Chapter 109.

Chapter 109. New Year’s Eve. The Dazzling Fireworks Explode, Start of a New Year. (1/6)

Three days later, I died.

The end.

Psych!

Hah! 

Screw you! 

I’m alive and have never been better! Death flags? What death flags?

Ugh… did anyone still use the word psych these days?

I suddenly felt old and became slightly depressed.

At least, as someone from over two decades in the future, it felt like that word was completely outdated. As for whether it was a word still used these days, I had no idea. I sometimes felt out of touch with my current generation as a result of such minor nuances.

But anyway, three days had passed by in quite a mundane manner. Irene sadly had to return to work, but the rest of us played video games together to pass the time and watched a few other quality anime I recommended since everyone got pretty interested in them after they watched Attack on Titan.

There were a few others I’d labeled as masterpieces in my heart, so I chose those.

Either way, the days were peaceful to an abnormal degree. Alicia was always smiling, same with Rosa. 

Though I still went to work every day, I was always greeted by a hot, fresh, home-cooked meal when I returned. We all ate together then went to bed.

That was how the last three days had gone until today, New Year's Eve.

Today something a bit different happened. Before I left for work, Rosa redeemed a coupon. A meetup coupon, to be more precise.

All she said was, “I’d like to redeem this coupon today. The location I choose, the school roof. The time, 11:45 PM. I want to watch the fireworks go off together at midnight with just the two of us.”

I didn’t have any problem with her coupon redemption, so I accepted it. Not that I had a choice of whether to accept it or not in the first place.

Today was another day at work where Yuna had taken the day off. Honestly, she was really taking advantage of me. She’d been slacking off ever since Christmas Eve, calling out and asking me to cover for her because she got sick after Christmas. The day I missed on Saturday, our pitiful coworker scheduled until 4:00 PM was forced to work overtime until 9:00 PM because both of us were out sick that day.

It was unfortunate, but it couldn’t be helped. At least they got paid time and a half. 

Now, as for the current time, it was exactly 11:45 PM. There were only fifteen minutes until the fireworks would go off, but Rosa was nowhere to be found. I’d come here straight after work and waited inside the school building to keep warm. I was seated on the stairwell, but there wasn’t any sign that anyone was coming up.

I texted Rosa and asked where she was at, she sent a response that the bus she’d taken was behind schedule and showed up late. She told me to wait outside on the roof, she’d make it just barely in time for the fireworks to start.

“Haaaah. It sucks not having a car and driver’s license. Buses are so unreliable. As someone who’s driven himself everywhere for two decades, it sucked not having that luxury. With the money Rosa and I would receive working I considered if we should lease one together. I mean, we were engaged and all. She’d be able to get her learner’s permit as soon as she turned 16. I’d only be able to get mine near the end of March. I could act as a guarantor, or maybe Irene could if I asked her. Would she be willing to do that though?

I felt like she would. Though she might request for something in return. As for what that request might be… I’d rather not think about it right now.

I opened up the door to the roof and headed to the edge where the railing was and leaned on it in the direction where the closest set of fireworks would go off. There was more than one place where fireworks would go off in the city, this school just happened to be a bit close to a tourist location where lots of fireworks went off every year. We should be able to see and hear them pretty easily from this location. 

Time ticked by pretty fast. Before I knew it, it was 11:59 PM, but Rosa still hadn't arrived.

I texted her again and was notified she was climbing the stairs right now.

The second the clock struck 12:00 AM, there was a loud explosion. A rocket shot up high into the air. My eyes were glued to it. A moment later there was a loud bang, from in front and behind me. A pink explosion glittered beautifully overhead.

It seemed Rosa had made it right on time to see that first explosion.

Immediately after the first lone firework exploded several more were fired off. Rosa quickly approached my side. I glanced over to her, she was wearing her long red coat. She had her hood up right now and a scarf wrapped around her neck covering her face. She was panting a bit, catching her breath from running up the stairs. I couldn’t hear or see her panting with the fireworks going off and her scarf covering her mouth, but I could see her condensed breath escaping through her scarf.

“You just barely made it on time,” I said that loud enough so she could hear it over the fireworks. She nodded her head in return.

The two of us stood there with our eyes glued to the thunderous fireworks exploding overhead. They glittered beautifully as the particles of light drifted back to the ground. Fleeting, they only existed for a short amount of time before their radiance gradually faded away into nothing.

I found there was beauty in that short-lived existence known as a firework’s life.

It’s born the moment its fuse is lit and the rocket ascends. Its ascent being its infancy before it has bloomed. When it reaches its peak, it fully blooms in a brief instant, into a flower that illuminates the world around it radiantly. It’s youth, bright, full of color. But that youth is short-lived, only a very small moment in its short life.

As it ages into adulthood, the light dims as it slowly fades into the darkness to be overshadowed by the next generation of fireworks that follow right behind it.

It was the perfect representation of the cycle of life and death.

Life is only beautiful because it is short. If it was forever, we wouldn’t appreciate it as much. There was only value when it was limited.

As I had such thoughts I just barely heard something from my side through the thunderous explorations overhead.

“I love-” Bang. A loud explosion resounded over her final word. But I still knew what her last word had been.

It was hard to make out between the explosions, but it was no doubt, ‘you.’

I opened my mouth and returned the gesture, “I love you too.”

It was only when I said that I noticed something was off. Her back had straightened and stiffened up a bit. Startled, she was startled.

Why?

Why would Rosa have such a reaction to those words?

She was about to turn away.

My hand flew out and I latched onto her arm.

She froze in place.

“Alicia… is that… you?” I thought it was just because of the fireworks and the scarf covering her mouth, but her voice had been a bit off. When I put two and two together and connected a few dots in my head, I suddenly realized I’d never visually confirmed it was in fact Rosa here with me. Her face was covered, so was her head. I couldn’t even see her signature red hair. I’d just seen the jacket and clothes she was wearing. They were all Rosa’s. On the exterior that is. But who was the one actually wearing those clothes?

If it hadn’t been Rosa, it had to be Alicia. There was no way it could see it being Irene. Why would she disguise herself as Rosa to say she loved me? She would say it straight to my face without a hint of shame.

The only one who might not want me to know it’s her was… Alicia.

Rosa had set me up.

I’d been deceived.

Me? Deceived?

What the hell?

How did I fall for this?

No, could Rosa actually deceive me on her own?

I was wrong.

If I think about it more clearly, even further back, the method that made this entire scenario possible was the coupons I gave Rosa for a Christmas present.

I’d screwed myself here.

But, the true mastermind behind this plan was no doubt, Irene. She was the one who suggested I give Rosa coupons as a present. Rosa’s words when she received my present gave me even more confidence now. The ominous words that followed were meant for today.

From that point on I was lured into a false sense of security that Valentine’s Day was the day I needed to be most on guard for. They’d at some point formed an alliance and created this plot.

But when? When was it?