Published at 26th of March 2019 12:07 am

Volume 2, Part 2

May 1st (Friday) 09:32

I returned to class after the end of first period, only to find Kokone standing beside the door in a daunting pose. She is scowling at me for some reason, her face slightly red. Maybe she's angry?

"......I've been waiting..."

"Huh?"

"I've been waiting for you to approach me!" she complains in a loud voice. "But you thought you could just ditch first period together with her! I mean, what the heck! I don't get it! Your actions don't make sense, Kazu-kun!"

From my perspective, Kokone getting so worked up doesn't make sense, but I should be quiet now.

Seemingly irritated by my silence, she gives my chest a shove and presses me against the wall, grumbling all the while.

"Um... I'm sorry."

"Why are you apologizing?!"

"Huh? ...S-Sorry."

"No, seriously, why are you apologizing?!"

Kokone draws closer and closer as I try to cope with my hopeless confusion.

"Or do you want to apologize?! Apologize and pretend it never happened?! Isn't that cruel?! W-Well... that would make my life a lot easier, though..."

"W-Wait... what are you talking about?"

We're talking past each other, just like Otonashi-san and I did earlier.

...Eh? Wait a sec. Does that mean that—

"What don't you understand, mm? Because...! Y-You know... because..."

Her face flushes even more—she turns crimson right up to her ears.

If my guess is right, then I don't want to hear about it. Nevertheless, Kokone whispers the answer into my ear after she confirms there are no eavesdroppers.

"I'm talking about—that call yesterday when you confessed to me."

What...? I confessed to her?

I'm at a loss for words. Kokone looks at me with upturned eyes.

"Um, you know... I..."

She bashfully looks down at the floor, probably misinterpreting my silence. She mulls over what to say for a while, but eventually begins to speak.

"I'm sorry... I... I really don't know how I should respond... I mean... I thought of you as a buddy, and was pretty sure that's how you felt, too... Besides... not that it matters... but there's Daiya..." She musters her courage by clenching her fist and raises her head. "...Give me some time. I don't know when I can give you an answer, but give me some time... Sorry."

Her sorrow appears so clearly on her face that my heart starts to hurt. I want to shout out and tell her that it wasn't me, but there's no point in telling her that. Only a fool would act so thoughtlessly.

Reading a different meaning into my painful expression, Kokone straightens her lips just like I have, turns around, and trots back into the classroom.

After I can no longer see her, I murmur, "I also think of you as a friend!"

I clench my fist.

Suddenly, a certain thought occurs to me. I take out my phone and examine my call history. ...Why didn't I notice earlier? May 1st, 1:29am.

Kokone Kirino is listed right below Maria Otonashi.

May 1st (Friday) 11:00

Well then, let's see how things turned out.

May 1st (Friday) 12:00

The first thing I hear is the sound of a girl crying.

Daiya's face is right in front of me. I haven't the slightest idea of what's going on.

What the hell?

Cold hostility is flickering in his eyes. Toward whom? Toward me, of course, because I am the one reflected in his eyes. In other words, he is regarding me as an enemy.

Suddenly, a wave of pain rolls through me. My mouth and my cheeks hurt, as do my wrists.

Daiya is sitting astride me, grasping me tightly by the wrists.

I finally manage to comprehend the situation I'm in.

I'm in the music room. It's third period, so I should be in history class right now, but for some reason I'm in the music room, which is where my fourth period class is held. There is blood sticking to my uniform. Whose blood? ...It's probably my own; there's a metallic taste in my mouth. Daiya must have hit me.

What happened... what on earth happened here?!

"Daiya... what's—"

"Keep your mouth shut, Kazu. One more word and I swear I'll crush your mouth."

Daiya's hostility is real. The plain tone of his voice proves that he's not joking; he would probably resort to violence if I make an unasked-for remark.

What sort of nightmare is this?

However, if this were a nightmare, my body wouldn't hurt so much.

This is reality.

The crying hasn't stopped yet... who's crying, anyway?

I turn my head toward the source of the sounds.

Kokone Kirino is crying.

The first sensation I feel is comprehension. I see, that's why she didn't stop Daiya before things got to this point. The second sensation is wonder. Why would Kokone be crying?

The next sensation that spreads within me is horror.

—Please, no.

OK: Kokone is crying and Daiya has completely freaked out. So, who made her cry? Who made him angry? I'm in the music room, so it must be fourth period already. I don't remember anything that happened during third period. Yet I'm here. In a different place than I was before. In other words—

—I moved unknowingly?

