Standing right in front of her was the man of her dreams since their first year of high school. How was it even possible for him to look even more beautiful? Hikari couldn't answer the question because Akaashi seemed to always exceed her expectations. Out of everyone in the room though, he was the only person shining; even more than the bride herself. Even with that unreadable face of his, he still looked handsome to her. She just wished he felt the same way towards her. As she reached where he was, they awkwardly took each other's hands into one another and listened to the priest's speech.

"Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up..."

Noticing how her hands were shaking between his, Akaashi comfortably tightened his grasp on hers. This caught her attention and Hikari stopped shaking as she stared into Akaashi's oceanic eyes.

"The two shall become one flesh..."

A small smile of relaxation grows on her peachy lips; Akaashi was always there to calm her back down even though he was her biggest reason for becoming a total wreck.

"Ai Hikari, do you take Akaashi Keiji as your lawfully wedded husband?"

Hikari breaks out of her thoughts and holds in her breath. She wasn't sure if she wanted to do this. Yeah, being in a relationship and receiving Akaashi's affection was something she had always dreamed of but not this way. However, it was too late for her to change her mind now.

"I-I do."

Akaashi gives the smallest wince at her hesitation but tries to shrug it off. It's not like he was marrying her out of love anyway; so why should he be upset that she hesitated.

"Then I pronounce you husband and wife! You may kiss the bride."

'K-kiss?!'

Yeah, sure she knew that there'd be a kiss but now that it was actually happening, Hikari started to mentally panic. This isn't how she imagined her first kiss with Akaashi would go. Feeling unbothered, Akaashi leans in first as Hikari stays in place. Once he's close enough where Hikari could smell his minty breath, she is about to back away when Akaashi quickly lands his lips onto her soft ones.

'How is he able to do this so casually as if a kiss is nothing but a simple act?'

Akaashi's heart skips a beat when he tastes the sweet flavor from her lips and he instantly backs away.

'What was that?'

The crowd erupts in cheers as the two turn their gaze towards their friends and family who were crying in happiness. Seeing how happy their friends and family were, the newly weds end up smiling as well and stay hand in hand.

For the rest of the wedding, Akaashi's behavior had changed into one Hikari had hardly ever witnessed before. He treated her as if she was really his wife and the way he held her body while they shared their first dance, it was all a magical dream for her. Hikari was falling for Akaashi all over again. Shockingly, the two had a blast once the nerve-racking ceremony finished and they both actually felt as if they had independently chosen to marry each other out of true affection.

Later that night, the two reached their new home they both had purchased a few months before and continued to talk like two birds in love.

"Today was so much fun, Keiji-kun!" Hikari giggled with blush covering her cheeks as she sat on the couch with her wedding dress still on.

Gladly, Akaashi took a seat beside her and started to play with her poofy dress.

"It sure was," he happily agreed.

Silently, the two sat and enjoyed the peaceful air until Akaashi decided to break it again and he placed his hand on hers.

"I never got to tell you, but you looked really beautiful today," he confessed.

His sudden confession shocked Hikari as she blushed. "T-thank you, K-Keiji-kun... You looked really handsome as well."

Observing her reaction, Akaashi saw the apparent blush on her cheeks and the way Hikari adorably pushed her pulp lips together. Unconsciously, his body leaned towards hers and his hunger for a taste of her lips grew. Following his lead, Hikari also leans towards him. Suddenly, the memory of tasting her cotton candy lips flashed through his mind and he abruptly removed his hand from hers and backed away. He was brought back into reality and he instantly locked up all of those emotions he was feeling that day. Without giving her a look, Akaashi stood up from his seat.

"I'm going to go clean up," he emotionlessly announced before heading towards their room without waiting for her response.

After that day, the closed up Akaashi returned and Hikari was brought back to reality. As Hikari was expecting to comfortably talk to her husband who openly expressed his feelings the day of their wedding, he would instead give her short answers or small gestures and the two went back to their awkward relationship. It all confused Hikari at first but what could she do? Akaashi was never one to openly express how he felt; so, Hikari came to the conclusion that their wedding day was just an illusion of the Akaashi she dreamed to be with and the reality was that Akaashi never loved her the way that she loved him.

Present

March 15th

Frightened by his nightmare, Akaashi opens his eyes to a blurry vision of the ceiling. Sitting up, he wipes his tears and grabs his phone to see that it has been three days since the disappearance of his wife.

"Why?" he rhetorically asks. "Why am I dreaming about our wedding day when you're gone?"

Akaashi's thoughts are interrupted with the doorbell and he drags his feet towards the door. Ever since he found out that Hikari had gone missing, Akaashi hasn't gone to work. Instead, he's been talking with the police, searching around town for her, and talking to close family and friends about the situation. Opening the door, he's face to face with Bokuto, Yuki, Kuroo, and Kenma.

"Hey, Akaashi," Bokuto sadly greets before the four of them walk in and settle themselves in the living room.

"How have you been?" Kenma worriedly asks Akaashi who looks like a total mess.

He had dark circles under his eyes, his hair was messier than usual, and the color of his eyes were somehow tinted with grey.

"Fine," he lies and brings everyone cans of tea.

"Have the police found anything about where she might be?" Kuroo asks as Akaashi hopelessly shakes his head.

The room turns quiet and no one is able to say anything. Tightening her fists on her lap, Yuki abruptly stands up.

"Where is her room?" she asks.

Lifelessly, Akaashi gets up and leads everyone towards the room he and Hikari share. Their room would usually always be clean since Hikari wasn't fond of messiness; however, within the past three days, Akaashi had ruined the entire room. The blinds were closed, making the room appear super dark even though it was 3pm, books and papers were scattered around the room, and some dirty clothes laid on the floor.

