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“So… Let me get this straight,” Tsukasa began, his flashlight beam cutting through the darkness of the desolate school hallway—the light bouncing off the black-filled window and spilling across the white tiles. “We’re looking for a ghost?”
“Mhm,” Rui confirmed, his vague noise of a reply echoing throughout the quiet. He fiddled around with an EMF detector in his hands. “Nothing here.”
Tsukasa looked at the device in Rui’s hands. “And what’s that supposed to do?” he asked.
“It’s supposed to detect a change in electromagnetic fields—which can indicate if a spiritual presence is nearby, depending on the fluctuations.”
The wind wisps around, creating a low howl. Without the usual mumbling of students’ conversations and the hustle and bustle of class activities, an eerie liminality permeated the empty halls. “This is a terrible idea,” Nene mumbled, her skin covered in goosebumps. “What if we get caught? Aren’t there security cameras around here somewhere?”
“Relax, Nene,” Rui reassured her. “I’ve done my rounds and can confirm zero cameras. Just a couple in the faculty and the offices.”
Great, Nene thought sarcastically. How comforting. She was completely done with this, even though they’d barely started yet.
When she received a message from Rui last night to “Go to school tomorrow before seven PM,” she knew what awaited was most likely another one of Rui’s antics. And now she was here, despite her better judgment. Was she always this easily swayed? Or was it Rui’s influence?
Regardless, though she tried to act nonchalant, she couldn’t help but notice the tiniest of details—of moving shadows in the distance and the slightest thump and thud. But… Ghosts didn’t exist.
She just had to solidify that in her mind.
Nene scoffed. “And I thought you cared about ’science’. Doesn’t the paranormal go against everything you stand for?”
“Exactly my point—we’re here to prove the paranormal doesn’t exist! But, if her spirit does appear, we could ask her some questions. And besides, this could serve as interesting inspiration for our next Halloween play, no?”
Nene rolled her eyes and looked back into the hallway, where the darkness beckoned. The wind whispered under her skin, the hall stretched without proper lighting, and shadows moved in the corners of her eyes. But… her vision was just deceiving her, right?
So, what was that in the distance?
Moonlight flowed from a classroom window, lighting up a silhouette whose shadow spilled into the hall—a void of black over the faint white. The shadow loomed closer and closer until
the door opened.
Then, a pink figure entered.
Tsukasa emitted an ear-piercing scream—any higher, and the stray dogs would come running. Nene punched him in the shoulder, exhausted. “It’s just Emu!”
He calmed, the flashlight nearly slipping out of his grasp. “E-Emu?!”
“Rui told me to come here!” Emu put her hands up, a guilty look on her face as if she were caught red-handed digging into the cookie jar. “I-I didn’t mean to scare you guys! Sorry…”
“No worries. You’re right on time,” Rui said after checking his phone’s clock. “Only two quarters until seven.”
“Please say six thirty like a normal person…” Nene sighed.
Rui ignored her and led the rest of the group to where Emu stood. He lowered her arms as if he were moving an action figure. “Anyways… I should explain the real reason why we’re all here tonight. I don’t suppose you know the story, do you, Emu?”
Emu shook her head. “I wanna know!”
Rui smiled as he stole the flashlight from Tsukasa, causing him to flinch. “Then, gather around, fellow campers! It’s time for a ghost story, so make sure to snuggle tightly around the campfire~” The flashlight beam blanketed his face, glowing against the dark.
“This poem has been passed down by student after student, and it begins like this:”
There once lived a girl with the voice of an angel.
She kept to herself, a talent hidden.
Until one day, a teacher found her singing alone
and encouraged her to step out of the silence—
to finally be known.
There lived another girl—the reigning songstress.
She won awards, kept consistent,
and made herself known with only her voice.
Until one day, the crown was stolen from her head
by a girl who won in just her first attempt.
By pure jealousy, she was cornered in the school bathroom seven days later,
right in the seventh stall,
by the winner who became the loser.
It was an accident, so she says.
But the red marks on her neck said something different.
The only witness left her there and kept her crown—
leaving behind a mystery
and a voice strangled of life.
A week passes
and so does the girl.
Her body hung above
without signs of struggle.
And on the floor lay her broken clock
forever stuck on the seventh hour.
“Rumour says you can still hear her hum a crooked melody.” Rui finished, bowing to an imaginary audience in his head.
Silence passed between the members.
“That’s such a cheesy story,” Nene spoke up. “Does the number seven even have any significance?”
Rui exhaled, handing the flashlight back to Tsukasa. “Don’t be such a downer, Nene. Besides, there’s always a hidden meaning to everything! It just takes a creative mind to understand.”
“Besides that—” He coughed into a closed fist. “I’ve no idea which bathroom this was, only that it was one of the girls’. So, we’ll have to split up in pairs to cover more ground. I have an EMF detector, flashlights, and radios so we can keep in contact.”
