Chapter 2: The Angel's Song
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The afternoon sun dipped low on the horizon, bleeding gold into the sky and casting elongated shadows that spilled like ink across the quiet path ahead. Grocery bags swayed rhythmically at my sides, the rustle of paper mingling with the soft hush of the early evening breeze. There was a quiet contentment in the air—one of those rare moments where the world feels gentle, almost kind.
But then I heard it.
A voice...no, something beyond a voice.. floated through the stillness, stopping me mid-step. It was ethereal, delicate, and impossibly pure. Not a song as much as a prayer wrapped in melody. My heart skipped, caught between disbelief and wonder. Was it the wind? A trick of my tired mind?
No. This was real. Too real. Too hauntingly beautiful to ignore.
Drawn by the sound, I found my feet moving on their own, pulled forward by invisible threads. The path led me toward the park, a familiar place now transformed by the music that seemed to weave itself into the very fabric of the air. And then I saw her.
She sat alone on a swing, her figure outlined by the golden halo of the dying sun. Her eyes were closed, lashes resting gently against flushed cheeks, her lips parting just enough to let the song breathe through her. Her face tilted slightly to the sky, as if she were offering her soul to something greater.. something only she could see.
The wind played with her hair, sending loose strands fluttering like ribbons of sunlight, and in that moment, time slowed. The world grew still, holding its breath.
And so did I.
And then… I made the mistake of stepping too loudly.
A branch beneath my foot snapped.. sharp, sudden, unforgiving.
Her song stopped.
Silence fell, so complete it rang in my ears.
I froze.
Slowly, she turned. Her gaze found mine with startling precision, as if she'd known I was there all along. And in that single moment, the world softened into something weightless.. distant voices faded, time unraveled.
Her eyes.. profound, still, and impossibly deep.. were the color of something ancient, as though they carried entire lifetimes within them. They held me there, suspended. No judgment, no fear… just quiet recognition.
The first threads of moonlight crept gently over the horizon, casting her in a pale, silver glow. It kissed her skin, outlining the soft curvature of her cheeks and the delicate bow of her lips. She looked unreal, as if the universe had paused to paint her into the world for just this one scene.
There was magic in the air, not the kind spoken of in books or fairy tales, but something far more fragile and impossible. A stillness that felt holy.
Her features were carved with such grace that it hurt to look too long. Like a statue of some forgotten goddess come to life, her beauty wasn't loud, it whispered, pulled, unraveling me thread by thread. The moonlight lingered on her, reflecting off her pale skin in the most hauntingly beautiful way, making her seem not entirely of this world.
My breath caught in my throat. Something stirred deep inside me.. something I couldn't explain. It wasn't love, not yet. But it was the beginning of something. The kind of feeling that starts with a single look and then quietly rewrites your entire world.
I tore my eyes away, swallowing the ache in my chest. I needed air. Space. Distance.
But her presence…
It clung to me. Like a scent, a sound, a memory.
Unshakable.
"Sorry," I said, my voice trembling slightly as I rubbed the back of my neck, suddenly aware of how loud my presence must have felt. "I didn't mean to sneak up on you like that… or ruin the moment."
She turned toward me fully, and for a breathless instant, the weight of her gaze pinned me in place. Then she offered a faint smile.. delicate, almost brittle, like it might vanish if I reached for it.
"It's nothing," she replied softly, her voice barely more than a whisper carried on the breeze. "Nothing compared to the voices back at my home."
There was something quietly aching in the way she said it, something that didn't quite reach the surface, but it lingered there, between her words.
I frowned, instinctively. I couldn't help it. Her voice.. just moments ago.. had stopped me cold in my tracks, and now she was dismissing it like it didn't matter. Like she didn't matter.
"Don't say that," I said, more urgently than I intended. My chest felt tight, my words rushing to meet the weight she carried. "Your voice… it's incredible. Honestly, if we had a singing contest, I'd lose in the first second. No.. actually, they'd probably pull me off the stage before I even opened my mouth."
I offered a crooked smile, letting the words tumble out with a hint of humor. It was clumsy, sure.. but genuine. And I meant every word.
She looked at me again, and this time her smile warmed, softening the fragile edges around her. It wasn't wide or showy.. it was quiet, shy, and yet… it lit something up inside me.
For a heartbeat, the park disappeared.
My heart thudded louder in my chest, thumping against my ribs like it was trying to get out and speak for me. I didn't know what this feeling was.. only that I didn't want it to end.
