The Forgotten Past Pt.3.

POV: Ikehara Mirai.

Date: 14 years ago.

As I put my head that turned heavy by the dreadful events I experienced that day, I heard a loud thud then a sound of something breaking coming from the hallway right outside my room.

Unable to handle the suspense I dared to get up and head toward the door to see what broke in the hallway.

I creaked the door open as I did, cold freezing wind blew inside from the hallway.

I moved my head and peeked in the hallway to see that the lights were off in it and strangely, the windows were closed.

As I headed toward the windows to make sure they were really closed, something scratched the bottom of my right foot.

I raised it up till I was able of seeing the bottom, I saw that it was cut by what seemed like a piece of colored glass.

I took a look at the place I stepped on previously but didn't see anything broken there.

The breaking sound from before must have been because of that something that broke in the place I found the piece of glass in, but how could it break by itself… Who would have cleaned it that fast… also the cold wind that blew from the hallway despite not a single window being opened scared me to my bones.

With the sound of the clock ticking and echoing through the dark hallway, I decided to go back to my room.

"B…l…o…" A voice whispered in my ears from behind me, I turned around and except for a piece of paper on the floor I didn't see anyone.

I reached for the piece of paper that had a writing with what seemed like a paint on top of it.

"O…d…" The voice returned and whispered again in my ears.

I felt my back turning cold this time and as I hesitated to look behind me, I opened the piece of paper and on it there was an unreadable writing written with a black ink.

The ceiling started making creaking sounds as if someone was running on it.

I quickly turned around and rushed to my room unable to handle the situation anymore.

As I got inside of my room, I noticed someone sitting on my bed.

"Hello?" I asked with my voice trembling.

Then lightening flashed the whole room and the silhouette of that someone disappeared when the light shined on it.

I screamed and was about to get out of the room, but as I turned a small boy with pale white skin and tore clothes came in my view with his mouth smiling at me.

I backed away from him but he approached me, and his lips opened and he seemed to have said something but I couldn't hear a voice come out of his mouth.

Afraid to ask him to repeat it I stayed silent, but the boy seemed to have other thoughts and rushed toward me and with mad expression he yelled.

—

"'Your blood look so delicious' he screamed with his void black eyes staring inside of me," I said with scary tone, after our exam, father took us out to a camp, and as we camped around fire each started telling scary stories.

"That's so freaky!" Akira yelled while staring intensely at me, "tell that to Hi-Chan and Junzo they fainted from the first part," Shinobo remarked.

"That one must be the scariest till now," Nana stated while standing up excitedly which made me proud of myself a bit.

"I think I'll be able to tell a scarier one," Kenta objected Nana's statement as he tossed aside Izumi who fainted on him a moment ago.

"It was night and the rain kept falling with thunder howling outside, but there sat a group of little kids inside a house in the middle of woods, they were lost and couldn't get out because of the weather, then one of them suggested playing hamuiikelo," Kenta started his storytelling.

"This is so exciting, another horror story!" Nana yelled excited.

Kenta then continued, "Hamuiikelo is a board game, the kids played it and … they eventually stopped playing or… maybe they might still be playing it till this very moment!"

"That's it?" I confirmed as Kenta lips stopped moving for a while.

"That's …interesting," Azami lied to his face.

"Creepy not very scary," Nana pointed out sarcastically.

"Really!?" Kenta confirmed, I nodded along with Nana and Azami interrupted trying to run away from the question, "I'm glad you all are having fun, but we should get these fainted bodies inside the tent."

"Do you even get it?! They might actually be playing it till now, as ghosts!! Don't you think that is a bit creepy?!" Kenta blabbed.

Shinobo patted Kenta's shoulder and told him, "I'm sure everyone who already fainted would have fainted again from your story if they were awake."

"Don't try to console me with that!" Kenta yelled at him.

"Not like it matters who said the scariest story," I remarked, Kenta glared at me then carried the fainted Izumi inside without replying to me.

Noticing that Shinobo came and asked me, "is something the matter with you two? Never saw him ignore someone that boldly before."

"He might be mad because I told a better story?" I answered hesitatingly his question, despite me knowing that it is probably not the reason, Kenta haven't said a word to me ever since we met in the hallway that other day, but I had no idea why he was mad, so I couldn't tell it to Shinobo.

Shinobo moved to sit beside me as we were the only ones there who weren't unconscious, he asked me, "but where did you hear that story from?"

I laughed thinking he's kidding, but then as I saw his confused face when he saw my laughter, I answered, "you said it in last year's camp, don't you remember?"

"What are you talking about? We didn't have a camp last year," he corrected, I kept staring at him without answering him, as I clearly remember the camp last year, and this wasn't the first time that Shinobo forgot something.

"Don't you think lately, you have been forgetting more stuff?" I worryingly asked, he answered with a confused smile on his face, "it's not that big of a deal to remember a camp."

"It's not only the camp, you forgot your own story as well," I remarked, he moved his head toward the floor to avoid my eye contact.

As I caught a glimpse of the red bags under his eyes, I asked, "have you been crying?"

He covered his eyes and explained, "father punished me since I used my ability without permission the other day."

"That's weird," I objected, "you used your ability on me, but I didn't tell father about it, I wonder who told him," I explained my objection.

