Arou wrote the note slowly, as if rushing would cause the words to collapse before they were finished.
Note:
To Airi...
and to everyone who was ever with me.
Thank you for staying in my mind,
during the times when the real world was too lonely to live in by myself.
I know now
that none of you were ever truly real.
But the feelings you left behind were real.
Airi,
I'm sorry for making you my place to return to
when you were only a dream I created so I wouldn't be alone.
I love you,
and that is enough—even if you have to disappear.
To all of you,
Zata, Hikari, and everyone else...
you are the reason I managed to keep going this far.
I will try to live.
Not because I have become strong,
but because you once made me want to live.
If one day I find happiness,
it won't be because I forgot you—
but because I learned how to let go.
— Arou
He stopped writing.
There was no feeling of relief.
No sense of completion.
Arou closed the notebook and placed it on the desk. His hand lingered there longer than it should have, as if waiting for something to happen. But the room remained silent.
He sat down, lowered his head, and realized something simple yet painful:
after everything he had written, there was no one who could read it and reply.
Arou's chest tightened. His breathing grew heavy.
The sadness arrived quietly, without a sound, then slowly piled up.
He didn't sob.
The tears simply fell, one by one, without any attempt to stop them.
For the first time, Arou was truly alone.
And this time, there was no dream to keep him company.
---
January 5, 2026.
Arou stepped into Class 2-A as usual.
His uniform was neat, his backpack slung over his shoulder, but his gaze was empty and his steps felt heavy.
His classmates entered one by one. Some greeted him.
"Hey, Arou!"
"You look kind of down today."
Arou simply stared ahead.
He didn't turn around. He didn't answer.
The classroom was still mostly empty. The desks and chairs were neatly arranged, yet everything felt hollow.
The atmosphere was calm, filled only with footsteps and quiet conversations.
Arou sat in his usual seat, alone amidst a crowd that had yet to fully arrive.
A classmate sat nearby.
"Hey, Arou... are you okay?"
Arou blinked once but remained silent.
His heart felt heavy. Memories of all the beings from his dreams haunted him again—even though he knew they were not real.
He stared out the window. Morning sunlight slowly entered the room. The real world moved on as normal, yet Arou felt disconnected from it, as if he didn't belong here.
His classmates laughed and chatted, but to him, their voices sounded distant and unfamiliar, as though they belonged to someone else's life.
Arou lowered his head and took a deep breath.
He knew life had to move forward.
But his heart was still trapped in the world that had disappeared.
Outside the classroom, more footsteps and laughter echoed through the halls.
Arou remained silent.
Waiting...
though he didn't know what he was waiting for.
---
That day, Arou walked home from school.
The afternoon sky was bright, but something felt strange.
Leaves suddenly fell from a tree despite there being no wind.
A bird stared at him for an unusually long time before flying away.
"That's weird..." he muttered.
At home, he opened the window to his room. The evening sunlight poured in, but the shadows on the floor seemed slightly distorted, as if they weren't following the direction of the light.
Arou looked down at the note he had written. Everything seemed normal.
Yet the strange feeling remained.
When he switched on the lamp, its cord trembled briefly. It didn't break or spark, but it was enough to send a chill down his spine.
That night, Arou sat at his desk.
He stared at the notebook and closed his eyes for a moment.
Then suddenly, he heard a faint whisper, as if someone had called his name.
Only he could hear it.
Arou straightened up and looked around the room.
No one was there.
Only silence.
Yet one thing was clear:
the real world was beginning to show signs that he was not entirely alone.
Only he could feel it.
Only he could see the remnants of his dreams beginning to touch reality.
Arou swallowed hard.
He wasn't afraid.
But he was curious and cautious at the same time.
"What's going on? Today is really strange," he muttered.
Outside, the shadow of a tree moved on its own.
Inside, the desk lamp flickered briefly.
And for the first time since finishing that note,
Arou felt the real world and his dreams beginning to merge.
---
The next day, Arou walked toward Class 2-A with heavy steps.
His uniform was neat. His backpack rested on his shoulders.
But his eyes were empty.
A few classmates had already arrived and placed their bags on their desks. The classroom remained quiet.
Arou sat in his usual seat and stared down at his desk.
