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Koga’s walked the path to the Light Music Club many times, a room located on the quieter part of campus that has a view of the cherry blossoms planted near the school’s entrance blooming in the spring from the second floor. Rei often kept the windows open for that reason despite Koga’s complaints that “it’s still fucking cold out, you asshole”. He’s walked it so many times that he’s gained a habit of checking up on the family of spiders Rei refused to let the transfer student dust because they’re his “companions” and memorized the number of steps it takes to get up the staircase (26). The Light Music Club comes in various sounds. Sometimes, he can hear Yuta practicing on the keyboard his twin brother, Hinata, gave him for White Day as a present, but on most days, the clubroom is silent, the only sound Koga can hear when he enters the room are Rei’s quiet breathing as he sleeps in his coffin equipped with dry-cured ham and the twins’ manga on some days. The walk to the clubroom this time is different but the same. The distance hasn’t changed and the spiders remain untouched, but unlike the previous trips Koga has made to it, it’s eerily quiet.
Koga takes a deep breath before sliding open the familiar door, dressed in a black suit and tie. It smells of burning incense, and Koga almost gags from the overwhelming scent mixing with the air that he has no doubt will linger in the walls for weeks to come. Gross, he thinks upon the realization. He’s used to people staring at him, for his looks, for his confident and loud personality, but not for the reason they do now . All the attention in the space turns to him, and Koga dismisses it by shutting the door, loudly. Student Council President-san is the first to leave as soon as Koga arrives. “Shall we go, Wataru?” He asks, a forced smile on his face in an effort to cheer up the man whose mask hides his tears accompanying him. Hakaze-senpai, who had been leaning against the wall in the corner, follows shortly after them, dragging along a usually chipper or mysterious Shinkai-senpai appearing sorrowful behind him by the hand. He squeezes Koga’s shoulder on his way out, a barely audible conveyance of “sorry” escaping from his lips. Akatsuki’s megane, who had been in charge of the ceremony, exits next, the entourage he brought with him bearing chrysanthemums in their arms pursuing closely behind him, Adonis slipping out as well at his friend Souma’s side, stealing a quick glance at Koga’s expression, unsure of whether or not he should go or stay as his hand rests on the small of Souma’s back, urging him to go on without him. Adonis makes a turn on his heels, but Koga shakes his head, and Adonis reluctantly joins the others. Koga steps forward until he’s in front of the twins. Hinata’s eyes travel from Yuta up to him and then back to his brother who’s sobbing softly into the crook of his neck. He pats Hinata’s head, hearing a hushed “Yuta-kun, it’s time to leave.” and the shuffling of feet before moving on to the next person, the person he really didn’t want to confront.
“Koga,” Mao looks from Ritsu knelt by the coffin in shock, hand reaching out and retracting, reaching out and retracting, repeating this same motion over and over as he knows once he makes contact with it, reality will settle in. “He’s been like this all day.” Mao sighs, rising from his position on the floor. “I’d feel a lot better if he just cried, but he refuses. I don’t know what to do with him.”
“Move.” Koga commands, a little gruffer than he intends to be, and Mao hesitantly steps aside.
Koga kneels beside him, and takes Ritsu’s hand. Ritsu, for the first time since his arrival, notices his presence. Koga places Ritsu’s hand on the coffin, and Mao almost lunges at him, wanting to curse and scream “What’re you doing?!” at him. Ritsu’s eyes, red, the same ruby red as Rei’s which are only a memory to Koga now, widened, move from Koga’s face to his palm touching the cold, hard, wooden surface.
“Ritchii… he’s gone… I’m sorry.”
Koga holds Ritsu in his arms until his body stops shaking from crying out apologies and “onii-chan’s” that sound as if he’s been submerged in water and left to drown, and Mao assures him once he’s calmed down enough to walk that he’ll handle the situation from there, leaving Koga the only one left in the room along with the incense, still burning, still just as vomiting inducing as when he entered.
“I’m going to open the window. The smell in here is sickening.” He comments to the now empty, silent room. It’s just him and Rei now, and he’s always liked it that way (though he’d never admit it). “Oh, the cherry blossoms are going to be in bloom soon.” He inhales the fresh air on the cusp of spring. “Another year will begin at Yumenosaki Academy. Shit, I’ll be a third year.” He laughs, scratching his head awkwardly. “That’s weird, yeah? You’ve known me since I was a first year.” Koga pulls up a stool in front of the coffin, talking to it as if it’s any other day in the Light Music Club room where he and Rei spent many afternoons like this, Koga doing most of the talking and Rei doing most of the listening, although sometimes, he’d make annoying interjections like ‘Haha, you really care for me, don’t you, wanko?’ to which he’d reply with a blush and a ‘Shut up. You don’t know shit about me, vampire bastard.’. Rei would laugh at this, a laugh that sounded like the tinkling of bells that sent his heart racing, and say ‘You’re quite the tsundere wanko, aren’t you?’ with a ruffle of his gray hair that Koga would swat away. “A lot of people showed up today, huh? Even Student Council President-san did. Ritchii even cried for you, calling you ‘onii-chan’ like you always wanted him to. Unbelievable, isn’t it? I bet you’re making that really disgusting pleased face right now. Yeah, that’s the one,” He stares at the framed, memorial picture of Rei, a smile he showed to few people; Koga was one of the lucky ones. “Vampires aren’t supposed to die.” The first of his tears fall. “We’re UNDEAD, right? Why then?” He sniffs, and wipes away the droplets sliding down his cheeks with the sleeve of his blazer. “In the end, I guess you really were just a human, huh, Sakuma-senpai?”