The wind blew through her hair at a rapid pace, as she cycled through town to reach Kokona's house. Saki had her arms around her waist so she wouldn't fall off the bike, and her chin was placed on her shoulder. The autumn breeze sent a shiver down both their spines, yet they persevered through all the elements to get to Kokona.

They all mutually decided to make a code, K for Kokona, S for Saki, F for Frueddo and F/LN (first letter of name) for her. This code would only be used if no one in the group had heard or seen and now, Kokona hasn't been seen for a long period of time. They all where going to the manga store after school but she never showed.

No a text, no warning or anything.

She just vanished.

Calls weren't getting through, neither were messages, so there Y/n was cycling through town by bike. Her legs and muscles were on fire and lungs felt like they were a second away from collapsing. She let out raspy breaths, and Saki held onto her tighter, "Look Y/n, Frueddo!" Saki points, making the bike wobble slightly, Y/n's eyes never left the road so she simply nodded.

Frueddo's bike was in line with hers, and his hair looked like a rat was inhabiting it, he looked as if he had fallen off his couch.
He was wearing a guinea tee and he had some beige trousers on with pop tart crumbs around his mouth.

He was clearly freezing, his teeth were chattering and goosebump cover the entirety of his visible skin.

He managed to wipe the crumbs of his face with one arm, while balancing on the bike and he continued to match Y/n's pace and soon enough they arrived. Kokona's house was run down, and the roof looked like it was rotting and the garden in front her house was untamed and wild. They parted through blades of grass, that pointed to the sky, Y/n lead the two through.

They reached a welcome mat in front a white door and Y/n slowly reached down to move the mat to reveal a key. She paused and held a hand to her chest, to try catch her breath. Saki, decides to do Y/n a favour ; she picks up the key instead and twists it in the key hole, till she hears a click.

The door opens with a creak and the smell of booze and smoke fill their nostrils. They all see Kokona's father cough out a thick cloud of smoke, he then takes a swig of alcohol and places his empty bottle down, outting his cigarette under his foot.

He turns to look at them, with stubble on his face and a circle around his mouth, definitely from the bottle of alcohol. He sighs and gets up, opening the window to get rid of some smoke and turns on his air freshener.

"Make yourselves at home, Kokona isn't back yet... Y/n, Saki long time no see and hello, young man. You all wait for her, while I cook up my famous pancakes." Kokona's dad says, he switches on the TV, the TV is one of them old ones shaped like a box.

The floor is stained with random burned spots, presumably from him dropping a ciggie on the floor and stomping it out. It seems that he doesn't smoke while Kokona is around, since he's got air freshener prepared, she feels so bad for Kokona.

They sit down on the brown leather couch and Frueddo snatches the remote off Saki, "Hey!" Saki says, glaring at Frueddo ,who scoffs and changes the channel to Love Isle, "Um? I'm trying to see who Vanessa chooses, do you mind?" Frueddo snaps back, Saki hmphs and crosses her arms, watching the TV show.

Y/n doesn't like the fact they are sitting around when something bad could have happened to Kokona, "Could I check the news channel really quick?" Y/n says, with a smile, that soon turns into a look of hostility, Frueddo practically hits her with the remote trying to get her to stop... That look.

"Good afternoon, news just in from an abandoned warehouse, a dead body has just been discovered. Police say the body is unrecognizable but the uniform of the victim has been identified, that they go to Akademi high." The reporter announces in a monotone voice, Kokona is dead?

That's why she didn't answer are calls...

She's dead.

Saki hugs Y/n and Y/n pulls her closer, Frueddo join in and hugs Y/n as well but slaps Saki's hand away from him, she stares at him in annoyance.

"I know this isn't any better... But maybe it wasn't Kokona, maybe someone else?" Saki mumbles but everyone hears her.

"That's not any better Saki, just shut up and listen to the reporter, we need to see what's actually going on." Frueddo said.