Like when I unknowingly sent an e-mail to Otonashi-san and confessed to her.

Like when I unknowingly confessed to Kokone and destroyed our relationship.

What if I unknowingly did something that hurt Kokone and provoked Daiya's wrath?

"That's enough, Daiyan," Haruaki says as he puts his hand on Daiya's shoulder.

"That's enough"?

Does that mean I deserved to get knocked down and beaten up?

Daiya bangs my hands against the ground and releases them. He slowly gets to his feet, piercing glance still fixed upon me. Then, almost as if on a whim—

"Ugh!"

—He tramples on my stomach with all his strength and turns his back to me.

I squirm in pain and catch a glimpse of my surroundings as I do so. Everyone—my classmates, the music teacher, and even Haruaki—is looking at me as if I had done something incomprehensible. Kokone's crying gets even louder as she presses her face against Daiya's chest.

I try to rise, but I have trouble doing so because of the pain. Nobody bothers to give me a hand.

It's as if I were prostrating myself before them.

Why do I have to endure this? Why does everyone seem to think that I got what I deserved? I don't know what happened, but I do know the cause.

—It's a box.

Right, it's not my fault, it's the fault of a box. I haven't done anything wrong!

Then why do I have to go through this?!

I stand up. On my own.

Even though I'm the center of attention, no one approaches me.

I know perfectly well that no one is going to understand what really happened. Therefore, no one approaches me, no one speaks to me. No one. Not Daiya, not Kokone, and not even Haruaki. No one. No one. No one no one no one—

"Kazuki, are you alright?"

No one but her.

I smile. Her sudden appearance in the middle of the lesson leaves everyone astounded, but I'm not surprised at all.

"...Maria."

As she hears her real name escape my lips, her eyes widen for a moment, but she immediately regains her usual equanimity and rushes from the door to my side.

She stops in front of me and draws so near to my face that I can make out her individual eyelashes, completely ignoring the spell that is keeping everyone else away. She gently strokes my swollen cheek.

"First of all, let's get your wounds treated. Follow me to the infirmary."

"...Got it."

She walks away and I follow her.

No one calls out to us.

The moment I leave the room, the crying grows even louder. At least, that's what I thought.

May 1st (Friday) 12:17

No one is in the infirmary.

Upon realizing this, Otonashi-san examines my injuries and palpates my wound. She takes a medicine box off a shelf and starts to treat my wound with deft movements.

"I sure didn't expect to come across such a disastrous scene when I decided to share my new thoughts on this box with you... What happened?" she asks, while disinfecting my wound.

"I would like to know that myself, actually."

"You don't remember?"

I nod. For some reason she lets out a horribly annoyed sigh.

"It's always the same thing with you ever since the Rejecting Classroom. It's getting old, you know?"

"It's not like I want to lose my memories..."

"I'm just joking, of course," she explains as she applies a gauze patch to my face. "The first thing I saw was Oomine treading on you. Do you remember what happened before that?"

"...He was already on top of me by the time I regained consciousness."

"So you don't have the slightest idea why he hit you?"

"Mm, I don't know."

After hearing me out, she crosses her arms and ponders the matter.

"Kazuki, do you have your cell phone with you right now?"

"My cell phone? It should be inside my pants pocket..."

"There might be some sort of record left behind. Search it thoroughly."

I quickly take out my cell and search it as instructed.

Calls Received, Outgoing Calls, Inbox, Outbox; none of them seems to have changed. I open the data folder.

"Voice Folder"

I have a Voice Folder? I open it.

There is one item with a 12-digit filename. I guess the numbers reference the file creation time. If it wasn't edited in some way, this file was created on May 1st, around 2 a.m.—in other words, sometime late last night.

I open the file and press the phone to my ear.

A voice starts to play.

"Good morning Kazuki Hoshino-kun. Or should I say, good day, or good night even?"

What the...?

I unwittingly pause the file playback. Why is there a recording of some unfamiliar guy on my phone? Why is this guy talking to me?

"What's wrong Kazuki? Did you come upon anything useful?"

Unable to answer her, my fingers tremble as I press the play button once more.

"Well, I guess it doesn't matter—you don't care about such details either, do you? What you do care about is who I am, right? Ah, just to confirm, you know about the boxes, right? You heard about them from O, right? There's no need for me to repeat that explanation, is there?"

He knows about the boxes as well as O? Does that mean that he is the owner?

