If this isn't the end, please let me hear it.

The love I've shut out, the dream I once chased...

Back then, if just for a few moments, we had it all.

Has too much time passed? Is it too late to ask for something...

Somewhere?

- other than goodbye?

~~~

"--Wait!" I shout towards the mystery girl, something driving me not to say goodbye yet. "-What's your name?"

The hazel eyed girl gasps, she's caught in the unstoppable current of people getting off the train. She frantically undoes whatever is tying her hair up and tosses it through the crowd, towards me.

Her voice is frantic, rushed, like she's pleading. Like she's running out of time.

"My name is--!"

~~~~

--!

Taki was awoken with a start by someone tapping his shoulder irritability, his vision clouded by tears.

"Yo, Taki? You okay? You fell asleep and started crying."Shinta's voice faded it's way into Taki's ears. "...You get enough sleep last night? You don't usually fall asleep in class."

Taki sighed, wiping the mystery tears from his cheeks. "Yeah, I'm alright. I think I stayed up too late."

"Try and get some sleep tonight, okay?" Tsukasa added, eyes fixed on Taki in concern.

Taki murmured a "Yes." And turned to glance out the window, trying to recall the dream he just had.The history classroom was brilliantly illuminated by the dull morning light, shadows reaching from the window to the opposite end of the room. The clouds formed brilliant cotton candy streaks across the sky.Taki turned his attention back to his sketch of Itomori.

Why does the scenery of a town that's no longer there… Make my chest feel so tight?

In all the damned cities Mitsuha had moved to since the destruction of her hometown, Kyoto, Osaka, Nagoya, etc, she had felt lost. She couldn't describe the feeling, but she almost felt as if she were running out of time.But being here, in Tokyo… Felt right.As if there were something here waiting for her to just reach out and grab it. She was getting closer. Closer to what though, she couldn't exactly pinpoint.

The instant Hitoha, her grandma, had mentioned moving to Tokyo, Mitsuha was buzzing with nerves and excitement.

She gazed at the train station around her, feeling nostalgic for some odd reason. Her sister was already pulling at her arm to leave.

Guess there's no stopping to rest in Tokyo… Mitsuha mused.

This building feels familiar… Mitsuha thought as she rested her forearms on the railing in front of her apartment door, gazing at the nighttime Tokyo skyline laid out before her star-filled eyes. The view was leaving her short of breath.An amazed, "Woah…" escaped from her lungs as her grandma quietly shuffled next to her.

"Breathtaking, isn't it?" Hitoha laughed. "I remember my first time in Tokyo… Buildings upon buildings as far as the horizon stretches..." She mused."As much as I miss the quiet life, I will enjoy looking out at this view for the time we're here."

Mitsuha put an arm around her grandma, her gaze still fixed on the brilliant structures that reached for the sky.

"Grandma…"Mitsuha started. "I think I want to stay in Tokyo for a long time."

Taki sat at his desk in his math class, the room now illuminated in grey morning light. Mixed with the soft sound of rain, the conversations of strangers sound a bit like secrets.

"Hey, have you heard about that new girl?'

"--Apparently she's from that town that got hit by a comet."

"I'm pretty sure her dad was the mayor of Itomori!"

"So, who's gonna ask her out first?"

"I don't even know what she looks like!"

Taki turned his attention from the sketch of Miyamizu shrine to the conversations happening to his right, the word Itomori ringing a metaphorical bell. Someone from Itomori is coming to Jingu High School? Taki thought, getting up from his chair to pack up his things.

On the way to history, Tsukasa wrapped an arm around Taki, followed by Shinta.

"Ready for your favorite class?" Tsukasa said, his obviously sarcastic voice high-pitched and excited, a sharp contrast to the otherwise gloomy day outside.

"...Ready as I'll ever be for the most boring class in the school..." Taki muttered.

"I'll say..." Shinta agreed.

Taki sat down in his chair by the window and took out his sketch of Miyamizu shrine.

