Chapter Text
I wonder what it is that I wanted to protect you from.
Reality is a blur. The city doesn’t exist; people have vanished from the busy streets. It only took a second for him to realize what he had to do, what he wanted to do. He contemplated this decision before, but doubt never let him settle. How could he leave New York and go to Japan, as Eiji asked him? Ideally, he wanted Ash to have a better life. It sounded like a joke. Would that ever come true for someone like himself?
Ash runs, clutching the letter and plane ticket in his hand.
Is there still time?
It's not like him letting his guard down. Everything and everyone was on his constant radar. Even the slightest move would catch his attention. However, when it came to Eiji, that keen eye lay dormant.
The faint sound of footsteps approaches him, but he won't stop. Not until a knife plunges into his side. Ash is sucked back into the real world with an awful burning sensation. Lao’s hand grips the knife, vengeance in his eye with a kindling hatred. Before a word is said, Ash draws his gun from his long, gray coat and pulls the trigger. The silence is broken by the bullet piercing Lao, but nothing seems to change. Lao slumps down by a wall, muttering about Sing with his last breath. One thing no one could deny is his loyalty to his boss, although it led to ill intentions. With one arm over his wound, Ash kneels to pick up the letter. Whatever was going to happen, whatever time left, he will finish it. The last words that he may ever hear from Eiji.
These were special. Ash could hold them and hear them in his head. He reads them in Eiji's voice. It means so much more.
He staggers into the New York Library. He plops down in the nearest chair, bleeding out, but none of it matters. His bloody fingerprints stain the cursive print. Ash lowers his head to take in the remaining phrase:
"You told me once about a leopard you read in a book. How you believed that leopard knew it couldn’t go back.
And I said you weren’t a leopard, that you could change your destiny.
You’re not alone. I'm by your side.
My soul is always with you.”
-Eiji Okumura
Teardrops fall from his eyes. He looks up at the ray of sunlight beaming through the window. Ash sinks into his thoughts. How lucky he was to meet someone like Eiji, who filled him with such a warm feeling anytime he was around. How lucky he felt to know that his intentions were always sincere and he never expected anything in return. The one person who saw him as more than his fragile body. Is it funny? He thinks. How I'm dying like this? Known as nothing more than a toy passed around and dressed up pretty for pleasure. The tragic death of a “movie star.” He leans back in his chair. He would laugh, but his side is burning like hell. The librarian walks by, carrying a stack of books in her arms. She overhears voices of concern from other visitors. The reason is apparent. Someone had called an ambulance. People nearby kept their eye on Ash, one person attempting to stop the bleeding.
Ash, exhausted and convinced this is his last day on earth, isn't flinching. For once, he gives into a moment of peace.