Nickson Point of View (we are in the present chapter or storyline)
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"Let me guess, you want me back inside the student council room again?"
"As I have said before, I need you there to help me with the student council work!"
"Sorry, Roxanne, but I am currently unavailable right now."
"You meanie, arrogant, egotistical pedophile!"
Roxanne and I exchange words, but she adds more to her descriptions and tells me I am a pedophile which I am not. But the rest of the adjectives she has used are all acceptable to my standards. It means nothing to me since we are in the heat of an argument.
"Sister Yuki and brother Nickson, what's a pedophile?" Himari raises a question while tilting her head towards the right, wondering the word she has heard.
Yuki jumps towards Roxanne and pulls her behind the table. I believe they are in the middle of a meeting, involving only the two of them.
"Himari, let me explain." There has not been a single time that these remarkable duo does not mess up. I mean, look at what they have done, letting an eight-year-old girl learn some vulgar language with indecent meanings.
"A pedophile is a person who loves underage kids, like you! But I, your brother, do not love you."
"Does that mean you don't love me?" Himari sheds a tear as she murmurs the phrase to herself.
"That is not what I mean, Himari. I love you, but not romantically." I wipe the liquid sliding from Himari's face as I interpose her statement.
"What is 'romantically', brother Nickson." Himari offers her face for me to wipe the remaining bread crumbs near her mouth.
Himari is the most adorable little fellow I have ever seen in my entire life since my brother wears diapers, despite being twelve years old from my memories.
I can still see his image right here and now, haunting me every day.
"Himari, at your age, you would not want to know, okay?" Yuki gets back up from their meeting and takes control of the current conversation. She, afterwards, locks eyes at me while raising her brows, blocking my every escape.
"If you say so, Sister Yuki," With a dejecting look on her face, Himari perches on the table and silently stares at us while munching over the takoyaki on the table.
My mouth itches from the sight of the golden balls lying in front of my face. I have tried asking to get one takoyaki from Yuki, but with a single wave of his hand, my body feels scared as I promptly retract my hands back into my pockets.
Yuki doesn't allow anyone to touch that takoyaki of hers, except Himari.
"Going back to the topic, I cannot join you at the student council office yet. I have things to attend to." I ready myself to leave the place when Himari, the tiny, cute girl, stops me from my tracks. She is pouting all this time, watching the entire situation, even when she finds it difficult to understand the meaning behind our words.
"And what is that important thing that you must 'attend to' besides your school duties, Nickson?" As if adding salt to the wound, Yuki hurls me with a question that would even leave Chung-hee feeling surprised.
"My bro-," I hesitate to express my thoughts since these two, three if you include Himari, are far from me. They are people whom I could talk to, but not my problems.
The only person who I can trust is Wilson, my butler, who is always there by my side, or my brother, Seong-ho, who is currently working at a restaurant in Clock Hotel. Many eyes are watching him as we speak since he is still my blood-relative.
One event surprises me when my eyes have seen the two girls standing near the hotel, even going outside from the building. Upon inspecting closely, I notice my brother is creating another scene with the client. Fortunately, the consumer is a trusted staff of mine and knows the person he has been talking to is my brother, Sung-ho. The police arrive, afterwards encourage him and temporarily walk away from the hotel.
"I want you to help me with my brother." is not something I could say to my peers, especially to the person who sees me as a menacing pervert and a narcissist who knows nothing but to insult others.
This facade is my persona, and I have an image to protect.
Without saying another word, I stand up and walk out of the room, bringing my shoulder bag. I place the check on the counter and provide the funds for the orphanage within the next month. Even if they do not need it, these are still colossal sums of money that they can use on the following occasions.
On my way to the gate, I glance back and kiss Himari my goodbye, hoping she could understand my situation. Himari's mouth curves as she sees me off to the buzzing road.
"She is an intelligent kid. Himari knows my circumstances." I mumble to myself and pump my chest while continuing to watch my brother from a distance, observing his every move, and wait for a chance to talk with him.
The next day passes by, and I venture forth towards the Clock Hotel, wishing to see my brother again. I will place my bet on an opportunity and the guts to interact with my brother.
I forget bringing my glasses as I stride towards the streets, refusing to go back to my building. It would be a waste of time if I return now, considering that I might miss my opportunity to interact with my distant brother.
However, like the coward I am, my legs refuse to move once I notice my brother flirting with the ladies and getting angry at men. He does this from now and then, even when we are younger versions of ourselves.
He is everything that I cannot become. Even removing my glasses on my face, I could not find the courage to fight back my nervousness whenever I could see him from afar. All the rage and sadness dwell inside my heart, piercing me like a thousand thorns.
"Just this one chance, Nickson. You got this. After this, you can do no more of these shenanigans. Aigo…"
Upon peering through the streets, I notice, yet again, the two familiar faces of the girls dressed in school uniforms. They are not here for me, but the two of them wait outside and sink their faces in front of their cellular phones.
"Are they leaching out for our free Wi-Fi?" A rhetorical question races through my mind, conjecturing what is inside their minds. But by the looks of them, they are not aiming for free network connections.
"Are they looking for me?" Another query pops out of my mind, but this time it becomes an answer rather than a hunch.
Through looking at them, I feel something vibrating inside my pockets. Upon reaching for the item, I discern my phone and have received a message from an unknown number.
Someone is calling me on my phone. The only contacts I have in this gadget are my brother, father, cruel mother, and Wilson. Nobody could bypass my security since I have tested it many times, anxious of hackers. This tip also comes from my brother, who has sent me a message before he has gone out to Japan.
I swipe the green button with an image of a phone on my screen and answer the phone call.
"Hello, who is this?" I activate my boss-mode Nickson and apply it to my call.
The caller falls silent after hearing such a cold introduction. After a few seconds, the caller says, "Are you, Nickson?"
"I won't answer unless you tell me your name. I will report you to the-," Before I could even speak my sentences, the person on the other side of the line interjects me by saying, "You better come right this instant, young man, or I will-,"
{the number you have dialled is currently unavailable. Please try again later} the automated voice rings through my ear, declining to answer any more of this nonsense.
I sneak a peek at the corner and perceive Yuki punching the lamp post at her sides, furious at what has happened a while back. Even the security guards watching from afar feel petrified upon the image of a young woman dressed in elegant attire (school uniform) banging her hands on the lamp post made of copper.
Yuki, as if noticing my gawk, abruptly averts her gaze and leers at her rear. I frantically jerk myself back and slam on the bin, creating a gratuitous noise that may have alerted their ears.
But using my quick movements, I pick myself and jump at the fence, off towards the other side of the alley. By the time they have arrived, they meet no one there besides the dumpster.
"That was a close call." I heave out a sigh after experiencing all that for the sake of stalking my brother.