Sleeping Beauty [Chapter 4]

[Notice: This chapter has some mature content that might not be appropriate for young readers.]

Cover page: “If merely based on face value, you believe that a man says what he means, then aren’t you too naive..?” At the hospital, a couple of plain clothes police[/detectives] finishes gathering the fingerprints. Before they leave, they mention that they will be bothering them again if there is a new development found out from the investigation. On the bed, Yuki says okay. Shiki tells them ‘good work’ [<- being polite] He glances at his younger sister and asks how she is feeling. As he touches her face, Yuki smiles and says that she feels better. Narration: “Upon finding the skeleton in those ruins, I had fainted and was brought to the hospital.” There is a knock on the door. Yuuya, accompanied by Eiji, apologizes for interrupting and for getting Yuki involved in this terrible incident. Shiki says that he cannot stand them. “It seems that your father is a top brass in the police department so you weren’t given any strict punishment but you ought to know that what you guys are doing is trespassing. And you even brought my sister along to a place where there is an abandoned corpse. From today on, I’m not allowing you and my sister to continue having a relationship.” Yuuya nervously asks how can that be.. Eiji apologizes and says that they understand his worries regarding his sister and from today on, they absolutely won’t get her involved again but please, only allow them to continue on being friends. Shiki refuses. Yuki tells her brother not to be like that since she is the one who said that she wanted to go and she just wanted to help them. Shiki tells her to calm down and think for what can be done by relying on her. Yuki insists that even so, ever since that she got into that accident and lost her memories, she had lost any interest in anyone and anything, and she always thought that it is an after-effect of the accident. Yuuya and Eiji look surprised upon hearing this. Yuki continues to say that she always felt that if she didn’t recover her memories, she could not go back to her former self. “But upon meeting them, and having the same experiences later, I felt that I can create a new me. I won’t go and regret over my lost past but going forward in valuing my future. Upon becoming friends with Tachibana-kun and Kase-kun, it is the first time I have this kind of feeling.” Shiki sighs and says that in short, it is late so they should go home first. Yuki timidly says yes. Shiki tells the two guys to also go home. The guys say yes and apologize again. Then, Shiki offers his deepest sympathy for their missing girlfriends and it must have been difficult.

At the train station, Yuuya thanks Eiji for accompanying him. Eiji says that it is nothing for he is also worried about Yuki and also him. This made Yuuya smile. Yuuya comments that Yuki got into a serious vehicle accident before. Eiji says ya, but he hasn’t read that kind of attention-grabbing accident in the magazines. Yuuya tells Eiji that corpse has been identified as a female around 10-20 years old. “..Do you..think that..it is..?” Eiji asks when the DNA result would come out. Yuuya says that it is around 2-3 days but for the detailed analysis [/situation], it generally takes around 2-3 weeks for them to know.. Then, Yuuya rests his head on Eiji’s shoulder. On the drive home, Shiki tells Yuki not to have a relationship with those two and it is only those two that she absolutely cannot [have relations with]. Yuki asks why he says that. Shiki tells her that she has other friends and this discussion is over. Yuki is teary-eyed. Shiki pats her head and says that she must be tired, go to sleep. Later on, Yuki wakes up in a bedroom. She sits up and finds herself in her room. “Did I fall asleep in the car and brother carried me over here.. *shock to find her blouse all bloodied.* Blood!? Where did I get this? Was I hurt anywhere..? *stands up from bed and takes off blouse* But it seems that I’m not injured.. I feel quite nauseous.” She throws bloodied blouse in the trash can. After changing her clothes, she shivers upon recalling the corpse. The next day, at her university, she waves to some people and passes by the outdoor stairs when she hears someone shouting, “Ha? Who are you kidding! I don’t have anything to say to you anymore. Don’t call again nor text back, okay.” Yuki looks down to see Yuuya talking on the phone. Souichirou is standing beside him at the first landing of the stairs. Yuki is tense for normally, Yuuya is always nice yet he can actually use that forceful[tough] tone of voice. “Why is he at my school.. *looks at Soichirou* and, Kamiya doesn’t look startled at all..” Then, Keita, together with Eiji and Yoshiharu, arrives and calls out to Yuuya if he has found Yuki. After hanging up his phone, Yuuya tells the others not yet, and he’s getting ready to call her. Realizing that they come for her, Yuki calls out to the others and greets them. After they have gathered, Keita apologizes for going home first yesterday. Eiji says that they are very worried about her so they came to see her. While Yoshiharu waves back and no reaction from Souichirou, Yuuya apologizes that so many of them came today and it’s great that they were able to see her. Yuki is touched by this. Yuuya apologizes for not listening to her brother but he couldn’t give up on her like this for no matter what, it’s very frustrating. Blushing Yuki goes downstairs and holds his outstretched hand. Yuki admits that actually, she also.. To her surprise, blushing Yuuya happily smiles and hugs her.

