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- Jul 6, 2008
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- 11,370
The boy skids to a stop in front of you. He’s… too close. With a nervous twitch, you secure the side of your glasses with one hand and take a step back. He scrutinizes you, looking up and down with squinted eyes – even with his messy hairdo, the boy is half a head shorter than you are, but he is clearly physically active and blessed with good looks that must earn him untold numbers of love letters at his school. A crimson blazer, a white shirt, and a pair of grey plaid trousers round out his uniform; it would seem that he comes from a private school of some sort. You do not recognize the emblem. Then again, that does not tell you a lot, considering the current state of your memories.
“Oh, man! You’re a real human being!” Suddenly, the boy grips your shoulders affably without so much as a request for permission. You try to shrink back from his physical friendliness but there is no place to run now. “I was thinking that it was just the two of us in here! Well, not that I would have minded or anything… anyway, why didn’t you respond when I hailed you? I almost thought you were a statue!”
“W-well…” Tongue-tied,you do not know how to answer him. You were just startled at their presence. “I was… well… sorry.”
“Anyone would be startled if you ran up to them just like that, Sakimura.” The girl sighs as she catches up to her friend. She wears the same uniform, except with a grey, checkered skirt. Her hair is cut in a pageboy style and the fringes held back with a crested hairpin. She is pretty, but not quite the sort of stunning beauty that would turn heads on the street. There is a warm vivacity that animates her every move. She flashes you a quick smile and a polite nod before flicking the boy’s forehead. “Quit it. You’re holding on to him too tightly.”
“That hurts, Uehara!” With a yelp, Sakimura lets go, apologizing as he does so. “Hey, sorry, dude. I was just too excited.”
“I..It’s okay,” you mutter, glancing away while straightening your glasses. “Please don’t worry about it.” It took some time, but finally he’s removed his hands from your shoulders.
Out of the corner of your vision, you notice that the girl named Uehara has her eyes on you. The look turns into a stare, her gaze holding a second too long for your comfort. You notice that her irises are an unusual shade of hazel. Her eyes meet with yours. You flinch. Adjusting your spectacles twitchily, you move your eyes in the opposite direction, glancing away from her without saying a word. What is wrong with this girl?
“Uehara?” asks Sakimura.
“Yes?” She turns to him as if nothing is wrong.
“You’re staring at him.”
“It’s fine, it’s fine. Guys are made to be ogled!” she grins distractingly.
Sakimura frowns at that comment, but he shakes his head and turns his attention back to you. “Let’s just ignore her, man. She’s a strange girl. Don’t get me wrong though, she’s a bit of a tomboy, but she’s actually not that bad.”
“Hey!” protests Uehara resentfully.
“Anyway,” says Sakimura, trying to change the topic before he gets into any more trouble, “how did you get here? I accompanied Uehara here… about three hours ago, I think? I remember walking in the front door, but after that I don’t really remember anything. I woke up in here, one floor above, and found Uehara in the next room. This place is strange! The windows don’t open, electronics are being weird, and there’s no staff around. I mean, even if it is midnight, there should still be someone around! It was the same for you, right?”
“R-right…” you nod. It’s not exactly the same: you do not even remember walking into the hospital, for one.
The conversation stops there. The two students seem to be expecting you to say something more – perhaps to describe how you came to be here, but that is all you have to say for now. Before the silence grows awkward, Uehara says, without prompting, “We came here to visit a classmate. Actually, we came here with two other friends, but we haven’t seen them anywhere. Have you met any other students?”
You shake your head slowly. “Sorry... no. I’ve only just woken up on this floor. There’s… no one else. But I think I heard some things.”
“Oh, yes!” agrees Sakimura readily. “We’ve encountered something like that too! Spooky, isn’t it? Actually, I even found something scary! Here, have a look.” He hands you a scrap of yellowed paper – it appears to be a cutting from a newspaper.
You only skim the article briefly, but that is sufficient to make your stomach turn.
“Sakimura,” sighs Uehara in frustration. “We've been over this the last time. That’s just a news item. It’s nothing scary.” They seem to have had this conversation before.
“It is spooky, though, right?” he grins, looking expectantly at you.
***
A. “…” You have no words for him, but this genuinely creeps you out. A Tokyo hospital… could it somehow be related to this hospital? The article does not give you any details. Even so, just thinking about this causes you to feel goosebumps forming on the back of your neck.
B. “…” You have no words for him. It is a terrible murder, but this hospital was built in 2010. The murder happened nearly 40 years ago… it is probably unrelated to your current situation. You would prefer to focus on the here and now. This place is already strange enough without you overthinking things.
***
“…are you okay?” asks Uehara concernedly, leaning towards you. “You’ve just been staring at that paper.”
“I’m fine,” you mumble, leaning back to maintain some distance. “Here.”
“Oh, you can keep the paper,” says Sakimura casually. “I’m not really a fan of reading, but you seem to be the sort that enjoys it. So, where should we go next?”
“The main lobby should be one floor down. Let’s gather there and see if we can find a way out. Perhaps we’ll find more people around too,” replies Uehara confidently.
