I've got a bad feeling.
And my hunches are usually spot-on.
I have no idea what's going to happen,
Seriously?
but today it feels particularly bad.
No...
It can't be something this simple.
Is there any way I can avoid this?
When I had this kind of feeling before, I tried to keep the trouble from happening...
But it didn't work, and bad luck found me anyway.
And this time, the bad feeling is even worse.
What the hell?
Is she seriously a model?
Damn it!
When I close my eyes, I see her face...
I never should've looked at that magazine.
I've never seen a model like that before.
But could a fashion model who's that creepy-looking actually exist?
Maybe it was just an unflattering picture.
But Oda,
the memory of it has warped so much in my head
that she just looks like a monster now!
Forget that, Iwasaki.
Is the script coming along?
Nope, not at all.
How are we gonna film a movie without a script?
I know it's just club stuff, but don't slack so much.
I wasn't trying to slack off!
Dude, don't tell me this model has you so freaked that you can't write.
If you don't wanna do it, I can ask someone else.
We're submitting this one for a contest, after all.
I know, I know.
I didn't have another chance to see that model,
and for a while, I was just disturbed by my warped memory of her appearance...
But thankfully, as time passed, those memories faded.
The script was good!
No, it was your camera work, Oda.
Don't get modest on me, Iwasaki!
Nah, it was my lighting!
Gotta say, I never even dreamed we'd win the grand prize.
"Dream" is the right word.
But this means that as far as amateur filmmakers go,
people are gonna know our names.
Which is why I wanted to make a proposal...
How about an open audition for the heroine of our next film?
Why?
Couldn't we just find someone from the school?
Nah, I don't know any girl in this school who's pretty enough to star in our film.
If we open it up to the public,
we'll find someone with the right look.
After all, we've got a reputation now!
Only three submissions, huh?
Guess our reputation doesn't amount to much.
Not what I had in mind...
She's great!
She is!
She's the one!
Reputation is about who knows you, not how many know you!
What's up, Miyake?
Just thinking about how cute she is...
It almost feels like a destined meeting.
I forgot about this one...
What the hell?
Seriously, what is this?
Who's this supposed to be?
What is it, Iwasaki?
That's her! The model I mentioned!
This is her?
You sure you're not mistaken?
I'm positive!
Look at those creepy features!
Why would a professional model audition for an amateur movie?
I know it's her!
Just seeing her again is giving me chills!
Okay, how about this?
We'll cast her in the movie, too.
Along with the beauty.
Are you serious?!
Cut the sick jokes, Oda!
Or do you want to turn this into a horror movie?
Just hear me out.
She's definitely creepy, but if you think about it,
I've never seen someone with a look this unique.
So, Mori Tamae-san, you're a first-year in high school?
You're even cuter than your picture!
I wouldn't say that...
You're going to be our star!
You'll be playing the heroine.
Don't worry about the acting. Just be natural.
Okay.
You really are cute...
Whoa!
I'm Fuchi.
O-Oh, Fuchi-san...
Have a seat.
Fuchi-san, you're a professional model, right?
This is Iwasaki.
He's a fan of yours.
Oda!
Don't make up stuff about how I'm that woman's fan!
Sorry, sorry.
Still, that is one creepy woman.
And I had no idea she would be so huge.
She's not gonna fit in the frame!
Can't you just get her off the project somehow, Oda?
Look, don't worry.
She was just nervous about meeting us for the first time.
Depending on your perspective, she could be a real asset.
In terms of screen presence, she might eat our star up!
I definitely have a bad feeling about this...
Hey, Oda, how much farther to the location for the shoot?
Almost there.
Can we hurry this up? I feel like I'm suffocating.
You'll have all the fresh air you can breathe when we get there.
This is deep in the mountains, far away from any people.
It's a perfect fit for the script's setting!
Isolated deep in the mountains, away from any people?
So it'll be a horror movie after all?
Don't be stupid.
