PRESENT TIME...
Cherry wiped his swollen eyes, sniffling for what felt like the hundredth time.
"I… I'm so sorry, Aki…" his voice trembled. "I'm such a cruel person for making you remember all those horrible things again…"
Aki, now a transparent figure glowing faintly in the warm light of the room, stood beside him holding out a tissue box. His expression was soft, almost amused.
Cherry reached up and grabbed another tissue—his tenth one—and blew his nose loudly.
Aki chuckled gently.
"I don't need them, but you sure do," he teased, waving the empty hand dramatically like a prince.
Cherry clutched the tissue with both hands, eyes red. "No, but really! It's just… how can people be so cruel? That Leo—he was a monster! I'm happy he died—wait, no—I mean, that's bad to say! But he was my late father-in-law… ahh!!" he wailed into the tissue again.
Aki laughed, the corners of his ghostly eyes crinkling.
"Oh, Cherry, you're too funny… and way too cute."
Cherry hiccupped through his sobbing. "Don't change the subject!"
They both fell into a soft, still silence, the air quiet but somehow less heavy than before.
Tick… tick…
The wall clock's minute hand shifted.
DING.
It was 12:00 PM—noon.
Suddenly, the air shimmered.
A faint glittering of sparkles began rising off Aki's body, twinkling like stardust lifting into the sunbeams streaming through the window.
Cherry sat upright, blinking.
"W-What's happening to you, Aki?!"
Aki looked down at himself with a gentle smile, as if this wasn't his first time fading.
"Oh, don't worry, Cherry," he said lightly. "It's just time for me to go. My visitation window is over."
Cherry's eyes widened in panic.
"Leave? Where are you going?!"
"I can't stay visible all the time," Aki explained, his voice becoming more echo-like as the sparkles increased. "But I'll be back tomorrow. Same time."
He winked, offering one last playful wave.
And just like that, his form dissolved—like dust caught in sunlight.
Cherry was left sitting on the floor, surrounded by crumpled tissues.