The moment I saw the police, I froze, unable to move.
I had a premonition.
If the body I hid had been found, they would inevitably investigate whose body it was. Once that happened, it would inevitably lead back to Amamiya Tōru, and a certain question would naturally arise.

　Where exactly does Amamiya Tōru live at present?

If she lived where the body was found, she would surely have reported it herself much sooner.
The fact that she didn’t means either the suspect is suspected to be Amamiya Tōru, or Amamiya Tōru hadn’t been in that flat for some time.
But the documents submitted to the school surely listed Amamiya Tōru’s address as that flat.

The question would remain unanswered.

　Truth be told, ever since the opening ceremony, I’d been trembling inside.
What if the police, having finished their investigation, came to this school to question Amamiya Tōru?
What would the police know by then?

I was terrified. Anxious.

But.

Honestly, when I saw the police and my body froze, it wasn’t from surprise or fear.

Ah, relief washed over me – relief that I’d finally be freed from this torment.
　Perhaps what I truly sought all along was ‘punishment’.

In that instant, I might have given up.
I might have wanted to give up.
But reality is complicated.
Amamiya Tōru, who I thought wasn’t thinking about the murder I committed at all, somehow took my hand and started running down the corridor at full speed.

Dragged along, pulled along. My body ran behind Amamiya Tōru of its own accord.

“Wait!”

I thought I heard an adult voice call out.

To my weary heart, that adult voice resonated deeply.
I almost turned around.

“Look straight ahead!”

This time, it was Amamiya Tōru, pulling my hand as she ran, who called out.
I couldn’t see the expression on her face as she ran ahead of me.
But her words seemed to carry a weight of emotion.

“Just look ahead.”

Right now, I wanted to believe only her words. Something made me feel that way.

”!”

Gritting my teeth. I chose to keep running after Amamiya Tōru’s back.
The corridor was filled with students.
Weaving through the crowd, I ran as if fleeing from something I couldn’t even be sure was chasing me.

　Still in my indoor shoes, I left the school building.
Passed through the main gate too.
I had no idea where I was going.
Even so, I ran, staring only at the nape of Amamiya Tōru’s neck.

And finally, we stopped in front of a certain place.

I’d vaguely suspected it while running.
What on earth was Amamiya Tōru thinking?

　There was absolutely no one around.
Looking back, there was no one behind us either.

We stepped inside that building.

A place that, in a way, could be called our place of memories.

Inside a love hotel.

◇

“Oh dear. Why did they run away, I wonder?”

Inside the rented room, Amamiya Tōru, who had flopped onto the bed, muttered aloud, almost to herself.
I’d noticed this while we were running too.
The dampness in the hand I held with hers was pronounced. And now, the body of the girl pretending to be calm before me was trembling ever so slightly.

Amamiya Tōru was probably forcing herself.

“…Why?”

　Why, when she hadn’t done anything wrong, did she choose to ‘run away’ with me?
Why did she suppress her fear so much, forcing herself to act like this?
Why did she make me face forward back then?

All sorts of thoughts tangled together, and she couldn’t sort them out properly.
The only words that came out were “Why?” That was all.

“Mashiro, you think I’m not thinking about anything, don’t you?”

Lying face down on the bed, Amamiya Tōru propped herself up on one elbow, lifting only her face to look up at me with a sidelong glance.

“………”

I remained silent.
Did Amamiya Tōru have some thought of her own?
Truthfully, I’d assumed she wasn’t thinking anything at all, so I couldn’t retort.

“Well, that’s half right, I suppose.”
“………”
“I only think about Mashiro, and basically, I only want to think about Mashiro.”

But, she continued.

“That’s precisely why I thought about it. Seeing the police, right away. Partly instinct, but also that if things continued like this, Mashiro would be in danger. I know enough common sense to realise that if you kill someone, the police will catch you. I know that even if the person killed was utterly despicable, the killer tends to be seen as the villain. So I thought Mashiro might get caught. If Mashiro got caught, Mashiro and I would be separated. I couldn’t bear that.”

　Amamiya Tōru paused there, taking a breath.

“I absolutely couldn’t bear that.”

There was no lie in those eyes fixed on me.
So, it meant that precisely because she thought only of me day in and day out, she could act faster than anyone else back then.
Even if that choice wasn’t exactly favourable for me. Still, she made the best choice she could to stay with me.

　Amamiya Tōru sat up, shifting into a cross-legged position, then looked at me again.
And then,

Amamiya Tōru, with a serious expression.
With a sincere gaze.
Made a proposal to me.

“Mashiro. Mashiro, do you think there’s such a thing as the next life?”

“… … … … … Huh?”

　The next life? I couldn’t keep up with such an abrupt change of topic.

“You know, when I think about you, Mashiro, I sometimes wonder…”
“… …”
“I’d like to be with Mashiro in the next life too, you know.”…

…

Ah.

I see.

Amamiya Tōru’s serious expression suddenly shifted. A single tear rolled down her cheek before she broke into a smile, “Hehehe.” That smile was as if she were truly happy right now. As if savouring that happiness. …As if she could see the end of that happiness and was enduring it.
It was that kind of smile.

Shown that, I couldn’t help but understand.
Amamiya Tōru’s intention.
I was also astonished that she, having gained her freedom, would arrive at that thought.

“Hey, Mashiro. I’ve noticed. Properly.”
“………”
“Mashiro, you’ve been thinking about dying a lot lately, haven’t you?”
“………”
“But think about it. If Mashiro dies alone, I’ll be alone again. I won’t be able to be with Mashiro anymore.”
“………”
“So. I thought, well then, I’ll just do this!”
“………”
“Mashiro, can I say it?”
“…Yes.”
“…I see.”

Amamiya Tōru laughed, “Ahaha.”
Laughing, she finally shed a flood of tears.
Wiping her eyes. Trying not to contort her face.
Forcing a smile.

She said.

“Mashiro, shall we die together?”