(The air is thick. Silent.)
(Lying in the middle of the vast, empty space is a man.)
Asahi Rentaro.
No life. No movement. Just a hollow body lying on the ground, staring at nothing.
(His eyes are open—wide, but empty. They do not blink. They do not move. His chest barely rises and falls. It's as if… he isn't even there anymore.)
FA: (walks forward, stopping just above him, arms crossed, voice casual but hesitant)
"Huh… you're early. The day hasn't even passed yet."(FA tilts his head, watching Asahi's unmoving form.)
"You look dead."
(Silence.)
(FA sighs. Then, with the slightest smirk—he nudges Asahi's leg with his foot. No reaction.)
FA: (clicks his tongue, nudging harder)
"Oi. Wake up."(He exhales.)
"Don't tell me you fell asleep by mistake—"
(Suddenly—)
Asahi moves.
(Not like a person waking up. Not groggily. Not naturally.)
*(Like a machine switching back on.)
(His body jerks up—stiff, slow. His eyes remain wide, blank, unblinking.)
(FA stiffens slightly, watching as Asahi slowly… mechanically… lifts his head.)
"Hey, FA."(Asahi's voice is monotone. Emotionless. Dead.)
FA: (raising an eyebrow)
"Huh? What happened?"
(Asahi slowly—too slowly—tilts his head. His lips twitch into something like a smile… but it is NOT a smile.)
"Everything is over."
(His voice carries nothing. No weight. No relief. No sadness. Just… emptiness.)
"I have corrected everything."
FA: (eyes narrowing, voice low)
"What?"
"Come on, FA."(Asahi steps forward, his tone eerily calm. His voice darkens.)
"I don't need you anymore. I don't need to loop anymore."
*(FA's stomach tightens. Something is wrong. Very wrong.)
FA: (raising his hands slightly, keeping his voice controlled)
"Hey, calm down."(He takes a slow step forward.)
"Let me just take the memory first, and then we'll talk."
BOOM.
(Asahi flinches violently—his body jerking back as if FA just pointed a gun at him.)
"NO!"(His voice shatters—raw, frantic, breaking. His breath shakes. His fingers dig into his arms—hard enough to leave marks.)
(FA's entire body stiffens.)
(His eyes flicker over Asahi's face—something is different. Something is… wrong.)
(His eyes. He hasn't blinked once. They don't even look human anymore.)
(Then FA realizes—this is it. This is the moment.)
(Asahi is finally… breaking.)
(Asahi's hands clench into fists. His whole body is trembling—yet he doesn't move. His shoulders are stiff. His lips are quivering.)
*(But his eyes—his unblinking, soulless eyes—are filled with something terrible.)
FA: (his voice lowering, steady but firm)
"Asahi."
(Silence.)
*(Asahi's lips part slightly, but no words come out.)
FA: (steps forward, voice calm, but with an edge of finality)
"Thank you for everything, FA."(Asahi whispers.)
FA: (stopping in front of him, face unreadable)
"Dumbass."(His voice drops to a near-whisper.)
"You really thought you could fool me?"
(Asahi flinches—his entire body going stiff.) His mouth trembles, trying to form words—trying to hold on.)
FA: (soft, almost… gentle)
"Asahi… come on. You promised me."
(Asahi's breath hitches.)
FA: (whispers, stepping even closer—)*
"You promised me that we'd share the pain."
(Asahi's fingers curl into his own arms—his nails digging into his skin. His whole body is violently shaking.)
Asahi: (voice cracking, barely above a whisper)
"Ye—"
(Before he can finish—)
FA pulls him into a hug.
TIGHT.
(Asahi freezes. His entire body locks up. His breathing stops.)
FA: (whispering into his ear, voice steady but unbearably soft)
"Say it to me, Asahi."
(FA tightens his grip, his voice deep, final, absolute.)
"After all…"
"I AM YOU."
Asahi shatters.
Like glass. Like his entire soul is collapsing in on itself.
He clutches FA back—HARD—his fingers digging into the fabric of his coat.
And then—
He CRIES.
CRIES LIKE A CHILD.
His whole body shakes violently.
His cries are loud, broken, raw—
His voice cracks, shatters, dies—
His breathing is ragged, desperate, choking—
Tears pour down his face—uncontrollable, unstoppable, endless.
For the first time in forever—Asahi is not fighting.
For the first time—he is not alone in his suffering.
For the first time—he lets himself FALL.
(Because FA is the only one who will catch him.)
(Asahi stands frozen, staring at FA. His body is still trembling from his breakdown, but now—he is fighting something else. He doesn't want to give up his memory.)
(I can't give my memory to him… if he sees it… he has already suffered more than me. If he hears Anari's reply… I don't know what will happen.)
FA: (expression darkens, voice low but firm)
"I don't care… what that memory holds."(Steps forward, locking eyes with Asahi.)
"Believe me, Asahi… I am the only one who can understand you!"
Asahi: (his voice weak, eyes shaking)
"FA…"(His hands clench into fists, his breathing ragged.)
"I'm sorry… it's all my mistake."
