Chapter 3
I've Had Enough
Early the next morning Doneako walked into Kiru's apartment to find him lying on the bed, listening to music. He didn't technically need to report in to his superiors about the previous day's events until later that evening, and he was clearly taking advantage of this fact as best he could. He hadn't noticed her yet, so she took a bit of time to look around. The common theme of the room was books; they were everywhere, on tables, on shelves, and pretty much everywhere else. And they were all real; as she walked she brushed her fingers along the spines of some titles by a wide variety of western authors such as Brandon Sanderson, George R. R. Martin, and Ernest Cline, as well as a plethora of eastern writers like Tite Kubo and Soseki Natsume.
As she perused, the song ended and a new one began, and she stopped to listen for a bit. It was a folk tune, and the singer had a very western accent. In fact the song was entirely in English, but unlike most of her peers she knew enough to understand what the lyrics were.
The ticker streams across the big screen
Somewhere someone lost their head
When they dove right off the deep end
And took ten people with them when they went
Each one went to work this morning
Hugged their spouses kissed their kids
Never knowing they'd become targets
And we watch and wonder why they ever did
'
And I've had enough, tragedy
Taking aim, at you and me
Tear down these walls of labels that we've made
And I've had enough, tears and pain
Can't we find another way
Who's gonna be the one to say
And I've had enough
'
The blue glow veil makes it too easy
To write off those who aren't like me
We strip away what makes them human
In the chat rooms filled with gasoline
But someone is there on the outside
With desperate hatred in their eyes
Long ago that fire started
And it's too late for us to recognize
'
And I've had enough, tragedy
Taking aim, at you and me
Tear down these walls of labels that we've made
And I've had enough, tears and pain
Can't we find another way
Who's gonna be the one to say
And I've had enough
'
Some say more guns are what is needed
And others say lock up the ill
For I don't claim to have the answers
But I know that kindness rarely kills
'
And I've had enough, tragedy
Taking aim, at you and me
Tear down these walls of labels that we've made
And I've had enough, tears and pain
Can't we find another way
Who's gonna be the one to say
And I've had enough
As the song ended, she walked into the bedroom to find Kiru sprawled out on the bed. He looked up and saw her, seemingly unsurprised, and patted the spot on the bed next to him. She sat, and he turned down the music a bit so that they could talk.
"Are you ok?" She asked. "I'm so sorry about yesterday… I-I didn't mean to cause you so much trouble… I just wanted to make you proud…"
He made a soft hushing sound and wrapped his arms around her. "It's ok, love… It's ok. I did what I had to do and nothing more. Don't worry about it any more, ok?"
She looked up at him, eyes full of concern, but nodded. "What was that song that was playing when I came in?" She asked, reluctantly changing the subject.
"Well, as you probably could have guessed, it's called 'I've Had Enough'. It's by Andrew McKnight, one of my favorite western musicians. It was made in response to shootings that occurred around 2014. He was a very humble man, but he had the right ideas. He had a vision of a future much brighter than this one. " He sighed, and then continued. "I probably shouldn't say this, but I'm going to anyway; the SYBIL System doesn't work. I was convinced of that fact yesterday. I cannot believe in a system where good people like you die at the whim of a- of a computer!"
Now it was her turn to calm him down. She kissed him on the lips to do so, slowly and lovingly. When he looked at her quizzically, she said, "I know the system doesn't work, love. I've known it all my life. But since I met you, I haven't really cared. All that matters is that I'm with you."
He looked deeply into her eyes, and he could tell that she meant it with all her heart. He kissed her back then, warmly and passionately. When he finally pulled away, he held her closer, and they lay there for as long as they could, just loving each other for a bit. In that time, he knew that everything was going to be ok.
When he couldn't delay any longer, he left the apartment to go report to his superiors.
