My heart skipped a beat as I stared at the card, completely mesmerised. I turned round, but Kota had already disappeared. I stroked the surface of the card a little hesitantly and then released it from the wall it was attached to with a tug. Instinctively, I turned it round.

My hand, which was clutching the card, began to tremble uncontrollably while my heart continued to beat strongly. I hugged it tightly to my chest and took a deep breath to calm myself. With a faint premonition, I turned my head to the side and then crawled on all fours to the ladder that led back down. I looked hopefully down into the depths, but there was no one to be seen. As I took a closer look around, I realised for the first time that the entire playground was suddenly unusually empty. 

The children's laughter that was usually heard in playgrounds had stopped without me noticing. But now the silence seemed almost a little eerie.

"Kota?" I asked uncertainly.

There was no response. Somewhat uneasily, I inspected the card in my hand again and read the text on the back once more.

Before Alice got to Wonderland, she had to fall .

Fall.

I had to fall. 

Just like Alice. 

But no one would be there to catch me. In the worst case, I would break all my bones, even if the sandy ground would still be more pleasant than the hard concrete floor. I jammed the card into my bra clasp and then heaved my legs over the abyss. I took a deep breath and closed my eyes.

"Okay, I'm going to jump now," I mumbled to myself, unable to stop my whole body from shaking. It was still completely quiet around me.

Too quiet.

I pressed my lips together tightly and then pushed myself off the ladder with my eyes closed. By the time I realised what I had done, it was already too late and I fell straight down. I let out a panicked cry, but just before my legs touched the ground, I was gently cushioned. Looking for help, I clung to the person who had wrapped their arms tightly around me to catch me. I didn't even have to open my eyes, because the familiar smell alone was enough for me to recognise that it was Chishiya. He carefully set me down on the floor while I just stared at him, speechless. He smiled triumphantly.

"It's a good thing I was there, otherwise that would have been painful for sure."

I looked at him like a hallucination and was completely unable to say anything back or move from the spot. Chishiya didn't say anything either, but instead raised his hand to my face. I involuntarily backed away from him and then looked at him, offended.

"How can you show up here so shamelessly and pretend that everything is fine? Do you even have a conscience? What do you want from me?" I snapped at him, unable to contain my anger any longer.

Chishiya took his hand back and put it cautiously in his jacket pocket. He was wearing the same white jacket he had worn when we were in Borderland and I was sure it was no coincidence.

"Give me a chance to explain, okay?" he said calmly.

"What explanation could justify you cutting off contact with me from now on and then leaving me in the dark for weeks?"

Indignantly, I crossed my arms in front of my chest and raised my eyebrows expectantly.

"It's probably not what you want to hear, but the truth is that I needed some time to myself. My exams were only one reason, the other was that I was trying to reconstruct my fragmented memories and put them back together into a whole. I just wanted to make sure I wasn't just losing my mind, Tsuki."

I paused at his words.

"Does that mean... does that mean you remember everything?" I asked with a hopeful look.

His lips curled into a mild smile.

"What do you think?"

From one moment to the next, tears welled up in my eyes. Tears of relief.

"I still don't understand. Why did you wait so long to tell me?"

"There were a few important things I had to sort out first."

"Ah yes. Could you be even less vague?" I asked gruffly.

"You'll find out soon enough," he grinned. Still scowling, I pressed my lips together. "I'm really sorry, Tsuki. I didn't mean to hurt you. But I know that I did anyway. Unfortunately, it was unavoidable in this case."

I sobbed involuntarily. Chishiya put his arms around me and then hugged me tightly. His hand stroked my hair soothingly as I increasingly lost control of my emotions. I howled bitterly from all the pain that fell away from me at that moment. My relief at seeing him again was actually greater than my anger.

Chishiya loosened his embrace a little and lifted my chin to look deep into my eyes. However, instead of kissing me as I had expected, he turned his head to the side.

"What did I tell you earlier to do when I asked you to?" I followed his gaze and was amazed to see a few children peering curiously from behind a bush a few metres away from us. Some of them turned round, giggling, while others put their hands over their faces. Chishiya nodded with satisfaction. "Very nice. Stay like that."

