Kibe and Kenji stood under the umbrella staring at each other. Kenji was least to say shocked at Kibe's action.
"..."
"So."
"Is standing in the rain your new thing, or has this always been a gimmick of yours?" Kibe asked "SHUT UP!" Kenji shouted at him. The two continued to stand under the umbrella for a few more minutes. Just staring out at the rest of town, cars passing by and people too. As the day went on. "I'm going after Kiko." Kenji said, Kibe looked at him.
"I realized something after what you said. I've been winning a lot since I was young.
I've done it all out of the want to win, out some selfish professional desire. Or maybe for my parents. It doesn't matter. I just never could decide what I wanted. I felt like a stallion in a sense." Kenji said, Kibe kept looking at him. "A stallion?" Kibe asked.
"Yes." Kenji said as he looked ahead. As he did he then went back again into his memories. He remembered being placed in a white room. There were no chairs, no windows or anything. He just sat against the wall. "Being in there for as long as I was. Made me forget everything about who I ever wanted to be. In fact, I never had a dream or desire before. It all was just details. Like in a painting, upon first viewing they mean nothing. The brushstrokes, the shades of paint and even the painter himself. All means nothing. Its the art itself which is the eye catcher.
However, the longer I was out, the more I began to explore the details of my painting. And now, since interacting with you. I've begun to question just what it is that makes up my canvas." Kenji said as he looked to Kibe who was still looking to him. "Do you know where she is?" He asked.
"No clue, but I have e a feeling I may know where. Come on." Kenji said as he walked back inside the school with Kibe following him. Bato was still in the office room. Sitting down. As he did he had made himself some coffee. Turning a spoon in it. He took a sip of it. He then thought to himself for a moment before he then walked over and put down another cup. He sat down waiting. Thats when Kibe would enter the room. Bato would look to him.
"Ah, just on time. I put on some tea and everything." Bato said. Kibe looked at him. "No need to be nervous, do tell me. Why have you come back?" Bato asked, thats when Kenji walked into the room. "Oh, not you. But him." Bato said, Kenji walked over and slamned his hands on the table in front of Bato. "What have you done with Kiko?" Kenji asked, his voice like that of a growl and his eyes filled with frustration.
"She went her own way. Said she was tired of babysitting as I remember her saying. She's likely long gone by now." Bato said as he sipped his drink only for Kenji to swat it out of his hand. Bato barley moved before his eyes fell onto Kenji.
"YOU DONT GET IT YET!? THIS IS WHAT THEY WANT! They want you to do all this. To try and see just how good you really are. Don't you see that this is all just some sick game of black jack or a large gamble to them. They don't care about what you want. Just what they want.
None of us are important, its all just research to them." Kenji said. "Perhaps, but I'm content with that. So long as my goal is reached and my worth proven." Bato said with a confident tone while Kenji looked in disbelief. Kibe just watched the two. Kenji stood up pissed off.
"Fine, you want to go ahead and toss yourself to their theories. Thats your thing. I'm going to go and get Kiko back." Kenji said as Bato then stood up. "You go after her, and you better not think I'll ever aid you in anything." Bato said. Kenji looked back at him.
"I didn't need your help before and I certainly don't need it now." Kenjj said as he left. Kibe followed behind him. Bato watched as the door closed and he began to sip his drink before he then saw the door open again. This time a familiar face showed up.
"Ah, its you." Bato said.
Kibe and Kenji stood at the school gate, the rain finally subsiding. "I need to go and find her." Kenji said. "Goodluck." Kibe said as he then watched as Kenji ran off. He watched before he then heard some footsteps approaching him. He turned his head and saw a familiar face. Kenji would run towards the airstrip that he remembered meeting Kibe at before he left earlier this month. His mind racing and racing.
Kiko was standing at the stairway to her private jet getting ready to leave. Her eyes looking at the jet and the planes on the distant strip all flying away and leaving, "...They look like butterflies.
Flying away from a bad patch of flowers." Kiko thought. Thats when her mind would be taken back to the past. She wa young, one of the youngest of her era. She was wearing a white uniform like all other students. She was standing in a garden. Her hair much longer then it is in the present. She was flocked by a few other girls. All of them admiring her for her brilliance on the algorithm test.
But her attention wasn't toward them. She was always use to being praised. When she was born in southern Dublin. She was born into a very rich family. She remembered everything about her birth, from the moment her parent's named her. To even the subtle mentions of her deliverer name and the nurses who aided him. She could remember every light she was under, every birthday and so on. Sometimes in her own mind, she laughed. Because she could remember all of that history of her life. Yet couldn't even remember her own parent's names.
There in the garden she looked and saw some of the boys there too. Many of them driven by their own reasoning and beliefs. The Pale Palace never tried to change anyone's personality, more like they attempted to hardwire you to use your brain to manipulate those emotions in according to what your mind wants.
The Pale Palace infact, at least in Kiko's eyes and mind. Seemed to be nursing the idea of creating a whole new society. Filled with people who thought first and then acted later. They very much were the embodiment of "I was curious what would happen".
There she saw them, a few boys looking down at this patch of flowers a whole bunch of butterflies were hovering over. One of the boys, a boy with brown hair and hazel eyes went over and gently laid his hand down to it. The butterfly believed in the gentle nature of the boy. Unfortunately once it was in the boy's hands. It was crushed.
Yet the boy showed no reaction, just a face of pure apathy. He didn't even brush the remains of the butterfly off. He just it left it there. The other boy's gawked and were in awe at him. The girls, were disgusted at his cruelty. The boy looked to Kiko and Kiko to him. He then looked down and began to stomp on the flowers and snatching any butterflies he could. The whole while, he would look to Kiko's face for a response. But she didn't give him any. Yet she couldn't be infront of anything more cruel. The girls shouted in disgust and anger at the boy before they left. With the boy and the boys doing the same.
