Had Sri Survived To Endgame
Just a little blurb I thought might be fun. Obviously not cannon, but why not let the dead kids have some potential fun?
Compared to everyone else in the room, Sri was relatively unchanged. Perhaps her puberty had hit her much harder than it would hit other girls of the age she assumed she was, but her adult-or rather, seventeen year old-body looked much the same, the only differences being a sharper jawline and her hair that crept uncontrollably down her back. Perhaps it would be for the best to snip it off, it felt like it would be some hindrance to her.
But as the others shuffled around, attempting their escape, Sri felt the most useless she had felt in her entire stay here. She wished to huddle over by Mana, but it seemed like Yuki had her well under control, and Sri knew from crowded medical areas that too many hands were actually more harm than good in a lot of situations, and she figured this was one of them.
It seems she had outlived her usefulness to Mana. Was it right to envy Yuki?
Helping the others seemed out of question, as well. Although she followed some to the kitchen just to ensure Seung had a proper meal, they didn’t need her assistance for much in what they were doing, not that she would have been able to provide much for them. And so, without much effort, she eventually followed Yuuto and their headmaster from the campus and silently, she crept into the seat of the van.
As Sri sat in the back, the entire experience truly began to sink onto her. Despite everything, she had wanted to believe that death was not permanent here, that one day it would just be erased with the slight of a hand, but there were no such pleasantries as they rolled away from the school, the view and remnants of her friends sinking against the horizon.
And for the first time in a while, Sri huddled up and cried. She cried for those she lost, for those she had hope of becoming friends with, for those who she had wanted to love and be loved by. But, looking back, perhaps they weren’t kind to her only for what she provided, maybe it was possible that they cared for her beyond her abilities, which were few in number regardless. Akebi, he cared for her even before she cured him. Mana, she saw worth in her even beyond what she did for her. Seung, he was always so kind to her. Taka, she had comforted Sri while she was distraught and alone. Prema, she had kissed her and made her feel like the most special girl in the world. Perhaps, maybe they did love her, and not just what she did for them.
Love...
“Watch my fingers, Sri-chan,”
“That’s sign language, right? What does it mean?”
“It means ‘love’,”
Why did this memory stir up in her? It wasn’t fair, she hadn’t thought of Masami in so long, why is it now she was remembering her? Was it possible, that Masami too loved Sri, and saw something beyond her rather than pity? But...the storm had occurred so long ago. What state had it left the world in? Would it be possible that she could’ve survived that long, even with her problem? And if she had, that was two years ago, did she even think Sri was alive? Did she even care? Or had she given up looking long ago?
No, it wasn’t such despair that had resulted in Sri winning the tournament, it was hope of a new day that kept her alive while her friends were still and lifeless in a facility miles away. She had to hope that perhaps Masami was still alive, and that she could find them.
But what if hope wasn’t enough? What if despair had taken Masami long ago while Sri lie in suspended animation? She shifted her gaze among the others, taking in the darkness of their complexion and reading it immediately.
Someone needs to tell this story.