She rose from the swing, every movement fluid, graceful.. like a wisp of light gliding just above the ground. For a moment, I thought I was imagining it. But no, she was real. More real than anything I'd ever seen.
And then, to my disbelief, she took a step toward me.
The air between us tightened, as though the space itself was folding inward. I could feel her now.. not just see her, but feel her, in the way the air shifted, in the quiet static brushing against my skin. It didn't make sense. None of it did.
That's when I noticed—her feet were bare.
Pale, delicate, silent against the earth. As if even gravity dared not disturb her.
I swallowed, forcing the words past the dry knot in my throat. "You might hurt yourself… walking like that. It's dangerous."
She didn't respond right away. Her eyes held mine—calm, unreadable, and then she took another step. Closer.
So close I could count the tiny flecks of light in her irises. So close I could feel the faint warmth radiating from her skin. Her breath moved in soft, measured waves.. calm, unlike the frantic rhythm in my chest.
My heart was racing now, each beat pounding against my ribs like it might shatter through.
I couldn't think. Couldn't breathe. The world narrowed down to this..just her. Just us.
And then.
She leaned in.
Her breath grazed my ear, barely a whisper, soft and cool as evening mist. A shiver coursed through me, sharp and electric. My spine straightened instinctively, every nerve on fire.
It didn't feel real.
Her closeness. Her silence. The way she seemed to exist slightly outside of reality, like a dream that hadn't ended, or one that never really began.
"Take me with you, Reiji," she whispered.. and my entire world stopped.
My name.
She said my name.
A chill surged down my spine, sharp and immediate. I froze, my breath caught in my throat, my thoughts scattering like leaves in the wind. How? How did she know me? I had never seen her before tonight. Had I?
I didn't have time to ask. Before the question could even form on my lips, she stepped forward and wrapped her arms around me.
It wasn't rough or desperate.. but it carried a strange urgency. A weight. Like she had been waiting for this exact moment… for me. Her hold tightened, her slender frame pressing close, as though afraid I might vanish if she let go.
My body stiffened, my mind flooded with confusion, a dozen questions screaming for answers. Why? Who was she? What did she mean by.
I tried to move, gently at first. "Hey, uh… I'm sorry," I murmured awkwardly, shifting slightly. "You're… really close."
But the moment I tried to ease away, her grip only deepened.
She wasn't letting go.
Her fingers curled into the fabric of my shirt as if anchoring herself, her face buried against my shoulder. I could feel the tremble in her breath, the silent plea in her touch. There was something in her that felt… lost. Fragile.
It was as if she were clinging to something more than just me.. like I was the final thread holding her together. Her arms trembled slightly, but her grip never loosened. Not even for a second.
"I finally found you, Reiji," she whispered, and her voice broke gently, like a memory cracking at the edges. "I've been searching for you… for so long."
Her words pierced through me, a quiet ache blooming in my chest. I didn't understand—any of it. And yet, I felt her words settle into some forgotten corner of my soul, like an echo I couldn't place.
She pressed closer, her head resting lightly against me, her hair brushing my skin like the sweep of a soft breeze. I stood frozen, stunned, as the heat of her body mingled with the cool breath of evening.
"Take me with you," she murmured again, this time with a quiet desperation. "We'll never be apart again."
It was too much. Too strange. Too… intimate.
My heart pounded against my ribs like a caged thing.
I knew I had to break the tension.. had to say something. "I-uh…" I cleared my throat, rubbing the back of my neck. "I can't just let you walk around barefoot like this. It's cold, and… you'll hurt yourself."
She didn't answer right away.
So I blurted out the only ridiculous solution that came to mind. "How about… I carry you? On my back, I mean. Just until we get somewhere safe."
There was a beat of silence.
Then, slowly, she lifted her face to look at me. Her wide, luminous eyes blinked once.. startled, uncertain, and then something shifted. Her cheeks flushed with color, delicate and warm beneath the moonlight.
"Okay," she said softly, her voice barely above a breath.
A single word, but it felt like a promise.
Before I knew it, I was walking down the quiet street with my groceries in one hand and her on my back, her delicate frame clinging to me like a whispered secret. Her arms were wrapped snugly around my neck, her cheek resting against the back of my shoulder. I could feel her warmth through the fabric of my shirt, her breath brushing gently against my skin, steady and soft.
The walk home felt like drifting through a dream.
