The next day passed in the blink of an eye. [redacted] was anything but special, a date so normal that I almost have no memories of it.
If that day had been a movie, I assure you it'd have flopped and the studio would have gone bankrupt.
So, let's skip over to the next day, which is [redacted]! Well, I do understand you guys are dying to know what the actual date is, but some kind of restriction or censorship isn't allowing that. I'm very sorry about that.
Rei, a young high-school girl who had recovered tip-to-toe from her not-so-light injuries, was ready for a date with Johan—a young and enthusiastic guy, who was also no longer alive.
Together, they'd venture out into the vastness of the unexperienced terrain called 'dating'.
You could call her delusional for going on a date with a ghost—which shouldn't be very far from reality. However, you should also understand where she is coming from.
She's hapless, helpless, vulnerable to her surroundings, and vulnerable to herself.
She's torn apart by her own thoughts at any given moment—but she's unhesitant when it comes to placing her entire trust in what she holds dear, her thoughts themselves.
A date? Not a problem! Even if it was her first date, she'd nail it.
'Cos that's what she thought, and that is what she would do.
Even if she was teleported to another world, she wouldn't back off from achieving her goals.
That is how she was and how she'll continue to be. Though running was also an option for her, too. Escapism is the pinnacle of her thoughts, after all.
Nevertheless, this date would end up in something more of a nauseous disaster than a thoughtless romantic comedy for which I will give you a guarantee.
"So, when will your self-appreciating story end?" Johan, once more, interrupts me with his insolent words, from my sea of thoughts.
"I believe the story is anything but self-appreciating, rather it was self-deprecating," I riposte in a similar impudent manner.
"I thought you were trying to do some humanitarian work here, right? So, hold a positive outlook for this date, at least."
"No, what I'm doing here was VISIONitarian work and nothing else."
"Well, I already knew that — nothing of a surprise."
"Hmm...You seem to know everything about me, don't you?" I reiterated my comment from a few chapters ago.
To which he replied with the same words as before, "I don't know everything about you, I just know what you show on your face."
It almost felt like he'd eventually make it his catchphrase, even though it was only his second time using it.
Today, Johan was wearing the same clothes as yesterday—a blue checked shirt and black pants, which looked a bit mature for his age but his face didn't have the same story to tell. Although his wearing the same clothes as yesterday wasn't anything out of the ordinary, VISIONs never changed clothes, after all.
Yesterday, off-screen Johan mentioned that after death, souls like him get a chance to select an attire that they'd hold onto the entirety of their existence. This choice was apparently given by 'Unknown Souls' who play are mysteriously unimportant.
Anyway, in contrast to my light appearance—consisting of a black pleated maxi flared skirt and a dark blue shirt, plus Converse Chuck 70 green forest sneakers, he got nothing on me.
I was the nowhere-to-be-found beauty, so it should go without saying.
"What shall we do now?" Johan asked me with an aimless face. What had he assumed me of — some sort of an all-knowing-god?
I may be an always-thinking-beauty but not an all-knowing-god. I was no greater than a human, after all.
"I don't know," I answered as we were truly stuck in an 'I don't know' situation.
By the way, the 'other world' I was thinking about a few moments ago was indeed the dating world —a world of which I didn't possess a single strand of knowledge.
It was an uncharted territory, which I'd never been to before today.
I feel like I'm driving blind on a busy road with no restrictions on the speed limit.
But now, it was no time to hit the brakes —I must continue driving until I hit someone or something.
"For starters, why don't we go to the city's biggest mall —Frosty Appetite?" I suggested that, mostly because it was the only prominent public attraction, I was familiar with, or should I say, the only one that came to my mind.
Yes, I know close to nothing about this city. Not because I'm out of touch with reality but because I wasn't simply interested in it.
It was wandering in my head from yesterday night (Did I skip a day? Well, not that I remember but there was something like that in my monologue, I guess), causing a complete jumble in my mind's priority order.
"Why on earth is there an entire mall dedicated to ice creams?" Johan asked a predictable question —leaving me slightly annoyed.
"It's not, dumbass. Only the name is at fault for bringing in such a misunderstanding," I replied. "It's a store where you can find everywhere and anywhere — although what was different in it is that it's just ice cream-themed."
