Oh M-Mm T-Thanks, I guess." Her muffled thanks did reach my ear, but who says no to teasing a beauty like her?
"You said something?"
"Nothing, let's go already."
"Okay~... Wait, I forgot my pendant. Just a sec."
Running back to my room, I picked the pendant from the stand. It was a circular pendant with patterns like shattered glass and 3 blue gemstones arranged in a triangular pattern, which, to be honest, looked more like a star than a gemstone. This was something I had in my arms after awakening my memories. So, I just thought it was my cheat or something, so I always keep it with me. Who knows when it's done charging with who knows what type of energy it is absorbing, or some hidden condition waiting to be met, or something. Though till now, it's proven to be useless.
"Done. Let's go"
"Okay"
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Walking down the street to the train station, I looked around, and for some reason, the air felt heavy not in sense of weight but in a metaphorical way, the chirping sound of birds from this morning had ceased a while ago. At first I didn't notice but now… It's said that animals can sense a disaster before it even occur and I don't know why, but I felt something big was going to happen today.
"What happened, Ren?"
"Nothing, just felt something wrong today."
"Huh, what are you talking about… Umm, if you don't want to go with me, you can just say so."
Looking towards the girl who wore a dejected look, I panicked and instinctively grasped her hand.
"No, no, that's not at all. I really like spending time with you, Nino. It was just my imagination earlier, I guess."
"O-oh, Mm w-well, t-then n-nothing can be done." Flushing brightly, Nino turned her head away from me and tried to remove her hand from me.
Seeing her bright red ear and her attempt to remove her hand from mine, I had a mischievous idea. Holding her hand tightly, I made a gloomy look.
"Hey, don't pull your hand away, it's cold, and holding your hand keeps my hand warm, Nino… Or is it that you feel disgusted by me and don't want to touch me?"
Hurriedly, she turned towards me, only to see my teasing smile. She puffed, though her ears were still red.
"Hmph… Fine, not like I care or anything… I-idiot."
"Hehe… Tsundere Nino."
"Shut up!"
"Fine~ don't be angry, I was just teasing you."
"Hmph!..."
I shook my head lightly at her tsundereness, which is adorable as always. We started talking normally again. It's how it has always been between us. Out of all the Nakano sisters, Nino was the one I enjoyed talking to the most. She's haughty and in denial when embarrassed, but her expressions never match her words, which makes teasing her incredibly fun.
The Nakano's and I were childhood friends from way back in middle school. Though Yotsuba was the first to interact with me, as she was my deskmate and a fellow member of the track and field club. Yeah, I tried that in my 1st and 2nd year of Middle school, but later, after winning in nationals, I just left to try basketball and football. Anyway, so both she and I naturally became friends, and she later introduced me to her sisters. Later, due to their abyssal level of academics, which I already knew thanks to watching their anime, but still didn't expect them to be that bad, I still tutored them, which in a way was pure torture for me, but we all got through it, and now they have average grades.
We reached Ueno Station after a few minutes of walking. While waiting, again I felt that same strange feeling crept up from earlier, looking around and finding everything normal, I shook it off to enjoy the lovely date with Nino.
The Train for Shibuya approached with a gust of wind, and its door opened. We boarded, and as always, it was cramped even though it was past 9 AM, the peak hours. Squeezing through the packed crowd, I pressed Nino towards the walls of the Train and shielded her by covering her from the front. We have travelled our fair share of such jam-packed Trains, and these actions have become a second nature by now, but I guess Nino still finds it heart-pounding as I can hear her heart thumping due to her pressing against my chest. And the more I become aware of that, the more I can feel my own heart pounding.
Well, I had a crush on her for a while now, and to be honest, I wanted to confess to her, but my past life trauma of being able to keep my promise of being there with her when she needed me the most always held me back. But, I also don't want to keep giving Nino hints and then pulling back. So, instead of running away from my feelings because of some mistakes in my past life, I would rather face those feelings and try my best not to make those same mistakes.
So, yeah, I have been preparing myself to confess to her during this year's summer festival, as that is the most romantic way I know of through all those Rom-com Mangas I read. I have been mentally preparing myself since the start of this year, as I know that trauma will try to fuck me up during the confession, and I don't want to blow my first confession by triggering PTSD.
Sighing, I looked down to see Nino staring at me.
"What?"
"What are you thinking about so much?"
"Hmm?... Nothing."
"You want me to believe that with all that frowning."
"... Just thinking about how to confess to you."
"W-w-w-what??" Her face is flushed again. Hehe, I love teasing her so much.
"Kidding~... Tehe~"
Her face, which was embarrassed just a second ago, turned to a face filled with anger as she glared at me. Yeah, now she is mad.
"Uhm… Sorry, Nino."
"Hmph…"
"Sorry, Nino."
"..."
"Umm… How about I buy you your favorite ice cream in Shibuya?"
"Hmph"
Yeah, her anger levels decreased just now.
"And… your favourite pastry at that cafe you talked about yesterday."
"You remembered that."
"O-obviously, how can I forget?"
Now, what the fuck was its name again… Hikigaya was there when she talked about the cafe, right? I will just text him. He will surely remember that name.
"Fine… but don't joke like that again"
"Mm…"
Why does she look disappointed now? Did I forget to add something as my apology gift?
"Huh?"
"What happened?"
That same feeling returned, and now it's stronger than before, and it's increasing too. Looking around the Train, and not finding anything unusual, I tried to shake it off, but this time it was like alarms flaring in my mind, and their voices kept getting louder and louder like they were warning of some upcoming doom.
Cold sweat started to form on my forehead, and I hugged Nino in the hope of keeping her safe from whatever was coming.
"W-w-what R-Ren… I forgave you already. N-no need for this."
"Nino, there is definitely something unusual going on today."
"Huh Wh–"
Before she could finish talking, the Train stopped with a jerk, making everyone almost fall. Using my arms against the wall, I tried my best not to crush Nino because of all the bodies crashing on to my back due to the sudden stop.
"What happened?"
"Why did the train stop?"
"Who the fuck is driving this!?"
Some people whimming with pain due to crashing on to others or falling started shouting and cursing because of the sudden jerk. Not knowing what was happening, but the alarm in my mind went to the absolute peak, and this confirmed that there was definitely something big going on.
"Ren! Are you Ok?"
"Yeah, I am fine. You Ok?"
"Mm, but what's going on?"
Seeing her eyes filled with concern for me calmed my mind a little. Taking a deep breath, I tried to reassure her.
"Don't know. It could be some techn–" but was cut shot in between.
[Hello~ Hello~]
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You liked the read, then go ahead add it in your library, give some power stones and don't forget to write a review.
Thanks~
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