51 - ASTILBE, EVEN IF i am loST In TALeS OF THE PAST, I WILL WAIT FOR YOU (5)

Krieet -

The light from behind the door lighted the dark room. Eros stood there and looked at Eriu, who was lying on the bed. The surroundings were filled with stuff thrown everywhere, including jars full of candy, dirty dishes, and even strewn clothes.

Eriu noticed Eros' presence, but he remained lying down.

Today, it felt as if he didn't want to do anything.

Eros walked over to Eriu and sat down on the bed, immediately, Eros began to stroke Eriu's hair. The dark room was slowly filled with the sound of soft breathing, like the gentle touch.

"..."

His parents had no idea what was happening to him, and even he was confused as to why he was acting like this. All he could think about was when he decided to shut himself away. Fear, anxiety, terror, sadness... all these feelings were now tearing him apart.

"Eros, if you felt that something was wrong, what would you do?"

"Something wrong? A feeling that there was something wrong with you?"

"Sort of." The person didn't care about the intent of the question, he probably just wanted an answer.

"Maybe I'll change the look of my room; I'll also throw away some of my old stuff."

Eriu turned to look at Eros, who was still thinking of other answers, "I'll also eat my favorite food, listen to my favorite music, tell my worries..."

Eriu blinked before sitting up.

"I see. Then I'll start by telling you about my worries, do you still want to listen?" 

A voice.

"Of course!"

A view.

Eriu took a deep breath and began to tell his secret, "I read a story once, it told the story of two friends. One liked his friend, and the other hated him. He knew she hated him, but he knew how kind she was... because she was a hero to him."

"Until they met again and told each other about their new hobbies. She was infatuated with her new hobby, which made him curious. It wasn't until they had a lot of misfortune that he realized why she loved her new hobby so much."

"Childhood friends."

You, who wished for a happy ending for both of us and me, who wished to meet you just once. 

I want to tell her my new story.

Swoosh...

In an empty park under a dark sky. Everything looked like the beginning when they met, only the rain wasn't crying.

Back then, I felt like a fool for waiting for those who had even forgotten the existence they had created. 

Now, he stared at the girl full of memories of the past. Maybe he didn't really like this girl, maybe all his feelings were lies. Still, he felt calm just looking at the girl standing in front of him.

"It feels strange to see you in Eriu's form... But I'm still happy to see you again, hehe!"

Just as she wished for the protagonist's childhood friend to live, I wished for my childhood friend to live as well. Aren't we two very similar? 

The girl looked at Eriu as if she were meeting her idol.

"..." 

We both wished for the impossible.

"Me too. I'm happy to see you again."

We both deceived each other.

"Hehe..." The girl who heard that rubbed her neck as if she was embarrassed.

I knew she didn't like me, she hated me, and I lied to myself, thinking that I still liked her.

But here, we are just two kids.

Eriu smiled mischievously, "Charlie, you wish they were together, don't you?" The girl immediately gasped, and her face turned red.

"...What!?" 

"I remember how upset you were when you found out that every ending in this game always made the protagonist unhappy. See, now I can make the protagonist you like happy."

The quickest way to avoid all the trouble is to never go to that school. So I didn't lie.

"I'll grant your wish, and you have to grant mine."

The girl thought for a while, and a happy smile appeared on her face, "Deal!" 

"So what do you want?"

"Play and win." Just as we used to look forward to the future in our childhood, now I would like to turn my body around and look at my childhood.

"Ohh, well, I'll grant May's wish, and May must also grant my wish, Charlotte, the sweet and cute girl!"

Remembering our story on the shattered record. Stories that never ended and never had a beginning.

.

.

.

A mysterious woman in a black cloak came to Ariadne and Louise. She said she would take them to Eros and the other child.

One was only temporarily asleep, and the other... she wasn't sure.

The woman was waiting for them in front of their house. Louise couldn't even sense her scent. Especially for Ariadne, who relied on strength, this mysterious woman felt like she could easily destroy them. 

"I'm sorry for not being able to prevent this." The mysterious woman walking in front of them opened her mouth, breaking the silence.

Although the two remained wary of the woman, it would be impertinent to ignore someone who knew the whereabouts of the two children. That was what Louise and Ariadne thought.

The woman before explained what happened.

