Chapter 2: The Daily Grind of the Unemployed

"- rabbit!"

"tofu!"

"-u-umbrella"

"Apple!"

"E-ehm elephant-"

"You already used that word!"

"Ah! E-eh-"

"3-2-"

"Egg!"

"Nope! It has to be four or more letters which means, I win!" Maria threw her thin arms in the air and jumped with such glee that it drowned out Garou's objections. Shiritori was a game they had recently discovered and it had quickly became their favorite thing to do. The rules were simple, you think of a word that starts with the last letter of your opponent's word. When they weren't talking about the latest episodes of the Justice Man TV show, this was one way to keep them entertained as they made their way home.

"NO-lets do it one more time!" Garou demanded once his friend calmed down. She wagged her finger, and her entire hand with it, "Nuh-uh, I won and that means you have to do what I say for the rest of the day!"

"Fiiine. What do you want me to do?"

She seemed so excited, like she had been waiting for this moment since the day they had begun the afterschool ritual, "Promise me that we'll always be friends."

He blinked, "eh?" his lips parted in utter surprise. His little heart began to race. It felt like a dream to the white-haired boy or like those children shows were two friends faced the world together. She considered him that good of a friend? Did she want to face the world with him?

"You said you'll do whatever I want if I win!" she reminded him, "Promise me that you won't ever leave me." This time a faint red blush forming on her cheeks. A shy smile unfolded on his lips and he gave her a small nod, "Promise."

Right before the white-haired boy had the chance to truly let the moment sink in there was a disruptive sound that came from behind them. Both kids looked over their shoulders to find Tatsu riding his bike their way, his friends close behind. They were like dark shadows Garou couldn't shake off.

"We don't want to play with you guys," Garou stood his ground in front of Maria. There was something inside of the boy that changed. The more encounters he had with the bully the more he felt his anger awaken, "Leave us alone."

"Maria missed you while you were gone. Did she tell you how she cried when she played with us?"

His eyes widened and his head snapped toward Maria who glared daggers at Tatsu. The boy's laugh was sinister to the two, "She's a better monster than you Garou. She looks and acts like one!"

"Shut up!" Garou snapped as he tried to grab at Tatsu's bike. Meanwhile one of the other kids had taken out a shaken bottle of soda and opened it up right in Maria's face. The sticky liquid getting on her clothing and arm. She let out a surprised yelp.

"Hey leave her alone!" Garou shoved one of the boys off his bike. It was his last attempt to get back at the bullies before they held him down on the ground and Tatsu had his chance to wail on him. It always ended with him getting beaten up. Always.

"It was really uncool how you flipped out in class last week."

Maria threw a paper ball at Tatsu, "Leave us alone you asshole or I'll make voodoo dolls of you idiots."

The kids gasped at the curse word, suddenly hesitant to continue their rash behavior, "Didn't two of you get sick the other day after you bullied me? That's because I cursed you with dark magic! Now leave us alone before I make you guys get the measles!"

All but Tatsu backed away, "Tch. Liar. You think we're stupid?"

"No its true look," she pulled out a notebook and showed them the weird drawings of two boys drawn in bed and little ghost floating above them.

Some of the boys screamed witch and began to encourage the others to leave. Tatsu the last one standing glared at the girl, "You ugly monster. It makes sense your only friend is a loser obsessed with them!"

The boys left the scene, leaving to very emotionally distraught children on the sidewalk. Garou sat up with bruises on his face and Maria plopped down beside him, the constant bullying chipping away at Garou's patience. She choked out a laugh, trying to not let their words get to her, "I drew that picture after I found out they were sick…I thought I could use it to scare them away."

"You're really smart Maria."

"I just think our bullies are really stupid."

Garou was quiet for a moment. The bullies from his class went to bully her with their stupid hero game while he was suspended. The inside of his chest felt tight and he felt helpless. The anger he had boiling inside him, exploded at Tatsu's cruel words toward Maria. Oh, how he wished he was strong enough to punch the jerk to oblivion. He hated Tastu. Hated, hated, hated, hated, Tatsu. How was someone so rotten be so popular? Why did the adults believe someone like him? How was their source of misery loved by everyone else?

"You okay Garou?" he looked up at her. Strangely enough, he came to a resolve upon looking at his friend. One that felt like it was fueled with a childish need for payback and one of a overwhelming desire to protect the one person that relied on him.

"I need to get stronger."


"You brought a friend over!" Maria's mother had her head poking out the frame of the kitchen door as the young girl took off her shoes by the entrance, Garou following her lead. The white-haired boy had a faint blush on his cheeks as the mother came right over to greet them. He gulped, worried for a second that she would be like every other adult he dealt with. It was only yesterday his suspension was lifted and he was allowed to go back to school after Tatsu and his friends got him in trouble in class.

