Chapter 8
The Last Line.
Aira woke up with a strange feeling in her chest.
She reached for her wrist before she was even fully awake.
One white line remained.
She stared at it for a long moment.
Only one.
She immediately called Ren.
He answered almost at once.
“It's gone down to one, hasn't it?”
Aira swallowed.
“Yes.”
There was silence between them.
Neither of them needed to say what it meant.
They had one day left.
Aira got dressed and hurried to the station.
Ren was already there.
He looked exhausted, but he was standing straight, waiting for her.
“You came alone,” he said.
“So did you.”
“I wasn't sure you would.”
“I told you yesterday. We're not following the Keeper's rules.”
Aira held up the photograph.
Her sister's face was still visible.
The message remained.
Tomorrow, come alone.
Ren looked at it.
“We need to understand why she wants you alone.”
Aira nodded.
They entered the station together.
Nothing seemed unusual.
No mysterious train.
No strange voice.
No shadowy figure.
Then Aira noticed an old woman sitting on a bench.
The woman looked directly at her.
“Aira?”
Aira stopped.
“How do you know my name?”
The woman's eyes filled with tears.
“You look just like your mother.”
Aira's heart began beating faster.
“Did you know my family?”
The woman nodded.
“I knew your sister.”
Aira sat beside her.
“What happened to her?”
The woman looked toward the tracks.
“She told me you would come back one day.”
“When?”
“After you remembered.”
Aira's hands trembled.
“What did she want me to remember?”
The woman looked at Ren.
“And him.”
Ren leaned forward.
“What do you know about us?”
The woman sighed.
“You two were never supposed to forget each other.”
Aira stared at her.
“Then why did we?”
“Because your sister made a bargain.”
The words struck Aira like a blow.
“What bargain?”
“She gave the Keeper something in exchange for your lives.”
Aira could barely speak.
“What did she give?”
The woman looked at Aira.
“Her memories of you.”
Aira's eyes filled with tears.
“That doesn't make sense.”
“It does if you understand the rules.”
The woman pointed toward Aira's wrist.
“The Keeper cannot take someone completely unless that person's memories have already been erased from the people around them.”
Aira looked at Ren.
“And my sister?”
“She gave up every memory she had of you.”
Aira covered her mouth.
“That was the price.”
Ren looked down.
“So she forgot Aira to save her.”
The woman nodded.
“She forgot everyone she loved.”
Aira began crying.
Her sister hadn't abandoned her.
She had sacrificed the memories that connected them.
All these years, Aira had believed she had been forgotten because she wasn't important enough.
The truth was the opposite.
Her sister had forgotten her because she loved her enough to save her.
Aira wiped her tears.
“Can she remember me again?”
The woman didn't answer.
Aira understood.
“There's a price.”
“Yes.”
“What is it?”
The woman looked at Ren.
Aira followed her gaze.
Her heart sank.
“No.”
Ren immediately shook his head.
“Whatever you're thinking, no.”
The woman spoke quietly.
“The Keeper has already chosen.”
Aira stood.
“She can't have him.”
Ren stepped beside her.
“She doesn't get to choose.”
The woman looked at them sadly.
“You still don't understand.”
“What?”
“The seven days were never meant to decide which one of you disappears.”
Aira stared at her.
“Then what are they for?”
The woman's expression changed.
“To give you enough time to remember the promise you made as children.”
Ren froze.
Aira looked at him.
“What promise?”
The woman smiled faintly.
“You promised that if one of you ever disappeared, the other would find them.”
Aira's breath caught.
A memory flashed through her mind.
Two children standing at the station.
Ren cried.
Aira holding his hand.
Her sister is watching them.
Aira heard her younger voice.
I'll find you.
Then Ren's voice.
Even if you forget me?
Even if everyone forgets you.
Aira's eyes filled with tears.
She remembered.
Ren remembered too.
He looked at her.
“You said that.”
Aira smiled through her tears.
“So did you.”
The final line on Aira's wrist began to glow.
Then it disappeared.
Her wrist was completely clear.
Ren looked at his own.
Nothing remained there either.
Aira's heart stopped.
“It's over.”
The station lights went out.
A train appeared at the end of the platform.
Its doors opened.
This time, Aira could see her sister standing inside.
She looked exactly as she had before she disappeared.
Her eyes met Aira's.
“Aira.”
Aira stepped forward.
Ren caught her hand.
Her sister shook her head.
“Don't come alone.”
Aira stopped.
Her sister smiled.
“That's the promise.”
The Keeper appeared behind her.
Aira stared at her.
The Keeper looked at Ren.
Then she said,
“Now you remember.”
The train doors remained open.
Aira held Ren's hand tightly.
Neither of them moved.
They had spent seven days trying to escape the train.
Now they finally understood.
The train wasn't waiting for one of them.
It was waiting for both.
And for the first time, Aira wasn't afraid of disappearing.
She was afraid of what would happen if they chose not to go.
Ren looked at her.
“Whatever happens…”
Aira squeezed his hand.
“We go together.”
They stepped toward the train.
And somewhere deep inside the station, a forgotten clock began ticking again.