New Characters: Mei Wang: Taiwan
Kiku Honda: Japan
And if you like listening to music while you read, Land of the Silver Birch, When we were Lovers by Jack Savoretti and Faded, piano version, really helped the writing of this chapter!
Chapter 3:
Mathias was stumped. Even though he now had a lead and people he could work with, he had no idea where to start. His first thought had been to find out where the Asylum was, but no one seemed to know. Google came up with no results and there was nothing about it in the newspapers. This brought forth another question: if he couldn't find anything, then how did Lukas and Yong Soo get a job there?
"Do you guys remember how Yong Soo got his job?" the Dane asked his roommates.
The three men were sitting around the coffee table, eating a large pizza as they tried to note down what they knew.
"Not really," Alfred admitted, "all I remember is he came home one evening to tell us that he'd found a job, and a few weeks later, he didn't come home."
"Does he have any family living here or anything?"
The American frowned, thinking hard. Gilbert, on the other hand, lifted his head up in excitement.
"Isn't Kiku his older brother?" the albino turned to the shorter blond.
"Something like that. Their family dynamics are too damn complicated," the bespectacled man sighed, grabbing another piece of pizza.
"Where does Kiku live?" Mathias checked, pouncing on this new lead.
"Woah, woah, you do not want to go to Kiku's house! His brother is fucking terrifying!" Gilbert stood up suddenly, frantically waving his arms around.
"He works at a bookstore, though," Alfred cut in, "we could go there tomorrow, if you want."
Mathias nodded in agreement, noting down the links down on his notebook. Then, he yawned and stretched, the jet lag finally getting to him. Noticing this, the blue-eyed man smiled and tidied the dishes away.
"Go to bed, Matt; you look tired. Tomorrow morning, get up when you want and we can catch Kiku in the afternoon," he instructed.
"Thanks. Night, guys, see you tomorrow!"
He fell asleep relatively quickly, for once not kept awake by thoughts of his… boyfriend? Friend? For once not kept awake by thoughts of Lukas. After all, he was one step closer to finding the small blond male.
It just so happened that the inhabitants of New Vanvid were early risers. From as early as six in the morning, cars were pipping each other in the heaving traffic jams, people were yelling in the street and Gilbert was cursing at the obscure and violent video game he was playing from the living-room. Mathias groaned, covering his ears with a pillow. Now, normally, he would have no problem with getting up at some ungodly hour and finding something to do, but after spending an eleven-hour flight with wailing babies, snoring adults and screaming children and going to bed after midnight, he much preferred staying in bed.
By some miracle, he fell back to sleep and woke up at eleven, in a much better mood. Yawning and stretching, he got out of bed and headed down the hall to the kitchen. After crossing the threshold, his eyes widened in shock.
By some miracle his friends used to call his "selective deafness", he managed to fall back to sleep and only awoke at eleven, in a much brighter mood. Yawning and stretching, he left the warmth of his bed and strolled down the hall towards the kitchen.
So… A kitchen owned by two messy guys… This is going to be fun… he sighed inwardly.
However, the kitchen did not look like a hurricane had passed through. In fact, it was clean. Pristine clean. And tidy. All the dishes sparkled from the shelves were they had been stacked by size and weight, the glasses twinkled from the shiny cabinet, spices were neatly arranged in alphabetical order, nicely labelled on the counter, and there wasn't a speck of dirt or dust on the gleaming tiles. Honestly, it looked even tidier than Berwald's, which was saying something.
"Didn't you see all this last night? Why be so amazed now?" an amused voice sounded from right behind him.
"I was tired last night. I don't think it really registered," Mathias shrugged, turning to look at Gilbert.
A small yellow canary was perched on the albino's head and peeped as it saw the tall man, cocking its head to the side in confusion. Guessing that this was "the awesome Gilbird" he'd been told about the day before, the Dane chuckled and held out his hand towards the creature.
