"I seem to feel it's so unreal; Envy, envy, envy. How cute. But it's just so disgusting..."

How do you know when you're lonely?

It's a simple enough question - One with a simple enough intent, and yet it can draw so many different things from those who consider it seriously.

How do you know when you're lonely?

It's simple, and yet it's harder to answer if you think about it.

The truth of the matter is that there's no way to truly know when you're lonely.

On one hand, when you find discomfort in being all on your own in an empty room, yes that can be lonely.

For some people that's what loneliness is, but that's not quite it.

That's not quite the truth in the matter.

True loneliness is being in a room full of people that you care greatly about, such as friends, or family, and yet it still feels like nobody's there at all.

You can see everything happening around you, hear everything because you're there.

And yet it's like nobody can see you.

It's like nobody can hear you.

It's cute in a disgusting kind of way at first - You stop to watch in wonder as everything continues without a hitch, without a single hiccup from the change you've put in place just by stopping to watch.

But then when you realize that nobody's noticed you stop, you realize just how invisible you really are.

Is someone there?

Can someone hear?

When you realize the answer to those two questions, you have your answer.

Envy, sickly and sweet.

Cute in a disgusting way, you begin to envy those that have yet to stop.

Because now that you've stopped and realized that you're lonely, it's already escaped out of your fingers.

When you stop to consider the question to that extent, it's no longer a simple question.

Once you've considered it that far, everything changes.

Shiota Nagisa let out a sigh as he stepped out of his house on a Saturday afternoon, his gaze narrowed and his brow furrowed as he attempted to push his frustration to one side.

It was towards the middle of autumn, the beginning of October and the beginning of the cooler weather.

For the early half of the season, the weather and plant-life was already beginning to change faster than he felt normal. The leaves of many trees were beginning to turn earthen colours, and clouds filled the skies to cast a cooler, more comfortable atmosphere to the area.

There was a cool wind that swept across Nagisa's face, aiding him in the task of offsetting his frustrations.

He'd just woken up from an afternoon nap, and decided to go for a walk before his mother decided to call him for something. He managed to leave the house in jeans and an earth-green jumper, instead of the little purple dress his mother had just bought to have him wear instead.

Despite the fact that he and his mother were on somewhat ... stable terms, that didn't mean that she didn't continue to try and have him dress entirely in girls clothes.

It was a frustration that he was rather used to, even though he didn't want to admit it.

Nagisa was rather used to his androgynous appearances, and he was quite used to the people outside of his home life teasing him for it.

In a begrudging manner, he was also used to being forced to cross-dress by some of his friends, too.

It was lonely on his side of the fence, where most interactions people had with him were in regards to his androgynous appearances.

It felt like nobody could really see all that much of him past it.

Yes, it felt like nobody could see him.

And it bothered him in a sickly sweet way.

He didn't like to acknowledge the fact that he was envious of some of the other boys in his grade, who never had to deal with being mistaken for a girl.

Letting out a breath through his nose, Nagisa decided that he didn't feel like spending time with anyone right now.

Instead of calling his best friend, Sugino Tomohito like he had planned, he pocketed his phone and began to wander in the opposite direction to the train station.

He felt like just wandering around to his hearts content, taking in the autumn atmosphere and cooling down without prodding questions from anyone.

Losing himself in thought, Nagisa's feet lead him in a direction he'd never really gone before, and before he knew it, he was somewhere he didn't recognize. It was as he jerked out of thought at the cold chill in the air that he realized there wasn't anyone around, either.

Coming to a halt at the corner of an intersection, Nagisa's sharp gaze traced his surroundings as he tried to make heads or tails of where he was.

It didn't matter if he got lost - He could easily ask Ritsu to help him out and show his location on a GPS map.

He was more or less curious about why he couldn't see or hear anybody around.

There were the few birds drifting along in the skies above him, the trees swaying with the cool breeze, and the far-off sounds of a dog barking. The colour of the light had changed quite a bit - A gold hue touched the air around Nagisa, telling him that it had been a few hours since he'd left home, and yet he hadn't noticed.

There were signs of many normal things around him, those of which gave him a clear understanding of his surroundings.

But no people.