That was good!
Dude, did you see that?!
Yeah... Is she even human?
Those weren't teeth... They were fangs!
Well? Beautiful location, right?
Yes.
I love places like this.
You wanna react as if the audience is looking from over here.
So you turn around...
Now, the camera will be here,
so you want to give it a second and then step forward suddenly.
Okay.
Hey, Iwasaki...
I think she's into you.
Dumbass!
Don't joke about that!
Where are you going, man?
I feel kind of sick,
so I'm gonna go wash my face in the river.
Where have you been, Iwasaki?
You're playing opposite our heroine, so you can't just—
Is something wrong?
Where's that woman?
I couldn't care less where she is!
Look, let's get out of here before she gets back.
What? Why?
I don't want to be around that freak!
So we just leave her here by herself?
Exactly!
Come on, what do you guys think?
But we're in the middle of the mountains...
Shh!
And cut!
Tamae-chan!
You were great in that scene! Good job!
Thank you.
Excuse me.
You've only been filming her for a while now.
When are we going to be filming my scenes?
Oh, sorry about that!
Your role's a critical one, so why don't you take a break before we start?
But if we leave her here, I'm afraid she'll come after us for revenge.
We should just film whatever and look for a chance to say we're done with her.
Not me!
I say we run right now, while she's not around!
Right now? Tamae-chan's on break, too, y'know.
Miyake's gone, too...
H-Hey! Trouble!
What is it, Miyake?
It's bad...
Calm down.
Catch your breath and tell us.
What is it?
In the mountains... Tamae-chan...
Fuchi's eating her!
Fuchi!
The fashion model is eating Tamae-chan!
She was chewing her up!
What the hell are you talking about?
I'm serious!
We were all fawning over Tamae-chan, so she ate her!
Miyake, your sense of humor is screwed up.
It's the truth, damn it!
If you don't believe me, then go look!
I don't wanna go back there.
How are we gonna find them if you don't show us the way?
I believe him.
I'd believe she could eat someone.
Are you seriously buying into this, Iwasaki?
They were over there.
I don't see anyone.
Look!
That's blood!
Look around! There are blood stains everywhere!
Then is it true?!
But where is she?
Now I'm the star.
Run!
Get back here!
Help!
Miyake!
Hey! Wait up!
I've got a bad feeling...
And my hunches are usually right...
Today's feels...
particularly bad!
We're finally alone...
Fashion Model
Collection No. 041
I don't want to die.
But I'm going to die soon...
I'll be dead... I'll become nothing.
I'm going to stop existing...
I'm scared!
I'm scared...
I'm scared!
Who's there?
Who are you?
No!
General Hospital
Long Dreams
Collection No. 084
Neurosurgery Ward
Doctor!
I don't want to die!
I don't want to become nothing!
Mami-kun, we've been fighting your disease to the best of our ability.
We need you to hold on to hope, and fight with us!
It's pointless! Even in my dreams,
I see the Grim Reaper!
He's not the Grim Reaper.
He's a patient from another ward of the hospital.
That's a lie!
No human could look like that!
He's not human.
He's some creature from the dark beyond!
A creature from the dark beyond...
What an intuitive girl.
That intuition could be how she was able to realize she was ill,
as well as what's causing her to fear death more than most.
But if he's begun to wander the hospital at night, it's going to be a problem.
He's probably afraid of going to sleep...
Actually, sir, what's the status of that man?
That patient?
He should be waking up soon.
Let's check in on him.
I don't really know much about his case, sir.
Could you fill me in?
I hear he has unusual dreams?
I suppose you haven't been here for that long.
His name is Mukouda Tetsurou.
He came to the hospital two months ago,
saying he was suffering from long dreams.
Long dreams?
How long do they feel?
In the beginning,
which was about a month ago...
A single night's dream felt like it lasted two or three days.
You're saying they feel long after waking up?
No...
The length of the dreams themselves feels long.
