Kokoro Connect

Taichi regained consciousness.

He could feel a bit of heat remained in his body.

Memories of his past that were long washed away surged his mind once more.

"...Hm? Whoa!?"

He looked at himself and noticed he was dressed in several child-sized clothes.

"Are you feeling okay?"

Nagase asked with concern, her expression was tense.

"Ah, I"m fine..."

"Here, get changed."

Nagase said and handed Taichi the clothes he was wearing before.

"What"s the status now?"

Taichi inquired, but Nagase shook her head.

He looked towards the window, only to find the pitch black darkness that shrouded the sky.

"Sorry, it"s all my fault... I"m really sorry. I won"t ask you to forgive me... but please let me say sorry."

As she finished updating Taichi their situation, Inaba bowed her head on the table and started apologizing.

"You don"t need to feel that bad... I was the one to blame to begin with... If you keep apologizing like that I"d feel even more terrible..."

The CRC members are now trapped in a situation where they had no way to tell when they would undergo "Time Regression" phenomenon or how long it would last.

And this time, including Taichi, it could be any of the five.

"...So during the roughly five hours I became twelve, everyone but Nagase had undergone "Time Regression" once..."

Taichi repeated what he just heard, not that it was of any meaning.

"...Yes, that"s right."

Inaba murmured sombrely. Across her view, she could see Kiriyama(9) and Aoki(7), both wrapped in blankets and playing happily.

It was past seven o"clock at night.

"I"m hungry~ I"m hungry~"

Kiriyama(9) sang rhythmically.

"Hey, it"s dangerous, don"t twirl on the chair like that... actually don"t you think your sense of balance is too good?"

"Taichi-san you should try too~ Let"s see who can twirl the most rounds!"

"I said it"s dangerous, be a good girl."

Taichi carried Kiriyama(9) down from the chair.

"Boo~ Boring~"

"Hey, Taichi, what are you doing, hurry up."

Inaba called out at Taichi.

"Alright, Taichi, Aoki, I"m counting on you guys."

Inaba patted on their shoulders.

"Understood."

"Roger that, Captain Inaba!"

The two were given a mission: They were to buy preservable food that would last them a while.

"You gotta be quick. If any one of you undergo "Time Regression", call me right away and rush back as fast as you can."

Under this circ.u.mstance where they could be turned into a child any moment, Taichi and the others could no longer step outside freely.

Physical transformation was visible by the naked eye.

Even then, they still needed food and water.

"If you can, use the public bathroom on the way. We need to reduce the number of time we head out as much as possible."

"Hm, can"t we use the bathroom at the store?"

Aoki asked.

"We don"t know when we"ll undergo "Time Regression", it"s best that we stick to remote areas."

"Understood, Inaba-chan."

The reason the two were chosen was because their "Time Regression" phenomenon ended the most recently.

If the phenomenon had just ended, they should have a laxer time frame before it happens again.

Needless to say, this was only their wishful thinking.

"We"ll be right back."

"Take care... Be safe."

Nagase reminded them and saw their way out. However, she looked pallid and weak, so much that one would want to respond to her: "We should be asking you instead. Are you alright?"

Time pa.s.sed nine o"clock at night. The five of them were not undergoing "Time Regression" at the moment.

Nagase had turned thirteen year-old for an hour and half before this. By this time, everyone had undergone "Time Regression" once since «Number Two» randomized every variable of this phenomenon.

"...Okay, how did it go? My family should be no problem, at least for tonight."

Inaba inquired the other four"s status with their families.

Taichi and the others notified their families with "I can"t come home tonight, and I probably won"t be able to for a while."

Once they were reverted, they would no longer be conscious of their actions.

It was no longer a situation where they could make up something and gloss over with it.

"Mine will be fine for now as well."

Aoki said, then Taichi spoke:

"I think I"m fine... Except my family... is furious. Even my ever carefree mother got mad."

Not to mention Taichi heard his sister said: "I don"t care about Onii-chan anymore, I"m disowning him!"

If he was ever forgiven, Taichi had a feeling that his wallet would be squeezed dry.

"My family... might be a bit of concern."

Kiriyama pressed her forehead, distressed.

"They"ve been suspecting "something is up" ever since I"ve been staying out during the winter break, and now I"m practically running away from home..."

Taichi remembered the gentle yet concerned face of Kiriyama"s mother.

"Not to mention... my sister has already found this place. Even though I asked her to keep it a secret and she said okay too, but I don"t know how long she could hold on..."

Even their hiding place was no longer a guarantee.

"...What about Nagase?"

Taichi inquired. Nagase, who was staring at the floor absently, lifted her head abruptly in response.

"Eh? Oh, mine"s okay for now... although mine"s okay..."

"What"s up? If you"re concerned about something tell us."

Inaba urged.

"Erm... can I, just for a little bit... can I please go home? I mean really just for a little bit!"

Her expression was desperate.

"Rejected. Silly. If I say yes, then it would mean we could do anything we want, wouldn"t it? If I let that happen, we"d eventually be... found out."

If what was happening to them were found out by the public...

They had discussed the scenario many times, about what might happen to them and what they could do.

There would be a commotion, and it would end there——Witnesses would be sent to asylums. And they, on the other hand, would be thrown into research facilities.

In the worst case scenario, «Heartseed» or «Number Two» or even others alike would erase everything.

Those beings seemed to have done this several times before. Yet there were no rumors nor traces of such in public even until now. Inaba mentioned that, considering how fast information spreads in modern media, one could deduce that those beings had some sort of mechanism to keep things under wrap.

If that a.s.sumption was correct, then what would be erased? Their memories? The truth? Or worse... everything?

They could not deny any of those possibilities.

There was no limit to what those beings could do.

"Of course... It wouldn"t help... Sorry, don"t worry about it."

Nagase was very disheartened; she looked as if she would crumble at the slightest touch of the wind.

As the night gradually turned darker, the temperature became colder and colder.

To keep Inaba(3) from catching a cold, the others covered her in several layers of blanket, and had her sleep near the heater.

"...Is she asleep? For a three year-old child, she"d be very sleepy by twelve at midnight."