"...Hey, Taki?" Tsukasa tapped his shoulder from the seat next to him. "I have a question."

"Ask away." Taki dragged his gaze up to Tsukasa's now concerned eyes.

"Why are you literally always working on some sketch of Itomori? You've been obsessed with that town ever since we went on that weird trip there with Ms. Okudera."

Despite it being a reasonable question, Taki felt as if he was being caught. His pulse began to hammer in his ears.

"I--uh," Taki sputtered. "It... Has nice architecture. I take a lot of inspiration from it for my own work-- And drawing the town itself helps." He hoped that was a good excuse.

Tsukasa shrugged, his eyes going back to his paper. "Cool. I Like to base my work off of Kagoshima."

Taki sighed in relief. They would never understand that he drew to try and remember.

Mitsuha walked timidly, her hands clasped behind her back, her school bag weighing down her left shoulder. Why does this high school have so many textbooks?! Her first class of the day was apparently Math.Drowning out the timid whispers of New girl and Itomori, she put herself down on the chair closest to the door.

"Hey, uhm, that's my seat you've got there..." a gruff but warm voice filled her ears.Mitsuha looked up at the source, and her eyes instantly went wide.

"--Tessie?!"

"--Mitsuha!?"

Mitsuha stood up at the speed of light and wrapped Tessie into a tight hug. "Tessieeeee!!! --I knew coming to Tokyo was the right idea!" She laughed into his school uniform.

"What do you mean?" Tessie flashed an amused, curious smirk at Mitsuha as she pulled away.

"Ever since the comet, we've been moving to city after city, every year, and we never found anywhere suitable but... Now I have you here! What about Saya? Is she here too?!" Mitsuha was practically bouncing with excitement by this point.

"Yup!" Tessie exclaimed, his cheeks flushing a shade of red.Mitsuha took note of this, and with one suspicious glance into Tessie's avoiding eyes, she backed up in disbelief.

"...No. Way." Mitsuha gasped. "You two are a thing?! When did you get together?! Who asked who?!"

Tessie nervously gestured for Mitsuha to quiet down. "I asked her last year. She said yes, and now we're here!"

"Now who's here?" Sayaka walked into the classroom, and was swept off her feet by a crushing hug.

"Sayaaaaa!!!" Mitsuha squealed.

"Mitsuha?!?! Is that you?!" Sayaka shouted once she was back on the ground.

"Who else would it be?" Mitsuha laughed.

Mitsuha was now walking to her 2nd period class, which was history, according to the crumpled schedule in her hand. Her childhood friends were now at her sides, showing her where her class is. She was so, eternally grateful to whatever gods there are up there that her friends went to the same school as her in such a big, beautiful, daunting city as Tokyo.She said goodbye to her friends as she neared her next class, promising to meet the two of them in the courtyard during lunch.

Mitsuha took a deep breath and entered the classroom, mentally bracing herself for the whispers and glares.Avoiding eye contact with anyone, including the teacher, she found an empty seat by the wall opposite from the window of the classroom and plopped herself down on it, leaning her heavy bag against the chair leg. Shegazed at her desk, her eyes distant as the teacher came into the class and announced his presence.Her thoughts were wandering to how soon lunch was, as every minute not spent around Tessie and Sayaka felt longer and longer.

People from cities feel so distant... Mitsuha mused to herself. I remember hating how close-knit Itomori was, but it's pretty odd to just-- walk past someone without sparing them a glance.Well, at least I have Tessie and Saya. And I said to grandma that I wanted to stay here. Maybe I'll find what I'm looking for, too.

Still, Mitsuha had zero idea what she was looking for. But ever since the stars fell on her hometown of Itomori, she had been following that sense of hope, living her teenage life in search of something that was always a step ahead of her.In that journey hope has taken her on, she has now arrived in Tokyo. And she felt as if she was closer to finding what she's been searching for than ever. She couldn't tell if that feeling put her on edge, or made her excited.

Mitsuha was jolted out of her thoughts by a popular-looking girl sitting next to her.