"It was you whom I used it on?" he asked me confusedly, I nodded and asked, "remember when you stole a knowledge of the question I was solving as a joke then Hi-Chan got mad at you for doing it without permission?"

"Yeah, right, I remember now" He answered me with a smile surfacing on his face, I crossed my fingers together and explained without looking at him, "why are you agreeing with what I'm saying? It wasn't Hi-Chan who got mad at you… it was Azami."

As I moved my eyes back to him to see the kind of reaction he is showing, to see him have a scared look on his face, "isn't this dangerous? Forgetting stuff that happened long ago is one thing, but now you can't even remember something that happened two days ago," I said worryingly.

As I was about to suggest a solution a voice rang in my head repeatedly, "I shouldn't say it, I shouldn't say it, I'll regret it if I say it," I looked around me and asked, "who was that?" Shinobo patted my shoulder and asked me, "what should I do then?"

I scratched the back of my head and suggested despite the voice telling me otherwise, "why don't you talk to father about it? He might help you find a solution to the problem."

Shinobo agreed, "yeah, I'll do that, I'll go ask him first thing in the morning."

As Shinobo got up and was about to head inside the voice rang in my head again, "Stop him, stop him, I should stop him," I got up and followed Shinobo yelling, "No, Shinobo wait."

As Shinobo stopped and turned to me, I was confused about the reason I asked him to stop, the voice rang in my head again, "I should tell him to not go, I should tell him that," I told him hesitantly, "you shouldn't go tomorrow morning."

"Why?" He asked me confused about the sudden change in my suggestion, I didn't know what to answer him and paused looking at him, "I'm going to be fine, are you afraid I'll forget it tomorrow morning?" he asked me thinking that was the reason I'm hesitating.

I couldn't find the reason I asked him to stop other than the voice in my head, which would seem like crazy talk if I told him about it, he reassured me, "don't worry, I'll go to father now instead."

And he started heading off again, the voice inside of me started screeching and screaming in my head, "I should stop him, Shinobo don't go, I'll regret it, I'll regret it, I didn't want this, I didn't want this," my whole body started trembling and I could feel tears falling off my cheeks as I mumbled to the voice inside my head, "just what do you want me to do…"

The voice replied to my mumbling, "I wanted to save myself from a lifelong regret."

"Which is what!?" I asked the voice but this time the voice didn't reply, leaving me in the dust.

"Chizuru? What are you still doing here? It's cold everyone gone inside already," Azami said when she saw me as she came to check if everyone went inside, "are you alright? You look tired," she asked.

I frowned as I couldn't hear the voice anymore, and started heading inside like she told me, as I said, "I'm just sleepy, I'll be fine after sleeping."

As I got back to my room, I quickly fell asleep like a baby on top of my comfy bed, and the night have passed like any other night, as quietly yet as fast as always, sealing away part of our memories inside a tightly locked box.

I woke up the other day, like any other morning, got ready and started heading to the cafeteria like always without questioning my simple routine.

As I reached I sat on the usual seat near the usual table that I usually sit on and got greeted by Azami who usually got here before anyone, "good morning, do you feel better?"

I nodded and asked her back, "I'm alright, did you hear anything about Shinobo? I told him to go talk to father yesterday and haven't heard back from him."

"Are you still half-asleep?" Azami reconfirmed as she giggled at my question.

"What do you mean by that?" I asked her confused by her reaction, she frowned as she looked at me asking again, and replied, "who is that Shinobo you're talking about? I don't know anyone by that name."

I laughed nervously at the unexpected answer and scolded, "that's mean, how could you act like you don't know him? Is that because he used his ability without permission before? He already apologized about that didn't he?"

She replied again, "is he a new kid? I don't think I met him yet."

"He's not a new kid! He's our friend! He always hanged out with us! Why are you acting like that!" I yelled at her as I slammed my hand on the table.

She looked at me confusedly and said, "should you get checked up? you're acting weird."

"What's wrong, Chizuru!? Why are you yelling at Azami!?" Akira came running when I raised my voice, I glared at him and complained angrily, "Azami is acting like she doesn't remember Shinobo! And she kept denying it over and over again! There is a limit to how much someone can joke!"

"Shinobo?" Akira confirmed, I nodded but Akira interrupted and asked me, "who is that?"

I grabbed Akira's collar and scolded him, "not you too! This is too far for a joke!"

From behind me, Junzo suddenly held me back and scolded, "why are you picking a fight with others, Chizuru!?"

"Let go of me, it's not my fault! They all are acting like they don't know Shinobo!" I screamed at him, Junzo scolded me back, "isn't it fine if they don't know someone you know? Why are you getting mad at them?"

"It isn't just anyone! It's Shinobo! Our friend! What's wrong with all of you!" I yelled unable to hide my anger at them.

"What kind of a dream did you have for you to act this way, Chizuru!?" Hi-Chan asked worryingly as she approached me being held by Junzo.

"You too!?" I asked shocked that even Hi-Chan doesn't remember him, I looked at their confused faces that really seemed to not know about anything I'm talking about.

I gritted my teeth and closed my eyes refusing to look at their expressions.

On that day, in the worst possible shape, my ability surfaced and that was the beginning of the tragedy that will open my eyes on that dim black truth that I discovered and that's how my seemingly usual routine was shattered.