Crying?
He's really crying?
That teardrop was undeniable.
This was the very first time Kiana had seen Shu cry... She had thought she would never witness such a sight in her entire life.
But the crying Shu didn't show any sorrow or anguish, nor did it look like tears of joy.
He simply looked at Kiana with profound gentleness, remaining silent.
Kiana looked into those tear-blurred eyes. She watched the bright moonlight hit his pitch-black irises and refract into a sky full of starlight. In that instant, all the tangled emotions in her heart vanished.
She reached out and gently wiped the tear track from Shu's face.
"I'm here," she smiled in return. "I've always been here."
Perhaps Shu really had doubted Kiana's existence... doubted that she was real in his world.
He doubted his own sanity, suspected he was suffering from delusions, doubted countless things, and ultimately concluded he was worthless.
But when Kiana truly reappeared before his eyes, he realized... he had never actually doubted her.
He had only been questioning himself, uncontrollably questioning his own mind. He had given every last ounce of his trust to Kiana.
It feels so good to be trusted unconditionally... As the recipient of that trust, Kiana knew exactly how it felt. It was beautiful, and she loved the feeling.
Everyone in this world should experience that kind of trust at least once in their lives.
So now, it was her turn to give her trust.
If you don't 'trust' yourself, then let me 'trust' you.
Alright, this was no time for melancholy.
Kiana took a deep breath, gathered her thoughts, and marched purposefully toward the window. She reached out, opened the glass, and grabbed the iron bars sealing them inside.
SCREEECH—!
The solid iron bars shrieked in protest as Kiana physically warped them. With a sharp tug, she ripped the grate entirely out of the wall and casually tossed it aside.
The moonlight finally poured into the room without restriction. Kiana lifted a leg and stepped onto the windowsill.
But this time, she didn't just vault out on her own. With one foot planted on the sill, she turned back and reached her hand out to Shu.
"Shu!"
Bathed in the moonlight, Kiana flashed him a brilliant smile.
"Run away with me!"
She had said she refused to be the second person to flee from Shu's life.
She would not run away, even if the world told her that running was the correct choice.
She doesn't belong here. She should go back to where she belongs. She has her own mission. Leaving is what's best for Shu...
What a joke!
If Shu's world was truly a place where her leaving was the "best thing for him"... then she wasn't the one who needed to escape. The person who most desperately needed to escape was the Shu trapped inside that twisted world!!
If a world couldn't even tolerate the presence of one beautiful girl, what possible reason was there for Shu to stay in it?
So she was going to take him and escape! Escape from his old life, split her world in half to share with him, and show him that outside, it wasn't raining at all.
Though... truthfully, Shu had already adapted to a world without rain. It was just that his rainless world was plagued by constant earthquakes, tsunamis, and tornadoes...
Doesn't matter! Those are problems we can overcome.
Kiana felt a slight twinge of guilt over the comparison, but deep down, there wasn't a single shred of hesitation.
Shu slowly sat up on the bed, looking at the girl silhouetted against the moon, extending an invitation to him.
There were so many questions.
Run away? Run where? Why run? What happens after we escape? How are we going to escape?
And Kiana's previous words... Work together to escape from here? Where is "here"? This psychiatric hospital? Or does it mean something else?
Like... this entire world?
Branching off that thought, and connecting it to Kiana's earlier claims, countless other scenarios sprang to mind.
This world is fake. My mind and memories have been tampered with... There were so, so many things he could analyze.
But fuck thinking.
Thinking is for geniuses. And I am just an idiot.
An idiot officially designated by the idiot standing in front of me.
Shu raised his hand and surrendered himself to Kiana.
"Okay."
If she wanted to take him away, he would run with her. If she wanted him to give her his hand, he would give it to her.
Would she harm him?
No. Shu wouldn't even entertain the question.
He would stay by Kiana's side and strive to reach whatever ending she chose.
And right now.
All he needed to do was place his hand in hers.
"Hehe..." Kiana gripped his hand tightly, a wide grin spreading across her face. The next second, she kicked hard off the windowsill, letting the reactionary force launch her backward out the window.
Shu, his hand locked in hers, was yanked right out the window with her.
Leaving behind the cramped, sealed room, they plunged into a world flooded with moonlight.
The two of them seemed to hang suspended in the air, gazing into each other's eyes, their connection brimming with absolute trust.
They hit the ground almost simultaneously. The path ahead was clear. Kiana's lips curled up as she pulled Shu along, turning and sprinting without a moment's hesitation.
Shu didn't hesitate either. He didn't even need Kiana to drag him; his legs were already moving in sync with hers.
Run forward. Life doesn't require looking back. At the very least, when you truly open your heart and sprint forward with everything you have, you absolutely don't need to look back.
Perhaps the things that truly linger in a person's memory are always the most ephemeral. Just like when you remember someone, you rarely remember their exact face.
Years later, you might completely forget what they looked like. You might even begin to doubt if they ever truly existed.
But when, amidst a sea of thousands of passing strangers, someone lightly brushes past your shoulder, you will suddenly, instinctively reach out and grab them—
Just like how, amidst the torrential rain at a crowded intersection, you accurately grabbed the girl holding the cat-paw umbrella and saw the star-shaped hairpin in her hair.
Time seemed to stretch out, growing incredibly long. But no matter how slowly it flowed, it wasn't something you could catch with your bare hands.
Shu didn't try to hold onto this moment. But as he ran forward, he felt as though he had passed by a figure.
He instinctively turned his head, a lingering sense of attachment washing over him. In the distance, growing further and further away, he thought he saw a small silhouette gently waving at him.
Who was that?
Shu only knew that she was saying goodbye.
And offering him her final blessing.
...
To—my one and only brother.
To the one who was once imprisoned by my selfishness...
May you have the fortune...
To never see me again.