She was a beautiful tall woman with a youthful face. She had wide warm brown eyes and a nicely shaped face that could be on a magazine. "Why are you all bruised up?" she asked overtly worried. Then she noticed her own daughter's clothing were damp and the bandages tinted brown.

"He tried to beat up Tatsu after they he splashed me with soda," Maria answered casually, almost unfazed by her own words, too busy thinking about how Garou agreed to her promise. Her white-haired friend on the other hand, looked flustered and he tried to cut her off to no avail, "Garou would've won if his stupid friends didn't get in the way."

"Was this at school?!"

"No. We were walking home."

"Come inside, Maria go change and wash up, Garou baby come with me, lets get some ice for the swelling," she took his hand and lead him in the kitchen. The boy sat timidly on the edge of his seat. Every fiber in his muscles were tense, so much so that he was one word away from tearing up. She was going to scowled him for getting into a fight, just like the counselor at school and just like his parents who only looked down at him in disapproval.

"Here you go baby," this time the woman's voice was gentler, and she was down on her knees in front of him, placing the ice pack against his swelled cheek, "I know it hurts, but it'll go away." She reassured him, mistaking his tears of frustration with pain, "Thank you for helping Maria."

There was a sudden scream that came from down the hall, followed by a fit of giggles and pleas. It was seconds later did a big man come in carrying Maria over his shoulders like she was some plank of wood, "I heard there's a hero sittin' in the kitchen!"

"No baba, we're the monsters that fight the mean heroes," Maria corrected him, "He's my monster hero because monsters are cooler!"

"Right!" the father played along with their game, completely unaware of the implications it had on either child. "Did you sock 'em in the nut? That's where you should always aim and then run."

"Mana!"

"Hey if they're gonna fight, they need to know where to aim!" he set the girl down, "Anyways, Garou was it?"

"Y-yes sir!" Garou straightened up in his seat.

"Hey relax there bud. No one's gonna chew ya out for helping our daughter. I'd have done it myself if I were there- not that its acceptable for a man to beat up a kid…anyways that's beside the point. What I'm tryin' to say damn it, is that yer always welcomed in this household." The boy couldn't understand their kindness. To him, not only did he fail to win against the popular kids, he got hurt in the process. What if they had really tried to hurt Maria? Would her parents still be singing those high praises?

"Why don't you to go inside, I'll call you when dinner is ready. "Maria's mother dismissed them, "Garou, you'll stay for dinner, okay?"

He gave her a nod and followed Maria to her room.


It was a bright and sunny day in Z-City. There wasn't a cloud in the sky as Maria waited near the city park. With time to spare, the black-haired woman found herself watching the children toss yen coins into the water fountain. It was a puzzling action to the young woman, why did people toss perfectly usable money into a water fountain? Were they paying the Gods to give them good fortune? It was the same concept of offering food to the dead. All that food goes to waste because obviously, the dead can't eat it. She wondered how socially accepted it would to walk right over and collect all the money that had been accumulating at the bottom. Would there be a public penalty? Would a God she didn't believe in curse her? Maybe if she waited until the middle of the night no one would be around to see her do something so shameless. There was bound to be at least 50,000 yen just sitting there. That could pay for some groceries. This wouldn't be considered stealing, right?

Just as she made her way to the fountain and was considering scooping up a handful, someone calling her name drew away her attention from the probably petty crime she was about to do.

"Ah Charanko!"

"Thanks for the measles!" Maria smiled to herself as she played the game shiritori with herself. The catch with this version was to add a random word to the end of an expression. They shared a small booth in a rather crowded restaurant.

"Measles? That's a little morbid," her friend across the table remarked. He had shaggy orange hair and brown eyes. Charanko was his name, about the same age as her, but neither had much in common other than their shared interest in the martial arts and hardly that applied. Charanko was a simple guy. Simple ambitions. They sat in a restaurant booth together. One of those casual in and out places that served heartily meals. It was Maria's favorite type of food these days.

"You're morbid," she answered back as she stabbed the hamburger steak on her plate and began chowing down. The hot taste of beef mixed with the runny yolk of the egg on top…She was lost in utter bliss. How long had it been since she had a proper meal? Too long, way too long.

"When was the last time you've eaten?" Charanko watched her less than lady like manners with skepticism. Maria had a pretty face but that was the extent of her feminism.

"My demon roommate eats everything," she answered in between mouthfuls of food, "Last night the asshole chewed threw all my groceries."

Roommate? He? Woah, what kind of human chews through groceries?

