'You know I met a strange boy...and do you know what his name is?' He pauses.
There is no one in the darkroom where he was developing a photo. Aki was preparing the chemical for developing. There is no living thing in that room. Just a large chest refrigerator and his necessary tools.
Photos are lined in the hanger. He was standing waiting for the photos to be developed. Carefully setting them in, he continues to talk,'His name is.. "Mei".'
He smirked as the photo became visible in the solution. He puts that in the next solution.
'Coincidentally not only he has your name, he also resembles you. I wonder.. how much he is like you.' He hangs the photo to dry up. Then leans on the table and keeps looking at those photos.
'Coincidence ha!?' He leaves the room after a while of staying silent. His apartment is quite spacious. There are not many things in his home though. Only necessary furniture. He doesn't like to decorate. It suffocates him. He has a study room where he spends most of the time of the day. He rarely sleeps 2 days in a month. But before the accident, his favourite thing was sleeping. He sits in the dining. Looking at the cup he sighs. After that, he went to his bedroom and played a song in the player. Tries to sleep.
It was 11:40 pm when Aki got out of the office as usual and he walked towards the station.
His eyes searched for the station master. But the station master was not there. That somehow made him more uncomfortable rather than feeling relief. He sits outside today. He saw someone coming. He could not help but smile as he saw the station master Joshua.
Joshua was a bit astounded finding Aki smiling. He went and sat beside Aki. He keeps warming his own hand by rubbing them. Before he could say anything Aki speaks up
'You thought I won't be coming here right?'
Joshua frowned at the question. He was about to ask that. Aki looks down to the ground as he continues,'I had a friend. Her name was Mei.' Aki went silent. Pause made Joshua frown again.
Aki sighs and starts telling a story,
'She died when I was in 11th grade. We went on a study tour. She was a very adventurous girl. Nothing could stop her exploring new things. That might she got out alone. I followed her but she didn't noticed. In the midway I lost the sight of her. It was as if she vanished. I panicked and went back for help. I got separated from the team. After a while,I found her. She was drenched in blood.'
Aki looked at him. Joshua was not surprised at all. His expression was neutral. Aki smiles,
'As soon as she saw me she grabbed my hand and started running. I was so relieved to see her alive that I forgot to ask why she was like that or why did she got out alone like that. But my relief to the fact that she was alive, was just for a split second. We got lost in the wood. To find the way back seemed impossible. Unfortunately, the old bridge we took to cross over fell down as soon as we stepped in. So did we with it. I couldn't keep holding her till I die.'
Aki looked at his own empty hand. Joshua could feel that Aki had gone back to that moment. The pain seemed to be tearing him apart.
'Let go, Aki. Save yourself please!'Mei screams.
'Shut up will you?!' Aki's Tears keep falling to Mei's face.
'Dummy! If we both die who will tell our adventures to others,even if I die I will be happy cause I always wanted to see what happens after death,didn't I!'Mei tried to change Aki's mind. But Aki keeps ignoring.
He tries so hard not to let go. Blood keeps flowing down from hand as one hand of his was holding a sharp edge of the mountain rock. Futile efforts keeps on going for surviving.. only Both of their weight and gravity force was increasing with time and was too much for that one hand to keep holding.Mei bit her lip as she saw that.
'Let's make a deal Aki! If you let go, I promise I 'll be back to tell you what I have seen, so be a good boy and listen.!' Her high pitched voice trembled as she kept on pleading. Everything begins to go blurry. But hand refuses to let go. Everything now is blurred. Suddenly he felt that his hand feels empty and light..so much light and with that he keeps falling in the river.
'she was insisting to let her go, I didn't listen yet I could not keep her away from falling, couldn't save her....'Aki stopped as he couldn't speak anymore. Joshua was listening while he kept looking at him. He didn't ask even if Aki has paused. Aki started again,'After one week when I woke up in hospital,only to find that she was long gone. And you know what is surprising I started to see her now and then. So I had a hard time coping with convincing others that I'm not insane.'
Aki stopped to looked at Joshua with a blank smile.
'It was not because of the fear of those strange things that walk beside you. It was because I was afraid I was going to be taken as a lunatic.' Then he sighed. For a while he keeps looking at the sky. Joshua stared at Aki as if he knew what Aki wanted to say. Aki now looked at Joshua's eyes. Then he smiled a bit,'So!? You already knew that I was seeing it?'
As the expression didn't change on Joshua's face, Aki realised it.
Joshua didn't say anything. But looked away from Aki's eyes. He crumbled a paper that was inside his pocket,'Well, I don't think it's abnormal to see peculiar things just because a majority of us can't see them.'
Aki was surprised at the answer. What made him more surprised that Joshua was neither questioning nor comforting him. He frowned then asks Joshua,'You didn't ask...whether she was my girlfriend or not? Whether I loved her or not?'
Most of the people who know their story ask these questions as he had serious PTSD. That made them confirmed about the idea that he loved her. Though he wasn't in love with her, yet he didn't clear up the misunderstanding.
'You love her.' Aki smirked at the answer Joshua gave and kept looking at the ground. He knew he might think that. He stays silent.
'You obviously love her. But that doesn't mean that just have to be the love a woman as a man. We are capable of differentiating the love...loving one, in one form or another...' Joshua smiled a bit.
Aki seemed to be smiling without knowing as he saw Joshua smiling. It was clear that he had started to admire the person without being hesitated. Joshua seems to be a wise person.