“Split up?!” Tsukasa huffed. “Haven’t you seen any horror movie ever?! Splitting up is always a terrible idea!”
Nene’s eyes wanted to roll again. “It’s not like we’re in any real danger…” She murmured. “But, whatever. I’ll play into this. Let’s finish this as quickly as possible so I can get back to bed before my parents find out I’m gone.”
“Then, I’ll go with Tsukasa!” Emu bounced in place, maybe too excited for this compared to Tsukasa, who was on the verge of soiling himself.
Rui nodded and said, “And Nene will be with me,” which was met with an ‘Oh, lucky me…’ from Nene. “We’ll check the second floor, you two will be here on the first.”
He handed the other pair their radio and flashlight, then turned to leave with Nene, but stopped before the staircase. “Before I forget… Knock seven times on the seventh stall exactly on the seventh hour. We arrived a little early, so we’ll have to wait.”
“T-Then what…?” Tsukasa asked, already afraid of the answer.
“You’ll hear her start to sing. You can use the time to ask questions,” Rui explained. “But… because she was strangled, it’ll sound like nails against a chalkboard. After she finishes, you have to say her name seven times, or else she’ll haunt then kill you after a week. At least that’s how the story goes.
“Remember, Sayaka Yamamura. Seven times. Once we’re all done, let’s regroup at the entrance.”
As if this ‘Sayaka’ will even appear to begin with, Nene wanted to say, but kept her mouth shut. “Come on, let’s get this over with.”
And so, the four split, the bathrooms already waiting patiently for them.
Tsukasa & Emu, 6:34 PM
Get out.
That was the only thought circling Tsukasa’s head.
Sure, ghosts probably didn’t exist, and everything had some logical reason and explanation… but he didn’t believe the chances were zero.
It was something that racked his mind occasionally. And with his experience watching Saki’s fluctuating health in the hospital, he didn’t know where he drew the line with the existence of ghosts. He would rather keep those thoughts out of his mind to begin with.
“Hey, Tsukasa?” Emu asked, jolting him out of his head as she halted.
He paused alongside her. “Y-Yeah?”
“What’s the time right now?”
He pulled his phone out. “Six thirty-four. Why?”
Her eyes glowed against the darkness. “Since I’m always on the run whenever I’m here… Can we roam around for a moment?”
Little did Tsukasa know the true intentions of her plan—spending more time with him alone. She never usually got chances like these, with how they’re almost always with their other troupe members. So when the opportunity presented itself, she pounced on it with one of her signature concussion-inducing tackles.
And compared to Tsukasa’s paranoia, Emu had different experiences with ghosts. To her, they weren’t scary—just lost souls roaming the mortal world.
She didn’t believe them to be malicious. They were simply poor, confused souls tied to the earthly realm they once lived in. Maybe Sayaka was misunderstood. Perhaps the rumors are wrong. Emu intended to find out the answer.
“A-At this hour?” Tsukasa asked, clearly unwilling. “And besides… we promised Rui—”
“Come on, we still have some time before seven!” she whined, using her puppy-dog eyes to break Tsukasa’s will down. He’s too easy sometimes, it’s cute! she thought as she watched the resolution dwindle visibly on his face. “Please?”
That was the last straw for him. “…Fine,” he muttered, mentally slapping himself on the forehead for giving in so quickly. “But, we’ll leave at around six fifty, okay?”
“Alright!” She skipped away into the darkness.
“W-Wait!” Tsukasa shouted, chasing after her.
Rui & Nene, 6:36 PM
Ghosts weren’t real—Rui never truly believed in them.
They were a scientific anomaly. The majority of indications of ghosts could be explained by rational reasoning. Moving shadows in the corner of your eye? Just a malfunction with visual processing. Seeing and hearing things? Might be a lack of sleep. Bump in the night? Probably some mouse scurrying around.
There existed no solid evidence of the existence of ghosts. Besides some old folktales and people’s faulty accounts, it was all baseless without valid credibility.
Rui was sure of it—that pretty much everything and anything could be explained. Bedsheets, slashers, and cheap jumpscares weren’t something to be scared of. Vampires and werewolves have been reduced to a mockery with cheesy romance stories.
Everything was all a marketing ploy for Halloween. End of story.
Set in his beliefs, Rui walked through the hallway without fear. The only thing he should be afraid of is a security guard or janitor catching them. There was nothing worse than being stuck in the principal’s office and getting another earful about respecting school rules and whatnot.
Nene trudged behind him, flashlight in hand. “Again—this is a bad idea, and you know it. We’re breaking and entering, for crying out loud! I am not getting a stain on my record for this.”
“Ah, Nene. Always the voice of reason.” He stopped suddenly, stopping Nene in her tracks. He faced her with a fondness in his demeanor. “We’ll be fine. Seriously.”
