Time for a new chapter...as always, R+R if you have any advice on where you
want the story to go...
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A solemn walk in the rain: Tragedy
The day had gone through quite a metamorphosis in the last few hours. The beautiful day Kentaro had observed was merely the calm before a spring rain storm. The skies had become unnaturally dark for an afternoon shower, but few paid the discoloration any heed.
Kentaro Sakata was the only person visible on the streets. Everyone else had gone inside, avoiding the downpour. They stared at this strange being, walking with his head down at a snail's pace, not seeming to even notice the rain soaking him to the bone. The forecast had predicted that the storm would last throughout the night, and would only get stronger the later it got. Kentaro himself had reported this news to the residents earlier on in the day...back before the call.
He walked by the train station he usually used to get home. The operator recognized him and held the door a second, calling his name. Kentaro walked right past the station, out onto the bridge, still in the rain, still in a trance-like state. The operator was surprised by this, but couldn't wait any longer, closing the doors and departing.
Kentaro's brain slowly started shutting off his perception of the outside world, until all that he could sense was what he'd been told only minutes before.
//Flashback//
"Hello, this is Hinata Apartments. Are you calling for a resident?"
The urgent voice at the other end of the phone replied, "No, but I'm looking for one of your workers...is Kentaro Sakata there?"
A bit unnerved by the fact that he'd been called somewhere he didn't live, he responded,
"This is he, what do you want?"
"It's Wantanabe, your parent's broker. You might want to sit down for this, Kentaro, but I doubt that'd help. I've...got some bad news, son."
He paused for a moment.
"Your parents were... killed today. They...were involved in a car crash. Your father's heart gave out while he was driving with your mother."
Kentaro almost dropped the phone, but his muscles were both tense and paralyzed at the same time. He felt as if he'd become a statue, standing alone in the Hinata Lodge, listening to a man on the other end of the phone tell him that he was the last living Sakata.
"Kentaro, I'm afraid there's more."
Kentaro didn't seem to hear this, at least, not immediately. His memory was recording, but he couldn't react.
"Just after the accident, workers discovered documents in a hidden floor safe in your father's office. It was revealed that they...used the company's money to buy everything they owned, embezzling it and multiplying it through gambling; that they'd obtained all of their property illegally."
Kentaro couldn't believe what he was hearing. His father, the one that had always been so big on honor and dignity, would sink as low as to steal money from his company? It simply wasn't possible! It couldn't be!
"It was decided that the property and assets would be turned over to the chairman of the board of directors..."
Kentaro let out a small gasp. It couldn't be...
"...Daisuke Sumiyoshi."
Kentaro's eyes narrowed. Daisuke...that bastard! He owns all of that property that my father worked for years to build? But...what does that leave me with?
Kentaro Sakata and Daisuke Sumiyoshi had known each other for a long time. Daisuke was only 4 years older than Kentaro. The two had been best friends, back when Kentaro spent his childhood years with his grandmother in Sendai. His parents lived on Okinawa, but they had found out when he was six that Kentaro had a medical condition that required a specialized hospital's expertise, the only one of which was located in Sendai. It was impossible to sell the mansion on Okinawa...they'd signed a contract forbidding them of backing out of paying for the house, which they'd just bought recently. Constant travel was also impractical, as both of Kentaro's parents were prone to motion sickness. Eventually they decided it was best to leave him with his grandmother.
Kentaro's only friend had been Daisuke, and they spent every day together. But, like everything in life, the good times eventually ended. He remembered the day of the incident...
"Kentaro, I called to let you know...your father did leave a will. But with the news of how he obtained his property by using the company's money, it's considered company property now. Everything you own and your parents owned are his now."
Kentaro finally snapped back to reality and responded.
"I-I understand. Goodbye."
"Wait Kentaro, are you going to be... (Click)
Kentaro Sakata hung up the phone, feeling very alone in this harsh new reality.
//End Flashback//
Kentaro paused in his solemn walk to look up. He found himself surrounded by the village elders, those mysterious old men that can come and go as quickly as the fog that accompanies them. They take turns speaking, offering strange words...
"Darkness can envelop the mind."
"But it can't..."
"...Unless you let it."
Kentaro blinked, and the men were gone, leaving him alone again on the bridge. The full impact of what had transpired that day finally hit him, like a tsunami hits a house of cards.
Kentaro collapsed to the guardrail on the side of the bridge, using it to prop his back up, and held his knees close. Then he did something he had forbidden himself to do since he was a child.
