"So, if you were reborn as an animal, which one would it be?" Sadim asked while we sat down eating.
We all chewed on our own dishes for a short while, as well as the question before Dawn took the role of entertaining his curiosity. "Probably something that can fly, like an eagle."
"That's a good one. I would choose a… hmm… probably a house cat.", I answered.
"Wow, that fits you to a tee". Sadim said while looking shocked at the seeming accuracy of my answer.
"Wouldn't that be pretty boring though?" Dawn said, pointing her fork at me.
"No? It would mean I'd be getting fed and not having to worry about surviving in the wild, also, unlike dogs, cats are perfectly comfortable being alone without needing much attending." I was satisfied with how well I had defended my answer.
"But that's just like you have it now. If you got the chance to be reborn wouldn't you wanna use it to change something?" She continued her questioning.
I was facing Dawn with her inquiring look, so to relax a bit I changed my sights over to Sadim, hoping to find a sympathizer, but what I found there was just the same view.
"W-well, no. I'm perfectly happy as it is, I don't really feel the need to change anything" It was the truth, what we shared here at this lunch table was more than enough for me.
"Okay, I get what you're saying. But to me, having the opportunity to soar through the skies is something I could never pass by. Just imagine it, the freedom you would feel.", It almost seemed like she would spurt wings as she talked.
"Don't you think you would get used to it though, flying I mean? Like, the first week would probably be amazing but after that, it would just become mundane, wouldn't it?" My turn to inquire had arrived.
Dawn chewed on the steak she had just put in her mouth while looking like she was giving my question some serious thought. She swallowed and then responded: "Probably, but even then, I wouldn't want to have not experienced it because of such doubts. I would have wanted to fly."
As she had spoken this, somewhere along the way, the two of us had begun looking each other in the eyes. Hers, with their refreshing blue color, were always so full of energy and life. It made me wonder what she thought as she saw mine. Recently I think they've gained some new life, but perhaps these windows to my soul still mostly reflect that dry and lifeless part of me...
"Well, I would be a dragon.", as that sentence escaped Sadim's lips both me and Dawn exited our trance and could do nothing but gawk at him.
"Frankly, you claimed his answer was boring-", Sadim said while looking at Dawn. "But to me, both your answers sucked. You would wanna be a fucking bird? And you have the stomach to call his answer simple?"
After his berating of us, Dawn exited her shock-induced state and went on the offense. "It wasn't just, a 'fucking bird', it was an eagle - The king of the sky! It's something real, unlike a dragon which is definitely cheating"
"Nu-uh, it ain't. I never said it had to be a real animal, that was just your boring minds making assumptions." When he answered so quickly, I wondered if he'd been expecting this exact exchange when he first asked us. It wouldn't have surprised me…
"But, why a dragon?", I asked what I thought was an Innocent question.
Sadim's eyes opened wider than any eyes I'd ever seen. He clapped his hands together louder than I'd ever heard and then pointed his combined fingers at me. "A-are you kidding me? Did you really just ask that? Wow, I can't believe this, I just can't…" Then he suddenly gave me the most serious look I'd ever seen. "It's a flying fucking lizard, that breathes fire, Grey. What more is there to possibly ask?"
"Then I'd be a knight and slay your dragon ass.", Dawn exclaimed. "And don't you dare call it cheating, humans are animals too" This conversation has now officially derailed, I thought to myself.
"Oh, pray tell me then, what exactly is a puny human such as yourself supposed to do against a majestic being like me?" Sadim taunted.
"I'd nuke your ass" Dawn rose up to the challenge, I suppose...
The "Dragon" slammed the table with both his palms. "W-what?! You can't do that, it's medieval times!"
Dawn only smiled. "Nu-uh, it ain't. That's just your boring mind making assumptions."
"You literally said you were going to become a knight"
"Well, knights still exist today"
"They do?" Sadim appeared genuinely curious at Dawn's claim.
"...Yes" She has no idea, does she… "Look, don't bother with the small stuff, what's important is that everyone should get to share their opinion, without getting berated first thing"
"Wow, hypocrite much?" With that questioning of Dawn I joined the conversation because I simply couldn't let that statement of hers fly by.
"What's that supposed to mean?" She quickly protested me.
"Do you seriously not realize? Do you not recall that bootleg quiz show of yours? With questions like: 'cats or dogs?'"
As I recapped these past events during our second meeting in the ruins I could slowly see the creator of these memories starting to remember. "Oh, right. That did happen" She finally acknowledged the past, but it felt somewhat displeasing that she didn't remember it immediately, while I had recalled it so vividly.
"And the answer I gave to that question was cats. After which, you immediately berated me. Saying how wrong I was."
"Well, that's just because you were", She quickly struck at me.
"See!?" I pointed both my arms at her. "Do you not hear the hypocrisy?" She didn't seem that bothered and appeared to be about to counter once again.
"What are you guys talking about?" But before Dawn got the opportunity, Sadim, who had been darting his eyes between the two of us, now showed his presence.
When my friend asked his question I realized just how careless I had been. "W-well, you see, it's…" That familiar feeling of not finding the words washed over me as I stumbled to form a coherent sentence. How could I have been so careless, I reproached myself.
"It's from when we met up last time, two weeks ago I think, at his secret spot", An innocent Dawn said.
