Without a second thought, Senji ran up and embraced Ayame. She squeezed him tightly. The two remained in each others arms for an entire passing minute. Joining hands, they closed their eyes and kissed deeply with locking tongues. Months had passed since they last even spoke or saw each other but Senji was surprised to even see her so soon. A single tear streaked down Ayame's cheek. Senji gently ran his knuckle across her cheek to wipe the tear away. They couldn't help but smile ear-to-ear.

"I-I can't believe it. It's felt like forever..." Senji stated.

"I know. I'm... Just so happy to see you again, Senji." Ayame murmured.

"...And this soon. I..I was expecting to have to wait so much longer."

"Um... Well. We should go inside. For now."

Senji raised an eyebrow. He nodded and proceeded into the house. A tall, lanky man with silver-rimmed glasses, long black hair and wearing a dark brown suit with a red tie sat on the couch speaking to Hinaka who sat in a chair. The two glanced over at Senji and Ayame stepping inside. The man motioned for the two to join him.

"Come. Sit. Please." He spoke with a deep but friendly tone.

Senji and Ayame sat down on the couch next to the man. Ayame kept holding onto Senji's left hand. The man offered his hand for Senji. He nodded and shook it.

"Greetings, Senji. Just call me Sakamoto."

"Uh h-hey there." Senji replied.

"Now I'm sure you're wondering who I am and what 'we' are doing here." Sakamoto gestured to Ayame who just rested her head on Senji's shoulder.

"Don't worry dear. He's actually here with good news." Hinaka reassured.

"Your mother is correct. I'm from the Arataka Institution. The place where your lovely lady friend here is currently residing. As I'm sure you know... After she was proven guilty of her crimes and sentenced, the initial plan was to throw her into a juvenile detention facility to serve as punishment. You see, Ayame here is a very special case. A mentally distressed teenager that pulled off one of the deadliest murder sprees in this country's history. Naturally it makes sense she should've been locked up. However... The owner of the Arataka Institution took interest in her."

Senji looked confused. He turned to Ayame who continued resting her head on his shoulder.

"Ayame..." He murmured.

She didn't say anything. Just silently looked into his eyes. He turned back to Sakamoto.

"Well s-so what happened??"

Sakamoto coughed to clear his throat. He was an older gentleman and the bags under his eyes clearly showed a lack of proper sleep.

"Mister Arataka shelled out quite an amount of yen to personally take Ayame and place her into the institute. He, his assistant and a couple of his most valued employees wanted to conduct studies on Ayame here. To delve into her psyche to find out just what made her... Break. A teenager that did what she did... It's no wonder Arataka was so keen into investigating her mental state. So from the day she was convicted up until yesterday, we had been examining her, asking her questions, comforting her and helping her to slowly recover. Thankfully her 'murderous' tendencies seemed to have been silenced since the day we took her in. All she wanted... Was to see you again. Ayame my dear, I know you aren't one for speaking much. But please, tell your partner here what you did."

Ayame lifted her head up. She took a deep breath as Senji met her eyes. She clenched his hand tightly.

"They... Gave me shelter. I... Missed you. So much. I... Needed to be fixed. Days. Weeks. Months. All spent... Isolated. Fed. Spoken to. But, mostly isolated. Drawing and writing, to pass the time. Tears... Cried from all the nights alone. The darkness inside of me... Had to be... Cleansed. I finally did it Senji. It's gone... Gone forever. Thoughts of you... Kept me going. Kept me... Determined. Determined to silence the... Urges. And it worked. I can't... Feel them anymore..." Ayame explained.

There was a gleam in Senji's eyes. He pressed a hand to Ayame's cheek.

"Rather then being confined into a cell and completely cut off from any and all social interactions... We opted to keep her isolated but checked up on from time-to-time. That and her constant thoughts of seeing you again and clearing her head of any ill intents seemed to have helped her. And thanks to Ayame's cooperation and progress, we've got extensive research notes that have aided us in our research into the psyche of a troubled youth. It's such a tragedy what happened... But this research will go far and hopefully prevent any future incidents such as this. Young man... Senji... She needs you more then ever. You are the very thing keeping this poor girl from sinking into an unfathomable depression. So much so that we had to keep reminding her that one day she will be free and could get to see you again."

