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What does it mean to truly belong? Through this branching narrative story, players will tackle the topic of Otherization and identity within Japanese society and how expectations for homogeneity are maintained or challenged through the discovery of Ajin, immortal humans.
This story takes inspiration from and uses visual elements from the manga Ajin: Demi-Human by Gamon Sakurai. The estimated play time is 10 minutes, and there's 4 endings with 6 different ways to achieve them. To view the entire script of the game along with a bibliography follow this link: https://docs.google.com/document/d/17jx97RLG8wnGV4d-PL2rbmiY8uefrm3FWzSEIo4q8b4/edit?usp=sharing
//TW: death, blood
[[Enter Name]]Your name is $name, and you are a student at Warakou High School in Class 3-1. As you wait for your history teacher to arrive, you idly look around the classroom, drumming your fingers on the hardwood of your desk, when a sudden burst of laughter catches your attention. It's Watanabe and his crew, messing around like always. You always thought they were a bit brazen in the way that they always present themselves as morally righteous, but now you just think they're being annoying. And judging by the way the studious Nagai Kei glares at Watanabe as he slides back into his seat right before the teacher walks in, you aren't alone in that assessment.
[[Prepare for class.]]What is your name? <<textbox "$name" Yamada>>
[[Start Game]]<img src="https://i.imgur.com/xFtxkA1.jpg" alt="Alt text not available at this time.">
You and the rest of the class stand up to greet your teacher, an elderly bespectacled man, who all of your classmates speculate to have been a former scientist judging by the plainness of his outfit. He turns around to the board, drawing out a few characters in quick succession with chalk: 亜人.
“Today,” he begins in a low rumbling voice, “we’re going to talk about Ajin. They first were discovered 17 years ago in Africa by the Americans and were originally called ‘Divine Warriors’ due to their apparent immortality. When word got out about their existence, there was mass panic towards the supposed discovery of aliens. But, as of now, there’s been no reported instances of where Ajins have harmed us humans. So, it’s safe to assume that Ajin pose no real threat to us. In fact, their discovery has changed nothing in the long term.
However, with that said, although there’s only been 46 confirmed Ajin in the world, two of which are in Japan, we never know if someone’s an Ajin unless we see them defy death itself. It is very possible that someone in our class is an Ajin and we don’t yet know it.”
As he finishes his statement, he gestures out into the classroom. And for a brief moment, the two of you lock eyes. A chill runs through your spine as everyone else uneasily exchanges glances with each other. Is there really an Ajin among us? The only ones not affected by this thought are Nagai, who is too focused on his medical flashcards, and Watanbe, who has raised his hand with a smug smile on his face.
[[Listen to what Watanabe has to say.]]
[[Zone out of the lecture.]]<img src="https://i.imgur.com/ZynzqcA.jpg" alt="Alt text not available at this time.">
You sigh as the teacher calls on Watanabe. He always seems to derail discussion in history class, and you just actually want to learn for once so that you can pass the final exam. Maybe today is the day that changes? You doubt somehow it though.
“I’ve heard that you get a huge monetary reward if you find an Ajin,” Watanabe says, looking around at the rest of the class with a keen eye.
The teacher raises a hand to his chin in thought. “It’s true that finding an Ajin is rare, but I’m not sure if it would be a monetary reward. Perhaps gaining ownership rights over the prey you catch-”
“Prey?”
[[Figure out who spoke.]]<img src="https://i.imgur.com/NXby1NP.jpg" alt="Alt text not available at this time.">
You let your mind wander as the teacher calls on Watanabe. Every day always seemed to be the same. You had the kids who liked to talk a lot and the kids who liked to study. Your eyes flicker to Nagai, who sits in front of you. As per usual, he’s studying medical terminology on his flashcards, going through them at an impressive rate over and over again. You let yourself get lulled into a serenity as you focus on the flipping of the flashcards with Watanabe talking about monetary rewards for finding Ajin in the background.
Out of the corner of your eye, you see your teacher raise a hand to his chin in thought. “Perhaps gaining ownership rights over the prey you catch--”
“Prey?”
