Chapter Text
-the alternate ending begins at chapter 14
-recap-
Muichiro didn't even bother wiping the tears from her eyes as she pushed herself off the edge...
-end of recap-
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-Meanwhile, with Tanjiro-
Tanjiro had just gotten back from her class and noticed that the dorm was empty. It was strange because, Muichiro never like going out by herself. Tanjiro glanced over to Muichiro's desk, seeing some of her things left out.
One of those things was a piece of paper. Tanjiro hope that maybe it was a letter saying where Muichiro went... but she could have always texted Tanjiro, so why would she write a letter?
Out of curiosity, Tanjiro went up to the desk and looked at the letter. After reading it, Tanjiro's eyes widened and tears threatened to fall. The letter read:
Hello, my love. If you are reading this, it's too late. My mother told me that I would have to leave early. And to make sure I couldn't leave, she was going to pick me up and bring me herself. I wish there was another way, but I'm probably dead by now... I wish the two of us could have had a good life together, but we wouldn't be able to see each other for a long time regardless of what option I chose.
I know it was selfish of me, but I knew I had to die. I apologize, but you don't have to forgive me. I do have one request, if you don't mind. Do you think you could enter Wilted Lotus in the competition for me? We both worked hard to finish it, and I wouldn't want that to go to waste. Also, next to the book you will find a notebook. Feel free to look through it, as only the first page is filled out.
The only person that should be blamed for my death, other than myself, is my mother. Most people say that's it was no one's fault, but in my case, it was her fault. Anyway, Tanjiro, I love you very much and I couldn't bear the thought of having to live without you. Just remember that I will always love you, even in the afterlife. And once again, I'm sorry.
Goodbye, Tanjiro, my love.
-Muichiro
Tanjiro's tears fell, as everything sunk in. Muichiro was dead and it was all because of her mother. Tanjiro looked at the notebook Muichiro talked about in the letter. She opened it and saw the first filled out with descriptions of what shapes Muichiro saw in the clouds.
Tanjiro wiped away her tears. 'She can't be dead yet; she can't be!' Tanjiro set the notebook back down on the desk and ran out the door. 'If I were Muichiro, where would I die?'... 'It hurts to have to think things like that... anyway, I bet she'd be at the river... she always liked it there...'
Tanjiro ran towards the river, hoping and praying that Muichiro wasn't dead yet. It was the most stressful time in Tanjiro's life. She had never grown as attached to someone as she did to Muichiro. Just knowing that arriving even a second late could cost Muichiro's life was hard for her.
Tanjiro got to the river and saw Muichiro starting to fall into the water. Tanjiro ran to her as fast as she possibly could and grabbed Muichiro's arm before she could fall in. Muichiro's eyes widened. She wasn't expecting anyone to intervene, so feeling the sudden contact startled her.
Muichiro was frozen in place. The only thing keeping her from falling into the water was whoever was holding her arm. The person started bringing Muichiro back to the bridge. Their breathing sounded slightly panicked, and they just seemed panicked overall.
Muichiro was pulled back onto the bridge. When she saw who had saved her, Muichiro was almost surprised. Almost. She didn't expect anyone to save her, but if they did, Tanjiro would probably be the one to save her.
"Muichiro..." Muichiro looked into Tanjiro's eyes. She stayed silent for a moment before finally saying something. "...I'm sorry..." Muichiro looked down, averting eye contact. Tanjiro lifted Muichiro's chin so that she could see Muichiro's beautiful teal blue eyes.
"You don't need to apologize; I just... just can't bear the thought of you dying..." Tanjiro's voice was soft and gentle. She was still as anxious as before, but was calming down. "I promise that I won't let your mother take you away. I will do everything in my power to keep you here."
Tears welled up in Muichiro's eyes as she heard that. She hugged Tanjiro tightly, as if Tanjiro would disappear if she didn't. "Thank you... and I'm still so, so sorry. I know what I did was selfish and wrong, and I could've- should've found a better way than this. Tanjiro I love you more than anyone or anything else, and I'm sorry..."
Tanjiro hugged her back tightly, but not as tightly as Muichiro was hugging her. Tanjiro ran her fingers through Muichiro's short hair and rested her head on top of Muichiro's. "Calm down... It's alright... Everything's alright now... All that matters is that you're still alive..." Tanjiro gave Muichiro a soft, gentle kiss on the top of her head after saying this.
Muichiro started calming down and relaxing in Tanjiro's arms. Her hold on Tanjiro loosened a little, though it was still quite tight. The two sat in silence. Tanjiro was calming down, as was Muichiro. Muichiro still felt really bad for what she did, as she thought it was selfish of her to try and kill herself and leave Tanjiro alone.
Tanjiro was still gently running her fingers through Muichiro's hair, calming both of them down. Eventually, the two went back to their dorm. They both knew that they had to figure out what to do about Muichiro's mother. She was going to take Muichiro away the next day, and there was no way in hell Tanjiro was going to let that happen.
That night, Tanjiro went on the internet and searched for a hotel that the two could stay at the next day. The plan was to hide at a hotel so that Muichiro's mother wouldn't be able to find them. They would leave Muichiro's phone and some of her things at the dorm, along with the note Muichiro had wrote.
