Chapter 50: Fantasy in the middle of the night

“Next, that one.”

“Again…again?”

“This time, it’s really the last one.”

After the women’s bloody fight, I watched three movies in a row.

It was already past midnight, and the highlights were gradually fading from Izana’s eyes, while the clerk at the counter looked at them with a gaze that said, “Here they come again.”

Of course, Shia was as lively as ever.

She mechanically pulled out a ticket from the ticket machine, then dragged Izana’s swaying hand and headed to the next theater.

And in an instant, they arrived at the theater.

The theater was shrouded in darkness, and there was no sign of anyone else.

The cool air conditioning breeze made Izana’s head feel a little light.

“Huh…”

Drag, drag,

this isn’t my character…….

Even so, she didn’t feel like letting go of the hand she was holding.

Normally, she was the type to say no if she didn’t like something, but for some reason, she couldn’t refuse.

To be precise, she was hesitating. The long advertisement ended, and the production company’s logo appeared on the screen, but Izana just leaned her head on Sia’s shoulder and stared blankly—her mouth agape.

“This is hell… movie hell…”

“Shh, you have to be quiet in the theater.”

“Anyway, there’s no one else here…”

What kind of movie is this? I vaguely remembered hearing something before entering, but I was so distracted that I let it go in one ear and out the other.

What is it, Zombieland? This is an action movie too.

The terrifying sound of zombies moaning echoes in my ears.

The sound of a shotgun firing. The nerdy-looking protagonist fires another shot at the head of a fallen zombie. BOOM!

Come to think of it, all the movies I saw today were action movies.

Does that mean I like the action genre? Izan, who had averted her gaze from the bloody screen, looked at Shia’s profile.

As always, she had beautiful features, and her eyebrows were slightly narrowed as if she were concentrating. It was unexpected, but it suited her, which was a strange irony.

Meanwhile, the movie continues unabated.

Killing and more killing. Killing zombies.

Killing a famous comedian. After a few rounds of fairly amusing black comedy, there’s more banging and crashing, even at the amusement park. Zombies being disinfected in droves.

Even if you wanted to sleep, the noise made it impossible.

After two hours that felt like twenty, the credits rolled with nothing much to see.

As soon as she saw the white letters appearing on the black screen, Izana quickly turned her head to the right.

“Is this really the end…? If I have to watch it again, I’ll really get angry this time—”

“Izana.”

“Why…”

Normally, she would have cheerfully replied, “Yes, Sia-san!” but in her current exhausted state, her tone was blunt.

Izana gazed at Sia, who was sitting quietly, with pleading eyes.

Please, let’s just go home and sleep. Her bloodshot eyes, like those of a rabbit, were pitiful.

“Where do you think people go when they die…?”
“Huh?”

Izana unconsciously asked back at the unexpected question.

However, Sia’s eyes, which seemed to be filled with melancholy, were still fixed on the screen.

Could it be that the review she gave was such a philosophical question? No, wasn’t the movie we just watched made to be watched without thinking?

Sia slowly opened her mouth. Her plain voice flowed like a melody.

“I think people go to the movie theater when they die.”

“The movie theater?”

“Yes, the movie theater.”

I don’t know if I’ll go to the movie theater after I die, but right now, I feel like I’m going to fall asleep here—Ijana swallowed the words that were about to slip out.

Sia’s face was as calm as any ordinary scene, but precisely because of that, it carried a weight that couldn’t be seen on the surface.

“Sitting in a movie theater seat, with popcorn and cola in both hands, your life story flows out on the screen like a movie. Someone who lived as a prosecutor would watch a courtroom drama, and someone who lived as a soldier would watch a war movie.”

“After all, what’s so special about a bunch of similar people? But even if their lives seem similar to others, the people themselves feel differently. Even if they have similar living standards and similar jobs, some may think of the movie of their life as something like ‘The Empire Strikes Back,’ while others may think of it as something like ‘The Last Jedi.’”

“Is that so?”

“But the important thing isn’t the movie. What’s truly important is the fact that everyone’s life is like a play. Without exception, everyone.”
Life is a play on stage. Sia added in a soft voice. It’s a quote from Shakespeare that’s been used so many times in countless works.

“Even in front of your closest friends, you can’t shake off the pretense. Are you really 100 percent the same person in front of your closest friends as you are when you’re alone?”