It wasn’t fair how Rui could act so carelessly about this. Nene didn’t exactly believe in ghosts either, but she always tiptoed around the subject carefully in case they did exist. With how many horror games she’s played, one would think she would be desensitized by now, but there’s a stark difference between experiencing something through a screen and real life. She’s seen enough movies to know this much: Never mess with what you don’t understand.
So, if ghosts exist, as long as you don’t do anything to tick them off, they’ll leave you alone. Touching an Ouija board or playing around with summoning rituals is basically asking for it.
Even if she was superstitious, it was always better safe than sorry—skeptics be damned.
“Hear me out, then,” she said. “What if she is real? What if we’ll be messing with something better left untouched?”
“Nene—”
“Don’t ‘Nene’ me…!” Her eyebrows furrowed as she snapped. She couldn’t help herself when Rui tried to soothe her with that aggravatingly sweet voice of his—how he could blend gentleness and calmness to create a pacifier only for her. “I… I just don’t want you to get hurt, okay?”
She wanted to shut her mouth—shove her hands deep into her throat and rip her vocal cords straight out.
“Nothing will hurt me… or you, for that matter. Even if she exists, as long as we play by the rules, we’ll be fine.” He stepped closer to her, testing the waters. Seeing her stare at him expectantly like a lost puppy, he closed the distance and ruffled her hair.
He ran his hand through her hair for a bit longer than necessary, as if he were memorizing every strand with his fingers. Realizing this, he pulled his hand back as if he had touched a hot stove. “W-We’ll be okay. I promise.”
Though he stepped away, his touch lingered on her like a spirit.
Sometimes Nene wished she were stronger. Even with the slightest touch, she felt her resolve crumbling into pieces.
With Rui, she was no better than dead.
“You’ll be the death of me…” she sighed. “But I trust you.”
Tsukasa & Emu, 6:41 PM
The stars danced above, using the ink-black sky as their stage. Leaves swayed in harmony with the frigid wind, and the courtyard seemed to stretch for infinity in the dark.
“So,” Tsukasa began, his flashlight weak against the larger darkness outside. “Are you satisfied yet?”
Emu shook her head, sparkles in her eyes. “A little more,” she said as she sat on the grass, overlooking the large track field. She patted the spot next to her, coaxing Tsukasa to join.
Tsukasa, without much other choice, sat next to her. She hugged her knees as she looked up at the stars above, her expression completely at peace. “You know… The day is nice, but the night can be beautiful too, you know?” As much as she adored the sun, with its radiant glow reminding her of the golden boy sitting next to her, the night had its own special qualities.
“It’s like… when the world is this dark, every light, even the faintest, means so much more,” Emu commented.
He traces the gaze of her eyes—possibly stuck on her face longer than he’d admit—back to the sparkling night sky. It watched over them. The distant stars twinkled as they roamed and drifted ever so subtly like leaves floating atop an inky black pool.
With the open space, he lost himself in the sky. It felt like staring into a perfect portrait—if he lifted his hand high enough, he’d be able to reach the sky, just enough to almost drown in the black tide.
Hoping Emu was still distracted by the view above, he pulled his gaze back towards her face to sneak in a glance at her enchanted expression. Hell, he’d do anything to earn more time to soak in her beauty all for himself. But when he shifted his sight from one painting to another, Emu had already been admiring him, more obviously than he could be.
They turned in opposite directions with the abruptness of pulling velcro apart. “Sorry,” they both mumbled simultaneously, even though there was no reason for either to apologize.
Silence passed until Tsukasa broke it. “Yeah… I agree with you.” But he wasn’t referring to the stars or the sun.
His eyes strayed and found Emu’s hair, her face still turned away, and her ears tinged red.
Sat next to him was what he considered his brightest light—unaware she thought the exact same of him.
Rui & Nene, 6:44 PM
“Let’s take a slight detour,” Rui said as he eyed the science lab, stopping to admire the scientific instruments inside.
Nene glared at him. “Seriously?”
“I can’t help myself.” He smiled, already strolling to the door and sliding it open.
Rui lost himself in his fascination with the tools and equipment as Nene entered after him. “How long are we gonna be here?” she asked, impatience wearing on her.
“A bit,” Rui replied as he examined a Bunsen burner. Obviously not “a bit”.
Though Nene wanted to get this over with, she couldn’t tear her eyes off him as he moved across the lab like a kid in a candy store.
It was endearing seeing him so passionate, with childish wonder every time he picked up beaker after flask. She could hear him muttering under his breath. They wouldn’t mind if I stole this, right? Oh, the experiments I could do with these!
With her head in the clouds (preferably, a lavender-and-cyan colored one), Nene lost her balance and half-slipped, bumping into a table and sending a tiny glass vial off the edge. Rui noticed and swiftly caught it, returning the vial to its place. “Are you hurt?” he asked, rejoining Nene at her side.
