My love game with them that will lead to certain death

"Xue-no-chan, you really are becoming more and more like him."

It wasn't until one day when her sister looked at her and sighed like this that Yukinoshita Yukino finally felt a little relieved from the long-standing sense of unreality.

"He started to like reading some magazines and newspapers, and watching old movies that he hardly watched before. My lovely sister has been losing her appetite for him all day... Haha, maybe this is the "revenge" he wants to achieve."

After all, that person said that if you make him angry, he will definitely retaliate.

It was precisely because she knew that Haruno had used her in this way that Yukino would never forget him for the rest of her life, and this became an eternal barrier between the two sisters - perhaps it was his evil response.

"Sister, when you first brought him to see me, wasn't it because you hoped he could do something for me?"

Yukino took down the whistle hanging on the lamp, wiped it gently with a handkerchief, and then carefully put it back where it was.

"You arranged for us to meet and gradually get to know each other... You even deliberately created opportunities for us to get along, all in the hope that he could help me."

Although Yang No, who was leaning against the door, had her intention exposed, she just smiled.

"Yes, I have to admit that I wanted to get something from him from the beginning, so it is natural for him to be dissatisfied with me. So for me...his "revenge" was also successful."

There is a deeper meaning in my sister's bitter smile.

She still remembers the scene of her sister Yukino lying on the hospital bed quietly reading a magazine, with the curly-haired young man taking care of her at her side.

It would be nice if the two most important people to her could always stay within her reach - unfortunately, the importance of these two people also has a priority.

"He knows that you, Yukino, are more important to me than himself. So... losing him forever is my punishment."

But Yukinoshita Yukino didn't want to speculate any further on the meaning of it.

The passage of time became very fast after that person left, so fast that Yukinoshita Yukino could hardly remember whether her love for watching movies and reading magazines and newspapers was influenced by that person or was a habit she already had.

In her free time, she would spend an entire afternoon in a bookstore, flipping through short story collections with strange but extremely fascinating titles, hoping to capture the familiar charm between the lines.

Or you might spend your weekends in the cinema, watching one re-released old movie after another with dismal attendance, sitting in an empty theater and watching the lives of another group of people through the screen.

Romance movies are the genre she is least sensitive to but cannot avoid, and she has also seen the tip of the iceberg of too many emotions through movies.

Lovers who love each other but have to separate for their own careers wish each other well, lovers who fall in love at first sight on a train in a foreign country meet again ten years later but things have changed, an ordinary bookstore owner and a well-known female star fall in love, a lonely male high school student meets a cheerful girl with a serious illness but ends up parting ways with her...

The movie may be telling a possible story of human destiny.

So the life that belongs to me so far is actually an extension of this possibility.

"……Eh?"

When she noticed it, Yukinoshita Yukino, who was sitting in the theater seat, had already burst into tears without realizing it.

The sudden emotions hit her psychological defenses repeatedly like a surging tide, and even she, who prided herself on being smart and calm, was somewhat unable to resist.

Many people don't actually feel much of the reality when they leave. It's only when she suddenly remembers everything about him at some point in the future and finds that he has long disappeared, that the emotions that have been suppressed will suddenly come over her.

The movie screen flashed back to the time when the hero and heroine spent together, which made her recall the past.

The one who would play tricks on her in a very malicious way.

The person who looks careless but is very reliable at critical moments.

Unlike her family members who are repressed and talk to themselves, he is the one who always brings her ease and joy.

The man who took her away from the hospital at all costs just to catch a glimpse of a passing comet, and who promised to wake her up from this nightmare.

Never seen again.

"...?"

Somehow, the tears wouldn't stop.

No matter how hard you try to wipe away the tears from your face, your eyes will still be wet the next second.

This kind of heart-wrenching feeling is the first time in my life.

But the person who brought me such intense excitement will never be seen again.

Why did it turn out like this… ?

The screen shows the male protagonist sitting at the piano and seeing the female protagonist bring a new male companion. He is eclipsed, but he plays the song they first met, and the scene flashes back to another possibility if they had never separated.

If I could go back to the past, would things unfold differently?

After all, everything so far is just a "possibility".

Yukinoshita Yukino wiped away her tears, stood up as if guided by something, and walked out of the theater where she was the only one there.

There was only one thought that drove her to take a step forward.

The possibility of meeting that person again in a different life.

Want to see him.

I want to reestablish a relationship with him in a healthy body, a normal relationship, and a peaceful life.

Pushing open the door of the theater, the dazzling light swept across her eyes, and at the same time, it unreasonably took away all her senses.

When the light in front of her eyes softened, she opened her eyes belatedly.

It is the familiar ceiling at home.

Yukinoshita Yukino sat up from the bed and looked around her bedroom which was familiar yet unfamiliar.

Everything was exactly as I remembered, but something was slightly wrong.

The desk was filled with high school textbooks, the alarm clock was ticking, the Sobu High uniforms were hanging on the hangers, there was a desk lamp with nothing hanging on it, and a brand new calendar was hanging by the door.

"...?"

Yukino rubbed the calendar with her hands to make sure there were no scratches on it. She searched through all the drawers on the desk but couldn't find any trace of the whistle. An idea gradually formed in her mind.

She had returned from that nightmarish future simulation.

She should have been completely relieved after waking up from a dream, but instead she sat blankly at the head of the bed, and only dragged her dazed body out of the door when she was about to be late for school.

After staying in the dream for too long, reality becomes the side that brings a sense of illusion.

