CHAPTER 4

The room fell eerily silent. The only noise came from the tiny water droplets as they fell from the faucet onto the shower floor. The hot steam from the shower lingered around the room as the warmth slowly dissipated. Confused, Ky narrowed his eyes and started typing into the strange group text.

Ky- "Who is this?"

- "It's us dude! Your guild!"

- "Yeah Ky! We're all here!"

Ky- "Wait what?"

As the confusion continued to build up, Ky instantly sent another text.

Ky- "Um, how did you get my number?"

- "Don't you remember? You gave us your number when you first joined the guild."

Ky -"I don't remember doing that at all."

- "Ya man you gave it to all of us."

Ky- "Umm. I'm seriously so confused right now. Are you sure you got the right number."

- "Dude it's us. Your friends man. Remember? The ones you play HOA with?"

Now there was no doubt about it. This was definitely his guild texting him, Ky thought.

Ky- "Ok? Huh. Well, anyways. I'm getting ready right now for this thing I got invited to tonight so can I hit you guys back later?"

- "Wait, what do you mean by thing tonight? Is it like a special hero's event?"

Ky- "No, It's IRL."

- "Wait. But I thought we were gaming tonight. We were supposed to storm the Mountain side fortress."

Ky- "Sorry, it's just that plans for tonight and probably won't be home till late."

- "So, you're not logging on tonight like you said?"

- "Dude, are you leaving us or something?"

Ky- "No I promise, It's nothing like that at all."

- "Is it a girl?"

One of the females asked.

Ky sat there for a second thinking about his next move. He didn't realize it would bother them this much that he'd be going out with someone else for a couple of hours. After some quick debating he figured it'd be best at least for now if they didn't know the truth about tonight. 

Ky -"No."

Ky felt guilty lying but he proceeded with another text."

Ky- "It's this work thing I got wrapped up in. Stupid really. I don't wanna go but I wasn't given much of a choice. Look, I promise tonight when I'm done, I'll get on and we'll go storm the fortress. Sound good?"

- "So, you're gonna hang out with us tonight then?"

Ky- "Yes."

- "Alright then, well I guess we'll talk to you tonight."

Ky sent a thumbs up emoji and set his phone down. It was only mid-day and Ky was feeling way more stressed out than he had before. He looked into the mirror and said aloud.

Ky- "I digress. This is going to be an incredibly long day today.

As Ky finished getting dressed, he started wondering if he had made a big mistake agreeing to do this whole meet up thing. He played through all sorts of different scenarios in his head and wondered, what if they didn't like him? What if they just ignored him while he awkwardly sat alone in the corner the entire time? All these thoughts began flooding in.

Ky- "Maybe I should just text Ayako and tell her I'm sick or something."

Ky toyed with the idea, but he knew this wasn't an option.

Ky- "(Sigh) She'd probably have my phone traced and show up here anyways just to get me to come tonight."

He looked at the time and it was well into the afternoon, however he still had several hours to spare until he had to start heading over.

Ky- "I guess I should bring a present."

He thought.

Ky- "But what do you get for someone you've never met before?"

Ky thought about it for a minute until he remembered Ayako mentioning that her brother was really into skating. 

Ky- "Well. I suppose I could just go into the store and get him something there." 

Ky Slid on his high-top skate shoes then grabbed his keys and wallet and walked out of his apartment. As he turned to lock the door, he took one last look over at his computer sitting in the corner. He let out a sigh and closed it then turned the key. By the time he'd finally made it to the sidewalk after hours of stalling and getting ready, it was already golden hour. Ky walked down the street wondering what to get Ayako's brother for his birthday. He knew nothing about him other than he liked to skate, and his sister already bought him a board. 

Ky- "I guess I can get him a shirt or something."

As he reached the storefront of the place he worked, he got a sinking feeling in his stomach.

Ky- "Ugh. It feels like I'm going to work."

The last thing Ky wanted to do on his day of was see any off his coworkers or his boss for that matter, but he figured he'd be in and out quick. He walked inside and headed straight for the t shirts. Upon reaching the middle of the store he noticed no one greeted him as he walked in, but he figured it was good for him. After all the less he had to encounter anyone in that store the better. As Ky took a look at the shirts on display, he came across one in particular that caught his attention. It was a black graphic tee with an image of a city street with the brands name graffitied on a roll up steel door of one of the buildings.

