Sakura Ogawa Shiver: E4-F8-D8
The house felt like a crime scene. There was blood on the porch, blood through the house. Shuuya had warned her that Tadakatsu’s body would be there but nothing could have prepared her for the smell of stale blood and that heavy air of death. They didn’t have much of a choice if they wanted shelter from the rain that was bound to start coming down.
The house was dark, it had to be close to another report. She didn’t want to admit it but she felt so tired already. It had to be the stress of the situation, she didn’t think it had anything to do with her head at that point. Shuuya pulled a table in front of the door and locked it behind them. If someone really wanted to get in, she was sure they’d be able to but at least they’d have some notice.
"Report's going to be on in a couple minutes," she said softly, barely able to make out his nod in the darkness. She followed him further into the room and heard the soft scratching of his nails against the wall until he found a doorknob. There was a soft click as the door opened and even in the darkness she could tell that it was the wrong room. "Oh," she whispered.
"God fucking damn!"
Shuuya slammed the door shut but the smell was already in the hallway, floating through the house. She felt sick. Nothing could have prepared her for that thick cloud of death. It smelt like blood, sweat and something else stronger. It took her a minute to realize that it was the stench of fear and it was coming off her as much as it was coming off Tadakatsu’s body.
"The fuck!" His breathing was heavy...aggravated. "S-sorry." She resumed following him around the room until he found another bedroom, this one without body but still with the lingering stench of death. "Ugh... Goddamnit...”
She glanced over at him. She couldn’t even remember hearing him swear so much but like her fatigue, she chalked it up to the stress. Shuuya used to be on the baseball team with Tadakatsu. They didn’t seem so close anymore but it was still someone he knew that he had to see dead.
“Here... You should get some sleep." He motioned to the bed. "You first."
She was puzzled. Did he mean he was planning on sleeping with her or just that he wanted her to get some rest and then keep watch while he slept? She opened her mouth to ask but was interrupted by Sakamochi’s voice. "It's midnight, boys and girls, and I am happy to announce a huge increase in your performance! Boy #14 Shou Tsukioka, Girl #13 Takako Chigusa, Boy #3 Tatsumichi Ooki, Girl #5 Izumi Kanai, Boy #19 Shinji Mimura, Girl #15 Noriko Nakagawa, Boy #17 Mitsuru Numai, and Boy #2 Keita Iijima!"
There were so many names...so many dead friends.
"Damn," he mumbled. "Damn, damn." She glanced over but couldn’t tell if he was crying or not. Hearing Shinji’s name read off like a product on a grocery list right by Takako, Izumi, Keita, and...
Oh.
"Are you okay?" Shuuya looked over at her.
"It's just- Shou," she hesitated but he didn’t ask for any more details. She was glad for that, she wasn’t sure what to tell him. He knew that Kaz had left her for Shou but how could she explain all of her mixed up feelings about him? Anger for taking her boyfriend, frustration about his attitude about it all, respect for trying to work things out with her before he died, and then an infuriating combination of rage and curiosity over him just leaving her unconscious in the lighthouse.
It didn’t matter anymore. It wasn’t like he was going to come back and tell her why he did it. But still...his name just added one more scratch of regret and sadness to her already hurting heart.
“I think I will take a nap. Wake me up when you get tired of standing guard and want to sleep, alright?”
“Sure,” Shuuya agreed easily.
Sakura laid down on the bed and shut her eyes. There was a hard lump under her side and she fished it out. She could tell in the darkness that it was her gun. It would make more sense to give it to Shuuya but would he really be able to shoot someone either? She didn’t think so. It really didn’t matter who had the gun, it wasn’t like they were playing the game.
Sakura closed her eyes.
Not playing...
School was out for the day and it was a beautiful afternoon but she didn’t feel like smiling. It really had been one of those days. Sakura was generally a strong student but had fallen asleep during math and failed a quiz in English. She was sure she was starting her period, the cramps had brought tears to her eyes during P.E.