"Nice to meet you, Gilbird."
The bird immediately flapped his wings, avoiding the outstretched hand, and landing in a bird's cage hanging from the ceiling. It then chirped almost mockingly at him as Gilbert burst out laughing.
"Don't bother! Gilbird only lets people he deems awesome stroke him. Unless you've got a hidden awesomness we don't know about, it's gonna take a while for him to warm up to you," the German smirked.
Trying not to be offended by the thought that a bird had more importance than him, Mathias rolled his eyes.
"Awesomness? What is it with you and the word "awesome"? You must have said it about a hundred times since I arrived."
"It is the only word in the English language that can describe me perfectly. Of course I use it!"
Mathias nodded as he scavenged the kitchen for breakfast.
Mathias nodded as he scavenged the kitchen for breakfast. Eggs, fruit, bread… not much junk food at all considering who he was living with.
"Where's Alfred?" he asked as he placed two slices of toast in the toaster.
"Working. He's a chef in a restaurant not too far from here. Works from eleven 'til four," Gilbert explained.
"So I'm guessing he does the cleaning?"
The German pulled a face and grimaced, a clearly offended.
"You've got to be kidding! Alfred? Cleaning? Nein, that American can't keep anything tidy, so I'm the one in charge of all that stuff. Anyway, I'm at home more often, so it makes sense."
"Really? You don't look like the cleaning type."
"My little brother's a neat freak, so I'm kinda used to it," the red-eyed man shrugged.
"I see…"
"Well, if I can you leave you here on your own, then I also have work to do."
"Really? What do you do?" Mathias asked, genuinely curious.
"Video games tester. It's fun, but if anyone tells you it's easy, then they're unawesome idiots," the German huffed.
Mathias nodded as the albino left before thinking back on his links. Today, Alfred had promised to introduce him to Yong Soo's brother, who would hopefully tell them how he got the job and where the asylum was.
However, in the meanwhile, the only thing he could do was check up on his information. Grabbing his breakfast, he opened his notebook.
Okay, so Lukas got his job early July and disappeared late august… He hid his brother before disappearing… In early September, I received a letter from a Dr I. Braginsky, who Lukas had mentioned beforehand as a scientist there and "not a nice man"… Then we have Yong Soo, who disappeared a few months ago… I need the exact date… he also got a job at the Asylum… So, I need to find out more about him, but Alfred's going to introduce me to his brother, so that's one thing checked off… Then, I need to find out more about this Dr I. Braginsky… And I need to find Emil.
He frowned. The last two were obviously going to be harder. He had searched on Google, but there were too many Ivan Braginskies to be able to accurately find the one Lukas had mentioned. And as for finding Emil, he had absolutely no idea if the Icelander still lived in New Vanvid or not!
Closing the notebook with a sigh, Mathias decided to start looking for job offers. After all, he was currently unemployed now that he'd quit his previous job as a journalist. It didn't take him long to find a café about ten minutes away from the apartment which was looking for some waiters. By the time he had sent his CV, Alfred was back from his job.
"Matt! You home?" the American yelled from the entrance.
"Yep! Coming!"
Mathias ran over, swinging his backpack over his back as he joined his roommate. Alfred smiled at him before yelling in the direction of Gilbert's room, which was echoing with the sound of explosions and gunfire.
"Gil! You coming with us or not?"
"Nein, I've got work to do! Say hello to Kiku and Arthur for me, though!" came the annoyed reply.
""Kay, see you then!"
Alfred gestured to Mathias to follow him. The street was busy; apparently, treading on people's feet was just as normal here than everywhere else in the world. Cars sped past them as the two young men chatted about many things, such as the latest superhero film, baking and random other things. Soon enough, Mathias mentioned his potential job.
"Les Gauffres Belges? The café on the other side of the block, right? Owned by Laura de Vries?" Alfred checked.
"Yeah, that's the one. Why? Do you know the owner?"