Nene felt her cheeks heat up as he held her hand and searched for any injuries. Was a sudden jump in heat a sign of paranormal presence? Or was it cold…? Maybe she could blame whatever this was on the spirits. “I’m fine,” she mumbled. Why didn’t she want to pull her hand back?
His touch haunted her as he let go, and she could still feel the gentle warmth of his hand on hers. She so badly wanted to be possessed by that warmth.
“How did you slip?” How can Rui infuse so much adoring concern in how he squinted in worry or spoke like a gentle cradle? It wasn’t fair to Nene’s heart—that poor, fragile thing it already was…
“I was lost in thought and lost my footing, alright?”
Seeing she was fine, the teasing quickly returned to him. “What were you thinking of, hm?” he asked with that signature shit-eating grin of his.
Before she can shove him away, the EMT device in her hand flashes red—lighting both of their faces in its harsh color.
Shit.
Tsukasa & Emu, 6:45 PM
Still in the courtyard, Emu and Tsukasa’s shared moment was interrupted by a piercing scratching noise nearby.
Tsukasa jumped back onto his feet, akin to a frightened cat. “W-What was that?”
“Maybe it’s a kitty!” Emu ran off in the direction of the noise, leaving behind a conflicted Tsukasa.
Not wanting to be alone or let Emu get into any harm, he hurried after her begrudgingly, shouting, “Emu, wait!”
When he found her, she stood on two bleachers, peering into the school through a window. “What are you doing…?” he asked, breathless from her seemingly endless stamina. She practically leaped from the courtyard to the back entrance.
“I think this is where the sound came from!” she replied. “Look, there’s scratch marks from outside the window—” Turning to meet Tsukasa, Emu yelped as her foot slipped from the bleachers.
Out of instinct, he rushed over and caught her, yelling, “Emu!”
She came crashing into his arms and the two tumbled onto the grass. Tsukasa landed on his back, using himself as a shield for Emu as he kept his arms wrapped protectively around her.
His mind ceased activity as he held her, immersing himself in her body heat against his, trying to commit the feeling to memory. She felt like a blanket in terms of both warmth and cuddly softness—one a child used to protect themselves from monsters if they covered their whole body with it.
The two slowly began to come to their senses. Emu shifted to Tsukasa, worry reflected on her face. “A-Are you okay?” she asked, without any attempt to leave his grip on her.
“Yeah… A bit winded is all,” he replied.
At some point, the two finally—albeit reluctantly—parted and stood back up, dusting themselves off. “B-Back to what I was saying…!” Emu said, regaining her composure. “There are some scratches on the window from the outside. But it’s… Actually, you should see it for yourself!”
Even Emu seemed spooked. The way she twiddled her fingers together awkwardly worried Tsukasa.
“Um… Alright,” he said as he hopped onto the bleachers. His skin was speckled in goosebumps as he hesitantly approached the window. He stood where Emu did before she fell, looking in through the window. And when he did, his heart stopped.
Inside was the school hallway, but that wasn’t the part that troubled him—because staring back at him behind the scratch marks was the entrance to the first-floor bathroom.
Rui & Nene, 6:49 PM
The EMF device finally calmed down.
“That’s strange,” Rui spoke as if he expected this to happen, but to Nene, her soul may as well be in the afterlife. Rui noticed her pale skin and held her shoulder, eliciting a flinch. “Hey, now. There’s probably some good explanation for this, alright? Maybe it was some sudden flicker of electricity or a stray magnetic signal. Besides, nothing else happened, right? The device could be buggy.”
The only thing that calmed Nene down was Rui’s touch, but his words sent her spiraling. “And what if that was a warning? Like, what if Sayaka is watching us right now?”
A melody hummed through the room. An unsteady howling trickled inside. Followed by a frigid drop in temperature. “She’s here!” Nene screamed, making a run for the door.
It didn’t budge.
She banged on the glass, yelling for Tsukasa and Emu.
Hands wrapped around her waist, pulling her in and reeling a glass-breaking scream from her.
Behind her, Rui hushed Nene. “It’s me,” He said to reassure her. He turned her around to face the window. “It was loose, and what you heard was the wind getting muffled by the opening and closing. That’s also why you felt cold. See? Everything has a good explanation.”
Nene was dumbfounded, to say the least. At worst, she wanted to jump out that window even though they were on the second floor. Whatever it took to leave this damned place. “W-What about the door?”
Rui let go of her, walking to the other door to slide it open with ease. “The one you were trying to open was locked. This is the one we entered in through—conveniently broken.”
Okay, Nene seriously wanted to slap herself in the face. So much for acting unfazed.
