Chapter Text
“Are you sure about this? I don’t want you to feel pressured or obligated to be here with me.” Nanako said as she drove them through the streets of Okinawa and towards their new home. Langa hummed lowly as he looked out the window and sighed through his nose.
“It’s okay. I chose to come here.” He said. Nanako bit her lip and gripped the wheel tightly before she nodded and swallowed harshly. She sighed when she saw the apartment complex show and she put on her best smile while she parked her car.
“Well, we’re here. We should start getting the things out of the car so that we can sleep well tonight.” She saw Langa nod and she frowned but turned the car off anyway.
They decided to grab the smaller things first so that they could make an easy trip and they climbed up to apartment 382 and then back down to grab the rest.
As Nanako went down for the final box, Langa moved his boxes into his room and he stopped when he heard a soft clatter against the floor. He slowly turned to look at what fell and he felt his eyes blur when he saw that it was a frame with a photo of him and his father—a month before he passed.
He slowly picked it up and his eyes continued to blur and go back to normal and he swallowed as he left the frame next to his bed on the small desk he placed. He stared at it for a few seconds before he reluctantly turned away and continued unpacking.
He sat down at their small table when Nanako had called him for dinner and they ate in silence as Nanako tried to think of what to say (that didn’t involve Oliver). She didn’t get to say much, since Langa stood up and thanked her for the meal and put his dish away.
He heard her sigh and he gently closed his door as he flopped onto his bed and listened to the clock tick for a few minutes before he turned his head to look at the photo that he put next to his bed. He slowly got up from his bed when he realized that it wasn’t there and he stared at the spot with an odd face before he began looking for it.
After a few minutes of searching everything and everywhere in his room, he gave up and he sat at the edge of his bed as he sighed and clasped his hands on his face. His head snapped out of his hands when he heard something being scraped and dragged against his floor and when he looked to see what it was, his eyes widened at the sight of the frame being on the left side of his bed.
He quickly bent down and grabbed it tightly as he sighed in relief, “you’re still here with me.” He placed it down gently on his desk again and he stared at the spot on the ground where the frame was. He felt himself begin to doze off and before he knew it, his head hit the pillow as a sigh left his lips.
Sleep didn’t want him for long, since his nightmare dream consisted of the same thing happening. Oddly enough, his room felt colder and he clenched his hands around his arms as he remembered the way the snow felt when he—
He shook his head and grabbed his covers and drew them over himself as he felt a shiver run down his spine. “We’re in Okinawa. It’s not normally cold here, so why’s it cold?” He asked himself. He looked up at the frame and he sat up in a panic when he saw that it was gone again. The first time was weird, but combine the missing frame with the cold and you got a freaked out teenager on your hands.
He lowered his head back down as he covered himself as best as he could as he felt the coldness rising and when he felt it suddenly disappear, he was far beyond confused. He didn’t know what was going on or if it was simply part of his imagination, but he didn’t dwell much on it and he sighed as he let himself all asleep again—even if he felt like someone was watching him.
When he awoke again, he rubbed his eyes and he stretched as he remembered that he was going to begin school the next day. He looked to his right and he did a double take when he saw the frame back in its original place. He shook his head and got up and dressed himself for the day. “I must be going crazy.”
He ate some breakfast before he watched TV and he clicked it off when he decided that he was hired and wanted something else to do.
He found himself flipping through different photo albums and stopping at certain pictures before he quickly moved on. As he flipped a certain page, he felt something cold tap his neck and he jumped slightly as he rubbed it and looked around. He narrowed his eyes but kept flipping through the pages and he snapped the album shut when he felt a cold tap on his arm. “Let’s go meet the neighbors instead.”
As he walked around and introduced himself and told them his apartment number, his neighbors seemed oddly stiff and they greeted him quickly before they said that they had to do something of importance; or they told him to “be careful” and to “not awaken it”. He sighed as he belittled himself; calling himself weird for talking to himself and for weirding his neighbors out.
“Hey kid,” he heard someone call out. He turned his head and he was about to introduce himself when the man beat him to it. “You’re the Hasegawa kid. The one who just moved here. Into,” the man swallowed, “apartment 382, correct?” Langa slowly nodded. Why was everyone acting weird about the apartment he lived in?
“Look kid, everyone is acting weird about that apartment because,” he looked around and gestured for Langa to come closer. He did. “Because someone died there.” He whispered. Langa gasped as his eyes widened and his breath hitched. He looked at the man and the man nodded as Langa slowly walked back up to his apartment after thanking the man for clearing some things up.
He closed his door, still thinking about what the man told him, and he instantly felt something touch his arm and he winced as he felt cold surrounding the area. He knew that he saw something move out of the corner of his eye, but he decided to ignore it and turn on the TV to distract himself until his mother got back.
He heard things moving behind him, but he ignored them as best as he could as he tapped his fingers against the couch and thought about what his neighbor told him. That couldn’t be right. Someone couldn’t have died there. They probably got the wrong number. Perhaps even the wrong apartment complex.
He shrugged off the feeling of something touching him and he wandered back into his room to sleep off the information he was given. Maybe it’ll help his brain process everything that he was told.
Unknown to him, someone wanted to get to know him.