"Hey, new girl," She started, tapping her shoulder. "-Country girl. You're Mizuha, right?"

"Uh," Mitsuha fiddled with the braided cord in her hair. "...It's Mit-su-ha, but yeah."

"-I don't really care. I'm just telling you the amber-haired wimp by the window's checking you out. I dunno how you haven't noticed yet."

Mitsuha shifted her gaze to the window parallel to her, scanning for a head of messy, short amber hair.She found herself knowing exactly what to look for, oddly.

Suddenly she felt the air thicken. Her lungs couldn't take in the right amount of oxygen, leaving her breathless. Her chest felt tight and her stomach dropped miles. Coherent thoughts and logic seemed to fail her as she gazed, wide-eyed at the amber-haired boy, her pulse hammering in her ears.

"-Who..." Mitsuha got out, so quiet she didn't know if she had said it or thought it. "...Who's that?"

"He's one of those weird architecture kids who hangs out in the corner of the courtyard during lunch," The girl answered. "Don't worry, he'll stop staring soon. All the new girls get checked out by everyone here." The girl glanced up at Mitsuha, her gaze still glued to the amber-haired stranger.

"Hello?" She waved a hand in her face, failing to get Mitsuha to react at all. She turned back to her friend. "Great, the new girls got the hots for a wimp."

Suddenly, the strangers eyes shifted up, and for a split second, he looked into Mitsuha's wide eyes, and a momentary connection erupted between the two.As Mitsuha tore her gaze back to her polished wooden desktop, a whirlwind of emotions surging through her, her scrambled thoughts all converged at one question.

--Is he what I've been looking for?

If there was a more forceful way to describe tearing your eyes from someone, this is where Taki would've used it.

Why is this stranger so damn familiar?! He internally shouted in frustration, his emotions a suddenly chaotic mess in contrast to a neat line. That's her... Who's her?! Is she what I've been looking for? What's her name?!

By this point, Taki was basically pulling his hair out, slumped over his desk in frustration.He dared to glance in the stranger's direction one last time.

--That ribbon in her hair! I know that from somewhere! Where?!

He darted for his school bag and fished out his book on Itomori's culture and customs.He swept everything to the side and set the book down, flipping through the pages until he found a page on braided cords.Faint, dull memories ofan elderly woman and a beautiful sunset over a small town on a lake teased his inner monologue as he skimmed over the information on braided cords, his heart leaping up to his throat.

Suddenly, he felt himself being pulled by the sleeve into the hallway by a flash of short black hair and glasses.

"Tsukasa?! What are you doing?!" He nearly shouted when they got into the hallway.

"--Okay Taki, I can't keep quiet about this anymore, and especially not now." He started, silently telling Taki just let him talk.

"2 years ago, you took me and Okudera to Itomori because you wanted to find someone you couldn't even contact. You somehow don't even recall the fact that it was destroyed by a comet, then you tell us to go back to Tokyo while you went somewhere else. You show up not even remembering why you went, and you suddenly become literally obsessed with everything to do with Itomori. Now there's a new girl from the same town, and you're pulling your hair out over your desk!" Tsukasa's eyes flashed with concern even as his voice was raised in frustration.

"Taki," He grabbed him by the shoulders. "You need to tell me what happened when we went back to Tokyo. Whatever happened clearly hurt you somehow. I mean, you were quiet and reserved before, but now...I can't explain it, but you're just not happy."

Taki gazed at at Tsukasa in stunned silence.

"...I know this isn't helping my case, but-- I can't remember what happened. All I can recall is waking up on some mountain and going home." Taki guiltily gazed at his feet.

Tsukasa put his hands over his head and sighed. "We'll continue this conversation at lunch, okay? Sorry for pulling you out of class."

"--Uh, It's okay. Thanks for your concern, Tsukasa."

"Mitsuha? Are you alright? You look like you've seen a ghost." Sayaka put a hand on her friends shoulder.

