The sword is tempting, sure, but I'd look like some drunk lunatic swinging it around, but it does look cool.
The pistol? Practical until I ran out of bullets. And knowing God, it'd probably shoot confetti or something.
The staff... yeah, that had "accidental suicide" written all over it.
Great. There my options.
Yeah. I'm screwed.
feels like they are waiting for me to pick a personality.
scratching the back of my neck.
"So... am I supposed to grab one and yell class selection or something?"
Well, at least I can breathe now. Still, I can't make a decision on this fast.
"Yeah, not today."
I should get up. There's no point in sitting in this stuffy-ass room. If this really was a second chance, I want to breathe before the world turned into a graveyard again.
Opening the door, I stepped outside of my three-story apartment complex, the smell of exhaust and fried food-the smell of home - ugly and comforting all at once. It's perfect, much better than the smell of blood anyway. People brushed past me without even a glance. A couple arguing over groceries. Kids chasing each other with ice cream dripping down their hands. It's exactly how I remembered it.
Everything's so loud, so crowded, it's
so... alive. Shoving my hands into my pockets, I kept walking, ignoring the tide of people walking past me.
No one even noticed me. Why would they? I'm just another face in the crowd after all.
I needed a place to think, somewhere away from this suffocating city centre.
turning off the main avenue, i started heading toward the older, quieter outskirts where the concrete began to give way to gravel walking paths and overgrown weeds.
huh I'm muttering to myself again. i feel like im going insane. I had been alone for so long; I guess it just became a habit .
My feet knew the route by heart. I trudged past the shabby old corner shop and its faded neon sign , exactly as it used to be-and began climbing the steps to the winding sidewalk that led up the hill.
By the time my feet stopped, the noise of the traffic had faded into a distant hum. I was at the crest of the hill. Stepping into the mouth of the neighbourhood park. this is by far my favourite place in this whole city.
Its not much of a spot, honestly. Just a busted bench in the park where the trees opened up and you could see the whole city from here. It has a rusty railing and a weird design of a flying crow. Half the time it smelled like wet dirt and cigarettes. But it mine.
Dropping onto the bench, I leaned back and let out a breath I didn't realize I'd been holding.
From up here, the city didn't look so bad. The glass towers caught the sunset perfectly, painting it in gold and pink. I felt like it was something worth saving.
Staring up at the sky from my vantage point. muttering, "I wonder if you're watching me now, or are you too busy playing with stars."
Closing my eyes, I listened to the wind blow past me. For just a second, I felt like I was human again, like I wasn't just a clown. No. I was just... me.
"Kanishk, is that you?"
That voice. It's not his voice... It's too real, too cheerful.
"You always come here. What do you see in this place?"
No way, is it really
Her.
The last face I saw before I died, the one I couldn't protect. Her screams still echo out in my dreams sometimes. She looks younger and more carefree than back then.
Of course she does. She hasn't seen hell... yet.
"Coth ca." The air caught in my throat, a million different things that I wanted to say to her. I rubbed my eyes as if they were playing tricks on me or maybe it was to hide the fact i was tearing up. But the next time I opened my mouth, the only thing that i managed to get out was:
"I... I... I missed you, sis."
The confusion on her face is evident, raising her left eyebrow. "What are you talking about? Are you feeling good? You got a fever or something? I already told you not to overwork yourself."
This must look weird for her. It's been so long for me, but for her it's been a day since we last saw each other. If I remember correctly, we had a fight last night, im pretty sure i avoided her for a few days after. I can't remember what it was about... probably something stupid.
"You shouldn't sneak up on people like that."
A smile tugged on her lips. "I can't help it if you make it this easy."
Looking at her now, it feels like the world and its problems are just floating away, like it's only me and her.
It kind of is, in a way. I mean, she's all I have.
She sat down beside me. Together, we stared at the clouds for a while and laughed at their shapes, and then we sat in silence admiring the view . "Kanishk," her voice wavered as if it was going to break. "Promise me you won't just walk away like that again, i get really worried... promise me, okay?"
This must be because of the fight we had. I must have brought up Mum and Dad for her to ask me that.
God's voice whispered in the back of my mind.
RULE FIVE
My sister's eyes were wide, pleading. She didn't know how much those words meant to me.
but-
She looks so defeated. "You know what, never mind bro, it was stupid. Forget I said anything."
swallowing hard... "I promise."
The moment those words left my lips, I felt invisible chains wrap around my waist. The pressure felt like it was holding me in place. Now I know the burden of carrying a promise, for better or for worse.
Her shoulders relaxed as she leaned against me, letting out a shaky breath.
Shit, this wasn't meant to happen so soon.
Why can just tell you're laughing your ass off right now, aren't you, GOD.
RULE FIVE: You may not break a promise to anyone in any way. Violation of this rule will invoke RULE ONE.