Only then did he turn his attention back to me. I couldn't help but grin a little. His thumb tentatively stroked my lower lip and his facial features immediately became a little softer. 

He leant towards me slowly and placed his lips on mine almost reverently. It amazed me how he was able to remain calm and controlled even when kissing me, while I pulled him closer with my arms around his neck, longing for him. 

However, when his grip on my waist tightened and he deepened the kiss, I quickly realised that he had let himself be carried away by me. It was only when I realised that we had underage spectators (who certainly weren't looking away the whole time) that I broke away from his lips again, a little embarrassed.

"Happy birthday, Tsuki," Chishiya murmured against my ear.

I looked up at him in surprise.

"How did you know about that?"

"Let's put it this way...I have my sources," he said with a shrewd smile.

"You don't like being precise, do you?"

"It's better if you don't know everything."

We were interrupted by a loud clearing of the throat next to us. Kota was suddenly back, pointing behind him at the children, some of whom were still covering their eyes with their hands.

"Ah yes, you can go and play again. Thank you for your help," Chishiya called to them with an implied wave. 

The children stormed off as if on command and scattered in different directions around the playground. The only one who stayed behind was Kota. Chishiya leant down a little towards him.

"You get a special thank you. The last chapter of the webtoon... as soon as it's finished, of course."

"Wait a minute, you promised him my webtoon?" I asked indignantly.

"Just the last missing chapter. I've already paid him for the rest in advance," Chishiya explained calmly.

But Kota just waved it off.

"Not necessary. I know the ending now," he said, shrugging his shoulders. "To be honest, it was a bit too cheesy, but at least I was in it. That makes it a bit cooler again."

"You'll be the superhero in my next webtoon. I promise. And then you'll go down in history as King Kota," I chuckled and winked at him.

He grinned cheerfully.

"I'm already looking forward to that. But I really have to go now, otherwise I'll miss dinner," he said with a quick glance at his watch. "Goodbye."

He waved goodbye to us.

"Say hello to Mei from me," I called after him, but I doubted that he had heard it as quickly as he had dashed off.

We looked after him for a moment until he had disappeared.

"So you just passed on my webtoon without my permission?" I asked Chishiya when we were alone, narrowing my eyes menacingly.

He let his gaze wander ominously towards me.

"What can I say? I had good intentions." I let out a disgruntled growl. "Don't you think?" he added and then looked at me piercingly.

"Since when did you plan this?" I wanted to know from him.

"Does it matter?" he replied, unconcerned.

"Answer me!"

He sighed softly.

"For... a few weeks."

I shook my head, stunned.

"And you knew how bad I was the whole time, didn't you?"

He crossed his arms with a sigh.

"Do you really want to go through that again now? Do you think it was all easy for me? If you believe that, then you're wrong. It was also hard for me not to say anything to you. That's why I thought it was better that we didn't see each other at the time. If you had crossed my path, I probably wouldn't have been able to pull it off so easily."

His face looked unusually pained for a moment as he scrutinised me. Guiltily, I lowered my eyes.

"Did you at least miss me?" I asked hopefully, looking up again somewhat shyly.

"Would I be here otherwise, silly?" he asked, tapping his finger against my forehead.

I pushed my lower lip forward indignantly.

"We'll practise the answer again," I replied in a lecturing tone. "It has to be: Of course I missed you, my adorable goddess."

Chishiya frowned and placed a hand on my head with a smug smile.

"Yes, of course. But I'd rather stick with stalker then. It suits you better."

I pressed my lips together defiantly.

"I liked you more when you didn't have your memories back yet."

The corners of Chishiya's mouth twitched in amusement.

"Really? Do you think the lack of memories has made me nicer?"

"Less arrogant, at least."

"Possibly, but I still think you like me," he said with conviction and took a step closer to me.

"I think that's far-fetched."

"So you want to deny it?"

"As long as you deny missing me."

"I would never deny it, Tsuki," he suddenly replied in a serious tone.