[[Figure out who spoke.]]<img src="https://i.imgur.com/oXhEYwH.jpg" alt="Alt text not available at this time.">
You startle at the sound of an unprompted voice disrupting your teacher’s train of thought, but are even more surprised to see who the question came from. Even Nagai himself is surprised at his own outburst. Your teacher clears his throat and looks at him in a disapproving manner. Nagai slowly raises his hand with the tips of his ears flushed red. Everyone stares at him.
“Nagai?”
He stands up. “Teacher, are Ajin not human?”
You frown at that question and so does everyone else in the room. It was clear that Nagai hadn’t been paying attention to the lesson at all. That was just like him though, academic to a fault. You swear that all that went through his head sometimes was medical terminology and medical exam questions based on how much he studied that in class instead of listening to your teachers.
“Of course not,” your teacher responds in a firm tone. Nagai sheepishly murmurs his agreement, and the class moves on.
[[Finish the rest of the school day.]]<img src="https://i.imgur.com/6Nep4qB.jpg" alt="Alt text not available at this time.">
The rest of your classes proceed without much fanfare, and you eagerly change into your street shoes at the end of the day. Typically at this time, you would've gone to the English club to practice the language more, but you're a third year and university entrance exams are rapidly approaching. Sometimes it feels like you're just studying for the sake of the school's reputation because in all honesty you'd rather go abroad, but you don't want to seem like you're not good enough. You are good enough, but the problem is that everyone else is studying just as hard. You'll need to review your shingaku juku lessons again later tonight.
With that reminder in mind, you walk out of the building and hop on your bike to go home. For the most part, all of the students form clusters around who they know so it's easy to navigate down the streets and enjoy the cool breeze. The weather is getting nicer, so you wonder if you should take the long way to get home. You can't remember the last time you've ever done that.
[[Take the scenic route home.]]
[[Take your normal route home.]]<img src="https://i.imgur.com/LHZvH95.jpg" alt="Alt text not available at this time.">
You decide that it wouldn't hurt to take a different route for once. You're glad that your parents won't be home until later because of work. They wouldn't want you to be taking a break like this, especially not before college entrance exams. You've done this sort of thing before in junior high, skipping after school clubs to explore the city on your own. But your parents soon put a stop to that.
"You're Japanese," they had said right before you entered senior high. "You need to study."
Suddenly more aware of the looming responsibility that came from entering the workforce in a few short years, you looked around at your peers who were also starting to focus more on their schoolwork. If you continued like you were doing before, you would be left behind, relegated to some menial labor job while the rest of your peers like Nagai excelled and got high paying government jobs. You like your small hometown, but you've always had aspirations to go abroad and experience other cultures. The most exposure you've gotten to that are the three foreign restaurants that have sprung up in your city in the past few years. You know they aren't authentic, having tailored their dishes to Japanese tastes, but you like to imagine they are - at least until you get to experience the real ones.
Getting some experience in another country would help boost your status if you came back to Japan later in life, although you wouldn't be able to stand equal to a foreigner unless your English became fluent and you were attractive in some way. Companies always liked hiring people who didn't look like the rest of the Japanese population. That's an advantage you'll never be able to get.
In the midst of your rising jealousy, a deer suddenly sprints out into the road in front of you. Surprised, you swerve to the left, only to realize that you're at the edge of a cliff. But the realization comes too late. You've gone over. Falling, your body bounces along the side of the cliff multiple times over on your way down. You fall unconscious as the impacts become too painful to bear.
[[Awaken from the accident.]]<img src="https://i.imgur.com/Qlb1xPS.jpg" alt="Alt text not available at this time.">
Coasting down the street, you decide to go straight home. You don't want to think about what your parents would think of you being so carefree at a time like this. For most of your life, they've wanted you to aim for Tohoku University to get a government job for future job security, but your heart isn't in it. You've tried to open up to them in junior high about the struggles you were facing in your school work - perhaps there was another route you could go down - but they weren't having any of it.
"You're Japanese," they had said. "Study harder."
And so you did and have been doing for most of your life. You don't really socialize with others too often as a result. Sometimes you hear about new anime series from your classmates in passing with protagonists who unrelentlessly pursue their goals despite the challenges that are placed in their way. You wish you could be like them, but you'd just be looked at strangely if you suddenly dyed your hair a bizarre color and spoke freely.
A large commotion ahead of you drags you out of your thoughts. You begin to slow down on your bike as you approach the crowd around the intersection, which is blocking your path forwards anyways. Your mind immediately jumps to the Kyoto car accident that occured just last month that seriously injured many people. Has it happened again?
