Meryu: What Counts?
'It's stupid,' Kura thought aimlessly. 'Why get a friend? It's pointless! First
off, any friend I might make becomes automatically bait to get to me. It's not
worth it.' She grimaced slightly at the memories of all the times she'd gotten
friends and tried to live a completely normal life. That friendship had put
Jess in a hospital for weeks then ended up with her death. And they hadn't even
been after Jess, they'd wanted her all along. So, she blamed herself...
thinking that if she hadn't been so eager to make friends herself that Jess
would still be alive. But for how long?
"It hurts." She concluded, glaring at her reflection. Somehow demanding it to
answer what she herself couldn't. Pain was something common to her, but just
because she was so familiar with it didn't make burying her friends and loved
ones any easier. In fact it only made her want to turn herself over to them.
Problem was that wouldn't stop them from killing everyone she knew... and even
people she didn't.
Suddenly her thoughts shifted to C.T. "What do I do?" She demanded of her
reflection. "If I shun her to protect her, she'll think I hate her. Yet if I
get too close... she'll get hurt. She doesn't need hurt." Kura pondered
silently as to what path of action to take. While doing so she picked up a
brush and slowly began to move it through her tousled, curly ebony-brown hair.
The one thing she was proud to have and call her own. Her hair was different
from everyone else's... no one had her color. Of course, no one had her eye
color either but her eyes scared her at times. It wasn't their interestingly
unique shade of the Midnight, it was what she'd been told about them. That her
eyes carried all of the world's troubles and sorrows. She had a hard enough
time with her own pain... why did she need the world's too?
After a few moments of allowing her thoughts to wander, she called them back to
her current problem. Could she trust herself not to get C.T. hurt? And even if
she could, did she even want the girl to be her friend? "Why do I even care?"
Kura muttered angrily, as she pulled ebony-brown hair back into a ponytail. "I
care because... I'm... I'm an idiot and seem to care about everyone more then
me! Damn I need to get out more." With that Kura picked up her jacket and
walked out her apartment door.
She jumped on her black 350 Ninja, bringing the engine to life with a quick
slam to the kick-starter. Revving out of the lot she headed to the one place
she could find the time to actually think.
After a little less then a thirty-minute drive... she stood staring at what
appeared to be a big junk heap. Shoving her keys into her front pocket she
strode off towards a covered pile of what might be more only more car parts.
Pulling off the tarp with a swift movement, it revealed a machine of sorts.
Possibly a giant robot. It wasn't quite finished yet, but Kura didn't seem to
mind. Actually that's what she'd been expecting. She'd been working on this
thing for almost a full month now... and it as only half done. And that didn't
include the complex additives she was planning to do to it. But things seemed
to be running smoothly enough. Kura sat down and got right to work, twisting
wires here, connecting them there, fixing modems, computer programming...
anything to keep herself busy. Three dead batteries and a loose spark plug
later Kura finally decided that was enough for today. "Well, girl..." She
smiled at her creation. "You're doing great. Give it a few more weeks and
you'll be up and running." Setting her wrench down beside her, she wiped the
grease from her forehead and hands. All this time she'd been thinking about
what she should do, and finally she'd decided. C.T. seemed nice enough. And if
she played her cards right she wouldn't get hurt. "Besides a week should give
me enough to go on with her." She stated with a sigh.
Looking down at herself she smirked. She had to be the only girl who didn't
mind a little dirt sometimes. "Their loss... this is fun."
*~^~*
C.T. bounced onto her silk comforter. Pulling out a magazine, she tried to
direct her attention to something besides the earlier events of the day... of
the girl. Soon she found herself staring listlessly at the page in front of
her. 'Come on... don't do this to me,' she silently pleaded. It was no use
though. Her mind refused to comply, leaving her thoughts to drift... and her
fighting to gain some control over them. 'Not again... ' She thought trying to
force her mind to create some type of concrete thought pattern... anything but
the blank her mind kept drawing. 'Of all days to do this to me... and you HAD
to pick today?!' C.T. thought angrily. 'Why? What do you think I should be
doing?'
