Dissolve

A mighty fist filled with blindsided rage flew in the boy’s direction.

But with a single step to the side, the boy dodged and raised his wooden sword.

With a well-timed slash, the spirit’s fist dropped onto the office floor.

Ryoma then stared at the spirit’s face.

Was the spirit angry? Frustrated? Stressed?

The answer wasn’t any of the three, as the spirit wore an expression of solemn defeat.

Ryoma didn’t know what to feel as he raised his wooden sword. But one thing was clear: he needed to take this spirit down. There was a man lying unconscious because of this spirit’s actions. He couldn’t let the spirit hurt anyone else.

The boy slashed at the spirit’s chest again and again. All of his cuts were shallow, and yet, strangely, the spirit stayed quiet.

Then came the finishing blow. Winding his sword back, Ryoma drove his weapon through the center of the spirit’s chest.

The moment he took the sword out, the spirit’s body began dissolving, starting from its legs and arms. It was a sad sight to see, despite how normal this procedure was when a spirit passes away.

The spirit’s body began falling as his body crumbled, but it was as if time slowed.

In his last moments, the spirit couldn’t help but mutter, “What led to this?”

Why did things have to escalate to this point?

“Here I am…brought back to life as a spirit and yet look at what I’ve done. Nothing. I’ve done nothing except cause trouble for the people here… and now look at me.”

The spirit chuckled. He had thought about his goals just a few minutes earlier and chuckled at the thought once more.

“Destroy this building? Bring it to the ground? When did I become such a hard worker?” he said.

His legs and arms completely dissolved. The only parts of his body still falling were his torso and head.

The spirit slowly closed his eyes.

“All I really wanted was a good night’s sleep. And now I’m getting that, but…”

With closed eyes, the spirit scrunched his face, but was giving it his all to keep himself calm.

It was hard to pull off though. For the spirit knew this was his last moment alive.

A tear fell onto the office floor.

“I don’t want to go to sleep like this,” he croaked. “Alone and cold.”

It was a terrible way for anyone to go.

But I can’t blame anyone but myself for things ending up this way.

The spirit’s body continued to descend. Once his body hit the floor, then his being would evaporate, and the spirit was ready for it.

But then, as he was falling, the spirit felt a being pressed against his chest and a pair of arms wrapping around his back.

Huh? the spirit thought. What’s going on?

He heard the thud of the wooden katana dropping to the floor. In disbelief, the spirit cracked his eyes open to see the brown-haired youth below him.

The boy was hugging him. Not out of obligation or anything like that, but because…

“I get it,” the boy said.

He remembered the first few nights after his dad passed away. Every night felt cold and empty. His auntie would always lie next to him for a bit, but when she fell asleep, the loneliness came back, and the cold remained.

To Ryoma, his dad’s passing didn’t feel real to him. Sometimes the boy would hear the floorboard creak and perk up, believing his dad had come back home after a long shift and was trying to stay quiet so he wouldn’t wake the boy up.

But Ryoma never voiced those feelings out loud. Instead, the boy repeated the same words he had said earlier.

“Trust me. I get it.”

The anger Ryoma had at the beginning faded away. The boy now spoke with empathy. An empathy that brought warmth to the spirit’s soul.

The spirit knew that the boy was hugging him while using his psychic powers to erase him, and yet, the spirit didn’t mind.

Ryoma’s arms were like a warm blanket that the spirit would’ve loved to tug on in his previous life.

The spirit’s eyes grew heavy. This was it for him, and for real this time.

“Is there anything else you want to get off your chest?” the boy asked.

The spirit thought about it for a second, raising his eyelids ever so slightly, only for them to close yet again.

“There is,” the spirit said. “Can you meet up with everyone ‌I've hurt and tell them I’m sorry?”

Ryoma nodded.

“I will,” said the boy.

A smile emerged on the spirit’s face. It was crazy how just an exchange of words could bring such solace to his very being.

“Thank you,” the spirit said.

“Of course,” said Ryoma.

The spirit’s torso dissolved completely, and as Ryoma held onto the spirit’s head, the boy whispered these words:

“Rest well, spirit.”

The spirit continued to smile.

“I will,” he then said. “And thank you.”

With those final words, the spirit dissolved with a bit of closure.