While Eiji looks surprised, the other guys and passers-by are smiling and asking if that is a confession, a good-looking couple, and looks quite moving. Blushing Yuki exclaims that it isn’t like that at all. Still hugging Yuki, Yuuya laughs and says that he would have wanted it to be so. Eiji and others burst into laughter. Eiji tells Yuuya chat some more with Yuki for after encountering a lot of things yesterday, she must be feeling very uneasy. “Regarding Asumi [Kousuke], I’ll go with Kamiya then come back here.” Yuuya explains to Yuki that they weren’t able to contact Kousuke since yesterday and today so they plan to go check his house if he is there. “After encountering those things yesterday, you must be tired so do you want me to drive you home? Afterwards, I’ll go to Asumi’s place.” Yuki asks if she can also come and check Kousuke’s place because she is also worried and she feels more at ease with everyone. After looking surprised, Yuuya agrees that they all go together. Then, he asks if he can call her Yuki-chan instead of ‘Miss Yuki/Yuki-san’ and she call call him Yuuya, as well as directly calling the others’ first name [<- that means they are close]. Yuki says that it is a bit embarrassing to suddenly change it. Yoshiharu and Keita say that it is okay and kept calling her ‘Yuki-chan’. Yuki tells them to stop it for it is embarrassing. Soon, they are in front of Kousuke’s apartment. Yoshiharu knocks on the door and calls out to Kousuke. Eiji comments that no one is answering. Souichirou suggests that they ask the neighbor about the telephone number of the real estate [who rented the place to Kousuke] or directly call the real estate to.. Pulling open the door, Yoshiharu tells Sou[/Souchirou; I’ll use his nickname] that the door is open. As they enter, they call out to Kousuke that they are going in. As they enter the room, they say that he really isn’t here. Keita says that since it isn’t locked, maybe he went to a nearby convenient store. Yoshiharu suggests that they wait for him there. While Keita sits down to make himself at home, Sou notices a laptop computer on the table and calls out Yuuya to come over. Yuuya looks surprised. Standing behind a door, Yuki wonders what that smell is. It is coming from inside the door. She opens the door and looks surprised. Just as Eiji offers to check Kousuke’s mailbox, he notices Yuki looking ill while looking inside the opened door. He asks her what it is. He looks in to see Kousuke kneeling down the floor with his hand in the water-filled bathtub. There is some blood on his clothes. Pulling Yuki aside, Eiji tells her not to look and go at the back. Eiji shouts to the others that Kousuke is at the bathroom. He orders Sou to call the ambulance for Kousuke isn’t breathing. Eiji carries unconscious Kousuke whose bleeding wrist is bandaged with a towel, and places him on the living room’s floor.

Opening Kousuke’s mouth, Eiji calls out to Yuuya. Soon, the two starts to do CPR and artificial respiration on Kousuke. Yoshiharu and Keita are in disbelief that Kousuke slashed his own wrist. On the phone, Sou is reporting that the person isn’t breathing and they are performing artificial respiration on him. While Yuki is teary-eyed, Youshiharu exclaims how come when Kousuke has no reason to commit suicide. While Eiji is desperately doing CPR, Yuuya glances at thoughtful Sou. On the screen of the laptop computer, there is a message, “I cannot endure it anymore. I extremely regretted the crime that I have committed.” Later on, the ambulance has arrived. There are a lot of people crowding around to check what’s going on and taking pictures with their cellphones. An older policeman asks the others if they are the college classmates of the victim and he wants to ask what had happened. “Who is the one who first saw it?” Eiji glances at Yuuya who is calming shocked Yuki. Eiji says that it was him. He tells the police that when he opened the bathroom door, he saw Kousuke inside with his hand inside the water [of the tub], and then, they performed CPR and artificial respiration on him. Sou tells the police that yesterday, they’ve found a skeletal corpse yesterday at the ruins and if they need record some oral[/written] evidence report, is it okay if only the guys do it. Yuuya continues to calm down frightened Yuki. Narration: “Afterwards, the guys went to the police station. Keita had hurriedly contacted Maiko to accompany me and I also arrived home.” In the house, Shiji is furious over what happened in just a day and didn’t he tell her not to get involved with those guys again. While Yuki is lying ill on the sofa, Maiko tearfully tells him that Yuki’s friend had just passed away and at this time, please don’t say that kind of things. Shiki looks tense. Yuki tearfully apologizes for making him worried but Yuuya and others are important friends.. Shiki tells her to rest first for these two days had made her exhausted. Sitting up, Yuki says that her brain is quite awake that she couldn’t sleep. Maiko suggests that Yuki stays over at her house for the night or how about watching a movie for a change of mood. Pulling open a drawer, Shiki takes out a pack of medicine. He tells Yuki to drink some sleeping pills. Shiki tells Maiko that she must be also tired so go home and rest first today. “Next time, if there’s an opportunity, come again at my house to hang out [with Yuki]. For now, let Yuki rest for today. Okay?” After a pause, Yuki agrees.

