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The first year Neku is gone, the gang bands together to throw a tiny party at Hachiko, sharing stories from their time with him.
Clasping her hands together, Shiki starts it. She's always been good at being the motivator for the group, even if she's faking it behind closed doors. She lacked knowledge of Neku during the middle of the week, so she asks Beat to go first. Hearing about Neku's growth and tiny mentions of her makes her heart swell and feel alright again, even if only milliseconds worth of relief.
Everyone happily shares fond tidbits and funny stories. Beat in specific gets really into it despite his memory normally being kind of shaky. He remembers a bulk amount of his time with Neku, and thrives over sharing it. He accidentally leads up to the events just before Neku vanished again, trailing off until Rhyme does her best to change the subject and cheer him up. "He'll be back, I'm sure of it." She chimes, Rhyme's bell jingling along in unison. Always listening to Beat's bittersweet stories, despite her memory of Neku being short lived and generally foggy. Noise memories didn't quite hit the same, but she doesn't point out the way Beat gets when he talks about Neku in specific. From his recollection alone, she can flesh him out in her memory.
Being the one closest to Beat, Rhyme frequently saw his low moments, noticing him aimlessly clicking through his phone, or getting tripped up any time he saw someone with warm toned hair in the crowds. It was a frequent occurance that Beat would find himself distracted and wipe out while skateboarding.
Shiki had considered inviting Eri along to their meetup, maybe to convince her he was a real living person— well, dead, when she met him, that is. They'd had almost a whole year to catch up and stitch their lives back together, afterall. The first few weeks, Shiki dodged the question about why she spent every day at Hachiko, makeshift Mr. Mew in hand. The original went missing when... She shuts down that thought. She'd spent all night sewing together a loosely, rushed Mr. Mew. She couldn't very well make sure Neku would recognize her without him, right?
Her silence drove her to slowly isolate, avoiding her family and friends' constant questioning about why she was so adamant on returning every day. She'd skip meals, stay out late, and sometimes doze off on the uncomfortable park benches that circled the notorious dog statue. It wasn't until her overnight trips that Eri recruited Beat into talking her out of it. It got the group acquainted, but Eri still seemed shaky on who this "Neku" was.
The three share stories until the sky grows darker, the stories and memories and thoughts growing more melancholy as they go. Shiki eventually breaks down crying, and Beat keeps rubbing her back in his best attempt to comfort her. Beat isn't doing too hot himself. He puts up a tough front, but it seems Neku easily breaks through him. The smallest of the three finds herself a tad out of place, lost memories and time similar to Shiki that limited her time with Neku. Rhyme still cares about Neku, of course, why else would she be here? It's moreso the pain of a missing puzzle piece that gets to her, leaning into Shiki's side and giving her what she hopes is a comforting hug, lest it show through how it's also for herself.
The painful drudged up memories easily penetrate the depths of Shibuya, and don't go unnoticed by the man behind the curtain. Neku's absence is easily impacting all of the ex-players, even if one of them was playing pretend at the time. Sitting sideways, legs kicked up over the arm of the throne, Joshua sits in his down tuned, preteen-esque appearance. Call it chasing the feeling, maybe.
Around his neck, sits a familiar set of headphones. They don't channel any music, Joshua doesn't have anything compatible, but if he holds them to his ears and focuses hard enough, he can still hear Neku's interwoven melody. He can almost block out the painful thoughts and feelings of the others mourning and celebrating their friend. It's not like he's dead dead, not permanently.
He listens to the voices and thoughts for hours, shirking his regular duties even if just for today. Joshua doubts Neku is conscious out in Shinjuku, but he amplifies the pact he shares with the trio. Instead of three separate links, he figures, it'd be stronger to just make use of his advantages and make sure their words reach him. He doesn't appear to them, but he's sure to transfer the message.
Happy 16th Birthday, Neku. We miss you.
From Beat, Shiki, and Rhyme—