Wew, haven't touched this book for like 700 years

Also, I think I got a little too carried away, whoopsies.

Here's my side of the trade with MimiMa9, hope you like it~!

Also please don't look back at my old works, it's honestly so... ew

Edit: Added a ditting song that you can losten while reading this. Earphones highky recommended!

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Eight.

Eight years.

Eight painful years since that god-awful incident.

She wanted to forget it so badly, but she couldn't. Not when she was standing right in front of what was left of what happened. Dull lifeless yet swollen eyes wandered as it viewed every details of the carefully carved stone, parts of it which were covered in moss.

"Hi mom..." Mimi greeted sorrowfully. "It's me again."

The blonde teen crouched down, her long black dress making contact with the dry ground. She carefully placed down the bouquet of white tulips in front of the gravestone. Not a single tear fell from her eyes as she stared at her mother's name; at least, there wasn't any left to shed.

"Did you miss us?" Mimi asked softly.

Brushing away the stray strands of her hair, Mimi began to narrate what had been happening. "Dad's still busy as always, but I'm getting used to it, I think. We're still not as close as you hoped we'd be, and I don't know how to do that now that you're gone. My grades are getting better though, isn't it great? I'm moving up ranks real fast too. If I study harder, I'll reach the top 5. You'll be proud of me by then, right?"

"...you do forgive me... right...?"

"Come on, Sakura. It's time to go."

Every year at the same day, Mimi would visit her mother's grave along with her father. This day was also one of the very rare instances where she gets to see her dad, though the presence of one another was nowhere near welcoming nor familial each time. It all felt formal and authoritative; cold, emotionless, and empty. "I guess I'll see you next year," Mimi murmured, standing up. She gave the gravestone one last look before turning around.

With her head hung low, she began to follow her father towards the exit of the cemetery. With every step she took, a feeling inside her weighed heavier and heavier. She didn't understand it at first, but when her father began to speak, that feeling grew even stronger.

"You'll be brought back to the mansion for your regular schedule. I'm fully booked, so I won't be at dinner tonight, and don't call me between 16:00 and 19:00. I have an important experiment to work on and under no circumstance should I be interrupted. Are we clear on this, Sakura?"

"..."

"Speak up, Sakura. You know about the mumbling."

"I said... SHUT UP!"

The man stopped walking and turned around, his eyes wide with surprise. "Why do you even have to do this to me?!" Mimi screamed. Her hands were balled up to tight fists and her mouth was formed to a snarl. "Stop treating me like a goddamn robotic assistant who has to obey all these stupid rules and follow a nonsensical schedule!"

Frustration and anger laced in each and every word, and Mimi's father couldn't do much but to listen in silent shock at his daughter's outburst. "I know it's my fault; it's always been my fault why she's not here anymore! But why after all that you suddenly decided to push me away and treat me like a machine who feeds off your salary?!"

"Well I'm sorry I look like her, and I'm sorry I was stupid enough to love soccer! And because of that, she's gone! And I'm sorry I can't change that!"

The tears that seemed to be no more began to come out of Mimi's eyes once again. "I'm always trying to move on, but with you acting as if what happened was only yesterday, I can't!" At this point, Mimi's entire being was shaking with overflowing emotions. Her father tried to approach her, but Mimi took a step away.

"No! Don't try to say to forget it like every year, because every single damn time you're just being a hypocrite!"

"Maybe... maybe if I wasn't here, none of this would have ever happened!"

And with that, Mimi took off. She ran past her father, who stood still without knowing what to say or do, for once in his life. Out of the cemetery gates and into the busy streets, the indescribable amount of anger and sadness is what drove her to wherever she might go.

At this point she was willing to go just about anywhere. Anywhere but with him. With them.

"Hello, Miss Sakura. We are glad to see you again."

"Good morning, Madame! Did you have a good night's sleep?"

"Miss Sakura, your lunch is prepared at the dining room."

"Madame, it's time to go in the study hall."

Those voices... those voices that bore empty sweetness in their robotic greetings, and those humanoid faces that wore nothing but plastered smiles... all these years, Mimi felt more like she was living with robots than humans. She felt like her entire life was just... a stage play.

There was no care, there was no love, and there was no compassion ever since her mother left the mortal world.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!"

Even more tears came out of Mimi's eyes as the sweet memories of her mother arose, taunting her even more. "PLEASE STOP!" the girl screamed, pumping her legs even faster. Her thoughts were so full that reality and everything else was just a blur as she ran, as if it could help her run away; far away from those memories she wished she could hold dear, but can't. Away from her father who was now a complete stranger to her. Away from the place she used to call home. Away from everything that reminded her of the past that countless times she wanted to change.

