"Ahhh!!
Someone call the police!"
"Hey! Get out of the way!"
A boy shouts as he runs past the chaos.
"Momo!! Where are you?! Momo—ugh!"
He is cut off mid-sentence when he takes a sharp turn down the street and sees the scene in front of him.
People are killing each other.
A complete massacre.
This is what hell is!
He keeps running down the street.
"No, I gotta keep going. She might be in danger."
It's all because of that damn man's announcement! If hell existed, this might just be it.
Finally reaching a store, he rushes inside. It's dark; the only thing illuminating it is the light coming from outside.
"Momo, where are you?! Why is it so dark?"
Jumping over overturned tables, he steps on something that makes a splash.
"Wait, what the hell? Is this blood? No, no. No."
Kneeling down, he rubs his hand in it to confirm what he doesn't want to be true.
His hands are shaking.
He is sure of it.
"Nooo!! Momo, no!! You can't die. You can't be dead. No! Damn it. Damn it!"
Footsteps echo as someone walks out.
"Ah, Hachiro, why are you on the ground?"
He looks up in fear, almost as if he's seeing a ghost.
It is a girl covered in blood from head to toe, holding a kitchen knife.
With a calm expression, she looks at him, unfazed and without blinking.
"Momo! Momo!! What happened to you? You're covered in blood. Let's take you to a hospital!"
"Ah, no need."
"The hell with that! You're bleeding!"
"Huh? What do you mean?"
Tilting her head slightly to the right, she answers calmly.
"It's not my blood. It's for them."
He slowly turns his head toward the side of the room, where there is a pile of bodies.
TWO YEARS EARLIER...
Ding dong.
"Pizza's pizza delivery!"
To the next house.
Ding dong.
"Pizza's pizza delivery!"
To the next building.
Knock, knock.
"Pizza's pizza delivery!"
He repeats it several times before he's finally done.
At Pizza's Pizza"I'm telling you, there is no way that you can beat me in a wrestling contest," says the owner of Pizza's Pizza, Mr. Yahiko, with a smug grin.
"Says who? You got more fat than muscles in those hands of yours," says the manager of Pizza's Pizza, Mr. Yakuhiba, with a playful grin.
"Wanna bet?" Mr. Yahiko says with slight annoyance.
"Huh? Bring it on, old man," Mr. Yakuhiba says with a slight grin.
The door opens as the boy who was delivering pizza appears.
"I'm back."
He walks in, closing the door behind him.
"Ah, Akira, you're back. How were deliveries?" Mr. Yahiko asks.
"It was fine. Same as always."
He takes off his hat, revealing his face. He has sea-blue eyes with a mix of purple and dark-brown hair. He gives a playful grin.
"What are you doing?"
"Ah, I was about to beat Yakuhiba in a one-on-one arm-wrestling match."
"You sure it's not the other way around?" he says with a playful grin.
"Shut it!" Mr. Yahiko shouts back at his comment.
"Well, have fun. I'ma bail now," says Akira.
"Sure."
Grunt.
Mr. Yahiko continues his arm-wrestling match with Mr. Yakuhiba. Just as he is about to lose, he remembers something.
"Oh, Akira, before I forget—"
He pulls his hand away.
"What the—? Heyyy! Get back here!" Mr. Yakuhiba protests, annoyed that he pulled away just before he could win.
"What is it?" Akira asks.
"Here. Take this."
Akira collects a flyer from Mr. Yahiko.
"It's an exam happening tomorrow. The winner gets to go to that fancy private school."
Akira looks doubtful at the idea.
"You don't have to worry about tuition fees. It's all paid for. All you gotta do is pass the exam."
"How are you sure I can even pass it?"
"I'm not sure. I'm positive. I know why you don't want to start high school yet, but sooner or later, you'll have to start thinking of yourself."
He pauses for a while.
"Give it a try, will ya?"
Akira gives the flyer one last look before walking out and closing the door.
"Come back here! I was about to wipe the floor with you before you ran!" Mr. Yakuhiba shouts.
"I did not run. I was attending to some business."
"Bullshit! Alright, then get over here!"
Mr. Yahiko sighs.
Outside Pizza's PizzaAkira is walking when a thief runs past and grabs a woman's purse.