“Hey! Saki, wait up!”
She paused and glanced behind her. Kaz was jogging through the crowd to catch up to her. She usually waited for him after class but she just wanted to get home. “I didn’t see you after class. Is something wrong?”
“No, I just wanted to get home,” she replied.
“Are you feeling okay? You looked kinda pale by the end of the day.”
“I just want to go home and get some sleep.”
“Are you sure? I can walk you home and make you some tea or something if you want,” he flashed her a smile. Usually when he smiled, it made everything better but for some reason, it just irritated her today.
“I told you I just want to sleep,” she snapped.
“Ooo, it looks like someone is sleeping on the couch tonight,” Sakura turned around and glared at the laughing trio of Mitsuko, Yoshimi, and Hirono.
“Hey loverboy, if you’re not getting it from her you can always come hang out with us.”
“Just stay out of our business. This has nothing to do with you.” Sakura couldn’t believe that Kaz had ever tried to tell her to give Hirono a chance. Their partner project had been a complete disaster, adding another failing grade to her transcript.
“Watch it,” Mitsuko warned from behind her, “You’re trying to mess with the big girls now.”
Kaz laid a hand on her shoulder. “Ignore them, you know they do that to everyone.”
She shrugged his hand off. “I’m not in the mood for it today.”
Kaz’s smile faded. “Okay, since you’re just going to bed, I’m going to go see what the guys are doing.”
“So you’re going to ditch me because I’m not having a good day?” She shot back.
Where in the world did that come from?
“Now that’s not fair and you know it. You just said you were going to go home and go to bed and you’ve been acting really cold ever since I caught up to you. What do you want me to do? Sit at home waiting for you to call or sit next to you waiting for you to wake up and hope you’ll be in a better mood later?”
“Do what you want, I don’t care.” Sakura pulled away from him and started making her way through the groups of students back to her house. Another cramp hit her almost as soon as she was through the front door.
“Oh good! You’re home!” Her mother came rushing out of the kitchen, carrying a large black bag. “I just got a call awhile ago about a dinner tonight that they need servers for so I’m going to put in a few extra hours. I need you to watch Mirai while I’m gone, I should be back at ten at the absolute latest. I left your dinner in the fridge, you just need to warm it up.”
“Can anyone else watch her tonight?” Sakura protested, “I really don’t feel good.”
“I don’t have the money for a sitter tonight, I’m sorry honey,” Sakura’s mother pressed a cool hand against her forehead. “You don’t feel warm.”
“It’s not a fever. I just have really horrible cramps.”
“Mirai probably won’t stay up for much longer anyways. Why don’t you pull the heating pad out of the closet and put that on your abdomen to see if that helps. If you want, you can call Kaz and see if he wants to come over for some company.”
“He’s going out with the boys,” Sakura spat out the words like they were leaving a bad taste in her mouth.
Her mother looked at her curiously. “Well, alright then. I’ll try and get back as soon as I can so you can go to bed. Your sister shouldn’t be much of a problem, she had physical therapy today and seemed pretty worn out. She’s watching a movie right now so you can do your homework while that’s on. If you could feed her dinner and get her in and out of the tub you should be able to get her in bed by eight.” Sakura’s mother bent down to brush a kiss against her daughter’s forehead. “The number is on the table. If you need me go ahead and use it but make sure it’s an emergency. Be good!”
It sounded easy enough but things that sound easy rarely are.
Mirai got her second wind and didn’t want to watch TV, eat dinner, or take a bath. Sakura struggled getting her through her nightly routine and wasn’t even able to start her homework. There were times that she wanted to bend over in half with the pain of her cramps but couldn’t.
By the time Mirai was finally tucked into her bed, Sakura made her way back to the living room where her satchel was resting against the sofa, still unopened. There was no way she would finish it. The best idea would probably be to stay home sick from school and finish it all then.