She opened her mouth to speak but was interrupted by a knocking on the door behind her. She took it to be Tsukasa and Emu who heard her shouting and rushed over to help—unaware the two were still outside in the courtyard.
She turned, readying herself mentally for the teasing she would face once she told them what happened, only to be met with an empty hallway. “R-Rui, did you see—”
A crash.
She looked in the direction where Rui once stood but found nothing except his radio, in pieces on the floor.
Now she felt like screaming again.
Tsukasa & Emu, 6:53 PM
“Did you hear that? It sounded like a scream…” Tsukasa asked as the two re-entered the school.
Emu shrugged. “It could be the wind?”
The pair resumed silence as they wandered through the hall, Tsukasa gripping the flashlight like his life depended on it—and with how he’s consistently reaching near-heart attack after another, that might be true. And although Emu wanted to explore more of Kamiyama, she knew they had to fulfil Rui’s wishes, seeing as the time was nearing seven.
After walking a short distance, they reached the elusive bathroom. Checking behind him, Tsukasa saw the window facing them, claw marks on the outside, confirming his suspicions.
“Before we go in…” Tsukasa muttered, visibly shaking. “Is this honestly a good idea? I-I don’t want to anger her or anything…”
“Well, it should be fine as long as we follow the rules! Besides, maybe Sayaka needs a friend!”
“That’s… a bit too hopeful. What are we even supposed to ask her?”
“Unsure!” She smiled sheepishly. “But I’ll call Rui, hold on.” She pulled the radio out and turned it on. “Helloooo? Roger, Roger, this is Special Agent Emu Otori requesting for information!” It buzzed but produced no response. She shook the radio and tried again. “R-Rui? Nene? Please respond…”
Nothing.
Rui & Nene, 6:57 PM
Once Nene found that smug deserter, she swore she was going to do worse to him than whatever this Sayaka could possibly do. If this was his funny idea of a prank, then he was more than a dead man.
She traipsed the hallway with her dull flashlight, nearly bumping into a few lockers and walls. Where in the world was he?!
“Rui!” she called out for him for the millionth time now, and this time, a distant voice called her name back.
Nene had no time to think as she sprinted in the direction of the voice, hoping she didn’t ram straight into a wall as she did so. Never again. After running what felt like miles to her nonexistent stamina, she spotted a small shadow at the end of the hallway.
She pointed the flashlight at it, but still couldn’t comprehend the shadow. It stared at her directly as Nene realized it was too small to be a person.
The shadow turned the corner and ran off.
…
What the hell was that?!
Nene stopped in her tracks, unwilling to follow. Whoever—or whatever—that was, she wasn’t taking any risk in chasing after it.
She leaned against a wall and caught her breath.
Someone tapped on her shoulder.
Her scream got caught in her throat as she attempted to regain her breath enough to run away, but is stopped with a firm hold on her wrist. She shut her eyes tight, preparing herself to die. Is this the end? she wondered. Right in the school hallway? Is there a worse way to die?
Much to her surprise, arms wrapped around her in a tight hug.
“Nene,” Rui spoke, and Nene felt like she could ascend to heaven just with the relief of his voice alone. She leaned into his safety, on the verge of tears. This would always be her second-favorite home. “It’s okay, I’m here now.” He stroked her back with a gentleness reserved solely for her.
“W-Where were you…?” she whispered into his chest. “One second you were standing at the door, then you were gone… I-I saw a shadow at the end of the hallway, and I thought it was you, and, and—”
He raked one hand through the back of her hair while he soothed her with the other. “Hold on, first… Your heart sounds like it’s about to explode.” After successfully calming her down, he prompted her to try talking again. She explained everything that happened once the two broke apart, already missing each other’s touch.
“I’m sorry for not saying anything… But when you heard the knock on the lab door, something bumped into me. I peeked outside to check if it was Emu or Tsukasa, but it caused me to drop the radio. It took off before I could register anything. I chased after, but even it was faster than me.”
“Then… what were you doing after?”
“I think I should show you instead.”
He took the flashlight from Nene and shone it on the entrance to the second-floor bathroom. “I was going to head back immediately, but the bathroom was conveniently right where I stopped. I decided to check it for myself, and… Here.” He led Nene to the girl’s bathroom door and twisted the knob. Locked. He brought the beam to the doorknob and showed Nene the scratch marks below. “See these?”
“I don’t remember those…” Nene said, fear seeping into her nerves.
“Huh…” Rui examined it. “Must be recent, then.”
“W-Wait, how’d you see all this in the dark?”
“I guess I can see better with my cat-like vision,” he joked, hoping it relieved Nene of her fear even a little.
It worked, causing Nene to sigh in affectionate annoyance. “Suuure.”
He smiled, seeing her relax. “I guess we should head downstairs and wait for Emu and Tsukasa. Wouldn’t want to damage school property.”
