Chapter 6: A Return to Normal and Its Consequences

While I was thinking about it, my parents let me take all the time I needed to think about it, paying attention to my every expression, down to the smallest gestures of my fingers, which were intertwined out of nervousness.

This runaway story is a misunderstanding that I would really like to clear up, but unfortunately that is impossible unless I divulge facts that could make things worse. It was better to keep this version of events rather than a tall tale about another world.

                              ***

I was waiting in front of Old Kohī's cafe, which was called that because the manager was an old man named Kohī. The establishment was near Akihabara Station. It was a nice place that we frequented a lot and we used to meet up with friends.

I'd been standing there for over thirty minutes and Joy still hadn't arrived.

“Ahh… I swear! He’s the one who insists we meet at such and such a time, and he’s the one who’s late again…”

Punctuality had never been his strong point. I would give him five more minutes, then I would leave.

“Oh, when we talk about the wolf…”

Joy was coming. But he didn't just look upset... he was downright furious. Frowning, he glared at me from across the street. Il was crossing the highway as if nothing had happened, even though the light was green for cars. Horns blared, vehicles brushed past him, and he continued on without looking away.

It was reckless and suicidal of him to cross on a green light too. He didn't even look to the sides before passing.

You should never follow his example.

"Hey Joy! Didn't anyone ever tell you to be careful when crossing the street? Do you want to get hit by Truck-kun or something?! I'm warning you, the another worlds isn't like in anime—"

I didn't have time to finish. Joy grabbed me roughly by the collar and lifted me off the ground. My feet literally didn't touch the ground. I knew he was strong, but this was too much.

I gasped, gripping his wrists. He finally put me down, without letting go of my collar.

"I'm going to hit you three times. For three different reasons. So well grit your teeth."

"Huh? Wait, how's that—"

The first punch had gone off. Joy landed a right in my stomach. My breath suddenly stopped.

"That, that's for not keeping our promise. I don't like being screwed over! You didn't even come to graduation. Kuroda finally confessed to Asuka but got rebuffed. He was inconsolable, so we all had to pitch in to cheer him up. You should have been there too."

"But I... I don't understand what you're talking about—"

The second blow went off just like the first, it lodged in my stomach. And it hurt like hell! The pain doubled me over.

"That, That's for making me look like a bad person. I told you to take time for yourself, to forget about family pressure... No disappearing like that! What do I look like now!? Your parents probably think I'm a bad influence on their son. The kind of friend who gives you bad ideas."

"But that's not it! You're mistaken, there's a misunderstanding—"

The third and final blow came, and it hurt more than the previous ones. Luckily, I hadn't swallowed anything, otherwise I would have thrown it all up.

"And that's for worrying everyone! You know everyone's been looking for you everywhere, and Monsieur reappears after all this time like a flower. You'd better have a really good explanation."

It wasn't fair... If only he knew what I'd been through. It wasn't like I was just out for a walk.

"Listen... it's not as simple as you think."

Joy let go of me and hit me a fourth time.

"You said three times!" I shouted, doubled over.

"This one's on the house."

Great... the kind of bonus I could have done without.

Joy finally exhaled, her anger slowly subsiding.

"There. I've let off steam. Now tell me everything."

"I... I don't know what to say."

"Start by apologizing."

He was right. I lowered my head, bowed.

“Sorry… sorry for causing you so much trouble. Sorry for not keeping my promise. And most of all, I’m sorry Kuroda got dumped.”

Joy nodded. "That's a good start."

"I'm sincerely sorry... But I can't tell you anything."

"What!? Why won't you say anything!?"

"It's not that I don't want to... it's that I can't. It's complicated to explain."

“You’re starting again! You say it’s complicated, but you don’t explain anything!”

"You don't understand."

"So explain to me! You know you can tell me anything. If there's one person in the world who won't judge or mock you no matter what you say, it's me!" he proclaimed without hesitation.

"Even if I told you, you wouldn't understand. No one in the world could understand me," I replied, looking down.

En In reality, it wasn't a matter of understanding, but of believing. No one could believe my story, not even Joy. My gaze avoided Joy's, not daring to look him in the eyes.

Joy was my best friend and confidant with whom I shared many things, secrets that I didn't reveal to anyone, not even my parents. I hadn't hidden anything from him before, which was all the more difficult for me since I really needed a listening ear in difficult times.

I couldn't confide in anyone this time, not even my best friend. For once, Joy was in the same boat as everyone else. It would be a huge blow to our friendship, which was built on trust. It was a bit corny to say, but it meant a lot to me.

Joy, who had calmed down, began to get angry. I could feel his gaze on me, his fist clenched. I closed my eyes, thinking he was going to hit me a fifth or even sixth time.

It's okay if hitting me can calm him down.

I closed my eyes, ready to take a fifth blow.

"Come with me."

He put his arm around my shoulders and dragged me. He intended to take me somewhere where he could beat me up out of sight... Or so I thought...

"What are we doing here?"

"What, can you tell? We're here to play."

Joy led me into an arcade.

He dragged me to the old arcade where we spent all our time in middle school. The one where we emptied our coins to beat records.

This place was full of good memories, we used to play there very often in high school. We collected coins together and did all the machines in the room.

"I don't have anything on me," I grumbled, searching my empty pockets.

“It's nothing. Today is my round. As you often said, a record is made to be broken. So, let's go smash our old scores.”

