Hajime clearly felt Megumi's hostility directed at him throughout the entire day. Just this morning, they were getting along as usual despite their clear differences, but something happened that caused Megumi to change, and Hajime was well aware that it had something to do with everyone's reaction when he decided to show up for the first time in his morning class. For some reason, she screamed at him, stormed off, and ignored him for the rest of the day.
Even during lunchtime, there was no sign of Megumi around him.
'What's wrong with her?' Hajime scratched his head on his way home.
What Hajime didn't know was that he got oddly used to Megumi following or tailing him around that her absence didn't seem normal. Somehow, Megumi's presence became a crucial part of his life without him realizing it— and it hasn't been that long since the two of them reached a common understanding.
The skies were already turning a mesmerizing purplish gray color as the afternoon drew to a close. With the last rays of the sun gone, a curtain of darkness enveloped the horizon, marking the twilight of the day— a point in time where sunrise and sunset met on one part of the globe and the other.
From a distance, the metallic scrunching sound of seesaw chains rang as Hajime approached the park. It was already twilight (and the cold night was upon the neighborhood soon) and yet the park was still slightly packed with people.
Children and dogs run about the open area, while the benches by the edges of it were filled with couples or people who just finished their jog around the park. Fortunately, the spot underneath a certain trellis— Hajime's favorite spot— didn't have any people so Hajime proceeded towards it.
'Finally, my spot of relaxation after a long day of hard wo—'
BAM!
.....
When Hajime came to, he was tied to a tree on a certain blind spot in the park. He tried to open his mouth, but it was already open, and a towel was stuffed inside, drying his tongue before he could salivate. It was an uncomfortable feeling, let alone taxing to his jaw which was strained open for who knows how long.
'Where am I? What happened?' Hajime asked himself, assessing the situation without panicking. Even though he managed to maintain his composure, the creeping panic still resided in his mind— a normal response of the mind whenever it encounters something unknown.
"Oh, he's awake," Although half-awake, Hajime perceived a seductive voice speaking in front of him.
It was none other than Shelly Pearson, one of the three debt collectors that constantly harassed him.
Squirming, Hajime tried to loosen the rope that bound him on the tree... but it was to no avail. Whoever tied the rope must've been really experienced. If only Hajime didn't have the towel in his mouth, he'd have gritted his teeth and clicked his tongue in frustration by now.
Right then and there, Hajime knew and felt that there was no getting out of this one.
For the first time in the past year, the debt collectors got him real good. 'How many people have they harassed up until now? I'm sure I'm not the only one. I mean, there were no signs of them the past month and now they're here? I let my guard down.'
"Sasajima Hajime, a fourth-year student of Dai Yama High with a debt of... wow, there are eight digits right here!" Shelly continued, flicking her hair as her purple dress flitted along with it. As usual, she was wearing stylish clothes and exceptionally high heels.
'For a lady going to the park, she sure didn't dress the part.' Hajime thought.
Without a second thought, the burly man in the group, whom Hajime doesn't know the name of, pulled his fist and gave Hajime a clean punch right up his solar plexus.
"Mmmph!" Hajime groaned. The punch was even more excruciating than he had expected. It was literally gut-wrenching.
Raggedly, Hajime breathed, but it wasn't enough to alleviate the pain. He figured that he probably broke his lowest set of ribs or something along those lines.
BAM!
Another punch hit him straight in the gut. With another groan, Hajime hunched over as he almost lost consciousness. 'I haven't even recovered from the first punch and now this?'
"Let me at it," The third man in the group said, approaching Hajime and swinging his palm at Hajime's cheeks.
Slap!
Hajime felt it connect, but the slap wasn't that strong. With his remaining strength, he managed to clench his neck and absorb the force of the slap. Had he not done so, he would've fallen unconscious for the second time despite the weak slap.
"Hmph!" The muscular man grunted, delivering another blow, this time, at Hajime's side. Hajime's body was flung sideways, and he started experiencing some sort of cramps.
"..." Hajime was too weak to even let out a groan. In silence, he endured the continuous beating that followed.
...
The one-sided beating continued and Hajime for the first time felt the wrath of the debt collectors. They were relentless, to say the least, and Hajime could tell that they weren't in the least satisfied with everything they've thrown at him.
'Now that I think about it... I've had it easy for the past month huh...
... going to the cafe, the movies, and even being treated to lunch. I didn't deserve all that, didn't I?" Hajime started thinking as the thin line between pain and numbness overcame his body. He didn't feel the pain anymore. All he felt was the unfairness he had in his life.
'I guess this just serves as a great reminder for me... I... I don't deserve such a life.
... They're dead... And I'm alive. How unfair. I should've died alongside them... why didn't I die with them? No... I didn't die because Akiko's still alive. She's fighting for her dear life—
—And I, for one, have to fight too.'
After the fourth slap on the face and who knows how many punches in the gut, Hajime was tired of it all. But even then, he didn't give up. No matter how tempting the notion of falling into unconsciousness was, he struggled to keep awake. He could tell that once he falls asleep, he'd be dead for sure. 'Stay awake, Hajime, stay awake.'
'Stay awake! Hajime! Your sister needs you! You bastard, you don't deserve to die just yet!' Hajime said to himself, his eyes turning to slits as he internalized all the pain he felt right now. Things couldn't get any worse, and that's why no matter how hopeless his situation was right now, he could still see the light at the end of the tunnel— a sliver of hope that he'd live to see another day.
"Oh, what's this?" The third man suddenly paused his slaps and the muscular man stopped as well as they saw something interesting sticking out of Hajime's pockets.