Sakimura nods. “Sounds as good a plan as any, Uehara.”
“O-okay.” Not knowing what else to do, you agree with her.
“But… before that…” her voice trails off, and she gives both you and Sakimura an embarrassed smile. “I need to visit the toilet.”
***
You find yourself standing outside the ladies’ washroom together with Sakimura. The schoolboy is leaning against the wall, whistling a catchy melody with his hands behind his head. You have your hands in your pockets, your back turned to him.
The lack of conversation is awkward.
“Hey.” Sakimura speaks up. “The lack of conversation is a bit awkward,” he says half-jokingly, echoing your thoughts.
“I suppose so.” You keep your voice quiet.
“You know, you’re quite tall. I thought I was tall, but you’re even taller,” he continues cheerfully. “Are you a half? How old are you anyway? Are you a university student?”
All of these are questions you do not have answers to. You just give him a noncommittal shrug.
“You’re a really quiet and secretive person, aren’t you, dude? I used to have a friend just like you once.”
“Used to?” Despite your discomfort, you are curious enough to ask.
“He disappeared last spring. We never found out what happened to him.” Sakimura falls silent for a while. “Anyway, she’s taking quite long, isn’t she?” It has been nearly ten minutes since she went in. You strain your ears trying to catch any sound from inside the toilet.
Nothing.
And then, faint whispers. A little girl’s whispers.
You feel your heart catch in your throat, and your body freezes up. Did you just hear that, or is it yet another hallucination?
“D-did you hear that?” stammers Sakimura quietly. It looks like he heard it too. His face is pale, his back pressed up against the wall. Even so, his eyes begin to blaze with resolve. “I don’t like this… but we need to go in there. Uehara’s in trouble,” he hisses.
***
00:20
A. “O-okay. You’re right. Let’s go,” you nod. This might be bad. You have to get in there with Sakimura as quickly as you can… the girl might be in trouble. You do not know what you can do, but at the very least you should be able to get Uehara out of the toilet.
B. “I-I don’t think it is such a good idea…” The both of you might just be too paranoid and mishearing innocent noises. You think he won’t listen to you anyway, but you make an effort to try and stop him. If this is a misunderstanding, he will be walking into a terrible situation.
C. “I’ll… stay and keep watch out here…” You are too nervous to enter the ladies’ toilet, of all places. There could be some creepy little girl in there! Sakimura should be enough anyway. You’ll stay outside the toilet while he enters by himself. You can always join him later if it so happens that he needs help.
D. “Uh, why don’t you just… you know, call out to her?” You suggest that Sakimura calls out to Uehara, if only to warn her about his imminent entry at least. If she doesn’t reply, he can always assume the worst and run in afterwards… it won’t even take ten seconds. There is no need to jump to the conclusion that you must barge into the ladies' toilet just yet.
“Oh, man! You’re a real human being!” Suddenly, the boy grips your shoulders affably without so much as a request for permission. You try to shrink back from his physical friendliness but there is no place to run now. “I was thinking that it was just the two of us in here! Well, not that I would have minded or anything… anyway, why didn’t you respond when I hailed you? I almost thought you were a statue!”
“W-well…” Tongue-tied,you do not know how to answer him. You were just startled at their presence. “I was… well… sorry.”
“Anyone would be startled if you ran up to them just like that, Sakimura.” The girl sighs as she catches up to her friend. She wears the same uniform, except with a grey, checkered skirt. Her hair is cut in a pageboy style and the fringes held back with a crested hairpin. She is pretty, but not quite the sort of stunning beauty that would turn heads on the street. There is a warm vivacity that animates her every move. She flashes you a quick smile and a polite nod before flicking the boy’s forehead. “Quit it. You’re holding on to him too tightly.”
“That hurts, Uehara!” With a yelp, Sakimura lets go, apologizing as he does so. “Hey, sorry, dude. I was just too excited.”
“I..It’s okay,” you mutter, glancing away while straightening your glasses. “Please don’t worry about it.” It took some time, but finally he’s removed his hands from your shoulders.
Out of the corner of your vision, you notice that the girl named Uehara has her eyes on you. The look turns into a stare, her gaze holding a second too long for your comfort. You notice that her irises are an unusual shade of hazel. Her eyes meet with yours. You flinch. Adjusting your spectacles twitchily, you move your eyes in the opposite direction, glancing away from her without saying a word. What is wrong with this girl?
“Uehara?” asks Sakimura.
“Yes?” She turns to him as if nothing is wrong.
“You’re staring at him.”
“It’s fine, it’s fine. Guys are made to be ogled!” she grins distractingly.
Sakimura frowns at that comment, but he shakes his head and turns his attention back to you. “Let’s just ignore her, man. She’s a strange girl. Don’t get me wrong though, she’s a bit of a tomboy, but she’s actually not that bad.”
“Hey!” protests Uehara resentfully.
