How Things Changed Forever.. PART - II

CH 10: The Highschool Sensation

Amar froze at this. He didn't need to be explained whom she was referring to. His name always laid between them like a double-edged knife, damaging to both the weilder and the victim. "And more importantly, that he and Hillary were friends." She stressed on the word.

Amar sat up straighter at this. "I swear I didn't know that they knew each other either until a month ago. You-" "You knew about it for a month and didn't think telling me would be nice?" She scathingly demanded. Amar raised his hands in surrender. "Hey, you were in the hospital unconscious. I was talking on the phone with Tyson when he off handedly mentioned him." He defended himself. "How did you get to know of this? How long have you known?" He asked instead.

"I met Kai today. And last Friday. He was at the studio to get his new house furnished." Amar looked surprised at this. "I didn't know he had bought himself a house." "Apparently he has, is that even possible legally?" "I don't think it is." 

"And what were saying  about him living in Japan, has he been living here before?" She asked, her eyes clouded with confusion. "Have you been hiding things from me, Amar?" She further asked, looking unsure, as though she was afraid to know the answer herself.

"I-" he started, but the look in her eyes silenced him once more. Almost all his life, he had lived in a web of secrets, half-lies and half-truths. Every move of his was calculated and everyone had their own uses. Yet, he could never once make himself lie to her. She had been the small ray of sunshine, reserved only for himself, in his dark world that he himself didn't know he needed. She had thought him to live his life for the first time, she had built and shared her life along with him, he would never disrespect her by lieing. But  he couldn't think of how upset she would be if she knew the truth. The truth which would reveal how utterly he had failed her, and a lot of others whom he had loved dearly. 

The bell couldn't have ringed at a better time. He quickly pecked her on the lips, "I promise to tell you soon, just not today sweetheart. Please don't get mad with me when I finally tell you. I did try my best." He whispered, before going to the main door. Hillary looked damn tired, by every excited. When she told him of the new improvements, he felt very proud of his daughter. Natasha no longer looked upset, she was almost back to her normal self. The mother-daughter duo kept up a lively chat at dinner, while Amar couldn't help but fret. What had he gotten himself into this time?

******

Kai blindly stumbled across the hill. It was late into the evening that he couldn't see anything beyond a few metres ahead of him. The wind was raging against him, sending dust to his eyes. The night was a starless one and the clouds were heavy in the sky. He knew it wasn't right for him to be out in the open now, given that he had resently recovered from a bullet wound, but he didn't want to be near anyone he knew when this happened.  

He stumbled into the small clearing and retched into one of the bushes. He screamed loudly before his legs gave in and he crouched down, gathering his knees and legs into himself before starting to rock back and forth. His head was pounding rapidly and he was heavily sweating. He knew that this was a kind of breakdown his body was subjected to before an onslaught of suppressed memories resurfaced, having experienced it before. Memories of his time in biovolt, which were somehow curtained from him in his own mind and  memories of his time as the dark phoenix.

A heavy downpour had started by then. With a shudder, he realised that he was missing the one person who helped him pull through with the pain and misery it brought, his greatest ally, dranzer. She was always the soothing balm, his anchor to sanity and reality during these times. He wished he had taken it back from Hillary and soon as he had gotten the chance.

******

Kai didn't know how long he had been lying on the muddy floor, all curled up and shivering. Unsurprisingly, he had lost consciousness somewhere along the line. He tried blinking through the haze and still felt a bit addled. He noticed that he had clawed into his own hands, and even bitten himself at a place or two, leaving behind scars that had not fully clotted yet. Soon he realised that he wasn't just shivering due to the cold. Sobs wracked his entire body, making it harder for him to breathe. The muscles around his stomach seemed to have gone numb long ago due to continuous gasping.