Chapter 30: Towards the end of the world

Friday, 16 May, 20XX - Part 4

Yui opened her eyes. Outside, the grey saucer glowed for a moment and then vanished.

“Yui.”

She sucked in a breath and met my gaze. “That was my boss. That person is responsible for the end of the world.”

“The end of our world. The world as we know it.”

“Mh, that’s right.”

Yui tried to smile, but it appeared strained.

There was a strange tension between us. A tension that didn’t exist before.

“You never really used your smartphone in front of me.”

Yui said nothing.

When we were camping, Yui insisted that we read the new message on my phone instead of taking out her own. When she handed her phone to the police officer, I was so worried that I didn’t notice that there was something odd about her phone.

But the most important thing…

“You were never with me when we received a message or anytime I got a reply.”

“Mh…I had to send the email from my phone. I couldn’t write the messages in front of you, so I always went to the bathroom to write.”

“And then you pretended to be surprised when you came back.”

She touched my hand. I pulled back. She flinched, seemingly hurt by this.

“Haruto? What’s wrong? Uhm…let’s go eat something, okay? It will be my treat. We haven’t had really good sushi yet, right? Let’s try that.”

I sat very still, staring at the desk. The edges were faded, the color from a different time. Little marks made by pens over the years. Each student left behind a small sign, even if it was unintentional. Of course, schools didn’t allow students to damage their desks, but it was unavoidable to leave small markings here and there over the decades.

How many students had sat here over the years, listening to the teacher, sleeping, daydreaming?

“Yui, why did you lie to me?” I asked.

“Haruto?”

“You were the one who sent out the emails. Every time I got a reply, it was you who sent it. Why did you manipulate me?”

“That…” Her shoulders fell. “You are my only friend. You’re the only friend I’ve ever had. I…I was scared about telling you the truth. And…I always wanted to go on a journey with a friend.”

“You asked me if I wanted to go on a journey with you before the end of the world. But then you sent me a reply using that phone. You manipulated me into traveling with you.”

“T-That’s not – “ she began to say, but then fell quiet. She knew that it was true. She had manipulated me with every reply message she sent. Even the fact that we were in Aomori was because she sent GPS coordinates that led us here.

I felt the wooden box on the table. It contained two vaccine doses that would save me and one person of my choosing. I was given these solely because Yui was fond of me. In other words, she had the power to decide whether I lived or died.

Friendship can only exist between two equals.

“I was scared of telling you the truth,” Yui said. “You are my only friend. And…I was worried that you might not want to be my friend anymore if I told you the truth. I’m all alone…if I told you the truth, you might’ve tried to kill me. I had to be careful.”

She was right. Revealing the truth about herself was a matter of life and death. If she picked the wrong person, she’d suffer fatal consequences.

And something told me that as generous as Yui’s boss was, she would not save Yui from such a situation. She was perhaps fond of Yui, but in the end, Yui was replaceable.

“Why did you manipulate me into going on a journey with you?” I asked.

Yui pressed her knees together, looking uncomfortable. I waited for her answer.

“You never properly answered when I asked if you wanted to go on a journey with me. If I didn’t reply to your email, you would’ve stayed in Tokyo.”

She was right. I most likely would’ve stayed in Tokyo had she not sent me those emails. I might’ve left the city after the power went out for six hours, but deep down inside I knew I wasn’t so different from the office workers who still went to work.

“I wanted to find someone I could trust,” Yui said. “But I had to make sure that you could take the truth. I was overjoyed when you said that the writer of these emails was kind. You finally understood me.”

I got up from behind the desk and walked out of the classroom, into the corridor. Yui followed me out.

“Where are we going next, Haruto?”

I paused. Without turning around, I said, “I can’t travel with you anymore.”

“Haruto?” She tried to laugh. “What do you mean?”

“I can’t travel with you anymore.”

She took a shaky breath.

“Why? Wasn’t everything fine until now?”

“Are you really fine with billions being killed?”

“Haruto? What do you mean? I’m not killing billions of people. My boss is doing that!”

“But you decided to help her. You took the job when it was offered.”

“If I didn’t take the job, then someone else would’ve taken it.” Her voice was shaky. I could hear that she had begun to cry. “The world never offered me any kindness. It took away every little bit of joy I could find. When she offered me the job, it was the only time I had any good luck. Why are you blaming me for taking her offer? It’s not fair.”

She was right. None of this is her fault. Billions were going to die with or without her involvement. If her boss offered me the job, I probably would’ve taken it too.

“Sorry, I know it’s not your fault. I just can’t travel with someone I can’t trust.”

“Why can’t you trust me? I told you the truth! You’re the only one who knows this secret.”

“I can’t trust someone who has lied to me the entire time. You manipulated me from the very beginning.”

“I-I promise I won’t do that again!” She grabbed my sleeve. “Please don’t say that!”

I shook her off. I could almost hear her heart break. She fell to her knees.

“I just wanted to share a meal with someone. I couldn’t eat anymore because loneliness filled my stomach. I thought out of all the people, you would understand what it feels like to be alone.”

I bit my lower lip.

“You’re wrong. I understand that feeling. I also eat every meal alone,” I said.

“Haruto, you hate the world, right? You hate it, just like me. The world took everything from you! It worked your mother to death and gave her nothing in return. Your father is trying to take what little she left behind.”

Again, she was right. We were alike in that sense. The world never gave her any kindness. The small bright flashes of joy in her memory were the exception, not the norm. Every day, she’d go home, not knowing if she would receive a beating. She went to extremes to hide whatever money she could save, even burying her money in a park. She had suffered for years until her boss gave her a way out.

Hearing that she could have a spectator seat for the upcoming end of the world was the only good fortune she ever had.

“You’re right about everything. If I were you, I probably would’ve done the same.” I paused and took a breath. “But you lied to me. We were never equals. We were never friends.”

I walked away. She cried my name until her voice grew hoarse. I left without turning back.

I was afraid of what would happen if I turned around.

Thursday, 8 January, 20XX+1

The end of the world arrived on schedule, without even a second of delay.

As soon as the clock struck midnight, there were rumors of a flu mutation that was rapidly spreading. It was so contagious that even those who hid in the countryside were reported to have succumbed to the disease.

“So Yui’s boss kept her word,” I said.

“That seems to be the case.”

The person who said those words was Chisato.

She sat next to me in the car while we stopped to rest at a convenience store.

“Haruto, can I ask you something?”

“Sure.”

“Why did you come get me after the power went out for a month?”

“Hmm… You called and asked for help, remember?”

“But why did you come all the way from Aomori? Isn’t that a bit too troublesome?”

“I suppose that’s true.” I said nothing for a moment. “You’re the only friend I have. I think that’s why.”

Chisato smiled. “Mh, me too.”

I stepped out of the car and looked up at the sky. It was vast and clear.

I wonder if Yui was watching us from somewhere.

“Haruto! The radar says there’s a thunderstorm incoming!”

“Let’s drive to that garage we saw earlier.”

“Okay!”

We drove away, towards the horizon.

Towards the end of the world.

[END]