"Then why don't you say it? Say that you missed me!"

He groaned devotedly.

"Good, I've missed you. Satisfied?"

I smiled victoriously and giggled coyly.

"I knew it."

"You're probably smarter than I thought," he teased me and then put his arms around me again.

I followed suit and rested my chin on his shoulder.

We stayed in our embrace for a few minutes and if I was honest, there was no place I would have rather been than in his arms, even if it still felt surreal to be with him again.

After a while, I lifted my head slightly to look at him.

"So... what do we do now?" I asked indecisively, sounding a little embarrassed. Chishiya smiled slyly as if he had been waiting for this question.

"We're going home."

I bit my lower lip a little nervously.

"To your place or mine?"

"Hmmm..." Chishiya looked up playfully thoughtful as his hand slipped into his jacket pocket and pulled something out. It was a single silver key. "To us," he said, holding it triumphantly in front of my eyes. 

I stared at the key in his hand, puzzled. Then I looked back at Chishiya, whose smile still looked amused, but that was probably due to my uneasy reaction.

"What does that mean?" I asked with a dry throat when I had found my words again.

"It means this is the key to our apartment."

I looked at him doubtfully, but he obviously seemed to be serious.

"You mean you've rented an apartment... for us?"

"Well, I'm still living there on my own at the moment, but it's a bit too big for one person in the long run."

"Is that the thing you had to do?"

He nodded slowly.

"Yes."

"But why?"

"You once said you wanted a future with me. So I thought we'd just pick up where we left off."

"Chishiya..."

Completely overwhelmed, I wiped a tear from the corner of my eye.

"But if you don't want it, then I guess I'll have to give it back."

He put the key back in his jacket pocket, sighing exaggeratedly.

"No," I said in a panic. "Please don't!"

"You want to see it?" he asked with an amused expression. He clearly seemed to be enjoying putting me on the rack. I nodded hesitantly and sheepishly pushed a strand of hair behind my ear. His voice dropped to a whisper as he leant towards me again: "Let's go then."

He turned and walked ahead while I followed him, my heart pounding.

Only a short time later, we were sitting next to each other in his car. Even now, I could hardly tear my eyes away from him. I still found it hard to believe that this was really happening. Chishiya had organised an apartment for us, which meant that he actually wanted to be with me.

As soon as he started the car, music started playing that immediately sounded familiar.

"You still have my USB stick plugged in?" I asked, mildly surprised.

"Yes, although I now know the playlist almost by heart."

"Did you like it?" I asked with a grin.

"The music reminded me of you in particular."

I chuckled softly.

"That was the plan."

Chishiya just smiled meaningfully and then pressed the rewind button several times until the song Cheshire blared out of the speakers.

"Do you remember when you heard that song?"

"That's when it started. But even before that, I kept having images in my head but without any connection. But I think it was ultimately the song that unblocked something in my brain."

"So my plan with the webtoon was completely unnecessary," I sighed wistfully.

"I wouldn't put it like that. It helped me to organise the memories I'd recovered a little better. Besides, it wasn't uninteresting to read the whole thing from your point of view. I think you should publish it."

I laughed soundlessly.

"Well, I don't know. It's all very... personal."

"Nobody needs to know that it's about you. There are many authors who publish their work anonymously."

"But the people who know me or you would know. Even if I changed the names, it wouldn't be that hard to find out."

"Just think about it. It would be a shame if all your work wasn't recognised. I know you've been pulling all-nighters with it."

He looked over at me with a mild smile while I nodded, lost in thought.

"That's true. Normally, it would probably have taken me years to do something like that. But the thought that it might help you to remember really spurred me on. I would probably have done anything for you to remember our time in Borderland."

"You managed that too, just a little differently than you had originally planned."

"Yes, and I'm really glad about that. Even though I was on the verge of getting you over a second time," I grinned in victory.

The corners of Chishiya's mouth turned up in a suppressed smile.

"I guess I can't quite deny that."

"It's hard to resist my charm," I said in a flirtatious voice.

