Chorus

Chapter 4 - Chorus

Tears rolled down on the cheeks of Akiko and Amaya as they finished the song. The room was still dead silent, and everyone was sobbing in a way, but it did seem like they appreciated the music. Akiko gathered her thoughts, wiped her face and spoke up first.

“I think Amaya-chan conveyed a good message with the lyrics. The journey is what matters because one day we will all die eventually, one way or another. What this disaster brings is just a shorter time limit. If you think about it positively, we should use our remaining time to make the best and most of it. We could try doing all the things we’ve ever wanted but couldn’t; we could try doing things we’ve never tried before; we could do things we’ve planned to but haven’t yet. All so that we can die with no regrets. I know it’s hard, and I’m sorry for rambling, but I just hope that you guys will not give up your lives in vain.”

“Thanks… for the message and for the beautiful song. I agree. We should try our best to survive and live to the fullest with our remaining time while also having hope until the end,” Chang-min replied first.

“I’m glad my singing was good enough,” Amaya commented.

“Good enough? You were amazing! I didn’t know you could sing so well,” Akiko said.

“Thanks! Well, your playing was enchanting, so I just went with the flow.”

“Yeah! You two complement each other well!” Emiko gave a short round of applause.

“It did help calm my mind a little.”

“Yeah, it was good,” Michi and Haruto joined in respectfully.

“Thank you!”

“Appreciate it!”

After Akiko and Amaya thanked the other four, the mood started shifting back to an awkward state; hence Amaya came forward.

“I think I've got a plan. Let’s discuss it, and then we’ll decide what to do moving ahead.”

“Sounds good. Let’s hear it,” Emiko responded.

Everyone else looked at her silently, seemingly approving.

“We need more water and food firstly. After that, it would be nice if we could keep our hygiene somewhat. I’m pretty sure we all want some things from our home as well, and then we could do all the things we’ve always wanted but couldn’t. I don’t think we can continue like we would in our everyday life; hence, we’ll have to wait until the sun goes down, in my opinion.”

“Sounds good to me,” Akiko approved.

“Same,” Emiko joined in.

“Any objections?” Chang-min looked at Haruko and Michi.

“I don’t mind,” Haruko said.

“Whatever. I don’t want to be alone. Just promise me that we’ll go to my place too.” Michi pouted, but it was obvious the others would agree to that condition.

“It’s settled then. As we wait for nighttime, we can think of the things we want to do, maybe even make a list.”

The sun went down soon enough, yet it was still quite warm outside. Everyone has been online, looking for information on the outside world, but they couldn’t know for sure until they themselves saw it in person. 

Akiko and company tried to go past the scorched bodies outside of the storage room in pain and without looking at them, and as they reached the exit, they realized that what they’d seen online was real. 

The buildings seemed a bit more run-down; most of the trees and greenery were dead; only durable plants and moss survived in a yellow, faded-out color, barely holding on. The depths of their despair were sinking lower by the realization. By the undeniable hard evidence in front of their very eyes.

The world really is ending. It’s no longer the same as we’ve known, Akiko thought. 

Everyone was likely thinking similar things, but no one voiced it.

“Let’s go to the nearest convenience store,” Amaya broke the silence.

They all walked silently under the starry night sky. The outskirts of Tokyo have never been more eerily silent before.

Shouldn’t there be at least a few people outside? Is everyone hiding, did something else happen, or are they just all no longer…? Akiko didn’t finish her thought, trying to remain optimistic.

Quickly reaching the konbini, Akiko entered first and looked around. Since the doors weren’t locked, Akiko thought someone might be inside, but after looking around the whole building, Akiko was sure that there wasn’t a soul.

“Are we sure it’s fine for us to just waltz in and take stuff?” Michi raised the question.

“We don’t really have a choice, do we?” Haruto countered.

“Well, it’s a valid question. Yesterday, we were all living a normal life, and now we’re essentially stealing,” Chang-min said.

It is weird…

“Should we stay here for a while, or should we head to someone’s place?” Amaya asked.

“We have time. If someone lives close, how about we go there first?” Emiko recommended it.

“My place is five minutes away if that’s fine,” Haruto said.

Everyone looted what they could carry and agreed to go to Haruto’s place first. Going out of the convenience store, they were met with a middle-aged man in a white robe.

“Hello? Are you okay?” Chang-min asked.

“Do you believe in salvation?”

“Not really…?”

“Be careful out there,” he said, walking away in a hurry.

“W-what was that?” Michi was peeking out warily from behind Chang-min.

“Hopefully just a weirdo,” Emiko commented.

“Well, it was certainly odd,” Akiko stated.

What did he mean by salvation? Was he from a church or something? We should’ve asked him for some information, but maybe it’s for the better that he went away quickly.

Akiko looked up at the moon, humanity’s sole solace and last hope.

Our sleep schedule is going to change drastically, but we will have to adapt. Will we even be able to sleep at all in this heat? I’m really tired… So today, I’m pretty sure I’ll be able to at least.

The group moved on and began going to Haruto’s place to settle for the remainder of the night.