72 Hopes and Plans

Sakura

May 4, 3:22 pm, Tokyo, Japan

Sakura had seven missed calls from Michi when she got out of the shower. Before she could call back, he called again.

"He called him," he said urgently. "The detective. The Jason called the detective."

Sakura didn't even point out his incorrect grammar; she dried and clothed herself as quickly as possible, then headed back to her computer. Unfortunately, she wasn't able to listen in to the call.

A moment later, Sakura got another call from Michi.

"We gotta go. Now," he said. "Jason reported another body. I'll tell you on the way."

"Now you know why I call instead of text," said Sakura smugly, gathering her things.

"Oh, shut up," said Michi, hanging up.

They met up outside the cafe, and headed towards the train station. Michi filled her in on the way; apparently there had been another body reported at a park.

"Perfect," said Sakura as they reached the train station. They bought their tickets just in time to get on the train. They managed to find an empty cart, and sat together.

"Alright, the plan is just surveillance at this point," said Sakura, opening up her handbag. She took out binoculars and headpieces, and handed them over to Michi. "Basically, we watch as Jason does his thing, then have him lead us to the monster. Okay?"

Michi hummed in agreement.

They had agreed on this plan beforehand, during the meeting. First, they would follow Jason. Once he lead them to the monster, they would then start recording and getting it all on camera.

For that reason, both of them had dressed as inconspicuously as possible. Sakura was wearing a normal shirt and jeans, with a cap to tie up her hair in, and Michi wasn't wearing anything outrageous. Despite that, he still somehow managed to look like a model in just an open button-up and slacks. It was probably something to do with the way he styled his hair; today it was somewhat messy, in that weird, TV show protagonist kind of way.

"Nothing exciting," Sakura repeated. "Just watching."

Michi rolled his eyes.

"I get it," he said. "I'll be careful, and I won't do anything reckless like last time."

Sakura smiled.

"I know, I just figured I'd wind you up about it for a bit," she confessed.

"You're a terrible person."

They chatted a little more as the train moved along. Despite them trying to keep the conversation going, they couldn't keep the conversation alive for very long. Pretty soon, they petered out of subjects to talk about, and fell silent.

The silence was worse. It left them with their own thoughts. Thoughts about Neurix, Jason, the world, and demons that Sakura didn't really want to think about right now. Or ever.

"There was really nothing on the drive about why the police were helping Neurix?" Michi asked suddenly.

Sakura shook her head.

"I guess that's another thing we need to look into...but I'm starting to think it might just be a few bad apples in the police force," said Sakura. "I mean...you saw Detective Kiritaka."

"And felt him grope my ass," said Michi, shuddering.

They chuckled a bit. A few beats passed.

"Bunta still working on the researchers?" Sakura asked, grasping at something to fill the silence.

The last she spoke with Bunta, he had been on the phone, following some leads on a researcher who would be interested in looking at the data they had found.

"Why are you asking me?" said Michi, confused. "You talk to him more than I do."

"I do?" Sakura was surprised.

Michi shrugged.

"He's been kinda...different since the whole..." Michi let the end of the sentence hang in the air. He waved it away, shaking his head.

"He just seems more interested in other things these days," he sighed. "We don't talk as much."

Sakura bit her lip. Inside, she was in turmoil. Michi seemed to notice.

"What?" he asked. "Did Bunta say something to you?"

Sakura shook her head.

"It's just..."

Should she say it? Would that be the right thing to do?

The train slowed down as Michi raised an eyebrow at her. Sakura knew what that eyebrow meant; if it's something to do with me, then I have a right to know.

"I mean, Bunta didn't say anything to me," said Sakura. "It's more that...I said something to him?"

Michi was silent for a moment.

"Okay," he said, leaning back and exhaling. "Okay. You need to tell me what you said, or else I'm not going to be able to think about anything else today."

"Well, it's not like I even said anything bad," Sakura started. "It was more his reac-"

"Sakura!"

"I told him to get his s*** together," said Sakura. "Back during the...y'know."

She told him about the conversation she and Bunta had about saving Michi when Sakura was coming back from the university. About how Bunta had been beating himself up about not being able to protect Michi, and how Sakura had yelled at him for being an indecisive idiot.