“Anyway,” says Sakimura, trying to change the topic before he gets into any more trouble, “how did you get here? I accompanied Uehara here… about three hours ago, I think? I remember walking in the front door, but after that I don’t really remember anything. I woke up in here, one floor above, and found Uehara in the next room. This place is strange! The windows don’t open, electronics are being weird, and there’s no staff around. I mean, even if it is midnight, there should still be someone around! It was the same for you, right?”
“R-right…” you nod. It’s not exactly the same: you do not even remember walking into the hospital, for one.
The conversation stops there. The two students seem to be expecting you to say something more – perhaps to describe how you came to be here, but that is all you have to say for now. Before the silence grows awkward, Uehara says, without prompting, “We came here to visit a classmate. Actually, we came here with two other friends, but we haven’t seen them anywhere. Have you met any other students?”
You shake your head slowly. “Sorry... no. I’ve only just woken up on this floor. There’s… no one else. But I think I heard some things.”
“Oh, yes!” agrees Sakimura readily. “We’ve encountered something like that too! Spooky, isn’t it? Actually, I even found something scary! Here, have a look.” He hands you a scrap of yellowed paper – it appears to be a cutting from a newspaper.
You only skim the article briefly, but that is sufficient to make your stomach turn.
“Sakimura,” sighs Uehara in frustration. “We've been over this the last time. That’s just a news item. It’s nothing scary.” They seem to have had this conversation before.
“It is spooky, though, right?” he grins, looking expectantly at you.
***
A. “…” You have no words for him, but this genuinely creeps you out. A Tokyo hospital… could it somehow be related to this hospital? The article does not give you any details. Even so, just thinking about this causes you to feel goosebumps forming on the back of your neck.
B. “…” You have no words for him. It is a terrible murder, but this hospital was built in 2010. The murder happened nearly 40 years ago… it is probably unrelated to your current situation. You would prefer to focus on the here and now. This place is already strange enough without you overthinking things.
***
“…are you okay?” asks Uehara concernedly, leaning towards you. “You’ve just been staring at that paper.”
“I’m fine,” you mumble, leaning back to maintain some distance. “Here.”
“Oh, you can keep the paper,” says Sakimura casually. “I’m not really a fan of reading, but you seem to be the sort that enjoys it. So, where should we go next?”
“The main lobby should be one floor down. Let’s gather there and see if we can find a way out. Perhaps we’ll find more people around too,” replies Uehara confidently.
Sakimura nods. “Sounds as good a plan as any, Uehara.”
“O-okay.” Not knowing what else to do, you agree with her.
“But… before that…” her voice trails off, and she gives both you and Sakimura an embarrassed smile. “I need to visit the toilet.”
***
You find yourself standing outside the ladies’ washroom together with Sakimura. The schoolboy is leaning against the wall, whistling a catchy melody with his hands behind his head. You have your hands in your pockets, your back turned to him.
The lack of conversation is awkward.
“Hey.” Sakimura speaks up. “The lack of conversation is a bit awkward,” he says half-jokingly, echoing your thoughts.
“I suppose so.” You keep your voice quiet.
“You know, you’re quite tall. I thought I was tall, but you’re even taller,” he continues cheerfully. “Are you a half? How old are you anyway? Are you a university student?”
All of these are questions you do not have answers to. You just give him a noncommittal shrug.
“You’re a really quiet and secretive person, aren’t you, dude? I used to have a friend just like you once.”
“Used to?” Despite your discomfort, you are curious enough to ask.
“He disappeared last spring. We never found out what happened to him.” Sakimura falls silent for a while. “Anyway, she’s taking quite long, isn’t she?” It has been nearly ten minutes since she went in. You strain your ears trying to catch any sound from inside the toilet.
Nothing.
And then, faint whispers. A little girl’s whispers.
You feel your heart catch in your throat, and your body freezes up. Did you just hear that, or is it yet another hallucination?
“D-did you hear that?” stammers Sakimura quietly. It looks like he heard it too. His face is pale, his back pressed up against the wall. Even so, his eyes begin to blaze with resolve. “I don’t like this… but we need to go in there. Uehara’s in trouble,” he hisses.
***
00:20
A. “O-okay. You’re right. Let’s go,” you nod. This might be bad. You have to get in there with Sakimura as quickly as you can… the girl might be in trouble. You do not know what you can do, but at the very least you should be able to get Uehara out of the toilet.
B. “I-I don’t think it is such a good idea…” The both of you might just be too paranoid and mishearing innocent noises. You think he won’t listen to you anyway, but you make an effort to try and stop him. If this is a misunderstanding, he will be walking into a terrible situation.
C. “I’ll… stay and keep watch out here…” You are too nervous to enter the ladies’ toilet, of all places. There could be some creepy little girl in there! Sakimura should be enough anyway. You’ll stay outside the toilet while he enters by himself. You can always join him later if it so happens that he needs help.
D. “Uh, why don’t you just… you know, call out to her?” You suggest that Sakimura calls out to Uehara, if only to warn her about his imminent entry at least. If she doesn’t reply, he can always assume the worst and run in afterwards… it won’t even take ten seconds. There is no need to jump to the conclusion that you must barge into the ladies' toilet just yet.
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