[[Check out the scene.]]<img src="https://i.imgur.com/j63UQnf.jpg" alt="Alt text not available at this time.">
You slowly approach the crowd with a cautious curiosity. A large truck has been stopped in the middle of it all, but you can't see anything else from where you're located. Even so, your mind starts to speculate at what had happened; Was it an accident? Did someone get hit? Was it anyone you knew?
From the corner of your eye, you spot Watanabe and his crew talking to a local news reporter. They all seem visibly pale, and from your position, all you can hear is the word "Ajin" being repeated over and over again. A chill runs down through your spine. Didn't you just learn about that in class today?
[[Approach your classmates after their interview.]]
[[Ask a few bystanders what happened.]]
[[Get closer and examine the scene.]]<img src="https://i.imgur.com/Eg3hOcn.jpg" alt="Alt text not available at this time.">
You walk up to Watanabe and his crew after the reporter leaves them. But before you can ask what happened, Watanabe grabs you by the shoulders, his hands shaking.
"It was Nagai. Nagai of all people. Can you believe it?" He says hysterically. "We thought he was dead but turns out he was an Ajin all along."
You look at Nakajima, the more reasonable one of the group, for confirmation. He nods, looking visibly perturbed. "We were all walking together when Nagai got hit by the truck. We- I- it's hard to process right now, even after talking with the reporter."
"I always thought he was strange though," Watanabe immediately responds. "And the way he fled from the scene was telling."
"Right..." You trail off, not knowing what to say. Was it a coincidence that an Ajin was discovered on the day you learned about them? Nagai never seemed any different. In fact, you could probably say that he was the most dedicated out of everyone in the class in his studies. But did that make him different enough to be an Ajin though? Who else were Ajin?
"We should all go home." Nakajima says. "I'm not looking forward to all the questions we'll get later. Seeing someone die isn't something I expected to experience this early on." You agree. It's getting late.
[[Leave the scene and go home.]]<img src="https://i.imgur.com/uSIqlLE.jpg" alt="Alt text not available at this time.">
You approach the crowd to listen closer to the conversations. Everyone seems to be in shock but in various stages.
"Excuse me," you say to a few people closest to you. "Do you mind telling me what happened here?"
"Some poor boy got hit by a careless truck driver," an older woman responds. She puts a hand over her mouth. "I'm worried for my children now. They're almost at the age to walk alone to school."
"Scared for your children? I think you're focusing on the wrong issue here," a businessman spits out. "That damn thing that got hit was an Ajin. I'd be worried about all of our lives. Who knows what it can do now that it's been revealed to us." He tightens his grip around his briefcase, and your eyes widen at his anger.
"All I care about is that it's bad for business," a frustrated-looking woman chimes in. "It's hard enough running an American cuisine restaurant with all the new competition in the area."
"Maybe it'll get hungry and come back to your restaurant. You'll be able to cash in the reward money and buy yourself a new place." The businessman offers. The woman looks contemplative.
"Were they local to this area?" You ask tentatively. "Do we know who it is?"
They all shake their heads, having told you all that they've figured out so far. You thank them for their time and decide to leave the scene. You don't want to head home in the dark with an Ajin at large.
[[Leave the scene and go home.]]<img src="https://i.imgur.com/tR9jadA.jpg" alt="Alt text not available at this time.">
You slowly make your way through the crowd that has formed, pushing your way to the front. But all the questions you initially had immediately disappeared from your mind as your eyes fall upon the scene in front of you. The truck you saw from earlier is parked diagonally in the intersection like it was forced to make an unexpected stop and for good reason. Blood covers the entire front with a long trail tailing behind the truck. You cover your mouth in shock. It's clear what has happened here - no wonder everyone seemed on edge. You can't see anybody though, but it's probably because the police have already arrived on the scene long before you got there. A kōban sits just a few blocks down the street after all.
The death still unerves you though... or maybe it wasn't a death? Weren't people speculating that the person who died was an Ajin? You run through a list of the people you know. None of them had shown any signs of acting strange recently. For the most part, everyone was the same, if not slightly on edge because of the upcoming college entrance exams. It must've been someone from out of town. Someone new to the Saitama Prefecture that didn't know how traffic lights worked.