Kiriyama said gently.

"Okay, lemme get some air in here."

Aoki opened the windows.

Since they were using an oil heater, they needed to be aware of air ventilation.

"It"s not safe to have everybody sleep with the oil heater on..."

Taichi murmured and tried to think of something.

"Ah~ You know, I wanna take a bath! I"m getting all sticky from the sweat..."

Kiriyama complained and kept her voice low to avoid waking Inaba(3).

"I want to take one too... but there"s nothing we can do now, so I"ll endure it."

Nagase(11), though young, was a mature and responsible girl.

He slowly opened his eyes.

His head felt dizzy and weighed as if it were made of lead.

Taichi tried to stay awake for as long as possible in order to keep an eye from accidents, but he seemed to have succ.u.mbed to his sleep.

His back hurt.

He could hear someone moving in the background.

Taichi rubbed his eyes and sat up.

The light from portable lamp stung his eyes a little.

Where the light could just reach, Taichi caught a glimpse of a shadow moving.

The electric light beamed on what seemed to be smooth and fair skin.

It was a dazzling sight; its surface gleamed like porcelain.

The shoulder outlined a curve so beautiful that one would be tempted to touch it.

As Taichi followed his view. The bright skin endlessly extends into the dark, and came across a thigh——

"Hm?"

Taichi let out a noise in surprise.

"Eh?"

——Nagase, who upper body was only dressed in her bra, looked around towards Taichi.

"Uh? Taichi?"

Nagase quickly grabbed her sweater nearby and covered herself.

"I—I didn"t see anything! Didn"t see anything at all!"

Taichi averted his eyes in panic.

"Didn"t see anything" obviously implied otherwise, Taichi thought to himself as he embarra.s.singly listened to the rustling sounds of Nagase getting dressed.

"I—It"s okay now, Taichi."

Nagase called out, and Taichi turned around to face Nagase again.

"Did you just... turn back to normal?

"Yeah, sorry I woke you."

As Nagase was folding the clothes she wore as a child, she asked:

"How old... was I?"

"Eleven."

"Eleven, I see... What was I like?"

Nagase folded her clothes very tidily.

"You were a very responsible... and clever girl... something like that."

Taichi pondered for a better answer.

"Responsible girl... you say? Seemed that way..."

Was she implying that it was not the case?

"...Never mind that for now. Yui and Aoki... they were amazing back there today."

"Yeah... they were."

Very amazing.

Amazing that, there was nothing needed to be add.

"They are truly... amazing... I feel like I"ll never catch up to them."

"...I feel the same."

They were overwhelming, Taichi could not help but to feel that way.

"Taichi too..."

"What you mean by "too"? You made it sound like I"m amazing or something."

"Aren"t you?"

Nagase looked towards Taichi with a serious expression.

"No such thing... I"m powerless on my own..."

Nagase"s expression turned sombre.

Suddenly, Taichi realized.

Why were they so down after seeing Kiriyama and Aoki sprinting forward?

That could not be right. Definitely.

"However..."

Taichi made up his mind and spoke, but immediately stumbled upon his words.

"Erm... But... Even though I"m powerless alone... Together with a certain someone, I feel we could achieve many things... Aoki and Kiriyama as well, they changed because there were two of them... I"d like to believe it as such."

He managed to conclude it nicely.

""Together with a certain someone" you say..."

Nagase looked towards the floor and murmured, as if trying to convince something to herself.

"Well, I was going to——"

"Oh yeah, why are we staying up for so long chatting anyway? We should get some sleep while we can! Mmm~ I left the blanket for too long, it"s getting cold!"

Nagase quickly ended the conversation.

She smiled weakly at Taichi.

It was a brief smile, like a flash in the pan. Yet because of that it felt even more beautiful, like it was from a dream.

Nagase returned to where she was sleeping and covered herself in her blanket.

Taichi put the portable lamp in a location where the light would not be visible from the outside. The room felt dim and cold even under the light.

He proceeded to sleep along side with everyone else in the room——Nagase, Kiriyama, Aoki, and Inaba(3).

They curled up tightly to keep themselves as warm as possible.

It was a warm, but worrying sight.

Taichi felt as if a sudden darkness in the room dawned upon them, devouring them.

A certain darkness that made Taichi dread from deep within his heart.

What would happen to them?

They could not even step out to places with people, let alone go home.

With the food they bought earlier, they could hang on for another day. But what about after that?

Their money resource were limited, and they still needed to replenish the fuel for the heater. And bathing? What about cleaning their clothes?

In case where they could no longer stay here, where should they go?

How would they explain to their families?

What would happen if this continued after school starts? What should they do?

Run? To where?

Could they survive at all?

Taichi could not answer any of that.

Not to mention, the one who created this situation was none other than——himself.

He was too naive; too naive in every way.

Why did he not kept his promise with «Number Two»?

Was it because of Inaba"s pressure?

Was it because he heard "It will end soon", so he let his guard down?

These were just terrible excuses that could not even be considered excuses.

Besides, he had no right to make excuses to begin with.

It was because Taichi never persisted on keeping his "promise" with «Number Two».

He was only going along because he could not decide.

He was given an important task, yet he wavered.

Had he even taken the problem seriously?

Had he seriously tried to consider his course of actions?

He gave up since the beginning because he felt he could not do it, did he not?

He did not even have the right to lament, because he never tried.

He feared his responsibility. He used his weakness as an excuse.

He claimed that he disliked seeing anyone around him in pain and intervened to help, yet he tried to escape when it came to his own problems.

Pathetic, he thought.

If it were others, they would have pulled it off beautifully. Thinking about just that frustrated him.

But it was too late. No matter how much he would regret——he could not return to the past.

After he made sure Inaba(3) did not catch any cold and was sleeping soundly, Taichi wrapped himself in his blanket.

Even with several layers of blanket, he could still feel the concrete floor; its coldness crept beneath him.

The sun arose. Then the sun descended.

The second night since the randomizing of the phenomenon dawned upon the CRC members.

"Time Regression" occurred several times today.