"I think he's trying to be better," Sakura ended up saying. "I think he regrets not doing more before the whole...incident."

Michi was silent the whole time. At some point, he had crossed his arms, and was now frowning intently at the empty seat in front of him.

Suddenly, he exhaled deeply.

"Bunta, you idiot," he muttered. "You're not the one who's doing nothing..."

Sakura rolled her eyes.

"You guys really are perfect for each other," she said. "You'd both spend each hour telling each other how great the other his cause you both hate yourselves so much."

"Okay, I don't need you to tell me truths about myself like this right at this time of day," said Michi jokingly. "Especially not right before we start surveilling the guy who violated my home."

"Alright, fine."

They chatted a little more, the nervous edge lessened a bit. By the time they got to the station, they were much more relaxed than before.

But they were still on guard.

Neither Sakura nor Michi wanted to be caught off guard again.

Ever.

They approached the park casually, but carefully. They pretended to be a couple, laughing and flirting as they walked into the park. Occasionally, they stopped to take a selfie in front of a pretty tree or some flowers. Nothing unordinary about them at all.

Sakura had also taken the initiative to disguise their faces. It took a lot out of her, especially since she was animating expressions to go with their actions, but it would be worth it. For one, it would be good practice. And it never hurt to be safe.

That was Sakura's second mistake. But it wasn't the one that sealed her fate.

The weather was good today. Perfect picnic weather. Sakura and Michi could not have asked for a better weather for their cover story. All they needed to do was find the body.

"Jason said that it was by the river," Michi whispered into her ear. "By the white bridge."

Sakura simply laughed, as if Michi had told her the funniest joke in the world. They giggled together as they walked under the shade of the trees.

She looked up to see sunlight filtering through the leaves, onto the stone path that stretched through the green of the park. There were plenty of other couples on the grass, sitting together, eating, or simply reading a book.

Sakura felt a pang of something as she watched them live their lives. It wasn't jealousy, not exactly. She knew that one day, she wanted to find a girl she could share her life with. But…

"Am I a selfish person?" she suddenly asked Michi.

Michi was obviously surprised by the weirdly serious question. He asked Sakura what on earth she was talking about.

"I want it all," Sakura went on to explain. "I want to love and be loved. I want to be respected in my field of work. I want every prize for writing and journalism. And I want people to look up to me."

She looked up at him.

"I want people to know who I am, and to say that I was a hero," she said.

"That's normal," said Michi. "What's wrong with any of that?"

Sakura bit her tongue. She had an answer, but she wasn't sure how to express it.

"It's just...sometimes I wonder," she sighed. "I...nevermind."

He wouldn't understand. Not really.

Michi looked at her for a while, concerned. Then, he looked back towards the path.

"If you say so," he said, shrugging.

They heard the river before they could see it. A pleasant sound of water over rocks, soothing to the ear and soul. It snakes through the park, a clear line of clear water cutting through the green. As Sakura and Michi got closer, they could see koi swimming laconically downstream.

The bridge was just ahead of them, getting closer. Sakura and Michi both frowned as they saw it come into view. There was something very wrong with this picture.

No one was there.

No Jason. No police. And definitely no body.

They kept walking towards the bridge, keeping up the illusion of a young couple in love, but every now and then they exchanged puzzled glances.

What was going on? Why wasn't there a body here?

"Do you think they found out about the listening device?" Michi whispered as they reached the bridge.

"Maybe," Sakura whispered back, holding onto Michi's arm as they walked onto the white wood. "This might all be a trap."

In which case, it was a good thing Sakura had hidden their faces. If they had been recognized, then-

A sharp, stinging sensation bit into Sakura's neck. Her hand immediately reached up, only to dig out a small dart in her neck.

Her and Michi's eyes went wide as they realized they had been played.

"Ru-"

Sakura didn't even have time to finish the thought before her legs fell out beneath her. As her eyes closed, she saw Michi fall in front of her. Slowly, the edges of her vision went black, eating inwards. She fought to stay awake, without even really knowing why.

She knew she had lost.

At least, she had lost this round.

"You really are a dumb b****, aren't you?"

The last thing she heard before passing out was Jason's mocking voice.