Untamed Heart ✨

Chapter 9 - A Careless Child

I glance up at the height of the building from where I'm standing. From what I can gather, it seems like some old office building. I heard lots of these went bust a while ago, but I don't remember why. Senju stands to the right of me eager to escort us both in, Tatsuo on my left. He has his hand on my shoulder for comfort as usual. "Nobody backing out? It won't be that bad, promise" Senju states, kicking a slab of stone by her feet. "You've never been one for meeting new people" Tatsuo says to me from down on the ground, kneeling down to tie his shoelace. I nod my head, agreeing with the extremely true statement. "Yeah... but don't let me stop the whole thing, we should go inside". "That's what I like to hear!" Senju shouts, jogging through the rugged entrance. "Ah keep your voice down would you?" Tatsuo asks, seemingly bothered. She doesn't respond, too far rushing ahead. "Hey if Senju asks you to do something reckless or careless, don't listen to her. I don't want you both to end up on hospital beds..." I giggle a little. "I won'tt, but surely she's not that badd right?" I ask him. "Well, she's definitely unpredictable ..."
I take a look around as we walk forward, noticing the weeds and vines hanging through the ceiling, blocking some sunlight shining through. I scoot round at the sound of something scurrying, sticking close to Tatsuo. Rats I assume. This room is pretty large, stretching out far too. Parts of the floor appear covered by rubble and dust from the walls and roof cracking. A few empty desks lay on their sides in the corner of the room, a rat from before rummaging through. I notice a staircase at the back of the room too, which is where we'll be heading I assume. "Well this is lovely..." Tatsuo mumbles, wiping some dust off of his shoulder. "Wouldn't be surprised if the ceiling collapsed on us." I observe Senju for a moment as she skips past the fragments of window pane on the floor and over to the unattractive staircase in the distance.
We make our way closer and closer until the stairs draw only a few feet away. "Hey be careful" Tatsuo whispers, identifying more glass shards scattered on the stairs. "Oh..." I utter, noticing it myself now as well. "Hey be careful there's glass here!" Senju calls to us. "Yep thanks Senju" Tatsuo says sarcastically, knowing he's already stated the obvious to me. I tread lightly on the first step, making it my mission to avoid getting glass wedged in my feet. I put both my arms out to steady myself, hopping past a large pile in the corner upon meeting the fourth step. Tatsuo, who notices I've trailed behind, takes my arm with his hand, pulling me up with him. "You okay?" he asks, assisting me as I hop up the final few steps. "Yep, thank youu" I say to him, sticking close for security. "You two alive?" Senju asks, slowing down to meet our pace. I nod, glad she's finally slowed herself down. And I thought Tatsuo was fast... "Great" she says, turning her head to examine this new floor. It's not much different to the last... "If I remember correctly, one more floor and we're there" she states, brushing some dust off of an old pillar, towering up into the ceiling. "Hey Tatsuo?" I whisper, leaning up to his ear. "Who are we meeting exactly...?". He noticeably shudders a little, proceeding to brush some dust from out of my hair. I really hate this place...
"We're meeting a few friends of mine I think, only a couple though, it shouldn't be too overwhelming for you. Although Senju hasn't actually told me very much...". He frowns moderately, taking my hand once more so we can continue on together. "But you'll be fine". I nod, nuzzling in next to him. "Wow you two are adorable" Senju calls from up ahead. We look up, realising she's managed to balance herself on a pile of extremely unsteady tables. "Hey maybe you should get down from there..." I shout to her, praying she doesn't slip and fall. "Yeah I'll be fine-" she calls back, loosing her footing for just a moment. I turn away, the unbearable thought of her fall lingering in my mind. She regains her balance again, deciding it's good to get take my advice. "She scares me..." I utter, Tatsuo nodding in agreement. "She's pretty much the definition of a rebel". We pick up the pace, catching up to where she is, a pile of office tables stacked together to make some form of structure, although it's basically a death trap in my eyes. "Okay I'm coming down now!" she calls, steadily sliding from table to table in an attempt to prevent any injuries. I watch her carefully, my eyes darting around just in case I need to warn her of any gaps or crevasses she could fall through. "How did you even get that high?" Tatsuo shouts up in confusion, Senju stopping for a moment to tie her shoelace. "I don't know, I was feeling adventurous" she shouts back. I watch her hands as she ties her white laces, her shaking body making me question. I shake Tatsuo's arm, pointing to where she's kneeling. "Hey that doesn't seem particularly sta-". Without warning I'm cut off by the loud sound of the tower collapsing, a scream cut off by the table plummeting down towards where we're standing...