As if in answer to her question an image formed. It was Kura, the girl from
earlier today. C.T.'s mind froze leaving only the image for her to ponder. Her
memories had been detailed, even down to the feelings that had accompanied
Kura. "Okay... so what does she have to do with anything?" C.T. demanded of her
thoughts. Not expecting an answer, she turned her attention back to the
magazine page... and to her surprise something caught her eye. There on the
page standing in the crowd of people was Kura. Or what appeared to be Kura.
C.T. shook her head unsure of what she was seeing. Taking a closer look
confirmed her suspicions, that had to be her! She hadn't known Kura for more
then a few minutes but those eyes... those midnight orbs that held so much
mystery, she knew she was right. Never before today had she seen those eyes.
'Odd that she'd be in a magazine,' C.T. thought with sigh, 'She never seemed to
be the type for modeling. Oh, well.'
Suddenly a loud knock at her bedroom door tore her away from her thoughts.
"Yes?" She questioned, "What is it?"
"Dinner..." her brother's voice replied quietly. "I was supposed to ask if you
were going to eat. It's mash potatoes with hotdogs... the way you've always
liked it." Karrie's voice seemed to be pleading with her, trying to convince
her that she was in fact hungry. It was obvious by his refusal to leave that
something was bothering him, and that he wanted to talk to her.
"Um..." C.T. stumbled over her words, trying to figure out if she was even
interested. True it was her favorite meal, and chances were Karrie had made it
for her. He was technically the only one in this house that knew how to fix it
right. "Well, sure." She said with a slight smile. "I'll be out shortly."
Her smile widened as she heard his happy sigh of relief. 'He must really miss
her today,' C.T. thought sadly. Her mother had been the only thing good in
their lives... and now, she was gone. Of course things were better, and her
father was no longer a threat. But that never stopped the pain of their loss.
And with her being the only one to understand what Karrie was going through...
sometimes it was too much to handle. "I miss her too." She whispered into the
silence of her room.
Slowly she got off the bed and made her way to the kitchen. Her stomach growled
at the thought of food... and she smiled. "I guess I am really hungry tonight."
Her smile soon faded as she reached the kitchen, it wasn't her mother's house
and this kitchen was a constant reminder that her mother was no longer there.
It hurt to remember that. Why couldn't she seem to forget the painful memories
of her mother's death and go on with life? Tears quickly began to well up in
her eyes. She forced a smile as she blinked back her tears and walked towards
the table. 'Maybe eating will clear my mind...' C.T. thought hopefully. 'And
just maybe, the thing with Kura in my magazine will make more sense too.'
***
It was now three o'clock Friday morning and C.T. was starring at the ceiling
lost in thought. 'Come on, sleep...' she thought to herself. 'I've only got two
more hours to sleep... so sleep.' Oddly enough her eyes were tired but her mind
was going full speed trying to determine why Kura would be in the magazine.
Turning on her side C.T. tried to force her mind to shut off. No luck. "Damn
it!" She muttered frustrated. "I need sleep tonight... this morning..." She
paused in thought. "Okay so it may be morning... either way I need sleep so I
can pass that math test..."
Finally she conceded to defeat. She'd been trying to talk herself into sleep
for well over five hours... and it seemed that her mind just refused to
cooperate. "Oh, hell with it!" She sighed angrily. "I give up... I'm going to
fail!"
Once again her mind wandered to Kura. Would she even see her today? Kura had
said she would... but that girl was something else. C.T. wasn't sure if she
should trust her... and yet she couldn't help the fact that she seemed to do
just that. She'd met Kura less then twenty-four hours ago and she felt as if
she'd known her all her life. "Strange," she thought aloud. "Why should I feel
like that?" Once again, her only answer was the silence of her room. Throwing
aside her blankets, she sat up. 'I don't get it...' She thought somewhat
confused. 'I don't even know her... and I... I feel so close to her.' C.T. had
heard of soul mates and every little rumor that went with the idea... but never
once had she considered that she could meet someone and feel that way. The idea
that she was even considering the idea kinda' scared her. Still she couldn't
get rid of the impression that she seemed to know her. 'Oh, heck with it!' she
thought in confusion. 'I feel that way... and according to everyone else...
that's all that really matters.' She sat for awhile deep in thought. Finally
she lay back down and pulled up the blankets. "It's what really counts... isn't
it?" Her question faded with the darkness closing in around her... wrapping her
in the comfort of sleep
'It's stupid,' Kura thought aimlessly. 'Why get a friend? It's pointless! First
off, any friend I might make becomes automatically bait to get to me. It's not
worth it.' She grimaced slightly at the memories of all the times she'd gotten
friends and tried to live a completely normal life. That friendship had put
Jess in a hospital for weeks then ended up with her death. And they hadn't even
been after Jess, they'd wanted her all along. So, she blamed herself...
thinking that if she hadn't been so eager to make friends herself that Jess
would still be alive. But for how long?