"Is that so?"
"No, I was lying, it's a mall dedicated to ice creams. Everything sold there is ice cream— basically, that mall is a refrigerator."
"That's a cute little joke you got there!"
"I never said it was a joke."
"...Hmm, I'm not sure of that."
I couldn't reply or rather I didn't want to. It was kind of annoying and exhausting.
Which made us walk quietly. So, we walked, walked, and walked. It was quite far I agree—but I hadn't expected it to be almost seven miles away.
I wasn't tired a bit but the path did feel almost never-ending.
Yet there was something I noticed that I couldn't help but find undeniably interesting on this good-for-nothing road.
As I and Johan walked at a similar pace, the way we walked was slightly different.
My legs took longer but slower steps and his took smaller yet faster —which I thought was quite cute. Also, as the way we walked directly reflected our height difference —it left me with a sense of superiority too.
"Heh, heh, heh!" I let out a small giggle to which Johan reacted with a disrupted face — he was probably overly nervous thinking about this date.
"Warn before you ambush!" Johan exclaimed.
"That'd make the ambush meaningless, wouldn't it?"
"Anyway, I was curious about the VISION constitution! So, what rules did they consist of?" Johan asked trying to steer the conversation on a different road.
"Huh? I assumed as a VISION you should already be familiar with almost all rules."
"I may be a VISION but not for long enough to know everything about them. So, I needed an expert's answer, like yours."
"Hmm, I see—if that's the case then let me recite all six of them." He was quite polite at the moment so I was obligated to reply. "RULE 1 states that VISION is a contraction of Vile Indigenous and Seriously Ill Obstinate Neighbors, one of which you already contradict. RULE 2 states that except two, all VISIONs don't talk no matter what. RULE 3 states that VISIONs follow VISION physics and biology which allows them to float or even fly. RULE 4 states —except one, all VISIONs cannot be touched and can move through marbles, concrete, bricks, or anything with a long life span but not through clothes, and RULE 5 states that VISIONs have the ability to possess objects. And as you already know, RULE 6 states that only I —Rei Sturluson can talk to VISIONs through telepathy too."
"Wait, aren't they too specific? What kind of constitution has rules such as that!?"
"Well, the constitution must be absolute, shouldn't it? Plus, the more I interact with the likes of you, the more the Constitution undergoes numerous amendments. Also, till now there have been around eleven amendments and you're the cause of almost half of them."
"You don't say!"
"Yes, I'll."
"...I see — you do you."
Something about breaking the conventional commonsense was extremely exhilarating. I loved it from the bottom of my heart and the top of my brain. Take this date for an example—it may not be the first date between the dead and alive as there are many weirdos out there —but the fact that I was dating a concept was, yes, arousing.
It fished out my deepest desire to do something only I was capable of.
"Ah, we are here!" Johan exclaimed.
Our walking came to a halt when the mall which could actually be called bigger than life itself unlike my house appeared in front of us.
Simply put, it wasn't gigantic —because to refer to it with such an adjective would be nothing but an insult.
Probably 'ridiculously tall and insanely wide' is how I could describe it without insulting the architects or the underpaid workers.
"An entire town could fit inside it, don't you think?" Seems like Johan too was awestruck.
"Y-Yeah, you're right. Let's enter." I found myself agreeing with Johan's words which were for the first time but as it was something objective, I couldn't deny.
We climbed up the stairs at a rapid pace, but it was as futile as me trying to learn to play the guitar. The stairs were never-endingly long.
"Wait, is this a design flaw? Why would someone make the entrance of their commercial infrastructure so long and unwelcoming?" I asked out of deep exhaustion.
"R-Rei, I think you had to take the escalator. Apparently, only gym freaks and athletes took these stairs." It was probably the first time he had used my name to refer to me. Why do you think I know? It's because I'm quite sensitive about the usage of my name.
"Huh? Well, then I can't back down, can I?" Of course, I couldn't! I was pushed onto the bridge of no return— it was a bridge that I couldn't show my back to or it'd kill me!
"Yes, you can't — for you, it'd be so very shameful if you backed down now and still say someone that once you harbored the dream to become the world's best basketball player." A good way to set up my embarrassing dreams against my current position, Johan!