"I'll leave that without comment," he said tonelessly and then turned into a driveway that led straight into a pretty little courtyard. He parked the car there and switched off the engine. "We're there."

I undid my seatbelt and got out with him. I looked around curiously.

"Could it be that this isn't far from where I work?" I asked, as some of the buildings around me looked quite familiar.

"It's actually an eight and a half minute walk. I've tested it."

I blinked in disbelief.

"You tested it?"

"Since you have problems with driving, I thought it might come in handy if your workplace is within walking distance."

I was actually a little taken aback.

"And what about you?"

"I have a car, as you know."

"If you say so..."

Chishiya walked ahead and stopped in front of a large outside door that obviously belonged to a block of flats. My eyes fell on the doorbell signs. There were obviously only 10 tenants in the building. That was considerably fewer than where I was currently living. Chishiya's name was indeed on the doorbell and if the order of the names matched the floors, then the flat in question was on the top floor. He dug the key out of his pocket and opened the door. 

He walked purposefully through the spacious stairwell directly to the lift. He pressed the button to get the lift and watched me closely while we waited. I could feel my cheeks gradually warming under his unabashed gaze. The unspoken words hung loosely in the room, but our gazes seemed to speak for themselves.

We entered the rather small lift in silence. Chishiya pressed the top button in the row, but my thoughts had long been on things other than the floor we were travelling to. The fact that his dark, unfathomable eyes were still on me didn't make it any better. But somehow I increasingly got the impression that he had exactly the same thoughts as me. 

He stepped a little closer to me without breaking our eye contact. I realised how little space there actually was in the lift when I bumped my back against the wall. He grabbed my face and leant in to place his warm lips on mine. This time he showed no restraint as he pressed me against the wall and kissed me passionately. Completely intoxicated, my fingers fiddled with the zip of his jacket and opened it. My hand wandered impatiently under his shirt and touched his bare skin. 

We hardly noticed that the lift had long since stopped. The doors slid open and we suddenly stopped in surprise. Two older women in front of the lift stared at us with astonished expressions. Embarrassed, I lowered my eyes and brought my hands back to myself.

"This is a bit awkward now," Chishiya said, but he didn't sound embarrassed at all. Then he turned back to me. "I guess we'll have to wait a little longer," he said with feigned disappointment so that the two women could hear, brushing a strand of hair from my forehead while I just smiled carelessly.

"Come on, let's just wait for the next one. We shouldn't disturb the young lucky couple," said one woman to the other.

The latter, however, was still looking very embarrassed and just nodded stiffly before the doors closed again and the lift started moving again.

Chishiya smiled with amusement.

"I guess we're not as undisturbed as we were back then."

"I think you enjoyed that somehow. Could that be?"

"I just think I'm beginning to understand why sex in the elevator is so glorified. The look on their faces was priceless."

I just shook my head in disbelief as I followed Chishiya into the stairwell.

"You were going for it, weren't you?"

"Wait, so you didn't start by undressing me?" he asked, then looked at me doubtfully.

"And you started kissing me," I was outraged by his accusation.

"I had no idea you were about to come on to me."

He stopped in front of a door again, but this time he turned to me before opening it.

"Here we are. Are you ready?"

I nodded hesitantly and was suddenly so nervous again that my heart was fluttering wildly. Chishiya reached into his pocket once more to take out the key and unlock the apartment. It clicked briefly and the door opened. 

He silently went ahead, but grabbed my hand first and pulled me with him. I looked around the room in awe. There was no real corridor, so we were immediately in the centre of the living area. I was surprised at how big and bright everything was. The flat looked more like a loft. It was open-plan and the living room flowed seamlessly into the kitchen. The apartment was also already furnished, but Chishiya had mentioned that he already lived here. That explained the boxes, some of which were still unpacked in a corner.

"You're welcome to look around everywhere. It's as much yours now as it is mine," he said after a while, because I was still standing in one place, paralysed, looking around the huge room with the oversized ceiling height.

To the left was a staircase that led up to half a floor, which in turn was separated by a modern glass wall.

"So, um, I don't know... all this is..."

I let go of Chishiya's hand a little sadly and bowed my head.