It was peculiar, in an eerie sense that reminded him of the small little emotional barrier that separated him from the people he associated with.

It reminded him that he was a little lonely, despite how warm and friendly his classmates were.

As the breeze eased off that Nagisa picked up on the far-off sounds of a peculiar tune in the air.

It was peculiar, because it was an odd thing to hear in the middle of a desolate and quiet part of town.

It was peculiar, because while it was approaching the season for it, Nagisa didn't expect to hear the faint hints of Carnival music on the air.

It didn't make sense - If he could hear Carnival music, then by all rights there should be people around, too.

Even if it wasn't face to face, he should still be able to hear voices.

Nagisa thought carefully for a few seconds, before he pulled his phone from his pocket and checked how much power he had left.

Thankfully, his phone was still fully charged, so it didn't matter if he wandered around for hours longer.

He'd still be able to get ahold of Ritsu if he needed it.

So with that, Nagisa pocketed his phone in preference of investigating that peculiar sound.

It was eerie to find no sign of anyone nearby, even worse the closer he got to what he knew to be a Carnival.

He could just hear the music, just see the stalls, rides and attractions.

And yet there was nobody here.

This was proven to be true as Nagisa found the main entrance at the front of a desolate parking lot.

There was a shopping centre nearby, with many vehicles and lights on inside, and further along there was a park. However right here at the Carnival, there was not a soul in sight.

Because of the music, Nagisa couldn't hear anyone, either.

Nagisa stood at the entrance to the Carnival as he thought carefully on what he was going to do.

He didn't feel like going home, nor did he feel like he wanted to go anywhere else, either.

A voice in the back of his head told him that this was very suspicious - That it was very, very wrong to find a Carnival open to the public, and yet there's not a soul to be seen anywhere.

He'd even stopped to consider that something had happened - Perhaps an assassination was underway, and all bystanders had fled the scene the very second they realized there was a killer on the loose?

Despite all the plausible reasons his mind would come up with in order to steer him away, his gut feeling and curiosity got the better of him instead.

Nagisa gave one last glance to his surroundings, before he walked through the main entrance of the Carnival.

The apprehensive thoughts that he had about this place seemed to melt away the moment he walked through the gate, replaced with peculiar intrigue as he looked around as he walked.

There was a Ferris Wheel in the distance, a Dodgem-Dome towards the right, even what looked to be a sideshow alley over to the left.

But that wasn't what caught Nagisa's attention.

Somewhere in the centre of the expansive Carnival grounds was a Carousel, or a Merry-Go-Round as some people would call it.

Nagisa could see the top of the Carousel from where he was right now; Bright red with gold inlay, spinning slowly as the eerie music played through the air.

Curious, his gut feeling telling him this was the way he wanted to go, Nagisa began to wander down the maze-like alleys towards the spinning attraction, his gaze tracing his surroundings as his ears listened to the harrowing tune in the air.

Not a single person was here - He was sure of it.

If there was, he should have heard them by now.

Carnivals were supposed to be a happy thing, but all Nagisa got from this place was that it was very lonely, it's colourful atmosphere a desperate cry out for others.

In an eerie way, it reminded him of Koro-sensei.

The creature was probably very lonely, and yet his disposition and appearances at most times were similar in volume to this place; Loud, deceptively jovial.

Maybe Koro-sensei was just as lonely as everyone else?

Nagisa's thoughts were cut short however by the most peculiar of sounds.

It was a sound that should fit for a Carnival, and yet he'd gotten so used to the emptiness this place had that it startled him.

A voice, so silver in sound.

He couldn't pinpoint where it was coming from, only that it was feminine, and seemed to bounce around him in a disorientating way. It was a chiming laugh, something that sounds like fun, and yet there was something about it that made Nagisa's hair stand on end.

Hesitantly, awkwardly, Nagisa cleared his throat and called out through the overbearing music that swallowed up the silvery voice.

'Is someone there?' Nagisa called out, straining his ears for any sign of response to his words.

However there were no sounds to meet his call.

Despite this, he felt like maybe, there was someone here after all.

Maybe, this was someone who had been drawn to this place in just the same way he had?

Maybe, they'd been here for a while and become deaf to the world?

