Prologue

At that exact moment, it looked like the fierce summer sky was flickering in front of my eyes. Each time I blinked, my view whitened. I wanted to calm my panicked gasping for air, but my body wouldn’t allow me to breathe calmly. The uneasiness and restlessness made my body burn hot. The fear had my heart racing painfully fast. The cumulonimbus clouds floating through the sky above were avoiding us, too. It all emphasized this being the final curtain fall.

“…Well, I’ll surrender myself to us dying together right here,” said the girl standing beside me.

Looking over, her face was distorted in fear. And needless to say, I probably had a similar expression. We stood on the school’s rooftop, beyond the safety fence. A few more steps, and we’d greet death.

“Kurumi, it’s fine. Don’t worry.” I tried to calm her down and took her hand to caress it gently.

She looked at me in disbelief once and then snorted in contempt.

“Heh, is this the time to make-believe? You’re not calming me down at all, you know?”

Oh, huh? So this isn’t good enough? Well, I guess there’s only one surefire method that’ll help ease our nerves. I grabbed the newsboy cap Kurumi wore on her head with my open hand, leaning forward to approach her face. I then pressed my lips on hers, intertwining our tongues.

“Nnn…Nnn…Nbleh…”

It was our terrorist act of sharing a kiss. Our breaths, our warmth, our feeling of isolation, we shared it through our membrane. Though…I wonder if my feelings got through to her. I’ve always wanted to become someone special. I’m sensitive, easily hurt, and not good at interacting with others. And…I’ve longed to give this unnerving clumsiness of mine a name. For example…the name of a disease…or possibly talent. Anything was fine. I just wanted someone to discover this lethargy and hatred toward this life.

“Mhmn…Phew! Hee hee, how could you suddenly kiss me like this…”

A thin line of saliva connected my lips with Kurimi’s. Each time I lay my eyes on this licentious line, I’m reminded that at least someone accepts me for who I am.

“We’re at our time limit soon. Are you prepared, Kurumi?”

“Yes. Let’s go, Senpai.”

I gently embraced Kurumi with one arm and then kicked my body off the final foothold, soaring into the sky. Of course, this isn’t a double suicide. We’re just running away so that we can survive to see tomorrow. This downfall is a shady happy end, just like the kiss we shared.