She sighed and reached for the phone, dialing Kaz’s number. Maybe he could grab tomorrow’s homework for her and bring it over. “Hi Mrs. Yamamoto, could I speak to Kaz please?”
“Hi, Sakura. I’m sorry but Kaz isn’t in. He stopped in for a few minutes before dinner to tell me he was going to the movies with some friends. I thought you’d be there with him.”
“No, I had to watch my sister. Do you know when he’ll be back?”
“He didn’t say. I think they may go out somewhere else after the movie but he said he’d check in with me. Would you like me to ask him to call you?”
“No, it’s alright. Could you just let me know I’m not going to school tomorrow and ask if he’ll get my assignments for me so I don’t fall behind?”
“Of course. Feel better, dear.”
“Thanks Mrs. Yamamoto. Good-night.”
“Good-night.”
Sakura set the phone back down in the cradle and curled up into a ball on the sofa. She glanced at the clock. It was nine thirty-two. With all the trouble watching Mirai, she had completely forgotten about Tonight At the Same Place. She sighed and turned on the television. At least she could catch the end of it.
Mizue was having relationship problems again. It was just a continuation of that storyline from the previous episode. She was convinced her true love didn’t want her anymore and then she lost her job.
Sakura watched with interest as Mizue’s hysterics progressed until the end of the episode where she tried to choke herself only to have Miki come in at the last minute and stop her. The two started crying as the show went to the credits. There was a mention at the end about how the actions of the characters weren’t meant to be mimicked, how self mutilation in any form was a cry for help and how the writers knew it was a serious issue. There was about a two minute bonus clip at the end with Mizue’s actress talking about the rumors surrounding that kind of choking, how it relieved stress or was a harmless high.
When the next show came on the air Sakura turned off the television and made her way upstairs to her bedroom. Sure the show was going to say that the actions were dangerous but what if there was something to it?
She got on her computer and started looking up information. She wanted to see the other side to the story.
There was an entire message board of people who were into it. Not only did they write about their experiences and what they got out of it but there were very detailed instructions on how to do it, where to put your hands, what to expect, best places to do it. None of them knew anyone who died from it.
She deleted the internet history and stared at the desktop for a moment. It was a lot of information to take in but if it helped the kids on those boards, why couldn’t it do the same for her?
Sakura knelt on her bed and slowly moved her hands around her throat. It was just a matter of applying the pressure to the internal carotid artery, cutting off blood from the brain which in turn prevented oxygen from going to it. Once you passed out, your grip would slack off and the blood flow would begin again and you’d wake up about a minute later.
She glanced at the clock next to her. 10:41. She began to press down and could almost hear the pumping of blood through her veins. She felt dizzy, wanted to let go but made herself hold firm. The first time was the hardest, that’s what everyone on the board said. After the first time, they said their bodies seemed to accept it more, almost as if they wanted the high.
She must have passed out, she didn’t remember falling over onto her side. She must have passed out but she was able to wake up and felt fine. A little light headed but the weight of the day was gone. Sakura glanced at the clock again. 10:44. She didn’t know how long it took her to actually pass out but the time seemed about right.
It was the first time that day that something felt right. Sakura woke up with a start. It was still dark in the room, still dark outside. She couldn’t have been asleep that long. “Nanahara?” She called softly. “Do you want to sleep for awhile now?”
There wasn’t an answer.
She tried to shake off the uneasiness and got off of the bed, grabbing the gun and holding it by her side. “Nanahara?” She called again. “Can you hear me?”
A crash of thunder made her jump and flash of lightning lit up the room long enough for her to tell he wasn’t there. She opened up the door as the lightning flashed again. A gust of wind hit the house, blowing the door open and allowing rain to pour inside the main room. There were some papers flying off the table, probably left there as the homeowners were forced to leave. “Nanahara?” She glanced outside to see if he was somewhere in the yard but all she could see was rain.
