*Shotarou's Pov*

I don't believe this...

I can't believe this...

Kanata is....gone....?

All that left is...a shadow of his former self.

Me: You're....a shadow?

Shadow: Yes.

The dark figure smirked.

Shadow: A replica of one's former self. You see boy, as I mentioned earlier. Your friend let himself be consumed by his greed. He used to be mastermind of this world...but now...I'm in control~!

Me: N-No way...

Shadow: Yes Way~! Such a shame he ended everything so quickly. Such a inconsiderate little coward he is.

Me: D-Don't talk about Kanata-kun that way!

Shadow: Oh? What are you saying? Why are you still defending him? He had confessed that he was the one who killed your friends. You should be mad at him for causing you do much pain.

Me:....Just what is this world that we're living in.

The Shadow chuckled evilly.

Shadow: Well this world, it's called an Alterworld.

Me: Alterworld?

Shadow: Yes. It is a world that is modified by your friend's will. Because of his greed, he made this world in order to change or at least make a difference. But I guess because he was lonely. He wanted people, actual people who be in his world as well. So my guess, aganist your will, he kidnapped you and three other boys to help fill that void aganist your will without you knowing.

Me: But...the others...they're...

Shadow: He made alternative changes. Don't you remember the red flags you're friends were showing you. None of that was real...it was all figment of your imagination conjured by the other boy. He wanted to bring the worst out of them.

Me:.....

Shadow: Judging from your confusion, I can at least clear this up for you. Your friends...were never friends to begin with. All four of them were just people who never truly got along.

They hate each other.

They wore a mask to hide their story.

Ichigo's Story - The boy who was bullied and depressed while relying on his tormentors for money and dependance.

Miyoshi's Story - The boy shackled down by rules, pressure, and expectations.

Yusuke's Story - The boy whose trust was abused and torn apart by the harsh world.

Kanata's Story - The boy who manipulated others trust for his own personal gain and hide his loneliness.

Like everyone else, they kept their true self hidden from the world.

Lies, backstabbing, betrayal, and deceit was all they know.

Their background, their secrets, their pain and opened scars, it's all been exposed to the world...

Shadow: But as you can see...society threw them away...The world rejected them...then forgotten all about them...

Me: HUH?!

Shadow: Yeeees~! Have you ever take time to wonder? Why do humans love to hurt each other? Example. Your friend, Kanata was only nice to you because he wanted to keep you all to himself. However, when it came to others, he pretended to be nice to them when in reality, he gotten tired of them and shown nothing but hate.

Me:....

Shadow: It makes me truly wonder...what really defines a friend...?

Are they really someone who has your back...?

Or are they just someone they can use for their own gain.

Until...they get tired of you and throw you away like yesterday's trash.

Humans...really are troublesome creatures...

Me: I...want my friends back...

Shadow: Oh? But didn't you hear me...they no longer exist in this world, all that lies right now...is you.

Me:....What?

Shadow: A long time ago...you unconditionally wanted your friends to stop being in pain...but the only way for them to stop going through all that...Is to no longer exist...so for that...

"Death is the only way out..."

Me: No! That can't be possible! They have to be still alive! They have to be! I want my friends back! You can't take them away from me!!!

Shadow: Heh heh heh heh~! They say your in denial when you don't want to believe it even if the truth is right here in your face. Get over it kid, your friends are nothing but hopeless cases right now. This world had made them unlikable as possible.

After that...

Nobody in the world wants them anymore...

Shadow: And that also makes me wonder....Did you truly had friends...?

Me:......Eh?

Shadow: Were you really friends with them...? Or were they just people you used to make you feel better about yourself?

Me: That's not true! Y-You don't know me!

Shadow: Oh, that's where your we boy. I know everything about you. Here's a little known fact.

"You Have No Friends..."

Me:.....Nani?

Shadow: Those boys...the ones who were erased. None of them were actually real. None of them. They were all in your head...

Me: All....in my head...?

Shadow: It's time you open your eyes. Time to discover in the real world...This game is over with...

My vision begin to fade to back...

No...No...

I don't want this...

I don't want to accept this...

...This can't be right...

My friends...

Ichigo...

Miyoshi....

Yusuke...

Kanata...

They....never truly existed...?

I...dreamed of all of this...?

I....wanted this to happen...?

I...had no real friends......?

......

There's...No Such Things As Friends...

......

Shadow: Now you tell me, boy...

You said that your friends were real, right...?

But is that really true...?

How about...you take a moment to register what's really going on...

Like in the song, nothing lasts forever...

So let's play a game...

What Is Real...and What is Fake...?