Monsters

22

"Why did you lie?" Mariko turned to face Haruki, an innocent look in her clear eyes.

"Lie? I didn't lie." He replied too quickly.

"Yes you did. You haven't spoken Kenji. I know that you haven't."

"Mariko. Can we be official? Do you want to be girlfriend and boyfriend?" After a brief pause, she shook her head.

"Well, yes, but-"

"That's great! We should celebrate!" He brushed a kiss against her lips and pulled her along the sidewalk. She tugged his arm harshly, not moving.

"Haruki! Don't change the subject like that." A light blush covered her cheeks and her voice quivered with her growing frustration. "Couples have to be honest with each other. No secrets."

"Fine!" Throwing up his arms, Ru turned back around to face the terrifying love of his life. "I don't want to talk to him. I don't want to tell him that you're alive and okay. I want him to feel guilty and feel pain in his heart. Because even though he will NEVER know what I went through, I want him to feel it too. Even if he feels a quarter of the pain that I felt. I want him to know what his decision did to me." Marie's eyes were closed and she thought very carefully about her words before slowly replying.

"That is a very selfish attitude towards your best friend."

"He's not my best friend anymore. We argued. We haven't had a serious argument since.... Since my grandad died a few years ago."

"Then it can't have been that bad. You two will make up quickly enough."

"No!" He shouted exhaustedly. He wasn't angry at her, but at the situation. "No! He- He was just sitting in his chair so calmly and- and.... You weren't there. You don't understand. He called you 'some girl'! He said that I was overreacting! I love you and I thought that you was dead. You were killed right in front of me. And I couldn't do anything to help you or to stop it! It was his fault, it was his decision and... and..."

"Stop." Her little arms wrapped around his broad shoulders as she stroked his hair gently. "Don't get upset. I can understand why you were so angry. He was in the wrong. But you were too."

"I was?" Sniffing pathetically, he cuddled into her even more, letting her soft hands and kind movements calm his sizzling vexation.

"Yes. Do you think that he was in a good state of mind himself? He had just watched Fujimaro die in a pretty brutal way. He must have felt very responsible and wanted to fill a role that nobody expected him to take on. Not that quickly. I'm sure that there was a reason behind his quick decision and that he was just as shocked by the outcome. He did what he thought was best. I'm sure that he just... couldn't bear to lose another one of his best friends."

"But I couldn't bear to lose you..."

"And I couldn't bear you two losing each other." With that, Marie lightly guided Ru's drooping figure down the empty street, towards the area that he lived in.

Kenji sat at his table, blood soaked tissues crumpled up in front of him. Only some of it wasn't his. He had just eaten an unsatisfying meal of suicide victim and, while wiping his face, found himself mesmerized by the bright red liquid crawling viciously up the tissue, staining the pristine white forever. Ruining it. But, pretty quickly, the mess around his mouth was gone and he resorted to using his own blood.

A sigh escaped his chapped lips as he pierced his sinewy arm again. Pale scars already ran up and down his thighs, so he moved up to his arms. Ruby ran down his pale skin slowly and Kenji bit his lip to suppress a whimper as he slowly dragged the knife along. He savoured the feeling, biting down just a little bit harder. Dizziness struck him. How long had he been doing this? A sudden knock at the door slapped him back into reality. He quickly dabbed at his arm as he rushed to answer whoever was there.

"Haruki? What are you doing here?" He asked, sounding angrier than he meant to. Well, he was angry. Whether he was angrier about seeing the painful reminder, or the interruption, he couldn't tell.

"I live here too." He replied cuttingly before remembering who was standing behind the door frame, glaring at him disapprovingly. "And I have a... a surprise for you."

"A surprise? Like what? A new best friend?" He mocked. Ru simply smiled at the sarcasm and stepped back slightly.

"More like an old one."

"Surprise!" Marie jumped out from her hiding place and hugged Ken tightly. He dropped his ruby stained tissue and choked on a sob.

"Mariko! I... I...C-Come in!" They entered the house and Marie frowned.

"Just eaten? Gah, spray some air freshener or something." Jokingly waving her hand in front of her nose, she was happy to see a smile on Kenji's face, but didn't miss him rolling down his sleeves. "I'm glad that you've been taking care of yourself, at least."

"Yeah." He answered, his voice breathy. "I've really missed the both of you. Well, I missed Haruki. I didn't know that you was..." They both nodded. Mariko didn't like Ken saying Ru's full name. It sounded wrong.

"Listen. I'll make a long story short." Pushing the boys down on the sofa, she quickly told Kenji all that had happened since she had woken up. "And now, you two need to have a chat. I'm going to leave the room. This is between you. But please, for me, make up." And she walked out of the front room.

Mariko never found out what they said to each other that day, and she would never ask. All that mattered to her was that, when she went back into the room, they were holding each other as tightly as possible, sobbing happily.