Chapter Six: Devil in My Details:

-June 1st-

Emi turned her had on set. A young man in a suit ran towards her with flowers in his hand.

“Ryoji-kun!” the actress exclaimed. The pair met in the middle and hugged.

“I missed you,” Emi said. “When did you get here?”

“Last night,” he said. “Congratulations on getting the part!”

“Thank you!” Emi said. Ryoji handed her the flowers.

“My mom was excited when I told her,” he said.

“How is she?” Emi asked.

“Great. She won’t stop bragging about you.”

Emi laughed. “She’s that fond of me?”

“Yes.”

“She’s so sweet. How long are you in town for?”

“Two weeks.”

The actress squealed and turned around. “This is so great! Let’s catch up over lunch!”

“Great.”

It was a great day then.

-Present Day-

All the color drained from Emi’s face. “Did I…?” Hisoka nodded.

“When?” she asked. A low rumble formed at her feet. Hisoka held out his hand.

“Haven’t noticed anything off about yourself?” he asked.

“What do you mean?” Emi asked.

“People ignoring you? Voices in your head? Strange smells? Strange deaths? Think hard now.” He could see himself in her eyes. Emi trembled.

-Last Month-

It started out great. But then…

First, the movie fell through. Creative difference they said. The director wouldn’t quit, however.

“I’ll get a studio to pick it up,” he said. Emi’s agent said the same thing. Even Ryoji believed it.

“Things will get better,” he told her. “Mom’s still your biggest fan.” The actress perked up.

“She’s so sweet,” Emi said. Ryoji kissed her on the forehead.

-Present Day-

Emi’s lips trembled. “It can’t be…”

“Do you remember now?” Hisoka asked. The dead actress sank to her knees. She looked up at the shinigami.

“Then why am I still here?” Emi asked.

“A high-risk soul,” Hisoka answered.

“What?”

“Do you remember when you died?”

“No…”

“Try to remember. Please, this is important.”

Emi slowly nodded and closed her eyes. The sounds of traffic brought back that horrible day.

-June 18th, 2011-

Emi and Ryoji had just come back from a party. That was supposed to be a good day. The movie might get back on track. Ryoji said that he had a surprise for her when they got home. He was driving that night. The man leaned over and kissed her on the cheek.

“I love you,” Emi said. “Why are you so good to me?”

“Because you let me,” he told her. Emi giggled.

The images started to blur. Emi in the present looked like she would vomit.

“Stay focused and remember,” Hisoka said. “What happened next?”

“I… I don’t remember,” she said in a low voice. “I don’t want to…”

“You have to! Keep trying!”

Emi’s body was shaking. “Okay…”

The picture became clearer.

Ryoji pulled up to a stop light. He turned to his love.

“Emi-chan,” he said.

“Yeah?” she asked. The man shifted for a bit.

“I want to ask you something.”

“What?”

He had just opened his mouth when something caught Emi’s eye.

“Baby, look!” she shouted.

“Huh?” Ryoji asked. A car came speeding towards them.

“What are they doing?” he asked. He pressed down on his horn.

“Hey!” the man shouted. “Hey! Slow down! Are you crazy?!” The car showed no sign of slowing down. Emi’s eyes widened.

“Baby?” she asked. Ryoji gritted his teeth and tried swerve to the right to get out of harm’s way.

Crash!

The sounds brought Emi back to present day. She looked at Hisoka with big eyes.

“I died in that accident?” the actress asked with big tears.

“Yes,” Hisoka said. “I’m sorry.” Black shadows flew out of Emi’s body as she wept. Hisoka held up Christine’s book.

“Return to your prison!” he commanded. The shadows howled as they returned to the book. Hisoka about fell backwards from the silence. Emi’s body fell to the ground and broke into many little butterflies. The shinigami could’ve sworn he saw her smiling at one point.

“You were a good actress,” he said. “Maybe you’ll really shine in Meifu.” Hisoka turned and vanished into thin air.

Twelve more souls left.