Happiness Doesn't Last Forever

They danced all night with everything they had. They knew that this might be their last dance.

They were lucky enough to avoid the CIA all this while, but their luck might just run out any moment. If they got to the fisherman’s boat and set sail, they could escape for a few more months or probably even years if they were lucky. Everything counted on these final moments.

Akihiro watched her dancing, as Ayane seemed to be the happiest woman alive. He felt a sharp pain in his head, so intense that he had to immediately clutch his head as he struggled to endure it.

“Aki-kun! What happened?” Ayane asked as she looked at him, worried due to his sudden headache.

Akihiro slowly laid down, resting his back on the terrace wall. “I’m fine now…”

Ayane slowly sat next to him. “Don’t hold it in like that next time. Tell me if it’s hurting.”

“But if I told you, you’d stop dancing. You’d stop being happy.”

Ayane didn’t know what to say. Instead, she wrapped her arms around him and rested her head on his shoulder. “It’s okay, Aki-kun. I’m always happy with you. As long as I’m with you, everything will make me happy. Because I’ve made so many memories with you under the moon, I love the moonlit sky. I’m happy if I get to be with you forever. So promise me that you’ll survive.”

Akihiro’s pain in the head subsided. The exhaustion from the sleepless night before and the dancing, crept up his body, making him sleepy.

“Yeah, I’ll win.” he muttered as his eyes slowly closed.

“Wha-oh you slept?” Ayane asked but she got no reply. Akihiro had fallen fast asleep in her arms, on the terrace, under the moonlit sky.

She watched him as he slept peacefully. The first time she watched him sleep was when he was sick. This could probably be the last time.

Watching him sleep, made her feel sleepy too. The two of them held each other in their arms, as they drifted into their dreamlands together.

Akihiro and Ayane had to escape this country as soon as possible, no matter what. They had to use the fisherman’s boat and flee tomorrow, before it gets too late.

Time passed, as the moon dipped underneath the horizon, giving way for the sun to peek at the two lovers.

They truly wished that happy times like these could last forever. But fate was too cruel.

-Sync Connecting-

Akihiro woke up with a jolt, scaring Ayane. It was early morning, but it wasn’t the sunlight that woke Akihiro up.

“What happened, Aki-kun?” Ayane asked.

“Shhh,” he muttered as he placed his finger on her soft lips. “The CIA...they’re here.”

She began to panic. They were so close to escaping. If the CIA hadn’t appeared, they could have easily escaped the country by boat. They were so close to fulfilling their dreams.

Akihiro grabbed her shoulder and looked her in the eye. “Calm down. I have a plan. Just follow me, okay?”

She nodded and trusted Akihiro, letting him take control of the decision making.

“Can you hear them? They are searching for us on the first floor.” Akihiro whispered.

Ayane could hear it too. The sound of men ruffling through their belongings on the first floor. The terrace was right above the first floor.

They would be caught immediately.

Ayane was panicking, but she trusted Akihiro with everything she had. He had promised her that he’d win.

As they waited, they could hear the soldiers climb up the stairs. Akihiro just stood there, next to Ayane, and watched as the soldiers came to the terrace and pointed their guns at them. They reported their position over the radio and more troops reached the terrace, surrounding them completely with their guns pointed at them.

Ayane didn’t know what Akihiro was planning. What could he do in this situation?

This was game over for Akihiro.

Richard walked up the stairs and reached the terrace. He stood in front of the guards and ordered them to lower their weapons.

“You might have successfully tricked the CIA but you can’t escape them. I already told you, the CIA isn’t very forgiving.” Richard said.

“Where’s Natsume? Where’s Mr Kawasaki?” Akihiro asked.

“Why do you think you can ask me questions? Do you not realise the position you are in?” Richard asked as he took a step forward.

“Ah, I know… Think of it as my last wish.” Akihiro muttered.

