The bell for the first period echoed on the school ground.
Some students sprinted to make it inside the classroom before the second bell sounded.
I should be doing the same. However, Riley stood before me.
I figured he must be the son of a big shot. Otherwise, he wouldn't have acted the way he had the last time we saw each other.
Too bad. I was hoping things would have changed, even a slight one at that. But, with the two of us standing face to face just outside the school building, it meant that I was simply put back in the same place and position.
Flashes of him standing before his father played in my head. But Riley kept his cool, unbothered by what I had witnessed. Or perhaps, he was playing nonchalance regarding the matter.
"Are you here to tell me more lies?" I asked.
Riley clicked his tongue, smirking in my direction.
A soft wind blew past, tousling our hair.
"What I told you was the truth. I'm sure your little friend told you all about it."
It was my turn to smirk.
I couldn't help but wonder if he learned about what happened to Fifi, how would he react? Unless his system had the same form?
I chased away the idea. It couldn't be possible.
I pocketed my hands, cocking my head to one side.
"Well, I expected an apology. But I don't think you're capable of doing that."
Riley chuckled. He looked at me up and down.
"You're not as dumb as I first thought you'd be."
I scoffed. It was my turn to chuckle and swing back, playing with my feet.
"Perhaps, we should do that," I replied.
"Do what?"
"Play dumb. We have our youth and wisdom. Playing pretend would come easy."
Riley chuckled yet again. He clicked his tongue.
"Are you sure Nirvana picked you to be their representative?"
I laughed with him.
"You read my mind. I'm actually wondering about the same thing."
For the next few seconds, the latter stared at me. He held my gaze, and silence hung between us, neither wanting to break the silence first. It was evident that we were assessing each other.
One thing I could be sure of was that he wanted to say something. He'd been meaning to see me. It was only a hunch, but I'm more and more certain about it.
"I have a proposal to make."
And there it goes.
"Interesting. Let's hear it then."
Riley took a deep breath. He looked at the sky as if he was looking for some answers there.
I waited, my patience growing thin.
This would be one of the rare times that I wish Fifi was with me.
Some moral support, even if invisible, would have been comforting.
I wasn't trying to think negatively. But for anyone in my shoes, it was to be expected. Riley was supposed to be the bad guy. He admitted to that before.
It would be idiotic to trust him when instincts told otherwise.
"Let's have some boundaries."
I raised a brow, suddenly concerned about what he meant by boundaries.
"Explain."
"Believe it or not, we have the same goal. Maybe our methods might differ, but eradicating these monsters who lay claim to our Universe was what I was sent here for. The same case with you."
I wanted to ask about the methods he meant. But the look in his eyes made me shiver. I think it was safe to assume that he won't be sharing that bit even if I ask.
"Okay," I nodded. "So, what do you want to happen?"
Riley smiled.
"You kill the monsters you find. I kill mine. We don't intervene in each other's kills."
I waited, knowing there was more to this than he had already indicated.
"What's the catch?"
"There's none."
I clicked my tongue, showing my disapproval.
"I wish I could believe you, but spit it out, Riley. I think we've gone past the stage of denying your motives."
Riley pursed his lips. He looked at me and nodded. As if he was nodding in agreement.
"I guess your beloved Divine didn't tell you how this would end. Did he?"
I had no response.
Riley chuckled.
"Yeah, I thought so," he went on. "When all of this is over, you and I, including this borrowed body of ours, will disappear. Meaning, we go back to being dead."
I think he was expecting me to feel something about the matter. He paused to watch my reaction. When nothing happened, he touched the tip of his left brow.
I couldn't help but chuckle.
"You know, I prefer to stay dead. But for some reason, this whole mess they got me into sucks. They left me with no choice but to embrace it. So, I don't see any benefit with your proposal aside from it being logically correct."
"Ah," Riley looked at me and nodded. "Right, I should have covered the benefits."
I scoffed.
"You don't know how to do business."
I'm not convinced about his intentions. And the more that I think about it, the picture becomes clearer.
"Forgive me, then. I've grown rusty during the years. And mind you, I stopped doing this when I became a father."
"Should your backstory get me to agree with you on this? Do you plan to go awol after completing what we were sent to do? Is that it? You want my help on running away and hiding?"
There was another chuckle. I'm getting used to hearing him laugh in a low tone.
"You were close. But no."
"I almost guessed it right."
"Yes," Riley clapped his hands to applaud my almost correct guess. "Bravo. Bravo, my friend. Anyway, there's only so much we could do while we have this capability."
"You're also just a beginner."
I couldn't help but smile. This time, I'm sure my guess was accurate.
"The more monsters we kill, the Evolution points increase. Eventually, we would be strong enough to battle these creatures on our own."
Riley stood confidently before me.
"Yes. Very well, and I plan to keep it that way."
"How do you even propose to do that?"
"Simple," Riley snapped his fingers, pointing it to me right after. "I would need to challenge you to a duel and win."
I suddenly thought Riley had spoken in a language I couldn't understand.
"So," I began, finally grasping what he was talking about. "You plan to stay in this lifetime and in that body, but for that to happen, you need to win a duel with one of my kind?"
Riley looked at me. The same smile he plastered earlier appeared on his face.
"Yes. That's it."