Kiko was all that was left there, she then looked down and saw the remains of a butterfly.
"Cruel...
There is no sense in it. Why should we exist on this earth, if all we do is spread and destory all that doesn't aid in our expansion. Can people really be so heartless. Be so unwelcoming to other ways of life. No, there is no other way. Humans are cruel. " Kiko thought, however thats when-
"Hey, look." Said a voice, she recognized it and looked up to see Kenji there. Looking in his hand before bending down showing Kiko. A chrysalis. Kiko's eyes widened.
Kenji saw her expression and gave a warm smile.
"I know it doesn't seem like much, but life is like that right." Kenji said. Kiko looked at him. "Life is like a gamble, at first we're born weak. No real money in the pot. But then as we grow we begin to fill and fill it up with valuable sums of precious things. We may not be guaranteed to win the whole pot, but at least we had fun filling it while we did
" Kenji said. Kiko just looked at him.
"Thats when I learned. That others may infact see life differently then I do.
But after a time he changed. Be became obsessed with something, someone. At one point though. I began to see him change, into something I couldn't recognize anymore. The boy who once saw life and its many paths.
Now constraining himself to just one." Kiko thought as she then was returned to the present again. She looked at the stairway to her jet and sighed as she walked up the stairs with her luggage.
"KIKO!!!" shouted Kenji's voice from a distance, Kiko stopped shocked at what she heard. She turned her head and saw Kenji running towards her at his best. He then stopped at the stairs to Kiko's jet. He was exhausted.
"Did you run all the way here? Thats over 10 miles you lunatic." Kiko said "Yea well, you do make me do crazy things." He said. Kiko looked away a bit bashful. She then looked at him. "Shouldn't you be bashing your head aginst Kibe's? Trying to get a number up on him or something." Kiko asked yi which Kenji shook his head.
"I don't know if its forever, but right now. Hes the last thing on my mind.
What I'm bashing my head aginst right now..." Kenji stuttered for a moment. Which took him by suprise.
"Is you." Kenji said, to which Kiko reacted with shock.
"...it is just you and me there when Kibe was taken out of the pale palace.
We only had each other, thats who we still are now. We only have each other! Maybe Kibe too I guess. But thats not the point. The point is you were born with everything-" Kenji said, as he was taken aback to a time where he heard Kiko mentioning her birthday once before.
How she had to open her presents alone, with only the house servant to open them with her.
"Yet you had nothing too. I was the same too. I was born with nothing, and was given the world on a silver platter. Yet nothing sanctioned my life." Kenji said. Kiko looked at him. Kenji's hands tightened.
"I-...I LOVE YOU KIKO!" Kenji shouted. Kiko's eyes widened before turning back to her normally relaxed expression. Kenji's face was a burning hot red. He looked at her and saw her face.
"No." Kiko said. Kenji looked at her confused. "HUH!?" He shouted.
"You heard me. N.O." Kiko said.
"Why? I ran over 10 miles here to just get rejected? I know what matters now. I've done the work and progress haven't I!? Whats not appealing?" Kenji asked
"Its because this isn't you. Ever since you found your calling in the pale palace you've always been fond of gambling. Why start this now? Why throw it all away for me?" She asked. "IDIOT!" Kenji shouted.
"HUH?! You're calling me an idiot?! You, who ran all those miles just for the girl you wanted, just for you to be hit with rejection. Why are you still standing there. Acting like I'm going to change my mind." Kiko said "Cause you won't, I know you already feel the same. I don't need romantic love, I don't think I could understand it. I don't need anything sexual either.
I just need love. Someone who can see and understand me. Knows my flaws, warts and all. You've been the only one who can. The only life I could never throw away into some pot like the rest.
I love you Kiko, and thats something I had to come to terms with because if I didn't then...well. What good is all this knowledge and understanding if I can't even understand myself." Kenji said. Kiko looked at, her face dropping as she eyed him. She then walked down and dropped her luggage and hugged him. Kenji was in shock for a moment before he embraced her too. They both held on another for what felt like hours.
Back at the school Kibe was face to face with familiar old flame. He stared at them for a minute before speaking.
"Greetings. Its been a while, Mi." Kibe said. Mi looked at Kibe as he did her. Both standing at the gate to the school.
"They're going to catch you at any moment now. With your fling caught theres no telling-"
"I'm hoping for it." Kibe said which shocked Mi a bit. "What?" She asked.
"Yes. I won't deny Brandon's Intuition and dot connecting skills. They're remarkable. Extraordinary even.
So, I've decided to plan accordingly." Kibe said as he put his umbrella away. Mi walked to him and attempted to put her hand on his shoulder only for Kibe to catch it. He looked at her.
"Kibe, please. Let me help. I want to-"
"What? You plan to shoot me like how you shot the detective? Or perhaps maybe you'll deceive me again. Try and make it look like coercion." Kibe said.
"Kibe I-"
"Was any of it real? I just want to know." Kibe asked. Mi stuttered as she looked at Kibe. Kibe's eyes searched her's. However before she even could say it, he knew the answer.
"I see. Well. Thank you for confirming that with me." He said as he stepped away from her. He then got to walking away with Mi following him for a few moments before stopping "I won'tet you throw everything away for some thug! I won't!" She shouted. Kibe stopped and looked back.
"Do what you must, I will do what I've always done." Kibe said as he walked away leaving Mi.