“Even so, there must be some difference.”

“Yes, everyone is like that. Perhaps even when we are alone, we cover ourselves with lies.”

“…So, what do you want to say?”

As soon as she finished her sentence, her dark eyes turned toward Izana. Izana did not turn her head but stared intently into those eyes. Then those eyes came closer.

A warm breath tickled Izana’s nostrils. Her slightly dry, pale pink lips twitched as if about to speak. They were close enough to hear each other’s heartbeats. Naturally, Izana’s heartbeat quickened, and she held her breath for a moment.

“I’ve been thinking about it all along in that park.”

“Ah…”

“If everyone is an actor, and even I am just an actor, then wouldn’t it be better to become a great actor like Al Pacino?

An actor so immersed in his role that he forgets he is even acting.”

Her dark eyes met his. Yes, she had had those eyes since they first met.

Eyes that seemed to carry all the sadness in the world, eyes that swallowed up all emotions like the depths of hell.

Like the barren night sky of a city without a single star, he was captivated by those eyes and approached her, and captivated by fate, he fell in love with her. The stages of romance unfolded step by step.

She, Isia, is the deep sea.

Because she absorbs everything.

As that shrinking metaphor moistened my heart, Izanami had somehow become a mermaid princess, singing “Under the Sea” at the top of her lungs.

Where the hell did that damn lobster go? No, it’s better this way now.

“Does Izanami like me? Not as a friend, but as a lover.”

“Well, that…”

“No one would go to such lengths to help a friend they’ve only just met. Even a fool could see that.”

Her face draws closer and closer.

Her long eyelashes brush against his own. Up close, her eyes are even darker than usual, unlike the common brown.

And her straight nose and deep double eyelids, her tongue softly reciting sentences detached from reality.

All the lights in the world go out, and only the two of us remain.

The lighting is my silky hair, the music is the action scene of a boring third-rate movie.

Blood splatters, flesh flies. The whirring sound of a chainsaw.

The leaves have all withered, and the world is gray, but you alone shine brightly.

Could it be that the cherry blossoms I happened to find in the middle of winter are you? Even the Statue of Liberty decorated with Christmas tree ornaments is less beautiful than you.

I’m sorry, but with my twisted mind, I can’t think of a more romantic sentence than this.

” Then I too will begin to love Izana. Just as Izana loves me.”

“Poem, Ms. Shia?”

“I have received so much from Izana, and it is certainly… certainly the best path for everyone.”
Her face drew even closer.

“Um, the movie is over, so you should leave now—”

Click

“─Yikes!!”

“Hm…”

Oh, Father. Was Isaka such a lewd child? Even when she clenched her fists so tightly that her nails dug into her flesh, lewd moans escaped her lips involuntarily.

The thrilling sensation that rose from the tip of her tongue flooded her peripheral nerves, and her stimulated waist trembled involuntarily.

The sweet and bitter taste of caramel popcorn fills my mouth.

I don’t even notice the part-time worker who disappears in shock when I pull out the gun from my chest.

We just stick our tongues together as much as possible, exchanging saliva.

It’s a little dirty, but right now, I want to be as dirty as possible.

The pounding of his heart has completely taken over his ears.
His whole body burns like a campfire doused with gasoline.

Izanami hugs Shia’s slender back tightly.

Your spine is beautiful, Shia.

“It’s cold…”

The night breeze seeping through the window adds a touch of coolness to her sticky body. The mattress is softer than most hotel beds. Sia sits up and looks around.

Next to her, Izana is fast asleep, snoring softly.

She lit a lighter with one hand and fumbled for something with the other.

She felt like smoking a cigarette, but on the small table next to the bed lay only a thick cigar that a Cuban revolutionary might smoke. Sia had no choice but to pick it up and light the end.

However, the strong smell ruthlessly tore at her delicate lungs, causing her to cough violently. Come to think of it, this was her first cigarette in this life.

Her throat hurt as if it were being torn apart, but for some reason, she couldn’t put it down.

“Well, I… like Sia.”

“…Cough!”

Through the billowing cigarette smoke, I thought I saw the familiar face of someone pass by—but I don’t want to think about that now.

With a moist face, I just inhale the acrid smoke with all my might.