———————————————
“Hey! You’re the new transfer student right? How are you liking Japan so far? More specifically, how do you like Okinawa?” A boy asked as he approached Langa. He had started school that day and it had started off smoothly, but now he was trying to figure out how to answer without sounding rude or emotionless as he tried to eat his lunch.
“Um, it’s nice.” He said simply. The boy and his group smiled awkwardly as they slowly sat down and joined him. They tried conversing and they almost gave up when Langa kept giving them short answers, but the second boy asked him something that caused the others to feel awkward.
“We heard that you moved into apartment complex—“ a girl next to him sneezed. “Bless you—what apartment number is it?” He asked. Langa bit into his sandwich and swallowed.
“382.” He said casually. The three boys stiffened and the two girls slowly grabbed each other’s hands as they felt a sudden pain in their chests. Langa noticed the change in the atmosphere and he fiddled with his hands. “Why does everyone act weird when I mention the number?” He asked.
The three boys suddenly stood up and two began walking away, one with tears in his eyes and the other looking nauseous. The third bow bowed and apologized and said that they remembered that they had to help the teacher clean up their classroom and he left as well.
He turned to look at the other girls, who were still holding hands and debating on whether or not to leave Langa alone again . “What’s wrong?” He asked. The girls jumped and they whispered to each other in quick Japanese, something Langa couldn’t comprehend.
“We, we had a friend that lived there,” one said. “But he’s gone now,” he noticed the way she squeezed the other girl’s hand. “It was—“ she was cut off when the other girl elbowed her and she closed her mouth as she looked down.
“Excuse us, we have to get going.” The other girl said nervously. “In case you don’t remember me, I’m Hikyoku. I’m happy to help, but we have to go. Excuse us.” Hikyoku repeated. She bowed and the other girl bowed down as well as they chased after the other boys with their hands still clasped together. If Langa wasn’t confused, he was extremely confused now.
The rest of the day went by slowly and quickly at the same time. The group that had come up to him gave him side glances during class and he could see Hikyoku whispering to the other girl, who’s name was Saomura, and they stiffened when they realized that Langa was watching them.
Once the bell rang to dismiss them, Langa sprung up from his seat and made his way out of the school. He felt like he was being suffocated by his classmate’s stares and whispers and the last thing he wanted was to be talked to by anyone else who could say the same things that they whispered about.
He walked without thinking, and he reached his apartment complex and he stopped to look at it. It was a normal complex, but according to the others, a death took place and no one was ready to let go of it yet.
He walked up the stairs and he opened his door to hear nothing but the buzzing from the fridge as he slowly closed the door and set his things down. He didn’t want to think about his classmates, so he began preparing dinner for when his mother came back.
He didn’t notice anything weird, no movement and no cold, unwanted, touches. He shook his head and sighed. He most likely hallucinated it. All of it. He continued cooking and he listened and felt closer, yet nothing happened. He sighed again and turned off the stove.
When his mom came home, he greeted her and helped put her things away and then he set the table. They sat down and Nanako thanked Langa for the food before she dug in, Langa doing the same.
After a few moments of silence, Langa cleared his throat and began moving his food around. Nanako raised her eyebrow and nodded. “Have you noticed…anything strange?” He asked. “Like sudden coldness?” Nanako hummed and she lowered her chopsticks as she thought.
“No, I don’t think so. Why do you ask?” Langa shrugged in response and they continued eating while Nanako gave him a few concerned looks here and there. So he was hallucinating.
They got up and put their dishes in the sink and they began washing them off when Langa spoke up again. “I’m going to get a job soon, to help you with the bills.” He said. Nanako looked up at him and she blinked before she smiled.
“Thanks Langa. That’s very sweet of you.” Langa smiled back and it fell when Nanako shivered violently and she turned around to see an open window. “Why did you open the window and not close it?” She turned off the sink and they dried their hands and Nanako went over to the window and closed it.
“I didn’t do it.” Langa said. Nanako sat down and rubbed her arms and she sighed and nodded. They sat together and when Langa saw Nanako begin to doze off, he ushered her to her room and he walked into the bathroom, took a shower, brushed his teeth, and then laid down on his bed.
He laid there, eyes wide and full of curiosity. Slowly, he pulled out his phone and searched ghosts. After a few scrolls, he realized what he was doing and he turned off his phone and put it to charge. “I’m going crazy, and over a rumor.” He sighed.
He tried to sleep and when he realized it wasn’t going to happen, he got up and grabbed a glass of water. As he walked back to his room, he ignored the sudden coldness he felt and he slipped back into bed without thinking too much about it. He fell asleep and he thought about what tomorrow would bring.
When he went back to school, he couldn’t pay much attention since his mind went everywhere that day. He thought about his dad first, wondering where he was and what he was up to. Then he thought about his mom and how he needed a job to help her pay the bills and other costs. He needed a job, he just didn’t know where to go. Maybe that one calligraphy place, he thought.
When the bell rang for lunch, he grabbed his food and he headed up to the roof to feel the breeze and have some space. His space was interrupted when he saw his classmates, only the three boys, approaching him from the corner of his eye.
“Hey, Hasegawa,” Sawaru said. Langa felt a frown settle on his face. “I just wanted to apologize for our behavior yesterday. It’s just,” Sawaru looked at the other boys and they nodded. “A classmate of ours died there,” Langa felt his stomach drop. “You mentioning the apartment kind of set something off, sorry.” He bowed slightly and the small group left and Langa narrowed his eyes as he bit a chunk out of his meat bun. It’s not true.
