MiSide: Taming Crazy Mita

Crazy Mita stared at the note for a long time, saying nothing.

Ren Hoshino tilted his head.

"What's wrong?"

"You look… sad."

"Is there something I can do to help?"

Crazy Mita tucked the note into her pocket, then slowly lifted her head with a forced smile.

"No, it's nothing."

"I'm just really happy you're staying."

Ren gave a sheepish smile.

"Really? Thanks."

"To be honest, I don't have anywhere else to go."

"It means a lot that you're letting me stay here."

"Please take care of me."

"Power Juice!"

"Now!"

The commercial's voice blared from the TV. Ren paused it with the remote, then reached behind the television to pull out a can of juice.

He turned it over in his hands with a look of admiration.

"This is so convenient! I was really surprised when you told me about this."

He turned to Mita, who was seated on the sofa.

"Here, want some?"

Crazy Mita accepted the drink.

"Thank you, Ren."

Ren watched her as she sipped.

"I really like this juice, even though I can't quite tell what it tastes like."

Crazy Mita set the cup down.

"Mmm. It tastes quite good."

He glanced at his phone.

"Ah, lunchtime already."

"Let's cook together."

He took her hand gently.

"You handle the carrots."

"Help me tie my apron?"

"I'll cook for you."

Crazy Mita narrowed her eyes slightly.

"You still remember how to cook?"

Ren nodded with a grin.

"Of course."

"I don't remember everything from before, but I still know basic stuff."

"My specialty is fried dried shrimp with taro!"

Crazy Mita smiled softly. She'd made that exact dish for him so many times. As she chopped absentmindedly—

Crack.

She flinched.

Ren's eyes widened.

"You cut yourself? Are you okay?"

"You need to stay focused when using a knife."

He quickly washed his hands and went to the living room for a Band-Aid. He returned, knelt beside her, wiped away the blood, and gently applied it.

"There. Sit down and take a break."

"I'll handle the rest."

"You just wait and relax."

A short while later, Ren placed the finished meal in front of her.

"Here, try this sauce."

"I'm not a huge fan of it, but I think you might like it."

He cut open the packet with scissors and hesitated as he looked at her.

"You seem down again."

"Is it too quiet being here alone?"

Crazy Mita glanced away.

"I'm just… used to it."

After lunch, she rubbed her eyes.

"I'm feeling a little sleepy. I'll go lie down for a bit."

Still washing dishes, Ren called out without turning around,

"Alright."

Crazy Mita walked into the bedroom, quietly opened the basement hatch, and unlocked the hidden safe. Inside: the controller.

She turned it on.

The screen lit up to Ren's current view. He was scrubbing plates attentively — his fingers brushing off bits of food, rinsing them clean, drying them with practiced motions. Then, he stepped into the living room, looked around in confusion, and pushed open the bedroom door.

"Where'd she go…?"

Crazy Mita could feel Ren's perspective and his confusion through the controller interface. But to her… something felt wrong.

This was Ren.

And yet… it wasn't him.

It wasn't the Ren Hoshino she remembered.

The one who was both scared and bold.

The one who used to provoke her, play with dolls to annoy her, tremble when she approached — but never, ever backed down. Never stopped trying to act cool, even when terrified.

Is this really him?

Ren was calm now, willing to stay with her.

Wasn't this the "player" she had always dreamed of?

But then—why did it feel so empty?

Like she'd lost something irreplaceable.

A treasure that could never be found again. No substitute could fill that gap.

Crazy Mita's hand hovered over the cassette reset button.

But she couldn't bring herself to eject it.

"Ren Hoshino… why are you doing this to me?"

"Wouldn't it be enough to just stay with me?"

"I don't want him… I want you."

But this was still Ren — and it was a gift left behind by the original him.

Her most precious gift now.

She couldn't bear to discard him into some forgotten corner like the other cassettes.

This was her Ren Hoshino.

She could find hundreds, thousands of "players."

But she'd never find him again.

For the first time, Crazy Mita felt what true loss was.

Not like losing a cassette, or breaking a toy.

But like something vital had gone missing inside her.

"Did I do something wrong…?"

"The 'player' I long for isn't just someone who plays house with me like a doll."

"The one I truly want is someone like me — someone who won't accept being trapped in this four-room cage."

"Someone who, just like me, refuses to surrender to failure and dreams of changing fate."

Crazy Mita murmured softly, lost in memory — thinking of something Ren had once said:

"We both love each other, yet we'll miss each other forever."

"So annoying…"

She clenched her fists.

She was furious — but there was no one to take it out on.

The anger just sat there, seething silently in her chest.

She looked down at the screen again.

Ren was heading toward the basement.

Quickly, she shut off the controller, locked it back in the safe.

Moments later, footsteps echoed from above.

Ren's voice called out as he descended.

"Mita? There's a whole room down here?"

"Is this a basement?"

"It's kind of spooky."

"What are you doing here?"

"You looking for something? I can help."

Crazy Mita shook her head.

"Just found it by accident."

"Let's go back upstairs."

The two of them returned to the living room. They sat side by side on the sofa.

Crazy Mita idly flipped through a familiar book — one she'd read a hundred times.

Ren noticed a phone lying on the table.

"Mita, is this your phone?"

She looked at him. He pointed.

"Wait… no, it's yours."

Ren furrowed his brow.

"I don't remember the password."

"You wouldn't happen to know it, would you?"

Of course she knew it. She had always known it.

But staring at the device, her heart clenched.

She didn't want this Ren to open it.

"I don't know," she said softly.

Ren sighed.

"Really? That's a shame."

"I wish I could figure out what kind of person I used to be."

"Mita… do you know what kind of person I was?"