"Don't you like it? We can arrange it differently if you want," he said in an almost worried tone.

"That's not it. I was more wondering how we were going to afford it. Maybe you've forgotten, but I'm still a student. And I don't think this is in my budget."

Chishiya's expression instantly became more relaxed.

"Don't worry about it, Tsuki. I've already thought it all through. I paid the deposit and the first rent with a loan. We'll just pay it back as soon as we can."

"And with what?" I asked, frowning.

Chishiya sighed.

"Okay, so if you want to know exactly. I applied for a job at Tokyo University Hospital some time ago and if I pass the exams with top marks, they'll take me on. I've been told that the starting salary as a junior doctor in one of the best hospitals in the world isn't too bad," he said, shrugging his shoulders.

I realised that he was grossly understating things. I looked at him, perplexed. Then I broke into a genuine smile.

"Wow, I'm really happy for you. Congratulations. But still - I can't accept it, because that would mean you'd be paying the whole rent on your own. That would be anything but fair and it would also make me feel guilty."

Chishiya grabbed my hand again to pull me towards him. He put his arms around me and murmured:

"Listen, I live here now and I want you to stay with me. No more and no less. I'll pay for it and you don't give it a second thought, all right?"

I sighed softly.

"Well... fine," I replied slowly with a pained expression on my face.

"It almost seems like you don't want to live with me."

"Yes, I really do," I affirmed. "I just don't want you to spend all your money on me. I'll probably never be able to pay it back."

"You can pay it back just by being with me."

I smiled guiltily.

"Okay, I can manage that."

"I'm sure you will," he said, ruffling my fringes a little. "How's it looking? Do you want to see more?"

"Gladly."

He led me closer to the highly polished kitchen. From the large window, there was an impressive view over the entire neighbourhood. We then walked through the living area, which had a cosy seating area and a large flat-screen TV. The door there led to a spacious bathroom with a window, a corner bath and a shower. The bathroom was located just below the half-floor where I assumed the bedroom was.

"You haven't lived here long," I realised when I saw that most of the shelves were still relatively empty.

"No, only a few days, but I don't have too many things anyway."

"I do."

"I thought so."

"And um- would you mind having another roommate? She does shed a lot and is sometimes a bit clingy, but she's sweet and loves boxes, treats and lots of cuddles."

"Sounds almost like you, apart from the boxes." I pursed my lips a little grumpily at his comment. "Go ahead and bring her. Luckily I'm not allergic to cat hair."

I grinned sheepishly.

"Yes, what a relief."

"Do you still want to see the last room?"

"Hmm... only if it has a bed."

"Did the tour tire you out that much already?" he teased me with a smile.

"Not because of that," I mumbled, nervously twirling a strand of hair.

"Come on," he said and then waited for me to follow him up the stairs to the bedroom.

He opened the glass door at the top of the stairs. The bed in the centre was a classic box-spring bed for two people. It was also much bigger than the futon bed we had shared in the small apartment in Borderland. There was another window at the back of the wall with a panoramic view and in front of it was a large desk with plenty of workspace. I could see a pile of medical textbooks and some of Chishiya's study materials. I walked over to the desk, but only to take a look out of the oversized window.

"That's Nishi-Toyama Primary School back there. I didn't think I'd be able to see my workplace from here," I said in amazement.

"As you've already realised, it's not far from here."

"It's all really beautiful," I sighed wistfully and looked around the room again.

This time, however, my gaze lingered on the bed, which already had two matching duvet covers on it.

"Would you like to try it out? It's quite comfortable."

I raised my eyebrows.

"Oh really?"

"You're welcome to see for yourself," he grinned.

His unmistakable words alone were enough to set my pulse racing. Just the thought that we could finally continue what we had started in Borderland without fearing for our lives at any moment was more than I had ever hoped for after everything that had happened so far.

"Only if you come with me," I whispered softly and took a few steps towards him. 

I put my arms around his neck and then pulled his face towards me almost impatiently. Chishiya immediately responded to my advances. Without hesitating for long, he slipped my top off and kissed his way down my neck. His finger carefully pushed my bra strap off my shoulders.