Several classmates tried to greet him.
But he stayed silent.
Minutes passed.
The clock ticked softly.
The classroom door opened.
The teacher entered.
Immediately, the teacher's eyes landed on Arou.
"Hey, Arou... why do you look so gloomy? Don't keep everything to yourself, okay?" the teacher said kindly.
Arou slightly raised his head, glanced at the teacher, then looked down again.
No response.
His heart remained heavy.
The memories of his dream companions lingered, even though he knew they weren't real.
The teacher approached and gently patted his shoulder.
"If something's wrong, just tell us. We're here to help. You don't have to face everything alone."
Arou remained silent and took a deep breath.
The words reached his ears.
But they never reached his heart.
Instead, they only reminded him of one thing:
he was still alone.
Even inside a classroom.
Even among other people.
More students entered and settled into their seats.
But Arou remained isolated inside himself, waiting for something he could not name.
---
The lesson continued.
The other students focused on their notes.
Arou sat near the back, staring blankly ahead.
Suddenly, the sheet of paper on the desk beside him moved by itself.
There was no wind.
Arou stared.
His heartbeat quickened.
Then he heard a faint voice.
Only he could hear it.
"...Arou..."
He looked around.
His classmates continued writing and chatting, unaware of anything unusual.
A shadow passed through the corner of the classroom.
Its shape seemed familiar.
Yet impossible to recognize completely.
The empty chair beside him slowly shifted, as though someone had sat down.
But no one was there.
Arou held his breath.
"What is this...?"
he whispered.
Then words began appearing on the blackboard by themselves.
Arou...
Ink formed without a pen.
Arou swallowed hard.
He looked at his own hands, making sure he was still in reality.
The shadow appeared again.
Clearer this time.
A silhouette stood in the corner of the room, watching him.
Arou understood one thing:
something from his dreams was beginning to cross into the real world.
And this was only the beginning.
---
During lunch break, Arou left the classroom as usual.
The hallways were crowded with laughter, footsteps, and voices from the cafeteria.
Yet he wandered aimlessly.
His mind felt empty.
After school, the sky gradually darkened.
On a quiet road, Arou suddenly stopped.
Standing before him...
was someone with the exact same face as his own.
Arou froze.
"What...?"
He swallowed nervously.
"Who are you?"
The figure looked at him calmly.
Its body slowly shifted, like light changing shape.
Its hair grew slightly longer.
Its eyes changed.
It was no longer Arou.
"I'm Lumina," the figure said.
Arou stood speechless.
"Lumina? You're... real?"
Lumina smiled faintly.
"Not exactly."
"Then what are you?" Arou asked.
"We came to your world," Lumina replied softly,
"because we wanted to see how much you've grown."
Arou frowned.
"Wait. You said we. I thought it was just you."
Lumina nodded.
"It's not only me. The others simply haven't met you yet."
"Who are they?" Arou asked.
"That's a secret."
Without thinking, Arou stepped closer.
He reached out and pinched Lumina's cheek.
"Ouch!"
Lumina jumped backward.
"Hey! What was that for?!"
Arou froze.
Then his eyes widened.
"...You're actually real."
"Only temporarily," Lumina replied.
"I can't stay here for long."
Arou took a deep breath.
"Then... how did you come to my world?
Was it Zata?"
Lumina shook her head.
"No. Zata isn't there."
"Huh?"
Arou looked confused.
"Then... where did he go?"
Lumina stared directly into his eyes.
"Have you really not realized it?"
"Realized what?"
His shoulders suddenly felt heavy.
Lumina answered quietly:
"That you are Zata."
Arou laughed nervously.
"That's impossible. If I were Zata, why am I still myself in the dreams?
Why wasn't I Zata there?"
"Because that is the truth," Lumina replied calmly.
"You are Zata."
Arou fell silent.
"In your dreams, you appeared as the person you are now," Lumina continued.
"And Zata..."
She paused.
"...is your own soul."
Arou stared blankly.
"Every game Zata created," Lumina said,
"was never meant to torture you."
"It was his way of waking you up."
"Slowly."
Arou opened his mouth, but no words came out.
"Uh..."
That was all he could manage.
And for the first time,
Arou felt something more terrifying than any dream—
the truth about himself.