Either way, you're feeling faint and want to go home. You'll hear about this multiple times over later anyways. The suburbs are a small place to live in, and news like this travels fast.
[[Leave the scene and go home.]]<img src="https://i.imgur.com/8BakaP6.jpg" alt="Alt text not available at this time.">
Stunned at what you've just learned, you decide to go home before it gets dark. You immediately head into your room and lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling. Both of your parents work late, so you won't be seeing them any time soon.
In the meantime, your thoughts turn back to the earlier scene. You never thought that such an Ajin appearance would occur so close to home. What did it mean to be an Ajin, anyways? In class, all that was really talked about was how they were discovered by the Americans. Nothing about what they are or what they can do besides their immortality. Was there really no other way to distinguish them outside of death?
Maybe the news will have more information that you weren't able to figure out at the scene. All of this speculation is making you uneasy. You slowly rise from your bed and head into the living room. You grab the remote and turn on the TV.
[[Watch the news.]]<img src="https://i.imgur.com/7z359OT.jpg" alt="Alt text not available at this time.">
"Earlier today it was reported that Warakou High School third-year Nagai Kei, now the third Ajin to be found in Japan, revived from his death after being hit by a truck in front of several eyewitnesses. Those who knew the Ajin personally were shocked at this discovery, though classmate testimonials indicate that this discovery was long in the making."
The news broadcast switches to a recording from earlier today. You recognize it as the interview Watanabe was doing with the local news reporter.
"...there was always some things about him that didn't seem human. He always had a one-track mind when it came to academics and didn't make much effort to talk to us when we tried to include him in our group, which were some warning signs we should've noticed." Watanabe visibly shudders, and you can't help but shudder as well.
It was true that Nagai was always studying, but it was for a good reason, wasn't it - to help his sister? Actually, now that you think about it, is it even possible for Ajin to have biological siblings or a family? Was Nagai truly an imposter all along, misleading everyone like Watanabe said? But as far as you can remember Nagai was always too straightforward in his interactions with you for his intentions to be anything other than genuine. Did his impressive dedication to studying warrant seeking his immediate capture? Maybe you're overthinking this too much just because the discovery of an Ajin was in close-proximity to you.
[[Feel scared about Nagai being an Ajin.]]
[[Feel numb towards the whole topic.]]
[[Feel appalled at Nagai's portrayal by the media.]]<img src="https://i.imgur.com/OPIAq91.jpg" alt="Alt text not available at this time.">
Once you get past the panicked internal dialogue going on in your mind, the idea of Nagai being an Ajin deeply unnerves you.
In class, you learned that Ajin were immortal, but that couldn't have been all that there was to it, especially if they were called "Divine Warriors" by the Americans. The bounty that Watanabe mentioned during that lesson suddenly makes sense to you now: if you didn't want to be hunted, you had to become the hunter, placing your prey in a threatened state that would remove them of the strength that they did have over you.
You're suddenly thankful for the fact that Nagai spent so much time in human society that all his hunter impulses were focused towards studying. It would probably be hard for him to break out of that norm after being oppressed by it for so long... or maybe the opposite would occur... You've seen it happen to some of your former classmates where they start caring less about the rules and frequently disrupt class, but at least they were human. You doubt that any Ajin would threaten their position like that if it meant potential discovery. Either way, you really hope that Nagai is captured soon. Then the government can find out what Ajin are really after, and this whole affair can be forgotten.
[[Advance into the future.]]<img src="https://i.imgur.com/fZOXkre.jpg" alt="Alt text not available at this time.">
At this point, you've become exposed to too many concerning revelations that everything feels like static to you. You're sure that people are going to be talking about Nagai for months to come, asking for your opinion on the topic. But how are you supposed to come up with a response if you don't know what's the appropriate one? There's too many variables and unknowns that have been left unanswered that no answer seems right, and everyone asking you will have their own opinions anyways. You don't want to ruin your chances with them by answering incorrectly. It's hard enough as is to complete all your assignments and prepare for the entrance exams.
