A Place That Wasn't Empty

...
...
"We...promised..."
...
Haru felt herself being pulled away from the door opened to nothing.
She heard a voice, but could barely tell what it was saying.
She felt a hand on her shoulder. She tried to back away, but she was already against the wall. Haru looked up to see the slowly cracking face of Hero. Despite everything, a part of her felt awed that even now he was still holding it together for them.
She couldn't hear whatever he said to her, but she responded anyways.
"I-I'm fine..." Oh dear, she couldn't have been fine with how badly her voice shaked. "I'm...I'm just...just..."
Hero once again said nothing out loud as Haru tried to figure out if she could move. No...her legs were still frozen. Maybe a little bit-oh, she collapsed.
Haru found herself on the floor. She always was a crybaby, so of course she shed tears. But all her friends were hurting to, it would be so mean of her to have one of her meltdowns and make them focus on her. So even with how much she wanted to scream, to throw herself at the first person in front of her and bury her face in them to fully break down in sobs and cries and screams, to throw open that door and scream at the nothing in there that they promised, to gouge her own eyes out so she didn't have to see anymore, to cry for Mari's name, to scream Sunny's name, she didn't.
...
Haru felt someone hold her hand and help her up.
"You...don't have to be here."
"We'll take care of everything here."
"Go on ahead...We'll be okay. I think."
...Where?
Where did she have to go...what place did she ever have left?
...
She saw smiles. From her friends. Two of them shined the brightest.
..
"Right...they're probably waiting for me...to come home..." Haru mumbled deliriously.
Haru finally managed to get her legs to move. One step. Two step.
She barely registered the worried voice behind her. Or her friends. She'd never seen Kel cry before, didn't think he could. Aubrey's...
...
A park. She wasn't going there, but she took a look at it. The swings. The big yellow cat. Maybe those would be at home.
A door. This wasn't home, but she needed to come back here.
A stairwell. She remembered one time Kel ran down them one time and she warned Kel he could trip and hurt himself.
A room. She remembers sharing it with them for her whole life.
A knife, right in her brother's drawer. It made her feel ill every time she looked at it, but she always felt...it would be...
A sliding glass door. She remembered peering out it when...
A stump. She remembers the day it was cut down. And the day she found Sunny laying against it, this very knife...
...
What...did that promise...mean to them? That no matter what happened...we'd always be there for each other.
Maybe it didn't mean the same thing to them that it meant to her...
...
That we'd always be together...and if the time came, we'd go together.
...

...

Haru woke up in an unfamilliar white room. It extended forever. And ever.
...
She heard something.
Haru sat up. Her legs were still wobbily, but she could stand.
...
She wandered forward. And listened.
"..."
It was...closer.
"..."
No, it was...two voices?
"..."
Haru's eyes lit up. It was.
"..."
She picked up the pace.
"..."
A run. She knew who's voices it was.
"..."
She saw it, far in the distance. A window with two curtains flapping in non-existant wind.
Home, she was almost home!
"Sunny! Mari!" She cried out. She couldn't have run faster if she tried. She needed to go. She had to run. She had to skip and leap.
Home was there, home was warm, home was happy, home was a place they watched cartoons together, home was when she was happy, home was friends, home was waking up to someone, home was hugs, home was cookies, home was grass and swings, home was oranges and lemons, home was carpet stains, home was lakes, home was books, home was birthdays, home was all in their photos, home was summer, home was watermelons, home was sand, home was everywhere that wasn't here, home was the tears running down her face, home was the laughter escaping from her lips, home was 4 years ago, home was promises, home was where he always was, home was where she always looked after, home was seeing Sunny's face look at her, home was seing Sunny's face in the mirror, home was Mari having picnics with them, home was Mari reading for them at bed time, home was-
Home was reaching out to his hand trying to grab hers.
Home was getting higher than her.
Home was...falling...
Home...wasn't for her...
...was waking up... to see...

...

Haru woke up to an empty room.
Haru couldn't go back to sleep.
Light shined through the window, indicating it was midday. There were flowers resting near her bed, three of them. Left by the only three it could be. The room was devoid of anyone except her, but she had been visited already by three scared and terrified friends that really missed her. Haru's face was devoid of any light. Her eyes looked dry. Tear stains were on the corner of her black ringed eyes. She looked like she hadn't gotten sleep in years.
...
Haru couldn't move. She could only close her eyes, and hope desperately that it would be over.
She whimpered the only words she could think of.
"I want to go home..."