It was a day when the sunlight shone warmly. Under such a peaceful sky where it seemed nothing could go wrong, I saw your corpse.

I grabbed your wrist. Even when I called your name, there was no sign of your eyes opening. Even when I pulled at your cheeks or tried to lift your eyelids, your body showed no sign of movement.

...It's fine. I just have to bring you back. Without realizing it, I gripped your cold sleeve tightly and repeated those words to myself.

How much time has passed? Ten years? Twenty?

Failure, and failure again. Your body, unable to withstand the limits of time, had already rotted away, and now even your form could no longer be felt.

Your face, which once cried and laughed, keeps crumbling away.

I placed my hand on your decayed cheek. Why do I keep clinging to something like this? I felt pathetic, but the hand on your cheek showed no sign of letting go.

The fact that your voice was slowly being forgotten in my head as time passed—that was what grated on my nerves so much.

But today, I saw someone who looks exactly like you. It had been decades, but the moment your voice pierced my ears clearly, I could feel it by instinct.

That is definitely you. You, who died decades ago.

I instinctively grabbed your wrist.

So that this time, I will never lose you again.