That there were invaders who came to this village and made a mess. Their goal was to get the god's precious object, so they thought Eros was the god's precious object. But when Eros was about to be kidnapped, someone helped Eros and was stabbed in the heart with a small poisonous knife.

As soon as Ariadne heard what the mysterious woman said, she knew who the person who helped Eros was.

But she still hoped it wasn't him. The woman didn't even tell her who it was, and she only mentioned Eros' name, but not the other person.

In front of the dark cave, a portal seemed to be waiting for them to enter. The mysterious woman turned and looked back, "Here."

Ariadne looked at her suspiciously. As for Louise... he was quite trusting of this woman. The old memories were already blurred, but he could still remember the smell of blood spreading everywhere.

Standing in front of a pile of corpses, wearing expensive clothes, and then disappearing without leaving a trace.

[The throne is full of vengeance.] 

Seekers of the throne.

If this person was just a Seeker, what about the mysterious woman in front of him? Above them was a huge, giant tree in the shape of a scale. A corpse that had been reduced to ashes. His instincts told him that this mysterious woman was a god.

Louise took Ariadne's hand, "Let's go inside..."

"...aren't you afraid she'll finish us off?" 

The mysterious woman, seeing Ariadne openly distrusting her, could only laugh softly, "Heh, I can't possibly do anything harmful to myself."

"Harmful? Wouldn't it be advantageous to kill us both at the same time?" Ariadne replied sarcastically. Only then did the woman point at herself and the two of them.

"I'm just a commoner compared to you two." The woman looked at Louise and continued, "Even though you left the organization, you are still his follower. If you die, he will realize it, so I won't take any risks."

"And instead of being suspicious of me, doesn't your child need you now? I promise I won't do anything to harm you."

After hearing the woman's words, Ariadne paused for a moment and went in, pulling a somewhat stunned Louise with her.

The two of them entered the portal, leaving the mysterious woman alone. The woman closed her eyes and sighed, just standing there with a tired look on her face. All this all these problems had to be solved before the end came for her. 

"Eri...?" Ariadne, who saw Eriu lying with a pale face, froze, even now, she was afraid not to hear the sound of his heartbeat.

Many things had to be paid for to be here. Many memories were forgotten to see ordinary days.

Even happy days can be forgotten when sadness strikes.

Louise ran to the bed and held Eriu's hand, trying to feel the blood flow. 

The child, who lay pale, was already dead. Now death was looking at him.

[Those black eyes looked at the world as if it were nothing but gray and black. How sad for someone who tried to survive more than anyone else. Poor you for always being feared, poor you for being someone's escape, poor you for being someone's final place...].

The puppet circled the little boy and surrounded him, saying that the person who became Death was pitiful.

The doll was instantly shattered, and dust covered the child before the child was seen again as a different person. A beautiful child with diamond-pink eyes. In the end, there was a boy who looked like him. 

But the difference was the color of his hair, which now had a hint of platinum at the ends.

"Turns out you're good at picking someone to imitate."

The child was silent before bursting into laughter, "Pftt- hahaha!"

"Aren't you too~ brave?"

Eros rolled his eyes, accompanied by a small sigh.

[From Eros' behavior, we already know that the two of them have met, but when? Why don't we try to remember everything? It seems that fate has met death!]

[Eros looked at the puppet that was now in the shape of a mouth with eyeballs inside, the mouth could only babble and babble].

[Wahh, scary~ scary~!]

"Haha, sorry for the behavior." Death didn't even care about the babbling mouth, and he looked at Eros with a creepy smile as if he knew his secret.

"But what my friend said is true. You are too sure of yourself, aren't you?" Seeing Eros still with an indifferent expression, the boy was even more pleased. "Isn't my future incarnation interesting? Even though he has a human soul, he is not human-like. His memory is also very chaotic, I can't get any information out of him except for his name."

Eros' eyes widened before he sarcastically replied, "Future incarnation? Heh, using his memories, it turns out that what Ramiel said was not wrong, death never lies, even when committing a crime."

The pupils of the eyes inside that mouth immediately twisted randomly as if they were about to explode.

"That ugly mouth is right. We have met before."

The child had a similar face but different expressions, one staring at him sarcastically, the other silent.

"You died so miserably that I forgot what you looked like, and let me remind you once again, I'm not sure of myself, but I fully believe in myself."

"Ramiel didn't bring you here to play around, but he took pity on your life."

