Perfect On Paper (Nikei Yomiuri X OC)

𝓒𝓱𝓪𝓹𝓽𝓮𝓻 24: 𝓣𝓱𝓮 𝓝𝓮𝓻𝓿𝓮 𝓽𝓸 𝓐𝓭𝓸𝓻𝓮 𝓨𝓸𝓾

Triggers: 🟠🟡🟢🟣🟤⚫️🔘

The crash of ocean waves, normally calm and soothing to the ear was aggressively accompanied by the pitter-patter of the large droplets sinking into the endless void of saltwater, creating thousands of ripples in the parts that were stiller.

Bittersweetly deafening, that was the best way for her to describe how it felt on her eardrums. Aki could cry and scream off the top of her lungs and no one would ever know it, it would just be drowned out by the intense strike of the rain meshing with the larger body of water. It was so thunderous that she could only barely hear herself think.

She could easily have just waited out the storm in the mart, but the sound of the rain was honestly more comforting than the annoying hum of the fluorescent lights on the ceiling. She did grab a bottle of whiskey from there to calm down, but for once, even after four shots, it did nothing. Usually, that was about what it took to start getting distracted from her own emotions, but not this time. The buzz of the whiskey did absolutely nothing.

Was this...what it was like to be numb?

She started to feel that alcohol was starting to lose its effect on her and that she couldn't use it to escape anymore. The idea of not having a coping mechanism anymore scared her to no end, and ultimately just made her feel even worse about everything.

But in the end, the root of her breakdown seemed to be obvious.

Ren...was dead. Her big brother, her best friend, and her guardian. Her only sliver of hope she had to hang onto. The only motivation she had left to escape this awful place... was dead.

And all she could think about was how much she took him for granted. Of course, she loved Ren, more than anything. But after all the bad she'd done behind his back, the guilt she felt now that he was gone was soul-crushing. She could only wish she'd stayed the innocent little girl that Ren gave up everything to protect, the little girl who wanted nothing more than to write songs and poems for her big brother to admire.

After finally writing down the last word of her latest page, her baby green eyes lit up like stars. She tore the page out of her beat-up notebook and went sprinting down the hallway to her big brother's room, her tiny red pigtails bouncing with every excited step.

"Ren~! Ren, look, look!"

The orange-haired boy was sitting on his bed, studying for an upcoming test for school. He snickered upon seeing his elated baby sister.

"What is it, Aki?"

"I wrote a poem! Look, look it~!"

Ren took the paper from her little sister's teeny tiny hands and skimmed it, smiling to himself. To any average person, the paper just looked like a preschooler's writing practice sheet. But to Ren, it was an art form.

"Wow, this is your best one yet sis!"

"Do you think Mommy and Daddy would like it?"

"I hope so! This is an amazing poem! Next thing you know, you'll be a famous poet!"

The little girl giggled, hugging her brother tightly.

Thinking about her brother also reminded Aki of the strong disdain she had for her parents. Every time she tried to show off the poems she made, they'd just dismiss her, claiming they were way too busy to give her the time of day. Thankfully, Ren was always there to reassure her.

"Don't worry, sis. They'll see it once they're done working. I'm proud of you, okay?"

Their mother glanced into the bedroom, carrying large stacks of papers into her own room. As soon as she made eye contact with her eager daughter, the little girl instantly turned all of her attention to her mother.