Despite the eeriness of his surroundings, Nagisa continued on.

There were many thoughts swimming around in his head as he traversed this strange, otherworldly place, some of which were more realistic than others.

One thought was that in a strange way, it felt like he was soul-searching right now, while another was that he'd managed to walk through an invisible barrier separating this world from everything else.

Of course, Nagisa wasn't so lost in these thoughts that he'd follow them with conviction.

It wasn't long before Nagisa reached the centre of the Carnival, and yet apart from that silver sounding voice, he hadn't encountered a single sign of another soul.

He began to wonder if he was hearing things.

However he found proof that he hadn't the moment he'd reached the Carousel.

It was the biggest Carousel he'd ever seen in his life, easily large enough to fit the whole of his class on it with seats to spare. The horses that adorned the Carousel were all very different in colours and designs, some green and black, others pink and purple. There was even one with varying shades of blue alone.

A girl about his own age was sitting side-saddle facing inwards on one of the white and red painted horses attached to the Carousel by red and gold poles, her (h/c) hair flowing behind her gently with the breeze that swept against her face. She was in a simple lolita-dress in (f/c) with a simple pair of ballet flats on her feet. Around her right wrist was what looked to be a silver chain with an ornamental, decorative silver and ruby key hanging from the chain.

Through the mirrors that covered the central pillar of the huge Carousel, Nagisa could see that she was staring into the glass with clouded, unseeing (e/c) eyes. At first he wondered if the girl was even there, for she didn't move or show any sign of life.

But it was on the third revolution of the Carousel that he saw her actually move.

The eyes of the girl reflected in the central pillar of the carousel cleared all of a sudden, and her reflection locked eyes with him. Lucid recognition began to show in her eyes as the Carousel's spinning brought the girl to become obscured from his sight behind the central pillar.

But as soon as the horse she was sitting on came back into view on the other side of the pillar, she was gone.

In her place was that same voice with a silver sound, giggling with laughter that was just as harrowing as it was musical, bouncing, disorientating as it whirled around the carousel.

Nagisa's form turned rigid as the eeriness began to escalate to freaky, and he wasn't sure if he wanted to be here anymore.

'Hello~!'

The musical, silvery voice spoke up from right behind him all of a sudden, startling Nagisa out of his wits.

With a startled yell, the boy threw himself forward and turned to face whatever had managed to sneak up on him.

Standing there right where he had been standing was the same girl, her hands linked behind her back as she smiled brightly up at Nagisa with coherent eyes. She stood a couple inches shorter than himself, with a delicate build to accompany her height. That same silvery laughter escaped her as she gazed at Nagisa's startled expression. A hairline silver scar ran down the column of her neck from her right ear, so faint he almost didn't see it.

Uncertain of whether he really was seeing her, however, Nagisa blinked warily as he straightened up out of his coiled posture.

'Umm ... Who are you?' Nagisa asked hesitantly, uncertainly.

The strange girl with the (h/c) hair answered with rather oddly chosen words.

'(F/n) will do ... I think.' The girl responded, that smile still across her face.

Nagisa nodded his head ever so slightly in understanding, his brow furrowing as the girl smiled a little more and gave a small curtsy.

He wasn't entirely sure if the girl being unsure of her own name was a good omen.

Did she have amnesia, or something?

If she did, then maybe that was why she had been staring at her reflection with empty eyes?

That chiming, silver voice laughed out again, startling Nagisa with little effort.

However, as Nagisa broke out of his spooked train of thought he found that the girl had vanished.

'Are you lost, too?' The girl's voice sung out in the air, mixing with the Carnival tune as Nagisa struggled to comprehend what was going on. 'Or, are you actually here to play with me, Mister?'

Nagisa managed to spot the girl sitting on the moving horses on the revolving Carousel, her right leg crossed over her left, and her left hand cradling her chin as she watched him.

'Wait - Play?' Nagisa asked, shaking his head to try and rid himself of his stupor.

'That's right.' The girl presumably called (F/n) agreed, her eyes alight with amusement that seemed far too disconnected for Nagisa's comfort.

Or it might have been the whole situation that was doing that to him, not necessarily the girl alone.