"The victim has now been identified by the killer herself, as Musume Ronshaku, my heart goes out to the victim's family as the killer is 17 year old Kokona Haruka, who was found at the scene of the crime with a baseball bat in hand." The reporter shuffles the pile of paper they have in their hand and continue.

"The motive is still unknown but the killer was reported and caught and now she is being held in custody." A picture of her flashes on the screen and by this time her father has arrived hearing it all, the plate of pancakes he held dropped to the floor with a crack.

In the image she wore a lilac pullover sweater with a white collar, a gold heart shaped necklace gifted to her by Saki, along with her two-tiered lace skirt, plain white socks, and lilac flats with black piping.

Y/n couldn't believe what she heard, Musume is dead?

And Kokona killed her?

Is this what the killer meant by, 'dig too deep and you'll find a horrible truth?'

Y/n went to stand up but she fell to the floor with a deafening thud, everyone is the room had their eyes on either her or Kokona's father.

"Y/n?"

"Y/n?"

"Y/n!"

Everything seemed to blur and the colour in her world seemed to dull and empty, the colour, the light of her world Musume, her sister and Kokona were gone.

She couldn't even hear the cries her father let out, she was so conflicted with emotions that she couldn't even cry.

She stood up with the support of the couch and walked over to Kokona's father, hugging him, he smelt of stale beer and smoke but she didn't care in the moment. They were two broken people, both grieving over the loss off someone they knew.

Y/n trudged out the house, she couldn't hear the calls of her friends, her mind was set on moving forward and going home.

She stumbled into her room, still in her uniform.

Y/n always bounces back, no matter what happens.

Not this time.

Your friends made you bounce back.

And where are your friends? Where is Kokona?

They are my friends, right? Their not killers... Or something?

Y/n you've made that mistake once, it's best if you don't fall victim to it again.

They are gone.

Y/n's forced smile draws downwards, her hair is a mess from gripping it so hard, gone huh?

They are gone.

She saw their faces and all their memories flash before her eyes, she stares into the mirror and she can't even recognize the person she's looking at. She sees ayato, staring back at her, laughing, this is all just some game to him, human lives mean nothing to him, her fist collides into the mirror.

And her soul cracks along with it.

Her knuckles are a bloody mess of flesh and blood, getting exposed to the harshly cold temperature of her room. She slides her arms across her desk knocking everything off.

She screams, till her throat burns and her lungs are empty.

There gone.

She kicks her dresser, does it do anything to help her?

No.

She asks why and why over and over again till those words replay in her mind, she grabs her pillow and slams it repeatedly against the floor. She picture herself killing Ayato. Finally, being the one with the upper hand in the situation. Leaving him an unrecognizable mess off flesh and bones on the floor, till he left this earth and burnt in the depts below.

It was him, he did it.

But, it on the news it showed that Kokona did it.

She threw the pillow and slammed anything in her vicinity to the floor, her brutal actions stopped when she saw it.

The plushie Kokona had won for her at the arcade.

Tears spilled and she falls along with it, her knees crash to the floor and she punches her bed till she feels numb, she lays her back against the bed and sees a picture. Her and Musume, the old Musume, her Musume, the one she admired and strived to become.

She saw the pin on the corkboard she had ripped off her wall, the same pin Saki had given to her for the Christmas play, back in middle school. She sees her phone flash and her wallpaper on her phone reveal a picture of everyone in the photography club.

These are the people she lives for.

The people she strives to prote-

She can't protect them... She never could from the beginning.

Playing detective, like it was some game.

Putting on her detective hat on acting tough, thinking she could do it all.

Real people were involved in this and she didn't take it as seriously at the beginning, she wished this was just some prank.

A nightmare she'd wake up from and Musume would pour water on her face and laugh at her, taking a picture of her in dampened close posting it with the caption: #bigsister #wetlikeadog.