"Gah--Yes! I'm okay, I promise. Tokyo's just... a little daunting, is all." Mitsuha laughed nervously, internally praying they would buy the excuse.

The group of three were now sitting on one of the walls in the courtyard, leaning against the metal fence, (Sayaka choosing to lean on Tessie instead) munching on their own lunches. Luckily the rain had stopped before lunch, and although the day was still grey, the courtyard had dried off for the most part.

Suddenly, Mitsuha frantically shifted her gaze from her food to the ground, her cheeks glowing red, as she briefly caught a glance of the same amber-haired boy she saw in history class walking into the courtyard, trailing behind two of his friends. She briefly felt a pang of concern for him, as earlier he had been pulled out of class by the sleeve by his angry-looking friend.

Sayaka turned her head towards the small group heading towards the corner, then back to a flustering Mitsuha.

"...No way..." Sayaka said breathlessly.

Tessie glanced at the group, now seated, and then back at his flustering friend, and instantly caught on.

"On your first day?!" Tessie exclaimed.

Mitsuha looked back up at her friends. "What on my first day?!" She said, pleading ignorance.

"How are you already falling for someone on yourfirst day?!" Sayaka pressed. "That's not even mentioning the fact that your falling for Ta--!" Mitsuha sprang up at light speed, nearly spilling her food and ruffling her hair to cover Sayaka's mouth before she could finish.

"--ki..." She muffled into Mitsuha's palm.

"T- Taki?" Mitsuha let out, her throat not able to hold the name any longer.

"Mhm. One of the architecture kids." Tessie said.

Ta-ki.

Those two syllables echoed in Mitsuha's ears and through her entire body as she lowered her faltering hand.

Ta-ki.

Two syllables, somehow so achingly familiar, like the sight of a small town on a lake, or a tangled braided cord.

Tessie waved a hand in Mitsuha's face. "Mitsuha?"

Taki grew smaller and smaller under the scrutinizing, but concerned eyes of his friends as they sat down in the corner to eat lunch.

"--Taki, I'm really encouraging you to go see the school therapist." Tsukasa said, finishing up his food. "Something's wrong up there, I'm telling you."

"Yeah, you haven't seemed very happy at all since you went on that trip and stole Tsukasa." Shinta added.

"-That was two years ago! And Tsukasa invited himself." Taki backpedaled.

"And yet, here you are, two years later, still not happy."

Tsukasa put a hand on Taki's shoulder. "It's been pretty obvious this whole time. I'm not taking another 'I'm fine' excuse. You're not okay, Taki."

Taki frowned. It was true that he hadn't been genuinely happy in a while. But trying to explain why, especially to his two closest friends, seemed like an insurmountable task.But he did know his friends would at least try to understand. They always have been trying. Even when Taki brushed off their concern as paranoia, they tried to understand. A pang of guilt shot through Taki's heart as he spoke his next words.

"Guys..." He started. "I'm sorry. I've been really ungrateful for your help and companionship these past two years, and I think I'm just now realizing my mistake." He bowed to Tsukasa and Shinta.

"...If I try to explain what's wrong with me, will you do your best to try and understand, and not call me crazy?"

Both his friends nodded adamantly.

Taki sighed. "I've never actually said these things out loud before, so I apologize if I start to ramble." And with that, he began.

"...Some mornings, I-- I wake up crying without knowing why. That sort of thing happens every now and then. Whatever the dream was I had, I can never remember it. But... the only thing that does last when I wake up, is a sense of loss, like I've lost something or someone dear to me. And that lingers for a long time afterwards."

Tsukasa and Shinta listened intently, nodding their heads in affirmation like a therapist.

"...I'm always searching for something. --Or, someone. I've been consumed by this feeling... Ever since I woke up on that strange mountain next to Itomori." Taki dug his hand into his cheek.

"I draw things around Itomori to try and remember whatever it is I was searching for, because whenever I look at a picture of Itomori before the comet, I always get a sense of nostalgia, as if I've been there before the comet actually struck. That leads me to believe Itomori is part of what I'm searching for, and I think that's why I'm so obsessed with it." He said.

