The Bridge

The Bridge is the eleventh chapter of The Two Cats and was published on February 6, 2020. This chapter is intended to be the penultimate chapter of Season 1.

Intro
The Bridge takes place directly after the events of Mariko the Assistant. Mariko had felt guilty for her actions that led to her and potentially Expi getting fired from her job. As the night settles in, Mariko notices Expi's journal and starts looking at the opened page, during the aftermath of the 2017 Sonrisan Terrorist Attacks, and ends up feeling that she hasn't done enough for Expi and that Expi would be better off without her.

The Bridge
Mariko leaves their apartment and goes on a walk during the night, and heads towards a bridge over a part of the Eastern Paitocan River. She decides to climb over the guard rail of the bridge, and proceeds to jump down into the water below. As she feels that she is letting go of her life, she decides to simply let the water take control of her. But, strangely, the water pushes her up, back to surface, allowing her to climb back on to land. Mariko then feels horrible for what she just did, and decides to just walk home as fast as she can so Expi doesn't find out and get worried.

Where's Mariko?
Mariko had gotten up the next morning, completely dried off, although felt like her body was glowing. She walked out of her bedroom, just as about Expi was getting up, and attempts to greet her, but Expi does not hear her, to Mariko's confusion. Expi gets a cup of coffee from the kitchen and goes back to the couch in the living room, and states how she hopes that Mariko doesn't feel too bad after what happened. Mariko tells her that everything's fine, but Expi once again does not hear her, and she walks over to Mariko's bedroom door and notices that Mariko isn't there, despite Mariko being right next to her and trying to get her attention. Later that day, Expi is still unable to see Mariko, and calls the local services to check for her. Mariko is then suddenly transported to right outside of her apartment, where she sees a police dog come up, talk to her, and leave. Mariko then enters back into the apartment, and sees Expi crying to herself before calling her mom.

We're Moving?
Mariko is then transported to a few weeks later, where their apartment appears to be packed up and both Expi's family and Mariko's parents are waiting. Expi and her mom talk about going home, and afterwards they all leave with Mariko behind with their apartment completely empty. She is then transported to an entirely new place, this time an office in New Yolk City, where Expi is working, and is being yelled at by a seemingly abusive boss. Expi then whispers to herself, asking why Mariko had to leave, once again to Mariko's confusion, and grabs a rose out of her drawer. Mariko is transported again to a cemetary, where Expi is also at, and watches her lay down the rose on a particular gravestone - one that she finds out has her name on it. She then wonders how this was happening, and how she could be seeing this, if she had survived the fall from the bridge... but then realizes she might not have survived after all. However, it is revealed that is entirely a vision by Mariko as the world around her becomes a blur.

At the Hospital
Mariko then wakes up, and finds out she's laying in a hospital bed with Expi crying by her side. Mariko then calls her name, and Expi gives her a hug. Expi then tells Mariko that she had heard her walk out, and went to look for her, when she came got to the bridge and saw emergency vehicles that had been called after seeing her jump. Expi questions why Mariko would have done what she did, and Mariko responds by telling her she felt like Expi would be better off without her. Expi then insists that that is not the case, and that Mariko has a positive impact on her life, which Mariko is happy to hear. At the end, they both give each other another hug.

Trivia

 * The story of this chapter largely serves as an allegory for suicide and telling about the impact it has on it's victims, including those around the person who committed the act.
 * This story was partially influenced by ExpitheCat's own experiences with suicide as her dad committed suicide early on in 2019, although plans for this chapter could be traced back to 2017, when a similar looking drawing to the cover could be seen on the mockup "Adventures of Mariko" VHS tape.
 * This story was also slightly inspired by the classic Christmas film "It's a Wonderful Life".