kscans

Chapter 14 - The Girl Whispering Love in a Corner of the World

The two girls were trudging along the railroad tracks.

After running frantically while crying, they had found themselves in an unfamiliar place in the snow when they finally came to their senses. The area was originally vast farmland, suitable for an agricultural experiment station, with very few houses. In a blizzard with zero visibility, even a grown adult could easily lose their way.

Somehow, though, the two of them had managed to find the tracks and had started walking alongside them. If they followed the railway, no matter which direction they went, they should eventually reach a station where people were.

The snow was falling harder now, and the wind was so cold it seemed to freeze them to the core. They had lost feeling in their hands and feet long ago, and so much snow had piled up on them that their red coats were almost completely white.

They didn't say a word, just held each other's hands tightly.

In a pocket, the music box played faintly. It might not have been a gift from Akina's father, but it was still their treasure, no matter what.

A train's headlamp approached from ahead, and the two of them scrambled off the tracks. When they stepped off the slightly elevated railway, they sank nearly halfway into a snowdrift. Still, they had to get out of the way. On a snowy day with poor visibility like this, they could be hit by the train and killed.

Buried in the snow beside the tracks, they looked up at the clattering train as its two-toned cream and red body flowed past.

Before they had boarded that train to come here, they had been so happy, so excited. Their small hearts had been swelling with the thrill of their first great adventure.

Tsukie squeezed Akina's hand again and braced herself to climb back onto the tracks.

"Wait a second."

It was the first time Akina had spoken in a long while. Startled, Tsukie turned to see Akina taking the music box from her pocket, trying to wind it.

"Let me. I'll wind it."

Tsukie took off her gloves, holding one in her mouth, and took the frigid music box. Her fingertips were so numb she could barely wind the key. But with her bright red fingers, Tsukie put on a brave face and turned it.

In that instant.

SNAP!

With a surprisingly loud noise, the key suddenly spun backward.

Huh? Thinking this, Tsukie tried to wind it again, but the catch that was supposed to stop it after each turn was gone. One turn, and the spring's tension would just spin the key right back. She tried again and again, but the result was the same.

Akina gently cupped Tsukie's hands as she desperately tried to wind the key.

"It's broken, isn't it?"

Akina said it matter-of-factly, without anger or blame.

"I'll fix it! I promise, I'll fix it and give it back to you, Akina-chan!"

Tsukie cried out, her voice like a scream. The father they had so eagerly met had been cold, the music box wasn't even from him, and now, the one thing they had decided to cherish as their treasure was broken...

"Okay. But it's fine. You should keep it, Tsukie-chan."

"Akina-chan..."

"Come on, let's go. The station should be close."

Putting her freezing gloves back on, Akina climbed onto the tracks. Tsukie, unable to forget the sound of the spring snapping by her ear, was on the verge of tears.

Maybe if I had wound it more gently, it wouldn't have broken. Maybe if we hadn't kept playing it over and over in the cold, it wouldn't have broken. Maybe if I hadn't butted in and said I'd wind it, it wouldn't have broken. A swirl of "maybes" churned inside her, fiercely blaming herself.

"Tsukie-chan."

As Tsukie held back tears, Akina called to her in a small voice.

"I'm sorry, Tsukie-chan. You cried so much because of me. So you don't have to cry anymore... Because I like it best when I'm laughing with you... I love you most, Tsukie-chan... so I want you to smile..."

"Akina-chan..."

Unable to hold back her emotions, Tsukie threw her arms around Akina. Akina, looking a little embarrassed, smiled and gave Tsukie a quick peck on the forehead. Both her lips and Tsukie's forehead were as cold as ice, almost numb, but Tsukie felt her cheeks grow hot.

"Tsukie-chan... I love you..."

With those words, Akina's deathly pale face broke into a soft smile. It was a smile so fleeting, it seemed as if she might vanish into the snow.

Suddenly, Akina's weight fell into Tsukie's arms. The sudden heaviness was too much to support, and Akina's body crumpled onto the snow.

"Akina-chan! Akina-chan!"

No matter how many times she called her name, no matter how hard she shook her, Akina didn't open her eyes. Tsukie completely lost her senses, screaming Akina's name over and over again.