"I said, a friend of mine picked us up to visit his villa... Huh? Get him on the phone? That"s... Ah... The signal is really bad out here in the mountains..."

Kiriyama hung up and turned off her phone"s power. She said sombrely:

"...This is bad. At this rate, my family will call the cops..."

"I have to say though, Kiriyama... your story was kinda far-fetched..."

Taichi said, not that his own story was any better.

The air in the room was chilling and heavy.

They had temporary turned off the heater in order to save fuel.

Taichi"s stomach made a unpleasant growl. Even in such critical condition, he could still feel the hunger.

He touched his hair briefly. It felt icky.

They were desperate, both in body and mind. Everyone was beginning to look wan.

In fact, they would probably collapse any minute. But they endured it because they were together.

However, they did not know how much longer they could hold on.

"...Let"s talk about this while we"re all here."

Inaba rallied everyone.

Her voice was weaker than usual. One could see her exhaustion.

At this moment, n.o.body was undergoing "Time Regression".

"First of all we were talking about seeking help. Until we have no other choice, I"d like to hold that off for now. If possible I wanna avoid getting other people involved in this mess."

Everyone agreed.

"...I"m sorry."

Taichi apologized.

"Didn"t I say stop apologizing? You silly... Anyway, since we can"t really do anything else right now, we should try and replenish some food for tomorrow."

"...only for tomorrow, would that be enough, Inaba-chan? Don"t you think it"s better to stock up more in one go?"

Even Aoki, who was still rather cheerful in the morning, looked withered right now.

"Yes, it would be sensible to decrease our frequency of stepping out in order to reduce risk. However... since anything could happen to us any minute, I want to save ourselves some cash."

"You mean... in case any of us get sick?" Kiriyama asked.

"Yes."

Even their lives were on the line.

"Anyway..."

"Ah, sorry! Phone call."

Nagase quickly picked up her phone and stood up.

"h.e.l.lo, yes——Hm? Uh-huh, uh-huh... Eh?"

Nagase stiffened.

"Wait, Mom? What"s wrong? Mom!"

Nagase exclaimed anxiously; the situation did not sound good.

"Mom, wait——Ah!"

Nagase took the phone off her ear and redialed several times, but it did not go through.

Nagase began trembling.

"...What do I do..."

Nagase murmured weakly with her eyes swollen.

Nagase hesitantly explained what happened during the winter break.

One day, Nagase"s second father appeared at her family"s doorstep. According to Nagase, he was a violent man. Kiriyama and Aoki, who did not know of this beforehand, were shocked.

Even though he was once her father, Nagase had three succeeding fathers after him. They never contacted each other since he left, let alone meeting.

They had no idea how he found them, but he showed up nonetheless.

"...He was her ex-husband after all, so Mom let him in."

In the end, the man started brooding in their home.

"At first he would help around the house... we, too, thought he wanted to make up... but then... he began idling around and started asking for money to drink..."

And he was becoming more violent by the day.

Even though he had not hit anyone yet, he would throw things whenever he was drunk.

As Taichi listened, he could not help but to feel a sudden rush in his head.

Nagase was troubled all these time, how come he had never noticed it?

He should have been protecting everyone before he was caught in the "Time Regression" phenomenon.

"What"s with him sounding like the kind of b.u.m we see in books... you should kick him out of your house."

Inaba muttered angrily.

"I thought... we might be able to start over."

Nagase said.

"I... wondered from time to time, if I"ve done it a better way, things might change for the better."

If the past could be redone.

"There were many options that I didn"t take."

The world is a series of once only multiple choice questions.

"...But, in the end... I failed to play my role properly. Mom just told me that I... "must not go home"..."

Playing her role properly?

What did Nagase mean by playing her role properly?

"This sounds... critical, does it?"

Kiriyama asked tactfully.

"...I don"t know... but..."

"Why didn"t you say anything before?"

Inaba inquired sternly, her tone was filled with slight hint of anger.

"Because... that"s my problem after all."

"That may be true, but——"

"Sorry!"

Nagase stood up and took out her phone.

She spun around and picked up the call.

"h.e.l.lo? Mo——"

Nagase froze.

"...D... Dad..."

Nagase seemed to address that man as her "Dad".

"...Um, ah, yes... Yes... Huh?"

Nagase"s tone s.h.i.+fted abruptly.

"Wait! Please don"t! Dad——"

She kept the phone by her ear, and stood motionless.

After a few seconds, Nagase slowly lowered her phone.

The room was silent, no one said a word.

The mood around Nagase was so tense that no one was able to say anything to her.

Nagase turned around to face the others——She was close to succ.u.mbing to tears, her face distorted by emotion.

"What do I do... what do I do... what do I do?"

Nagase clutched her head and collapsed on her knees.

"What do I do? I must go home quick... but if I undergo "Time Regression" on the way, I"ll cause trouble for everyone! I can"t do that! But then..."

Taichi had never seen Nagase so desperate.

"Calm down, Nagase!" "Iori." "I—Iori!" "Iori-chan!"

Taichi, Inaba, Kiriyama and Aoki called out to Nagase.

But none of that went through to Nagase.

It was as if her soul was stolen.

"Nagase!"

Taichi rushed to Nagase"s side and gripped her shoulders.

"What do I do... I must hurry home... But I can"t... I can"t bring us any more trouble... But I have to go! What do I do?"

She appeared so frail as if she was going to break any second.

Taichi almost panicked along with her, but knowing it would only make things worse, he managed to calm himself down.

He feel he must protect her.

Taichi wanted to protect her.

There must be at least hundreds and thousands of things going through Nagase"s mind at the moment.

Therefore, Taichi only asked her:

"What does Nagase want to do?"

Nothing would work without knowing this.

"I don"t know... I don"t know... I don"t know any more..."

Nagase only kept shaking her head.

——Next moment, Nagase shoulder slipped from Taichi"s grip.

They could not tell what happened.

Upon closer look, they saw what seemed to be a grade-schooler Nagase.

It was the "Time Regression" phenomenon.

Without a word, the child-Nagase stood up from the floor. She tucked back her falling clothes and headed towards the door.

