Interlude

 The door slammed shut. 

Ione had just run out of the room, leaving me by myself to process what on earth just happened. 

...She seemed flustered for some reason. 

"Well. That was... odd." I let out a tired sigh. 

The room was practically empty. There was nothing in particular that I could even let my gaze fall to, so they naturally wandered to the closet.

I wasn't sure how I felt about Ione just yet, really. She was pretty, I knew that, but that was hardly relevant. 

It was true she also reminded me of myself in a way. I meant it when I said I couldn't leave her alone to suffer. Because I truly didn't want her, or anyone for that matter, to go through what I did.

But even though I said all that...

"........I'm the worst, aren't I?" 

I slowly opened the closet, that symbol of friendship entering my field of vision.

I picked it up with my hand, letting its soft red fabric fill me with an uncomfortable sense of nostalgia. It was comforting, and yet... suffocating.

"Bottling things up like this can't be good"? "You're clearly suffering, aren't you"?

"...Like I'm one to talk." 

Those pathetic words were almost laughable, really. It was true I meant it. It was true I wanted to help her. But what gave me the right to spout such things when I was the one deliberately hiding things from others?

I squeezed the small scarf, my expression growing dark.

"×××××..." 

I let that name escape my lips.

I loved Regret. I loved Robin. I loved Ettie. I loved Celine. And I was sure I'd grow to love Ione, too... 

...But I still couldn't let go of those past days.

"...If things had been different, would we still be like that now?" 

I stared at my clenched fist.

"...It's too late, anyway."

...No matter how much I wished, there was no going back to those days.

I collapsed face-forward onto the bed, still squeezing that scarf.

".......Because I'm the one that chose to stop him."

The clock kept ticking as I drifted through my memories.