"You must have noticed by now that your everyday life is starting to crumble. Cool, isn't it? After all, that's what I'm aiming for. But why? Because I want to eliminate you, Kazuki Hoshino."

The contrast between the casual tone of his voice and what he's saying causes my heart to race.

"I will eliminate you. I will destroy everything you value. With my box, I can steal everything from you. It'll be a cinch! After all—"

The voice is cut off. No, that's not quite right; I just dropped my cell phone.

"Kazuki...?! Are you alright? What on earth did you listen to?"

"Ah—"

I've just experienced clear hostility—from someone who has obtained the worst and most powerful weapon, a box, and is going to attempt to destroy my life.

Otonashi-san picks up my phone and opens the voice file.

"This is—!"

She raises an eyebrow as she listens closely to the message.

After a while she flips the cell phone shut, returns it to me without a word, crosses her arms and loses herself in thought.

"Kazuki," she finally says in an alarmingly clear voice. "I've been ruminating over this matter ever since the events of this morning. I had come up with some vague ideas for how we should proceed, but I couldn't come to a conclusion. However, now that I've heard this recording, I've made up my mind."

Otonashi-san looks straight at me.

"I won't trust you anymore."

"—huh?"

I open my mouth like an idiot, unable to follow her.

"You've noticed by now that this box seems to be focused directly on you, haven't you? To make matters worse, you've already fallen into the hands of the owner. Therefore, I cannot trust you."

I repeat those words in my head.

She can't trust me—?

"W-Why? I would never betray you!"

"Right, you wouldn't. If you are Kazuki Hoshino, that is."

"Huh?"

"But are you really Kazuki Hoshino? Maybe you're the owner?"

"Y-You're being cryptic, Otonashi-san. The owner is the one who recorded that voice message, no?"

"...Did you not finish listening to the recording? No... even if you stopped listening midway, you should have at least recognized the speaker's voice."

"Otonashi-san, did you uncover his identity? Do we already know who the owner is? You know him?"

"...Well, I suppose it stands to reason that you fail to recognize the voice. After all, you've never heard that voice in this manner, and the way he talks is entirely different as well," she murmurs instead of answering my questions. She then turns her back to me and proceeds to leave the infirmary.

"W-Wait! Come on, at least tell me whose voice it is!"

She stops. But she does not turn around to face me.

"Kazuki, try listening to this voice once more when you've regained your composure."

Upon saying so, she walks away.

Stunned by her absolute rejection, I'm unable to call out to her.

Otonashi-san left me here alone.

As I listen to the voice, which is unfamiliar to me even though I hear it all the time, once more, I finally understand what's going on.

"Hahaha..."

I can't help laughing. Fair enough. It's only natural that she can't trust me right now.

"Sh*t..."

Then... Then, what am I supposed to do now...?!

"It'll be a cinch! After all—"

I finally hear the end of the message.

"—We're sharing your body."

It's the voice of none other than myself.

May 1st (Friday) 13:00

I guess I'll keep quiet for now.

May 1st (Friday) 14:00

All of a sudden, my consciousness is cut off, only to be restored moments later.

I'm sitting in my seat. We should still be on lunch break, yet I'm suddenly here in the classroom.

I check the time: It's 2 p.m., so fifth period is about to end.

I hurriedly look around the classroom. Kokone and Daiya's seats are empty—perhaps they left early—while my other classmates are more or less concentrating on class. Looks like everything's okay for now. On my desk, I find my textbook, my notebook and my writing implements. It seems that I haven't taken any notes.

There's no doubt about it anymore.

There are two entities dwelling within my body. It's not just "me" anymore; there's "another self" whom I cannot perceive, and has been controlling my body until just now.

The bell rings.

The break begins, but because of what happened in the music room, nobody approaches me. Instead, people only cast curious glances at me from afar.

This state of affairs must have been deliberately brought forth by my "other self." After all, he said that he wants to erase "me"—this is one of his attacks.

I fall flat on my desk.

What should I do about my "other self," now that even Otonashi-san has abandoned me?

"Hoshii."

Someone's calling my name, so I raise my head in response.

The expression on his face is totally unlike his usual joyful self. With an unbefittingly serious face, Haruaki asks me, "Look, why did you do that to Kokone?"

I keep my mouth shut. I can't possibly answer him—after all, I don't even know what, precisely, he's referring to.