Narration: “Maiko told me that the hospital already confirmed that Asumi-kun passed away despite their efforts to revive him. ..the ones who were at the site and the police are the only ones who knew about the suspicious suicide note on the computer screen.. Before the police and the ambulance arrived, we already agreed to temporarily not tell anyone about it.. *Yuki drinks the sleeping pills* Asumi-kun’s ‘crime committed’.. In the end is..?” Scene: It is dark in the forest. A wounded long dark-colored hair girl is on the ground and trying to reach out to the two men standing. She mutters, “I beg of you.. it is fine to just let Erika go.. it doesn’t matter what you’ll do to me..” Badly bruised Erika’s hand is held by one of the men and her blouse is partly opened. She shouts, “Don’t be like that, Saki! You quickly go home. I beg you.” While holding what seems to be a necktie tightly with both hands, one of the men smiles and says, “Shut up.” Teary-eyed Saki looks in horror. End scene. Yuki suddenly sits up in bed. She screams while crying. After breathing hard, Yuki looks at the mirror. She is shock and she quickly holds her face. The door flung open and Shiki exclaims what happened. Hugging her brother, Yuki shouts, “Brother! I and my friend were attacked before on our way home from school! Was that girl saved!? And, my face is also not the same! I don’t have such a beautiful face!! And, in the end.. what had..” Shiki holds Yuki’s head to comfort her. After pulling her away, Shiki asks, “Yuki.. do you remember your name?” Puzzled Yuki replies, “Mizuhara Yuki..” Shiki says, “How about your own name?” This surprises and puzzles Yuki. Shiki continues to ask, “Do you still remember Tachibana Yuuya and Kase Eiji?” Still trembling, Yuki says, “..[they] are my friends, I know them..after college..no..it seems that earlier on..” Hugging her, Shiki kisses her forehead and says, “Right now, it seems that you are still confused but sooner or later, you’ll remember it. I’ve anticipated this earlier on, that this day will come sooner or later.. perhaps the you who have forgotten would have been happier.. So, I didn’t want you to get involved with Tachibana Yuuya and Kase Eiji.. Three years ago, on the way [home] from school, you were attacked. Your real name is Matsushima Saki. You are one of the two high school girls who were missing that year.” Yuki looks stunned.

Comment: And, it turns out that Yuki is Saki. And, that opens a lot of possibilities. That’s a very good twist to make a very interesting love triangle. ^^ I think Saki might continue to act as Yuki as she tries to recover her memories and find out who did that to her and Erika. From that scene, the friendship of these two girls is so deep that they are willing to sacrifice themselves for the other. So, Yuuya is in love with Yuki and perhaps, in some way, Eiji would later on recognize things that would remind him of Saki in Yuki as Saki starts to recall her memories..but she couldn’t tell him who she is..well, something like that and I think the set-up is good. I hope that Yuki/Saki would be lessen crying and be more strong like how she was in the first chapter which made me think she was cool. It makes me think that the reason why Yuki didn’t like Eiji at first because deep inside, it is like he’s two timing her as Saki. =P Now, what is with that bloodied shirt? Does it have something to do with Kousuke’s apparent suicide? Could it be that Saki acted on her own without Yuki knowing what’s happening like some sort of split personality? Or, could it be that her brother has something to do with it? We also have to know who Shiki really is. Is he one of the culprits or maybe he was the one who saved her..and in some way, got plastic surgery for her. I don’t think he is a love interest for he could have taken advantage of her amnesia and pretended to be her lover. He did successfully create a ‘lie’ over who Yuki really is. Is it for him, or for her? So, for the suspects, if it is any of the guys, I have a feeling that it is probably Yuuya and Souichirou since something is going on between them and Yuuya momentarily showed his ‘not so nice’ self. Who was the one calling him? It makes me think that it is some girl. Was Kousuke really part of it or was it a tactic to throw them off from the real culprits? And, there is also the motive for doing that to the girls. A romance that gone awry..attempted rape-murder..well, from that scene, I get the impression that only Erika is the target. Also, it seems to have happened in the forest so most probably, if that skeleton is Erika, maybe someone moved it to that abandoned building later on, unless she was dragged and killed there. Anyway, hopefully this mystery-romance will develop nicely in the coming chapters. Scans by 深雪汉化组

Quote of the day:

Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards. ~ Søren Kierkegaard