"Where are you going?" Kiriyama asked.

The child-Nagase stopped and looked back at them.

"Home."

"W—Why?"

Taichi continued.

"I"m going to protect Mom. If I play my role right, Dad will be in a better mood."

Those were eyes that were pure and clear: Untainted, crystal clear eyes. They emitted a dazzling aura, one could even call it sacred.

"...Why does it have to be you, Iori-chan, to protect your mother?" Inaba inquired.

"Because I love Mom."

That was the only reason. Nothing more.

Without the slightest trace of doubt, only answering to her own feelings.

A feeling that struck the others in awe.

The child understood what was important more than they did.

"Ugh..."

The grade-schooler Nagase suddenly gripped on her body——and instantly returned to the normal Nagase.

"Strange... I... Huh? Did I undergo "Time Regression"?"

She started tidying her clothes, her expression confused.

"...Eh? How long has it been?"

"It was only a moment... about a minute."

Taichi answered.

"Ah... Then... I... I..."

Nagase murmured absently.

"I remember..."

Tears started flowing from her eyes.

"Strange... Why?"

Nagase smiled wryly and wiped her eyes.

She hid her face beneath her sleeves, and stayed motionless.

Then, she lifted her head. Her expression was determined.

"...I"m sorry, I"ve decided to go home."

Her stance was too gripping, that no one was able to do anything before she started moving.

"...Hold on, Nagase!"

Taichi hurriedly grabbed her by shoulder.

"I know I"m being stupid... But I have to hurry home... I"m sorry."

"Iori..."

"Iori-chan, you..."

Kiriyama and Aoki did not know what to say to her.

"Everyone here is important to me... I don"t want to put everyone in danger just for the sake of me... but I... there"s also someone else important to me... that want to protect."

Her eyes were filled with tears, which fully showed her true feelings.

There were many important things in this world.

They were not the only one in trouble in this world.

"I won"t do anything that would put you guys at risk, I"ll handle this myself."

"Ah..."

Taichi could not stop Nagase from shaking him off.

Nagase"s past father was brooding in her home. Nagase"s family was in trouble because of that man. To prevent the worst, Nagase must go home. Although Nagase hesitated at first due to the phenomenon, she had made up her mind and would rush home no matter what.

It happened so quickly, Taichi was unsure how to react.

And while he was stuck in confusion, Nagase would leave for her mother on her own...

"Hold it right there you freaking idiot!!!"

Inaba let out a furious, thunderous roar.

"You idiot! Why are you acting on your own!?"

She rushed forward with an overwhelming force and blocked in front of Nagase.

Inaba was the always most considerate person when it came to the CRC members. She would always make proper decisions base on different risks and circ.u.mstances.

For Inaba, who wanted to protect everyone, Nagase"s course of action was unacceptable.

"Haven"t you already failed once before!?"

Inaba shouted.

"Failed... before?"

Inaba"s vigorous gesture puzzled Nagase.

"I"m talking about what"s making you so painful right now! Do you know why you failed?"

Inaba pointed straight at Nagase"s scar.

"Why... why... you mean..."

Nagase, overwhelmed by Inaba, murmured incoherently.

"It"s because you won"t tell anyone, won"t ask anyone for help, and tried to do everything on your own! Why can"t you understand!?"

"I... I..."

"And now you"re trying to solve everything on your own again, then you start crying when it goes out of control, yet you try to charge head on by yourself again... Do you really think it"s gonna end well!?"

"If I don"t try... No, I have to try——"

"Look around you! ...What do you have around you!?"

Nagase looked around the room, and caught Inaba, Taichi, Kiriyama, and Aoki in her eyes.

She began to waver.

"But... This is my... family matters..."

"Stop kidding your——"

"Stop kidding yourself!"

As he was wondering who shouted over Inaba, Taichi realized that, much to his surprise, it was none other than himself.

Everyone"s focus fell on Taichi. He was startled, but it did not stop him from speaking:

"It may not have anything to do with us... and it"s normally not for us outsiders to intervene... but if Nagase you are suffering from it, then it becomes our problem!"

Because someone important was suffering.

"Er... though I agree that I"m meddling too much..."

"This is not the time to say that!"

Inaba patted loudly on Taichi"s shoulder.

Though she did not sound very pleased, Inaba grinned at Taichi.

As if she was saying "Good job" to him.

""Speak up if you"re worried", "Don"t run off and do stupid things without a word", these are all words you told me before, aren"t they? That"s why if you"re troubled, tell me. There"s a limit to how much I can notice you know."

Inaba said gently, as if trying to envelop Nagase in warmth.

"You have reliable companions right now. Don"t you ever forget that."

There would always be things that could not be accomplished alone.

Which was why, there would always be people around to help.

"You have me too, Iori!"

"Me too, Iori-chan!"

Kiriyama and Aoki said.

"I, too... will always be by your side."

Taichi said.

Inaba added:

"Reliable, available, and would do so without a second thought——with such companions, what will you do?"

Inaba approached Nagase.

Friends, companions... What are they?

"You guys... Everyone..."

Nagase murmured absently, unsure of what her own expression would be.

And then——

"...Ugu... Uu... Uu..."

Nagase began crying like a child.

Her face was distorted from tears, and her hands rubbing her eyes.

"...Of course, you"re still the one to make the call. Even I wouldn"t want to forcefully interfere with other people"s family matters. I agree that there are certain lines we shouldn"t cross. Well then, what will you do?"

Inaba said lightheartedly.

As if it was not a big deal.

As if saying there was no need of courtesy, as it was meant to be, so there was no need to worry.

Nagase snuffed, and wiped her eyes to stop the tears.

Somewhere, sometime, those tears would one day flow again, Taichi thought.

It was wonderful to see those flowing tears not being the cold, unfeeling tears from Nagase"s broken heart, but the warm and comforting tears instead.

Nagase kept her head lowered, and said in a sobbing voice:

"I"ve... always thought that... was something I must solve on my own..."

Her statement was not necessary wrong.

But there was not a rule in this world that says you must solve everything on your own.