"I never meant it! I never wanted it! I... I-!"

Beep! Beep!

Everything slowed down to an almost complete stop, and Mimi grew aware of her all that surrounded her. From the tall green trees that lined the busy pathways to the small insects that flew about, she could feel it all. From across the street, she could see a family of three through the glass wall of a small restaurant, all eating together.

They all wore genuine smiles of joy and satisfaction as they talked. Mimi could feel their warmth and comfort from where she was, and as the tears seemed to flow back with time, there was only one thing that crossed her mind:

"That could've been us right now."

"MIMI!"

Shirou had managed to grab the girl, pulling her back to the sidewalk a second before a white van zoomed past at high speed. Mimi crashed onto him, causing both of them to topple down on the pavement. Shirou had managed to sit up first, immediately rushing over to Mimi.

"Hey, Mimi, are you okay?"

The called girl didn't respond as her gaze remained fixed to the ground. Her eyes were distant and her body was still as her mind process everything that just happened. It could've happened... it could've happened again! All over again!

"Hey! Can you hear me?" Shirou asked.

Mimi could feel a hand on each of her shoulder, slowly retracting her back to reality. Every noise was a blur, but she could hear distinct footsteps that slowly grew closer.

"Hey, Shirou! What's the big deal, leaving us behind like that?!"

Shirou didn't reply to Mamoru as he focused on the unresponsive girl that sat in front of him. "Hey, Mimi," he called out silently. There was nothing but silence as Mamoru and some of the other Raimon team members approached them, all wearing the same faces of surprise.

"What-"

Gouenji, who was the nearest to Mamoru, nudged the brown-haired boy, signaling him to stay quiet. A moment passed before Mimi finally seemed to snap back, and the first thing she did was to curl herself up. Her heart seemed to stop and her eyes were wide with fear as the last few seconds replayed in her mind.

"It should've been me..."

Mimi looked up from the ground, her puffy blue eyes slowly making contact with Shirou's worried grey ones. "It's not my fault... right?" she asked in a hoarse voice. Shirou didn't know what happened to her, but he knew what she meant, so he gave her a sure no.

"Do you - uh, need some comfort right now?" he asked awkwardly.

"I... I think..." Mimi answered almost inaudibly.

Shirou was hesitating for a moment but finally willed himself to give the tired girl a rather awkward hug. He avoided eye contact from everyone, a little flustered with what he's doing. "Are you... okay staying with us for a bit?" he suggested softly, and he felt Mimi nod slightly.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

A nod.

"Can you stand up?"

Another nod.

Slowly, the two people stood up, with Shirou helping Mimi. The boy looked at his friends, who were all watching in stunned silence. "Let's go somewhere peaceful," he requested them. "How about the soccer field? No one's using it, so we can have some privacy there," Mamoru suggested.

Shirou was about to agree, but then he felt Mimi try to step away. "Oh, right..." he remembered, a sense of pity passing through his eyes. "How about the cafe two stores away? It's small and quiet," he suggested instead. A small smile of gratefulness broke on her lips, a little glad that Shirou took her thoughts into consideration.

"That... would be... nice..."

"Are you okay with walking?"

"Yeah..."

So they slowly began walking, with almost each and every one beginning to question Mimi of what happened. "Guys, can you calm down for a bit?" Shirou spoke up "We're all equally worried for her, but she needs some time to recover. You know what happened..."

The group fell into remorseful silence, mutually understanding what he meant. "You know Mimi, you can stay with us for the meantime," Mamoru spoke up enthusiastically, trying to break from the depressing mood. "Yeah!" Handa agreed. "We know you've been hella stressed right now, so if you need someplace to unwind, you can always come to us."

Mimi looked at them, quite unsure of what to say. "Mimi, I know you don't like soccer anymore, but that doesn't mean we can't be friends," Shirou followed, flashing a warm smile as he gave a reassuring squeeze on her shoudler. Mimi couldn't help but smile back in response, feeling the weight of her chest lighten.

"Thank you... everyone..."

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Look, Mimi's burned out from a series of emotional breakdowns so she couldn't care less who's comforting her at the moment 'cause she knows she really needed one. That's my excuse for them to hug .w.

Everyone's gonna tease them when everything's better, though (I headcanon Mimi and the other casts as friends and that she's very open to them don't me)

Fun fact: I have never seen Inazuma Eleven once in my life, so you're basically reading a one-shot by someone who has no idea what the anime's about

Except for a fact that's it's something about soccer.

Shirou sounds like a real sweetheart though, I'll give you that.

Edit 1: an additional rough sketch 'cause why not