She was so light, barely more than a breath, and yet… the weight of her presence pressed into me in a way I couldn't explain. Every step echoed with a strange gravity, like the universe had shifted and forgotten to tell me.
The streets were quiet now, touched only by the distant hum of cicadas and the dim, golden trail of the streetlights. Somewhere between one footstep and the next, I realized she had fallen asleep. Her body relaxed against mine, her breathing deep and rhythmic, and in the hush of that moment, I heard her murmur:
"I finally found you…"
Again and again, like a prayer.
When I finally got home, the front door clicked shut behind me, and Yuzuki looked up from the hallway. Her eyes widened the moment she saw the girl still clinging to my back, her damp hair spilling over my shoulder like threads of moonlight.
She blinked in surprise.. once, then again. before a soft chuckle escaped her lips, warm and teasing.
"Well, well," she said, folding her arms with a glint in her eyes, "looks like you've found yourself a new friend."
I opened my mouth to explain, but the words tangled before they could leave. I didn't even get the chance.
The girl slowly shifted, slipping from my back with a surprising grace. She stood beside me now, her fingers briefly grazing my arm before retreating. Her eyes remained lowered, as though she wasn't sure she was allowed to be here.
"I'm… I'm Aria," she said quietly, almost like she was sharing a secret with the room. Her voice was delicate, hesitant, as if even her name might be too much.
Aria? The name struck me like a distant bell. How had I not even thought to ask her that until now? My thoughts were still spinning, jumbled and slow.
Before I could say anything back, Aria stepped closer again, her arms wrapping gently around mine. She leaned into me, just enough that I could feel her heartbeat echoing against my skin.
Her eyes flicked to Yuzuki, then back to me.
"Are you and Yuzuki… a couple?" she asked softly.
There was something in her voice, not jealousy exactly, but something bordering on it. Something faintly possessive, like the question had weight far deeper than her tone let on.
Yuzuki and I both flushed on instinct, tripping over our words.
"N-No!" I said quickly, waving a hand, though the motion felt clumsy. "We're not. We're just- uh-friends. Housemates."
Aria didn't respond immediately, but her grip on me didn't loosen. Her fingers slid up my back, slow and deliberate, tracing small circles through the fabric of my shirt. Each one sent a subtle shiver racing down my spine.
"If she's not your girlfriend," she murmured, her breath warm against my skin, "then… can I be yours?"
Her voice carried something wistful. Something aching.
The room went quiet.
Her words lingered, weightless and heavy all at once. My heart slammed against my ribs, thundering in my chest while my brain tried.. and failed .. to process it all.
I turned slowly to Yuzuki, hoping she'd say something to ground me, to make sense of what was happening.
But she looked just as stunned.. eyes wide, lips parted slightly, her expression unreadable. Pale.
"What…?" I breathed, the word strange on my tongue. What was happening?
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Dinner passed in a blur, like a dream I couldn't quite wake from. Aria remained glued to my side the entire time, her hand quietly wrapped around my sleeve, her presence constant... gentle, yet unyielding. She barely touched her food, only nibbling here and there, as though her hunger for something else eclipsed anything on the table. Her eyes rarely left me.
Every time I shifted, she followed. Every time I tried to create space, she closed it without hesitation. It wasn't loud or dramatic.. just this unwavering, quiet closeness. Like letting go of me, even for a second, might shatter something inside her.
Yuzuki noticed, of course. She didn't say anything, but the glance she gave me from across the table lingered.. curious, maybe even a little concerned.
When dinner ended, she gently guided Aria toward the guest room, her voice kind, her smile soft. Aria hesitated at first but eventually let go of me, her fingers slipping away as though it physically hurt her to release me.
I should have gone to bed too. I told myself that. But even as I lay in the dark, my chest wouldn't stop tightening. My mind spun with questions I couldn't answer.
Who was she? Why did she cling to me like I was the only person in the world? And why did part of me… not want her to let go?
Sometime past midnight, I stirred from half-sleep to a warm weight pressing against my side. My breath caught.
I turned my head and nearly jolted.
Aria.
She was lying beside me, curled into the space between my body and the edge of the bed like she belonged there.. like she had always belonged there. Her face was so close I could feel the warmth of her breath ghosting over my skin, soft and rhythmic, brushing my neck like a whisper.
"Aria?" I whispered hoarsely, my voice unsteady. "Why are you here?"
She didn't fully wake. But her lips parted, and in a voice laced with something both aching and resolute, she murmured:
"I'll never let you go… Not now. Never again…"