At first I thought I was just imagining it,
but with each day, they get increasingly longer...
Which would be fine if they were all good dreams,
but there are lots of nightmares, too, so it's starting to make me really anxious.
How long of a time span do you dream of, currently?
Last night's dream lasted about a year.
Oh, a whole year?
Doctor, I'm serious!
It's getting harder to discern dreams from reality,
and it's begun to negatively impact my life.
Think about it... For me, yesterday was a year ago.
I decided to start by admitting him and monitoring his sleep cycle.
General Hospital
And that night...
Convulsions all over his body and rapid eye movement...
But it ended in an instant.
His brain activity indicated he was in the deepest phase of sleep at that moment.
Hey! Listen to me! Wake up!
Were you dreaming?!
Where am I?
This is the hospital.
You were admitted yesterday.
Admitted...
Oh, I remember now.
I checked into the hospital...
Yes, I was dreaming.
It was a terrifying one.
And it lasted a year and a half.
My instincts told me this man was not lying,
and he truly was suffering from long dreams.
Doctor, when will I be cured?
I have a few potential treatments in mind,
but I need you to be patient for now.
Last night's dream lasted ten years...
They keep getting longer.
Listen to me, Mukouda-kun.
What you're experiencing is an illusion.
It was really only a few moments.
You don't need to fear the length of these dreams.
You're only saying that because you've never had one of my dreams, Doctor.
You don't know how realistic they feel...
How disturbing and how lonely they are.
How frightening they are...
Yes, but it's all in your mind.
We're working hard to find the cause of your dreams.
Please hurry!
Otherwise, I get the feeling my dreams are going to last a hundred,
and eventually two hundred, years.
If that happens...
I think I'll lose my mind.
And as he predicted,
the length of his dreams seemed to increase exponentially over time.
In time that became obvious, even to us.
It was like we were watching the evolution of mankind unfold...
Are you awake, Mukouda-kun?
Where am I?
Who are you people?
I'm your doctor, Kuroda.
Try to remember.
No!
Lately, when he wakes up, he tends to do bizarre things like this.
Do you suppose he still thinks he's dreaming?
Where is Mami?
My wife Mami isn't here!
That's right, this is the hospital where I first met her!
Mami!
Where is Mami?!
Mami-chan, you have to eat.
I don't want to.
Ugh, the idea of dying...
Mami!
No!
Mami!
You've come for me again, Reaper!
That's quite enough!
You need to go back to your room!
Reaper?
She called me the Reaper?
That's right...
I was dreaming.
Dr. Kuroda, I'm frightened.
If my dreams keep getting longer...
I can't help but wonder if it'll ever end.
What will become of me if I dream an endless dream?
What will happen to me?
I'm so scared!
Mami-chan!
I don't wanna die!
It's okay! Calm down.
I don't wanna die!
I've never seen any patient with such an intense fear of death before.
What about Mukouda Tetsurou?
I can't begin to imagine how far into the future he's dreamed now...
As I watched the husk of his remains blow away,
I wondered if his mind had vanished into an unending dream.
I discovered an unidentified,
crystallized material within the remains of his brain.
I suspected it had something to do with his unusual dreams.
How are you feeling, Mami-kun?
Dr. Kuroda...
I'm feeling pretty good lately.
I see.
But, Doctor... One thing is odd.
My dreams seem so long lately...
Sir,
have you noticed the changes in Takeshima Mami's condition lately?
Her appearance is beginning to change, too.
She's looking like him...
What do you suppose happened?
I've been administering the crystals I retrieved from Mukouda Tetsurou to her.
Wh-What?!
She was afraid of dying.
Afraid more than anything else of her existence coming to an end.
But what would happen if she could dream an eternal dream?
It would amount to her mind never dying.
Even if it was, in reality, a momentary illusion.
And if humanity were able to obtain the means of dreaming endless dreams,
we would be able to permanently rid ourselves of the fear of death.
Collection