"It hurts." She concluded, glaring at her reflection. Somehow demanding it to
answer what she herself couldn't. Pain was something common to her, but just
because she was so familiar with it didn't make burying her friends and loved
ones any easier. In fact it only made her want to turn herself over to them.
Problem was that wouldn't stop them from killing everyone she knew... and even
people she didn't.
Suddenly her thoughts shifted to C.T. "What do I do?" She demanded of her
reflection. "If I shun her to protect her, she'll think I hate her. Yet if I
get too close... she'll get hurt. She doesn't need hurt." Kura pondered
silently as to what path of action to take. While doing so she picked up a
brush and slowly began to move it through her tousled, curly ebony-brown hair.
The one thing she was proud to have and call her own. Her hair was different
from everyone else's... no one had her color. Of course, no one had her eye
color either but her eyes scared her at times. It wasn't their interestingly
unique shade of the Midnight, it was what she'd been told about them. That her
eyes carried all of the world's troubles and sorrows. She had a hard enough
time with her own pain... why did she need the world's too?
After a few moments of allowing her thoughts to wander, she called them back to
her current problem. Could she trust herself not to get C.T. hurt? And even if
she could, did she even want the girl to be her friend? "Why do I even care?"
Kura muttered angrily, as she pulled ebony-brown hair back into a ponytail. "I
care because... I'm... I'm an idiot and seem to care about everyone more then
me! Damn I need to get out more." With that Kura picked up her jacket and
walked out her apartment door.
She jumped on her black 350 Ninja, bringing the engine to life with a quick
slam to the kick-starter. Revving out of the lot she headed to the one place
she could find the time to actually think.
After a little less then a thirty-minute drive... she stood staring at what
appeared to be a big junk heap. Shoving her keys into her front pocket she
strode off towards a covered pile of what might be more only more car parts.
Pulling off the tarp with a swift movement, it revealed a machine of sorts.
Possibly a giant robot. It wasn't quite finished yet, but Kura didn't seem to
mind. Actually that's what she'd been expecting. She'd been working on this
thing for almost a full month now... and it as only half done. And that didn't
include the complex additives she was planning to do to it. But things seemed
to be running smoothly enough. Kura sat down and got right to work, twisting
wires here, connecting them there, fixing modems, computer programming...
anything to keep herself busy. Three dead batteries and a loose spark plug
later Kura finally decided that was enough for today. "Well, girl..." She
smiled at her creation. "You're doing great. Give it a few more weeks and
you'll be up and running." Setting her wrench down beside her, she wiped the
grease from her forehead and hands. All this time she'd been thinking about
what she should do, and finally she'd decided. C.T. seemed nice enough. And if
she played her cards right she wouldn't get hurt. "Besides a week should give
me enough to go on with her." She stated with a sigh.
Looking down at herself she smirked. She had to be the only girl who didn't
mind a little dirt sometimes. "Their loss... this is fun."
*~^~*
C.T. bounced onto her silk comforter. Pulling out a magazine, she tried to
direct her attention to something besides the earlier events of the day... of
the girl. Soon she found herself staring listlessly at the page in front of
her. 'Come on... don't do this to me,' she silently pleaded. It was no use
though. Her mind refused to comply, leaving her thoughts to drift... and her
fighting to gain some control over them. 'Not again... ' She thought trying to
force her mind to create some type of concrete thought pattern... anything but
the blank her mind kept drawing. 'Of all days to do this to me... and you HAD
to pick today?!' C.T. thought angrily. 'Why? What do you think I should be
doing?'
