Betrayal and Return by Death
—α Timeline, December 24, 2033—
One day, my wife, Miyabi, disappeared. My name is Yaguchi Michitaka. I’m 36 years old and run a small company. Worried about my 10-year-old daughter, I stayed up late into the night, waiting for my wife to come home.
But she never came back.
And then…
Early the next morning, I found a USB stick in my home’s mailbox. A sense of foreboding washed over me as I checked its contents on the old PC in my room. The USB contained just one video file named “To You.” The only good thing was that my daughter had already left for school.
With trembling hands, I clicked on it. The screen showed my wife, smiling in her favorite dress. The video had been shot in our living room.
“To you. I’m sorry for disappearing so suddenly. But you don’t need to worry about me. I’m doing just fine.”
Strangely, though she was smiling, her tone was cold. A shiver ran down my spine.
“I want you to divorce me. The truth is, I’ve been in love with someone else for a long time. You never noticed because you’re so dense, right? I’ve been seeing him the entire time—ever since the beginning of our marriage.”
The shock was so overwhelming that I paused the video. My head throbbed, and I struggled to suppress the nausea rising in my throat. Somehow, I forced myself to continue watching.
“The person I’m with is someone you know. Or rather, the reason I got back together with you after you lost your beloved was because he told me to. You’re so kind-hearted—you even forgave me after I cheated on you in high school and dumped you. Honestly, you’re such an idiot. Did you actually believe the lie that I was dumped by senpai?”
Unable to bear it any longer, I collapsed from my chair onto the floor.
I struggled to breathe; the pain was unbearable.
“By now, you’ve probably figured it out. My beloved is… yes, the senpai I’ve been with since high school. He’s finally divorced his wife and says he’s going to marry me. So, let’s end things between us. Also, he says you irritate him. You know he’s the CEO of a big company, right? He said he’d pressure your business partners. If that happens, it’s all over for you, isn’t it? Well, I don’t care. Do your best to survive. Oh, and I’ll be taking our daughter. You know the reason without me needing to explain, right? Bye-bye.”
After waving goodbye, the man filming the video appeared on screen. He kissed my wife, flaunting it as if to taunt me. The video ended. My vision blurred, and I blacked out.
When I regained consciousness, it was already past noon. I seemed to have been unconscious for about three hours.
Fortunately, I had already informed my workplace that I’d be taking the day off. Opening the locked drawer of my desk, I retrieved an old letter. Shivering in the cold December air, I ran as fast as I could to the person who had written it.
“I’ve lost everything. I’ve been such a fool.”
I placed a cup of her favorite hot milk tea and a sasanqua flower at her grave.
Drinking another milk tea I had bought for myself, I felt pathetic for clinging to the memory of a lover who had passed away at the young age of 22.
My wife, Miyabi, and I had started dating in middle school. But we broke up in high school. The reason? Her infidelity, which I discovered on Christmas during my second year of high school. She had been cheating with a senpai—the ace of the basketball team and the heir to a large company. When I dug deeper, I found out she’d been cheating since we started high school.
When I was so devastated that I stopped attending school, the one who helped me was Takatsukasa Rika, who now rests in this grave. She was my childhood friend, a year younger than me. Even when I withdrew into myself, she supported me with everything she had. Thanks to Rika, I managed to pass my university entrance exams.
After finishing the exams, I confessed my feelings to her, and we became a couple.
We attended the same university and spent blissful days together. Those days were so happy that I can confidently say no moment in my life will ever surpass them.
But during the year I started working and she graduated, she was diagnosed with an incurable illness. It was a rare cancer, difficult to detect, and by the time it was discovered, it was already too late. Because she was so young, the disease progressed rapidly. She passed away before we could even prepare ourselves. Miyabi and her lover must have exploited the emptiness in my heart.
What I had taken from my house was the love letter Rika had written me before her death.
Drinking the milk tea she had loved, I read her letter at her grave. Even though I had lost everything, I resolved to rebuild my life for her sake.
But then…
A sharp pain struck my chest. Was it the shock from earlier? Or…
I couldn’t breathe, and my body felt like it was being torn apart.
“I can’t end it here.”
My company… no matter how much they tried to sabotage me, I had to protect my employees.
And I still had my promise to Rika.
I didn’t want to die. My life had been full of regrets, but I wasn’t finished yet.
If only I could…
Start over with the people I loved.
“Michitaka-kun, do you know the meaning of the sasanqua flower? It’s ‘eternal love’ and ‘overcoming hardship.’”
Memories of the happiest time in my life flashed before my eyes like a lantern.
I instinctively knew it was the end. The pain was so intense that I couldn’t even operate my phone.
My consciousness slowly faded. My life in this world ended like this.
To Michitaka-kun,
Please forgive me for writing to you like this. And I’m sorry for leaving you alone during such a difficult time after losing your mother.
I’ve always loved you. When I learned you had a girlfriend named Miyabi, it felt like my world had ended. When you confessed to me on your graduation day, I was so happy. That night, I cried tears of joy.
Ever since then, even after becoming ill, I’ve been happy. Because of the precious memories I have with you, I’m not afraid of anything anymore.
So…
When I die, please forget about me. I want you to find your own happiness. Memories are important, but I don’t want you to be bound by them.
I can’t say I’m not scared. I am. But when I talk to you, my fears disappear.
There’s no way I’m not happy. It’s all thanks to you. Truly, thank you.
Michitaka-kun, I love you. So please, be happy.
Sincerely,
Rika
—β Timeline, April 10, 2014—
I woke up drenched in cold sweat.
Where was I? Had I collapsed at the grave and been found by someone who took me to the hospital?
But I recognized the ceiling. It felt familiar—almost nostalgic.
The room was smaller than my house. It was like a child’s room. My eyes fell on an old Nintendo WiiU. There was also a PlayStation 4.
On the bookshelf were light novels that had become classics in the present day.
It felt like I had returned to being a high schooler.
I jumped up in a panic, ran down the hallway and staircase I knew so well, and headed to the kitchen.
There, the person I had wanted to see was preparing breakfast.
My gentle stepmother, whom I had never been able to call “Mom,” was happily making soup.