"Secret… spot?" Sadim spoke while giving me a confused look. I didn't meet his look, instead, I stared down at the table.
The one who had spilled the beans now quickly realized what she'd done. "Oh, you didn't know?" She asked a clearly in the dark Sadim.
"No, I didn't." My friend answered in a calm voice. "Grey-", He then directly called to me with the same slowness, "What is she talking about?"
I tried to act ignorant as if I hadn't heard him. But I slowly realized the futility in this and so slowly started raising my view. "Well, you see, the thing is… I have a secret spot by the ruins, it's a place where I… go to collect my thoughts sometimes. It's just kinda calming there, you know? That's also the spot where I and Dawn first met and well, that bootleg quiz show story also took place there". I observed Sadim's reaction while squeezing one of my thumbs. He looked me directly in the eyes, but I knew that faltering here would mean defeat, and so I met him with the best poker face I could muster.
"Really? You just go there to collect your thoughts? To the ruins?" Sadim wasn't going to let me just squeeze out of this one.
"Yeah, it's just a quarter away from where I live. I go there sometimes when I'm feeling down, just listening to some music and looking at the starry sky…" Would he believe that? It felt like such an obvious lie to me.
For a moment I thought perhaps sparks would form between us, but then my friend finally faltered and exited this intense staring competition. Did… did he believe me? There looked to still be some doubt in Sadim, but without a place to put that doubt, he seemed to have capitulated. I sighed internally, happy that I had managed to hide it. Now I wouldn't have to tell anyone else about my graffi-
"Oh wait, you forgot something, Grey." As Dawn spoke, I glared at her with such horror in my eyes that I was afraid I would give her a heart attack…
"N-no, I don't believe I did" Please catch on to it you dense girl…
She gave me a confused look "But what about the graffiti?" oh, how comical, all my effort, in vain, just like that…
"Graffiti?!" Sadim yelled for everyone's ears.
"S-shh! not so loud…", I intervened out of necessity.
"Wait… so you mean it's true?"
I gave him a blank look. "Is it too late for me to lie to you about it?"
"Yes, definitely"
"I see, then it's true…"
And so I begrudgingly started telling Sadim about this secret spot of mine, as well as the first meeting between Dawn and me (but leaving out our fight). Surprisingly he didn't say a word during my explanation, instead, he just listened with great interest.
"And there you have it", Dawn said, putting the final period on my explanation. Which felt odd because of my exclusion of certain events, but I hoped that meant she didn't feel comfortable sharing it either.
Then the table became silent. Both I and Dawn eyed Sadim as he appeared to be pondering the facts he had been given. Then he finally showed some reaction as a big smile clad his face. "I knew it!" He yelled out celebratorily, jump-scaring both me and Dawn.
"K-knew what?", I asked.
"You mean you don't remember what you told me? That day when Dawn first introduced herself and it was revealed that the two of you already knew each other, do you mean to say you don't remember what you told me then?" This all felt like an interrogation, me getting asked about a crime I no longer remembered committing.
"N-no, not really" It felt like I was being led down some malicious path with those questions.
Sadim smiled devilishly as he heard my words. "You told me you had fallen and hurt your forehead because you had been out on a run, but now, if you're telling the truth, it seems you hurt yourself when running away from the sudden voice appearing behind you while at this 'secret spot'." My friend laid out these events with both his arms resting at the table and while leaning back as much as one could in our lunch chairs. This all made him seem awfully relaxed, unnervingly so."This voice which belonged to you"
"That's right", Dawn responded.
"So now, what I want to say with all of this is…" He leaned forward, looking intently at me. "I was right all this time! You never would've exorcised just like that, I knew you were far too lazy for that!"
As my hubristic friend spat out those words one after the other, looking at me all the while… I couldn't help but smile. I mean, what else could I do? It was all just so clear to me now. This man in front of me, whom I had been calling a friend, I now knew… I would never make the same mistake again!!
After about a minute of Sadim openly enjoying that he had been right and me silently watching him while cursing his existence, Dawn intervened.
"But all of this means that you haven't been to that secret spot yet, doesn't it?"
As she addressed my now former friend, he finally seized his unsightly showcase and paused to look at Dawn. "I guess so"
"Then wouldn't you wanna come?" No!!! Why would you ask that!? This man doesn't deserve that after doing this! I screamed at her... internally.
"Eh, I…" For some reason, Sadim looked over at me as if seeking permission.
I just continued to give him the same stale smile as before and after he saw this he seemed to be overcome with enthusiasm. "Yes, I would like to"
After hearing this she now turned to me. "You know, I think we should meet at that secret spot again", Dawn told me with a smile.
I didn't know what to think about it, but I wouldn't get the chance to ponder.
"When?" Sadim, as if he had been the one asked, wondered.
Having been the one to propose the idea, Dawn seemed awfully unsure when asked, but suddenly it was like a light bulb appeared above her. "Why not today?"
"Works for me" Sadim answered at a pace that made me more stressed over the whole ordeal.
"How about you then?" The girl, who I up till now had still believed to be at my side, asked.
This sudden and quick decision-making almost immediately had me begging to exit the ring, and so, "...Sounds good" I had no interest in making this match drag out any longer.
"Great! Then it's decided, we'll all meet at that secret spot tonight" A celebratory Dawn declared.