"You know... I don't think you would say something like that without a reason, Hoshii, so I'm sure there is one. I'm probably just too dense to get it. But unless you explain, I'll remain in the dark! So why don't you let me in on what's going on?" Visibly uneasy, he continues. "Otherwise, I can't support you, honestly speaking."

His words make one thing clear to me:

Haruaki is the last fortress that protects my everyday life.

Would he believe me if I told him that I was being controlled by "another self"? ...He just might. But—

"—I can't tell you. I can't tell you right now."

I still haven't really come to terms with the situation I'm in myself, so I wouldn't be able to come up with an explanation satisfying enough to convince him.

"But I will soon!" I say while looking straight in his eyes, trying to convey my sincerity.

"Okay, I got it. I'll wait," he responds plainly, and walks away silently. He must have really wanted to voice his discontent, but held back somehow.

Haruaki said he'd wait, so I can't talk to him until the proper time arrives. I'm going to lose him if I speak carelessly.

And once I lose Haruaki, my final fortress, I won't be able to retain my everyday life.

...Yeah, I gathered what I have to do now. I have to learn more about this box and my "other self" as quickly as possible.

But how? I don't even have any means of communicating with him.

"......Ah."

Right. How did I learn of his existence, anyway? Because he left me a message.

I walk into the corridor outside my classroom and take out my cell phone—I'm going to send a message to my "other self," using the voice recorder.

Of course it's unclear whether or not he'll answer, but it's still worth a try.

"Hey, how do you do? Or do we know each other already, my 'other self'?" I start the recording. "I now understand that we're sharing my body, but I'm still confused. I want you to tell me more about this box. And I want you to reveal who you are."

Will he answer me if I question him so bluntly? After all, he's someone who is trying to eliminate me.

Therefore, I try provoking him a bit.

"Oh, but I don't care whether you reply or not. My behavior won't change no matter what you say to me. I couldn't care less even if you have the strongest possible reason to loathe me, a goal that's the noblest imaginable, or a past that deserves everyone's pity."

I'm surprised by the hostility of the words that naturally well up, so in contrast to my own character. But I feel that I'm saying what has to be said.

"I will not approve of your existence."

I have to convey my determination.

How could I approve of this? No way in hell could I allow anyone to steal me from myself.

My legs are trembling and I'm leaning against a wall before I know it. That's probably because my body is deeply disturbed by the first instance of distinct hostility I've felt toward someone in my entire life.

I close my cell phone and take a deep breath.

I'm going to crush my "other self."

No matter what his situation is, I will not permit his continued existence.

May 1st (Friday) 15:34

I notice that Kazuki Hoshino has recorded a voice file.

May 1st (Friday) 16:00

Right before my eyes is the face of an unfamiliar girl. Out of surprise, I let go of the strap I've been holding and fall over. The people around me giggle as I get back on my feet, trying to ignore them. I analyze the situation.

A strap? So I'm riding a train?

The reason is obvious: My body has been controlled by my "other self" again.

Without missing a beat, I take out my cell phone and discover a new voice file.

I press Play.

"I see, this is a pretty handy way to communicate. I was just starting to think that a one-way conversation would get boring! Well, let me answer your questions," the intruder says in my own voice. "When I received this box, I decided to make a certain wish: to become you—Kazuki Hoshino!"

I hold my breath.

"Well, and here I am, controlling your body... but look, don't you think that my wish is somehow lacking, since my control is only temporary and I can only steal some of your time? Rest assured, this will change before long. The process of taking over will end exactly one week after I first used my box. Once May 6th rolls around—the last day of the Golden Week—your soul will leave your body, while mine will remain."

So I have just over four days to destroy his box.

"That should be enough to give you an idea of the situation you're in. Well then, you asked who I am, didn't you? Haha, that's a difficult question indeed. Who am I? To be honest, I don't really know myself! I mean, I'm Kazuki Hoshino, no? But that's not the answer you want to hear, is it? To simplify matters, I've come up with an alias to differentiate us. You may call me"

He says in my voice.

"—Yuuhei Ishihara."

I burn that unfamiliar name into my memory.

"Okay, I guess I'll conclude with some feedback. You said that you wouldn't approve of my existence; well, I'm sorry, but I broke out into laughter after hearing that! I mean, what can you do about me? Prattle into your cell phone? Care to explain how you intend to execute your plans?" Yuuhei Ishihara laughs hideously using my voice. "You're really pitiful, so let me offer you one way to get rid of me. More than half of Kazuki Hoshino is already mine. It's simple—"

He speaks.

"—just commit suicide."