The heart-wrenching illness no longer exists, the suffocating family relationships are no longer so tense, and the once hopeless life has regained vitality.

Yukinoshita Yukino finally returned to the life she had dreamed of, but...

"Hmm... ex-boyfriend? Haha, if I had dated someone before, how could you not know? Yukino~ why are you asking this all of a sudden? Are you missing your sister?"

"…It's nothing, just asking out of the blue."

She hung up the phone call to Yang Noi and returned to her seat after the class bell rang.

It was rare for Yukinoshita Yukino to be absent-minded in class.

She tried, looking for that familiar figure.

In the list of students who have graduated, in group photos of former students, and in the after-dinner conversations with former teachers.

But in the end, still nothing was gained.

I couldn't suppress the emptiness and regret rising in my heart.

This is the real world that Yukinoshita Yukino has always dreamed of, and it is also the only world where that person does not exist.

There is no so-called true love in the real world. The relationship between people is just that between individuals. Love is just like the fictional concepts created by vampires and dragons in movies. People just add romantic emotions to it subjectively.

The person who only appears in the simulation is like a virtual character in a movie, unforgettable yet out of reach.

"You will wake up from this dream." Novel Skirt.5

His whispers echoed in my ears as if it happened yesterday, yet it also seemed as if centuries had passed.

"We...will meet again."

No way, liar.

That person was like a Mentos can thrown into a carbonated drink, which rose up and disappeared without a trace - only the overflowing foam was left for her to clean up the mess.

Perhaps it was destined from the beginning that I would meet him only after saying goodbye.

It doesn’t matter. I can hardly remember what that person looks like.

There's nothing to worry about, he's just a guy who likes to brag and talk nonsense.

Even if that kind of unreliable, frivolous, and mentally unstable person really doesn't exist in this world...there's nothing we can do about it.

Well, there's nothing we can do about it.

Whether meeting him or parting with him, there must be a meaning to it.

Moving on with all her memories was the only thing she could do.

Yukinoshita Yukino forced herself to accept this fact, suppressed her emotions, and completed a whole day's worth of classes as meticulously as usual - at least that's what she thought.

She came to the club activity room she founded in a daze, looking at the library books while quietly waiting for the new members that Mr. Hiratsuka mentioned.

Anyway, it's that male classmate named Hikigaya Hachiman, if it unfolds in the same way as that simulation.

The girl calmly flipped through the novel. She found that she could only get some peace of mind when reading or watching movies - who gave her this?

It's time to get out of the nightmare and return to life. If that person saw her like this, he would definitely say so.

Of course, for Yukinoshita Yukino, this will take a long time.

The chaotic thoughts continued until the door of the activity room was pushed open.

"Hey, Yukinoshita! Come meet your first club member!"

At Hiratsuka-sensei's call, the black-haired girl raised her head and looked towards the door without paying any attention.

"...?"

Her pupils contracted when the boy walked into the room.

The boy who was brought in by the teacher had a slightly thinner figure and a childish and handsome face compared to the person in memory, but the feeling he gave was exactly the same.

"Let me introduce you. This kid is Toru Narumi. He's in the same grade as you, Yukinoshita-san. You two should get along well... Eh? Yukinoshita-san?"

It was not until Hiratsuka Shizuka asked in confusion that the girl realized a tear had unknowingly flowed down the corner of her eye.

"...?"

The crystal clear warm liquid dripped onto the pages of the library, gradually spreading next to the title "Song of the Pyramid".

Prologue Boy Meets Girl

The air in the underground performance venue is always humid and stuffy, but the narrow and crowded space cannot suppress the overflowing enthusiasm conveyed by the audience in the noisy voices.

The band on the field was performing with all their might, and the lead singer was playing the guitar and singing the melody with such concentration that he looked like he was kissing the microphone.

In the audience, the girl with short blue hair did not join the crowd in the center. She just leaned against the edge with her eyes drooping, seemingly in a daze but actually listening to the performance with full concentration.

The emotions expressed in the song can infect everyone present and spread to every corner. The girl is immersed in it, closing her eyes and enjoying the sensory impact brought by the music and the enthusiastic cheers of the audience.

During the pause after the chorus, she opened her eyes—and a quiet figure at the other end of the crowd suddenly appeared in her sight.

The curly-haired boy stood there with his arms crossed. He did not dance to the music like the others. His profile, staring at the stage, was calm and peaceful. He seemed out of place in the restless crowd - just like her.

Just before the music started again, the curly-haired boy noticed the gaze and turned his head to meet the blue-haired girl's eyes.

The next second, the passionate rock music led the crowd in cheers, bringing the atmosphere to a new peak.

They stared at each other silently amid the deafening rock music. Although there was noisy noise around them, it seemed as if there was no one around.

It should have been a romantic and old-fashioned boy meets girl scene, but...

“…Uh, is this guy crazy? Why is he looking at me instead of the stage?”

The two of them complained in their hearts almost at the same time.

This was the first time Toru Narumi and Ryo Yamada met.

----

Shimokitazawa, an underground performance venue.

"This is a headache. The guitarist position is vacant. Where can I find a temporary replacement? Should I ask my sisters for help?"

A girl with long golden hair tied in a ponytail sat in front of the drum set, tapping the tom-tom weakly and telling her troubles to her friend beside her.

"You can count on me, too."

The short-haired girl who was fiddling with the bass answered expressionlessly and removed the wires connected to the bass.

"Ryo can you introduce...? Do you know anyone?"