Now, it's more like a nightmare.

The question repeats in your mind, and without thinking...
It spills out of your heart in desperation.

That's love?

Reaching out might only end up hurting you.

Therefore, this mess transpired in the name of "self-love", to protect yourself from what you fear most.

But for that to take such a painful form, tearing oneself apart in the name of protection... it doesn't seem right. However, the feelings behind it are genuine.

From one innocent thought, a seed planted by a frightened child, something bloomed. A sprawling tree, whose branches are in the shape of a cage, rests in this ocean. Its job is to keep its owner in, and bisect him if he dares to leave its shade.

In the name of love, you pledged to never ever let yourself out.

Rejection... and loneliness, they haunt the back of your mind.
The taste of this meal is one you're well acquainted with, despite having no memories of how that came to be.

That's right, you have always been alone.

...Until now, that is.

Yeah, now that you think about it...

The phantom, and these images, everyone here is a coward.
And the biggest coward of all is you. You're too scared of losing anything, so you won't let yourself gain anything in the first place.

In that case, you'd rather never have that person enter your life at all! But thinking about it now, it's difficult to say you fully agree with this sentiment.

Right... yesterday, you learned that you had forgotten the existence of other people like they were nothing to you. And when you met again, when Aria's feelings could not reach you anymore...

How did that make her feel?

It's a fact that anyone who grows closer to you risks being forgotten.

But despite this being the case, those guys never outright rejected you for it. Most of all, Aria herself didn't mind taking the risk of her kindness being forgotten yet again. And yet, you couldn't return any of it.

Instead, you refused to take even the smallest risk of pain.

Nino: Try to make a wish.

Suddenly, you find the deepest part of you praying to the stars.

Despite my foolishness, despite my worries, please, do not let me forget to repay the warmth of others ever again.

But in here, there is no sky to receive those wishes.
Only a vast, rotten ocean, engulfing both regret and hope.

There is a hint of loneliness, but it is not one exhibited by someone who has never had anyone to rely on. Rather, this is the solitude of someone who had once lost this very precious treasure from his life.

Once in the past, a severe loss ruined you so terribly that you decided to never do anything that might dredge up this same, awful taste again.

Yes, the kindness of the people you've met was in fact poison to your soul. But if you never risk getting hurt by choosing to trust and receive those feelings, then you might never reach the potential reward of obtaining something that lasts, for once.

Oh, how badly you want to rise to the surface now... but the thought of wading through this entire ocean all by yourself sends paralyzing fear through your body.
In the face of such overwhelming fear, what is there left to do?

Maybe, the only thing you can do now is sink like the rest-

People here seem like one-way images, whom you cannot actually reply to.

...Except for the phantom, the only one you could have a back and forth with.

But still, even though that was an inexplicable thing to hear, it does make you happy to think about it. If it turns out that even Reed wouldn't mind helping you find your memories, then maybe they all wouldn't mind helping too.

Maybe it's fine to try reaching out, just this once.

Boy, if the real Reed could somehow be here, and see all of this... it feels like he wouldn't let you live it down, right? Well, obviously! You must've looked so, so stupid, floating upside down in an ocean of tears.

"Seriously? Why are you spending so much time inside your own head, weirdo?"

He'd probably say something like that!

Everyone else, too... they'd probably tell you not to overthink what happened to this degree, wouldn't they? Yeah, you can imagine what they'd say very clearly! It's definitely something along the lines of...

"Please, don't beat yourself up over this so much!"

Oh, and how about what happened in the rift?
You still haven't even properly rescued Mei yet! As the leader, the most important thing to do now is to confirm that she is safe.

"Do you think this is the right time for this sorta thing? Don't be silly!"

Everyone is probably either furious, concerned, or a combination of both.
Whichever it is, they must be ready to unleash some barrage of words upon your poor little soul when you wake up!

And strangely enough, a part of you is looking forward to it. Yes, when you wake up... you'd like to see those guys again.

Ruminating here is a waste of time if you can just leave, and forget these burdens.

Knowing all that you know, you are now ready to answer the phantom. Really, although you recalled some things all on your own in order to prepare this answer, it's still one you couldn't have found without the help of people you've met.

After all, those memories had to originate from somewhere.

It would be nice, if, at the very least...
You could be honest with everyone else about what you really want to do, after all. And maybe about the fact that you might need to rely on them for help along the way, just a little bit... even if your request for assistance might be rejected.

Surely, it won't get rid of all this bitterness in one go, but it might cover up the taste with something more pleasant for a time, no?

And that wouldn't be so bad, you think.

It's okay to trust those guys just a bit more... but, first and foremost, you came here for your memories. You mustn't deviate from this goal.

Only... it might be alright to walk that path alongside everyone else too.

Nino: Can you wake up now?

Hold on... since the two of you finally agree on something now, does this mean you've done it? You've successfully ended the conflict here, haven't you?

So that means it's okay to wake up now, right!?

Err, it feels like you should be able to do that, but...
For some reason, you are still here.