As if in answer to her question an image formed. It was Kura, the girl from
earlier today. C.T.'s mind froze leaving only the image for her to ponder. Her
memories had been detailed, even down to the feelings that had accompanied
Kura. "Okay... so what does she have to do with anything?" C.T. demanded of her
thoughts. Not expecting an answer, she turned her attention back to the
magazine page... and to her surprise something caught her eye. There on the
page standing in the crowd of people was Kura. Or what appeared to be Kura.
C.T. shook her head unsure of what she was seeing. Taking a closer look
confirmed her suspicions, that had to be her! She hadn't known Kura for more
then a few minutes but those eyes... those midnight orbs that held so much
mystery, she knew she was right. Never before today had she seen those eyes.
'Odd that she'd be in a magazine,' C.T. thought with sigh, 'She never seemed to
be the type for modeling. Oh, well.'
Suddenly a loud knock at her bedroom door tore her away from her thoughts.
"Yes?" She questioned, "What is it?"
"Dinner..." her brother's voice replied quietly. "I was supposed to ask if you
were going to eat. It's mash potatoes with hotdogs... the way you've always
liked it." Karrie's voice seemed to be pleading with her, trying to convince
her that she was in fact hungry. It was obvious by his refusal to leave that
something was bothering him, and that he wanted to talk to her.
"Um..." C.T. stumbled over her words, trying to figure out if she was even
interested. True it was her favorite meal, and chances were Karrie had made it
for her. He was technically the only one in this house that knew how to fix it
right. "Well, sure." She said with a slight smile. "I'll be out shortly."
Her smile widened as she heard his happy sigh of relief. 'He must really miss
her today,' C.T. thought sadly. Her mother had been the only thing good in
their lives... and now, she was gone. Of course things were better, and her
father was no longer a threat. But that never stopped the pain of their loss.
And with her being the only one to understand what Karrie was going through...
sometimes it was too much to handle. "I miss her too." She whispered into the
silence of her room.
Slowly she got off the bed and made her way to the kitchen. Her stomach growled
at the thought of food... and she smiled. "I guess I am really hungry tonight."
Her smile soon faded as she reached the kitchen, it wasn't her mother's house
and this kitchen was a constant reminder that her mother was no longer there.
It hurt to remember that. Why couldn't she seem to forget the painful memories
of her mother's death and go on with life? Tears quickly began to well up in
her eyes. She forced a smile as she blinked back her tears and walked towards
the table. 'Maybe eating will clear my mind...' C.T. thought hopefully. 'And
just maybe, the thing with Kura in my magazine will make more sense too.'
***
It was now three o'clock Friday morning and C.T. was starring at the ceiling
lost in thought. 'Come on, sleep...' she thought to herself. 'I've only got two
more hours to sleep... so sleep.' Oddly enough her eyes were tired but her mind
was going full speed trying to determine why Kura would be in the magazine.
Turning on her side C.T. tried to force her mind to shut off. No luck. "Damn
it!" She muttered frustrated. "I need sleep tonight... this morning..." She
paused in thought. "Okay so it may be morning... either way I need sleep so I
can pass that math test..."
Finally she conceded to defeat. She'd been trying to talk herself into sleep
for well over five hours... and it seemed that her mind just refused to
cooperate. "Oh, hell with it!" She sighed angrily. "I give up... I'm going to
fail!"
Once again her mind wandered to Kura. Would she even see her today? Kura had
said she would... but that girl was something else. C.T. wasn't sure if she
should trust her... and yet she couldn't help the fact that she seemed to do
just that. She'd met Kura less then twenty-four hours ago and she felt as if
she'd known her all her life. "Strange," she thought aloud. "Why should I feel
like that?" Once again, her only answer was the silence of her room. Throwing
aside her blankets, she sat up. 'I don't get it...' She thought somewhat
confused. 'I don't even know her... and I... I feel so close to her.' C.T. had
heard of soul mates and every little rumor that went with the idea... but never
once had she considered that she could meet someone and feel that way. The idea
that she was even considering the idea kinda' scared her. Still she couldn't
get rid of the impression that she seemed to know her. 'Oh, heck with it!' she
thought in confusion. 'I feel that way... and according to everyone else...
that's all that really matters.' She sat for awhile deep in thought. Finally
she lay back down and pulled up the blankets. "It's what really counts... isn't
it?" Her question faded with the darkness closing in around her... wrapping her
in the comfort of sleep