The day went by slowly and he finished his classes and he began making his way home. Midway through, a boy with hair covering his eyes stopped him and Langa stared at him blankly before the other spoke up.
“Is it true?” Langa tilted his head to the side and raised an eyebrow. “That you moved into apartment 382?” Langa felt his eye twitch. He was tired of everyone asking him his apartment number and bringing things up. He nodded.
The boy sighed, “follow me. I can tell you a few things if you’re still confused.” Langa knew about being wary of strangers, but he couldn’t help but follow the boy into an empty skatepark—they sat down on a ramp.
“A boy I knew lived there,” he started off. The more people mentioned a boy, Langa couldn’t help but feel saddened at the fact that someone young could’ve died there. “He somehow died, out of the blue. It was really strange. The police didn’t give out any information, something about respect to the family.” Langa nodded his head and he started to slowly believe them, but he was still skeptical.
“I moved a year before he died, so I’m not exactly sure what occurred. No one else knows but the hospital staff that tried to help him, but most of them moved away.” The boy stood up and Langa noticed his hand clenching and his knuckles turning white. He stood up as well and he thanked him for the information as he patted his shoulder in a way to show comfort.
They said goodbye to each other and Langa felt the boy’s gaze on his back the whole time until he turned a corner to make a shortcut.
When he opened the door, he wasn’t surprised to see that his mother wasn’t home yet, so he cooked dinner and waited for her to get back. In the meantime, he ignored the cold he suddenly felt and he thought about the calligraphy shop and set his mind into applying there.
When he felt himself drift into what his neighbors, classmates, and stranger told him, he shook his head and sighed.
His mom was coming home soon. He would have dinner and then sleep, like normal. Like always
———————————————
“I can’t accept minors,” the man said. Langa sighed and he nodded as he stood up and winced at he aching feeling in his legs. He was sure that he could’ve gotten a job at the calligraphy shop, but his handwriting and age didn’t allow that to happen.
He picked up his things and thanked Sakurayashiki-san before he left. The man nodded back and when he saw no sign of the foreign boy, he climbed up the stairs in his studio and he found himself kneeling down in front of a shrine.
“Something tells me that you’re bringing him to us.” He said softly. He heard slight noises outside and he got up and looked out the window and he gasped. He saw Oka talking with Langa and he showed Langa the board that was currently under the blue headed boy’s foot and he picked it up before he followed after the brunet man—no hesitance being shown.
Kaoru turned around quickly and he knelt down in front of the shrine and bowed his head all the way to the ground as he let out a shaky breath. He wasn’t sure how to feel, but he knew one thing. “You really are still there, this boy is going to help us help you.” He slowly stood up and he bowed again as he made a call.
“Kaoru? What’s up?” The other person on the phone answered after a couple of rings (and anxious pacing on Kaoru’s side).
“Kojiro, he’s still there, but we need to get closer to this boy and—“
“Kaoru, breathe.” Kojiro said as pots and pans clattered against each other and what sounded like a table. Kaoru breathed out while Kojiro sighed. “Look, we can’t raise our hopes up again. It didn’t work last time.” Kojiro felt something in him turn and he could feel Kaoru’s hope fall. “If he runs into one of us again, then it’s a sign.” Kaoru pressed his lips into a thin line and he nodded (even though the other couldn’t see him) and he hung up.
He knelt back down in front of the shrine and he pulled out a book from one of the shelves and he caressed it gently. He opened it gently and he looked at all of the different photographs that were taken in the span of 3 years.
He flipped through it and he felt his chest tighten with hope and pain at the same time. He chuckled to himself, “tell me that I don’t sound desperate right now.” He told to no one specifically.
As he flipped through and the different memories flooded back, his smile grew and grew until it fell when he stopped at the last photo of him and his ‘S’ group all together. He felt his chest hurt and tighten as he looked at the date written under the photo, 8/8.
He stared at the photo, more specifically at the redhead in between the 5 different men and small boy. The boy smiled big as he hugged the then ten year old and the other five men stood behind and beside them (the order being Joe, Cherry, Shadow, Snake, and Adam with Reki in the middle and hugging Miya).
“You always managed to put a smile on everyone’s faces and turn them into better people, huh, Reki?” He stared at the photo more intensely as he thought about how Reki was able to help Adam see in a different light and how he helped Tadashi become more of an open person than a lifeless secretary.
He pulled the photo out gently and he placed the photo album back in its place as he held onto the small paper. He looked at it before he looked at the single photo of the redhead on the shrine. He placed the photo next to the redhead’s portrait and Kaoru felt his chest tighten again.
“You turned 16 that night, at 2:08 a.m. You were just 16.” The portrait was of Reki and he was smiling brightly, but his eye bags and tired gaze seemed to be more than enough to let others know that he was exhausted of something.
He picked the frame up gently and he caressed it, like if he were to mistreat it just slightly, it would break. “You looked so tired that night, and you smiled so brightly, but then you—“ he stopped himself and he placed the portrait back in its place and he looked back and forward between the window and the shrine before he shook his head and lit some candles and set them beside the portrait.