"...Not to mention this was my own failure, so I feel I must mend it myself... but... in this situation... and my problem... Hence... Therefore..."

"Iori-chan, you can just put it simpler."

"That"s right, Iori. You only need one sentence."

Light of salvation dawned upon Nagase.

Aoki and Kiriyama stepped forward to be Nagase"s light of guidance.

Perhaps they were influenced by yesterday"s event. Words from those two were powerful and convincing.

Nagase, under everyone"s guidance, finally lifted her head.

Her eyes were swollen, her expression distorted, and she held on her tears.

In the end, Nagase spoke the magic words:

"...Will you please help me?"

Words by a companion, words that would make others strive forward.

The girl who had tried to carry the weight of everything, is now asking for help.

No one answered.

There was no need to answer.

"Hey, Iori. What"s the situation then? Do you just need to get home?"

"Eh? Ah... I don"t know what"s going on either... I need to be there to see for myself..."

"Alright, but you must not go by yourself... Should we split into two groups? You know what——let"s just all go together!"

"""Yes!"""

Taichi, Kiriyama and Aoki echoed at the exact same time.

The five ran at top speed towards Nagase"s house.

They did not take the train nor the taxi——Correction, they could not.

If "Time Regression" occurred in closed s.p.a.ce, there would be no way to cover it.

They took the remote routes as much as possible.

There was no time to plan properly.

They would act accordingly whenever one of them undergo "Time Regression"——Such was the only thing they could decide.

It had been a long while since Nagase received the phone call.

They did not stop to rest, only kept running, and running.

They pray that they would not undergo "Time Regression".

They must hurry towards their destination, and quickly resolve the problem.

"Ugh!"

Inaba suddenly pressed against her chest and fell on one knee.

"Inaban! Are you alright?"

"Inaba!"

Nagase and Taichi shouted out.

"The heat... This is——"

Inaba"s body transformed abruptly.

"Wait! You gotta be kidding!"

Nagase quickly embraced the shrunken Inaba and s.h.i.+elded her from sight.

Fortunately they were on a fairly dark road and there was no sign of other people nearby.

"Ina... Himeko-chan, how old are you?"

Nagase inquired, and proceeded to roll up Inaba"s over-length sleeves.

".. Twelve."

"Puff... puff, six-grader, is she? ... It"ll be difficult to bring her along..."

Taichi began thinking. Not to mention that Inaba(12)"s clothes were too big that they made it difficult for her to move, she might have less physical strength than usual.

"Aoki!"

Kiriyama suddenly screamed.

Taichi looked towards Aoki, only to find his clothes remained on the ground.

"No way!"

Kiriyama searched among Aoki"s clothes and found a small child popping out from it.

"U... Uweee..."

"There, there, don"t cry! It"s cold out here, don"t come out! Stay still."

Kiriyama wrapped the clothes around Aoki and picked him up.

"Waa~"

"Let"s see... How old are you? Can you talk?"

"Awawa~"

"N—Not good... he doesn"t seem to have learned to talk yet..."

Aoki seemed to have been reverted to around one year-old.

"What do I do... It"s all my fault... What do I do..."

Nagase entered a slight state of panic.

"These two both underwent "Time Regression"... If it occurs on us too... And if these two return to normal out here... Ahhh..."

Kiriyama began to panic as well.

Taichi felt his heart racing.

A nauseating feeling rushed through his chest; he felt he would throw up any minute.

He then pinched his hand and pulled himself from being overwhelmed by unpleasant thoughts.

Calm down—— He told himself.

The more he wanted to avoid, to escape, the more he must confront it.

If the greater the damage that failure would cause, the more he had to muster up courage.

He already failed once and put his companions in jeopardy.

He would not fail again.

This time, with resolution, he would face it and find a way out.

"...Kiriyama, can you bring Inaba and Aoki back to the building?"

That was the best option he could think of.

"Eh? On my own?"

"Yes, I and Nagase will head towards her house."

"B—But, what if Yui undergoes "Time Regression"... and there"s no guarantee that I and Taichi won"t undergo the phenomenon together..."

Nagase said.

Taichi knew it was a gamble.

He looked straight into Kiriyama"s eyes.

Kiriyama looked back at him with the same keenness, then she checked on Aoki(1) in her arms.

"I understand. I"ll do as Taichi say."

"Uh, Yui..."

"We"ve made a decision, and we"ll carry it out!"

Kiriyama proceeded without a single thread of doubt, and tightly grasped Inaba(12)"s hand.

"Ina... Himeko-chan."

Taichi crouched to Inaba(12)"s eye level and looked into her eyes.

"If anything happens... I"m counting on you."

People might wonder why count on a twelve year-old girl who knew nothing of the situation. But Taichi trusted that, even at only twelve year-old, Inaba would be able to take care of the situation.

Inaba(12) silently nodded twice.

"Good luck, Taichi! Iori as well!"

Kiriyama held on tight to both the now puffy, wrapped-in-adult-clothes Aoki(1) and the hand of Inaba(12), and started running back towards the abandoned building.

"I"m sorry... This is all my fault... I got everyone caught in this..."

Nagase trembled. She curled in her arms, her small body looked even smaller, as if it would disappear any minute.

"Don"t worry. If my family were in danger, I would do the same too. Anyway, we should get going."

"Puff... puff... W—We"re here."

"This is... puff... Nagase"s house?"

Nagase pointed at an old two-story apartment.

"My house is on the wing of first floor."

"Then... Nagase, what"s the status now? What"s your plan? And should I go with you?"

"It might not be a good idea to have Taichi come with me... Can you wait for me out——"

——CLINK.

Sound of gla.s.sware breaking came out from the apartment, followed by a woman"s scream.

They were from Nagase"s house.

"Mom!"

Nagase shouted and rushed towards the door.

Better to keep a close eye—— Taichi thought and followed her.

"Mom! Open the door! It"s me, Iori!"

Nagase banged loudly on the door and abruptly tried turning the door handle.

"You"re noisy! I"m opening the door so shut up!"

A man"s bellow came from the other side of the door. His voice was hoa.r.s.e, probably due to drinking too much.