"Yep, we went to school together! She's from Belgium, but moved here eons ago. Don't worry, she'll hire you on sight. You two would probably get along. Just don't try to flirt with her. Her brother will kill you," Alfred went on happily.
"Talking from experience?" the Dane smirked.
"Nah, one of Gil's friends did. Lars punched him, if I remember correctly."
Mathias shuddered. Protective brothers weren't nice to deal with.
"Wow, scary," he muttered.
"Yeah, Lars' like, really tall, about your height, and he's terrifying! Laura's a bit ditzy, so he handles the finances. And he's involved in illegal business, you know, like drug dealing and stuff."
Mathias nodded absentmindedly as Alfred rambled on and on. All around him, tall black buildings loomed menacingly as people rushed in and out of shops and offices. Noisy cars rushed past them, leaving smelly clouds of smoke in their wake. As they wandered on, the Dane noticed they were heading towards a large shopping centre. Despite the late afternoon sun lighting up the world, neon signs were already turned on and music blared through the speakers. Alfred led him through the bustling mall, past the clothes and shoe shops that were jam packed with shoppers, past the more subdued video game and DIY stores, right on until they reached a large shop at the end of the long hall.
It appeared to be a completely normal book shop. Its name, "The Book Corner", was neatly written in dark purple above the doors, with "if you are an uncultured wanker, then we recommend you go somewhere else" in small print underneath. A small board informing customers of current sales hung from the wall.
"This is where Kiku works. Come on," Alfred gestured for his companion to follow him.
The inside of the store was just as plain as the exterior. Books were neatly lined on the shelves by genre and author, with the special offers and new releases having their own bookshelf in the middle of the aisle. Beanbags and small cosy sofas were dotted around the large space, a few occupied by readers of various ages.
Alfred headed straight to one of the clerks. She was a pretty young woman of about eighteen years with long wavy black hair and kind almond-coloured eyes. A floaty pink dress framed her slim features and a flower hairclip of the same colour decorated her hair. She smiled as she spotted the young man.
"Alfred! It's been a while! How are you?" her voice was high-pitched and soft, tinted with a Chinese accent.
"Being the hero, of course! What about you?" the blond laughed.
"Suffering. Yao's unbearable at the moment, not that that's anything new. Li Xiao's rebelling. And Kiku vanishes off to who-knows-where, so I decided to find myself a part-time job," she sighed in mock exasperation, the mirth in her eyes betraying her, "But enough about that. Who's this young fellow you've brought with you."
Her eyes certainly seemed interested as they scanned Mathias up and down. Alfred patted his new friend on the shoulder.
"Mathias here, is my new roommate! Matt, this is Mei Wang, Kiku's something sister. He's actually why we're here."
"Nice to meet ya, Miss Wang!" Mathias grinned charmingly at her, "sorry to disturb you."
"Oh no, not at all. What can I do for you? And please call me Mei, Wang makes me sound like an old lady," she blushed slightly.
Mathias thought quickly on how to board the subject. If she was related to Yong Soo, then she most likely wouldn't want to discuss his whereabouts with a total stranger. And that was where his experience as a journalist came in handy.
"Well, I know it's kinda rude of me, and I probably shouldn't be asking you this…. But my… best friend… vanished a few years ago and I'm looking for him. I recently found out that your brother, Yong Soo, also went missing, and I was wondering if you had any information that could help me find them?" he used his most charming smile, the one people always gave in to.
Mei froze. She had turned as stiff as a stick, and her pale eyes flashed with uncertainty and fear. Her right hand nervously grabbed a pencil and started rolling it between her fingers. She didn't say anything.
"Now I get that what happened must have been hard, but anything you can remember would be really helpful," he softened his voice.
"Nothing happened. There was an argument and he ran away," Mei shook her head firmly, meeting his eyes without hesitation.
