Chapter 15:

Hope - Part 1

Skipped a Beat


26th December 2018, I’m here, standing on a train station, waiting for the train to arrive, with Aoi.

Yeah, I’m going to Kyoto to meet Sachi. And I still don’t understand that if Aoi doesn’t believe me, why is she coming with me… maybe I should ask

“Can I ask you something?” (Takahashi)

“Yeah?”

“I still don’t understand why you agreed to come to Kyoto with me”

“I like traveling on trains”

“Oh…”

“Yeah, mostly when I get sad or something, I take the train to Ichikawa. And then come back sometime later”

Takahashi: oh… that’s what happened at that time…

“I see…”

“it’s not just that I like traveling. You always looked lost in your thoughts. But you never shared anything. So that day when you said that you have something weird to share, I thought maybe it is that. But it turned out to be a joke… that’s what I thought at first. But now I think that maybe what you’re saying is true. Maybe you did comeback from second year to first…”

“I understand that it’s not believable, but you still agreeing to come with me, I really appreciate that.”

“I was glad too that you are sharing your secrets with me”

“Because…”

Takahashi: I can’t tell her yet that she becomes my girlfriend. I don’t feel anything for Aoi, I wonder what happened that I fell in love with her…

“Because?”

“You were a really good friend in second year so I knew that I could share with you”

“Oh…”

“yeah”

“Oh, the train’s here, let’s go”

We both are in the train now. Only 6 hours until I meet Sachi. No, I have to find where she lives too, so more than that… what was her address? OH FUCK… I never memorized it, how am I going to find her now? I only remember the room number… or apartment number, was it? but where? Which hotel? What am I going to do now… Think think think think___

“Takahashi, what’s wrong?” (Aoi)

“I don’t know the address of her apartment”

“She never told you?”

“She did but… I forgot to memorize it”

“Oh… do you have it written anywhere?”

“Yeah, in my chat with Sachi… from second year”

“Oh… then you don’t have it right now…”

“Yeah…”

“Well, you should have memorized it before coming here”

“I didn’t know that I would go back to first year after second year, I thought that I still have third year to pass”

“Oh… so you don’t remember anything?”

“Just the apartment number”

“Well, that’s better than knowing nothing. We’ll figure something out, don’t worry”

“Maybe…”

“I want to know more about second year. Can you tell me What really happened in detail?”

“Okay”

I explained my situation a little more and after that we just sat there using our phones. Right now, it’s 15: 48. Just a little more till we reach Kyoto, and I don’t have anything in mind that how will I find where she lives.

(After getting off the train)

“Now what?” (Takahashi)

“For now, let’s just search some hotels we can search online”

“Seriously? We won’t get anywhere like that, who knows how many places are there…”

“Well, you can’t just come here and sit idle. You have to do something”

“I know… well, come on. Let’s see what happens”

I don’t think we can find her like this… if I can’t remember anything and the whole day goes by… I’ll have to go back, we don’t have money to stay and never planned to stay the night here in the first place, but I don’t want to go back like this… according to Sachi, I did meet her. So, I have to meet her today otherwise things might change when I get back. I can’t remember anything right now but maybe something will come to mind later. For now, let’s just go check places we can find.

We have been going from place to place, looking for number 56… but nothing. Either there’s no room with that number or it’s someone else and that’s so embarrassing. It’s been almost 2 hours. I’m tired, and Aoi has to go through this because of me… I will have to apologize later.

“Do you remember her talking about where she lives or anything like that?” (Aoi)

“nope”

“Maybe talking about some places she likes here?”

“No, nothing comes to my mind”

“Without any lead, we can’t do much now. It has already been so much time. we have to go back too”

“I know… but I don’t want to go back without meeting her. If I do…I don’t know how much It can change the future”

“Oh…”

Takahashi: come to think of it, Sachi took us to places she liked in Kyoto. And I remember a sweet shop that she said went to a lot because it was near her home… If I go and check in that area maybe, we can find something… I should check how far that place is from here… 20 mins… that’s far…

“What is it Takahashi?” (Aoi)

“Look at this, I remembered that Sachi took us to this shop on the trip. She said that it was near her place. Maybe we can find something”

“Maybe. we should try going there”

“Yeah”

(After reaching at the shop)

I should check for apartment areas or hotels in this area.Oh, not that many. Only 3…
OH, I remember now, it’s this one, 7 mins from here on foot.

