Title: Meaning
Chapter 1: The Glitch in the System
The five o' clock train towards my house was always less crowded compared to the four o' clock. I would spend my evenings in the shopping district, a five minute bus-ride or twenty minute walk away from my school. The first bus always left three minutes after the last bell rang and, depending on the day, was either very empty or very full. On Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, they would be full. On Tuesdays and Fridays, empty. I never took the time to delve into the logic of 'why', however, I seem to have more than enough time to memorise such trivial things as the crowded-ness of a bus or the amount of minutes needed for me to rush from my class to the side-walk. This might be proof that I don't live, I merely survive. I play out everyday like it was the week before. Monday, reluctant. Tuesday, energetic. Wednesday, so-so. Thursday, hardworking. Friday, nonchalant. Life is a path and there are more than enough junctions – called 'opportunities' – for us to choose from. All of us start off on the same path and eventually, end up in the same place. So, with this in mind, I walk and walk and walk… But…
Where exactly am I going?
They said there were junctions, but I keep walking on the same path. I feel as if someone clipped a bit of the path, copied and mass-pasted the road all the way to oblivion. Holding down the ctrl + v key for all eternity, that's productive… I wonder how far I would go until my legs finally give way… Will I reach that goal before that? Why does everyone but me seem to be striving so hard for something whereas I'm just continuously walking on and on. Like a rambling old man or a record-player stuck on the same spot. It's the copy and mass-paste. Then, the 'select all', copy and mass-paste again… Hey…
Is life really that great?
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"Will anyone miss me, I wonder…" the strong winds of spring blew away that whisper just as it left the boy's lips. The cherry blossom tress swayed in the breeze, millions of loose petals raining down on the concrete walkways. The male watched, with his blank expression, as the excited cries of the girl students filled the air with their mindless chatter and their references to shoujo manga. 'Spring is the season for romance,' they said. 'Spring is the time for new beginnings,' they said. Love. Love. Love. Was that the only thing that managed to sink past their thick skulls? The fleeting bitterness was soon swept away by another strong gust of sweet-scented air. The view from high above the world was, in an odd way, calming to his nerves. The hand that had been so passionately clutching onto the mesh wire fence slowly began to loosen. The fence was the only thing that divided the school roof from his death. Death… Everyone ends up there one day or another, right? Is there really a point to continue living out the copy-paste life he was so sick off only to die later rather than now?
Roxas shook the wire wall, only to hear it screeching at him like an angry cat. Furrowing his eyebrows, he gave another shake. There was a sharp 'ting' as something flew across the ground. Eyebrows raised, he curiously glanced towards the rusty screw that had been weakly clutching onto the old wire fence. 'It's easily broken…' he thought and, for a split-second, he imagined himself falling. Just falling and never being able to continue his life again. It was a tad glum, his thoughts. It was a bit unsettling, his imagination. It was just somewhat disturbing, that idea.
But why was it so tempting, Death?
"Should I just jump and get it over with now?" he murmured to himself again but the wind blew his contemplation even from his own ears. Frustrated, he chewed on his lower lip and gave the fence one more shake, as if urging the wall to squeak out a 'yes'.
"I don't think you should."
This was new. Quite new to his black and white world. A slight tint of colour in the dull mix of monochrome. Intrigued, Roxas was tempted to learn more of this twist of Fate. This glitch in the system. This sudden exclamation mark in the copy-paste word document. Turning around with his white school shoes padding softly against the tiled floor, the male was quite taken aback by the sudden apparition behind him: tall, lanky and with every fibre in his body seemingly radiating off a certain air of authority, he stood right behind him. Had he been so wrapped up in his thoughts that he hadn't noticed the gargantuan of a man sneak up behind him?
"And who are you to tell me that?" Roxas snapped indignantly. He had entered his me-zone, disrupted the flow of his life. Both irritated and relieved, he wanted to know who was this person that dared to lead him off his own path.
"I'm Axel. A-X-E-L, got it memorised?" the flaming red-head replied, all of that obnoxiousness dripping with every word.
Maybe, he should consider continuing his copy-paste life for a little while longer… The unknown outcome lighted a flame of curiosity within him and gave him just a bit more meaning to his life.