Or she'd wake up to a notification seeing Musume posting a picture of her and her sister captioning it saying, daddy is too nice letting this orphan stay in our home, with some peace emoji at the end.


She thought it was Ayato all along...was she the one behind it all along and she was simply used Ayato as some scapegoat?

Kokona tricked her?

She doesn't know what to think.

One thing she does know, is that she has to go pay her respects to the lives that have been lost and her sister Musume, at her funeral where she'd see her for the last time.

Musume was supposed to die old, not die so young, time felt like grains off sand slipping through her fingers sometimes.

Her father went all out with the coffin, but she could practically hear Musume say "Oh My Godd this is soooo tacky. Am I worth nothing to you?"

Saki and Frueddo were seated at the back, in a corner while Y/n's place was at the front.

She trudged to her place beside her father and her shoulders sank as family members paid their respects. She heard someone walking into the church, and she didn't pull her eyes away from Musume and there he was.

Slinging a shoulder around her and pulling her in and rubbing her shoulder, her eyes landed on the person's veiny pale hands and her head turned. Her eyes wandered up to see a person in a neat black tuxedo, it was Ayato.

She let a tear slip down her face, and he rubbed it away, he pulled her ridiculously close to him so that her head was laid on his chest. She could smell a lovely lavender scent on his suit.

He really was handsome, his perfectly smooth face, his almost black looking eyes and he gave her such a loving smile. Y/n didn't notice the way he grabbed her shoulder, in such a possesive manner yet held her as if she was made of glass.

Her father looked at Ayato and noticed his tight grip on her. Her dad's gut sunk and there was something off about that boy, the way he looked at Y/n, as if she was all his and no one else.

Y/n shouldn't be so close to Ayato, especially since he was on their list off suspects but Kokona killed Musume. That's a fact, and Ayato had been with her throughout it all, even with her mistreating him and he even showed up to her doorstep with a bouquet of beautiful, black roses.

She tried leaning away from him, to show some respect to Musume but he didn't budge till her father gave him a hard stare. Y/n immediately shuffled away from Ayato and her dad placed a hand on her shoulder and gave her an awkward side hug.

Y/n has never hugged her father, so the touch was foreign to them both but she appreciated what he did just then. Maybe, Ayato was afraid of losing her?

She couldn't help the feeling in her mind that he had something to do with it, she felt that he was over extending his stay at the funeral and he even had the gall to do a speech. He barely even knew her, they only spoke a few times, that she knows off.

She also had an urge to scream, to flip a table and even to shout. How could she let this whole thing happen?

Musume shouldn't be in a casket, she should be living her life to the fullest.

She decided to let her friends slip off her suspect list and now this had happened!

It was time for Musume not her, she tried to relax and stop tears threatening to spill, she knows Musume would love to hear last minute drama. Everyone spilling their heart out, now that she was dead.

She could picture Musume sitting on top of her coffin, twirling her blonde locks in her hand, with her thumb down at Y/n's refusal to start something dramatic. Musume even popped some bubble gum in her mouth and Y/n could audibly hear that, even though Musume was dead and this one was just a figment of her imagination.

She then saw the old Musume, she had dark hair, a tanned complexion and blue eyes coming from their mother. She sat next to her, the 'new' Musume ,who rolled her eyes at her, while the other Musume looked back at her with a smile.

Y/n smiled, she would never forget her sister, she couldn't help but feel so bitter. This felt so surreal, even though she saw her coffin and that was an undeniable truth, to think Kokona did all of that is still unbelievable to her.

She stands up and Ayato follows, she takes a deep breath in, nervous about talking in front of so many people, Saki and Frueddo give her a thumbs up and Ayato places a hand on her shoulder, with a reassuring gaze.

Y/n says her speech with the help off Ayato and they applaud, shortly after people begin to leave the church, going outside and opening their umbrella's as it began to rain.

The church was stunning so stunning in fact he would want to get married here.