"...Dad..."

Nagase murmured.

Then, the door opened.

However——

Nagase, who had been standing right at the door, disappeared without a trace. Her clothes fell on the floor.

Taichi was beyond shocked by the sight——He was terrified.

He thought he was dreaming.

He could not see it clearly, but there was something small bulging among the scattered clothes.

Before his mind could even react, his body took action right away.

Taichi picked up Nagase"s clothes with a tiny Nagase in them.

Without thinking twice, he fled the scene.

Angry shouting could be heard from behind, someone seemed to be pursuing them.

Taichi could not spare any moment to look back.

Were they seen?

Was Nagase"s "Time Regression" exposed?

Taichi did not know.

But he knew he had to keep running.

If he underwent "Time Regression" as well, what would happen to Nagase and him both?

As Taichi continued to run, he helped Nagase"s face out of the ball of clothes. She looked incredibly innocent.

Because Taichi was carrying a baby girl with a bunch of female clothing, the pedestrians began casting strange eyes towards him.

Taichi ran for very long distance, his legs were beginning to give in. He tried very hard, but he could no longer increase his speed.

He ran.

He pa.s.sed clumsily through the crowd, and turn right whenever he ran into a red light.

There was a police patrolling with a bicycle coming from his front.

Taichi"s heart began racing for no reason.

Taichi avoided eye contact, and walked right pa.s.s.

"Sir, what are you——"

As soon as he was called, Taichi fled immediately.

Taking every possible turns around corners.

He ran.

And ran.

What should he do?

What was the situation?

Did that man follow?

And the police?

Taichi"s lungs were tearing apart.

The pain. His muscles were screaming.

This would not end well. He must come up with something.

Should he return to the abandoned building?

But what of Nagase"s mother?

"Time Regression" had been striking them frequently.

Was Kiriyama"s group alright?

Taichi could not tell where he was running.

He kept running towards the less populated area.

He was losing oxygen. He could no longer think calmly.

Is this the end? He thought.

——Did I make the wrong choice?

——Should I have done differently?

But he could no longer start over.

Taichi entered a small alley.

Forward.

Then, a dead end.

There was no other way out.

Footsteps could be heard from behind.

Under the street lights, a shadow stretched across the ground.

Taichi gave in to his fate, but tried to think of a way out at the same time.

He turned around.

Standing there, was the homeroom teacher of cla.s.s 1C of Yamabos.h.i.+ High, as well as the advisor of Cultural Research Club——Gotou Ryuuzen.

There was no energy nor emotion, as if blended into the surrounding darkness.

His eyes were half-opened.

It was «Heartseed», the one who brought Taichi and the others into a world of abnormality.

"My, my... Good evening... It appears that you"re in some sort of trouble..."

A tone that was sluggish and sloppy.

After a second look, he emitted a similar but different kind of aura compared to «Number Two».

"Uwee... Uwee..."

Baby-Nagase started crying. She seemed to have felt the unpleasant atmosphere.

"Why... Why are you showing up now... Unless... Are you the one behind all this?"

"No, no... That"s not true... Oh? I thought you knew that already, don"t you? Yaegas.h.i.+-san..."

How much of his words could be trusted?

"Then why are you showing up now? And... Who"s «Number Two»..."

"Well... Let"s take care of the situation first... My, my... Ain"t I a hard-working one..."

Taichi felt a sudden weight in his arms as if it was going to break his arms in half.

"What the!?"

Upon closer inspection, it was Nagase returning to normal. Since Taichi could not support her weight, Nagase fell on the floor.

"Wait... What"s going on? Eh? Why am I wrapped up like this? No wait, my arm isn"t in my sleeves."

Nagase readjusted her clothes and stood up.

"Taichi... What"s going... Go-san! ...Ah!"

Nagase b.u.mped into Taichi as she backed off.

"...«Heartseed»."

Nagase muttered, her shoulders quivered.

"Hm... There you have it..."

"What you mean by there we have... there we have what?"

His explanation was vague as always.

"Ah... I mean I"ve ended the phenomenon... There you have it."

"Ended?"

"Yes... Unless you wanted it to continue? I suppose I could let you... But I"d rather not... It will become troublesome..."

"What? So the "Time Regression" phenomenon is over? Eh? What happened to me? Actually, what"s the situation?"

Nagase stood beside Taichi and appeared very puzzled.

"Oh? ...So that"s how you call that phenomenon... Anyway... Since this phenomenon was by no means my intention... I ended it..."

"Not your intention... then what"s with «Number Two»? How are you related?"

"... It"s a ha.s.sle to explain... We aren"t exactly united... The one you called «Number Two» has his own idea of "interest"... Ahh... I already made sure he can"t interfere again, so he won"t appear——"

As he was about to finish answering Taichi"s question, «Heartseed» stopped short.

"Ahh... I could have ignored that question... Careless, wasn"t I... Ahh, never mind that... So be it."

As usual, he did not answer properly in the end.

"Anyway, it"s over now... Please give the others my greetings..."

"What you mean by greet... F—Forget about that, Mom... Taichi, what happened? My memory is cut off after when I was at the door..."

"As soon as Nagase underwent "Time Regression", I fled the scene... We should probably hurry back."

"...Okay."

"Ahh... That"s right... I almost forgot... Nagase-san."

"W—What do you want? I... I don"t have time for you."

Nagase replied sharply with an alert tone.

"I believe this, for Nagase-san... might be an interesting and pleasing proposal..."

Even when they were in panic, «Heartseed» pretended it was nothing and followed his own pace.

It was infuriating for Taichi.

"Hurry and spit it out already!"

"Ahh... Yaegas.h.i.+-san, there"s no need to be so agitated... Actually... This is none of Yaegas.h.i.+-san"s business... Could you be quiet?"

Through Gotou, the mysterious, otherworldly ent.i.ty glared Taichi with those dark, abyssal eyes.

With that, Taichi felt his flesh crawling.

His body repulsed by instinct.

"By now... You should know already... There"s nothing you can do. Nagase-san..."

"What... What are you talking about?"

