~Sunday, the thirteenth of October, 8:37~

I had gotten it confirmed to me that the 'every day' part of the forced-upon contract of working at the shrine really meant every day. The only day of freedom I had left was now under the jurisdiction of this hostile contract. Sunday!

- Not Sunday as well! Damn it all!-

The corrupt government really felt like they could do what they wanted against me, without care for consequence. Just let me be, just let me be.

I wasn't so much in a state of anger as I was in a state of grief.

It felt like my fallen comrade had been revived by the enemy side, and forced to fight against me. With a painful look on my face, I stood up and started walking out of my room, where I had been thinking for a couple of minutes.

As I exited my room and walked through the hallway and to the door, my dad stood a couple of meters from me to the right. With a very neutral face on him, he said

"I heard you attended yesterday."

He stared quietly as he was quickly reminded of the person he was talking to, his own son. He then said

"You aren't bringing your uniform today? That might be for the better, good luck."

The president of the government had appeared right in front of me, with a pretend-to-be-happy wishing of luck. I didn't buy into his corruption, I just bitterly smiled and let out

"Kuh..."

As my sister observed me with a half-sorrowful, half-regretful face, I left the house and went into the streets of the city I'd lived in my entire life.

Along the street, a lot of people had already set out for their daily journeys.

Their next quest for momentary, but hopefully permanent, happiness. I didn't hope for them to fail, but I was doubtful about whether success was obtainable for them.

I reflected on my own morning as an object of proof for that.

My attitude wasn't invisible either, with every step I took, my atmosphere spread. Like how water behaved as you threw a rock at it.

As I passed through the streets, I thought to myself

- The old convenience store, I wonder if that old woman is still running it.

There that alcohol store is, where I fought a couple of delinquents trying to touch my uniform.

Oh, and there that electronics store is, where I bought my first game.

I've really been in this city for a long time, I basically know everything here. I've seen this view hundreds of times, experienced the sweet smell of freshly made crepes dozens of times and walked on this concrete thousands of times.

There's nothing new here. I feel nothing.

Maybe I should leave?

Leave this place filled only with old sights, nonacceptance, and terrifying memories.

Maybe I'll be happy like that?

Finally…? -

I made a bitter smile as I looked around the street I knew so well.

I let out a "Heh...", which stunned some people around me, as I arrived at a conclusion.

As if it would.

I was bound to be this alone.

The cold glares from wherever I am, the rejecting attitudes surrounding me, and the crushing solitude of standing in a large mass of people, but knowing no one nor no one wanting to know you.

I chose this road myself, I decided to become a delinquent. I have no right to complain, nor will I.

But I really wanted to, from the bottom of my heart.

I wanted to complain. I wanted someone to hear me out as my problems spilled out.

But, I wasn't going to lose. I would stay strong, to stand against that guy.

- I'll be myself at every cost, I won't allow anyone to dictate my life. -

The short vow put a faint, but genuine, smile on my face as I continued down the road.

I soon saw something unexpected, a person clad in ordinary clothes that stood a few meters in front of me.

Kosuto, one of my enemies from school, was slowly walking across the street. With no school uniform, and a respectable hairstyle on him. He looked so normal as he walked forward.

Seeing an opportunity for something, I called out

"Hey, Kosuto! You wanna settle our score, or...?"

I hadn't noticed the person slowly following him, a short black-haired kid who must've been around 9 years old. I'd never seen him before, but he followed Kosuto closely as they walked.

A tense situation was set up as Kosuto looked over at me for a couple of seconds, meeting my eye briefly before just continuing onward.

I was left in a shock as I saw him walk forward, with the younger child looking back at me in confusion.

Not even my enemy wanted to acknowledge me.

…

~Sunday, the thirteenth of October, 9:23~

After shopping for some groceries, Melliacci Tratto was walking around town, just lounging around.

He mingled with people that cared to approach him, he was unusually tall compared to most of the people there. With his slightly darker skin, he also stood out to a lot of people. Therefore he liked to entertain the people who had the courage to approach him, despite how he stood out.

He understood, maybe more than most, that standing out wasn't always seen as a good thing.

He knew that difference could corrupt the mind, either filling it with unreachable expectations or fear.

He was an exchange student all the way from Italy, a country far away on another continent. That's why he was going around talking to students from the school, and residents that had time to do so.

But even though he met every handshake with a broad smile, his insides were messed up. Tidbits of yesterday's dialogue with Kaharu Kaharu replayed as he thought about it.

Had he been a hypocrite? Had he done the exact thing the people who judged Melliacci himself did?

He went through it logically as he walked around town, but it was like an ocean pouring over him. He'd never been confronted with something like that before, not with the fact that he'd misjudged someone.

It was precisely because he himself had been misjudged so many times before he was so adamant about the situation.

As he tried to swim, he suddenly saw another person in front of him. He wasn't even trying to swim, instead just sinking.

Almost as if by choice.

Kaharu Kahari had entered his vision.

Melliacci, forgetting the work he had to do at home, immediately ran up to Kaharu. Without really thinking, Melliacci, wearing his casual outfit, said

"Kaharu!"

