Let the Rain Fall
Pass the broccolini
Author's Note: Sorry for the delay (again). Thank you for reviewing! I hope you enjoy this chapter. Oh, I'm going to start another His and Her Circumstances fic soon, but it will fit in more with the rest of the series. I'm going to be really busy the next week or so, but after that, it should come out. Anyway, here's the chapter! Enjoy!
Chapter Ten:
Arima took a deep breath as he sat on a bench in the park. He had called Miyazawa and she had agreed to meet him here. It was time they got things straightened out. Sure, she hadn't been the best girlfriend the past week, but he hadn't been the best boyfriend either. He was just tired and stressed. The voice in his head was nothing more than a figment of his imagination, a method of dealing with stress. He hadn't heard from "it" in a few days. He leaned back against the bench, briefly closing his eyes when he heard the voice of his favorite redhead.
"Hi!"
She gave a small wave and sat down beside him, setting her black purse with the sunflower pin on it by her side.
"Hi Miyazawa."
They remained in silence for a moment, not knowing where to begin.
"I'm so sorry about this week—", they chimed in unison. They both blushed slightly. Great minds think alike, eh?
"Miyazawa, I—"
"No…it's not you, I've just been so stressed lately."
"Me too."
"I haven't been thinking about your feelings or…or my image when I'm with Asaba. You know we're just friends. Other people just don't see it that way. You know you're the only one I love."
Arima felt shudders ripple through his heart. She loved him. She said it herself. Redness rushed to his cheeks once more. Wow. He was loved.
"I…"
Miyazawa put a finger to his lips.
"Don't apologize for anything. Let's just…start over. Pretend this week never happened, ok?"
"Ok."
They sat in silence once more. Arima's pale hand crept across the few inches that separated them to grasp her own. Wordlessly, they held hands for a few moments and enjoyed the presence of each other. To love and be loved was all most people ever wanted. Most people spent their whole loves trying to find what was sitting next to them on a park bench. There was nothing about her argument that seemed concocted or spurious…she was genuinely in love with him.
No, she's not.
Arima jerked upright immediately. No. Please. Not now…not when things are just starting to get better.
"Is something wrong, Arima?"
Kill her. Kill her. Kill her. You know you wannnnnnt to Arima. C'mon. It's so easy. There's no one around to hear her scream.
No. I love her. She loves me.
She hates you! How many times have we gone over this? She only likes you because she's a greedy social climber who
"NO!"
Arima jumped to his feet instantaneously. Beads of sweat began to form at his hairline, and Miyazawa was now extremely concerned.
"Arima…what's wrong?"
He couldn't hear her. Her voice was but a barely audible echo in the back of his mind. A wrenching feeling gripped his stomach and heart, twisting them into grotesque positions.
You're your father's boy, Arima, whether you like it or not.
I'm my own person! You can't control me, whatever you are!
The voice started laughing, but Arima was the only one who could hear it.
What do you think I am? The wind? I'm you, Arima. The real you. The real self behind the mask that Miyazawa ripped off.
No. I'm good. I'm not a bad person. I'm not a murderer.
Murdering a deceitful woman is not a crime. It doesn't make you a bad person, it makes you strong.
That's disgusting. No. I won't listen. No. No. No. I'm stronger than you. I'm stronger than this. I love her!
Arima had curled into a crouched ball on the ground, hands covering his ears. His head was twitching back and forth, and he started mumbling "No, no. No. I can't. No. No." Miyazawa noticed he was shaking and became genuinely scared. Arima was rarely, if ever, afraid. Even when he had been reliving his nightmarish childhood with his biological parents, he had never been like this. She crouched beside him and reached out a pale hand to touch his arm.
Fearfully, she whispered to Arima. "Are you okay? Wha—what's wrong?"
"GO AWAY!"
Arima shouted angrily and yanked his arm away, still lost in dialogue with his insane inner conscious. Go away. Go away. I don't want to kill her.
Miyazawa tried again. She reached for him, trying to comfort her true love. This must be some past repercussion from his past. Some momentary psychological flashback. He just needed some compassion, and then it would past.
"Arima…"
"GO AWAY!"
This time, Arima reacted violently. He sharply withdrew his arm and lashed it back at her, sending her to the ground. The sharp slap woke Arima out of his trance.
"No, I-I'm sorry. I thought…"
Miyazawa looked up at him with tear-filled eyes from her position in the dirt. The new jeans she had worn just to impress Arima were soiled now, but she didn't care. Arima had shouted and yelled before, they both had, but never raised a hand against her. She turned away from him and started sprinting away.
"No! Miyazawa!"
Finally. She's out of your life.
Arima sprinted after her, tears spilling out of his eyes as well. He hadn't meant to hurt her. He would never hurt her. It was the voice. All he could hear was it telling him to cause pain on those around him. The slap had really been a violent reaction to the voice, not abuse. As Arima gained on her, Miyazawa looked around and noticed she was being followed.
"Miyazawa! Come back!"
She was terrified now. He's coming to hurt me. I can't let him get to me. There's no one around, and he's so much stronger than I am.
She kept running as fast as she could, and Arima steadily gained on her. A mixture of sweat and tears was dripping down his face as he followed her through the park. They were coming to an intersection, where she would probably scream for help and any chances of apologizing would be destroyed.
"Miyazawa! I love you! I--", he gasped for breath, "I'm sorry!"
She kept running, despite hearing her name called. She couldn't trust him anymore. All that she had thought about the beautiful, intelligent, charming boy had been a lie. He had hurt her! They were such good friends, too. She had just been trying to help. She kept running and sped up once she saw the familiar crosswalk and intersection. People! He would never ruin his public reputation by hurting her in public. That would give her enough time to get home and call someone for help.
"MIYAZAWA!"
Arima skidded to a halt and shrieked the name of the girl he loved more than anything in the entire world. It was too late. Miyazawa had been so caught up in her attempt to flee that she hadn't noticed the sixteen wheel truck speeding along the highway. In one short moment, her entrails had been spilled along the highway.
"No!"
Arima rushed to the scene of the crime. Everything now seemed to be in both slow motion and triple speed at the same time. The truck slowing down. The passersby gasping in shock. Miyazawa's mutilated corpse strewn across the world and the frozen expression on her face. Her last expression was a look of pure terror. He had caused this. He had caused all of this.
Arima threw up.
He had only wanted to love her. This was his fault.
Despite the puke covering part of the front of his shirt, he knelt down by the side of the road and began crying. The tears couldn't be stopped, even if he had wanted to.
Don't cry, Arima. You wanted to kill her all along. It was all you. And besides, what do you need her for? You've got me.
Arima wiped the tears off on his shirt and headed home.
So…what do you think about the ending? I didn't think Arima had enough hate in him to kill her himself. Anyway, I'd appreciate your opinions.
Oh, and to all of you with boy/girlfriends out there, even if your significant other is as charming as Arima, don't ever tolerate even the most seemingly minor abuse and/or disrespect for your feelings. Run away. (Just don't run into a 16-Wheeler. - )
Hope you enjoyed it! Please review!