A boy who feels empty. A girl who is despised by all. A world where everyone is blessed with immortality. But is it worth to live forever if you can't be happy? If you can't make others happy?

How much is a smile worth?

A sweet little story that questions everything that we give for a fact. It challenges our fear of death and the everpresent desire to live forever. But it is not a glorification of death. Far from it, this story is still about life. But instead, it asks for a reason. It asks for a ''Why?'' for it all. It is not really about immortality, but about life as a whole. What is it for? Aren't we sometimes so focused on not dying that we forget to live? The final sentence sums it up so well: ''Only two lived, in a dead world...''. This is the all present question of the meaning of life itself. The answer at which this tale arrives, however, is much simpler, much less grand, than one would come to expect for such great questions. For Ringo Uri no Utakata Shoujo, the meaning is in the details. In the little things. Quite fitting for such a short story.

This story is all simbols. An alegory. You can see themes about love, about hope, about passion... You are to make your own conclusions, but i'd say the overall message is clear. And its beautiful.

As short as it is, it will give you a lot to think about. Go ahead and read it. You dont see one-shots like this very often. (I gave it a 9 in the review for visibility)