"And what's worse, he didn't even touch the food I brought for him!" That's right, Fuckface had claimed her apartment as his territory. No matter how many times she tried to get rid of the demon cat, it still somehow made its way back into her house. It was a presence that was beginning to keep her on edge. Maybe he was some sort of teleporting monster.

"Sounds like you've got it rough," Charanko began his mean with a simple itadakimasu, "Still no luck finding a job?"

"No. Nobody wants to hire an accident-prone fire hazard, and most of the host clubs don't want a burn victim scaring away their customers," she answered rather casually. Yes, Job hunting was a miserable experience, but she tried to keep a positive outlook. There was bound to be a job out there for her.

"Why don't you be a bodyguard or a hero?"

"Tch, be a bodyguard and protect some snooty asshole, no thanks. As for heroes, they're overrated. Most of them do it for publicity and fame. I don't want any part of that." That response felt automated after the fight she had with Garou a couple months back. Flashes of his angry face surfaced and for a moment she could hear him snap out in rage.

"Be a hero?! Have you lost your mind?! Once I'm done with training, I'm gonna tear down the entire Heroes Association! I'll show'em the power of a real monster! That's what I'm going to be! And if you're there when I come after them-' the veins on his forehead were popping, the menacing aura that poured out for him that day was unlike anything she had ever dealt with.

"What you're gonna beat me till I'm crippled? Don't yell at me, it was just a thought," she glared at him through tears, "Sorry, I wasn't aware of your grand plans! I just left our home, because you had to beat the shit outta everyone there and get yourself expelled!"

"Woman, no one told you to leave!"

"Ah-oh?! Really?! We made a promise to never leave each other behind! I guess I'm an idiot for running after you huh!"

He gritted his teeth and did everything he could to swallow his anger. He rubbed the back of his head and let out a heavy sigh before taking her by the hand and pulling her into an embrace. He could tell that she was still confused by his seemingly rash behavior. Everything he was doing, he was doing it for them, "When did you become a crybaby?" his tone was lighter and more composed, "I guess I shoulda explained what's going on."

That was three months ago and she's barely heard from him since, "I definitely should've gone to college. I have a lot of regrets chasing after dead end dreams."

"Yea, we all should have." He sighed, truly depressed by his lack of improvement, "I'm not getting any better at martial arts even though I'm sensei's only disciple and I still haven't been able to get a girlfriend!"

"Well that's because you kinda do suck at fighting."

"You're supposed to make me feel better not worse!"

"I'm just being honest, you almost pissed your pants when Garou challenged you."

The orange-haired man twitched at the memory; she was there that unfaithful morning? He didn't even recall. Maria sensing her friend's discomfort, let out a sigh, "I'm just messin' with you. You'll get better with practice. You should've seen me when I first started."

"…Yea right," he mumbled, "Weren't you and Garou the best?"

"Garou was the best," she corrected, "There were a few between us that were better than me, buuut I like to believe I was Sensei's favorite. Speaking of which, how is Sensei? I was thinking of stopping by the dojo this weekend."

"He's…okay. He's desperate for new students."

"Well…if I don't get a job soon, I might end up asking him to take me back."

"Why did you decide to leave? Garou didn't beat you up that day."

Maria stared at Charanko. She wasn't there when Garou snapped but…Did he…not know her relationship with Garou? She thought it was common knowledge that she and Garou had been inseparable. 'Huh, I guess he's more of a simpleton than I thought,' Maria thought.

"I don't know," she answered. She had her reasons, reasons that were beginning to make less and less sense, "Maybe I'm just an idiot. I I just never really thought of what I wanted to do with my life and I thought it would be a good time to try to figure it out."

"Really?"

Maria shrugged, "Yep, in the meantime I'll try not to become homeless."

Charanko's eyes suddenly brightened, "If you need money-" Quickly, he dropped his utensils and rummaged through his duffle bag. It took a second, but he was able to find and pull out the flyer he was searching for and handed it to Maria. She glanced down at the paper confused, and spoke with her fork still in her mouth, "What's this?" Her eyes scanned the words,

'MARTIAL ARTS TOURNAMENT

NOW IS YOUR CHANCE TO SHOW THE WORLD WHICH SCHOOL OF MARTIAL ARTS IS THE BEST!

1ST PLACE PRIZE 3 MILLION YEN'

"Ehh?! T-three million yen?!" Maria choked on the words. That could cover the rent for at least a year! She could even eat as many hamburger steaks as she wants! Three million yen. There was so much she could do, her brain automatically thinking of Garou and how she could possibly help him. He could probably use the money too. Before her mind could trail, reality slowly seeped in. Surely there were better martial art masters planning to sign up. Her winning suddenly sounded like a wild dream, "There's no way I could win this."

"You're one of Bang's best students. I think it's worth a shot! What do you have to lose?"

"Damn Charanko."