Ayane had always been mentally prepared to let go of Akihiro. But now that the time was coming, she didn’t want to let him go. If he gave up and resigned to his fate, she would have no other choice but to go along with it. After all, she was powerless.

“Fine...That boy and Mr Kawasaki are in the car. They are our hostages. I promised Mr Kawasaki that I wouldn’t kill him before I killed you. He wanted to see the end of his creation with his very own eyes. I didn’t refuse his wish. I owe him my life after all.” Richard said as he came closer.

“What about Natsume?” Akihiro asked as he took a few steps back.

“That boy...he was the one who made the plan to trick me, right? He would make an excellent agent if he joined the CIA. But looks like luck isn’t in his favour. Once I kill you, the CIA will eliminate both of them as well.” Richard said.

“Once you kill me...right?” Akihiro asked as he leaned on the railing of the terrace, holding Ayane’s hand.

“What are yo-” Richard stopped mid-sentence. He realised what Akihiro was planning.

“Fire!!” Richard shouted, but it was too late.

Akihiro had already grabbed Ayane’s legs, carrying her in his arms as he jumped off the terrace.

Time seemed to slow down, as Akihiro and Ayane were falling from the terrace. The gunshots could be heard in the background.

The air whistled near her ear as they were falling down. She clung onto him tightly, entrusting her life with him.

“I’ll win…” Akihiro muttered. Ayane noticed his eyes. Determination and sorrow emanated through his eyes as they landed on the ground floor.

They had fallen from a two-story building. Akihiro landed on his feet and screamed in pain as his legs bore the intense pressure of two people falling off a building.

But he didn’t have the time to worry about himself. The soldiers were already running down the stairs. There were a few soldiers on the ground, completely startled by Akihiro’s sudden jump.

Before they could come back to their senses, Akihiro swiftly ran towards the garage, carrying Ayane in his arms.

The soldiers raised their guns and ran towards the garage, chasing them.

The new black motorbike was still kept in the garage; its key remained plugged in the keyhole as it was. He knew that this was the best way to escape for now.

He placed her on the back and sat on the bike. She clung onto him tightly as he started the bike, and revved it.

The soldiers reached the garage. Before they could aim their guns at him, he increased the throttle, speeding away.

The bike zipped forward, ramming the soldiers in the front and breaking through their formation. They began firing, but the bike had already zipped past them.

He drove on the road, zipping past the traffic. The CIA ran into their black vehicles and chased him.

There was a considerable distance between them as Akihiro kept speeding up, taking advantage of the fact that the motorbike had a top speed of 300 kmph.

He turned to the highway and increased the speed, maxing it out.

This felt a bit too easy for Akihiro.

‘Why didn’t the soldiers just shoot us at the terrace? Also, why were there so few soldiers on the ground floor?’

Either way, they couldn’t keep running forever. Neither could they go back and use the fisherman’s boat to escape the country. On top of that, they had nothing on them. They had left everything at Rumi’s summer beach villa while escaping in a rush.

But Ayane wasn’t thinking about it anymore. That near-death encounter with Richard on the terrace had scared her. She held onto him tightly as he zipped down the highway, as the traffic kept reducing. Her hair danced in the winds as she shouted, “I didn’t know you could ride a bike!”

“I used to ride my father’s bike. He taught me how to ride a bike last year. But I haven’t ridden a bike at 300kmph!” Akihiro shouted as the strong breeze continued to blow past their faces.

Ayane closed her eyes and smiled as she rested her head on his back. If this was her last moment, then she wanted to enjoy it as much as possible. The noise of other vehicles faded slowly as she clung onto him tightly, hoping that this wasn’t their last moment.

But to Akihiro, it felt very odd. Even though this was a major highway, leading to the Port of Tokyo, there were barely any vehicles.

The CIA were still in pursuit, but they weren’t speeding up, nor were they firing bullets. Something was wrong. Akihiro continued driving forward, observing his surroundings as he zipped through the lonely highway.