"But it's just one piece of this vague puzzle, and I know there's more to be found, whatever it is."

"...Does you flipping out in history have anything to do with this?" Asked Shinta.

Taki felt his cheeks heat up and his chest tighten, his emotions starting to scramble a little bit.

"I...!,Uhm..." Taki stuttered. "I can't believe I'm telling this to you guys, but... I think that new girl... S-She's what I'm looking for."

"Who's what you're looking for?" A sudden, feminine voice sounded from behind Taki.

"Gah!" Taki jumped. "Sayaka? What are you doing here? How much of that did you hear?"

"Just the last sentence." She said matter-of-factly, holding out a small notepad and a pen. "I need your number."

"Wha- Why?" Taki said, Tsukasa and Shinta curiously gazing at Sakaya.

"Oh, for god's sake, could 'ya just write down your number please!?"

Mitsuha loved her friends to death, don't get her wrong, but that was just it.

To death.

And right now, Mitsuha wasfiguratively and literally dying.

The instant she swung open the door to her apartment, she ran to her half-decorated room, ignoring Yotsuha's cries for her to have tea with grandma, those same syllables reverberating through her body to the strum of her heartbeat as she sprinted through her bedroom door and slammed it shut behind her.

Ta-ki.

Ta-ki.

Mitsuha threw herself onto her bed. "Taki, who are you!?!" She screamed into her pillow, clutching the small piece of paper in her fist.

Ta-ki.

Ta-ki.

She heard soft footsteps shuffle to her door frame, and she instantly recognized them as her grandma. She sat up quickly and straightened her back, silently praying her grandma didn't hear what she just screamed as the door opened.

"Grandma! Uh-- I was just-"

Hitoha put a hand up, gesturing for Mitsuha to let her guard down. Mitsuha relaxed her shoulders and let her grandma sit down next to her on the bed.

"-Yotsuha wanted to come up here and check on you. She said you were actin' 'weird' again." She smiled. "I came up here to ask you somethin'."

Hitoha grinned up at her granddaughter. "You told me you wanted to stay in Tokyo for a long time. Why's that so?"

Mitsuha pondered for a long moment. She couldn't bare the thought of trying to explain her complicated web of uneasy, nostalgic, fantastical emotions that have gathered since the comet struck.But, at the same time, her grandma would at least try to understand, right? It was Hitoha Miyamizu after all, Shinto priest, leader of Miyamizu shrine. She should understand something out of the ordinary.

"...I've never really said this out loud before, so forgive me if I ramble." Mitsuha started.

"-You know how... Whenever you think of a memory from when you were small, you can't remember anything specific, but you remember the feeling it gave you like it happened yesterday?"

Hitoha nodded thoughtfully.

"...That's how a lot of it feels before the comet. I can't describe it well, but after the comet, I feel like I lost more than just Itomori. I lost something precious. Something... That I should be remembering, because I had it at one point, I know I did, but... I can't remember what it was. Ever since the comet, I've been searching for what I've lost. ...But it's hard when the only thing I have to go off is a feeling." Mitsuha said.

"We've moved around so much the past 5 years, and each city we go to, I had the sense that I was no closer to finding what I'm looking for then when I started. But Tokyo... I got this feeling when I stepped off the train,like I was closerto finding whatever I'm looking for than ever. That's why I want to stay here."

Hitoha sighed blissfully. "Well, Mitsuha, to me, it seems you've been searching long before Comet Tiamat."

Mitsuha blinked rapidly in surprise. "--Huh?"

"-There was one day you came here, to Tokyo, and you told Yotsuha it was a date. But I think we're all aware you were searching for somethin' then, too."

Hitoha put a reassuring hand on Mitsuha's shoulder. "We can stay in Tokyo for as long as it takes you to find your missing link, whatever it may be, n'then some."

Mitsuha gazed at her grandma, teary-eyed and smiling, before she wrapped her arms around her.

"Thank you, grandma..."