Mathias sighed inwardly. She wasn't willing to talk. And she seemed scared. Just like Lukas had been in his letters. He knew there was no need to push her any further. But he needed to find Lukas, and Emil if he could.
"Okay then. Can I ask you something else then? Last question, I promise."
She nodded stiffly, eyes glancing imploringly at Alfred, who was watching the exchange with furrowed eyebrows.
"Do you happen to know a person named Emil Steilsson?"
This time her entire demeanour changed. Whereas before she was uncomfortable but unshakeable, now her eyes were lit with a fire. Something akin to protectiveness.
"I went to school with him. He left the country years ago and never came back. Is that all? Sorry, but I am working," her sweet smile was fake, no doubt about it.
Angry at himself for failing to find anything and irritated at her for hiding something, Mathias just nodded and politely bid her farewell before wandering towards the end of the shop, leaving Alfred behind.
She knows something about Emil. He didn't leave the country. He's still here. Someone's protecting him. But where could he be? And who the hell can tell me?
There was still her brother to interview, but why would he be any more willing to answer his questions? Already a dead end, and he'd only just arrived here!
It was only as he reached the back of the shop that he realised he had strolled into the crime section. Smiling bitterly, he pulled out a book and read the back of it. When he had been younger, he had dreamt of solving a case. Nowadays, he just wanted to see his best friend again.
A sudden feeling of heaviness overcame him and he plopped himself down on a beanbag and carefully removed the letters he had exchanged with Lukas from a folder in his backpack. He slowly read them once again, knowing every word by heart by now. He admired his friend's neat handwriting before frowning at the messier crazed scrawls that it changed into as the weeks passed. He chuckled at the jabs they shot at each other, false insults to hide their true feelings for each other.
He remembered Lukas when he was little: shy, but with such a sharp tongue that bullies didn't even dare target him. He had calmed down as he grew older, becoming quieter but more confident. He recalled how, the first time they'd met, Lukas had insulted him. He had called him an idiot. It had soon become a habit, and by the time he left for America, it had turned into an affectionate term.
"I bet that if you were with me right now, you'd call me an idiot for coming all the way over here to find you," Mathias whispered, snorting softly.
His hands found a photo, the last photo he had taken of the Norwegian.
He had insisted that it would be a photo of Lukas, Lukas and no one else. The masterpiece properly captured his friend's annoyance at being the centre of attention. His lips were set in their usual straight line, yet there was a slight dip downwards in them if you looked closely enough. In his dark blue eyes, qualified by others as emotionless, Mathias could easily detect exasperation and amusement dancing back at the lens. The slender man's blond hair seemed soft and wavy, and shone in the light. His farewell gift from the Dane, a silver cross-shaped pin, pinned half of his blond locks back, highlighting even more his beautiful features.
Mathias didn't notice he was crying until a drop splashed against the picture. He quickly rubbed his arm over his pale blue eyes, biting his lip to prevent the crying. He missed Lukas. He missed his sarcastic remarks, missed the way he would curl up and lean into Mathias when he was tired, the way he smiled, everything about him.
"You really would call me an idiot right now, wouldn't you?" he murmured through the tears.
So immersed in the letters and photo, he hadn't heard the footsteps nearing him.
"To be honest, I think he would be more likely to slap you."
Author's Note: Hey everyone! How long has it been? Six months, I think... Sorry for the hiatus, july and august were surprisingly busy, and then it was back to school and the amount of homework makes writing really hard! I did write this a while ago, but it was pretty bad, so I edited some parts, and rewrote others, and finally it's here!
I can't promise they'll be anything up soon as February, March and April are exam months, but I will continue this story!
Now that my excuses are out of the way... This is the proper start of the story. The previous chapters were pretty much there to set the scene. And this chapter's longer (although that may just be because of the length of time I spent describing that kitchen! XD)!
Any constructive criticism is greatly appreciated! And thank you so much to those of you who reviwed, followed or favourited!