Mihari

There was nothing coming out of his phone.

But that wasn't unusual. Asahi knew there was usually a delay. But the longer he stared at his phone, the longer nothing happened.

Hugging his knees, Asahi buried his head. It didn't work on living beings. She wasn't coming.

The stonewall around his heart finally broke as tears began to stream down his face, dampening his suit.

What did he do wrong? He should have jumped in front of her. No, he should have fought the assailant rather than run away.

The thought repeatedly ran through Asahi's mind like a simulation, trying to find an answer in all of the noise.

Jump? Fight? Shield?

Fight? Jump.

Shield. PUnCh.

kicK.

SHi3ld!

¡ScrEAm!

"Asahi?"

He froze up as every thought in his mind was emptied.

"Asahi? Are you alright?"

Hesitantly, he raised his head. A worried face was staring at him with her head slightly tilted concerningly.

"Mi...hari?" The words barely muttered past his lips.

"Who else?" she asked, putting on a warm smile.

"Mihari!" Asahi wrapped his arms around and hugged her tightly. Tears burst through his closed eyes as he whispered repeatedly with a relieved grin.

"You're alright. You're fine..."

"Hey... too tight..." she gasped. Immediately, Asahi let her go and leaned back.

"Sorry!" He began to wipe his face. "I'm just so happy, Mihari"

The girl before him looked exactly the same as the picture. She wore the same lilac cardigan and white skirt while her hair flowed straight down. It was like they had just taken the selfie moments earlier rather than days.

A thought popped into Asahi's head as he remembered an issue. He reached for his phone.

"Seita! We need to find Seita!" He dialed his younger brother's number.

"Seita? Is he not here?" she asked, glancing around the room.

"No," Asahi gritted his teeth as the call went to voicemail. He leapt to his feet and began making his way toward the door.

"Stay here, I'll go bring Seita back! Don't let anyone in!" He declared. A hand reached out and held him back.

"Mihari?" Asahi asked, glancing behind him to see her trembling.

"Please... don't go," she pleaded. "It's dangerous."

Asahi stood in place and stared at her. He had to find Seita but Asahi knew she was right. A crazed gunman was loose in the halls. Even with a weapon of his own, Asahi didn't know how to fire a gun or fight against a lunatic.

But he had to find Seita.

"I got it," Asahi remembered and pulled out the business card from his pocket. His phone rang twice before the other side picked up. The sounds of chattering and loud cheers could be heard in the background.

"Hello! This is Alan Holsting. Protection Services. You need a guard, I'm the man in charge!" he said in English.

"Ah, Alan, it's Asahi," he tried to speak.

"Oh, kid! It's good to hear from ya!" Alan switched to Japanese. "Did you decide you needed little ol' me after all?"

"Please come to my room! I need your help! Room 502!" Asashi quickly explained, almost slurring his words together.

"Woah, slow down, kid! Buy me a drink first!" Alan laughed as the sound of glass clinking was heard. "I'll be there after a few more games, kay? I'm on a winning streak!"

"You don't understand. Please, just come here straight away—" The call began to turn to static.

"What was th**, kid? You** bre*king up," Alan's side abruptly disconnected, ending the call.

"Dear esteemed customers," an announcement jingled. "We have entered the dead zone section of our trip. All satellite-related technology will be out of commission for the rest of tonight. We apologize for this inconvenience."

"Damn!" Asahi almost threw his phone down in anger but gripped it tightly instead.

"Why don't we watch a movie while we wait?" she suggested, trying to calm him down. Making her way over to the living room, she opened the door between the two sections.

"Mihari, wait—"

Mihari's body was still situated on the couch in the dark, her skin pale. She stared at the copy of her body, not saying a word.

"Sorry," Asahi lowered his glance. "I didn't want you to see that."

Slowly, she strolled over to the corpse and looked down at Mihari. Her eyes traced the dress and her wavy hair before turning toward Asahi.

"Can you make a garbage bag?"

The winds roared loudly around them as the two of them stood outside on their room's porch. The darkness surrounded them with only a few spotlights from above, its lights barely reaching their floor. The waters below them were ink black with waves churning restlessly.

Asahi watched as she dragged the bag to the edge of the porch. Slowly, she lifted it up, resting its weight on the chairs before half of Mihari's body hung over the top. With a single push, the bag disappeared over the railings. A few seconds later, Asahi heard the splash.

The wind blew her hair back against her face as she stared out into the darkness. Asahi stared at her, hearing only the wind in his ears as they stood in place quietly. She finally let out a gentle breath and she held her hands behind her. She turned her head toward Asahi with a calm smile and relaxed eyes.

"Let's go back inside."

"Asahi? You look a bit pale," she pointed out with concern as she closed the bedroom door.

"It's nothing... I'm alright," Asahi lied, avoiding her gaze.

"I'm sorry. Maybe we shouldn't have done that." She twirled her hair around her finger.

"It's not that," Asahi gulped. "I... I just didn't want to lose you, Mihari."

"And you never will," she promised. "I'll stay by your side forever."

The two sat on the edge of the bed staring at the floor in silence.

"You... are Mihari, right?" Asahi asked, glancing at her. She smiled back, gazing into his eyes.

"Let me show you." Her hands gently clapped twice, throwing their bedroom into darkness.

A solid patterned knock on the door woke up Asahi. Getting out from under the covers, he put on a pair of shorts and picked up his undershirt from the ground. He buttoned it up as he made his way to the door and glanced through the peephole.

Alan stood outside, tapping his foot impatiently as he glanced around the hall. "Kid? You in there?"

Asahi quickly brushed his blonde hair with a hand before opening the door.

"About time, kid," Alan grunted. "Were you asleep or something?"

"Asahi?" Mihari trudged over, wearing an oversized white dress shirt. She rubbed her eyes as she balanced herself against the doorframe. "Who is it?"

"Oh, perhaps more than sleeping," Alan realized and rubbed his chin. Asahi placed an arm around the sleepy girl, allowing her to lean against him for support.

"Is it just the two of ya?" Alan noticed as he peeked into their room.

"No, I need you to find my brother," Asahi asked from him. Alan nodded his head understandingly before releasing a breath.

"It's not exactly what I'm used to but hell, I'll take any job ya offer," he shrugged.

"I'll also get your protection services too," Asahi added with a closed fist. "After you find my brother."

"Since you're a first-time customer and I quite like ya... 10k for your first day~" Alan shot a finger at him.

"Here's fifty for the remaining week," Asahi handed him a blue chip. Alan caught it with both hands and glanced at the boy with surprise.

"50k for just three days?" he wondered. "You made a big target on your back, didn't ya?"

Asahi ignored his remark as he continued glaring with a firm look on his face.

"You'll keep me, my friend, and my brother safe and I'll double it when we get off the ship," Alan negotiated with a stern expression on his face.

Alan stared at Asahi before letting out an amused laugh. He flipped the chip into the air and snatched it as he flashed a broad smile. "You have yourself a deal, kid."