They were going to make it look like Muichiro had successfully commited suicide the day before so that her mother couldn't find her. Now, that was originally Muichiro's plan, except she wasn't going to fake it. It was originally going be real, but Tanjiro saved her. The two went to bed, knowing that the next day could impact their entire future together.
Tanjiro woke up early the next morning, well, early for her. Muichiro was already up and ready to leave by the time Tanjiro awoke. It was only 6:30 in the morning, so they had a bit of time. Even so, Muichiro was anxious and didn't want to take any chances. The only reason Tanjiro was awake so early was because Muichiro woke her up.
"Mui, we have time, don't worry..." Tanjiro still sounded tired. She wasn't used to waking up so early. "But what if she shows up early? Or what if we can't get to our hotel in time?" Muichiro's voice had a hint of anxiety in it. "Love, we already booked the hotel room. It's ours until 3:00 tomorrow." "I know, but still!" Tanjiro sighed and got up from her bed.
She lightly hugged Muichiro to calm her down. "I know you're anxious, but it'll be fine. I'll get ready and we can leave before 8:00." Muichiro calmed down a little, though she was still anxious. "Now, why don't we have a quick breakfast and then I'll go get ready." Tanjiro broke the hug as she said this.
"I don't know, I'm not very hungry..." Muichiro sounded a little nervous when she said this to Tanjiro. "I don't care if you're hungry or not. You're still way too thin for it to be healthy, so you're going to eat." Tanjiro's voice was more stern. Muichiro knew she wouldn't be able to get away with it this time.
"Now, let's have breakfast!" Tanjiro had her normal voice back again. Muichiro had no choice but to comply, so the two had a quick breakfast together before Tanjiro finished getting ready. By the time Tanjiro was ready to leave, it was 6:57am. Muichiro was rushing to get out the door, Tanjiro following not too far behind her.
They made it to the hotel and Tanjiro checked them in. When she got their room keys, she gave one to Muichiro. "Now, don't lose your room key. That's the only way for you to get in if I'm not there." Tanjiro told her as she handed Muichiro her key.
"I won't lose it, I promise" Muichiro put the key in her pocket. "Mhm, yeah sure. You definitely won't misplace it the second we enter the room." Muichiro giggled softly. "Of course I won't! Now let's go to our room"
The two walked towards the elevators and went up to the fourth floor. When they found their room, Tanjiro unlocked the door with her key and let Muichiro in first. Muichiro explored the hotel room as if she were a child at a hotel for the first time.
"Tanjiro! The couch turns into a bed!" Muichiro exclaimed excitedly. Tanjiro could only giggle softly. "Yeah, that's normal in hotels." Muichiro still seemed excited about it and moved on to another part of the room.
"Tanjiro! Look at the bed! It's so big and there's so many pillows!" Muichiro jumped onto the bed. "It's so soft!" Tanjiro found Muichiro to be extremely cute in this moment and sat next to he on the bed. "Have you ever been to a hotel before?"
"Nope! I never really went to places that I needed a hotel room for. The farthest away I've gone from my house before college was this store that was forty five minutes away. We never really went anywhere when I was little"
"I see..." Tanjiro seemed to be thinking for a moment. "Then I'll just have to make this your best hotel experience ever!" Tanjiro smiled brightly and hugged Muichiro tightly- but it was a comfortable kind of tightness. One that made you feel safe and protected. Muichiro smiled as well and hugged Tanjiro back.
"And how are you going to do that? We're going to be stuck in this room for the whole day and leaving might be risky." When Muichiro voiced her concerns, Tanjiro patted her head. "I'll figure something out. And at least we have each other, so we won't get lonely." Tanjiro's smile was more gentle now as she looked down at Muichiro, who was in her arms.
Muichiro looked up at her and smiled at her as well. They stayed like that for a little bit, not talking, just enjoying each other's presence. They spent the rest of the day cuddling, reading together, and they even went to the hotel pool at one point (Tanjiro had a nose bleed after seeing Mui(I mean, I would too)).
Thankfully, Muichiro's mother never found them. They were safe. Well, so long as she didn't stay at their room and wait for them, but that was highly unlikely. It was night now, and the two were ready to go to sleep. "Tanjiro, there's only one bed." Muichiro looked over at Tanjiro and gestured to the bed. "And? I did that on purpose" Muichiro blushed a little at the answer Tanjiro gave.
Muichiro sighed softly and got into bed. "Fine, now come here." Tanjiro happily obliged and crawled into bed next to Muichiro. She hugged Muichiro and held her close. "I love you" Muichiro hugged Tanjiro back. "I love you too." After that, they went to sleep in each other's arms.
-・-・-・-・-・
-Epilogue for the Alternate Ending-
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After that day, the two managed to avoid Muichiro's mother and were safe from her. Muichiro didn't go back to her family anymore, and the only one in her family who knew that Muichiro was alive was Yuichiro.
The competition went well, with Muichiro winning second place for Wilted Lotus. Out of all of the entries, winning second place was quite the accomplishment. Even winning fifth place would be a big deal!
After a year or so, Tanjiro proposed and the two got married five months later. (Yes, they made out, dw. I just didn't want to write that)
Both graduated college and Muichiro was able to become an actual author! Tanjiro continued drawing and designing covers for her<3
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-2073 words-