“But what if we see that thing again?”
“I doubt they’re much of a threat, seeing how it resorted to running after breaking my radio. Probably some animal. We might’ve spooked it by being here, really.”
“…You sound pretty sure of yourself.”
“Always better to be a blind optimist than a pessimist any day,” he said. “The first-floor bathroom’s most likely locked too, so Tsukasa and Emu might already be waiting for us.” He sighed as he stepped back into the hallway. “Guess we’ll just have to prove the existence of the paranormal some other day…”
As they continued their stroll, the shadows grew noticeably darker. Enveloping them.
Rui stopped to check the flashlight. The beam seemed to weaken with a light shake.
With one shake, the light died out, leaving the two in darkness.
Tsukasa & Emu, 7:00 PM
Tsukasa’s alarm rang, echoing throughout the cramped bathroom.
He turned to his reflection in the mirror behind him and wished he could be anywhere but here. Why did he ever give in to Rui’s ideas? He wondered. When Rui asked him to break into the school before seven PM, what in the world convinced him to go?
It didn’t matter now. A good leader persisted, after all.
He stood before the seventh stall, with Emu right by his side. They exchanged a hesitant glance before Emu spoke. “I guess we have to knock…!” She laughed rather awkwardly as she directed the flashlight to the stall door.
“I… I’ll do it then.” Tsukasa slowly raised his hand to the door, wondering if he should fall back and start cursing Rui into the radio once he answered. Nothing was stopping him.
But Emu still looked like she wanted him to knock, regardless of everything. Like a dog standing next to a door expectantly, hoping that their owner got the hint to take them on a walk.
So be it.
If he was doing this, at least it was with her.
He clenched his hand into a fist, raising it to the door, and knocked.
1, 2, 3
4, 5,
6,
Knock.
…
That was it?
He went through all of that for nothing?
Admittedly, he was relieved. But, if he knew this was the result… he would’ve thought twice before breaking into school.
The two started to giggle but fell into a laugh. Okay. Maybe this wasn’t entirely a waste of time.
“We should search for Rui and Nene, they’re probably waiting for us now.” Tsukasa went to the door, with Emu behind him. Grabbing the doorknob, a strange cold shot through his hand. He twisted the knob.
But it wouldn’t open.
He looked back at Emu, but his gaze found the mirrors instead.
A pale white face with raging red marks on her neck and eyes void of life, replaced his reflection.
Her mouth twitched open and out came a low screech—a sad excuse for a melody. She hummed, sounding like the creak of a door.
Her figure stepped out of the mirror, wearing an expression both distraught and angered. Disheveled black hair hung loose off her pale face as if all the air had left her lungs. Burning red marks encircled her neck. Her school uniform was stained with dirt and water. Her eyes rolled from the back of her head and landed on them as she stood in front of the seventh stall.
“Youu…u…” she croaked above her hum, mouth still wide open. Her voice wrung out of her throat.
“W…hy di…d you di…stu…rb me…?”
Rui & Nene, 7:01 PM
“Are you sure you know where we’re going…?” Nene asked as she held Rui’s hand in a vise-tight grip.
He led the way through the dark, the flashlight battery long gone. “Relax. If I could find the staircase, that means I have a good sense of direction.”
She didn’t complain further and let him continue. If she could, she’d cling to his waist, bury her face in his chest, and never let go. She couldn’t handle staying in the darkness anymore. But she’d settle for this. So, closing her eyes, she followed Rui with his hand as her guiding light.
She wondered. How could someone feel like home? She would often find herself longingly daydreaming out her bedroom window and into his, and she thinks of him when she’s scared. His arms felt like familiar walls to a childhood house, his touch nostalgic. There was a name to that feeling—something more than nostalgia.
Nene didn’t want to think about it.
The two stumbled into a room, with Rui swearing he was nearing the entrance. “I-It couldn’t be… I thought I saw the entrance doors…” He cursed under his breath. “What kind of House of Leaves situation is this…”
Doors slammed shut behind them. The fluorescent light bulbs above shot awake with a sharp brightness, lighting up the gymnasium. Nene attempted to pull the doors open, but something on the other side kept them firmly closed.
“Nene…” Rui said, breathless, voice laced with a fear foreign to his tongue.
Nene turned and found what Rui was looking at—the shadow from earlier, but now, under a flickering light, she could make out what it was.
It spoke, its voice invading her head—
“Get.
Out.”
—and found a pair of blue eyes charging straight at her.
Tsukasa & Emu, 7:01 PM
The doorknob wouldn’t give in.
No matter how many times Tsukasa banged his fists on it.
He kept trying, but was stopped when Sayaka screamed—the sound similar to a fork scraping against a plate. It shook him and Emu, causing the two to cover their ears.
“STO-P IT!” she screeched, her melody still lingering.