Shaken, she walked back inside and shut the door again. Maybe he had just run out for a minute for something. Maybe he found someone while she was sleeping. That would be more like him.
Sakura sat down on the floor next to her bag, the gun clutched in her hand. She kept glancing at her program provided watch and listening to the rain. The rain had started to let up about an hour later and she was forced to acknowledge that he had probably left her behind. It didn’t seem like something he would do but maybe he just started to see her as a threat to his plans to get everyone together and get them all off of the island alive. It didn’t seem likely but she couldn’t think of any other explanations. Either way, no matter how she tried to justify it to herself, it didn’t change the fact that he had left her and she was on her own.
The idea scared her more than anything else in the entire game. She hadn’t had to deal with being alone yet, with possibly dying alone yet. Shou had stayed with her at the beginning and when she woke up, Shuuya had been by her side ever since. Reluctantly, Sakura picked up her bag and started out the door into the woods back the way they had come.
She didn’t want to admit it, but she needed Shuuya. She needed that calming factor but didn’t know where he would be. There was the possibility he had gone back to the tangerine trees to get more fruit or to see if someone else had gone there for food. It wasn’t much of a lead but it was the only thing she had at the moment.
Her bag was heavy, her shoes getting sucked into the sticky mud. She wasn’t going nearly as quickly as they had earlier. She wasn’t even sure if she was walking down the same paths but her compass told her she was heading the right way. As long as she stayed on course, she’d make her way right by all the danger zones in the area.
She could smell the fruit before she could see the grove. She wasn’t sure if she was at the same part of the grove where she and Shuuya had been earlier but there didn’t seem to be any sign of him.
Sakura couldn’t stand it any longer. She crawled to the edge of the grove where it met the brush of the woods and started to cry. She was so stupid. Stupid for trusting Shuuya, stupid for kissing Shuuya. Stupid for not leaving a note for him in case he came back, as unlikely as that was. Where had all that gotten her? She was all alone now and if she died now, it would probably be because of her own stupidity.
She lost track of the time she spent hiding under the tree. Her only movement was to mark down the danger zones from the next report. There weren’t any new deaths, Shuuya was still out there somewhere. Kayoko was too, she hadn’t even thought about finding her friend in the longest time, not like she would know where to start looking.
A bird sang out from above her. Startled, Sakura jumped to her feet, her hands tightening around the gun. “Just a bird,” she whispered. “I’ve got to calm down.”
She had just settled down again when she heard the thud, the voices. She crawled further into the brush, dragging her pack with her. She could feel her heart beating, her veins pulsing, her breaths getting shorter. Usually it was a feeling she welcomed and this time she just wanted it to go away.
There were the sounds of footsteps but they seemed like they were going the other way. There was more than one person running off in the opposite direction and she had to wonder if her classmates were chasing each other down, trying for another kill. The thud she had heard, she had to wonder if someone else was dead.
Shuuya’s voice was whispering in her ear. “You’ve got to have faith. They might be okay, you might be able to help someone.”
Sakura turned her head, trying to turn away from the voice and hear Kaz whispering in her other ear. “The Saki I knew wouldn’t ever run away from someone who needed her.”
“No...” she covered her ears with her hands.
“Saki, please.” Kaz’s voice followed her.
Sakura always had a think denying him when he was alive. How in the world could she refuse his memory, no matter how afraid she was.
Her bag was left in the brush as she slowly inched her way forward. Her grip on the gun kept getting tighter, no way was she letting it go now. She couldn’t be far from where the scuffle had been and there still wasn’t any sound coming from the area.
It was okay, it would be okay.
A cry.
An explosion.
Sakura shrieked. There was a second explosion.
Oh God...no.
The gun in her hand was smoking. She must have...oh God.
She dropped the gun and ran.
(OOC: Long time coming, not sure if it's any good but at least I broke through the writer's block.
First bullet...Does Sakura Ogawa kill, wound, or miss Yumiko Kusaka?