'Umm ... Are you alone here, (F/n)?' Nagisa asked as he began to approach the strange girl, keeping his gaze trained on her.

'There's no-one here.' (F/n) responded, swinging her legs lightly as Nagisa pulled himself onto the revolving Carousel, and continued to approach her.

'Then why are you here?' Nagisa couldn't help but ask, reaching out to grab ahold of the pole supporting the horse opposite the one which (F/n) sat upon.

'I don't remember.' (F/n) responded cutely, tilting her head to the side ever so slightly as she spoke.

'You don't remember?'

The more Nagisa spoke to the girl, the more he felt sure that she had amnesia, of some kind at least.

And yet there was something in her eyes that felt far too coherent for her to have amnesia.

'There used to be people here - Lots of people.' (F/n) spoke up on a seemingly unrelated tangent, though Nagisa let her continue as he pulled himself up to sit on the horse in front of her. 'But they all went away one by one - They vanished like they were never here to begin with.'

To Nagisa, it sounded like she was thinking of Koro-sensei's Mach 20 speed.

But of course that was impossible.

'They vanished?' Nagisa repeated curiously. 'You mean they went home, don't you?'

(F/n) smiled sweetly at him, however she didn't say anything.

But then she was suddenly gone the moment Nagisa had blinked.

'(F-F/n)?' Nagisa stammered out, his eyes widening as the eerie feeling in the air began to thicken quickly.

'Time doesn't work here, Mister.' (F/n)'s voice rung out from the right, causing Nagisa to snap his alarmed gaze over immediately.

He found that the girl was walking backwards in a zig-zagging line through the sea of horses that moved along with the Carousel, her smiling gaze still upon his face.

'Time doesn't work ...?'

'That's right.' She agreed, in exactly the same way she had said those words just a minute before. 'At least I don't think it does - Not when the world starts turning orange, anyway.'

It was as she said that, when Nagisa realized what she'd been calling him.

She called him 'Mister'.

'Wait - Mister?!' Nagisa gasped out in surprise, earning a curious look from (F/n) as he threw himself off of the horse he was on.

'Is there someone here, Mister?' (F/n) questioned him.

Nagisa ignored her rather eerie question as he grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her to a stop.

'What did you call me?' He questioned her, his tone insistent, much to the confusion of the strange girl.

'What am I supposed to call you?' (F/n) asked him in a curious tone.

It was as soon as her words hit him that Nagisa realized he'd never introduced himself.

His face flushed a rather noticeable shade of pink as he quickly let go of her wrist.

'Sh-Shiota Nagisa ...' He hedged, looking away from the girl furtively as he began to feel rather embarrassed with himself. 'Nagisa's fine ...'

'Nagisa, then?' (F/n) clarified, causing the embarrassed boy to glance back at her.

He gave a small, uncomfortable hum of agreement as he began to scratch his head sheepishly.

However it didn't appear to bother (F/n).

Instead, her silver toned laugh escaped her as she disappeared into thin air once again.

But for the first time since coming here, it didn't exactly startle or bother Nagisa.

Instead, he turned his head towards the red and white horse that he'd first seen her sitting on, to find her sitting there.

He was curious about her words, however.

The very specific way she referred to him as 'Mister', as if there was no doubt in her mind that he was a boy.

It was rather peculiar.

'Ano ... (F/n)?' Nagisa began as he went to approach her yet again. 'Why were you calling me Mister, before?'

(F/n) turned her head to fix Nagisa with that same curious look as her head tilted ever so slightly to the right.

'Why? You're a boy, are you not?' She asked, confusion dancing in her eyes as Nagisa came to a stop just a few feet in front of her.

'You can tell, just like that?' He asked her.

(F/n) seemed a little perplexed by his question, yet she nodded all the same.

'I've seen boys with long hair before, just like I've seen girls with really short hair, too.' (F/n) responded with a thoughtful tone. 'Is it a bad thing I thought you're a boy?'

'Not at all!' Nagisa responded immediately, shaking his head frantically as he realized what she'd asked. 'A-actually, it makes me really happy that someone could tell...'

In fact, it really did.

That edge of loneliness inside of him began to melt away as he told himself that she'd not once referred to him as a girl.

She'd not once looked at him like everyone else did.