“It’ll be a year in…two months,” he said hesitantly, not wanting to believe that the one year mark was so close. He gulped and he looked at the tired, last, portrait of Kyan Reki.
———————————————
“I need a job.” Langa said for the fourth time in a row. Oka sighed and rubbed his forehead as he filled out a shipment order before he stared at Langa.
“Yes, I’m aware. You’ve said that four times already.” Oka returned. Langa seemed to sulk at that and Oka couldn’t help but see him as a puppy that just got kicked.
“I just moved to Okinawa, and I want to help my mom pay the bills so that she doesn’t have to do it all on her own.” He said. Oka rubbed his forehead and nodded as he got out a new piece of paper to write down his information.
“Okay, where do you live?” He asked as he looked for a pen.
“Apartment complex—“ a bucket fell over, “number 382.” Oka stiffened and his hand accidentally knocked over the bucket of pens that he had on his desk and he turned around to look for one as he put on a shaky smile.
“I—I could give you a job, but I just have to speak to the owner about it and see what can get done.” He grabbed a pen and gripped it tightly as he wrote Langa’s name and personal information. “I’ll let you know by the end of the day of what the owner says.”
He saw Langa nod and he caught Sketchy walking over to him and when he heard a surprised yelp, he knew that Sketchy had bit him and that he was about to jump into his arms.
When he caught Sketchy and he saw Langa’s eyes shut tightly, he pressed his lips into a thin line and he swallowed the lump in his throat. They seem like the same person. He shook his head and put on a smile. “You can go home, I’ll call you if anything happens.”
Langa peeked an eye open and he nodded as he rubbed his finger and left the small shop.
As he walked home, he ran into a small calico cat and he bent down to pet it as he thought of how the cat resembled his mom in certain aspects. He continued walking him and when he opened the door, he couldn’t help but shiver and ran to his room quickly.
He sat on his bed and pulled out a few papers of homework that he had and he began working after he set a timer for 30 minutes. He felt himself shiver again but he ignored it and he tried his best to write out different kanji to perfect his Japanese.
When it rang, he turned it off and he walked out to the kitchen and began cooking dinner while he waited for his mom to get back from work. A few minutes after he turned off the stove, his mother opened the front door and she smiled in his direction as she set her things down on a hanger and shivered.
“Gosh, it’s colder than usual.” She said as she moved her hands up and down on his arms. Langa lifted an eyebrow and he set down her plate and he looked around.
“It feels fine right now, it felt worse when I got here.” He said as Nanako sat down and thanked him for the food. He sat down and began eating as she processed his sentence.
“You’re saying that it was colder earlier? Are you not cold right now?” She asked him. Langa cut his egg apart and he stuffed it in his mouth as he shook his head. Nanako sighed through her nose and she began eating her food as Langa tried to see how to mention the whole ‘ghost in your apartment’ thing.
“Um, mom,” he started off. She looked at him and nodded for him to go on. “Has anyone asked you about our apartment? Or, have they said anything about the apartment?” Nanako swallowed her food and hummed in thought.
“Some nurses were wondering where we lived and when I told them, they all stiffened and there was an awkward silence. It was very suffocating!” She laughed nervously.
“They,” she swallowed nervously. “They said that someone died here.” Langa clenched his spoon discreetly. “Three of the six ladies who worked the case quit and left Okinawa. For some reason they couldn’t handle what they saw.” She sighed. “They’re not allowed to talk about it.”
“Who do you think could’ve…died here?” Langa whispered. Nanako shivered and looked around before she settled her eyes on her plate.
“I heard them say that,” she shifted her shoulders uncomfortably, “that the person died almost a year ago. 10 months ago—pretty recent.” Langa felt his stomach turn. He didn’t like the idea that someone died recently in this apartment.
“But I haven’t noticed anything strange, so I’m assuming that it’s not to the point where a ghost lives here!” She laughed nervously. He swallowed his food roughly as he nodded along to her words. They ate in silence for the rest of the time as they both had different things swimming in their head.
Langa grabbed their plates and began washing them when he saw his mom grabbing her coat and purse. “Where are you going?” He asked. Nanako looked up at him and smiled.
“I met a new friend! She’s really nice and she asked me if I wanted to talk for a while after my shift, so I’m going to meet up with her at her house.” Langa nodded his head as she left and he sighed as he felt a cold breeze hit his shoulder.
His phone rang and he jumped out of surprise and he quickly wiped his hands dry as he grabbed his phone to answer. “Hello?” He said, a little out of breath.
“Hey, Langa. The owner was able to get you a job,” he gasped, “temporarily.” Langa felt his face sulk. “Unless you can prove to him that you’re good enough to stay and continue working.” Langa nodded eagerly.
“Yeah, that’s good. I can prove to him that I’m good to work there.” He didn’t notice that he had bowed and he quickly straightened himself and looked around.
“Great! You’ll start in two days at 4:30 after school.” He nodded and thanked Oka before he hung up and stared at his phone. He shivered and shook his head as he finished cleaning and then he looked at the table.
It looked rather blank and empty. Without his dad, everything looked blank and empty. He gripped the towel a little tighter as he shook his head and sighed. He wrote down on his phone to go to a flower shop nearby the next morning to get flowers for the table to make it seem more lively.
He went to his room and he flopped onto his bed and as he began to doze off, he swore that he could see a blue silhouette in the corner of his room, but he closed his eyes and fell asleep instead.