Second bullet...she hit Yoshimi. Yoshimi is dead.
She dropped the gun in F8. If your character wants to find it, have at it. Her bag is in the bushes there too, she left it behind.)
The house was dark, it had to be close to another report. She didn’t want to admit it but she felt so tired already. It had to be the stress of the situation, she didn’t think it had anything to do with her head at that point. Shuuya pulled a table in front of the door and locked it behind them. If someone really wanted to get in, she was sure they’d be able to but at least they’d have some notice.
"Report's going to be on in a couple minutes," she said softly, barely able to make out his nod in the darkness. She followed him further into the room and heard the soft scratching of his nails against the wall until he found a doorknob. There was a soft click as the door opened and even in the darkness she could tell that it was the wrong room. "Oh," she whispered.
"God fucking damn!"
Shuuya slammed the door shut but the smell was already in the hallway, floating through the house. She felt sick. Nothing could have prepared her for that thick cloud of death. It smelt like blood, sweat and something else stronger. It took her a minute to realize that it was the stench of fear and it was coming off her as much as it was coming off Tadakatsu’s body.
"The fuck!" His breathing was heavy...aggravated. "S-sorry." She resumed following him around the room until he found another bedroom, this one without body but still with the lingering stench of death. "Ugh... Goddamnit...”
She glanced over at him. She couldn’t even remember hearing him swear so much but like her fatigue, she chalked it up to the stress. Shuuya used to be on the baseball team with Tadakatsu. They didn’t seem so close anymore but it was still someone he knew that he had to see dead.
“Here... You should get some sleep." He motioned to the bed. "You first."
She was puzzled. Did he mean he was planning on sleeping with her or just that he wanted her to get some rest and then keep watch while he slept? She opened her mouth to ask but was interrupted by Sakamochi’s voice. "It's midnight, boys and girls, and I am happy to announce a huge increase in your performance! Boy #14 Shou Tsukioka, Girl #13 Takako Chigusa, Boy #3 Tatsumichi Ooki, Girl #5 Izumi Kanai, Boy #19 Shinji Mimura, Girl #15 Noriko Nakagawa, Boy #17 Mitsuru Numai, and Boy #2 Keita Iijima!"
There were so many names...so many dead friends.
"Damn," he mumbled. "Damn, damn." She glanced over but couldn’t tell if he was crying or not. Hearing Shinji’s name read off like a product on a grocery list right by Takako, Izumi, Keita, and...
Oh.
"Are you okay?" Shuuya looked over at her.
"It's just- Shou," she hesitated but he didn’t ask for any more details. She was glad for that, she wasn’t sure what to tell him. He knew that Kaz had left her for Shou but how could she explain all of her mixed up feelings about him? Anger for taking her boyfriend, frustration about his attitude about it all, respect for trying to work things out with her before he died, and then an infuriating combination of rage and curiosity over him just leaving her unconscious in the lighthouse.
It didn’t matter anymore. It wasn’t like he was going to come back and tell her why he did it. But still...his name just added one more scratch of regret and sadness to her already hurting heart.
“I think I will take a nap. Wake me up when you get tired of standing guard and want to sleep, alright?”
“Sure,” Shuuya agreed easily.
Sakura laid down on the bed and shut her eyes. There was a hard lump under her side and she fished it out. She could tell in the darkness that it was her gun. It would make more sense to give it to Shuuya but would he really be able to shoot someone either? She didn’t think so. It really didn’t matter who had the gun, it wasn’t like they were playing the game.
Sakura closed her eyes.
Not playing...
School was out for the day and it was a beautiful afternoon but she didn’t feel like smiling. It really had been one of those days. Sakura was generally a strong student but had fallen asleep during math and failed a quiz in English. She was sure she was starting her period, the cramps had brought tears to her eyes during P.E.
“Hey! Saki, wait up!”