"The very thing... that you"re trying to solve..."

How much did «Heartseed» know?

"You mean my Mom... and my Dad?"

"Ahh... If that"s how you put it..."

He sounded as if it was not exactly correct.

"There... must be something I can do..."

"...Aren"t you... the one who believe there"s no way to start over?"

«Heartseed» pointed out. Nagase appeared startled.

All signs of life were drained from her face.

Taichi stood prepared by Nagase——If she collapsed, he must guard by her side.

".. Do you want to start over?"

Those were dry and flat words, yet they felt unusually sweet and alluring.

Sweet and alluring, much like the sweet secretion by carnivorous plants would be to their prey.

One could not help but to approach it, even if one was fully aware of the consequences.

"Due to... my personal mistake... I"ve caused everyone considerable amount of trouble. I sincerely mean it... so in order to make up... I"d like to offer you an omiyage... service... reward... none of that sound right... Anyway, I would like to offer you something nice, you may consider it my means of... grat.i.tude."

If you really feel that way, why don"t you just leave us alone to begin with? Taichi thought.

"Well then, Nagase... This, is something I can do... Do you want to start over?"

"...What you mean by start over?"

"I mean it literally... Everything that happened up till now... I can undo them, and allow you to start over from a point of your choice..."

"What!? That"s like saying, I can go back to the past, and start my life over... That"s ridiculous... That"s not possible!"

Nagase tried to laugh it off, but failed. The corners of her mouth were twitching awkwardly.

"...that can"t be possible... right?"

Nagase asked once more.

«Heartseed» only raised the corners of his mouth, stretching the muscle near his mouth and part of his face.

He was smiling.

Every part of his face were motionless... except his mouth that was smiling.

"Don"t tell me that... you can change a person"s past... Even though I"ve already seen you "revert us back to our past selves"..."

Indeed, they were able to revert a person back to his past self.

Then, would it mean they could return a person to the past?

If one could change the past that was normally impossible to change.

If one could choose a different option at a fork road in the past.

"Do you want to start over?"

«Heartseed» asked again.

His tone was oddly filled with more energy than usual.

This small difference made his offer sounded multiple times more alluring.

"I... I..."

——If I ever have the chance to start over, I would take that chance.

——And, if I can play better the role of my character, I would do that as well.

Those were Nagase"s words back then. They echoed clearly in Taichi"s mind.

Now that he thought of it, those words must have been Nagase"s call for help.

Yet, Taichi did not notice and could not offer any help.

At that moment, a giant ark unreachable by Taichi embarked before Nagase.

All Nagase needed to say was "Let me board" and the ark would sail on.

She would be gone.

She would be heading towards a place where he could never reach again.

Nagase spoke. Her words were like ripple on water, disturbed yet quiet.

"I... I"ve always wished to be my true self... One that isn"t an act... One that I can say proudly that... This is "me"..."

This was Nagase"s wish since the beginning.

"...I"m not gonna say my life was a misfortune... but I did felt that way a little... If I could... live more differently, more normally..."

If Nagase had a different past, she probably would not lose her sense of self, let alone troubled.

She could have been a pure and dazzling girl, and not one who masked herself a frail, phantasmic beauty due to traumas from the past.

She could have been gleaming with light of hope.

"Which is why, I..."

Don"t go—— Taichi could not say it.

Don"t do it—— Taichi could not say it.

Because he knew how much Nagase was suffering.

He also knew he was powerless.

"I..."

Now that he recalled it, all three phenomenon that happened till now had shaken Nagase considerably.

Then, as she was shaken and vulnerable, «Heartseed» offered the option.

As though it was planned from the beginning.

Taichi felt powerless, as if sucked into a vortex, unable to resist and could only go along the flow.

He could only go along the flow...

A certain warmth spread through his left hand.

A breath of life slowly circulated his body.

It was a feeling of relief not unlike what a drowning victim would feel when managing to grab onto a life ring.

When Taichi came back from his thoughts, he noticed he was holding on to Nagase"s right hand.

Words flowed naturally:

"I"ve always loved you, Nagase."

"Please be quiet, Yaegas.h.i.+-san."

«Heartseed» promptly and unusually quickly interrupted Taichi.

Taichi hoped that Nagase could feel him, that he could confirm Nagase for who she was.

Nagase trembled lightly.

She remained motionless and stood there.

But soon, Nagase"s hand gripped Taichi"s in return.

Tightly. Firmly. Determinedly.

What was incredible, was that Taichi felt the winter cold and the chill caused by «Heartseed» began fading away.

"I am who I am now because of those past in my life. If I deny the path I walked on, then I"m denying the person that I"ve become. I don"t want to do that."

Her honest words extended through the air.

"I did think to myself that... it would be nice to start over. However, by that I meant to challenge my mistakes again. I don"t want to deny my memories and pretend that they never happened."

To undo your past mistakes and pretend they never happened, and then start over?

Or to accept you past mistakes and learn from experience, and then start over?

The two options sound similar, but differs greatly.

To start over, and to deny your past, the two path differs greatly in many different way.

"I have... striven with the best of myself. I cannot erase... the person that had once striven with everything she"d got. That is wrong. Not to mention, after seeing those who lived every minute of their lives at their best, how could I bring myself to do that?"

Did she mean Aoki and Kiriyama?

Nagase tightened her grip on Taichi"s hand once more.

"More importantly, now I have companions that I want to witness the future with."

Their hands held onto each other, fingers crossed with each other.

"I"ve become who I am because of what I"ve acc.u.mulated from my past. If I"m missing any of that, then I will no longer be who I am right now."

Nagase valued them greatly.

"Therefore, if it means erasing my past, then I don"t need to start over!"

Nagase, with her small gesture, firmly rejected the invitation. And invitation offered by the overwhelming, powerful, and destructive abnormality that would devour everything.

Nagase completed such feat.

After receiving a decisive "No", «Heartseed» stood motionless without a word.

The time before his next response felt like eternity.

Did Nagase"s answer surprise him?

"Ah... I see..."

He sounded as if it was a pity, but also content at the same time. There was a certain undefined, slight traces of sentiment from that simple response.