Ky- "I guess this'll work."

Ky walked over to the register and sat the shirt down. The person behind the register unenthusiastically rang up Ky's item and took his money without even making any mention of him working there at all. When he read the price Ky noticed he had been charged full price without his employee discount being applied.

Ky- "Um, what about my..."

He started to say to the worker who up to this point hadn't taken his eyes off of his phone.  

Worker- "Sorry man, did you say something?"

Said the employee cutting him off. 

Ky- "Er. Never mind. Here, Here's the cash."

Worker- "Sick. You're all set. See ya Tuesday."

Ky- "Wait What the?! He recognized me?! He knew I worked here all along and he didn't bother to apply my employee discount?!"

As he left the store and began the trek through the mall, he started to feel extremely agitated. Ky was now frustrated with the employee and with himself for not speaking up earlier.

Ky- "I should have told him off!" 

He mumbled. However instead of going back and ripping apart his coworker, he just walked away and dropped the whole thing. As he continued on his way throughout the mall he murmured softly under his voice.

Ky- "I wonder what Ayako would do in a situation like that."

Then Ky imagined the pretty pink haired girl grabbing the cashier's collar and shouting at him.

Ayako- "You better give him the price he deserves now!"

Ky shuttered slightly then chuckled to himself. 

Ky- "On second thought, maybe it's a good thing she wasn't there." 

As he approached the exit, he looked over at a stand selling cologne and other various fragrances and wondered if he should pick some up to wear to the party. 

Ky- "I wonder. Should I wear some of that tonight." 

He thought about it for a second then imagined Ayako and a bunch of people laughing at him for being the only one wearing cologne to a bar. 

Ky- "Eh, forget it!"  

He left the mall and emerged onto the bustling city streets. As he looked up into the darkening gloaming sky, he knew he still had at least an hour to kill before he had to start making his way over to the bar. He decided to stop by one of the local coffee shops in his neighborhood to get a hot drink to calm his nerves. There were plenty of them to pick from in the area, so he opted to check out a brand-new shop that had just opened up on the corner. The inside was modern with high ceilings and steel beams running along the top and down the sides. The floors where black tile and the walls were white with brand new stainless equipment upon the counters. It was a very bright and clean over all appearance. Everything looked new. There were metal sculptures around the inside and several types of artworks displayed everywhere, and you had a nice view to the outside since it had gigantic windows running along the building. All in all, you could tell that whoever owned this place put a lot of money and thought into it. He walked inside and stood in line. As he stood patiently waiting, the familiar scent of coffee seemed to put him in a slightly more relaxed state. He took his time ordering and sat down waiting for his name to be called. As he looked around the coffee house, he noticed several small groups of people sitting in the booths. This started bringing back nervous feelings from before as it reminded him of his up-and-coming night which was now fast approaching. He started feeling more and more anxious when he heard people in the groups talking so freely and naturally with each other. He knew he didn't have this talent and that thought added to the overwhelming stress he had been feeling all day. His anxiety spiked when he started hearing the group behind him trash talking other people they apparently knew. His stomach started to hurt, and his body went cold.

Ky- "What have I gotten myself into?

Ky sat alone in his booth waiting for his order and further listening in on the group's conversation. He noticed that they kept blabbering on about this one particular girl outside of their friend group.

Girl 1- "Did you see the way she sits alone on campus? What a loser."

Girl 2- "And the way she dresses. What is she trying to be? A goth or something?

Girl 3- "I can't stand her!"

Now Ky's anxiety was officially in full swing. He started hyperventilating and his body began to tremble. He could feel another panic attack coming on. 

Girl 2- "She's so ugly!"

Girl- "She thinks she so cool."

The voices kept getting louder and louder. He couldn't take it anymore until finally a soothing voice broke the chaos.

Female Barista- "Sir. Your drink's ready."

Ky- Huh?... Oh ok."

Ky got up and walked over to the counter. His legs were weak, and his knees started to buckle as he went to pick up his order. The barista serving him seemed like a very sweet and friendly lady. Something about her presence put him a little more at ease and helped him calm down a bit. She handed Ky his drink and smiled genuinely. 

Female Barista -"Thanks for stopping in! I hope you have a wonderful night now!"