Joy seemed different; he was no longer angry and even seemed to have regained his joy as if nothing had happened. I was swept away by his enthusiasm and followed him.

We toured the machines like in the good old days. It had been a long time since I had played on arcade machines. I felt a bit rusty since I only played on consoles or online on my computer.

We had a blast for hours, forgetting all my worries about the other world. I was living a completely ordinary day on Earth.

A sudden rumble was heard.

"What's that sound? It's not coming from the machine."

"Hehehe... Sorry, it's my stomach making that noise."

"You're right, I'm starting to get hungry too. Playing games makes you hungry."

We stopped at a fast food restaurant. We ordered our food and, a few minutes later, we were served. Joy offered to pay the bill. I was uncomfortable letting him pay for everything, but he insisted, saying he'd received his paycheck from work.

"You'll owe me one, try not to forget," he said.

We chatted quietly while we ate. Joy told me about the others and the events I'd missed.

One of our friends, Kuroda Riku, confessed to the girl he'd loved since freshman year, but it ended badly, poor guy. He shed every tear in his body. Joy had told me that Kuroda was going to take over the family business, which was in real estate.

He also talked about Arai Ren, another friend. Arai was a fan of techno music, always wearing headphones and listening to his own compositions. According to what Joy told me, Arai had decided to go to the United States to perfect his craft and become a renowned artist.

"And that's not all, Itsuki wants to join the national baseball team."

Mori Itsuki was the captain of our high school baseball club. He had forced Joy and me to join his team by begging us.

It was impressive to see that they all had their paths mapped out. They knew what to do with their lives.

In comparison, I didn't know what to do, and yet, when I thought I was going to die in the other world, I wondered what I would have done with my life if I had survived… and I still didn't know anything about it.

Time passed without us noticing. After hours of playing and talking to catch up, the sun was about to set.

I stretched my arms and back after sitting in a chair for so long.

"So, are you feeling better? I feel you're more relaxed."

"Uh... Yeah..."

"Good, because you looked really anxious. There was something bothering you, and you didn't even dare look me in the face. This trip did you a world of good, didn't it? You were able to unwind a little."

“Ehh... I...”

“I know you must be torn. I can see something is bothering you, and you can't talk to me about it. You want to talk about it, but you can't. But it doesn't matter, you know, everyone has at least one or two secrets that they keep to themselves. I have skeletons in the closet too. Maybe one day you'll be able to reveal everything to me. Until then, don't put too much pressure on yourself, okay."

It didn't surprise me that he was able to read me like an open book. Joy was always so insightful and understanding. He was also a good listener to others. That's why he made sure I forgot my problems by having an ordinary day. He acted as if none of this had happened, behaving as usual.

"Joy... Thanks for everything!" I said with a smile.

"It's nothing, just between friends." He smiled back.

My time in the other world had made me overly emotional; I was prone to tears because I almost cried.

"To tell you the truth, I also have a secret that I've never told you."

"Oh yeah! Which one?"

"If I told you, you wouldn't believe me."

That was exactly what I was trying to tell him earlier. I guess he figured that out too and was playing a trick on me.

"Keep trying."

"Only if you swear you won't laugh."

"Promise!"

Joy looked to the side and beckoned me closer, as if to whisper top secret information so that no one else could hear what he was about to reveal. He was overdoing it, however, so I played along and listened.

"I'm part of a secret organization that protects the world from the shadows."

"..."

It took me a moment to absorb the information before bursting out laughing.

"Wow! Are you listening to yourself?! This isn't a manga!"

"I told you you wouldn't believe me."

"Because it's completely absurd, hahaha!"

His so-called secret was as absurd as mine, but seeing him pretend to be a shadowy vigilante made me laugh, and I believed that was his goal from the start.

Spending the whole day having fun made me feel like everything was back to normal.

My phone vibrated with a beeping sound.

I had received a message, probably from my parents, warning me to come home.

No. The message was from Haruna. What could she possibly want with me?

[Hello little brother, we have your lovely big sister. If you want to see her again, go to the place we will show you with the amulet. And don't even think about calling the police or anyone else, it won't do any good. You have twenty minutes, so don't delay, or your big sister will die.]

My eyes widened as I read the message. It was attached with a photo of Haruna, who appeared unconscious. This message had been sent from her phone. So she was indeed being held.

Why? I don't understand. Why Haruna? What did they want?

The sender had asked me to come alone and bring him the amulet. How did he know about the amulet?

I have to tell Mom and Dad... No, he said not to tell anyone or he'd hurt Haruna.

I kept the amulet on me, in my pocket right now. I could give them what they wanted to save Haruna without involving anyone else. Honestly, I wasn't sure of anything. However, I had to do something, and quickly; time was running out.

"Ryo, are you okay! Who's the message from?"

I turned around, surprised by Joy. I put the phone away and pretended everything was fine.

"It's nothing. It was Mom and Dad who wanted me home because they were getting late."

"You're right. It's already past 6 p.m.," Joy said, seeming puzzled by me.

He hadn't seen the message so he didn't know what was going on, and that was just as well. I didn'

t want to involve him by risking his and Haruna's lives.

“Come on, I’m going home! See you tomorrow.”

I left Joy there with a puzzled look on my face to go and rescue Haruna on my own. After all, I'd been through worse.