"...And instead of wishing for Eri as your future incarnation, you better choose your words before you meet him."

"So watch how you speak before he discovers this weakness of yours."

The little boy still smiled broadly but with slightly lowered eyebrows, "What a bore."

Soon, Death walked forward, leaving Eros alone. At that moment, tears fell from Eros' eyes, and although Eros tried to wipe the tears away, the tears continued to flow from his eyes.

"..."

.

.

.

"I suddenly remembered something..." Charlotte sat on the weeds and looked up to where the sky was still a very dull color. Eriu, who also felt tired after the match and kept losing, was now lying down.

May, who always won in a row in the Rock, Scissors, and Paper games, lost in a row in the game he thought he was the master of... Oh! But he did win one game, Gansing Spinning!

"You really like Ichigo from Aikatsu." Charlotte laughed, "You liked them so much that you bought a lot of Aikatsu cards until you were in high school, you still took care of your collection!"

"Heh, you even rejected someone's love because of your Ichigo."

Realizing that Charlotte was referring to him, Eriu didn't hesitate to reply, "How about that Ben 10 of yours, you were crying in the middle of the street because Auntie wouldn't buy you the bag with the picture of your future love."

"Hahaha!" Charlotte, hearing the sarcasm, burst out laughing, "Where did you learn to be sarcastic like that? I don't remember you being sarcastic."

Eriu, who was still lying down, just closed his eyes and remembered a person with a razor-sharp mouth, "From the protagonist you covet."

"Wow, there is no doubt that he is indeed the protagonist, our beloved son!" The girl cleared her throat softly, "Ehem, so, what do you think of Eros?" Charlotte asked.

"Hmm, full of confidence, a liar, and emotional..." Eriu opened his eyes and looked at the girl. The girl's eyes already said what she wanted to say, Eriu could only sigh and began to continue.

"Eros believes in himself more than anyone else, if he was told to choose to believe in me or himself, Eros would definitely choose himself."

Before Eros was ostracized, Eros was once a friend of all children. There was a group of children who invited Eros to play, and if there was Eros, then there was me.

The game they play is also on earth, which is guess the picture.

As the name of the game suggests, guess the picture. There will be one child who will be the one who will put some pictures, and the others will answer. The boy put a picture of a heart and a broken rock.

Eros didn't even try to think, and he answered right away: "Heart disease." Seeing Eros' confident answer, the other children immediately followed his answer, while I answered, I was sure was the answer. 

Heartbroken.

Of course, the answer was 'Heartbroken', the boy had been rejected by Eros several times and he wanted Eros to know.

And that's why I'm sure that Eros lied so that I could win.

"He lies when he wants something, and Eros will cry when his friends ignore him."

The girl thought for a while before opening her mouth, "... How do you know that Eros cries when he is ignored? In games, the protagonist is always alone, right?" asked the girl suddenly.

Because I once caught him reading my diary and immediately avoided him. I was scared to death at the time, and questions kept popping into my head. 

Does he know the contents of this book?' or 'Did he notice anything strange about me? 

When I found him with the book in his hand, I immediately scolded him and cornered him.

Eros said he found the book under the bed and was curious, that's all, and I avoided him for the rest of the day. It wasn't until we had to go back to the room that Eros burst into tears, crying like a baby left by his mother for a while, even though I apologized, Eros still cried.

That's why I'm convinced that Eros is not really a cold-hearted person. If Eros doesn't cry, he's lying 50% of the time.

"Eros cried when Eriu died, didn't he? Besides, I've been with him for half a year, how could I not know? Eros cried when Eriu's mother scolded him."

"Hahaha, I just found out that Eros is just like any other child, afraid of his mother!" The girl laughed out loud, but soon the sound of laughter disappeared, replaced by the girl's long breath.

"Sigh...this made me remember when we were young, we used to get scolded for buying snacks from outside when we would fight, mom would pull our ears and scold us all the way! Ohh, and we both called the police once because a rat got in, Mom laughed when the police told her what happened..." As the girl spoke, her voice grew weaker and weaker. Eriu sat up and curled up. Eyes closed to let go and sentences to say goodbye. Let's remember our story together on this broken record.

"When you were little, you were so grumpy that you never wanted to be wrong. But as you grew older, you became calmer and more resigned." 