“Aoi, I found it, it’s this one, I remember reading its name at that time”

“Oh… that’s good. We won’t have to check the other ones that showed up”

“Yeah, probably”

Now that I can see that I am going to meet Sachi in a few minutes. I’m getting nervous again… how will I explain the situation to her? I don’t need to tell her about the situation, I just need to tell her what happens and what to do. According to her, I said not to come to Tokyo. But now I know that that will not work. I still don’t know what to say… how to save her… even if I can’t think of any way to save her, at least I can tell her what happens.

It’s 18: 24 right now… and I think that this is the place… my heart is beating so fast…

“What are you waiting for? knock” (Aoi)

“Yeah…”

*Takahashi Knocks

*Door opens

Takahashi: After a year and hours of struggle, finally…

(Aoi is standing a little to the right and behind of Takahashi)

Aoi: WOW… she’s so pretty. Is she the one? why is he standing still?

“Ta__” (Aoi)

“Takahashi?” (Sachi)

Aoi: she knows him?

Sachi: what is he doing here… first of all, how did he find me… WOAH… what is wrong with this guy… now he is hugging me…

Aoi: what is he thinking…

Sachi: what happened to him in these months… he wasn’t like this in middle school. And who is she? She looks surprised herself…

“A year…” (Takahashi)

“Huh…?” (Sachi)

“Takahashi! (Takahashi let’s go of Sachi when he hears Aoi calling his name)” (Aoi)

Takahashi: Shit… I couldn’t control myself when I saw her… MANNN! This is really embarrassing…

“I’m sorry for this… Sachi” (Takahashi)

“Oh… You know my name…”

“We were in the same middle school”

Sachi: he knows about me? Wow…

“Yeah…” (Sachi)

“…”

“You wanted to talk about something?” (Sachi)

“Yeah…”

“Well, come in…”

18: 44, the time I have been waiting for a year is now here… and I make a complete fool of myself… Right now, I am sitting here with Aoi, and Sachi is in the kitchen… we are like guests for her right now. This feels so weird. But at least she knew me. That makes things a lot easier for me.

She’s coming back from the kitchen… she brought tea…

“So, what is it?” (Sachi)

“Amm…” (Takahashi)

“No, wait. First tell me how you knew where I live?”

“You told me…”

Aoi: why is he just saying it like that… she won’t believe it

“Me? I have never told anyone and I’m sure I have never talked with you in middle school”

“Takahashi! What are you thinking?” (Aoi)

“I…”

Takahashi: nothing is coming to my mind… why did I even come here? I just feel like I have seen Sachi and that’s enough… No wait… she dies next year, that’s what I came here to do. I have to tell her that

“The reason I came here is because I have to warn you about something” (Takahashi)

“Ok… but how did you know that I was in Kyoto”

“You’ll go to Tokyo for second year, right?”

“Yeah…”

Sachi: How does he know that…

“In second year, you go to the same school as me. We become friends there, that’s how I know where you live, you told me in second year”

Sachi: this seems like a complete joke… but I become friends with him? He does know where I live and where I will go next year… I was able to become friends with someone like him? Though he’s a lot different now than the Takahashi I knew

“And you expect me to believe that?”

“Nope, you told me that you never believed me. But the information I’ll give you, you have to tell the Takahashi you see in second year”

“What do you mean ‘The Takahashi you see in second year’?”

“I won’t remember any of this. that I met you or I told you anything”

“Why?”

“Ahh… even if I explain it, you won’t believe me. So, just remember what I tell you today”

“Okay… what did you even wanted to warn me about anyways?”

“At the end of 2019, you’ll get into a plane to come back to Kyoto and the plane crashes…”

“And I die?”

“Yeah…”

“HAHAHAHAHA, what a nice joke”

Takahashi: I expected this to happen, but now that it is happening… it’s embarrassing, and it hurts a lot…

“No…” (Takahashi)

“Listen, your friend, she won’t forget this right?”

“Yeah”

“And she’s your classmate?”

“Yeah”

“Then why didn’t you just tell her? If I do get admission in the same school as you. She would be there too. So, she could have told me all this herself.”

“No… I had to…”

Takahashi: I can’t tell that Aoi leaves school in second year because of me…

“First joke about my death and then you don’t even have a proper reason why you are here. And you can’t even tell how you knew where I live”

“No… it’s not like that…”

Takahashi: she doesn’t believe me at all… well she wouldn’t, I just have to tell her what happens and what to do. What do I even tell her? I don’t know myself how to save her

“He just missed you a lot and wanted to meet you” (Aoi)

“Why? Wouldn’t I meet him in second year? He just had to wait 4 months”

“No… it’s not like that…” (Takahashi)

“Takahashi, why aren’t you telling her everything” (Aoi)

“Because according to her, I never told her anything about myself. she found out about everything in second year. If I tell now, I don’t know how much it effects the future”

“I understand… but what are you going to do now? Just walk back?” (Aoi)

“I won’t…”

“What is it? Tell me” (Sachi)

“I… won’t go to second year after this year. I will go straight to third year. I have already passed my second year.”