———————————————
Nanako fidgeted with her fingers as she thought of how to bring about the matter of her apartment to her coworkers. She bit her lip, messed with her hair, and bounced her leg up and down before a coworker approached her with a worried smile.
“Hasegawa-san, are you okay? You seem nervous about something.” They said. Nanako stopped her fidgeting completely and when she saw all eyes on her, she sighed and gripped her hands into her pants.
“Actually, I want to ask you all about something.” She started off slowly. Everyone put their things down and looked at her and she bit her tongue nervously. “I wanted to ask about the apartment I live in. 382.” Instantly, she heard hitched breaths and she could see the nurse standing next to her stiffen.
Small whispers went around the room and Nanako couldn’t help but fidget nervously. She heard someone sigh nearby and she looked up to see Takahashi looking at her.
“We don’t know the cause of death,” he said softly. “The nurses who worked the case don’t speak about it—they can’t. We don’t have much to rely on.” The others looked around and Nanako swallowed and nodded.
“Like we said, it happened ten months ago.” Suzuki said. “Six nurses were called to come in and help a boy who was near death.” She played with her hair. “It was around 1:50 a.m. when he came in and,” she swallowed, “they had to pronounce him dead at 2:08 a.m. exactly because he couldn’t make it. His body didn’t allow it.”
Nanako gasped and she covered her mouth as other nurses looked down and bowed their heads in remorse. “How—how old was the boy?” She asked. Suzuki was about to answer, but she yelped when a hand slammed onto her table and caused everyone to jump.
“You guys shouldn’t be talking about this and you know it.” A nurse said through gritted teeth. The other nurses bowed their heads in shame and the nurse looked around before she pointed her finger at Nanako (who was looking around confused).
“You asked, didn’t you?” The nurse said. Nanako jumped at the sudden attention and she frantically moved her hands around in a panic. “You shouldn’t be digging your nose in where it doesn’t belong.”
“I—I was just curious!” Nanako tried to defend. The other nurses nodded along but they jumped when the lady slammed her hand again.
“I don’t care if you were curious, you keep your nose out of it. The family specifically asked us to not talk about it anymore. Not until the one year mark.” They nurse’s glare softened and she shook her head and sighed. “Don’t ask anymore.” She walked away and when she was out of sight, Nanako took deep breaths as the shock settled down.
“We’re so sorry.” A different nurse said. “She’s one of the three nurses that stayed after that night. She worked the case, it’s hard for her when people talk about it.” Nanako blinked and swallowed and chose her words carefully.
“Why…is this case so different? From other cases?” She asked slowly. The other nurses either shook their heads or shrugged at her question.
“We’re not sure,” Takahashi answered. “It’s probably because he died on his birthday. Same exact time he was born—he died the same time. 2:08 a.m.” Nanako gasped. A perfect circle. Although she was still confused on why it was such a different case, she kept her mouth shut and continued working until they were dismissed to go home.
When she got home, she instantly smelled dinner, but she sat down and sighed as she settled her head on her arms. She heard Langa set their plates down and he sat down across from her and settled a hand on her shoulder. “What’s wrong?”
She sat up, “it was a hard day at work. I sort of asked about our apartment and when they gave me some details, a nurse started yelling at me. Well, not really yelling, but close enough.” She saw Langa’s brow furrow.
“That’s not fair. They shouldn’t have yelled at you, you were just curious.” He declared. Nanako shook her head and ran her fingers through her hair as she grabbed her fork and pushed her food around.
“No, it’s my fault. It’s not my business to begin with, so I really shouldn’t have asked. Maybe we should just stay clueless about this whole thing.” She saw Langa’s eyes widen and he bit his lip but nodded anyway.
They ate in silence and when Nanako felt like she lost her appetite, she stored her food away for later and she thanked Langa before she went to her room.
She walked into her bathroom and she gripped the sink as she thought about apologizing to them and letting them know that she wouldn’t be asking anymore. She heard her phone ding and she pulled it out to see a message from Suzuki.
Suzuki-san: I know that you didn’t mean any harm and that you were just curious, all of us know that, but the nurses that stayed were affected by it a lot, somehow.
Suzuki-san: Many knew the boy. Maybe that’s why it hurts so much for people. They all talk about him in a bright light. His passing left a hole in everyone.
Nanako gripped her phone and she sighed and when she looked in the mirror, she gasped and turned around frantically. When she saw nothing, she laughed to herself and rubbed her eyes with the palms of her hands. “I’m going crazy.”
She shook her head and turned the lights of her bathroom off and she climbed into bed without a second thought.
———————————————
“Welcome!” Langa looked up and nodded at the muscled man and nodded at him and he proceeded to look around at different flowers. The man tilted his head and squinted his eyes slightly.
“You don’t look like you’re from around here. Are you foreign?” The man asked. Langa looked at the man and nodded.
“I recently moved from Canada. It’s really different here.” He said softly. “Do you have flowers for dinner tables? Something small?” He asked. The man nodded and started showing him different flowers as he kept the conversation going.
“How is it different? Are you not used to the warm weather?” Langa nodded again as he studied the flowers.
“In Canada, it’s usually fresh and the temperature changes depending on the month. My mom said that here it’s mostly only warm and hot. So it doesn’t snow. No more snowboarding.” The last part was whispered, but the man still heard it.