Ayato could picture their wedding, Y/n at the altar with her in a beautiful and expensive dress, jewelry all over her and her hair done up neatly, just for their special occasion. No one had to come, he was fine with it just being her and him, he would wear a suit, matching with her gown and it would be perfect.

If it was necessary, he would invite his father and his mother would invite herself to the wedding and then him and Y/n would be truly complete on their wedding night. He could pay for a honeymoon, but he didn't mind her staying in his arms, in bed and her nestling against him.

He blushed at the thought but he was brought back to reality, Y/n was sad and her eyes looked duller and emptier. The pair walked out, and Ayato opened his umbrella, were he attempted to get her to move closer to him but she refused.

She would rather get drenched in rain then stand close to him under an umbrella and that's exactly what she did.

She didn't want to be near anyone right now, and this newly found clinginess from Ayato didn't help.

Rain droplets paraded on her scalp as she walked beside Ayato, under his umbrella, he looked to her with a saddened expression and he frowned. She ignored, his gaze.

Her mind was already at war, two sides asking whether he is a cold hearted killer or just some misunderstood boy that Kokona convinced her was a killer.

Y/n's black fold pleated dress with a contrasting collar was dampened by the rain, she watched the casket lowering down into the ground. She stared, at the box that trapped her sister, a tear rolled down her eyes when she blinked.

Soon her family, began to disperse, till it was only her father, Ayato and her self still there. Her father shed a few tears before whipping them away, he placed a black rose on the soil, covering her grave, "I'll be in the car..." Her father says, he gives Ayato a glance before disappearing off into the distance.

Ayato takes this chance to step closer to her, and she steps away.

"I don't know who to trust anymore..." Y/n sighs, sounding defeated, finally she was beginning to whittle away and this tough Y/n act was melting away. "You have me, I know that neither you or me can bring her back, but she wouldn't want to see you sad." Ayato starts, and Y/n turns to look into his direction.

"She would probably laugh in my face, she's like that... I miss that about her, you don't see people like her at all." Y/n laughs, and Ayato moves closer to her, this time she doesn't try moving away.

"There aren't people like you in the world either, you are quite special and you are very special to me in ways you wouldn't even know. You shouldn't beat yourself up about this... Instead, you should cherish her life, not morning it." Ayato states, standing shoulder to shoulder with her. She's now directly under his umbrella and she looks into his eyes, he gazes back

She hugs him, beginning to cry and he combs through her hair, with his fingers just like his mother does with his father and just like he does when she has nightmares.

His clinginess was getting the best of him but he was getting greedy now, inhaling the scent of her hair and getting to brush his hands through her beautiful hair.

She didn't see the smile that spread across his face, with eyes as blank as dolls but a spark flashed inside them. He knew she was the one.

As Y/n hugged him, she saw Osana, Amao, Kizano, Oko, Aso and Musume trying to shout and scream at her yet she couldn't hear them, it looked like they were saying no.

Ayato interupted her thoughts by hugging her tighter, mumbling, "I'll always be there for you, Y/n."

Ayato is glad he can go up to her naturally, without acting strange like he did with Taeko.

The spirits shouted at her more saying it's hi-

Ayato shielded her away, it's as if he knew they were there.

She needed someone's comfort so she let herself slip into his sweet words.

He'd break her into obedience, this side of her that was so meek, submissive and needy, made him feel a certain way. Those eyes staring up at him could drive him even crazier than he already is. His wife, Y/n needed his protection, she was just too stubborn to realize she needed him as much as he needed her.

It didn't matter whether he made her snap first or if the pressure got too much for her and she broke, either way he'd pick up the pieces and make sure she was dependent on him.

It wouldn't be an easy task knowing her, especially since she's been going to the police more often after school.

He knows she just not mentally in the right place right now and he'll take advantage of that as much as possible.

It makes it easier for her to believe anything he says.

As long as she thinks she's crazy, she will fall in line, till she can't live without him.

You will be mine.