She paused and glanced behind her. Kaz was jogging through the crowd to catch up to her. She usually waited for him after class but she just wanted to get home. “I didn’t see you after class. Is something wrong?”
“No, I just wanted to get home,” she replied.
“Are you feeling okay? You looked kinda pale by the end of the day.”
“I just want to go home and get some sleep.”
“Are you sure? I can walk you home and make you some tea or something if you want,” he flashed her a smile. Usually when he smiled, it made everything better but for some reason, it just irritated her today.
“I told you I just want to sleep,” she snapped.
“Ooo, it looks like someone is sleeping on the couch tonight,” Sakura turned around and glared at the laughing trio of Mitsuko, Yoshimi, and Hirono.
“Hey loverboy, if you’re not getting it from her you can always come hang out with us.”
“Just stay out of our business. This has nothing to do with you.” Sakura couldn’t believe that Kaz had ever tried to tell her to give Hirono a chance. Their partner project had been a complete disaster, adding another failing grade to her transcript.
“Watch it,” Mitsuko warned from behind her, “You’re trying to mess with the big girls now.”
Kaz laid a hand on her shoulder. “Ignore them, you know they do that to everyone.”
She shrugged his hand off. “I’m not in the mood for it today.”
Kaz’s smile faded. “Okay, since you’re just going to bed, I’m going to go see what the guys are doing.”
“So you’re going to ditch me because I’m not having a good day?” She shot back.
Where in the world did that come from?
“Now that’s not fair and you know it. You just said you were going to go home and go to bed and you’ve been acting really cold ever since I caught up to you. What do you want me to do? Sit at home waiting for you to call or sit next to you waiting for you to wake up and hope you’ll be in a better mood later?”
“Do what you want, I don’t care.” Sakura pulled away from him and started making her way through the groups of students back to her house. Another cramp hit her almost as soon as she was through the front door.
“Oh good! You’re home!” Her mother came rushing out of the kitchen, carrying a large black bag. “I just got a call awhile ago about a dinner tonight that they need servers for so I’m going to put in a few extra hours. I need you to watch Mirai while I’m gone, I should be back at ten at the absolute latest. I left your dinner in the fridge, you just need to warm it up.”
“Can anyone else watch her tonight?” Sakura protested, “I really don’t feel good.”
“I don’t have the money for a sitter tonight, I’m sorry honey,” Sakura’s mother pressed a cool hand against her forehead. “You don’t feel warm.”
“It’s not a fever. I just have really horrible cramps.”
“Mirai probably won’t stay up for much longer anyways. Why don’t you pull the heating pad out of the closet and put that on your abdomen to see if that helps. If you want, you can call Kaz and see if he wants to come over for some company.”
“He’s going out with the boys,” Sakura spat out the words like they were leaving a bad taste in her mouth.
Her mother looked at her curiously. “Well, alright then. I’ll try and get back as soon as I can so you can go to bed. Your sister shouldn’t be much of a problem, she had physical therapy today and seemed pretty worn out. She’s watching a movie right now so you can do your homework while that’s on. If you could feed her dinner and get her in and out of the tub you should be able to get her in bed by eight.” Sakura’s mother bent down to brush a kiss against her daughter’s forehead. “The number is on the table. If you need me go ahead and use it but make sure it’s an emergency. Be good!”
It sounded easy enough but things that sound easy rarely are.
Mirai got her second wind and didn’t want to watch TV, eat dinner, or take a bath. Sakura struggled getting her through her nightly routine and wasn’t even able to start her homework. There were times that she wanted to bend over in half with the pain of her cramps but couldn’t.
By the time Mirai was finally tucked into her bed, Sakura made her way back to the living room where her satchel was resting against the sofa, still unopened. There was no way she would finish it. The best idea would probably be to stay home sick from school and finish it all then.
She sighed and reached for the phone, dialing Kaz’s number. Maybe he could grab tomorrow’s homework for her and bring it over. “Hi Mrs. Yamamoto, could I speak to Kaz please?”