Looking around, Yuki found what she expected was their closet and headed towards the doors. Opening it, she searches through Hikari's clothes to find Hikari's favorite cardigan Yuki had gifted her back in high school. Taking it off of its hanger, her eyes start to tear up and she tightly hugs the piece of clothing. Taking in its scent, Yuki cries harder when she smells her best friend's favorite laundry detergent.

"Where are you, Ari? We haven't even done everything on our bucket list together! We have so much more to do!" Yuki cries into the cardigan.

The other boys wince at Yuki's sudden outburst and turn away from the scene. It was too much for them to handle. Thoughts start to flood into the boys' heads of the things they still wanted to do with Hikari as well. At that point, they all just felt hopeless; three days was too long.

Staring at the others, Akaashi feels his stomach being ripped apart.

"I'm sorry," Akaashi whispers.

They instantly turn their heads to look at Akaashi who looks like he has just seen a ghost.

"It's all my fault... I'm sorry," he repeats again. "If I had come home earlier--no, even before that; if I hadn't been selfish and married her, this wouldn't have ever happened!"

Kenma places a hand on Akaashi's shoulder and shakes his head. "We can regret all we want and put the blame on ourselves or each other but that's not what Hikari would want. She wouldn't want you regretting that you married her, even if it was for selfish reasons."

After that, the others left Akaashi to be alone once again. Sitting on the couch, Akaashi thoughtlessly stares at the ceiling.

Flashback

"How have you been, Akaashi-kun? W-we have talked since high school," Hikari started the conversation as she nervously played with her hair. It was something Akaashi had taken note of and would always stare at when she would twist her strand of hair between her small fingers.

Forced by their parents, the two were currently on a 'date' where they were chilling at a park.

"I've been good," Akaashi simply answered before awkwardness filled the air again. Once Akaashi had started college, he had become even more reserved and lifeless. Maybe it was because he was no longer playing volleyball with his friends and now had to go live in the harsh world by himself. There was no more fun and games once high school ended, just loneliness. Yeah, Akaashi knew that the fun times couldn't last forever and that everyone else had their own lives to take care of; but being the reserved and closed-book person he was, it was difficult for him to make new friends in college. The lack of any kind of relationship and being overloaded with work from school negatively impacted him.

Obviously noting how cold Akaashi had turned over the years, Hikari worriedly frowned.

"Akaash--"

"Let's agree with this marriage," he interrupted, shocking Hikari.

Her eyes widened. "W-what?"

Turning to look at her, Hikari saw an unfamiliar person. Yeah, it was Akaashi, but he looked entirely different. His eyes were grey and his skin was paler. The healthy fat on his cheek had significantly disappeared and he almost looked like a skeleton with skin.

"For me, let's get married," he repeated.

As much as he didn't want to admit it out loud, he knew deep in his heart that the reason why he wanted to marry Hikari wasn't out of sincere love, but wanting to have someone beside him. It was his selfish desire that he knew the kind-hearted Hikari would not decline. Of course the dude knew the girl's feelings for him; she was a total wreck around him. He was handsome, smart, and the former setter of the powerhouse volleyball team. Not only that, her cheer was the loudest one he heard when he was on the court. The way she yelled his name encouraged him to want to win even more as much as he didn't want to admit it; but what did he choose to do with her feelings and his own feelings? Ignore it and hide it somewhere deep in his heart.

"Okay, Akaashi-kun; for you." Hikari gave him a smile that instantly brought the turquoise color back into his eyes.

Present

"For me?" He tightly shuts his eyes and clutches onto his shirt. "How cruel."

Once again, his thoughts are interrupted with a knock on the door. Opening the door, he comes face to face with his middle aged neighbor.

"Oh, Akaashi-san! Is Hikari-chan home? Some of her things flew into our backyard probably due to the storm."

Emotionlessly, he shakes his head and she hands Akaashi a bag filled with gardening tools, gloves, and other things.

"I see; well, when she gets home, please tell her to come over some time! I need help with my little garden. They're starting to die and I'm not sure why! I need your wife's help to save it," she chuckles before heading off.

"My wife." It sounded to foregin coming out of his mouth. Looking through the bag, he sees the pair of gloves that his parents had gifted Hikari for her birthday. "Didn't we also get her a matching Umbrella?" he rhetorically asks before heading towards the sliding door that led to their backyard. For once, he has finally looked out the backyard and sees the big mess the storm had left. A gut feeling triggers Akaashi to take a step outside; so, he puts on some sliders and walks out. Ever since the storm, the weather had been windy and gloomy; just the perfect weather to lift his spirits. Somehow, the forest seemed to be the only place that had sunlight and it worsened Akaashi's feelings even more.

Walking around, he sees Hikari's little garden was successfully protected from the storm. A smile grows on his face when he sees all kinds of plants she has grown.

"Hikari's really good at taking care of things," he silently comments before turning his attention to see a familiar umbrella. "What's that doing all the way over there?"

Rushing over, he heads towards the large trees and bends down to pick up the dirty umbrella. Uncomfortable with being that close to the forest that many have rumored about, Akaashi tries to be quick. As he's about to lift it, his eyes move to the side to see something sparkling. Eyes widening, Akaashi could've sworn that he heard his heart shatter. Letting go of the umbrella, his hands shakily reach towards the crystal and when he moves the grass to have a better look of what it is, Akaashi chokes on his saliva and starts coughing while tears fall down his eyes.

"Her ring," he weeps and picks it up. Tightly, he holds the ring towards his chest and cries as the wind messes up his hair even more. Moving his gaze towards where the ring was on the grass, he comes face to face with the forest.

"She's in there."

Date: 25 October 2020