There's some part of you that feels bad about deciding not to stand up for your former classmate. But then again, you weren't the one who was pretending to be human and betrayed that social trust in the first place, and Class 3-1 will need to bear the brunt of having the nation's attention thrust upon them anyways; In your opinion, it's enough of a burden to cancel out any guilt from any punishment that Nagai will have to face when he's finally captured. After all, he can't die, so there's not much they can do to him in the end, whereas you know that you'll have to deal with addressing this event for years to come if you ever mention your hometown in passing.
[[Advance into the future.]]<img src="https://i.imgur.com/ClqLKHD.jpg" alt="Alt text not available at this time.">
You shake your head to dispel any doubts you have and do a quick search to see if anyone else is feeling the same way as you on the internet. A website called "Ajin Allies" appears as the first result, and you tap on the link, which brings you to a comprehensive website about Ajin. What stands out most to you, however, is the email list for active allies to get more insight into what actions they can do to help. You put in your contact information and sit back after it's been submitted, hoping that they get back to you soon. You want to help Nagai. He was a good guy even if he was an Ajin.
The whole situation to you is quite absurd, and the media sensationalizing this entire discovery to seem like a murderer was on the loose isn't helping to make matters any better. In fact, didn't your teacher say that no one was ever harmed by an Ajin since their discovery? Why would Nagai be the one to change that status quo in the first place? There's nothing that you can think of that would set him out from the rest of the Ajins unless some really obscure knowledge of medicine was needed to unlock a catastrophic power. He was just like you, and you're glad that he is alive. You could've been dealing with the death of a classmate today.
[[Advance to the future.]]<img src="https://i.imgur.com/c48WARR.jpg" alt="Alt text not available at this time.">
In the days following Nagai's capture and transportation to a government facility for further questioning, you realized that you were the only one foolish enough to be so hung up on this event. At school the next day, Watanabe had boasted about his interview on the news and how he was playing up his feelings for the sake of drama while a few Ajin supporters in the class grew quiet after realizing that their opinions wouldn't mean very much in the end. And with more time, you've soon felt the same.
Whatever emotions you were feeling at that day have been pushed to the back of your mind. There is no need to think any longer about Nagai Kei and Ajin as the main conflict has been resolved. Now, life moves on as usual, undisturbed by the discovery of another foreign body in Japan. You turn your attention back to the worksheet you were working on, ignoring the empty seat in front of you. After all, college entrance exams are quickly approaching, and you need to be prepared.
[[End game.]]Thank you for playing through this game! Feel free to replay the story and choose different actions to experience other scenarios and the questions that it brings. This story was roughly based on the universe of Ajin: Demi-human, particularly the first few chapters and story arc, so there is still much to explore if you're interested in picking up the manga at a later date.
While writing this branching narrative, I sought to focus on how Otherization occurs in Japanese society and how that is reflected in how one addresses their own positionality and identity and interacts with those of others. Here, I define the Other as someone who holds characteristics that are viewed as socially unacceptable by the society in question and is consequently shunned or made to feel isolated because of their own identity or actions.
In particular, I worked to address three main themes (among other topics not described below) that were either explicitly or implicitly described in the narration:
1) Ajin aren't externally different from humans. How does the thought of being different influence social relationships and perception in Japanese society? What does this say about the practice of Othering when the idea of being an Other is created through internalized differences rather than external appearances and mannerisms? What does it say about the rigidity of societal pressures and how Japanese society seeks to appear homogeneous and cohesive?
- See: discussions around Nagai being an Ajin and his academic strengths are used to set him apart, parent opinions on Ajin, player opinions on being an Ajin
2) How does a societal focus on education place strict expectations on a student to succeed academically and what happens when their personal aspirations differ from that of their parents or when they struggle to live up to these expectations compared to their peers? What does society and the students themselves tell themself to make it seem like they're the only one who is different or encountering failure?
- See: parent-player interactions and player aspirations, perspective towards entrance exams and study abroad
3) What does multiculturalism mean in Japan and how does it appear in daily life? Are foreign bodies and spaces rejected by the Japanese or are they allowed to co-exist after compromise has been made?
- See: parent opinions on Ajin, foreign cuisine restaurant descriptions, player perspective on company preferences, mentions of foreign bodies and Zainichi<img src="https://i.imgur.com/c48WARR.jpg" alt="Alt text not available at this time.">
In the days following Nagai's capture and transportation to a government facility for further questioning, you notice how everyone seems to be less and less concerned about Nagai's well-being and the general treatment of Ajin. At school the next day, Watanabe had boasted about his interview on the news and how he was playing up his feelings for the sake of drama while a few of the other Ajin supporters in the class grew quiet and turned their attention to other topics. You still haven't heard back from the "Ajin Allies" website.
