“Gahh—!”
I shot up like a man waking from a nightmare, my chest heaving, breath ragged. Cold sweat clung to my skin, my hair plastered to my forehead. My vision blurred for a moment as if the world itself couldn’t decide whether to let me wake up.
And then… I saw her.
An old woman sitting by the heater, sipping tea like nothing had happened.
I gasped again.
Wait… I know her.
No, wait—do I?
My head throbbed, the pieces scattered in my mind like a puzzle someone tipped over. She looked so damn familiar… but my memories felt frayed, like trying to grab mist with my hands.
I stared at her in silence, struggling to process everything. My body felt like a sack of bricks — heavy, numb, cold to the bone.
The old woman raised a brow at me, her voice carrying the kind of rough kindness you only hear from people who’ve lived long, hard winters.
“Glad you’re still alive, girl.”
Girl.
Right.
Ryuko.
I reached for my throat, feeling the shape of my voice again as I croaked out, “T-thank you… for saving me… again.”
I quickly bowed my head, my messy hair falling into my face.
God… it’s still me. Still Ryuko.
Not Ryusei...
But hell, at least I wasn’t Keiko. I felt a strange, guilty relief sweep through me.
The old woman shrugged like it was no big deal. “Why did you do it again? And this time, you brought a friend along too.”
I froze.
Keiko!
I jolted up too fast, a sharp pain racing up my side. “Wait—where’s Keiko? I mean… my friend?”
The old woman pointed lazily toward the corner of the small room. There, near the heater, lay Keiko’s unconscious form — pale, lips tinged with blue, her chest barely rising and falling.
“I was scared, y’know,” the old woman muttered, her voice softening. “Her body was so cold when I found you two.”
I didn’t wait for her to say more. I rushed over, dropping to my knees beside Keiko.
Her face… she looked so fragile, so breakable like this. I reached out and brushed a lock of damp hair from her face.
“Keiko… wake up… please,” I whispered, my voice trembling.
No response.
The old woman placed a hand on my shoulder. “She’ll be fine. She just needs more rest.”
I nodded weakly, my throat too tight for words. I squeezed Keiko’s hand, silently praying to whatever cruel god ruled this world.
“What time is it?” I rasped.
“Almost four,” the old woman replied, checking the clock. “You’ve been out for hours.”
Six hours. We’d been here nearly six hours.
The old woman handed me a steaming cup of tea. I took it with both hands, letting the warmth seep into my frozen fingers.
“Thank you… for everything.”
She gave a half-smile. “You kids these days… I don’t understand what you’re chasing out there in that snow. But if you don’t stop, one day you won’t make it back.”
I lowered my gaze, shame gnawing at me.
“The storm’s passed,” she said softly. “It won’t come again for a while. You can head home when she wakes.”
I nodded, gripping the cup tighter. The warmth against my palms felt like the only thing anchoring me to this world right now.
Then—
A cough.
A weak, broken sound.
I snapped my head up. “Keiko!”
I dropped the cup and scrambled to her side, grabbing her hand again.
She opened her eyes, glassy and unfocused at first. Her lips parted, and she rasped out weakly, “Uhmm… w-who are you?”
My heart plummeted.
When I finished, she sighed. “I’ve heard stories of people going into storms and never coming back… but never swapping bodies. That’s new.”
I let out a bitter laugh. “Figures.”
“And you say you haven’t found your old body since then?”
I shook my head.
Keiko reached for my hand, her warmth seeping into my cold skin. That simple touch nearly undid me.
The old woman gave us one last warning before sending us on our way. The walk home was slow, both of us exhausted, but the storm had cleared, and dawn was beginning to break through the clouds.
As we trudged through the snow, I broke the silence.
“Too bad… nothing changed.”
Keiko nodded. “Yeah. But we survived. That’s what matters.”
I swallowed hard, my throat tight. “I was scared, you know… I thought we were gonna die out there.”
I tried to laugh it off, but my voice cracked.
“It’s funny,” I continued, staring down at the snow. “A year ago, I went out there hoping to die. Now… all I could think about was not wanting to leave you. Or Rin.”
Keiko stopped walking, staring at me.
I couldn’t meet her eyes. “I… I was such a coward, Keiko. I wanted to run from everything. From my mistakes. From you. From my own damn kid. And now… now I’m crying because I was afraid I wouldn’t make it back to you.”
Keiko reached up and cupped my cheek, forcing me to look at her. Her eyes shimmered, but her smile was soft.
“You’re not a coward, Ryusei. Not anymore.”
“I don’t deserve you.”
“Stop saying that.”
I took a shaky breath. “But it’s true. You’re too good for me. I didn’t even realize it until I was Ryuko. Until I saw everything I’d taken for granted.”
“You were a jerk, yeah,” she teased with a small grin. “But you’ve changed. That’s what matters.”
I looked at her, really looked at her. The way the morning light caught in her hair, the snowflakes clinging to her lashes. She was so beautiful, it hurt.
“I love you, Keiko,” I whispered, the words raw and real.
She smiled, and it felt like the first sunrise after a long, cruel winter. “I love you too, idiot.”
We kept walking, our hands entwined.
It was February 12th. I was still Ryuko. But it didn’t matter anymore.
As long as I could be by their side…
I’d find a way to live.