She saw him for who he really was, didn't she?

It was as he came to that understanding where he began to really like this girl.

(F/n) began to swing her legs slightly as she watched Nagisa's rather sheepish smile.

'Do you often get mistaken for a girl, Nagisa?'

He gave a small, reluctant nod in answer to her question.

The strange, but oddly very cute girl called (F/n) cast Nagisa an understanding smile before she slid off of the brightly coloured horse to stand right in front of him.

'Then, you can stay here with me~!' She sung, a sweet smile dancing across her features bright enough to actually cause Nagisa to blush. 'You're the first person that's come here in months - Or maybe just for as long as I can remember right now! It's not like you'll get mistaken for a girl when there's nobody here to begin with!'

'E-eh?!' Nagisa was surprised by her words.

Maybe she did have a case of amnesia, after all?

'Hasn't anyone come looking for you, (F/n)?' Nagisa couldn't help but ask the girl.

Concern began to overcome him as her sweet smile began to fade bit by bit from his question.

'(F/n)?'

'I'm all alone. I like playing alone.' (F/n) said after what felt like a long time. 'It's so happy, and fun, and lonely, too...'

Nagisa did not quite understand what she was saying, but his gut feeling told him that it wasn't good.

'"Is someone there?" Isn't that what you called out when you got here?' (F/n) asked him.

Shocked, and a little perturbed, Nagisa nodded his head as he recalled his first words upon walking through the gate of the Carnival.

'But ... there's no-one here, right?' Nagisa spoke slowly, becoming unsure of his understanding of his surroundings the more crestfallen the girl looked. 'We're the only two here, aren't we?'

(F/n) was silent at first, breaking her gaze away from Nagisa in preference for looking down at the floor of the Carousel.

It was that very second that Nagisa realized it had actually come to a stop.

'I'm the only one here...' (F/n) eventually answered, closing her eyes with a small breath through her nose. 'At least, when you vanish like everyone else, I will be.'

'I-I don't understand...'

'Everyone who comes here, they're not awake. They're not really here...' (F/n) spoke up, her hands wringing in front of her as Nagisa stared down at her lonely little form. 'You only leave here when you wake up.'

'Wake up ...? But I am awake!'

'Do you remember how you got here, Nagisa?' (F/n) asked, lifting her gaze to look up at him, and it was right in this instance that he realized she was on the verge of tears.

He had no idea how long she'd been here, but from the look in her eyes she'd been here for a long, long time.

But her question struck his mind hard, and he could only gape at her as the words had recollection begin to surface.

Or rather, a lack of recollection began to make sense to him.

No, he didn't remember how he got here at all - He'd been lost in thought ever since he left through the front door of his house.

Wait - The front door?

'I ... I never left home?' Nagisa whispered, his unseeing gaze upon the girl's face.

Everyone who comes here, they're not awake. They're not really here...

Nagisa recalled that he was tired because he stayed up late talking to Sugino about that baseball game.

You only leave here when you wake up.

Pure, undiluted comprehension and shock overcame Nagisa as he put two and two together, and for the first time in a very long time, he was floored.

'...I'm still asleep? This is just a dream?!' He whispered to nobody but himself, and yet (F/n) in front of him nodded ever so slightly.

'You'll wake soon - Everyone else does, after all.'

Nagisa suddenly focused his attention back on (F/n) as he realized the gravity of what she had just said.

'But - you said you've been here for as long as you can remember! How long ago was that?!'

No answer.

(F/n) smiled sadly at the bewildered boy, the tears welled up in her eyes finally beginning to slip down the sides of her face as Nagisa stared wordlessly at her.

'How long have you been all alone like this?' He eventually asked, as all the sounds around them began to grind to a halt.

'Unmeasurable, I have no comprehension of time.' (F/n) eventually spoke, the lights around them beginning to turn off one by one as he stared at the girl standing in front of him. 'Seven times the Carousel has stopped - Seven times the world turns orange and time grinds to a halt, flickering like a light about to go out.'

'Seven times the world turns orange?!' Nagisa repeated frantically, his mind racing to decipher her words before the light went out.

Something in her words were right there - So obvious, and yet he just couldn't grasp it.