At this moment, you feel helpless and unsure as to where to go in the future. Any rallying that you could do around the cause would surely end up in failure due to how little Ajin there were in the first place and how little Japan cared about the topic unless it was forced upon them in the form of national news. Outside of your crisis, life moves on as usual, undisturbed by the discovery of another foreign body in Japan. Slowly, you turn your attention back to the worksheet in front of you, trying to ignore the empty seat in front of you. You can't help him now, and you need to focus more on your own survival. College entrance exams are quickly approaching, and you need to be prepared.
[[End game.]]<img src="https://i.imgur.com/16Wh7qh.jpg" alt="Alt text not available at this time.">
You wake up to a strange feeling in your body and look down. Your face contorts into shock as your bloodied arms repair themselves right before your eyes. What does this mean? Why are your arms doing this? You start to hyperventilate in panic. This isn't normal. THIS ISN'T NORMAL. THISISN'TNORMAL.
Your eyes frantically dart around the wooded area you've found yourself in, looking for something to ground yourself with. A tree. You breathe in and out until your breath begins to level out. You're okay for now. As you spot your battered bike on the ground surrounded by blood, a chilling feeling washes over you. You should've been dead from that fall. How did you come back to life?
"...we never know if someone’s an Ajin unless we see them defy death itself." A memory from today's lesson suddenly pops into your head. You breathe in shakily. You aren't human. The panic sets in again. Did this mean that your entire life was a lie? Did anyone know about this? Did anyone see this? You quickly look around and see no one. But that doesn't mean no one saw your death and ran away. Either way, you want to get out of here.
[[Erase evidence of your death.]]
[[Leave the scene as soon as possible.]]<img src="https://i.imgur.com/gWIk2gZ.jpg" alt="Alt text not available at this time.">
As you move for your bike, rain starts to fall from the sky. Although you quickly get drenched, it washes all the blood from the ground and the dirt from your clothing. You look at your skin - it's completely unblemished like you didn't just fall down a cliff. It's another thing a human wouldn't be capable of.
Fear starts to set in as you find another path to follow with your bike, trying to ignore the big question in your head, but you're unable to ignore it any longer: what are you going to do now? You wish someone else could tell you, but Ajin were rare enough to be a precious commodity and no other person would understand, especially considering how Nagai's question during class today about Ajin being human got shot down so quickly.
Your face contorts in frustration. Why did it have to be you who was different? You wish you had just died instead so that you wouldn't have to deal with this pressure for the rest of your life. Oh man, for the rest of your life? Weren't Ajin supposed to be immortal? The thought of hiding this from the rest of your friends and family as they got older and you didn't is unimaginable. Why you? Why now? Why not someone else?
[[Arrive at your home.]]<img src="https://i.imgur.com/UC7fSCG.jpg" alt="Alt text not available at this time.">
You ditch your broken bike in the woods, far from the place the "accident" happened, and run to an open street nearby where you can go home, passing by some cars on the way. You hope they don't notice your disheveled appearance as much, but judging by the strange looks you get from other pedestrians, you know they're wondering what happened but don't want to ask. You stand out like a sore thumb.
You just want to go home and figure out all your stuff in a place where you won't be judged. Tears well up in the corner of your eyes. The sooner you can not look like you just got into an accident the better.
In the meantime, you take a quick glance at your arms, which had previously regenerated before your eyes. There's no blemishes and judging based on how normal the rest of your body feels, you probably came out from that accident unscathed. Looks like you figured out the only good thing that came from this discovery. But despite there being no evidence on your body, you feel like there might be something else that would identify you as an Ajin, especially considering how much your skin crawls whenever you think about being different. The paranoia is getting to you the longer you're in public.
[[Arrive at your home.]]<img src="https://i.imgur.com/QqLejDZ.jpg" alt="Alt text not available at this time.">
As soon as you get home, you immediately change into some nicer clothes and collapse into your chair on the floor. You barely have time to breath before your parents come into the house. Your mother spots you looking on the brink of tears and frowns.
