Alice in Borderland ~ Chishiya

4

'Hello?' I ask while banging on the window after they wouldn't open the door. Didn't they hear the bell ring? No, they didn't, because it doesn't work. I look inside through the window, but I don't see them anywhere. What is going on here? Where is everyone? I look at the desk that has been specially decorated to remember Hikaru and am shocked when I no longer see her photo. They would never take her away. Something really is wrong. I quickly reach for the picture in my pocket and let out a sigh of relief. I still have it.

At every house, the doorbell doesn't seem to ring. I knock on several people's houses, but there's still no answer. I decide to go to the metro station, where there's still no one to be found. At first I worry, but after a while I find myself feeling more and more uncaring and more comfortable. I still remember looking at the city last night in the realization how big it is, how small I felt, how many people actually live here. Or lived? Because there hasn't been anyone to be seen all along. Not that I mind, but I still can't fully suppress the thought that something is wrong. What can it be?

~~~

I look out over the city thoughtfully, but I still can't figure out what's going on here. When I was in this place last night, I looked out over an illuminated, busy Tokyo. Now there still seems to be no one. During the day, I found out that there is no running water nor electricity, so I am now looking at a dark city. The signal of my phone had also not returned. In my head, I have thought out different scenarios, but I just don't understand what is happening right now. Where is everyone? Why is the city so deserted? I turn and look at the rock face I fell from yesterday. What if that wasn't yesterday? What if I had been here for a few days? That cannot be, that's absolutely impossible. If there had been days in between, I wouldn't have woken up anymore.

I just can't stand not being able to find answers to this phenomenon. It bothers me even more than the fact that my parents seem to have disappeared. What if I'm really the only person in town? What if I finally got rid of my annoying, demanding parents? What if I finally got rid of fake friends laughing at me behind my back? Of the looks of the professors at the university, who keep seeing me come and go and who keep looking at me while shaking their heads, as if they want to say: "Why does this stupid girl keep trying again and again?"

I think about all the people who have been annoying to me and feel relief that I don't have to see them anymore, but I do miss Shiori and Sato. It also bothers me that there doesn't seem to be any sign of Hikaru in their house, as if she never-

I get interrupted in my thoughts when I hear a loud noise for a few times, followed by the sound of electricity. I turn and squint my eyes at seeing the bright lights of a few large billboards. They are being lit, followed by a typed text message on them. I can just read one billboard from this distance.

GAME.

"Welcome players, the game will start soon."

Game? What kind of game? And why is there suddenly electricity in certain places? I'm shocked when I see light appearing at different locations. They are close to the billboards with text on it. Maybe someone will be there. Maybe I'll get answers there.

When I get closer, I notice it's a kind of festival. I've never been there myself, but I've heard the girls talk about it. There seems to be delicious food, a good atmosphere and beautiful lighting. So far, there's no good atmosphere to be felt, because I'm still the only person here. "Arena" is typed on an illuminated sign. I look at the lantern lights hanging on two lines. They end up at the billboard, where there's a table with objects on it. I look at some other tables next to it and see some food on them. At that moment, I feel my stomach growling. I don't know what's going on or what game is going to be played, but maybe it's okay if I'd watch. I have not eaten all day and there's no one asking for an admission ticket. That's why I decide to use the open entrance and walk further up the square.

I arrive at the table and see some cell phones on it. "One per person" is written on a note. There's no one else around, so I can't ask if I'm supposed to get one. Out of curiosity, I pick up one anyway and try to unlock it. "Face recognition in progress. Please wait." That's what's displayed on the screen. An ID number is now being displayed and a female computer voice coming from the phone says: 'Sasaki, Kimora.' I see that there's also no signal here, so I can't make any calls with it. The screen says I have to be patient and wait for the game to start. A timer begins to run, showing ten minutes.

'Hello?' I ask while looking around, but there's no one answering. There really is no one here. Then it wouldn't be a problem if I'd grab something to eat, right? I put the phone back on the table and bend myself over a bowl of noodles. Strangely, it's still warm, so that should mean someone is there, right? I decide not to think too much about it and I start eating. After a while, I start to get bored. I take another look at the phone I picked up earlier and see that the timer is now set to four minutes.

I don't feel like waiting another four minutes until I have to play a game by myself. I check if it's possible to log out somewhere, but it's not. Maybe I can just put it back on the table and leave. Just before I want to do that, I see movement coming from the corner of my eye. Two boys walk past the entrance and start getting closer and closer. The boy with a shaved haircut ignores me completely as he picks up one of the phones, but the boy with brown hair gives me a nod.

'Hello,' I reply out of courtesy. The first still ignores me, while the other looks up at me again after picking up one phone too. I hear the names Toshi and Yuri pass by. The boy who had nodded at me, looks from me to the table of food. 'Did you take anything?' he asks. I glance at my empty bowl of noodles and nod at him. 'Toshi,' the boy with the shaved haircut says, warningly. 'What?' Toshi replies. 'I do crave normal, hot food.' He comes a little closer and gets his own bowl of noodles.

'What do we have to do?' I ask the boys. Actually, I don't feel like getting in contact with anyone, but I haven't seen anyone all day and to be honest, I thought I was alone. On the one hand, it's annoying to connect with others and having to play a game with them, but on the other, it kind of feels like a relief that I'm physically not completely alone after all.

'Who knows, right?' Toshi says jokingly, before looking at me inquisitively after seeing my response. 'Shit, you're not going to tell me this is your first time, are you?' Yuri looks at me almost annoyed. What is it? I thought the atmosphere was a bit tense because we don't know each other, but now it feels like a kind of chill. 'My first time for what?' I ask.

'Ah, shit, Yuri, it's her first time.' Toshi puts the empty bowl down again and stands next to his companion. 'As long as she doesn't get in our way,' Yuri replies as annoyed as he had looked. 'Otherwise, she'll be the first to sacrifice.'

'Sacrifice?' I mumble indignantly. 'And for what purpose? What game are we going to play?' The boys look at each other and don't answer me. Okay, it's clear they don't want to say anything. I don't really feel like making contact with them or playing games. After all, we never did that at home, so I don't know why I should do that now. 'Fine,' I add, 'good luck with it, then.' I forget to put the phone back on the table, but I'm already halfway to the entrance that's also the exit and I don't feel like walking back.

'Where do you think you're going?' a girl asks me while being utterly surprised. She just walked into the entrance and looks at me in bewilderment because I wanted to leave. 'Home,' I mumble in reply. 'I only came here for the food. I don't feel like playing games.' The laughter of a boy who also just entered, draws my attention. 'As if any of us would like that!' he claims. I frown at him. 'Then why do you join, if you don't feel like it?' He wants to laugh at me again, but then he looks at me inquisitively. 'Shit, this is your first time, isn't it?'

Now I'm getting really annoyed. What is my first time? What are they talking about? Have these to me unknown people secretly agreed to harass me or something? Did they lure me in with food and now want to fool me?

'You can't go,' the girl says sadly. 'Not anymore..' I want to ask what she means, but I don't have to. She takes a pen from her pocket and throws it in the direction of the entrance. As soon as it lands outside the area of the square, I am startled by a red laser beam coming from the sky. It pierces the pen within a second, after which the remainder falls to the floor, smoking.

'Since you entered the arena, you are obliged to participate.'