Why seven?

Why orange?!

Why does the world turn orange here?!

And then it hit him, so hard he was practically winded.

The world turns orange when time stops - It has done so seven times since she came here.

She's been here for seven Autumns.

She's been all alone, trapped here for seven whole years.

'(F/n)-' Nagisa gasped out, hands reaching forward to grab the tearful girl.

Until the last light in the Carnival grounds shuts off, rendering him both blind and deaf.

'You need to wake up now, Nagisa.' (F/n)'s silver toned voice spoke through the darkness, bouncing all around him like the first time he'd heard her voice. 'You can't linger here anymore...'

No, he didn't want to go just yet - He didn't want to leave her all alone in this place.

I'm all alone - I like playing alone.

No, he knew she didn't like it.

She was just saying that so she could pretend she wasn't lonely here.

She was saying it so that nobody could tell just how miserable she really was.

'You can't stay here, (F/n)!' Nagisa shouted through the dark, propelled forward by an unfamiliar desire. 'You've got to wake up, too!'

All he knew was he didn't want to leave her here all alone.

'It's okay. This is a Carnival, after all.' (F/n)'s voice spoke, bouncing through the dark as Nagisa's grip on the world began to leave his grasp. 'I'll dance here all by myself forever more.'

That's what he couldn't accept - He couldn't accept that she was going to spend a minute longer all alone here.

He couldn't accept that she'd already spent so long trapped here all alone.

But it was too late - There was nothing he could do.

The world faded from his grasp before he could tell her.

I'm all alone - I like playing alone.

So leave me alone.

No.

'That's a lie ...'

And then, Nagisa woke up.

He awoke to find himself lying on his bed back in his bedroom at home, his hair a mess and his heart racing like he'd just run a marathon. A cold, trickling sensation down the sides of his face told him that he was crying too.

Crying for the lonely girl he'd met at a Carnival in his dream.

The light in the room was dim, late for a Saturday afternoon, and Nagisa had no idea what was going on.

He had no true comprehension of where he was.

The only comprehension he had was that the dream he'd just woken up from felt more real than the world he was in right now.

Disorientated, Nagisa dragged himself upright to look around his room for a few seconds in silence. The world was becoming orange outside his window, just like with every other October he'd lived through.

She's been trapped there for seven whole years.

Nagisa's heart felt heavy despite the rational thoughts that coursed through his head.

That was a dream - It had to be a dream for him to wake up dressed in exactly the same clothes, in exactly the same position as he was when he went to sleep last.

And yet his gut told him that he was being too rational.

There was nothing normal about Koro-sensei, and yet the yellow teacher existed. His gut told him that he'd be stupid to wave this off as a dream - His heart actually clenched painfully when he considered listening to his mind, after all.

Yet he didn't know what he should do.

All he had to go by was what she thought was her first name, and her appearances.

He had nothing else to go by.

Bothered, but regaining his sense of reality, Nagisa reached for his phone as his gut told him to do something.

Even if he thought Nagisa was losing his mind, the blue-clad boy's gut feeling told him to talk to his best friend about this.

So that's what Nagisa was going to do.

Keying in the information for Sugino's phone, Nagisa let out a breath as he pressed 'dial' and pressed the speaker to his ear.

The monotonous dialing tone echoed through the ear-piece as Nagisa flopped backwards onto the bed so that he was staring up at the ceiling once again.

'Yo, Nagisa!' Spoke the bright, kind voice belonging to his best friend, Sugino Tomohito after what was probably a good ten seconds.

'Hey, Sugino.' Nagisa greeted the baseball fan quietly.

Silence echoed through the line for a few seconds, before Sugino spoke up.

'What's wrong? You sound under the weather.' Sugino's tone was concerned, moreso than Nagisa was used to hearing from the empathic boy.

'I uh ... had a strange dream ... I was wondering if I could tell you about it?' Nagisa hedged, suddenly feeling rather unsure of how he was going to talk about this.

He was suddenly a little uncertain if he wanted to even talk to anyone about it.

'As long as it's not a perverted kinda strange like with Koro-sensei or Okajima, go for it.' Sugino urged through the line.

A sheepish smile touched Nagisa's face as he continued to stare up at the ceiling.

