ARC 3: NIGHT

“I wonder if that's how darkness wins, by convincing us to trap it inside ourselves, instead of emptying it out.”

―Jasmine Warga, My Heart and Other Black Holes

“Darkness approaches from outside.

I feel no light inside me strong enough to resist it.” ―Christopher Pike, The Last Vampire

And yet…

In the maddening abyss of night, I see my bare desires

So…

If I must die, I will encounter darkness as a bride, And hug it in mine arms.- William Shakespeare, Measure For Measure

But, even then… Please… Please…

“Oboeteite, boku no koto wo”… “Remember me, as my vividest self in your mind”

~TK, Unravel~

Chapter 46

[Why I used romanji instead of Kanji? Cuz I`m weeb]

*Bam*

Kyoya slammed his palms on the table.

“What do you mean Kenichi-sensei had been acting weird before the incident? Just a few hours before he called me! He said he was going on a vacation to Hokkaido!”

The female teacher sighed, and looked at Kyoya`s distressed face:

“I`m sorry, Sougo-kun… But Kazuo-sensei was never really sociable. He has always been a rather quiet person. Not many teachers here know him that well… And no one was able to think of this outcome… Still, he rushed to finish all of his work in one week before that day, and handed in such an abrupt resignation paper…”

Kyoya`s face twisted into a pained expression as his head dropped in desperation. Takumi frowned, his jaws grinding against eachother. Outside Kyoya`s old school, Takumi suggested going to the police station.

The atmosphere was strangely quiet. Everyone was at their counter, typing down word after word, dealing with paper after paper. Takumi dared not look at his friend`s face, so he hurriedly went to the inquiries.

“We would like to report information on the suicide case of Kenichi Kazuo.”

The officer nodded, and took down the details of Kenichi`s last phone call.

“… But isn`t it too soon to conclude that this case is a suicide?” Kenichi raised his eyebrows.

The officer stammered, making various reasons. None satisfied either of them. Suddenly, Takumi felt multiple stares coming from his flank. His instincts immediately jump to work. Taking out his phone, he angled it left and right so as to see the whole room. A face appeared right behind him. Startled, Takumi turned around to see a large figure watching their conversation. This man had a stern look on his experienced face, with shoulders totally visible under the fancy uniform vest. On his chest hung various medals, next to the high-ranking symbols on his shoulders. A scar ran across his nose, underneath a luxurious pair of glasses.

The man gazed back at Takumi, before speaking with a calm tone:

“I am Funimaro Hideyoshi, Chief executive of Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department. I see you two are displeased with our current progress on the case. Please let me take over from here.”

They were led to a room inside. Takumi still couldn`t ignore the tingling feeling he had. There, all took a seat at the table, two on one side and the Chief on the other.

Once again, the two gave him details of what they knew about Kenichi, as well as the last phone call he made. The Chief seemed lost in thoughts for a moment, after which he explained:

“I think what you feel right now is completely reasonable. To be honest, the hasty conclusion was due to pressure from the media. As you can tell, we are having a lot on our hands, and we are doing the best to resolve them. Kenichi Kazuo`s case will surely be further investigated, and we promise to put our best efforts into it.”

Then, Funimaro professionally thanked them and the two went home. With a tensed face, Takumi turned to Kyoya:

“This is definitely not a case of suicide. Even the Chief said so himself…”

“Uhm.” Kyoya`s fringe fell, covering half of his face.

“Kyoya…”

He silently walked away, towards his house. Takumi didn`t know what to say.

*Ring Ring Ring*

Takumi`s phone rang, and he picked up.

“Hai? Nishimura desu.”

“Is this mister Nishimura Takumi?” A person spoke in English.

“Who is on the other end?” He asked, in English.

Darkness quickly descended on the city, and was warded off by the various billboards and streetlights of Tokyo, even faster than when it came. Red neon lights blinked, illuminating the deeper parts of Shinjuku ward, which many called Kabukicho. Shinjuku is statistically the place that is brightest at night in Tokyo, thus Kabukicho is the same. Yet no matter how many neon bulbs were lit, the darkness shrouding the hearts of men who wandered the red light district prevailed.

A young salary man was being led away from the main streets by a pimp, towards a shady hotel. There, he skimmed the menu board before pulling out his wallet, paying a good sum of money. Inside the room, he is greeted by Kura, who then helped him wash up. The man was then invited to lie on an easily-cleaned plastic futon. He felt lotion being massaged onto his back, and her sweet voice entered his ears:

“Does it feel good?”

“U-Uh.”

…

“How about here?”

“Nnn… Ahh! Haa… Haa…”

“Should I use my breasts too?”

“Yes! Please!”

The sloppy sound of soft fat slapping on firm meat played.

“Are you close?”

“H-Hai!”

“Please… Anytime you want… I`ll squeeze tighter… Move faster... Faster… Muunn…”

“Aaahh!” He jerked his hips.

*Slurp*

The clock showed 24:00.