"Yes, yes. Nevertheless, this mall doesn't fail to surprise me at any stage," At the very least they could have put a signboard saying 'For gym freaks and athletes only!' but no! Inconveniencing is their tagline after all.
I took some sharp gasps as we reached the end of the overwhelming stairs.
"Hmph! How underwhelming! They could have added a hundred more stairs for a decent challenge!" I announced with a seemingly exhausted face.
Frosty Appetite was downright stupid to make such illogical and nonsensical stairs.
Though smart or stupid—whatever they may be, Frosty Appetite does have a great influence on our city (not that I have seen them but everyone in the class talks about it).
To such an extent that it could rename this city and a soul wouldn't dare to question it.
I must be also quite cautious with my words — or else I may too disappear just like the name of this city someday.
"I've already read your mind and I'm pretty sure you didn't say all that crap," Johan rejected my comment on the number of stairs.
I glared at him and asked. "...Hmm? Did someone say something, Johan?"
"Nuh-uh. You probably misheard something."
"Well, yeah. Especially with so many people around, it's hard to hear things properly."
Our eyes were greeted by the drizzling waterfalls of light and a crowd larger than India's population— well that actually would be an overstatement, I won't lie.
But the crowd in point of fact made me feel as if I were out of fuel, just by looking at it, even though it was only six in the evening.
I probably hated humans more than I did VISIONs.
"Why don't we go to the food court first?" I asked Johan to fend off all the tiredness and hunger — as I had starved myself for the entire day. Of course, I wasn't so very stupid to not eat anything but I hadn't eaten anything decent.
'Food is maximized with the spice of hunger' — or so I read from one of my diary entries back in 2020.
Such lines make me wonder about the amount of self-consciousness I held in the past and for how long.
"Whatever you wish." Johan agreed? More like he didn't care—though I don't care about him not caring.
Next, we hopped on the escalator —well, only I did since Johan could just pass through the ceiling to the uppermost floor, where the food court was located, just as he had done in my house.
"From the depths of my consciousness, I am jealous of your ability," I uttered to myself as I gazed at the gracious display of his ability of flight.
The jealousy was immense for the dead, but it happened only once, mind you.
It was taking forever to reach the top just like the way till here did, though I wasn't bored a bit—because the mall was designed in such a way.
My eyes penetrated every single corner of the mall which was unhidden from me—and what I found I believe didn't exist beyond the heights of the walls that surrounded us. Everything was ice cream themed, even the mascots were huge-ass Ice creams.
Moreover, there was a particular brand that outshone all other oddballs —it was "Rude Café."
It was plain in every aspect—as the apparently rude café (I had no idea if it was an adjective or an oxymoron) was placed in such a place that it could be called a center of deflection.
It wasn't that it was unattractive —people just seemed to avoid it. Yes, it was plain, but it was my subjective preference. If I didn't like it someone else would —but that wasn't the case.
Though, for me, that normalcy itself seemed quite pleasant and attractive.
"Ah—," My voice slipped as I was cut off from the sight of the café and reached the third and uppermost floor. The elevator had safely made the only interesting thing out of my sight and escorted me.
Honestly, what I saw wasn't all that interesting. The food here smelled somewhat good but I think making everything look ice-creamy wasn't good for my eyes.
That café looked a thousand times more interesting if you ask me.
Also, a part of me said that I shouldn't have made light of a VISION's final wish like bringing him to a place like this. So dull and uninteresting.
"Look here!" Johan shouted with great excitement.
He was riding a rodeo mechanical bull — and that too with a child who had no idea that an immature ghost was accompanying him. But you know, even though he's invisible and can't pay for himself, it doesn't give him the right to take a free ride.
Though the scene itself wasn't unpleasant to look at —Johan's face looked so childlike that it felt like two friends of the same age were enjoying a ride, despite there likely being a decade of an age difference. Though a normal and sane person wouldn't say so —especially the child's parents.
Anyway, who on earth thought it was a good idea to place that ride on the same floor as the food court? It's the absolute worst place for it, without a second thought. Seriously, who is the marketing manager of this company, I'd like to lecture them.
