Someday the dream will end

When they returned to Tokyo, neither could articulate exactly what they wanted to say. Shuhei told Kaho he was quitting that afternoon. No matter what it meant, he would find a way to get out of his contract. Vibrant, hot sunlight beamed down on them as the Century drifted back towards Kaho’s home.

Waiting was all Kaho could do. Shuhei asked to go to the club alone, doing his best to hide a shake in his hands that betrayed his subtle fears towards Reiji’s fury. He knew this would not go well; it was just a matter of how unwell. He’d set his phone to Do Not Disturb and had yet to reactivate it, hoping to cherish the dreamstate a little longer.

When they arrived at Kaho’s house, both inhaled and felt the flutters of change waiting for them. Kaho decided she would start to broach the subject with her parents that night.

They shared a final kiss, and Shuhei set off for Eden.

Once Kaho was inside, she took another moment to look around her familiar settings. There was a new melancholy to the world that felt lovely yet fragile. Shadows from decorations blended with stucco plaster. Photos of her and her parents stood framed on shelves. There was a lingering scent of incense that permeated the air. Her hands drifted along the banister of the stairs as she made her way to her room.

Her most recent arrangement was waiting on the cabinet near her bed. Petals were already falling. She was ready for her next piece. Checking her phone confirmed that she had enough time to make it to that day’s class, so Kaho decided to set her luggage down and return to the city.

It was crowded on the train. Bodies pressed and swayed against one another as afternoon commuters stood with excited tourists. Bit by bit, the crowd thinned as Kaho was carried away from the thriving districts and out to her quieter destination.

When she reached her station and made her way to the surface, she felt the warming embrace of the sun on her face and hands. Everything felt light and transient.

She made her way from the station and out into the world. The school was a few blocks from the station, so she had to walk the rest of the way. As she strolled along, she wondered if Shuhei was at Eden yet. Thinking on what was in store for him did cause a coldness to bite at her fingertips, so she instead decided to focus on all the wondrous moments they’d shared in their brief escape.

A sincere, soft smile broke across her lips as she walked. It was so pleasant, she didn’t even notice the three young women approaching her with their fists clenched.

Pain shot through her ear as long nails grabbed her hearing aid and ripped it from its place. Kaho let out a scream of shock, but more hands arrived. Something struck her in the side of the head, causing her knees to buckle. More nails pressed into her cheeks and head, and she screamed once again as panic seized her motor functions.

Her arms flinched up to shield her face as she caught glimpses of the attackers. Wild, obsessed eyes were locked on her as spitting mouths screamed unknown insults at her. A newspaper was thrown into her face, but all Kaho could do was turn and try to protect herself.

More slaps struck her face and head, and Kaho finally lashed out, screaming a muffled yell towards them as she flung her own hands outward.

That was when she saw the scissors.

As soon as she made the mistake of exposing her head once more, two of the women grabbed her arms. The other woman raised the scissors and continued to taunt.

Kaho let out a scream, praying it was loud enough. But it was too late. The woman grabbed a handful of Kaho’s hair and cut. Entire chunks were sheared away in an instant. Again, Kaho screamed out. Again, she cut. Uneven. Hasty. Hateful. Mocking.

They cut and cut, and something beyond fear snapped in Kaho’s mind. She bit into one of the women’s hands, causing her to scream out and release her prey. With her hand freed, Kaho grabbed her other subduer by the hair and ripped with all her force.

The woman howled in agony as hair parted with scalp and blood rose to the surface.

Kaho turned, eyes wild, lip split, face gashed. All that was left was the lady with the scissors.

The Surface was a storm now.

Kaho paused and opened her ikebana bag, revealing her own scissors. The attacker paused, now fully afraid of her former target. But Kaho didn’t attack her.

Hysterical taunts fell unheard as the attacker waved the scissors at Kaho’s ear.

Kaho’s face bent into a spiteful, mocking smile as she raised her own scissors to her arm and pressed down. The attacker gasped in confused horror as Kaho pulled the blade across her skin, tearing open a small wound.

Kaho wanted them to know that scissors did not frighten her in the slightest. Strands of uneven, shredded hair hung in her face as she glared at the woman, who now realized their assault was finished. She said something along the lines of ‘Let’s go!’ to the other two women, and they all ran away as swiftly as they’d arrived.

Kaho was left on the sidewalk alone. A small trickle of blood was running from the shallow cut, but the rust-like scent triggered a reaction in Kaho she’d never known from cutting. Disgust burned into her throat, and tears burned across her lids as she covered her mouth to keep the vomit from projecting out.

Sobs broke through as adrenaline faded. Someone was running to her from a nearby store. Concerned patrons from across the street were there now, kneeling beside her and calling out questions without knowing she was Deaf. As they tried to calm her, Kaho looked down at her severed clumps of hair and the newspaper article.

Reading the headline gave her some form of clarity.

“Shinjuku Mayor Orders New Wave of Host Club Restrictions”

Something had happened while they were away. Even though several strangers were asking her if she was okay, she couldn’t focus. All she could do was scan the article. Doing so revealed a sweeping new set of ordinances coming to host clubs, set to restrict sales, regulate visits, and clamp down on relationship manipulations. One specific detail caught her eye the most.

“The mayor pinned the recent uptick in host club interest to the tabloid relationship of the Minister of Finance’s daughter and a very famous host.”

Beside the article was a black and white photo of Shuhei and Kaho in the ikebana class together.

They had thought they were safe. They had thought they’d been cautious enough. It was all a mistake. The dream was over.

Blood ran down Kaho’s shuddering hand as she tried to message Shuhei. Hysterical fingers fumbled along characters as she typed.

“Please let me know you’re okay. Shuhei, please call or message me or come see me as soon as you can.”

More tears fell as she sent the message and sat in agony, waiting for a response. The 'Received' alert did not even ping. Seconds passed, and she typed again. Panicked clacking was threatening to crack her teeth.

“Shuhei, please message me. Please respond.”

Police sirens lit up in the distance as the concerned patrons waved the officers over. Everything blurred. Kaho tried to type one more message, but her phone slipped from her hand.

Even if she’d sent it, it wouldn’t have been read. At that moment, Shuhei was on the floor of Reiji’s office, bleeding profusely as his ribs were snapped by kicks and boot heels.