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

Senji wrapped an arm around Ayame to pull her close. He looked to Sakamoto.

"That's... I-I'm sorry I'm just taking all of this in. So... What happens now?" Senji asked.

Sakamoto gestured to Hinaka. She reached down and picked up a folder with some papers in it. A smile on her face as she pulled out a single sheet to look at.

"Mister Arataka has already personally spoken to every family affected by Ayame's crimes. He generously compensated them and reassured their worries that taking her in over sending her to juvenile was for the greater good. With Ayame having made such progress in her recovery... He is willing to release her into your mother's custody."

"W-wait what?!"

Senji's eyes widened and his jaw dropped. Sakamoto simply smiled and nodded.

"Her guardian is deceased. All of Ayame's belongings were confiscated to storage and the house she lived in has been permanently condemned. Clearly, she cannot go back. And sending her to an orphanage cannot guarantee her mental state will remain stagnant. But... With your mothers approval and a few signatures then she will become a resident of your household. Legally speaking, it's basically 'adoption' but since she is your partner she will not be claimed as a sister but simply as a resident. This way it's not weird of course. Think of it as your best friend being kicked out of his home and moving into your own home. Ayame can be transferred to your home and live here for now on."

Senji looked over to Hinaka.

"M-mother is this true? Are you really willing to let her live here??"

Hinaka nodded. She signed the papers and handed the folder over to Sakamoto.

"Of course, sweetheart. I know she means the world to you and you mean everything to her. This is a rare moment. And if Ayame living here will help in her recovery... Then I'm okay with this decision." Hinaka stated.

"It will not be easy. That is for certain. Ayame has been estranged by the community and forever etched into infamy because of what she's done. Granted from what I've been hearing... Much of the community of both parents and average residents, actually seem to feel sympathy or pity on the girl rather then resentment or anger. Recovering and re-entering into society may not be impossible but it will be a very long and exhausting journey. I expect you two to help her along the way."

Senji and Hinaka both nodded simultaneously. Sakamoto clapped his palms together with great force.

"Excellent! Now, we will have to make one trip to the Arataka Institution mind you. To finalize everything. It is about a forty-five minute drive so you are more then welcome to carpool with me. I'll even bring you back here."

"That would be just wonderful, sir!" Hinaka said. "We should get this done right now."

"I agree. Let us depart then."

Hinaka went to slip on some heels. After grabbing her keys, she and Sakamoto headed out of the house. Senji and Ayame looked to each other with smiles on their faces. Hand-in-hand they followed along with Senji locking the door and closing it behind them.

"With the papers signed and the decision finalized, the formerly convicted criminal, seventeen-year-old Ayame Chisato has been released from the Arataka Institution after just a few months of rehabilitation and into the foster care of Nakamura resident, Hinaka Kamura. The controversial decision approved by president and CEO Ryouma Arataka has brought some backlash from residents of Nakamura as well as the rest of the country. But there's also a strong support following the decision after documents and records were released to the public showing research into the teenagers psyche and mental state as she underwent constant surveillance and studies by staff members. Research showed-"

The news broadcast played on the television screens inside of a bar in town. Katashi sipped on his beer then followed with a puff from his cigarette. A hand pat him on the back. Isamu joined him at the counter. He looked up at the screen while the news report continued on. Katashi sighed.

"Can't say I imagined it turning out like this." He commented.

"Me neither honestly." Isamu added. "Was this such a major incident that it warranted these events to play out? Girl goes into a rehabilitation center. Spends some odd months there as basically a research patient then gets released just like that??"

"Guess so."

"I mean, that Arataka fellow did personally come to our town just to speak to all of the families of the victims. Compensated them for the losses and costs of funerals and such. I... I think that was a humble gesture."

"It also sparked further debate and studies into the mental psyche of children in general. That one girl really set in motion an entire uprising..."

"Just a shame it took the deaths of so many to do so..."

"... That's just how it works. It took wars to advance technology. Deadly plagues and pandemics to advance medicine. And major criminal incidents such as this to advance studies into mental illness and mental health overall. Blood, sweat, tears and death leads to progress and change. That's the way society functions I suppose. Ah well... The lingering of sorrow will continue on and that girl will have a strenuous path to recovery and re-entering society, nut she's lucky to even be getting a second chance to turn her life around. Best of luck to you kid... You're going to need it."