“So, you are saying that last year, you were in 2019, and now 2018?”

“Yeah…”

“How will I even believe that? I know that you watch anime. But I didn’t know that you’re that much into anime…”

“This isn’t because of anime…”

“Will you just listen to what he has to say? At first, I didn’t believe it either. But now I think that it might be true” (Aoi)

“Fine… Listening to a fantasy won’t hurt anyways…” (Sachi)

Sachi: since I watch anime

“It’s not a fantasy…” (Takahashi)

“Well, you telling me about when I die does sound like a fantasy, who knows when someone is going to die?”

“Someone who has seen it happen”

“Oh… so you have seen my die?”

“Yeah…”

Sachi: this might be interesting

“Believing for now, tell me. What happens. How do I die?”

“Next year, your dad has to leave Tokyo because of work, and he said that it was the last time he’s moving because of his job. So, he takes you with him, and that day your plane crashes”

“What day? What’s the date?”

“It was…”

Takahashi: should I tell her 27th December? At that time, I thought that there was still some time before she goes to Kyoto, so when she asked that she wanted to meet me, I spent normal time

“What??” (Sachi)

with her instead of worrying about her death. If I had known at that time that she was going to die the next day. I would have just tried to think of ways to save her instead of spending time with Sachi. If I tell her 27th, the last time I spent with her disappears… I should just say 2nd January

“2nd January”

“At the start of new year huh…”

“Yeah”

“So? What do I do?”

“I don’t know”

“Then what’s the point of telling me that I die? This doesn’t help me in any way”

“I know…”

“What happens to the plane?”

“Engine Failure”

“So, I just have to avoid getting on that plane”

“Yeah, but how would you know that it is not that plane”

“When did I leave?”

“In the morning”

“Then I’ll just take a different plane”

“How? Your father is the one who bought the plane tickets. And you said that your father won’t listen to you unless you have a real good reason,

Sachi: he even knows that?... maybe he is right about what he is saying

which obviously none of us had. Just that I have seen you die.” (Takahashi)

“You are right…” (Sachi)

Takahashi: TRAIN!

“You could take the train instead of a plane. It will take more time, but you will live”

“Yeah, but I don’t know if dad will agree, we both have always travelled through plane. I have never been alone on trains before. For that much time”

“Oh… You did say that you are his only daughter so he’s overprotective…”

Sachi: I shared this much with him? What was my relation with him…

“…yeah”

“But still, plane is not the option now. You have to take the train”

“Ok… I will try to ask him when the time comes…”

“Thanks”

“Just like you said before, yes I don’t believe you. But it won’t hurt me to remember this stuff. And if you are true, and we become friends in the next year, maybe I’ll believe this too”

“You will, I know” (Takahashi)

“Maybe…” (Sachi)

“It’s getting late, we should go back” (Aoi)

“Oh… yeah, it’s 19: 39. And it will take time on the train too” (Takahashi)

(In the train)

Will this really help? If her dad agrees and she travels through a train… I won’t know until I go back and see if she is still alive. For now, I have to pass first year.

I have made so many changes than before, but I don’t think it will affect the future much. Now, only Aoi and Sachi know what’s happening to me. And if I do shout at her, maybe this time she will wait, instead of going back to Ichikawa.

(Months later)

These past months were a little weird for me.

First thing, now I know where my jacket goes. That day, it was around 1 at night. Of course, it was cold, so I was wearing it. But Aoi didn’t think it would get that cold nor that we would get that late, so she didn’t bring any anything with her… and she was getting really cold, and I didn’t want her to catch a cold because of me so I gave her my jacket… and now I don’t have it.

Second… Aoi confessed… after some days of coming back from… and I don’t know why, but I couldn’t turn her down. So, I accepted… even though I don’t feel anything for her. I don’t understand why she would like me, but whatever. Third year won’t be like this probably. And she was my girlfriend when I started second year. So this was supposed to happen… or I should have turned her down. Then that day, I won’t shout at her at all… I don’t know, I shouldn’t make that many changes, just follow what happened.

Other than that, everything has been fine. Now I just hope that Sachi is alive when I go back.

Today’s 31st March, Sunday. And just like every time, I will go to sleep today and wake up on the first day of third year. It’s 22: 22 right now. I was thinking, what if I don’t go to sleep at all. What will happen then? should I try that? What if something happens because of this in the future. I should just go to sleep like normal. Don’t want to mess something up.
(Takahashi goes to sleep)

-june-
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