My Extraordinary Childhood Friend (#Wattys2016)

44 - Dream

Akihiko's POV:

Huh? Where am I?

I was supposed to be standing in front of a montage of my memories...I supposed to be dead...but, someone keeps me to live...but who is it?

Anyway...I am standing in front of the staircase that leads to the temple Azusa and I used to work with...except that the sky is white...I mean not white clouds but clear white...and nobody else was there except for me.

I was confused...why I should be here...when a figure appeared in the top of the staircase...that figure...was dressed in a shrine maiden outfit that Azusa used to wore...and it was invited me to follow it...and I did...

"Hey!!! Wait for me!!!" I hurriedly climb the stairs as the figure disappears. When I reached the top...and into the shrine, still nobody is there. I inspected every part of the shrine...in hope that I will find Azusa...but alas...I found not any sign of her around...

I decided to finally sit down into a seaside cliff...which I actually didn't visit this part before...as I watch the waves hitting the rocks below...I started to cry...

"Why...sniff...why I should stay alive?! I supposed to be dead...sniff...I made a terrible mistake...sniff...please...sniff...let me die...sniff...please...huhuhuhu!!!!"

I cried and cried for so long...yes, it's been a month since my girlfriend...and my heroine passed away, but I still can't move on...that I feel that I'm not worthy to live again...I'm worthless...I'm nothing without her...

And then, I heard another cry...I looked up...and saw a little boy, a boy that is familiar to me...crying while he looks below the cliff...slowly, the boy starts to walk towards the edge of the cliff...and attempted to jump into it...

"HEY! DON'T DO IT!!!" But I managed to cling into the boy's hand and tried to pull him out.

"HEY!!! GET OFF ME!!! I WANT TO DIE!!!" But the boy struggles to lets go of my arms. "I CAN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE!!!"

"But if you did jump off of this cliff, will your problems will be solved?!?!"

My argument stopped the boy from jumping...and taking suicide...but he sat down and started to cry as well.

"Huhuhuhu!!!"

"What is the problem, my friend?" I wiped tears in my eyes as I asked the boy. "Can you tell me so I could help you?"

"My pet dog...sniff...that I loved so much...she died...huhuhu!!!"

"There...there...it will be alright..." I smiled as I hugged the boy and try to cheer him up. "At least, she will be in a better place...you can still buy another one, right? Maybe a better one may do!"

"Yeah...sniff...I suppose...sniff...but my dog is very special to me...sniff..." The boy started to calm down, and then asked me. "How about you...sniff...older brother...sniff...when you lost someone...what do you do?"

The boy's question startled me...as it causes shivers right down to my spine...I was managed to help the boy to cope out with his dog's death...but me myself...I never managed to go on...without Azusa...

"My friend...I was also like you...I cried and cried...I even thought of taking suicide like you...when I lost my very special friend...who had been a part of my life...but I was wrong...when I met you...umm...if you are real...will you help me cope up?"

I know that that was a senseless question to a friend that I only just met but...

"Sure, mister!" The boy smiled at me. "Thank you for helping me. I promise that I will help you cope up!"