Inception (4)

What is the best reward for yourself after an intense session? Yes, it's sleep. As Shizuka was pretty active in the latter half of the session, she is already in the dreamland by now, meeting the god of Ramen, Nahruetoe.

She has a small smile on her face, and you can easily tell she is satisfied with the ride she has been through. Hachiman is lying on his side beside her, caressing her head tenderly; he, too, has a small smile on his face.

Glancing at the clock, Hachiman can see it is already 2 in the morning. He should be sleeping at this time since he still has to go to school tomorrow, but he can't fall asleep for some reason; he feels tired, but his mind is fully awake.

"Huuh... Let's do it the old way." With a sigh, Hachiman gets down from the bed.

Opening the door of their bedroom silently as to not disturb Shizuka, he goes to the kitchen. Taking a glass, he pours the milk that he has taken out from the fridge into it, and gulps it in one go.

Glug. Glug.

"It doesn't work." Hachiman shakes his head in disappointment as the milk doesn't make him want to go to sleep. "Oh, I should've heated it up first." When realization dawned upon him, he nods his head in understanding.

He fills up his glass once again, and is ready to put it into the microwave. However at that moment, something crashed into his foot. Looking down at the culprit, he can see a brown furball with eyes that are as bright as the sky.

"What is it, Raphtalia?"

"Nyaaa~"

"What was I doing with Shizuka?"

"Nya!"

Hachiman hums to himself, as he, once again, is surprised he can communicate with a cat. "Hmm... Why are you asking that question? Did you hear something you shouldn't hear?"

"Nya nyaaa~ nyaa!"

"Oh, you were there...?" Hachiman caresses his chin calmly. "You little shit, I know you were sleeping in your room for the last five hours." He smirks, then crouches to meet Raphtalia's eyes. "Just tell me what you want. You don't need to blackmail me."

"Nyaa~!"

"Stupid cat. You can just say that you want some milk from the beginning."

'I am losing my mind. Why the fuck am I talking with a cat?' Even though Hachiman is still puzzled, he considers it as one of his unexplainable brilliance. 'What can I say? I'm so great, I don't quite understand myself.'

No matter how narcissistic it sounds, there is some truth in it: Hachiman doesn't quite understand himself; he is still in the process of knowing himself better.

Shaking his head to clear any existential crisis provoking thought, he stands up, and takes the milk for Raphtalia.

After pouring the milk into Raphtalia's bowl, he heads back to the bedroom ... Or that is what he wants to do. "Huuh... What do you want, Raphtalia?" With a sigh, he looks down at Raphtalia who is circling his foot.

"Nya!"

"No, you don't have to ask me to enter our room. Just follow me; I'll open the door for you."

"Nya nya nya!" Raphtalia shakes her head vigorously. She raises her paw, and points it to her milk filled bowl that is a few meters away from them. "Nya nya~!"

Puchi.

Hachiman's eyebrow twitched at the audacity of his cat, Raphtalia. Carefully picking Raphtalia up, he looks into her eyes. "Are you, my cat, telling me, your Master, to carry your bowl into our room so you can drink it there?"

Raphtalia confirms it with a nod. Hachiman stays silent for a while, before putting Raphtalia down, and takes her milk filled bowl to the bedroom; he decided to comply to her request in the end.

"If this is how it feels to have a child, I won't have one," he mutters under his breath.

He puts the bowl beside the bed, and Raphtalia immediately drinks it like a good girl. Hachiman has a small smile on his face upon seeing that, as he has made an oath to throw her away if she drinks her milk messily.

Vibrate!

When he is about to sit down on the bed however, his phone rings. He is slightly irked by the fact that there is an idiot who calls him at this time, but he is glad he has set his phone to Silent Mode so it is not bothering Shizuka in the least bit.

Looking at the caller's name, Hachiman quirks his eyebrow in surprise. "Asako? What is this woman doing at this time? Isn't she aware she is not in her prime anymore?" Picking up the phone, he answers the call. "This is hell, how may I help you?"

[That was good; you're still as foul-mouthed as usual.]