“Hi, Sakura. I’m sorry but Kaz isn’t in. He stopped in for a few minutes before dinner to tell me he was going to the movies with some friends. I thought you’d be there with him.”
“No, I had to watch my sister. Do you know when he’ll be back?”
“He didn’t say. I think they may go out somewhere else after the movie but he said he’d check in with me. Would you like me to ask him to call you?”
“No, it’s alright. Could you just let me know I’m not going to school tomorrow and ask if he’ll get my assignments for me so I don’t fall behind?”
“Of course. Feel better, dear.”
“Thanks Mrs. Yamamoto. Good-night.”
“Good-night.”
Sakura set the phone back down in the cradle and curled up into a ball on the sofa. She glanced at the clock. It was nine thirty-two. With all the trouble watching Mirai, she had completely forgotten about Tonight At the Same Place. She sighed and turned on the television. At least she could catch the end of it.
Mizue was having relationship problems again. It was just a continuation of that storyline from the previous episode. She was convinced her true love didn’t want her anymore and then she lost her job.
Sakura watched with interest as Mizue’s hysterics progressed until the end of the episode where she tried to choke herself only to have Miki come in at the last minute and stop her. The two started crying as the show went to the credits. There was a mention at the end about how the actions of the characters weren’t meant to be mimicked, how self mutilation in any form was a cry for help and how the writers knew it was a serious issue. There was about a two minute bonus clip at the end with Mizue’s actress talking about the rumors surrounding that kind of choking, how it relieved stress or was a harmless high.
When the next show came on the air Sakura turned off the television and made her way upstairs to her bedroom. Sure the show was going to say that the actions were dangerous but what if there was something to it?
She got on her computer and started looking up information. She wanted to see the other side to the story.
There was an entire message board of people who were into it. Not only did they write about their experiences and what they got out of it but there were very detailed instructions on how to do it, where to put your hands, what to expect, best places to do it. None of them knew anyone who died from it.
She deleted the internet history and stared at the desktop for a moment. It was a lot of information to take in but if it helped the kids on those boards, why couldn’t it do the same for her?
Sakura knelt on her bed and slowly moved her hands around her throat. It was just a matter of applying the pressure to the internal carotid artery, cutting off blood from the brain which in turn prevented oxygen from going to it. Once you passed out, your grip would slack off and the blood flow would begin again and you’d wake up about a minute later.
She glanced at the clock next to her. 10:41. She began to press down and could almost hear the pumping of blood through her veins. She felt dizzy, wanted to let go but made herself hold firm. The first time was the hardest, that’s what everyone on the board said. After the first time, they said their bodies seemed to accept it more, almost as if they wanted the high.
She must have passed out, she didn’t remember falling over onto her side. She must have passed out but she was able to wake up and felt fine. A little light headed but the weight of the day was gone. Sakura glanced at the clock again. 10:44. She didn’t know how long it took her to actually pass out but the time seemed about right.
It was the first time that day that something felt right. Sakura woke up with a start. It was still dark in the room, still dark outside. She couldn’t have been asleep that long. “Nanahara?” She called softly. “Do you want to sleep for awhile now?”
There wasn’t an answer.
She tried to shake off the uneasiness and got off of the bed, grabbing the gun and holding it by her side. “Nanahara?” She called again. “Can you hear me?”
A crash of thunder made her jump and flash of lightning lit up the room long enough for her to tell he wasn’t there. She opened up the door as the lightning flashed again. A gust of wind hit the house, blowing the door open and allowing rain to pour inside the main room. There were some papers flying off the table, probably left there as the homeowners were forced to leave. “Nanahara?” She glanced outside to see if he was somewhere in the yard but all she could see was rain.
Shaken, she walked back inside and shut the door again. Maybe he had just run out for a minute for something. Maybe he found someone while she was sleeping. That would be more like him.
