BRAINDEAD ~ Ruikasa

LIAR, LIAR, LIAR!

"Rui! Promise me that you'll always keep this on you so that we never get separated!"

Tsukasa handed Rui a ring with a tracking device implanted in it. The purple-haired boy took the ring between his fingers and smiled at Tsukasa. The blonde's heart skipped a beat.

"Well, would you look at that! We're officially married!" Rui joked, earning an embarrassed glare from Tsukasa. "Haha! All jokes aside, though, I promise, Tsukasa-kun. I won't leave you at a time like this, not when we need each other most. We'll defeat Miku together!"

What a liar.

Tsukasa's heart ached as he read the note that Rui had left behind before he had betrayed him and the others. The tears were prickling at his eyes and threatening to roll down.

The blonde refused to show the note to his friends just yet. He reread it and he would continue rereading it until the letters somehow rearranged themselves to form a note that was less demoralizing. But they didn't.

You were right, Tsukasa-kun! The object did explode MIND, and I was hit, hahaha! I guess curiosity really does kill the cat! Anyway, I'm going to run away now and never look back, to keep you all safe from me. My enemy's invisible to my eye and I don't know how to fight, so I will easily be submitted to her and to the MIND. The next time you see me, I'll be under her control, so I just want you to know that I love you. I love you, and everyone else, too. Please continue writing in my notebook for me, and feel free to read its contents! I'll try to get a peek at it from Hell, haha! By the way, don't bother trying to track me with the ring. I hid it somewhere far, far away from my—or rather, Miku's—body is going to be.

Tsukasa skimmed over it again for what felt like the thousandth time. This time, his tears passed over and slid down his cheeks. What was he feeling right now? Was it sadness? Was it anger? Damn you, Rui! How could you do this? How dare you?! Stupid, stupid Rui! You're such a damn liar!

Tsukasa crumpled the small piece of paper in his fist and sobbed into his hands, pressing his palms onto his eyes. He cried and cried until there weren't any tears left and his eyelids felt so tired he could only keep them open halfway. Only then did he go up to Crawl Green to show his friends the note Rui had left. Only Nene, Akito and Toya were there, having a peaceful conversation.

     "Yo, Tsukasa," Akito asked as he saw the blonde coming up to Crawl Green. "What's up?"

"Have you been crying?" Toya said alertly. "What's wrong?"

     Tsukasa didn't answer Toya's question. He beckoned to Nene and held out his hand, exposing the damaged version of the note Rui had left.

     "Huh? That's what you've been crying over?" Nene made an annoyed face at Tsukasa. "A ball of paper?"

     "Just read it, dammit!" Tsukasa said, his voice cracking as he lost his temper and his tears rose back to his eyes.

     The green-haired girl looked shocked at Tsukasa's sudden outburst, but took the note anyway. Tsukasa felt numb inside as he watched Nene delicately take the wrinkled note out of his hand. The more the girl read, the more her expression of despair intensified. Tsukasa could see her tears brimming and her lip trembling.

     "Fucking jerk!" Nene shouted suddenly, making Akito and Toya jump. "I hate you! I hate you, I hate you, I hate you! You traitor!"

     She scrunched the note back into a ball again and threw it at Tsukasa. Nene then sank to the floor, curling into a fetal position and crying into her palms. Tsukasa flinched as the paper hit him right on the nose, its sting lasting for only a fraction of a second. The paper plopped onto the floor at his feet.