Upon hearing the voice, Hachiman can't suppress the small smile from blooming on his face. "Do you have something important to say that you have to call me at this time?" Hachiman heads to the sofa near the window, and sits himself in it.

[No, I don't have anything to say ... In particular. I just want to call.]

"I'll hear you out." Hachiman gazes at the clear night sky through the window of the bedroom.

[What happened to the world? Is it going to end soon? Why does Hikigaya Hachiman suddenly become nice?]

"Earth has, at least, another 4 billion years before it becomes inhabitable. I think you've mistaken the world's end with your end." It flows just as natural as Han River.

[Damn, I can't say I didn't see that coming.] Asako chuckles behind the phone. [Huuh... I guess Yuria is right: I have a sick humour. I like that one earlier.]

'Isn't it too late to realize that?' Although he wants to say that, he holds himself back; he feels there is something more to the conversation, and he doesn't like dilly-dallying. "Tell me what you want to tell." So, he asks.

Asako doesn't say anything for a while, but Hachiman waits for her patiently. [I have a month to live.]

"I see."

Both sides become silent right after. While Hachiman is furrowing his eyebrows thinking about what he should say, Asako is emptily gazing at the sky on the other side. The silence is preserved for a few minutes, before it is broken by Hachiman.

"Want to hear a joke?"

[I'll hear you out.]

"I have a feeling something big is going to happen tonight. I have no scientific proof or logical explanation for it; I only have my gut feeling to convince me that it will happen."

[It's not funny, but considering it is coming from you it is hilarious.] Asako chuckles.

"I... I think if that happens, a miracle will happen. You don't—you will live."

Silence greets Hachiman for a few seconds, before a full blown laughter is heard from behind the phone. [Pfft! Hahahaha! Kid ... That was hilarious and dark at the same time.]

Asako shakes her head in amusement on the other side, and mutters, [Since it won't happen, I will die then.]

This time, Hachiman stays silent. He gazes at the sky silently, and smiles bitterly right after. "I have experienced a miracle once, and a part of me believes it will happen once again."

[What is the miracle that happened to you?] Asako's interest is easily picked once again.

"Coming into this world," Hachiman mutters softly.

[Well... I am glad you love your life—]

"Meeting Shizuka, having a family, experiencing love, enjoying my life, and ... Becoming your friend. I didn't put an effort to make it happen; it just happened. It's enough to call it a miracle, don't you think?"

[...] Asako thought Hachiman was about to joke on that one, but the more she heard it, the more genuine it sounds—the more her heart tightens. [I guess... That's a miracle.] She smiles in defeat. [But life sucks, huh? I am the only one who don't get to experience it.]

"Tonight, you will."

[You don't need to comfort me, I—]

"Look at the sky. It's beautiful."

[... Fine.] Asako sighs then turns her gaze to the window that is not that far from her bed. She can see the bright sky, and some twinkling stars in it. It looks just like a normal sky, until she sees something. [Hachiman ... Do you see what I am seeing?]

"Make a wish, Asako. It's your night of miracle." Hachiman smirks; he, too, can see the shooting star.

Asako normally doesn't believe in superstition, but this time she feels the urge to make a wish. Closing her eyes, she mutters, [To the bitch who is controlling my fate, give me an eternal life ... And allow me to be his wife.]

Although Hachiman can't hear the latter part clearly, Asako's first wish is already enough to make him shake his head in amusement. Turning his gaze to the shooting star once again, he notices that it is getting bigger and bigger.

It is shining brightly in blue, and it looks like a meteor that is ready to put humanity to an end—just like what happened to the dinosaurs million years ago. Quirking his eyebrow at the shooting star, his heart suddenly beats faster.

[Hachiman, did you just speak to me?]

Hachiman can't register Asako's voice. His gaze is planted on the shooting star, and his eardrums are overwhelmed with the sound of his beating heart.

Before long, an explosion of light occurs in the sky; its wave sweeps through the sky as if cleaning it. Hachiman, who has been in a trance upon seeing the phenomenon, loses his consciousness in the next moment.

Not just Hachiman; Asako who is on the other side, and many others, too, lose their consciousness.

No one actually knows what is happening, but in the near future, this phenomenon is called Exposure.