At that time, the kids teased him, and I thought that by protecting him, I could become a hero like the boy named Ben. He was so strong and always helping people.

I thought I could be as good as him.

But when all those mean words were directed at me, I was so scared.

That was our childhood.

"The older I get, the more I realize how childish I am. I hate you for such a stupid reason.

When you confessed your feelings to me, I immediately thought you were strange. But when I told my mom and dad about it, they just laughed and said it was adolescence.

One day, my close friend said she liked him.

She hoped that I could bring her closer to him. Because I didn't want my close friend to think I was evil, I tried to get them together. It ended with May rejecting her by saying he liked someone else.

From that day on, I was hated. Hateful looks and every taunt thrown at me... I subconsciously began to hate him. Even after May explained that he liked anime characters, nothing changed.

May ended up being bullied just like me.

And those were my teenage years. Even after all that, I still hated him and blamed him for all the bad things that happened to me.

That was my adolescence.

"When you decided to leave home and go to school far away from home, I was stupidly happy. I just realized that the house was empty."

Only then did I realize how lonely the house was without you.

Those of us who have known each other since childhood, those of us who have been scolded together, and those of us who have cried together.

That's why I want to change everything, and I don't want to destroy our relationship anymore. 

Because you are my family, my best friend, and May.

"It wasn't until we met again that I introduced you to my new hobby. I thought you would laugh at me, but who would have thought that you would be curious and play the game..."

My hobby...?

When I was bored, I thought playing a game could make me forget the time, so I downloaded the first game that came to my mind. Otome Game!

Even I have desires like a normal girl.

That is what made me play this game.

You are my Ramiel.

It's a popular game with a unique story. It follows the story of the protagonist to find his true love. I kept playing this game because I saw the protagonist in myself. He has a childhood friend, a friend who always saves him, a friend who is always by his side.

A friend and even a first love.

I will hide these feelings for the sake of our happy ending.

The smell of blood spread, the screams, and the night. But the cries were all she could hear. The hands that have disappeared can never touch these tears, nor can I see our height difference anymore, I want you to think of me as a friend.

That's all. If I were a character named Ben, I would stand before you and invite you to a new world, just like Ben, who discovered the Omnitrix, inseparable and full of fun stories in every episode.

"And who would have thought that my friend would turn out to be the childhood friend of the protagonist, Eros, our beloved son!"

"..." 

"I know you have no intention of being with him. You would have rejected the invitation letter from that school right away." And slowly, the gloomy sky faded and was replaced by a beautiful blue.

"But not with Eros. Although I am only your memory, I am sure that our beloved son can make you happy. Just as I've always been with you!"

"So..."

The blue sky was so beautiful, full of beautiful colors, filled with so much hope, and the bright sky was crying for the end of a story. 

The tape was about to stop, signaling the end of her story.

"Don't ever feel lonely because I will always be with you; I will be your last life, even I will beat all the bad guys for you..."

"We will always be friends, companions, family, and, of course, May and Charlotte."

"Forever."

The rain continued to cry, the light that showed their life story, and the playground that was the happiness of their youth.

"Huuu, sob, huuuuu..." His eyes continued to get wet, the raindrops falling on the boy sitting alone on the playground.

That was the beginning of our friendship, and there will never be an end.

An end is still a beginning.

Like flowers in the form of fireworks, appearing amid blood and death.

Eros sat in front of the bed where Eriu had closed his eyes, silent as he stared at Eriu. Tears rolled down his cheeks, and he just sat there in silence.

The mysterious woman, Ramiel, came forward and tapped Eros on the shoulder.

"Death will come soon. Come out and greet him."

Hearing this, Eros stood up and slowly walked forward, deliberately pressing his forehead against Eriu's. 

We are simply what encounter means. 

There are many things we want to do, but death always comes.

In the world we want to create.

Ramiel sighed and looked at the person standing before her. Death never lies, it looks for the traitor who wants life, who becomes a traitor in the name of Death and you.

The beautiful child stepped into the portal, his smile fading to be replaced by a crying child.

May death weep for you.

Ariadne immediately turned her head and stood close to Eros. Eros, his eyes red from crying too much, his hands covered with small cuts and red marks on his neck as if someone had pulled him with a rope.

"Sorry..."

Ariadne was silent before she finally thought again, "Don't apologize again, if Eri hears what you said, he will be upset."