“Snowboarding?” Langa nodded and he pointed to the flowers and nodded again. “You know, I went to Canada once with this man named Oka Shokichi and we tried snowboarding and it was really fun! It’s kind of like skateboarding.” At Langa’s confused face, the man shut up and flushed slightly (since no one knows he skates).
He cleared his throat, “anyway, you said you liked these, correct? The dahlias and sunflowers?” Langa nodded again, not asking about skateboarding.
“How much will it be?” He asked as he began getting his wallet out. The man shook his head and held up a hand to stop him.
“This one’s on me. Don’t worry about it.” Langa blinked at him oddly but put his wallet away nonetheless.
“Thank you,” he said as he accepted the free flowers. “Can I ask how you know Oka?” The flower man looked at him oddly (he thought the foreigner was weird and he had an odd feeling about him) but he shrugged.
“I’ve known him for a while now, actually. He’s a really nice guy,” he flushed and Langa tilted his head to the side. He didn’t get to ask anything since the doors to the flower shop opened and they both turned to see Oka standing there. He seemed to be surprised to see Langa there and he approached them.
“Hey, Langa. What’re you doing here?” He asked. Langa told him what he was doing and the flower man asked for his break and the three of them walked to a nearby café to talk.
“How do you two know each other, and since when?” Langa asked. “Ah, and, what’s your name?” He asked shyly. The flower man laughed and Oka smiled but felt his chest tighten again.
“Hiromi and I have been dating for a year now. We’ve known each other for about 4 years now.” Langa ‘oh’ed and congratulated them and they thanked him.
“What brings you to Okinawa?” Hiromi asked. “Canada seems like a nice place to be in.” Langa shifted awkwardly and he stared at his lap as he played with his fingers.
“My father passed away recently,” the two men across from him stiffened and looked at each other. “My mother wanted to be in the comfort of her hometown and I didn’t want her to be alone so I came with her.”
“I—we’re sorry for your loss.” Hiromi said slowly. Langa nodded and his eyes hazed as the two men looked at each other again. Hiromi’s watch beeped, letting them know that he had to go back to work. Langa excused himself and thanked Hiromi for the flowers before he left and made his way home.
Hiromi and Oka looked at each other. “He’s a sign, isn’t he?” Hiromi asked. Oka pressed his mouth into a thin line and shrugged.
“Don’t have too much hope. I don’t want all of us to end up like last time. Especially Miya. The last boy was close, but he wasn’t it. He wasn’t the sign we needed.” Oka sighed again and he finished his coffee in one gulp.
“Cherry told us to be on the lookout for a foreigner with light blue hair. That’s him.” Hiromi said. “He’s going to remember you well, not sure about me and Cherry, but if he runs into Joe and Miya, then he might be it this time. He might be the one to help us learn more about what happened to Reki.”
“We should just let fate choose the ending of this story. If anything happens, it happens. If not, then nothing happens.” Oka stated. Hiromi downed his drink and nodded and they parted ways.
As Oka looked back at the café and began walking away, he shook off the feeling of a hand on his shoulder and he shuddered. It’s nothing.
It was always nothing.
———————————————
It was Langa’s first day at work and Oka didn’t want to ruin it by mentioning ghosts, but he was trying to find a way to ask him if he’s seen any paranormal activity or felt anything off lately. He was about to ask, but the bell ringing and Langa helping the customer gave him more time to think of how to bring the subject up.
As he was thinking, he didn’t hear the bell ring and he didn’t see Langa talking to him with a worried look. He snapped out of his trance when Sketchy barked and he jumped slightly and he looked at Langa.
“Are you okay?” Langa asked him. Oka stared at him before he nodded his head and assured him that he was okay, “just thinking about some things, that’s it.”
“Oh.” Langa said blankly. “What kind of things?” Oka cleared his throat and he gripped the towel in his hand tighter.
“Uh, well, I have a random question that I was thinking of. I’m not—do you believe in ghosts? Or the supernatural? Or an afterlife?” He blurted out. Langa stiffened and he gripped the broom in his hands.
“Um, I don’t know,” he said softly. “Maybe people turn into stars. If you think about it, we’re made of stardust. Maybe we go back to what we originally were.” Oka blinked at him in surprise and huffed slightly.
“I never thought about it that way.” He said. Langa shrugged and began sweeping slightly as his face took on a saddened look.
“It’s something I thought of when my dad died,” Oka stiffened and when Langa turned around, he smacked himself. “He’s most likely a star and he’s shining brightly since he’s new.” Oka continued to hit himself and belittle himself for forgetting that Langa’s father had passed and for bringing up the thought of an afterlife.
When Langa turned to look at him, he stood up and put on a sad smile on his face. “I’m sure he’s a star, watching over you and making sure you’re okay.” Langa nodded and swallowed and he continued sweeping while Oka thought of different ways to make him feel better.
“Hey, how about you take a break? You’ve been working really hard lately and I’m sure you’re tired.” He said after a few seconds of thinking. Langa looked at him and nodded and he set the broom aside as he made his way into the break room.
Sketchy stopped in front of him and tilted his head to the side and Oka shrugged as he smiled and opened his arms for Sketchy to jump into. “How am I supposed to bring up ghosts to him again? I don’t think I could.” He laughed. Sketchy yipped at him, but then his ears fell flat against his head and he growled as barked at something behind Oka.