"...In that case there"s nothing left to be settled... Well then... Good enough... I"m done..."

«Heartseed» shook his head.

Nagase looked towards Taichi, her eyes were never clearer and more beautiful.

"Let"s go, Taichi."

"...Alright."

They let go of each other"s hand, and ran forward.

Their battle against the abnormality had ended.

Next, they needed to confront their problem of this reality.

The two ran forward.

They pa.s.sed by «Heartseed», and left «Heartseed» alone at the location.

They left «Heartseed» alone, and ran forward.

To solve problems in reality, there is no super power nor miracle to rely on.

One can only try foolishly, clumsily and persistently.

Taichi and Nagase, both out of breath, finally returned to Nagase"s house.

They were worried whether the situation had gotten worse, but it seemed Nagase"s father had not returned since he had first left. According to Nagase"s mother: "He grabbed some cash and ran out, he probably went to drink."

Then, the two now sat in seiza-style[1] on the sitting pads.

The room was a was.h.i.+tsu[2], with a small table in front of them. It was a very simple room.

"...Please."

Nagase"s mother entered the room, with a tray of hot tea in her hands.

"Ah, thank you very much..."

It would be impolite not to take the offer, so Taichi picked up one of the tea and started drinking.

As he was drinking, he peeked at Nagase"s mother"s face.

She"s like a crafted piece of art——This was Taichi"s initial impression.

Wearing only a light make-up, she looked as if she were a beautiful masterpiece created by a devoted artist.

At the same time, she lacked utility, as if disconnected from the daily life.

She did not seem to express much emotion.

Which was probably why Taichi felt she was like a crafted piece.

However, there were traces of a bruise on her face.

"Erm... Is it alright for us to be this relaxed?"

Nagase inquired her mother.

Her mother"s clothing were simple, but emitted the quality of a well-raised lady. Taichi could not imagine what kind of work she did or what sort of life she lived.

"It"s alright. He won"t be back for a while... I think."

""You think" huh... Oh!"

Taichi realized his rudeness and shut his mouth.

Nagase"s mother looked towards Taichi.

There would be no turning back if he were captivated——Taichi had such feeling.

"So... What happened?"

Nagase"s mother sat in front of Taichi and Nagase.

"Er... Well..."

Nagase scratched her face with her finger, seemingly lost for words.

"Don"t worry, you can tell me everything."

Nagase"s mother said.

Her voice was clear as a spring, as if she was saying "I know everything."

"If it"s about having a baby, then it"s something worth celebrating for."

"...(Choke)!"

Taichi almost spat his tea from his mouth.

"W-W-W-Wait, Mom! THAT · IS · IMPOSSIBLE——!"

Taichi was unsure how to respond, but Nagase was swinging her arms frantically.

"Oh, in that case, were you two planning to elope but decided to drop by first?"

"No no no NO! You got it all wrong!"

"Really?"

Seeing her daughter embarra.s.singly denied her a.s.sumptions, Nagase"s mother simply nodded.

Can"t believe she had the same kind of imagination as Kiriyama"s sister, Taichi thought. She seems to be a strange person too.

However, thanks to the awkward conversation just now, the mood of the room seemed to have lightened.

"Ahem, anyway... Erm... Mom...?"

Nagase lowered her head, still lost for words.

"Yes?"

"...Mom, do you still... love that man? Are you happy with him?"

"No."

She answered in a split second.

"Eh?"

Nagase lifted her head in surprise.

"Eh? Uh... Is that really?"

"Yes. I mean, I did love him before. But definitely not now."

The mother and daughter did not seem to have discuss this topic before.

Nagase intended to fight alone before.

"Then why... Why do you let a man you don"t like brood in your home like that?"

The daughter asked her mother a question she tried to asked before.

Nagase"s mother answered swiftly:

"Because I feel Iori were searching for something. A feeling along the lines of starting over."

"Eh... me?"

Nagase was caught by her tongue.

"That"s right. Was I wrong?"

"N-No! No... I mean, yes... was I? I wanted to start over, and play my role better..."

"Right?"

Nagase"s mother seemed pleased with herself.

"But... That was all for Mom"s sake..."

"Was it?"

"No, I guess in the end it was for myself... but if Mom didn"t want that, then I wouldn"t want that either... Strange."

Nagase seemed puzzled.

"Strange. Then why am I doing this to begin with...?"

Could it be...

"...Excuse my interruption as an outsider, but could it be... the two of you have never discussed about... how to deal with that man?"

As Taichi inquired, the mother and daughter both nodded at the same time.

That"s not gonna work, is it? Taichi couldn"t help but to think that.

While he did not know how well they could read each other"s mind, he could be certain that telepathy isn"t going to solve everything.

"Er... I thought Mom let him in because she wanted to start anew with him..."

"I thought Iori wanted to start anew with him, so even though I hate him, I figured I would just swallow it."

In the end, the mother and daughter were acting for the sake of each other.

Yet they mistaken each other"s true feelings and took the wrong course of action.

Could it be they never told each other the most important message?

"Why... Mom... You hated that man, why do you swallow it like that..."

The daughter asked. Nagase"s mother answered without a second thought:

"Iori, I just want you to be happy. I don"t matter."

Could this be Nagase"s mother"s resolution? One that stemmed from her regrets of not considering her daughter"s feelings, causing distress to her daughter, hence she swore to let her daughter live a desired life?

The next moment, Nagase also spoke her true feelings to her mother.

Those were words filled with tears of warmth and gentleness.

"Mom... If Mom isn"t happy... then I can"t be happy either."

They probably shared the same sentiment since a long time ago, but they never managed to let each other know.

And now, they finally exchanged their feelings.

The two looked at each other without word nor expression.

It was a strong family bond that was visible by the naked eyes.

Because they had already said the most important thing.

Taichi thought to himself: "Relying on others" seemed difficult.

In the end, we ourselves are the one to make the first step. We are the only ones who can push ourselves forward. Those were Kiriyama"s words, and Taichi agreed.

There are times that we need be resolute and strive with o