"Let's go home, we'll come back tomorrow..."

Eros immediately shook his head, "No, I..."

"I want to be here."

Ariadne smiled softly and nodded, "All right, on one condition..." The look was filled with doubt but also with conviction, "Don't lie to us.

This child was not a vessel for these women, nor was she a follower of these women, but she was sure that they were quite close. How much did this child lie to us? He said he didn't have a place to stay or anyone to take care of him, but this woman came and solved all the problems right away.

It was strange when she said she had never met her, the dove, and she had vaguely similar auras.

"If you want to talk about it, you can come to us."

Ariadne ruffled Eros' hair, "Good night." After that, Ariadne walked towards the portal and disappeared, leaving the two of them behind.

The eyes blackened, and the little boy returned to his original body. Death, as the name suggests.

He went to Eriu and looked at her.

"Meet me, I am Death."

Eriu gasped and immediately looked back to where the voice came from.

"Nice to meet you," The playground filled with memories now turned into a sea of black where hands came out of the sea trying to reach the sky that could never be reached.

A silent place without a single sound, as if the world was completely empty.

The red eyes widened to see a familiar person standing there. With a faint smile, the woman called out her name.

"Eriu Grith."

With Amiley's form, Death walked closer to Eriu, who was only silent. Eriu immediately got up and walked away. Each step of those hands would crumble, repeating the meaning of eternity for the umpteenth time.

"Huh? Why do you look so scared? I don't bite!" In an instant, he changed his form again and became a child. His face was very pale, and his eyes were black without any light, but he was wearing pink clothes and various cute hairpins.

Seeing Eriu looking at him suspiciously, the little boy smiled even wider, "Hehehe, you're scared~"

Eriu brushed off his words, still on guard. Not only that, but Eriu was a bit annoyed. When you're crying, and someone suddenly appears and says a lot of nonsense, isn't it rather annoying?

"My future incarnation is scared~"

"Future incarnation?" Hearing this, Eriu's brow furrowed, "Since when am I your future incarnation?" 

"Since we met, of course!" 

Eriu could not believe the little boy's confidence, despite their equal height, he knew that this boy was dangerous. Yes, how could he not be? Death stood before him now and claimed that he would be his future incarnation.

That kind of confidence belonged only to those with power.

"Sorry, I don't want to. There are still many people who do." Go and find your future incarnation, if I go too, the chances of running away from school will be reduced!

The smile became even more terrifying, and by the time Eros blinked, the little boy was already behind him, "Even though I sacrificed four lives for you, but you reject me like this?"

"!"

"What if I tell you the girl's condition, are you sure you want to refuse this offer of mine?"

"An offer? Don't you like to demand things?" He seemed to be in a hurry. The little boy's eyes widened, and his horrible smile was even more obvious, "That girl is on her way to her death."

"She's following what her mother did."

"..."

"She will slowly die of her revenge and meet her end. You'd better find her quickly."

Why did bad news always appear every time he did nothing? Every time there was good news, the worst bad news would appear. What this child said was not to inform Noah of her condition but to inform him that Amiley had died.

The child immediately stood in front of Eriu immediately. Eriu could feel an overwhelming feeling of horror, "I never said you could reject me, I only made you an offer. That means you can accept or reject the offer, but you can't reject me."

Wasn't this child pretending to be Death more childish than he was? 

"Oh, and the offer is not about the girl but about your life and death." 

"Every day, people come to your room to check on you. And the people who checked on you always suggested burning you."

"!" Eriu gasped. Immediately, the hands below pulled Eriu's legs down, causing her to slip and fall into the black sea. Before his eyes closed, he could see the little boy laughing so hard that he could even hear the sound of his laughter.

"Sorry, you can't refuse his offer either, I'll die if I don't bring you back." The boy turned to scattered ashes with his last sentence.

"Let's meet again, future incarnation."

The girl sighed as she realized it was all a dream. A dream... But what was she dreaming?

"Charlotte, wake up!" A woman's voice was heard calling to the girl, as soon as the girl heard her name, her heart skipped a beat, and she immediately picked up her phone to check the time. 

"!!!" The girl immediately stood up and got ready.

She quickly grabbed the bag in her room and walked out.

We have different futures. We have different lives. But one thing is for sure: we have met.

Goodbye, old world...

And welcome to the new world!