For the first time that day, he wasn't forced to look down on someone. As the equally-tall Kaharu turned his attention towards the darker-skinned Melliacci. There was a relief felt by Melliacci at that revelation, but he ignored the feeling and said

"I must apologize for yesterday's conversation. Even though my message remains the same, I feel like something was missing on my part."

Kaharu unintentionally smiled as his first positive interaction of the day had opened up. Kaharu said

"No… Even if I don't want to apologize for it, I do think that it was regrettable that it got so hostile. Although I still agree with myself."

Melliacci lit up as his grip around his grocery-bag loosened in relief. He thought to himself

-So he can be agreeable at times, what is with this guy? -

He got an idea as he suddenly asked

"Hey, what are you doing now?"

Kaharu looked at him in confusion as he said

"Eh… um, I'm on my way to a shrine. What about it?"

Deeming it out-of-character for Kaharu, and completely strange, Melliacci asked

"That's unusual, what are you gonna do there?"

With an extremely pained face and a look at his own fist, Kaharu responded

"Unwanted work… I guess"

As his idea developed, Melliacci asked

"Can I tag along?"

Kaharu made an estranged face as he quickly said

"No way."

Melliacci rolled his head from left to right once and said

"I see. Well, it doesn't matter, because I'm coming along either way."

Kaharu stuck out his head in confusion. But he didn't really care that much about it, he had an idea of why Melliacci wanted to tag along. The reason didn't necessarily entice him, but it didn't bother him either. Without even responding to it, Kaharu just resumed walking. Melliacci took that as a silent acceptance, which as an attitude could get him in trouble at a later date.

When they approached that same set of stairs again, Kaharu just accepted his position and walked through the large, red torii gate.

He felt that same feeling exerting from his right, where a part of the forest was located. But he was greeted to another site as he climbed up the stairs. The whole shrine, with the Shinto priest's residence to the right, was visible. It was a grande sight to take in and allowed Melliacci to catch up as he also looked up at it.

"That's beautiful"

Melliacci's words perfectly described the sight, the hanging roofs and ancient architecture mixed in with subtle plants situated throughout proved to give a feast.

Kaharu had been too preoccupied the previous day to really notice the place, but the disappointing statues remained in the same place as yesterday.

Another similar sight was left, a working blonde-haired, blue-eyed girl that noticed their entrance.

That girl also made a mental note of how Kaharu had come from a different location, and that someone recognizable stood beside him.

Melliacci noticed the same thing and decided to approach Tsukino Scott, saying

"Tsukino Scott, class 1-2, and an exchange student from The United States. If it isn't strange seeing another student here, what are you doing?"

Taking in surprise, Tsukino jumped, but managed to collect herself and respond with

"Oh, uh, yeah. I'm just here working. You as well, Melliacci Vice president, what are you here doing with Kaharu?"

Kaharu looked with surprise at Tsukino because she knew his name. Guilt quietly crept up to him as he realized that he had no idea who she was, and didn't know her name until just a couple of seconds ago.

But he quickly grabbed the guilt by its head and crushed it against the floor, there wasn't going to be an assassination happening that day for him.

Melliacci laughed lightly as he said

"Nothing really, I'm just tagging along with him, for personal reasons."

Tsukino thought to herself

- 'Personal reasons'? What does that mean? How did he even manage to approach him in the first place!? I'm intrigued. -

Tsukino smiled wryly as she said

"I see. Well, I've got to go back to work. Have a good day."

Melliacci returned the greeting before he ran off towards the direction Kaharu had gone.

As Kaharu saw the forest from yesterday, the feeling returned. That feeling with the coziness and warmth at its center, layered thousands of times by pure coldness. As Melliacci caught up to him, eventually sitting down on a rock nearby by placing a sheet of plastic underneath him, and Kaharu exclaimed towards the woods

"I'm back! As I promised, so you haven't won."

Melliacci chuckled as he said

"Yelling at the woods? You're strange, aren't you."

Kaharu went silent as he stared at the ground for a second, with introspective thoughts shuffling around in his head. He then slowly opened his mouth, and with that his heart, as he said

"You know…

I sometimes feel like I'm an animal in a zoo. My only objective being to be watched by people, who react at my existence. Never being able to do anything myself, or act myself, just forced to stand there as people all around me watch me with judging eyes."

Kaharu had no idea why he was saying that to Melliacci. Especially considering it was Melliacci, the person he'd been in conflict with before. Maybe there was something he was reaching for.

Melliacci's lips matched the mood as he considered it, he said

"In that case, What animal would you be?"

In a rare moment of self-inspection, Kaharu said

"Maybe like a hyena. I'm aggressive, disliked, selfish and don't matter to the whole zoo experience. But I'm still watched and judged by people who come by..."

Melliacci thought about it as Kaharu continued talking

"And you would probably be a ----"

Both of them responded at the same time with

"Panda"

They looked at each other briefly, before Melliacci continued talking

"I'm exotic, popular, have a lot of money behind me and a reason people visit the zoo. I see your logic."

Silence was introduced as they both thought a little bit more, and Melliacci once again broke the silence by saying

"I relate to what you're saying.

But even though we're of different statuses in the zoo, we both share a lot. We're judged day in and out, as people isolate us and look at us from their point of view. We're both, against our wishes, brought to certain expectations as people come for us and most of all, we're both a part of the same system.

It's tiring being a zoo animal, isn't it?"