Despite everything, I can't let that child be cursed by VISIONs —they were reserved for me alone. So, I head over to the bull and ask Johan to retreat by saying "Get down."
But I committed a grave mistake by doing that —my stern voice, which was directed to Johan was transmitted to the child.
Yes, it was a cliché mistake on my part but I always like to get things done fast, so I acted fast—No, this time I was hasty.
The child sitting on the bull started crying —and it wasn't any normal crying, he was crying for clout. What an idiotic child.
"I am sorry," I apologized on the spot but my intimidating height just scared him out of his wits —he started crying even louder. This is why I hate kids from the bottom of my heart —they're pretty much incapable of logic.
Suddenly the pleasant scene of two children playing turned interestingly hideous.
Johan gave me a hopeless look —intending that he couldn't do anything but act as an audience. However, except for advice, he could literally and figuratively not provide me with any physical assistance.
The situation was going out of my hands —actually, it was never in my hands to begin with.
Out of nowhere, I felt a consensus gaze on both of us—no, just me. As I averted my eyes from Johan and the infuriating child, I saw a bunch of people surrounding me, or, should I say, avoiding me.
Ahh... I get it. People are mistaking me for a sociopath who likes to scare children.
Each gaze represented disgust and the expression of 'ew'.
I'm not bothered at the least though (actually I am).
All of a sudden, I had the urge to disappear.
I wanted to erase my existence and I wanted to hide in a dark closet.
The parents rushed to aid the child and tried to chew me over —though before they could do it, I ran away from the center of the vortex of disgusted gazes.
And then I entered a dark closet on the floor below. It was one of the bigger ones —where even a towering person like me could enter.
For a moment I thought that taking such steps was unnecessary, that there could have been a better escape route but my soul and heart which had suffered relentlessly for the past two days didn't share the same opinion.
This date didn't seem wonderful anymore, rather it had become wonderless.
"Well, that wasn't something good, was it?" Johan announced boldly as he entered the dark closet which I thought only one person was capable of fitting. Well, whatever.
"N-No, stop having delusions," I denied his claims as I held the doors of the closet tightly.
"Ma'am, please get out of the closet."
Aw not so fast. At least let me cry for a bit. Why do these underpaid workers try to work earnestly and destroy my moment?
"If I were alive, I would have already died from embarrassment. And there you are! Performing even more embarrassing endeavors than I could ever do, even when no one's watching me." Johan said while taking advantage of the situation.
"Shut up!" Boldly, I addressed both while hindering the door from opening, clutching it even more tightly than ever before.
I was indeed overpowering the underpaid worker but it'd be just a matter of time before my arms gave up the grip.
Subsequently, the noises of banging and pulling increased, but somehow, I still hadn't given up.
Why does it happen only to me?
Am I really that weird of a person?
I want to run away!
"You really want to run away?" Johan intruded.
"Yes."
"Hmm, what if I gave you a chance to start this date over?"
"What do you mean?" I asked while extensively sobbing.
"Yes, or no?"
I couldn't fully understand his words to "start this date over" but no matter what it meant, it'd be better than getting locked up by the cops or killing my social life.
"Yes," I reply with no consideration whatsoever.
"I see, let's run away then."
Johan's those words split me into threads. Threads of the space-time continuum. Consequently, what I started to feel wasn't painful, but rather I stopped feeling anything and everything.
These threads that I had transformed into moved at a rapid pace in the space-time passage. To explain it in simple terms, it was a colorful tunnel. Thousands of rainbows seemed to have collapsed together, just for our sake. Just for our escape.
My consciousness turned drastically unstable, it felt like I was drunk —which is kind of insane because there's no way in hell, I'd ever touched alcohol in my life's entirety.
Oh, now I get why the feeling was familiar —it was strikingly similar to the sleep deprivation that I would have on the mornings' of school days.
I am sleepy. I am sick of this. I want to truly start over.
Thereafter, my awareness slowly faded away like the dissipating feeling of the sea of my delusions.
Everything I could sense was soothing. I was riding a wave and a warm wave that is.
That's when a divine —nay, something far greater, something far more relevant. Yes, a life-changing realization struck me — I was being shown a warm vision by a VISION. What a beautiful sight!