Again, his unbearable laughter resounds from my phone. I desperately fight against the urge to press the stop-button before listening to the rest of his message.

The voice calms down and I hear his final words.

"Oh, one more thing, in case you haven't noticed: one of your friends sent you an e-mail!"

A friend...?

I gulp and open my inbox. The name Haruaki Usui is displayed at the top.

I don't remember opening it, but the message is already marked as read.

What—

What has he done to Haruaki—?!

I take a deep breath. Still unable to calm down, I bite my lips. I don't want to admit it, but my hands are trembling.

I open the e-mail.

"Please don't talk to me for a while."

Aah—

The last fortress that protected my everyday life just crumbled away.

May 1st (Friday) 23:22

I'm dreaming.

It's the same dream that I've experienced several times already.

May 2nd

May 2nd (Saturday) 00:11

I wake to a rumbling coming from the desk.

I get out of bed and pick up the cell phone that's the source of the noise. I look at its LCD screen.

"Maria Otonashi"

Maria Otonashi? Given the current state of affairs, why would she want to call me? Hasn't Kazuki Hoshino let her in on what's going on? ...Well, I guess he realized that even his lover wouldn't buy such an absurd story. That being said, she should still be able to notice that something's off without his saying a word... oh well.

Cutting short my train of thought, I take the call.

How could I resist the desire to talk with the girl I admire?

"Hello."

"Kazuki. Come to my room."

Wow. Does she always treat Kazuki Hoshino this way?

Okay, how should I react?

Let's summarize:

My box will allow me to completely take over "Kazuki Hoshino" within a week. In order for me to do that, it would be best if I make as few waves as possible, which means that I should stay away from Maria Otonashi.

But I mustn't get confused: that's not my ultimate goal.

What I really want to do is torment Kazuki Hoshino so much that he scratches his neck raw in utter agony, make him succumb so thoroughly that he begs me to take his body as he prostrates himself before me, and make him an empty shell who exists solely to surrender his body to me by May 5th. That is my desire.

Why would I possess such a desire? Because doing so allows me to feel that I've become Kazuki Hoshino.

As long as I lack that feeling of truly being Kazuki Hoshino, I'm just a freeloader in someone else's body—which would be completely pointless.

That must also be why I have to share this body with "Kazuki Hoshino" for a while—because otherwise, I wouldn't feel like I've truly assumed his identity. Heh, this box is pretty well-made.

"Hey, how about replying?"

Yeah, there's no reason to waver.

Maria Otonashi is without a doubt very important to him. Losing her will be a terrible blow.

Therefore, "Yuuhei Ishihara" will steal Maria Otonashi from "Kazuki Hoshino."

This is an absolute condition for fulfilling my absolute desire.

"Ah, I'm sorry. I was absorbed in thought," I say as I recall how "Kazuki Hoshino" normally speaks. "Um, your room? Sure, if you come pick me up."

Her phrasing suggests that Kazuki Hoshino visits her room on a daily basis.

"Why should I pamper you? Just take your bike."

"My bicycle is in bad shape right now, you see," I reply, trying to deceive her with a random lie I came up with on the spot. I don't know where she lives, so I'll be in trouble if she doesn't come fetch me.

"Geez, the guy tells the girl to come pick him up? Isn't it normally the other way around? ...well, whatever. I'll take my motorcycle, is that okay?"

"Do you mean... a moped?"

"No...? It's a full-fledged 250cc motorcycle."

Damn! There's no way Kazuki Hoshino wouldn't know about her motorcycle.

"Aah, I see; I didn't mention that I bought one.

"Ah, y-yeah."

That was close! ...No, there's no need to get nervous—she wouldn't see through me because of something that minor. Getting nervous is unavoidable to a certain degree, though, since I'm dealing with Maria Otonashi.

"Speaking of which, I'm actually not old enough to get a license, am I?"

She's unlicensed?! I guess I made the right decision by not pretending to know about it...

"Well then, I'll be at your place in 15 minutes. Wait for me outside."

She ends the call before I can respond.

"...Kazu-chan, who was that? I'm pretty sure I overheard a girl there, no? And why didn't you take the call on the veranda?" says a girl in her underwear—probably Kazuki Hoshino's sister.

I see. Kazuki Hoshino doesn't take his phone calls indoors in the presence of his sister. I guess I'll keep that in mind.

"Can't be Kasumi Mogi-san at this hour, either..."

Kasumi Mogi? Who's that?

Share