"A thief! Someone stop him!"
The thief runs toward Akira as a truck drives by, blocking the woman's view.
When the truck passes, the woman sees the man lying on the floor, knocked out cold, while Akira is still walking away.
"What the hell just happened?!"
At Akira's HomeAkira opens the door and enters his home. The door makes a ding noise as it closes behind him.
"Grandma, I'm home. Hey, so I'm thinking…"
He starts taking off his jacket as he walks toward his grandmother's room.
"There's this exam coming up, and Mr. Yahiko thought it might be a good idea to enter. And now I'm starting to think so. I don't know, maybe I'm way over my head on this."
He opens her room door.
"What do you think...?"
He stops when he sees his grandmother dressed in a traditional Japanese kimono.
"Grandmother... why are you—"
"Akira," she says his name in a soft voice.
"I'd like to see Tokyo's lights."
Akira has a devastated look on his face before putting on a fake smile.
"Sure."
They leave the house and take the train to a nearby restaurant before moving on to their next destination.
They find a tall building where just the two of them can be together.
Akira places her chair in the direction where she can see the Tokyo lights.
It is night, and for some reason, the lights emitting from the buildings couldn't feel more mesmerizing.
He sits down next to her and places his head on her lap.
Nothing but silent peace creeps in.
He gets a flashback to a memory not so distant.
Flashback — 8 Years Ago
"Grandmother."
"Yes, my dear?"
"Why do people die?"
"Hmm. Well, because the Lord needs them."
"But why?"
"So they can help Him."
"That means the Lord will need even Mum and Dad?"
"Yes, one day."
She pats his head.
"Will He also need you?" he asks, almost about to cry.
"Yes. But that will be far, far from now, so don't already start crying."
She wipes his tears.
"I know. When God calls you, what do you want to do last?"
"Well, that's easy. I'd like to see where I grew up one last time so I can keep that image in my head."
"What? That sounds boring."
"Hahaha. It appears so. Then what would you do?"
"I'd play video games till the sun came up."
"Well, that sounds delightful. As long as you're having fun."
"Yep."
He smiles.
Flashback Ends....
Akira looks into the never-ending Tokyo lights with no expression.
She begins to pat his head.
"Akira, don't forget to eat all your food. Don't skip a single day of meals. Try to stay positive... Also—"
He looks down with no expression.
"Don't forget to enter that exam. It's a good idea..."
She says one last thing as she stops staring at the lights and looks at Akira.
"You'll be fine. I just know it. There will be bad people. You'll meet all kinds of people, even fall in love. I'll always be there looking over you, so never stop fighting, even if the world is against you. I'll always love you..."
As time almost felt frozen.
At Akira's Grandmother's FuneralAfter the funeral—
"How you holding up, boy?" Mr. Yahiko asks.
"I've been worse," says Akira.
"Mhm, mhm. I believe this calls for a motivational approach."
He raises his eyeglasses.
"In the beginning, there was man and the world, and the world was one with man, and from dust we came, we shall—"
Smack!
"What the—? I was getting to the good part!"
He turns to see Mrs. Yahiko angrily standing behind him.
"Mrs. Yahiko! I wasn't expecting you. What a pleasure it is for you to grace us—"
"What good part?" Mrs. Yahiko shouts back, annoyed.
"Good part? Whatever do you mean?"
Evidence of fear appears in his eyes.
"Yahiko, help!" he says with pleading eyes.
"Oh wow... what a pretty wall,"
Mr. Yahiko says, sweating as he tries to ignore him.
"Sigh. Akira, just ignore them. Go home and rest. I'm sure you're very exhausted. Yahiko tells me you're writing that exam tomorrow. Be sure to get plenty of rest, okay?"
"I'll be sure to remember. Thank you."
He bows and walks away.
Akira goes home and enters his house.
"I'm back—"
He stops and remembers.
Nothing but silence greets him.
He pulls off his shoes and takes off his coat and tie.
He is about to sit on his chair when he changes direction and heads toward his grandmother's room.
He enters and looks around before lying on her futon and staring at the ceiling with no expression.
Then, finally, he cries.
The Next Day — The Day of the Exam
Akira stands outside the school grounds with a determined face, looking at the school before finally going inside.
To be continued...