He cried.
.
.
.
A solemn walk in the rain: Tragedy
The day had gone through quite a metamorphosis in the last few hours. The beautiful day Kentaro had observed was merely the calm before a spring rain storm. The skies had become unnaturally dark for an afternoon shower, but few paid the discoloration any heed.
Kentaro Sakata was the only person visible on the streets. Everyone else had gone inside, avoiding the downpour. They stared at this strange being, walking with his head down at a snail's pace, not seeming to even notice the rain soaking him to the bone. The forecast had predicted that the storm would last throughout the night, and would only get stronger the later it got. Kentaro himself had reported this news to the residents earlier on in the day...back before the call.
He walked by the train station he usually used to get home. The operator recognized him and held the door a second, calling his name. Kentaro walked right past the station, out onto the bridge, still in the rain, still in a trance-like state. The operator was surprised by this, but couldn't wait any longer, closing the doors and departing.
Kentaro's brain slowly started shutting off his perception of the outside world, until all that he could sense was what he'd been told only minutes before.
//Flashback//
"Hello, this is Hinata Apartments. Are you calling for a resident?"
The urgent voice at the other end of the phone replied, "No, but I'm looking for one of your workers...is Kentaro Sakata there?"
A bit unnerved by the fact that he'd been called somewhere he didn't live, he responded,
"This is he, what do you want?"
"It's Wantanabe, your parent's broker. You might want to sit down for this, Kentaro, but I doubt that'd help. I've...got some bad news, son."
He paused for a moment.
"Your parents were... killed today. They...were involved in a car crash. Your father's heart gave out while he was driving with your mother."
Kentaro almost dropped the phone, but his muscles were both tense and paralyzed at the same time. He felt as if he'd become a statue, standing alone in the Hinata Lodge, listening to a man on the other end of the phone tell him that he was the last living Sakata.
"Kentaro, I'm afraid there's more."
Kentaro didn't seem to hear this, at least, not immediately. His memory was recording, but he couldn't react.
"Just after the accident, workers discovered documents in a hidden floor safe in your father's office. It was revealed that they...used the company's money to buy everything they owned, embezzling it and multiplying it through gambling; that they'd obtained all of their property illegally."
Kentaro couldn't believe what he was hearing. His father, the one that had always been so big on honor and dignity, would sink as low as to steal money from his company? It simply wasn't possible! It couldn't be!
"It was decided that the property and assets would be turned over to the chairman of the board of directors..."
Kentaro let out a small gasp. It couldn't be...
"...Daisuke Sumiyoshi."
Kentaro's eyes narrowed. Daisuke...that bastard! He owns all of that property that my father worked for years to build? But...what does that leave me with?
Kentaro Sakata and Daisuke Sumiyoshi had known each other for a long time. Daisuke was only 4 years older than Kentaro. The two had been best friends, back when Kentaro spent his childhood years with his grandmother in Sendai. His parents lived on Okinawa, but they had found out when he was six that Kentaro had a medical condition that required a specialized hospital's expertise, the only one of which was located in Sendai. It was impossible to sell the mansion on Okinawa...they'd signed a contract forbidding them of backing out of paying for the house, which they'd just bought recently. Constant travel was also impractical, as both of Kentaro's parents were prone to motion sickness. Eventually they decided it was best to leave him with his grandmother.
Kentaro's only friend had been Daisuke, and they spent every day together. But, like everything in life, the good times eventually ended. He remembered the day of the incident...
"Kentaro, I called to let you know...your father did leave a will. But with the news of how he obtained his property by using the company's money, it's considered company property now. Everything you own and your parents owned are his now."
Kentaro finally snapped back to reality and responded.
"I-I understand. Goodbye."
"Wait Kentaro, are you going to be... (Click)
Kentaro Sakata hung up the phone, feeling very alone in this harsh new reality.
//End Flashback//
Kentaro paused in his solemn walk to look up. He found himself surrounded by the village elders, those mysterious old men that can come and go as quickly as the fog that accompanies them. They take turns speaking, offering strange words...
"Darkness can envelop the mind."
"But it can't..."
"...Unless you let it."
Kentaro blinked, and the men were gone, leaving him alone again on the bridge. The full impact of what had transpired that day finally hit him, like a tsunami hits a house of cards.
Kentaro collapsed to the guardrail on the side of the bridge, using it to prop his back up, and held his knees close. Then he did something he had forbidden himself to do since he was a child.
He cried.