He blinked, "What?"

"You actually have a point. I'm surprised."

"I feel like you're trying to insult me."


She couldn't afford a gym membership with her financial limitations, so she made her way through the city as she did every day to get her steps in on her Fitbit. She would use weight bracelets on her arms and legs until the weight became a part of her. When she wasn't jogging through town, she observed the people in their shops, often making small chat with the owners. People fascinated her, and she often tried to read them. She was good at it, easily able to tell what type of person a stranger was. It hadn't taken long for the people in the small part of town to know who she was. Often greeting her as she passed by.

After that she made her way up to Bang Sensei's dojo, located on the side of a mountain. Now that she signed up for the tournament, there was a reason to brush up on her skills. The stairs to the top took about forty-five minutes for the average human. Maria could climb them in fifteen.

She could see her younger self heavily panting with the heavy weights strapped to her limbs. Bang had given both a time limit to complete the exercise.

"Oi, Maria you're too slow!" Garou called out to her at least a dozen flights ahead of her with a boulder on his back.

"Ugh! Wait for me Garou!" She yelled back and pushed herself to try to catch up with him. His back was always the most vivid part of him in her memory. Had she done everything in a mere attempt to chase after him? It was a thought she often found herself thinking.

"Maria what a surprise," Bang greeted her with a smile, "Have you decided to come back?"

Her sensei was an old man in his early eighties. There were wrinkles that decorated his rather narrow face and a thick white mustache that draped over his upper lip. His eyes were a warm grey and always welcoming. He stood at 5'5 his back had a slight hunch as one develops with a long life, yet Maria was sure that beneath the materials of his clothing his body was like solid rock. His eyes held surprise for her as she made her way in.

"Eh? What are you doing Sensei?"

"Just doing some renovating," He remarked. There were no holes in the wall and no need to renovate yet there were stacks of wooden planks lined up on one side of the dojo. His clothing was stained with the sticky residue as he attempted to coat the walls before applying the wooden planks one by one. She had no idea that the situation was this bad, "After that I was going to make some hotpot. You should join me."

'Damn Garou, you left Sensei's dojo in shambles,' Maria frowned a little and went to grab one of the brushes only to notice that there was no protection tape on the edges nor any newspapers/plastic on the floor. On the wall she could tell the rough streaks and uneven coat of white paint. He was absolutely horrible at this, "Sensei!" She ended up spending the entire evening helping him renovate the dojo.

"Have you heard from Garou?"

Maria looked up from her phone, guilty of checking her messages for the fourth time since they had finished a light spar. "Not really," she wished her answer was a lie. She got up and put her phone away, "I should get going it's really late." He paced along side her, "You know Maria you are always welcomed to move back."

"Thank you sensei but I think for now I need my own place. I'll come by tomorrow with the money-"

"I'm helping you out as favor. There's no need for formalities like paying to use the dojo. This place will always be a home to you."

Maria gave her sensei a smile, moved almost to tears by his kind words. It was ironic how she still had to go back and get sensei's help if she hoped to have a small sanctuary for whenever Garou decided to show up. She gave the sensei a bow and made her exit. It was an entertaining thought that he bid her farewell at 1 in the morning and had no concern for her safety. Monsters and thugs were rampant in Z-city. While, those shadows did frighten her growing up, the strength she possessed now gave her peace of mind.

'Oh before I forget,' Maria made her way toward the park. The city streets were deserted. The lights illuminated small spots along the way. She hoped a hero wouldn't be around to see her do what she was about to do. 'There's no shame in it, everyone's gotta do what they gotta do to survive,' Maria reasoned with herself. She was getting excited, she had a plastic bag in her backpack that she could use to put all the change in.

"Eh?" Maria blinked, stopping in her tracks as she locked eyes with a bald man already in the water fountain. There was an awkward silence that possessed the two, the summer breeze shaking the plastic bag in her hands and creating the crackling sound plastic does when moved. He stood there with a pair of shorts and an oppai sweater. There was just enough light illuminating from the streetlight that she could see his eyebrow twitch in horror. Beads of sweat began to form on his otherwise shiny forehead. Flustered he stepped back and accidentally tipped over the bucket he'd brought for the midnight activity.

"Well…," she sat on the ledge and kicked off her shoes and pulled up her leggings before getting into the water, "hope the Gods don't curse us with bad fortune." It was a reassuring feeling knowing that she wasn't the only scum bag committing petty crimes like this.


End Chapter

Author's Note: I'm sorry I felt like this chapter was really slow! Trying to establish some character relationships and what not before diving into the fun stuff. A part of me think's I should've started with their childhood and worked my way up to the present, but oh well, can't go back now. Anyways! I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Lemme know if you liked it and wanna see more!