"$name, why are you like that?" You try and wipe your face devoid of any emotion but fail. You're panicking. Do you tell them that you're an Ajin? Watanabe's question about the bounty on discovering an Ajin flashes through your mind. No. You can't tell them. What would they think about their child being an Ajin? Your mind races for an excuse.
"I- I just got a little stressed by my workbook assignments. It's really nothing." Your mother snorts.
"Are you slacking off again? Don't think the neighbors didn't see you come in a little while ago looking like you've been out doing who knows what. You're Japanese. I didn't raise you like this."
"Lay off on $name for once," your father immediately says after putting away his briefcase. "Work is getting stressful now, and I don't want to hear any of this at home." Your mother looks frustrated since she has also started working longer hours again but obliges nevertheless. The house falls into a tense silence. You wish this was all you had to worry about.
Your father speaks up again, his eyes glancing at you critically. "I heard something interesting on my way home. An Ajin was discovered today in our very own city. Who would've thought that we hosted such a creature." Your blood runs cold as your father moves to turn on the TV. You, on the other hand, don't dare move an inch.
[[Pay attention to the news.]]<img src="https://i.imgur.com/7z359OT.jpg" alt="Alt text not available at this time.">
Your heart skips a beat as the reporter mentions Ajin. Did someone really witness your death? Did your father already know about you being an Ajin? Did he want you to fess up before the news did? You grip the edge of your chair in fear.
The news reporter drones on despite your internal crisis. "Earlier today it was reported that Warakou High School third-year Nagai Kei, now the third Ajin to be found in Japan, revived from his death after being hit by a truck in front of several eyewitnesses. Those who knew the Ajin personally were shocked at this discovery, though classmate testimonials indicate that this discovery was long in the making."
Your body floods in relief as Nagai's name is mentioned. They don’t know about you. You've dodged a bullet for now. But that still doesn’t place you out of harm's way. A morbid sense of curiosity develops within you as you watch your parents faces closely. You could learn from the responses that Nagai received.
"He was your classmate right?" Your mother asks with a hand to her mouth in shock. "The one who placed top ten in the mock medical course exam? I can't believe they allowed such a thing to take that exam or for him to be in your class. What was the school thinking, giving a spot in Class 3-1 to an Ajin of all things?"
"This is what happens when you try to be a fake Japanese," your father says scornfully. "You become national news and then no one will hire you after that. Ajin have no place in Japan."
[[Try to get your parents to understand Ajin.]]
[[Pretend everything is normal.]]
[[Feel disgusted about being an Ajin.]]<img src="https://i.imgur.com/ClqLKHD.jpg" alt="Alt text not available at this time.">
You hesitate at your parents blatant dismissal and scorn, quickly searching up to see if there's any points on the internet that could help you maybe make them see otherwise. You don't want to think about what would happen if your parents found out about your own lie. It would be safer to introduce them to the idea now for your own protection.
"Ajin are just immortal humans though, does that mean we have to treat them differently?" you ask hesitantly. The online search yielded no results but hate.
"Of course! It's unnatural to live forever, and that gives them an advantage. We've got limited time on Earth to live. We have the stress of working to be successful during that time. Ajin don't. They can be carefree and spend all their time studying for medical exams." Your mother's face twists into a disapproving anger. Your father just shakes his head.
"You don't understand it just yet," he says in a patronizing tone. "Ajin aren't even human in the first place. I pity the family who took Nagai in as one of their own. They had to harbor such a monster for so long."
Your skin crawls even more at their responses. Maybe you shouldn't have asked in the first place. Now you know for sure that you don't belong, and you'll never be able to ever come clean. You don't want your parents to have to face the cruel reality that Nagai's parents are facing right now.
It was lucky that no one saw your death. You've been given the chance to hide your Ajin-ness and correct your actions before someone figured it out for you.
[[Advance forward in time.]]<img src="https://i.imgur.com/bWePRmj.jpg" alt="Alt text not available at this time.">
Even though it pains you to stay quiet, you decide that it's in your best interest to pretend like the accident today never happened. After all, you've lived most of your life without anyone realizing anything was different about you. Doing the same for the rest of your life doesn't seem too difficult. It's not like you plan on dying any time soon.
"Yeah..." You finally murmur in response to your parents comments to fill the silence that has fallen upon the room. "It's hard to believe that something like this happened to one of my classmates. We were just learning about Ajin in class today as well."