He turned around and found nothing there, but he felt a sudden coldness envelop him and he shivered as Sketchy continued barking.
His first thought was that he was going crazy, and that he was imagining it all. But the more that Sketchy barked, he knew it was all real. He released him when he growled and Oka ran to a different part of the shop.
He felt a hand touch his shoulder and he couldn’t help but scream and shake the hand of his shoulder as he accidentally punched the shelf next to him.
He heard rapid footsteps approaching him and he was about to swing before he stopped himself and saw Langa pop into his point of view from the small gaps in his fingers. “Are you okay? What happened?” He asked. He shivered suddenly and he put his hands on his shoulders as Oka slowly took his face out of his hands.
He put on the best smile he could and said, “sorry! There was a really big bug and it flew really close to me and it scared me!” He laughed off. “I accidentally punched the shelf and now I don’t know where it is!” Langa looked around and when he spotted a huge bug on the ground, he let out a scream and Oka screamed as well when he saw it.
They tried to stomp on it multiple times but it kept crawling around and that caused panic to course through their veins. There was a huge mess of barking, stomping, and screaming as the bug continued to move.
The bug proceeded to spread its wings and when Langa and Oka realized what was about to happen, the bug was off of the ground and making its way towards them and the only thing people could hear from the shop was barking and chaotic screaming.
———————————————
As school went on, Langa found himself beginning to doze off and he tried his best to keep his eyes open. He turned towards the window and he felt more awake as he did a double take on what he saw.
He saw someone sitting in the empty seat by the window, the one no one occupied. The person was looking out the window with a smile on their face and a hand on their cheek. Langa rubbed his eyes and he looked again only to see the person gone.
He hissed in pain when he felt the teacher’s papers meet the back of his head and he rubbed the spot as his teacher looked at him. “Pay attention, Hasegawa.” Langa nodded and the teacher continued as some of his classmates looked at him with concern. He paid them no attention as he looked back at the empty seat on his left.
He turned towards the front of the class and he tried his best to focus but he couldn’t. All he could think of was the red hair he saw and the black, oversized, hoodie draping on the figure. He shook his head and tried to focus again, but he felt a sudden chill and his classmates began to complain about feeling cold.
He looked back at the empty chair and he shook his head and just like that, the chilly air went away. His classmates sighed and some looked at the empty chair on his left while others chose to ignore it. The teacher cleared his throat and continued with the lecture.
As school ended that day, Langa went home thinking about what happened in class. Unfortunately, he thought too into it and he was startled when a car honked at him and he jumped back. When his heart settled he laughed slightly at himself and went, “I almost said ‘hi’ to the stars above as well.” He cleared his head enough to make it back home safely and he sighed as he slid down the door.
He walked towards his room and he set his things down as he sat on his bed to think about some things. He squeezed his eyes shut and he squeezed them tightly to the point where he saw stars.
He opened them again and he swore to the stars that he saw a silhouette close to him, but he blinked a couple of times and it was gone.
He groaned and he put his head into his hands as he thought about all his life choices and he wondered what would’ve happened if he decided to stay in Canada and not go to Okinawa. He shivered again and he decided that he wasn’t going to deal with it so he got up and began the shower.
When he got out, he sat in the middle of his bed to see if anything would happen. When nothing happened, he sighed in relief and thanked the stars above for being left alone for a while. He felt a saddened feeling and he shivered.
He sighed again and he laid back on his bed and he stared at his ceiling for a few minutes. He saw a fly and he swatted at it and he missed. He let it fly around for a bit before he got annoyed and left the room—thinking of his dad.
He hears a couple of things move here and there, and he couldn’t help but wonder if he could catch the ghost off guard and see it. It was added to his to-do list.
He would catch the ghost off guard one day after school before his mother got back from work.
———————————————
Langa found himself at a park with his laptop and searching “how to sneak up on a ghost” online. He searched for ghost related things and when he felt a sudden cold breeze, he ignored it and continued working. His work was interrupted when a shadow casted itself over his laptop and he quickly took his reading glass off and he closed his laptop.
“Hey, I didn’t think I would’ve found you here.” The boy he encountered on his first day of school said. “Do you mind if I sit?” Langa scooted over and he made sure that his laptop was out of sight.
“Thanks! I realized that I never told you my name,” he held out his hand and Langa looked at it. “My name is Eiji! I was just strolling by when I saw you. I hope I wasn’t interrupting something you were doing.” Langa shook his head.
“No, uh, I was just researching something. Not a big deal.” At his last sentence, they felt a strong, cold breeze and Langa noticed the way Eiji’s eyes hazed. Eiji bit his lip and he looked around nervously.
“I know that we just sat down to talk, but I have to get going now. I just wanted to say hi.” He got up and he looked over his shoulder at Langa. “It was nice to see you again, Hasegawa. But you have to be careful with what you mess with.”
He began walking away and Langa watched him, stunned, and he blinked a couple of times before he grabbed his laptop and continued searching; ignoring what Eiji had to say.
He clicked and tapped and wrote down a couple of things when it seemed right and he ignored every chill he got. When he felt a strong breeze and chill, he closed his laptop and decided to call it a day and go home.