(FA moves without hesitation. He grips Asahi's wrist firmly—not in force, but in understanding.)
FA: (quietly, but with absolute certainty)
"Don't worry. Let me do my job."
Asahi: (glances up, voice breaking)
"What about the cooldown?"
FA: (smirks slightly, trying to keep the mood light)
"Don't worry. Because you killed the Black Man, the cooldown has reduced.""And you came back at the perfect time."
(Without waiting for another word, FA places his hand on Asahi's forehead and starts collecting the memory.)
(The moment he does—his expression stiffens.)
FA: (forcing a weak smile, but his fingers twitch slightly)
"I see… nothing happened."
(His voice is too calm. Too fake.)
FA: (pauses, his breath unsteady, his voice cracking)
"Asahi…"
Asahi: (concerned, stepping closer)
"FA… hey—"
FA: (quickly shakes his head, controlling himself)
"Nothing. It's nothing."(Looks at Asahi, reading him.)(He suffered so much, and still, he cares about me… after all, he is the only one there for me.)
Asahi: (his voice soft, yet heavy)
"I know how you feel, FA… just let it out."
(FA stares at him for a long second. Then, he exhales. Slowly.)
FA: (whispers, more to himself than Asahi)
"Asahi… I know… what you saw was hell."
(Silence.)
Asahi: (expression blank, his body still frozen)
(…No expression.)
FA: (steps forward, placing a hand on Asahi's shoulder, voice heavy with emotion)
"You have to believe them. They lo—"
Asahi: (voice suddenly sharp, eyes filled with raw emotion)
"That's bullshit!"
(FA flinches. Asahi's voice cracks into a scream. His breathing is ragged, his body trembling.)
Asahi: (shouting, eyes wide with fury and heartbreak)
"You saw what happened, right?! And you still say they love me?! NO WAY! There is NO WAY they love me!"
(His voice echoes through the Dimensional Dream. The space itself feels heavy, suffocating. FA doesn't speak—he just watches.)
Asahi: (his voice drops to a whisper, broken, defeated)
"All I wanted… was to live with my loved ones."
"And what…?"(his hands clench)"I looped 100 times for NOTHING?!"
(Tears begin falling again, his face twisted in agony.)
Asahi: (whispers, breath shaky, filled with devastation)
"I think they never loved me."
FA: (gazes at him, eyes darkening—his turn to break.)
(He gently places his hand on Asahi's head, forcing him to calm down. But his own body is trembling now.)
FA: (his voice filled with conviction, his words absolute)
"Think, Asahi. Anari went with you to the shopping mall."
Asahi: (breath hitching, but eyes shaking with anger)
"That's all bullshit—"
FA: (cutting him off, voice sharp)
"It's fake?"(Laughs lightly, almost bitterly.)"Then tell me—"
"Are her feelings fake in EVERY dimension?"
Asahi: (his breath catches—his body goes still.)
FA: (his tone drops, quieter, more personal.)
"Anari's feelings are incomplete."
"In every single dimension… her true feelings have NEVER been revealed."(His eyes narrow.)
"Even for me."
(Asahi stares. FA's words settle deep in his mind, pressing against the very thing he wanted to deny.)
Asahi: (his voice hoarse, whispered)
"Then why… am I the unluckiest one?"(Tears continue falling.)
FA: (his voice is heavy, yet firm.)
"I can guarantee you one thing."(He locks eyes with Asahi.)
"Her true feelings will never hate us."
(Asahi's body trembles. He doesn't respond—he just stares.)
(FA suddenly laughs—darkly, almost mockingly.)
FA: (smirks, voice filled with bitterness)
"Do you think our father would say that?"
Asahi: (blinks, confused)
"Huh…?"
FA: (gritting his teeth, voice lowering, filled with rage.)
"It's all because of HIM."(Eyes flash with fury.)
Asahi: (his stomach drops—his breath catches.)
(What did I miss…?)
FA: (his voice drops to a near growl, eyes filled with dark understanding.)
"The one who pulled Anari away…"
"The one who was standing inside your house…"
"It's the other failed Asahi."
(Asahi's entire body freezes. His breath slows. His mind races.)
FA: (his voice is ice-cold, gaze piercing through Asahi's soul.)
"He has started his move."
Asahi: (his hands shake—then, slowly, he lifts his left hand and presses it against his left eye.)
"Sō ka…"(Whispers—realization settling in.)
*(Then—he slowly lifts his gaze. His expression shifts—a smirk forms.)
"He came."
(He tilts his head back slightly—his left eye gleaming with something monstrous.)
"He finally came."(His voice cracks into a twisted laugh.)
FA: (steps forward, warning tone)
"Asahi, calm down—"
Asahi: (breathing fast, laughing harder.)
"HAHAHAHAHA! HE IS GOING TO DIE!"(Eyes flash—pure killing intent.)
(FA stiffens—but then, his lips twitch into a small smile.)
FA: (nods slightly, voice quiet, but approving)
"Alright, then."
Asahi: (eyes burning with rage.)
"FA… loop me."
(FA smirks—then, without hesitation—he loops him.)