A little later, Akito and Shiko found themselves standing outside the hospital, away from the suffocating grief that clung to the air. The city lights flickered in the distance, indifferent to the tragedy that had unfolded. It was as if the world had simply continued to turn while their own lives had been shattered in a single moment. The cold evening breeze did little to soothe their troubled minds, and the weight of the loss they had just experienced pressed heavily on their chests.
Shiko broke the silence first, his voice thick with emotion. "We have to do something."
Akito didn't look up. His nails dug into his palms as he fought to hold back the tears that threatened to spill. "Like what? We can't bring him back."
"I know that!" Shiko snapped, his voice breaking before he exhaled sharply. "But his family… his sister. He was the one supporting them. We can't just do nothing."
Akito clenched his fists before finally nodding, his movements slow and deliberate. His voice was hoarse as he spoke, barely above a whisper. "We'll help. We'll take care of them." He could feel the rawness of his emotions clawing at him, but he pushed it aside, knowing that Aelric's family needed them now more than ever. "And his reviews… we'll keep them going. His channel, his work, his legacy—we won't let it fade away."
Shiko's eyes darkened, his expression set with determination. "And his sister," he added, his voice firm. "No one messes with her. Ever. We owe him that much."
Neither of them spoke for a long moment. The weight of their words hung in the air, the gravity of what they had just promised sinking in. The promise to carry on Aelric's legacy, to watch over his family, and to protect his sister. These were tasks far beyond their years, yet they knew it was the only thing they could do to honor their friend.
When they finally left the hospital, the streets before them felt like a distant memory. Their bodies felt numb as they walked through the city, every step heavy, every breath sharp. The once-familiar streets now felt foreign, as if the world had shifted beneath them while they had been trapped in that sterile, emotionless hospital room. Every corner, every building, seemed to carry the weight of their grief. The usual path home, once a place of comfort, was now drenched in memories that clung to them like a suffocating fog.
Shiko pulled out his phone with shaking fingers, struggling to focus. The screen glowed in the dim light, the words from Akito's mother's text seeming too distant, too disconnected from the reality they had just faced. With a deep breath, he typed.
Shiko: Come to our house. Now.
The reply came quickly, almost too quickly, as if Akito's parents had been waiting for the news.
Akito's Mom: What's wrong?
Akito's Dad: We're coming. What happened?!
But there was no way to explain this in a text. Words felt so insufficient, so empty in the face of such a tragedy. They had no way to ease the worry, no way to prepare them for the heart-wrenching news.
By the time they reached Shiko's house, both sets of parents were already waiting. The second they saw them, their eyes widened in horror. The dim porch light cast a sickly glow over their stained clothes, the dark patches of dried blood stark against the fabric. Akito and Shiko's fathers had been the first to notice, their faces hardening as the truth of the situation hit them.
Shiko's mother gasped, stepping forward with trembling hands. "Shiko… what—what is this?" Her voice wavered, thick with fear.
Akito's mother clutched her chest, looking between the two boys, her expression filled with dread. "Why are you covered in blood?" She was trying to make sense of the scene before her, but no explanation could make it less terrifying.
The silence between the parents and the boys was deafening, the questions left unspoken hanging in the air. The fathers, however, had a different reaction. Shiko's father's face darkened, his sharp gaze locking onto his son. Akito's father stiffened, his fists clenching at his sides.
"...What did you do?" Akito's father's voice was low, controlled—but it was laced with something dangerous, a simmering anger barely contained.
Neither Akito nor Shiko answered immediately. Their blank stares, their hollow eyes, only made the silence heavier, the tension thicker. They had no words to explain what had just happened. They had no way to justify it, no way to make it right.
Shiko's father grabbed his son's shoulders roughly, his hands shaking as he held him in place. "Tell me right now," his voice was gruff, but his hands trembled. "Whose blood is this?" His words were urgent, and he needed to hear them even if he was afraid of the answer.
Akito's father stepped forward, his tone harsher, colder. "If something happened—if you two did something—"
"WE DIDN'T!" Akito's voice cracked, his whole body shaking as the flood of emotions surged. "We didn't do anything!" He could feel his stomach twist as he spoke, the guilt overwhelming him. He didn't know what had happened, only that it had shattered everything. He wasn't ready to face this, but he had no choice.