When he closed his door, he put together a quick dinner and he went to his room to leave his things and shower. When he heard things move and when he felt chills and taps and touches, he sighed and tried his best to ignore them (like always).
He sat down on the couch and he turned on the TV as he waited for his mother to come home. After a few minutes, he grabbed his phone and began scrolling through it to ignore everything all at once. He put up the volume a couple of times just to avoid hearing things move.
He tapped his fingers in a rhythm against the couch and he felt his eyes grow heavy and he decided to close them for a while, not realizing that he was dozing off.
A sudden tap on his forehead scared him away and he relaxed when he realized that it was his mom and only his mom. He rubbed his eyes and he asked her when she got home, to which she replied, “a few minutes ago, actually. I found you sleeping and I decided to let you sleep before we ate dinner.” He nodded and yawned and he set the table while his mother showered and he shook with chills.
They ate and talked about their day, Nanako explaining how it was a crazy day at the ER and Langa saying that he went walking at the park and then came straight back home (avoiding what Eiji said and not mentioning the ghost).
He was about to put a bit of rice in his mouth when he stopped and his stomach turned when he looked behind his mom. A hand. Reaching for her shoulder. He was too shocked to say anything and he watched as the hand settled on her shoulder and she shivered. The moment he blinked was when it was gone.
“It’s always cold here. I wonder if we can do something about that.” Nanako said as she tried to warm up her arms. Langa swallowed and he nodded as he slowly put the rice in his mouth and chewed.
The moment dinner ended and the dishes were washed, he rushed to his room and he sunk into his bed. He thought that he could feel a hand running through his hair and he shook the feeling away, only for it to come back. He sighed and he decided to let it happen instead of making it go away.
He felt himself begin to doze off, no matter how hard he hugged his pillow and no matter how hard he tried to stay awake. He looked up and he swore that he could see someone looking down at him and smiling while they ran their fingers through his hair.
He tried to make out the features on the person, but his eyes began to blur as he grew tired and tired. At this point, he was freaking out, but the figure just laughed lightly and he felt himself begin to fall asleep faster. He felt nothing but fear.
Before he completely fell asleep, he could hear the whispered words the figure let out.
“We’ll meet soon.”
———————————————
The following morning was a mess. He knew it was Sunday when he woke up and that his mother was working, but he couldn’t remember anything that occurred last night. He shook his head and he felt instant regret when his head began to pulse.
He got up and made himself presentable for the day and he decided to go out for a walk to distract himself and remember what happened.
As he made his way to the park, he thought about the hand that reached for his mother’s shoulder and he could remember words being exchanged. He grabbed his head as he felt a headache forming and he sighed and he sat down at a bench when he reached the park and he closed his eyes.
“This is all making me crazy. I need to stop.” His eyes flew open and he groaned as he closed them again. “Great, now I’m talking to myself like a maniac.” He felt a chill run up his spine and he felt something in him snap.
“I’m tired of it. Leave me alone and go back to that apartment. Maybe it’ll do me some good and it’ll stop making me feel crazy.” He whispered out. He felt the chill stop and he could feel someone upset, but the coldness went away and he sighed in relief. He laid his head back against the bench and he closed his eyes for a while, relieved that he didn’t feel anything that whole time.
A couple of minutes later, he began to feel guilt pile up in his gut and he opened his eyes as he began bouncing his leg up and down. When he began feeling restless, he got up and started walking and he kicked a few rocks here and there to ignore the growing guilt he felt.
He managed to get a couple of minutes of walking before the guilt ate him up and he turned around to walk back to his apartment. His walk back consisted of feeling guilty and thinking of what to do about the ghost taunting him.
The closer he got, the slower he walked. He thought about his idea of catching the ghost off guard and supposed that in that moment it would be great. He stalled as much time as possible: he sat outside the parking lot for a while and after a few minutes, he went inside and walked around the bottom floor before going to the second, and then the third.
He greeted his neighbors and they greeted him back. When he saw the man that brought the whole ghost thing into existence, he gave him a blank hello and he conversed with him for a while before he decided to sneak up to his apartment to see if his idea would work.
When he was in front of his door, he sighed and he opened the door quietly and shut it the same way as he had opened it. He made sure that his steps made no noise and when he was in the middle of the living room, his body stopped and shivers ran everywhere as he heard someone crying.
He began to freak out but he calmed his breathing as much as he could and he made his way closer to the sounds. Which were coming from a room. His room.
He let out a shaky breath as he tip-toed over to his bedroom door and when he reached it, his heart was pounding and he couldn’t hear anything but the crying and the blood running through his body.
He heard faint sniffling and crying over his beating heart and he took a few deep breaths to prepare himself to open the door and for what he was about to see.
He heard hitched breaths from the other side and he slowly grabbed the door handle and he closed his eyes tightly as he let out a shaky breath and slowly turned the handle. Out of panic, he opened the door quickly and the crying didn’t stop until the breeze from the door entered the room.
Langa heard a small gasp and he slowly opened his eyes and he let out a gasp of his own. He was looking at the ghost of a boy who seemed to be around his age, the same one that he’s been seeing everywhere.
The ghost’s eyes widened and Langa felt his face take on a panicked form as his heartbeat quickened and he gripped the door handle even tighter. Sometimes he wished that he could think before he acted.
He screamed.