But he still couldn’t shake the feeling off. The low number of soldiers on the ground floor, the CIA not firing as they chased Akihiro, everything felt off.

Something was wrong.

The highway was suddenly empty. Nor were there any signs of people in the buildings around. The whole aura was oddly quiet. The CIA was still in pursuit, with dozens of black sedans following Akihiro and Ayane.

Akihiro zipped through the highway at top speed, gliding past the wind. Ayane held onto him tightly as her hair spread apart and waved in the air.

Suddenly Akihiro slammed the brake and turned, making the bike drift to the side.

The road in front of him had been blocked by armoured vehicles.

The camouflage coating on the vehicle, the soldiers in full gear standing next to the vehicles with their guns pointed at them, it was the US military. This was bad. Japan housed a lot of American bases, troops and ammunition. If the military were here, it meant that the US Government was now serious about eliminating Akihiro.

He had become a national security secret that had to be concealed at all costs. It all started making sense. The odd silence in the air, the lack of people in the busiest parts of the city, the reason why they were able to escape easily, everything made sense. The US military had evacuated everyone beforehand. The CIA had successfully lured him into their trap. Since the Haneda airport was nearby, the Americans chose this area to stop Akihiro. It was the closest place for the American troops to land in Tokyo. The CIA let him escape, as he drove himself into the clutches of the US military.

He switched gears and took a diversion as he sped towards the right.

“This is bad. The US military is already here. Looks like we are surrounded…” he said as he slammed the breaks and drifted, coming to a complete stop.

The road in front of them was blocked by armoured vehicles all over. The US soldiers pointed their guns at Akihiro and Ayane. The black sedans had finally caught up to Akihiro, stopping at a distance. The agents in black suits got out of the car and stood there, with their guns pointing at Akihiro.

Richard slowly got out of his car too. Two other agents came up to him, as they dragged Natsume and Mr Kawasaki in handcuffs. Janice got out of the driver’s seat and stood next to Richard.

“It’s over, Subject 005. Give up.” Richard shouted.

Ayane looked at Akihiro. She didn’t know what to do. “Aki-kun, what do we do now? We are cornered.”

“This is the end, Ayane…” Akihiro muttered as he raised both his hands into the air.

“The end…” Ayane muttered. She knew that this time would come soon, but she had always hoped for a miracle to occur somehow, so that she could escape with Akihiro, and live a normal life somewhere else. But the gods were cruel and fate was unfair. This was their destiny, a cruel one, and she had no other option but to accept it.

She raised both her hands into the air too.

Richard slowly walked forward while the two agents behind dragged Natsume and Mr Kawasaki by their handcuffs. They threw both of them in front of Richard, who took a gun out and pointed it at them.

“Subject 005, do not resist. Hand the woman over and surrender. Else these two will die here, right now!” Richard said as he negotiated.

Janice whispered into Richard’s ear, “Are we resorting to blackmail now?”

“If this bastard is capable of showing emotions, then this should be the easiest way to trap him,” Richard replied.

“But we already have him cornered. He can’t escape from here.”

“Dear, he’s a lion. When he’s cornered, he won’t just back down. He won’t go down without a fight.” Richard said. He pointed his gun at Natsume’s head. “A lion might be the king of the forest, but when the whole forest is on fire, the king will burn along with it too.”

Natsume looked back at Richard. His eyes were filled with rage. But the gun was pointed at him. There was nothing he could do. He was powerless, at the most important time.

Richard looked back at Akihiro, waiting for an answer.

Ayane’s worst fear had come true. They were cornered and Akihiro had given up. She wasn’t panicking anymore. Rather sorrow filled her heart as she knew that the one she loved was going to die, along with her.

She had been mentally prepared to accept it but she didn’t want to resort to allowing it to happen. She didn’t want to lose him. But if Akihiro gave up hope, she couldn’t do anything.

Akihiro looked at Ayane and nodded. “This is the end, Ayane…”