Shiko exhaled shakily, his voice hollow, barely a whisper. "It's not ours."
The room was deathly silent. The weight of their words hung in the air, thick and suffocating. Everyone knew what was coming, but no one was ready to hear it.
Akito swallowed, his throat dry, his voice a mere rasp. "It's Aelric's."
For a moment, the world seemed to stop. Time itself seemed to hold its breath, as if waiting for the inevitable crash.
Shiko's mother covered her mouth, a strangled gasp escaping her lips. "No…" she breathed, stepping back. "No, no, no—" Her voice trailed off, unable to process the reality of the situation.
Akito's mother paled, her knees nearly giving out. "What do you mean it's Aelric's?" she asked, her voice barely audible. It was as if the world had come crashing down around her. The reality of what she was hearing didn't make sense.
Akito's father's expression darkened, his entire body rigid. Shiko's father's jaw tightened, his hands curling into fists. The words stung like a physical blow.
Shiko's voice barely rose above a whisper. "He's… dead."
His mother let out a broken sob, her entire body shaking as the weight of her son's words hit her. Akito's mother collapsed onto the couch, her hands gripping her head as if trying to process the impossible.
Shiko's father took a slow, uneven breath, his composure slipping. "What… happened?" His voice lacked its usual strength, the emotional toll showing in every word.
Akito exhaled sharply, looking away, his gaze distant. "We were walking home. The three of us. Then a truck came." His voice cracked with the memory. "It was going to hit us."
Shiko clenched his fists, his face pale. "Aelric pushed us out of the way."
Akito's mother's breath hitched, her entire body trembling. Her eyes filled with tears, but she couldn't look away from the scene that was unfolding before her.
Shiko's mother was sobbing uncontrollably now, clutching onto her husband's arm for support. "He… saved you?" Her voice barely carried above a whisper, filled with disbelief and sorrow.
Shiko's father looked at his son, then at Akito. His gaze, usually stern, softened as the weight of the situation finally hit him. His son—his only son—had nearly died today. If not for Aelric, both boys would have been gone.
Akito's father stood frozen, his face blank. But his hands trembled at his sides. His mind replayed the thought over and over—it could have been them. It should have been them.
And then the realization hit them all at once. Aelric hadn't just died. He had died protecting their sons.
A heavy silence fell over the room, thick and suffocating.
Shiko's father rubbed his face, his breath unsteady. He had been so caught up in the horror of the blood, the shock of the moment, that he hadn't allowed himself to feel it yet. But now, as he looked at the two boys—his son, his son's best friend—standing there, barely holding themselves together, he felt it like a punch to the gut.
Shiko's mother shook her head, sobbing harder. "He was just a boy… He was supposed to grow up… He had his whole life ahead of him…"
Akito's mother wiped her tears, looking at her son with red, puffy eyes. Her voice was weak. "Aelric was like a son to us."
Akito's father inhaled sharply, turning away. He didn't want them to see how much this was breaking him. His heart ached, but he couldn't let it show. He had to stay strong for his family, for Akito.
And then there was Aelric's family.
Shiko's father finally spoke, his voice quiet, but filled with a newfound weight. "His family… His little sister…" His throat tightened. "She just lost everything."
Akito's father nodded stiffly, his jaw clenching. He thought of Aelric's mother—her grief, her pain. Of his sister, now without her brother, the person who had been holding everything together.
And in that moment, they understood. This wasn't just about grief. It wasn't just about loss.
Aelric had saved their sons, but he had left behind a family that was now shattered. The guilt, the sorrow, the sheer weight of it all pressed down on them.
Shiko's father let out a slow breath before looking at his son. His voice was hoarse, but steady. "…We'll do what we can to help them."
Akito's father nodded, still looking away. "Aelric gave up his life for you." His voice was strained. "We won't let that sacrifice be for nothing."
The two boys didn't respond. They just stood there, the weight of everything crushing them from the inside out.
But what none of them knew was that Aelric had been reborn in another world.