Work Text:
I've missed your calls for months it seems..
Don't realize how mean I can be
'Cause I can sometimes treat the people
That I love like jewelry
'Cause I can change my mind each day
I didn't mean to try you on
Arei was seen teasing J, doing basically everything to sway her emotions one way or another.
“C’mon!~ Sing for me JJ!~ I wanna hear your masculine voice..~”
“M-masculine?!- And f-fuck off Arei..! I already told you I don’t sing!-“ Arei couldn’t help but giggle, looking at J’s bright red face. Well, what wasn’t hidden when she pulled on her hoodie strings.
…Looking back at it now, Arei felt so bad about how she treated J. She genuinely loved her, yet.. treated her like some toy for her own amusement.
..she didn’t even try to help her away from that creep…
But I still know your birthday
And your mother's favorite song..
So I'm sorry to my unknown lover
Sorry that I can't believe
That anybody ever really
Starts to fall in love with me..
..The more she teased J, the more she noticed how it was getting a little easier to not only get her to want to spend time with her, but it was also getting slightly easier to fluster her and make me smile. She tried not to think much of it.
She didn’t think J would’ve felt the same way about her, especially with the person she was.
…Arei wasn’t proud of who she was.
Sorry to my unknown lover
Sorry I could be so blind
Didn't mean to leave you
And all of the things that we had behind
… Arei watched J run out of the movie screening room, running to her dorm to try to find her. …Her heart ached as she knew J wasn’t going to find her there. J wouldn’t even get to find her alive .
..Hearing David be the one to point her out as being missing pissed her the fuck off. He’s why J isn’t going to find her alive. He’s the reason her blackened killed her. It was his stupid fucking idea to share secrets.
…And seeing Eden, the first proper friend she made here so damn upset when they finally found her body..? …All of it just hurt to watch. It hurt so god damn much.
…She wanted more time, but she doesn’t have that.
I run away when things are good
And never really understood
The way you laid your eyes on me
In ways that no one ever could
Arei thinks back to before her death.
More specifically, the few times she interacted with J, and the times she interacted with Eden.
…Eden looked at her with such kindness.. she never really knew why. She was such a bitch.. she thought she deserved to be treated like one.
…Yet Eden welcomed her as a friend with open arms.
All she did was save her ass from Arturo, and Eden welcomed her as a friend with open arms, even after all she did.
…Maybe J would’ve done the same, maybe they could’ve been actual friends..
Maybe they could’ve been more.
And so it seems I broke your heart
My ignorance has struck again
I failed to see it from the start
And tore you open 'til the end
.. Looking back at J now that the trial was over, Arei felt even worse.
J bolted back to her room the moment the elevator doors open, immediately locking the door behind her. That wasn’t an issue for Arei though, she could just go straight through the door without opening it, since she wasn’t alive.
..She watched as J broke down, falling to her knees and sobbing loudly. She quickly kneeled down next to her and hugged her tightly, even if an couldn’t see her, and might not even be able to feel it.
…J could feel Arei there with her, and even if she couldn’t really feel Arei’s arms themself, everywhere that Arei’s ghost was in contact with suddenly felt warmer… it.. was kind of comforting in a way…
Arei held her as she cried, quietly crying with her, even if J had no way of ever knowing that. She… she didn’t think she’d get this torn up over her death.
…She guesses it was her fault, she got J attached to her.. she wants to speak to her one more time, but she can’t..
And she knows Eden wasn’t doing much better.. Eden saw her as an actual friend, which makes her the second or third friend Eden has lost here.
…Maybe J and Eden could be friends and protect each other. Arei wants them to both survive this stupid game. She wants them to be happy, even if she won’t get to speak with them for a while.
And I'm sorry to my unknown lover
Sorry that I can't believe
That anybody ever really
Starts to fall in love with me
Sorry to my unknown lover
Sorry I could be so blind
Didn't mean to leave you
And all of the things that we had behind
And someone will love you
Someone will love you
Someone will love you
But someone isn't me
.. She and Eden watch J now, outside of the game. J managed to escape with Teruko and Charles. Eden did become friends with J like she wanted.. but Eden didn’t survive with them..
But, everyone who died watch over the survivors occasionally. ..Arei can see how everyone misses each other…
She misses the living people a lot, J more than the others. But she’ll see her again someday.
..J funnily enough got a dog… she named it ReiRei.. and Arei loves watching how similar the two are sometimes.. and ReiRei can see her. ..She watches how J perks up whenever ReiRei stares at her..
“…Hey Arei, good to know you’re here again..” she’d chuckle quietly, looking where her dog was staring.
…Arei wishes J could hear her response, but she sadly can’t.
Someone will love you
Someone will love you
Someone will love you
But someone isn't me.
Arei watched as J grew a little older, eventually adapting back to life in the regular world. …She watches as all 3 survivors started trusting again..
She’s proud of how far J has come, she just wishes she was actually there by her side..
Seeing J laughing and smiling again after her death felt relieving.. but it did hurt a little. She wants so damn desperately to be with alive with J… but what’s done is done, there’s nothing that can be changed about that.
Sorry to my unknown lover
Sorry that I can't believe
That anybody ever really
Starts to fall in love with me
Sorry to my unknown lover
Sorry I could be so blind
Didn't mean to leave you
And all of the things that we had behind
..She watched as J interacted with someone new a lot. She didn’t know what was going on with that, they were talking about a machine or something…? Arei didn’t pay much attention to that and went back to J’s place to spend time with her dog.
And someone will love you
Someone will love you
Someone will love you
But someone isn't me
And someone will love you
Someone will love you
Someone will love you
But someone isn't me…?
… A couple months later, Arei strangely.. feels tired..? But she’s dead, she doesn’t get tired..?-
…She closes her eyes, but when she opens them again-
“AREI!”