Ky- "Thank you. Er..."

He looked around to see if there was another spot, he could sit down at but there were no other available booths or tables, so he very reluctantly returned to the one he was at before. As he sat down, he decided that this stress was just too heavy for him to bear.

Ky-"I can't do this! I'm gonna text Ayako and tell her I can't make it."

He pulled out his phone to text her and as he did, he started hearing more of the girl's conversation behind him. 

Girl 2- "Yeah, I heard she literally plays those weird online games all day when she's not in class."

Girl 3 - "I bet she doesn't even have any actual friends outside of that dumb game."

Girl 2- "She's so awkward. I hate the way she stares at us at lunch."

Girl 1- "What a nerd."

Girl 3- "I HATE HER!"

Just then his eyes widened. He lifted his head up and sat his phone down on the table. His body stopped trembling. He silently whispered beneath his breath. 

Ky- "What did she just say?!"

Now the girls could be heard laughing and carrying on halfway across the coffee shop. Ky, though still nervous couldn't explain it but he was starting to feel other emotions coming on. Anger and sorrow started flowing through his veins like hot molten lava. He didn't like what he was hearing at all. He felt the urge to say something to these girls. But what? Up to this point he'd never even stood up for himself ever so how was he ever going to stand up for someone else. 

Ky-"I can't take this anymore! These people are disgusting!"

He said to himself and just as he was about to get up and snap at them, he heard a door open from the back room. Out stepped an incredibly beautiful girl dressed in a black lace up top and black leather pants. She wore tall black leather boots that reached almost up to her knees with high soles and zippers on the side. Her hair was long and black with purple streaks running through her bangs and her skin was soft and milky white. She wore a light amount of dark eyeshadow along with black lipstick and that was it. She was slender, and her boots made her look slightly taller than she actually was. She walked up to the girl group behind Ky and spoke to them as if she knew them. 

Girl 1- "Shh! Here she comes now."

Goth girl- "Hey so I got the answers to those test questions you were asking about yesterday. I'll get them over to you tonight."

Girl 1- Oh great! Thanks!"

Girl 3- "We're so lucky to have such a good friend!"

Girl 2- "You are awesome! Thank you!"

Goth girl- "Yeah no problem."

Girl 1- "So are you excited for the party tomorrow?"

Goth girl- "I guess. I mean I just feel like I'll be a little out of place there. "

Girl 3- "It'll be fine! You're gonna have a blast, I promise!""

Goth Girl- "I guess we'll see. Well anyways I have to go get ready for my shift, but I'll see you all tomorrow. My mom said you don't have to pay for the drinks. They're on the house, so enjoy."

Girl 2- "Tell your mom we said thanks!

One of the girls replied in a painfully fake polite tone while all three of the girls at the booth made heart gestures with their hands.

Girl group- "Love you!"

The Goth girl returned to the back room of the coffee house and the moment she was out of ear shot one of the other girls started right back in. 

Girl 2- "Did you see the way she tried to act all cool with us. OH, THE DRINKS ARE ON THE HOUSE. Like who does she think she is some sort of queen or something? She thinks she's so important. So, what if your parents own some crappy coffee shop. The coffee isn't even good!"

Finally, Ky had heard all he could take. He slammed his hands on the table and got up out of his seat. The whole coffee shop went silent including the obnoxious group of girls behind him. He glared over at them with disapproving eyes and walked to the front door and left the coffee shop. The barista from before with an expression of happiness on her face smiled warmly in his direction and continued wiping down the counters. The moment he stepped outside he pulled out his phone and started sending a text to Ayako.

Ky- " Hey, I'm heading over there. Be there soon."

A few seconds later Ayako responded. 

Ayako- "Great I'm on my way too. I'll see you there!"

He checked the location on his phone that Ayako had sent him earlier and saw that it wasn't far at all, so he started making his way there. Still feeling pretty heated about the experience before Ky walked more briskly that usual through the lively weekend streets. As he got closer to the bar his adrenaline started getting weaker and the nerves from before were coming back. He turned a corner and quickly stopped dead in his tracks. His head started spinning as he looked up to see the destination right in front of him. He could hear loud commotion coming from the inside and he could see lots of movement from the windows. He stood there staring at the bar and with uncertainty in his voice he said to himself. 

"WELL, I'M HERE"