"Good," your father says, pushing up his glasses. "It was probably that lesson that made him realize that he was unwanted here. You students don't need any outsiders influencing your minds. Foreigners have never done us Japanese any good except cause mass genocide of our people and corrupt the youth with their ideals." You force yourself to nod despite having many counter points to that logic. It wouldn't look good to speak out against your father.
A knock at your door draws the family's attention away from the news. Your mother excuses herself to answer it, inviting the neighbors inside the house. They're asking about Nagai, about the Ajin, and your mother answers in heated tones. Your father gets up to join in on the conversation, leaving you in the room alone. You bury your face in your hands, feeling all the mock calm be replaced by the burden of this secret. This is the reality you'll have to bear with for the rest of your life, being constantly on guard for an identity you never signed up for. You'll never have another stress-free day again.
[[Advance forward in time.]]<img src="https://i.imgur.com/THnioDR.jpg" alt="Alt text not available at this time.">
Ajin really don't have a place in Japan.
The sentence runs through your head multiple times over until it becomes a scramble of intelligible words. Your hands shake even more until your parents stare at you in concern. You can't do this. They'll never accept you when they find out. It's only a matter of time.
"I- uh- excuse me." You quickly retreat to your bedroom and curl in on yourself. Why were you the one who was different from everyone else?
The burden of being an Ajin weighs heavily on you like an uncomfortable skin, restricting any freedom you once thought you had to only one path forward: eventual capture. People are going to know you're different if they haven’t suspected already. It's only going to take one slip up for that to happen, and then they'll treat you like they did with Nagai and immediately find fault in your most minute habits to justify their fear and disgust. It's funny how their feelings towards you will quickly disappear once you're taken in by the government whereas you'll have to live with this internal hatred for the rest of your life.
You want to go back to the days where all you had to worry about was college entrance exams.
[[Advance in time.]]<img src="https://i.imgur.com/iPmgkuy.jpg" alt="Alt text not available at this time.">
In the days following Nagai's capture and transportation to a government facility for further questioning, you realized how much you've taken your high school life for granted. At school the next day, Watanabe had boasted about his interview on the news where he had basically listed all of Nagai's quirks as a justification for him to be treated with scorn. There were a few Ajin supporters in the class that you wanted to sympathize with, but they quickly grew quiet after realizing that their opinions wouldn't mean very much in the end - the exact conclusion you've also arrived at.
Whatever emotions you were feeling at that day that you discovered you were an Ajin have been pushed to the back of your mind. But you can never escape the stress of being outed as an Ajin one day. What if someone finds traces of your death at that place in the forest and connects it back to you? The chances are slim but not zero.
Around you life moves on as usual, undisturbed by the discovery of yet another foreign body in Japan that society doesn't provide many rights for. You turn your attention back to the worksheet you were working on, ignoring the empty seat in front of you. You'll never be able to fully open up to anyone else again, knowing that inherently both of you are completely different, but that doesn't mean you don't need to study just as hard as everyone else. After all, college entrance exams are quickly approaching, and you need to be prepared. They'll never know that you aren't one of them.
[[End game.]]<img src="https://i.imgur.com/sK5bzOM.jpg" alt="Alt text not available at this time.">
In the days following Nagai's capture and transportation to a government facility for further questioning, the pressure you feel becomes intolerable. There is an inherent hatred and disgust that enters the conversation whenever Nagai is brought up that you just can not escape. Every attack on him feels like an attack on yourself.
In a twisted way, you find yourself sympathizing with the Zainichi, who also have to deal with intense scrutiny and a lack of rights in Japan. Although, maybe you should feel privileged that you're able to pass as a real Japanese citizen and can escape that judgement in the safety of your own home.
You can tell that your parents are getting concerned about how much you've isolated yourself at home, but it's better for them to think that you're trying to study harder rather than for them to feel betrayed by your lies.
Around you life moves on as usual, undisturbed by the rumors circulating around government experimentation of Ajin. After all, what's one Ajin compared to millions of Japanese? Nothing. It's a brutal realization that you've come to embody. Nevertheless, you'll try and pretend to be like part of the group for now, but you know that you'll break down one day and all will be revealed. Foreign bodies are not tolerated here without permission.
[[End game.]]