"Interesting what you have in your underwear," he said and pulled out the Queen of Hearts card.

I giggled a little self-consciously.

"You'd be surprised."

"Like this?"

He kissed me again as his hands wandered longingly over my body. Then he pushed me purposefully towards the bed. I willingly let myself sink into the soft mattress while Chishiya was on top of me, freeing me from the bra. I let out an excited sigh as he touched my breasts and stroked them gently. His fingers paused below my right breast.

"The scar has disappeared."

I nodded.

"Yeah, I guess that means whatever happened to us there wasn't real, right?"

"I think that's difficult to answer. I think it was a particularly real near-death experience, but there were things that carried over into reality. When I think of Niragi's burns, for example..."

"Your gunshot wound. What about that?" I asked, letting my gaze wander to his left arm.

Chishiya took off his jacket and showed me his forearm. There was indeed a small, unsightly scar.

"Could have been a shard of glass. I didn't enquire. It could have been worse for me in any case. I have two other scars that I remember were caused by Niragi, but were actually also from the meteorite impact."

I scrutinised him sympathetically and then reached for his shirt to take it off. I actually found one of the scars quite quickly, partly because I remembered the situation in which it had occurred very clearly. My fingers ran over the slightly uneven area above his chest and then explored the rest of his upper body bit by bit. My hands settled on the back of his neck and eagerly pulled him down to me in a longing kiss. 

Chishiya slid his hands under my back and pulled me onto his lap. By now I felt so hot that I was on the verge of burning up inside. I didn't want to wait a second longer. I had already waited far too long. My fingers wandered purposefully under his waistband. Chishiya smiled into our kiss as my touch became increasingly urgent.

"Do we even have condoms?" I murmured sheepishly against his ear.

"You know I'm always prepared for anything and since I've been planning this for a while, you should realise the answer pretty quickly."

I rolled my eyes.

"A simple yes would have sufficed."

Chishiya instinctively pulled me tighter, enveloping me in all the love I'd been craving for so long. Even the slightest touch from him sent my body into an absolute state of emergency. This time, however, I managed to let myself go completely under his treatment. All the worries I'd had back then, all the fear that Chishiya could die, all that was finally gone. Instead, I was able to savour the moment to the fullest and look to the future with optimism. 

Our future. 

I suspected it would be a while before I could actually realise that.

"Does the bed meet your expectations?" Chishiya asked as we lay snuggled up under the blankets, stroking my head as it lay comfortably on his chest. His steady heartbeat alone was a sound I could have listened to for hours.

"Not just the bed..." I murmured contentedly and instinctively cuddled up to him again. Only the unpleasant growling in my stomach dampened my euphoria a little. "But I'm hungry."

Chishiya picked up his smartphone from the bedside table and quickly typed something on it.

"How fortunate that a food delivery is due to arrive here in a few minutes."

I raised my head in astonishment.

"Seriously?"

"I hope you like fried chicken fillets from KFC."

My surprised expression turned into a broad smile.

"I love you," I sighed wistfully.

Chishiya grinned slyly.

"If I'd known it was that easy, I could have saved myself the rest."

"I love you," I repeated insistently.

"Understandable."

My lower lip pushed forward in displeasure.

"That's not the general response to those words, you know."

"Tsuki," he began, looking deep into my eyes. "I offered to share my life with you today. Isn't that answer enough for you?"

He lovingly pushed a loose strand of hair behind my ear.

I smiled a little more mollified and kissed him on the cheek.

"All right, I'll let that stand.”

This was theoretically the last chapter of the fanfiction, but there will be an epilogue chapter next Tuesday.

The original german story also has several bonus chapters about Chishiya and Tsuki's everyday life. I will also translate these bit by bit, but I don't know yet if it will be every Tuesday or if I'll just upload one every now and then. I'll have to think about that again.

I  hope you've enjoyed it so far!

Please also have a look at my current project "The Cheshire Cat's Heart", another Chishiya / Tsuki FF.

Thank you for reading!