Riencarnate: The Second Step

Chapter 3

The redhead looks up. He's leaned up against an interior wall of a building, breathing heavily and crying. He regulated his breathing and wiped away his tears. He was shaky when he stood, but not enough to make him fall over. His body was still weak. He sat back down. Yuki peaked his head in the door, "You're awake."

The greenette walked into the room, "What's wrong? You look like you were crying."

The redhead with green tips says, "I'm fine."

The red tail of Ren's curled and stayed still. Yuki says, "Ren, please don't lie. You've been through a lot."

The redhead answers, "It's just... Kito. He was my best friend. I did nothing. I just watched..."

Yuki says, "Nothing is the opposite of what you did. You ran to him, you fought for him, you tried to stop Kito, and you were down, too."

Ren says, tearing up, "You said that if you could move, even a little bit, you would still fight. I could still move, but I still didn't do anything."

Yuki says, "But you couldn't move. You were practically choking. Anyone expects not to be able to move during that."

Ren's eys built up with tears, "But I still could've done something."

Yuki says, "No, you couldn't have. It's not your fault, Ren. You can't beat yourself up for something that's not your fault. It's unhealthy."

Ren looks down, starting to cry, "B-but..."

He started to sob. Yuki gave the crying male a hug. Ren unexpectedly hugs back. The crying male's body was tense. Katsumi and Kanoe walked in on the two. Kanoe asks, "You alright, Ren?"

The red-haired male sits up straight, "Y-yeah. I'm fine."

Yuki says, "He's been beating himself up because of Kito."

Ren looks around the room, noticing he's not finding the blue-eyed male he was usually annoyed by when he was out. Kanoe catches the redhead's attention, "You shouldn't blame yourself for something that isn't your fault. It's their fault, not yours. They hurt him, not you. Okay?"

Kanoe sits on the bed, sitting next to him. Katsumi sits down, leaning against the wall, sitting by Kanoe's feet. Katsumi looks to the ground, "We should get outta here soon. Get to the shelter we were at. This isn't the best place for what's going on. It could be a lot worse right now. Schools are even becoming shelters right now. That's how bad things are."

Kanoe says, "We're staying at Shion High right now. It's a place that is currently a shelter. It's strong and big. It's also open to Riencarnates just as well as Non-Riencarnates."

Yuki nods, "It's true. People with fascinating abilities are there, too. They're letting Non-Riencarnates train their new abilities so that they don't hurt each other or themselves."

Katsumi says, "That part is also true. I know you probably haven't learned all of your powers, so that could help."

Ren looks to the ground. He stares vacantly, "When this is all over, I'm not gonna use my abilities. Actually, I'm gonna find a way to get rid of my powers. I caused so much trouble just being here. So I can't be a burden anymore if I don't have an ability, much less, exist..."

Kanoe slaps the back of his head, "Don't talk about yourself like that! That's something only an idiot would say."

I look at him, "But I am a -"

Another slap hits Ren's head, "You heard me, and no, you aren't."

After Ren rubbed the back of his head, he looked back at Kanoe. He really cared about Ren. Ren could see it. Kanoe cares about him. Yuki asks, "So when do we head back to the shelter?"