Sakura sat down on the floor next to her bag, the gun clutched in her hand. She kept glancing at her program provided watch and listening to the rain. The rain had started to let up about an hour later and she was forced to acknowledge that he had probably left her behind. It didn’t seem like something he would do but maybe he just started to see her as a threat to his plans to get everyone together and get them all off of the island alive. It didn’t seem likely but she couldn’t think of any other explanations. Either way, no matter how she tried to justify it to herself, it didn’t change the fact that he had left her and she was on her own.
The idea scared her more than anything else in the entire game. She hadn’t had to deal with being alone yet, with possibly dying alone yet. Shou had stayed with her at the beginning and when she woke up, Shuuya had been by her side ever since. Reluctantly, Sakura picked up her bag and started out the door into the woods back the way they had come.
She didn’t want to admit it, but she needed Shuuya. She needed that calming factor but didn’t know where he would be. There was the possibility he had gone back to the tangerine trees to get more fruit or to see if someone else had gone there for food. It wasn’t much of a lead but it was the only thing she had at the moment.
Her bag was heavy, her shoes getting sucked into the sticky mud. She wasn’t going nearly as quickly as they had earlier. She wasn’t even sure if she was walking down the same paths but her compass told her she was heading the right way. As long as she stayed on course, she’d make her way right by all the danger zones in the area.
She could smell the fruit before she could see the grove. She wasn’t sure if she was at the same part of the grove where she and Shuuya had been earlier but there didn’t seem to be any sign of him.
Sakura couldn’t stand it any longer. She crawled to the edge of the grove where it met the brush of the woods and started to cry. She was so stupid. Stupid for trusting Shuuya, stupid for kissing Shuuya. Stupid for not leaving a note for him in case he came back, as unlikely as that was. Where had all that gotten her? She was all alone now and if she died now, it would probably be because of her own stupidity.
She lost track of the time she spent hiding under the tree. Her only movement was to mark down the danger zones from the next report. There weren’t any new deaths, Shuuya was still out there somewhere. Kayoko was too, she hadn’t even thought about finding her friend in the longest time, not like she would know where to start looking.
A bird sang out from above her. Startled, Sakura jumped to her feet, her hands tightening around the gun. “Just a bird,” she whispered. “I’ve got to calm down.”
She had just settled down again when she heard the thud, the voices. She crawled further into the brush, dragging her pack with her. She could feel her heart beating, her veins pulsing, her breaths getting shorter. Usually it was a feeling she welcomed and this time she just wanted it to go away.
There were the sounds of footsteps but they seemed like they were going the other way. There was more than one person running off in the opposite direction and she had to wonder if her classmates were chasing each other down, trying for another kill. The thud she had heard, she had to wonder if someone else was dead.
Shuuya’s voice was whispering in her ear. “You’ve got to have faith. They might be okay, you might be able to help someone.”
Sakura turned her head, trying to turn away from the voice and hear Kaz whispering in her other ear. “The Saki I knew wouldn’t ever run away from someone who needed her.”
“No...” she covered her ears with her hands.
“Saki, please.” Kaz’s voice followed her.
Sakura always had a think denying him when he was alive. How in the world could she refuse his memory, no matter how afraid she was.
Her bag was left in the brush as she slowly inched her way forward. Her grip on the gun kept getting tighter, no way was she letting it go now. She couldn’t be far from where the scuffle had been and there still wasn’t any sound coming from the area.
It was okay, it would be okay.
A cry.
An explosion.
Sakura shrieked. There was a second explosion.
Oh God...no.
The gun in her hand was smoking. She must have...oh God.
She dropped the gun and ran.
(OOC: Long time coming, not sure if it's any good but at least I broke through the writer's block.
First bullet...Does Sakura Ogawa kill, wound, or miss Yumiko Kusaka?
Second bullet...she hit Yoshimi. Yoshimi is dead.
She dropped the gun in F8. If your character wants to find it, have at it. Her bag is in the bushes there too, she left it behind.)