Don't Turn Around

After returning home, Sayuri locked herself in her room and turned off all the lights. She had a very strong feeling that she would be receiving a visit soon now that three of the four girls responsible for Shizuko’s death had been dealt with.

As she had been anticipating, Sayuri began to sense a presence behind her. It was the moment she had been fearing. But at the same time, Sayuri was eager to get the moment over with as the waiting had been wearing her down.

Sayuri’s heart began to race and her breathing became sporadic. Still, Sayuri knew she had to fight her fear and confront her departed friend.

“Shizuko-chan,” said Sayuri, her voice barely louder than a whisper. “I know that’s you. And I know why you’re here.” Tears immediately began to fill Sayuri’s eyes. “If it appeases your anger, then take me like you took the others. I’m just as much to blame for what happened to you as they were. I knew something was going to happen that day, but I didn’t know things would go that far. Still, I shouldn’t have been so afraid that I couldn’t stop them.”

The presence behind Sayuri was growing nearer.

“All I’ve been able to think about these last few days was how good of a friend you were,” said Sayuri. “How if you had been put in the position I had been in, you never would have let anyone do anything to hurt me.”

Shizuko’s hand was slowly nearing Sayuri’s shoulder.

“You deserved a better friend than me,” said Sayuri, prompting Shizuko to pull her hand back. “Why couldn’t I have been as good as you?”

Shizuko lowered her head as if she was feeling some sort of shame for what she had been preparing to do to the only real friend she ever had.

“I’ll never forget how we used to draw pictures of what we wanted to be when we grew up,” said Sayuri. “We weren’t afraid to tell each other our dreams. Remember the picture you drew where you were a nurse? You would have made such a good one. But we took that away from you. Not only did we hurt you, but we hurt all the people you were going to help. I never could have shared my dreams with those girls. They weren’t kind like you. But that kindness led you to believe that everyone was kind, and that’s why you died.”

Once again, Shizuko reached her hand toward Sayuri.

“Do it, Shizuko-chan,” said Sayuri. “Do it before I become one of those people who lives only to bring pain and sadness to others.”

Gently, a hand came to rest on Sayuri’s shoulder. When she spun around, all Sayuri found was a piece of paper slowly falling to the floor. Picking it up, Sayuri discovered it was the picture she had drawn that was thought to have been destroyed by Hana.

“Shizuko-chan,” said Sayuri, her eyes stinging shut with tears. “I’m sorry.”

The police had been notified of Hana’s body lying mangled upon the rocks. Detectives Yamamoto and Tamaki were in charge of the investigation as there was no doubt that Hana’s death was directly linked to the deaths of her friends.

“Looks like we’ve only got one left,” said Tamaki. “Do you think this has to do with the letter she sent us? Maybe she told her friend what she did, and this was the price she paid for letting her secret slip.”

“That letter didn’t tell us anything we didn’t already know,” said Yamamoto. “We knew early into our investigation that the victim went to the same elementary school as one of our suspects. But she didn’t seem like the type who would do something like this.”

“We’ll have to have a talk with her. It seems obvious now that she was the one behind the other deaths. It’s always the ones you least expect, isn’t it?”

“Maybe,” said Yamamoto. He then took a long drag on his cigarette and began pondering the bizarre situation. “Then again . . .” Yamamoto looked over the edge of the cliff and at Hana, whose glare even in death sent a chill down his spine. “Is it really over . . . or did someone just create a new monster?”

Sayuri left her house early the next morning to visit Shizuko’s grave before school. She had brought with her a single white lily, which she placed at the foot of Shizuko’s grave marker. Placing her hands together, Sayuri prayed for her friend. “Shizuko, may your soul finally be able to find peace,” she said.

Thinking of the friendship and pleasant moments she had shared with Shizuko rather than the events that led to her demise, Sayuri was able to produce a smile.

Checking her watch, Sayuri realized that she would have to hurry if she wanted to get to school before they closed the front gate. As she began her departure, a bitterly cold wind swept through the cemetery, stopping Sayuri dead in her tracks.

Something about her immediate surroundings suddenly felt wrong to Sayuri. The feeling grew to a frightening level when she realized someone was now standing behind her.

“Hey, Sayuri-chan,” said a voice that sent a chill down Sayuri’s spine. It was a voice she knew well, a voice that had always frightened her. And it wasn't before long when a hand came to a rest upon her shoulder. “Don’t turn around.”

*Salyu - Cure the World