He could always count on Sugino to put things in a perspective that would actually make him feel better.

So Nagisa began to describe the dream he'd had in detail, from when he'd stumbled upon the Carnival, through to the way that the girl called (F/n) spoke in that musical, silver sounding voice.

Sugino hadn't said a word the whole time, and the only reason Nagisa knew he was still there was because he could hear the television on the other end of the line very faintly.

By the time Nagisa had finished explaining the dream he had, it was pitch black outside and his mother was watching her favorite television show downstairs.

'Eto ... Nagisa?' Sugino spoke up, his tone somewhat hesitant as he seemed to search for words. 'You said her name was (F/n), right?'

Nagisa blinked in surprise, however he gave a hum of agreement.

'Okay ... did she have a scar running down the side of her neck? Real faint, like it's almost not there at all?'

Surprised and oddly spooked, Nagisa wracked his brain for any recollection of that small, and very specific feature.

It was several seconds later when he recalled the scar Sugino was asking about.

'Y-yeah ... a hairline scar running from her ear to her collarbone.' Nagisa answered, that spooked feeling beginning to increase the longer he thought about it. 'That's oddly specific, Sugino...'

The momentary silence on Sugino's end of the line did not help Nagisa's growing nerves.

'Nagisa, I've never told anyone about (F/n)...' Sugino began, an uncomfortable edge to the boy's voice as Nagisa listened with baited breath. 'She's my next-door neighbor... We were in the same class right up to second grade, so I actually know her...'

Nagisa was shocked by that revelation, and yet the uncomfortable, almost foreboding edge to Sugino's tone stopped him from becoming excited by the connection.

'But?' Nagisa spoke, urging his friend to continue.

'But ... that whole dream you described - Everything you said about her being asleep for seven years - about Autumn?' Sugino seemed to let out a shaky breath before he continued. 'That's actually true.'

Wait ... what?!

'There was an accident seven years ago ... when we all went to the Carnival over the river - She fell from the Carousel ... Hit her head on the way down ...'

'... And she hasn't woken up since?'

The silence that met Nagisa's response was all he needed to answer his conclusion.

His understanding was grim, and it left a dead weight in the pit of his stomach.

'... Sugino?' Nagisa spoke up, his tone subdued as he stared up at the darkness-veiled ceiling above his head. '... Can I see her?'

'You don't mean right now, do you?'

'Yeah...'

Silence rung thick through the speaker of the phone, before Sugino broke it several long and agonizing seconds later.

'... Okay.'

And then the line disconnected.

Nagisa wasn't entirely sure why he had even asked for such an inconsiderate favor all of a sudden, let alone why Sugino had even agreed in the first place.

There wasn't much room to consider it, either - Nagisa had already walked out of the house by the time he realized just how overwhelming this likely was for the baseball fan. He was jogging the whole way there, too.

Sugino must have been on good terms with (F/n) when she'd had the accident. It was rather clear from the careful way the boy spoke of her.

It must be hard for the kind boy to have a friend suddenly ask such a large favor so closely tied to an unfortunate accident in his past.

Nagisa made a mental note to apologize profusely to his best friend for all the trouble he was causing.

The air was frigid and cold, sending chills down Nagisa's spine the longer he was exposed to the harsh air.

And yet he ignored it.

Sugino was standing at the front gate of his house by the time Nagisa had arrived, his hands buried in his pockets as he seemed to stare up at the sky in thought.

Nagisa had never seen such a look on the boy's face in the whole time they'd known each other.

'H-hey ...!' Nagisa gasped out, his breath coming out in white clouds ahead of him.

Sugino turned his head to look over at him.

There was a hesitant, almost wry edge to his expression as he smiled in response.

'You ready? Or did you need a minute to catch your breath?' Sugino asked, his tone subdued, just like when he was telling Nagisa about what happened to (F/n).

The blue-featured boy shook his head briefly as he straightened up.

'I'm good.' Nagisa responded, casting his friend an apologetic smile.

He did not want to stretch this out too much - Not when this was obviously something personal to Sugino.

The taller teen watched Nagisa for a few seconds, before he began to make his way along the footpath.