“O-Okay! I will…!” Tsukasa stuttered. “W-We’re just here to ask you questions, please, don’t hurt us!”
That seemed to stop her. For now, at least.
Sayaka burned holes into the pair just with her stare alone. She spoke again. “S…ix minutes…”
Right… They had six minutes left. Better ask fast.
But where do they begin?
He turned to Emu at his side, the glint in his eyes enough for her to understand. “Um…” She hummed, hands lowering. She gave it a few seconds until an idea came to her. “R-Rui and Nene! The radio wasn’t working, and you thought you heard a scream when we entered, right?”
“Right…” He faced Sayaka again, fingers stabbing into his hand and the flashlight. “Where are our friends?”
Sayaka tilted her neck off to the side, accompanied by an audible cracking of bones. “F-riends…? I… ha-ve… them…”
“Where?”
“Upstairs bathroom… Th—ey’re… trapped. Sc—ared.”
“Are you hurting them…??” Emu asked, fingers tapping her thigh rapidly.
Sayaka laughed, but it came out hoarse. “Y–es…”
7:02
“Shoot…” Tsukasa hastily scrambled for his words. “C-Can you please stop?”
Sayaka snapped—eyes flashing red. “NO!” she yelled, voice gradually rising with volume. “Yo…u dare dis…turb me, say I’m ju—st a myth… play it off as nothing…? YOU came here… JUST TO DENY ME?!”
“W-We didn’t mean to!” Emu said. “You know how you’re scared, and you try to convince yourself it was nothing to calm yourself? That’s all we were doing…!”
“Sc—ared, huh…?” She didn’t relent. “Your friend didn’t seem scared… And you.” She pointed at Emu. “You were having fun…”
Emu squeaked. “I-I’m sorry!”
Tsukasa put a hand up to shield her. “Get behind me,”he said, and she complied. “L-Look,” he began again, focused on Sayaka with a hesitant confidence. “What can we do to make it up to you…?”
Sayaka lowered her hand. She laughed again. “You think there’s any way to appease me…? I wanted revenge. I got it. And I don’t feel any better.” Tsukasa noticed something in her tone but let her continue. “I wanted to feel free… and now I’m stuck in the same place I died.”
7:03
The humming intensified, creating crack after crack in the mirror. Tsukasa didn’t know what to do. He’d just have to keep asking her questions. “But… how do you feel now?”
The question startled her. Something human flashed in her eyes before she returned to being defensive—weirdly enough, that brief flash reminded Tsukasa of someone. “Why would you care?” she asked.
Tsukasa was getting somewhere. A few more nudges, and maybe, he could find all the pieces to the puzzle… He’d just have to figure out how to piece them back together. “Because… you… remind me of someone close to me.”
He recalled the same anger of being stuck in a monotonous life, trapped in the same place without a clear end—wanting to be free, to return to the normal life you once knew—where your dreams hung above you, just out of reach.
The feeling of being abandoned by the world.
He peeled the layers back, unfurling curtain after curtain until what lay bare was a scared, lonely girl. One he knew all too well. One he desperately tried to cheer up, despite her condition.
Sayaka didn’t answer. Tsukasa continued. “I know how you feel because… my sister went through the same thing. S-Somewhat.”
The only difference was that Saki had a support system. Sayaka had nobody.
Tsukasa remembered something about spirits from Rui a few days before—probably another red herring of what he should’ve expected tonight. These spirits… Rui had said then, They linger for a variety of reasons. However, two of the most prominent reasons in horror movies are unfinished business or the negative feelings they had right before their death. Essentially, they’re lost. Waiting until they can pass into the afterlife.
Sayaka just needed a friend, to quote from Emu.
7:04
“Sayaka…” Tsukasa spoke gently. “Do you have anybody you miss?”
She remained silent.
But… the hum began to calm, her voice clearing, yet still a little scratchy. The red glow from her eyes faded.
She spoke, “…My cat, Lucky. We… We got him on the seventh of July. So we went with the whole “luck” thing.”
Emu looked from Tsukasa to Sayaka, registering the situation in her head. Then, something clicked in her head. “Did Lucky like to scratch things…?” She asked.
“Yes… I begged my parents not to declaw him, so he’d scratch outside the room I was in… He’d claw on the door and the windows and only stopped until I let him in. But… I died so long ago… He must have passed by now…” Sayaka began to settle, more open now as tears welled in her eyes.
Emu exchanged a look with Tsukasa.
That was the final piece to the puzzle.
“Sayaka…” Tsukasa tiptoed closer to her. “We believe Lucky’s spirit is trying to reach you.”
The shadows encircled him. “Are you lying?” She regained her intensity.
“N-No…!” he said. “W-We have proof!”
“Really…?” The shadows retreated.
“You have to trust us… Please, open the door.” He hoped whatever humanity was left in her would allow some mercy.
