Rules Were Made to be Broken

‣ scene 06 [persistence is key]

  "Y'seem tense."

Kiyotaka had been staring out of the window and nearly forgotten his surroundings, so Mondo's voice made him flinch.

"I'm fine."

"I don't buy that for a fuckin' second."

"And? It's none of your business!"

Mondo snickered and shook his head.

"Look, we've still got some time before we make it back to the shop," he pointed out. "And I'm bored. Talkin' to me won't hurt anything. Ya might even feel better. ...Tell me. How's a guy like you get so distracted that ya fucked up your tire like that?"

Kiyotaka looked around at that comment. It had only taken Mondo fifteen minutes to reach his car, so why was the drive taking longer this time? Had he taken a wrong turn somewhere? He didn't want to make any assumptions, but it seemed as if Mondo was purposefully extending the duration of this trip. He couldn't imagine why he'd do something like that, though.

He huffed in a long breath.

"...Okay. You got me. You're right, okay?! I hate my stupid job. I hate it so much that I could just cry. I never wanted to go into the IT field in the first place, but my parents practically forced me to, and now they call me every single day to lecture me about working hard and making them proud, and about how I should be married by now, and... I just don't know what to do with all of the stress! I was being scolded by my mother and zoned out, and now... Here we are."

Kiyotaka wasn't sure why he'd said all of that. For one thing, Mondo was still someone he'd classify as an almost-stranger, and how likely was it that he actually gave a damn about all of this? Mondo hummed in thought.

"...You're an adult, aren't ya? You don't have to listen to yer parents anymore. Fuck 'em for tryin' to tell ya what to do with your life, anyway."

"That—" Kiyotaka reddened in disbelief. "Let's not say 'fuck my parents', okay?!"

Mondo snickered, studying him out of the corner of his eye.

"That word just... sounds weird n' kinda wrong comin' outta your mouth. You never really swear, do ya?"

"Of course not. It isn't professional."

"But it's a hell of a stress reliever. Sometimes ya gotta just throw somethin' or hit somethin' and swear at the top of your lungs. If you don't even let yourself curse every once in a while... Ya probably don't have an outlet."

Kiyotaka frowned. Did he have an outlet? Sometimes working out made him feel better, but since he was doing it to stay in shape and earn his parents' approval and avoid them making comments about him getting fat, it could also become yet another point of stress. And he didn't have a hobby or a show he liked to watch or anything like that.

When he was in elementary school, he had enjoyed studying martial arts and practicing calligraphy. But he didn't have time for either of those things anymore.

"...I... guess I don't." He scoffed. "But what do you know, anyway? What makes you think I ought to heed your advice?"

"Well..." Mondo cracked a wry smile. "I'm happy, and you aren't. I'd say that's a good enough place to start."

Well, damn. He wasn't wrong. Kiyotaka sighed and rubbed one of his eyes.

"O-Oh, yeah? And just what are you so happy about?"

Mondo shrugged.

"My life is... in a good place. I addressed all the shit that was makin' me angry all the time, I have family and friends and a buncha dogs that I love, n' I really like my job most days. Drivin' a truck isn't always the most exciting thing, and the hours can get pretty long n' inconsistent, but I get ta be around machines and learn more tricks for fixin' up engines, n' that lets me support my hobby."

"And what hobby is that?"

"I flip cars. I buy a really shit car offa somebody and make it seem brand new. Sometimes they're too far gone and I just salvage 'em for parts, or I gotta replace everything inside and only keep the frame, but it still feels good. N' then I sell the car cheap, since I'm not in it for the profits."

"That... must make a lot of people happy. Cars are getting more and more expensive, and it's practically impossible to get a loan for lots of people..."

"It does make a lotta people happy. My fuckin' self included."

Kiyotaka scoffed.

"You certainly do enjoy your swearing!"

"No more than you apparently enjoy bein' uptight and miserable."

Kiyotaka searched his entire brain for some kind of retort, and it died on his tongue, because he didn't have any real protest. Nothing that Mondo wouldn't just shoot right down, anyway.

"...I don't enjoy it. I don't." He wasn't sure when he'd gotten roped into being lectured by a truck driver who smoked cigarettes and had a body covered in tattoos, and he didn't know why he was disclosing these kinds of details when he had no obligation to do so, but, hell, here he was. There was no going back. "I... I do want to be happy. Doesn't everyone? I just... don't know how to do that. People like you always make it look so easy."

"People like me?" Mondo raised an eyebrow. "What kinda people is that?"

"...I don't know. Carefree?"

"Eh. Fair enough. I'm the most carefree guy in the world compared t'somebody like you." He seemed to think something over for a second. From what Kiyotaka could see from the corner of his eye, anyway. He was trying not to look at him. For obvious reasons. "...But, see, that doesn't mean that I just don't give a shit. It takes a while to figure out what ya wanna do, or what kinda person you wanna be. That's true for everybody."

"...How did you figure it out?"

"Mm?"

"How did you just up and decide to be happy?"

"Well..." Mondo's gaze turned distant. Kiyotaka studied his face, waiting for an answer (and trying not to get distracted), but instead, Mondo's eyes caught sight of something else, and the feeling passed. "...That's kind of a long story, and we're here."

The truck pulled to a stop in front of the auto shop, and a noticeably well-endowed woman ran up to greet them, already prepared to get to work. She and Mondo seemed to know one another pretty well. Kiyotaka waited inside of the shop, in a little sitting room, until the tire was replaced, and then he was tossed his keys and a bill and sent on his way.

The sun was beginning to set outside by the time it was all said and done. Kiyotaka hesitated in front of his car. He dreaded leaving this little haven of something different, something new, to return to his life.

Just as he gripped the car's handle, he heard Mondo shout something after him that he didn't quite catch.

"What did you say?" He shouted back.

Mondo, waiting near the entrance of the garage with the woman he'd seen earlier, gave him a casual wave and a wide grin. He was wearing a tank top again, and it hung low and left his arms completely exposed.

"I'll see ya around! Promise."

Kiyotaka swallowed again, as his mouth felt dry all of a sudden.

"...Y-Yes... Sometime soon. Thank you! Goodbye!"

He scrambled inside of his car and sped away without waiting for any kind of reply. The woman mechanic punched Mondo in the arm and laughed at something. Once he was out of their range of sight, Kiyotaka slapped his own cheek.

If he had to guess, he was doomed to spend another night having the most shameful kinds of dreams.