'Her mom should still be up - I'll have to introduce you to her.' Sugino remarked as he opened the gate of the house on the right of his own, casting a glance to Nagisa as he made his way through.

Nagisa gave a small nod in response, remaining silent as he followed Sugino up to the front door.

The house was unremarkable in every way - Completely normal.

Even the front door was plain and normal.

It was nothing in comparison to the girl with the silver sounding voice.

Sugino came to a stop on the front step, knocking thrice against the soft, white surface of the door before he glanced at Nagisa again.

However it was alarming for both boys to hear running footsteps approaching the door not a second later.

The deadbolt of the door unlocked sharply, and the door flew open to reveal a middle-aged woman.

Eyes wide with an emotion neither could depict, breathing rapid and tears streaming down her face, the time-worn woman looked to be in a terrible state.

'M-mrs (L/n)!?' Sugino gasped out, his eyes widening in horror as the frantic woman suddenly dragged him into a desperate embrace. 'What happened?! A-are you alright?!'

'She woke up!' (F/n)'s mother sobbed out.

Silence - Sugino froze up as (F/n)'s mother clung to him, and Nagisa stood in stunned silence as he watched the scene before him unfold.

'Sh-she woke up ...?' Sugino whispered, his eyes wide as he tried to grasp what was going on.

'(F/n)'s come back to us!' (F/n)'s mother sobbed, tears of what Nagisa realized to be joy escaping her as she managed to pry herself from Sugino's frozen form.

The pieces seemed to fall into place in Sugino's head, and a sudden yell of shock escaped him.

'Wait - (F/n)'s awake!? Are you serious?!' Undiluted shock overcame the boy, growing stronger as (F/n)'s mother furiously wiped the tears from her eyes and cast him a beaming smile.

'Yes - Just half an hour ago.' She spoke, seeming to notice Nagisa's presence all of a sudden as she glanced at him, however her attention went right back to Sugino's stunned form. 'She said someone told her she needed to wake up, too.'

Sugino's breath hitched as he suddenly turned his head to gape at Nagisa.

'N-no way ...'

(F/n)'s mother glanced from one boy to the other, confusion clear as day across her face.

'Tomohito...? What's wrong?'

'I-it doesn't matter!' Sugino suddenly announced, turning his head to look back at (F/n)'s mother. 'Is it okay if we say hi to (F/n)? Please?'

The haggard woman standing in the doorway cast them a kind smile as her tears began to spill over once again.

'Of course! Stay as long as you like!' She responded, stepping aside as she held the door open for them.

Nagisa silently followed Sugino inside, where the boy lead him to a room in the back half of the house.

A white door was left ajar, leading into a (f/c) room adorned with a simple hospital bed with (f/c) covers, and many plush toys that were immaculately kept in a neat arrangement throughout the room.

Lying in the hospital bed was the same girl from the dream, her (e/c) gaze falling upon the two boys with sluggish, sleepy movements.

Sugino froze up in the doorway at the sight of the conscious girl.

'Hey, Mister...' (F/n) spoke with a frail, soft voice as she gazed at Nagisa's widening eyes. 'Thank you, for waking me up...'

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Here we have the Gift-Shot I've written especially for xoCANDYox. Written with an eerie edge to it because it's the month of Halloween, and I thought it was right for the idea I had :3. For you, xoCANDYox, I figured you'd appreciate someone writing something especially for you, and I hope you enjoyed reading, hun. It's the longest oneshot I've ever written for here on Wattpad - I hope it isn't too long; I felt like it was too early to end it where I had originally intended, thus I kept on going.

Anyways, if any of you haven't read any of xoCANDYox's work, then please do it now :) It's really cute, awesome and omg you're totally missing out if you don't xD I highly recommend it :D

Hmm ... maybe I should just submit a book that's links to awesome worthy people? Thoughts, thoughts and possibilities, haha.

I did say I'd have this ready for you by Sunday ;) It's 1am on Sunday morning right as I'm writing this last few lines, so yeah, I think I'm on-time xD

Anyways, lemme know what y'all thought :) Bonus points to anyone who can immediately tell what song I've used as inspiration for this story xD

Peace, guys.

xoxJosaphina, aka Loki-Roki