…
The lock clicked.
Emu held the handle. She turned it, and the door opened.
7:05
“The window…” Tsukasa, out in the hallway, directed Sayaka to the scratch marks. “He was trying to get inside.”
A little pitter-patter followed by a meow came from the end of the hall. Bright blue eyes stared from across, then quickly approached. Out from the shadows appeared Rui and Nene carrying a ghostly Russian Blue, who jumped straight into Sayaka’s arms. “Lucky…!” Sayaka muttered, cradling him. “How…?”
The cat appeared to speak to her telepathically. Sayaka nodded in response, deep in mental conversation.
Tsukasa and Emu turned to Rui and Nene, pulling them into a tight group hug. “We thought Sayaka was hurting you guys…?” Emu asked, relief washing over her.
“What?” Nene looked confused. “We never saw her… Until now, at least.”
Rui nodded. “The cat explained everything to us. We spooked it a bit at first, but it calmed once we explained we were here looking for Sayaka as well.”
Tsukasa’s eyes widened. “The cat… spoke?”
“The dead seem to make the rules up for themselves.” Rui shrugged.
“All of you…” Sayaka spoke, turning to the group.
7:06
Except… her voice was rid of its roughness. She talked quietly, like a timid teenage girl. “I lied. I’m sorry. I said all of that at first to scare you…” She glanced at Lucky and furrowed her eyebrows. “But… F-Fine… I’ll tell them.” She raised her head back to the troupe. “Yes, Lucky was trying to get in. He died a few days ago and looked for me everywhere until he ended up in the school. But he… couldn’t open the doors. So, he found an open window on the second-floor science lab but noticed your friends were there. He waited for an opportunity for the door to open, and he unfortunately knocked into your friend, causing him to drop his radio.”
Rui continued for her, “Then we chased him into the gymnasium. The doors were left open and automatically locked behind us due to the wind. It took a while to find a way out, but we opened a window to get into the courtyard.”
“And now he’s back with me… He says my parents are still alive and are mourning me… But I’m glad they’re still out there, somewhere.” She paused, the hum in the bathroom slowing. “Thank you, everyone… I… I think I can move on now. My Lucky’s here with me…” She looked at Tsukasa specifically.
Placing Lucky down, she ran to him to pull him into a hug—a very, very cold one that made him shiver. “Thank you too… I’m sure your sister’s really glad to have you as a big brother…”
He hugged her back with a smile on his face despite feeling like he was holding a large ice cube. “You’re welcome… I hope you can pass peacefully now.”
She let go and stepped away, picking Lucky back up.
The hum in the bathroom ceased.
And Rui’s cellphone rang, the time now reading:
7:07
So, the members of WxS gathered around the ghost girl.
One final step.
Epilogue, 1 Day Later
Tsukasa & Emu & Rui & Nene, 12:12 PM
“Sorry it took so long…” Tsukasa sighed, using his cardigan as a shield for Emu. He slipped it back on, and the two joined Rui and Emu at the rooftop for lunch. “We kind of had to avoid any prying eyes.”
“It’s fine,” Rui said, holding an empty juice box. “Now that we’re all here… We should talk about Sayaka, huh?”
Nene spoke, “Yeah… Well, about her… The scratch marks are gone, and the mirror in the first-floor bathroom is fixed.”
“So, you think she’s at peace now?” Emu asked.
“I hope…”
Rui shifted to Nene; his smile dropped. “I guess I should apologize.”
Nene raised an eyebrow. “For… what?”
“I brushed your concerns off and tried to refute everything. It so happens that… not everything has and needs an explanation—that there are things beyond our understanding.”
Now it was Nene’s turn to give him that shit-eating grin of his. “Come again?”
“Nene…” he warned.
“I’m waiting.”
“Hah… I was wrong. Satisfied?”
“Very. I love hearing those words coming from you for once.”
Rui smirked. “More than you lo—” She put a hand to his mouth, ensuring Emu and Tsukasa weren’t listening. To her surprise, the two were off in their own world, too.
“You were so cool, Tsukasa! Facing her off like that, you were like a knight!” Emu said excitedly.
Tsukasa laughed heartily. “Why, of course! A troupe leader always stands tall!” A pause. He lost the ego and smiled fondly at her. “But… I really couldn’t have done it without you. I completely forgot about those scratch marks!”
Emu blushed and giggled it off. “Aw… Thanks…!”
And so the troupe fell back into their usual antics after yet another escapade.
Rui and Nene began to bicker over nothing while Tsukasa and Emu yapped about whatever. While everyone’s days would continue as normal, no student in Kamiyama High would know what happened to the ghost of Kamiyama, while Sayaka’s story continued to haunt the halls in hushed whispers.
So the next time someone attempted to summon her…
Only the hymn of the wind would answer their knock.