Ritsu Kageyama was ten years and ten months old.
In those ten years and ten months mom and dad had warned him never to wander far from home. They had told him, before, that he could get hurt. That he could get kidnapped. That he could be snatched up off the street and they would never see him again. Well he hadn't been snatched up off the streets, no, he had been snatched up from the woods. He had been snatched up and carried away and now he was in this prison cell far from home without mom or dad or his phone or…he even missed Tsubomi of all people. Playing house all afternoon would have been better than being here…all alone…
Well not totally alone.
"Ok…ok. We're going to be ok. We're going to be fine. We're…nothing's going to happen to us, ok? Just…stay calm." Said Reigen as he paced back and forth as best he could on a rolled ankle. Not good for running away…or even walking away…not that there was any 'away' for them to go to. Well now…they were well and truly fucked now weren't they? Reigen knew that, if it came down to it, he could always run away…well he had known that. It had been this…truth…he had carried with him for his entire life. When things went south he ran away. When the other kids teased him about being half he just left whatever group or club it was that he had joined. When school got to be overwhelming he left and got a job. When that job became too soul sucking for him he went and started up this psychic agency. When that got to be too much he had been about to throw in the towel and become a private investigator…but then this kid had come into his life…
This kid who he should have been there for.
This kid…Ritsu. Ritsu was sitting there in the corner of this prison cell…and that was what this was. This was a prison cell in a room full of prison cells. There were four bunk beds, a sink with a mirror over it, and a toilet. The mirror was just polished metal and it was built solidly into the wall. No breaking it and getting out. No buying enough time for Ritsu to escape. Reigen…he should have been there for Ritsu. He should have taken him seriously when he talked about these people….and he should have thrown Ritsu over his shoulder and carried him away when he had the chance. He had failed Ritsu as a friend, mentor, and occasional afterschool babysitter….God….the Kageyamas were going to kill him. He had ONE job, to take care of Ritsu, and he had failed….
There was no running away from this…there had always been the option to run away….but now there wasn't….
"I am calm." Said Ritsu. He was…he really was. This was…Reigen was the one freaking out, not him, and only because he didn't know what was going to happen. Ritsu knew what was going to happen. He had read about it. People talked about this group, Claw, all the time on the internet. How they gave people psychic powers…by torturing them. How they brought you to the edge of death and then pulled you back over and over again. How in exchange for powers you had to serve their leader for the rest of your life. Also they dissected you alive, it said, sometimes for research. There were holes too where they left you to die if you betrayed the organization. Also they supposedly shot people into space just for fun…
The internet wasn't always reliable.
But Ritsu…he sort of knew what was going to happen to him. He was never going to see his mom and dad again. He was never going to have to deal with dad's bad jokes and mom's constant 'Ritsu, study hard' and 'Ritsu, be careful' and 'Ritsu, you're my baby boy and I love you' and stuff. He would never see his friends…well his friend. Tsubomi had been really weird lately but she was still his friend…and he would never see her again. He would never have to play house with her…and he sort of…wished that they'd played that again even though she had been making it really weird lately. He'd never walk with her to school again…and he'd never go to school again either…and he had a book report due on Friday…and he had a Science test tomorrow….but…but he would never have to worry about any of that ever again…
He would never have to worry about anything ever again…because he was here now….
"I mean it…I'm not going to let anything happen to you. I'm the adult here and…and I'm not going to let anything happen to you. I'm here for you and…and I'm going to figure out a way…a way out…even if I have to break down these bars." Said Reigen
"You can't." said Ritsu
"Who says I can't?" asked Reigen
"I saw that you can't. You can barely walk and, anyway, if you could kick down those bars then they wouldn't be there. There's no escape. There's nothing that we can do." Said Ritsu
"Don't be so defeatist. The Ritsu I know would never say that. What about…about taking down the evil organization? What about-" said Reigen
"This is the evil organization and there's no way for me to take them down. They got me. They got the both of us. At least I'll be ok, I'm an esper, but you….well you won't be. I mean sometimes I can kind of feel something from you but that's spiritual powers and these people probably don't care about spiritual powers. You're probably going to end up in the lab or something….and I'll probably be recruited since I already have my powers….and that's it. This is it." Said Ritsu. He didn't know wat Reigen thought that he was going to accomplish by pacing around like that. It was over. They were captured and now horrible things were going to happen to them and…and at least he and Sho could hang out now…the thought doesn't make him feel as warm inside as it used to….
He should have listened.
Sho had told him to stay away and…and maybe part of him had come just to see him…or something. To take down the organization that owned him so they could be friends or something. Stupid stuff like that. This was all his fault. He wished that he hadn't ragged Reigen into this. He should have just come alone. If he had come alone then…then he would have had to worry only about himself….and also he may have been able to escape. Reigen's ankle was all messed up. Even if Ritsu managed to get his powers to listen, they were being especially disobedient right now, Reigen wouldn't have been able to keep up. Not in sneaking out of here, not in walking through the woods, and not in running and hiding for the rest of their lives so that Claw could never find them again. Ritsu wasn't going to leave him behind, either…
Even if there had been some way to escape Ritsu still wouldn't have ever left Reigen behind.
"Ritsu…come on. Don't be like that." Said Reigen as he hobbled over to where Ritsu was sitting. He sat beside him on the bunk and put his arm around him. There was a…blankness…to him that Reigen didn't like so see. Ritsu was still only ten, not even eleven yet, and he should have been yelling or crying or breaking things not just…sitting there and solemnly accepting his fate. This kid…when they were getting out of here he was figuring out what was up with this kid. Why he was so…like this.
When, not if, when they got out….because they had to get out. There was no other option.
"Ritsu…hey. Come on. We'll get through this. We just have to…we just have to stay calm and be positive. I can probably….probably talk my way out of this. I can talk my way out of anything. Did I ever tell you about the time I sold more laundry soap than anyone else in my class?" asked Reigen
"No." said Ritsu. He scooted closer to Reigen. He talked a lot when he was nervous…and he had every right to be nervous. They had been kidnapped. Ritsu…well he was maybe feeling a little nervous too….and also it was…kind of cold in there…so he let Reigen put an arm over his shoulders….and he let himself scoot closer to Reigen, too.
"Well back when I was in my second year of middle school they had us selling detergent to pay for this class trip to a hot spring resort. They couldn't get the school to pay for it…bunch of cheapskates…but anyway we had to go door to door selling this really crappy laundry detergent…and let me tell you this was the worst detergent that I've ever used in my life. I sold some to my mom and….yeah. All my clothes smelled like the inside of an old lady's purse." Said Reigen
"Like mothballs? Who wants detergent that smells like mothballs?" asked Ritsu
"Mothballs? No, like flowers and perfume….who's grandma smells like mothballs?" asked Reigen
"My grandma smells like mothballs. She lives out in the country and they have a lot of moths there…we go every summer to see her…and to see my cousin Tobio too. He always comes with my aunt and uncle when we visit grandma. He lives really far away…he's ok. He always makes me play volleyball with him, though, and he's really serious about it….I never liked playing with him but…well I mean…it wasn't so bad…" said Ritsu. That was something that he hadn't even thought about. The summer trip to the country to see grandma. Cousin Tobio came too...and he was kind of a jerk but he was the only cousin Ritsu had….and he would….not only would he never see mom and dad again but…he would never see the rest of his family again either…
He wiped his eyes.
"Hey, come on. Who's telling stories here? Me or you?" asked Reigen. He took back the stuff about wanting Ritsu to cry. Turns out he didn't want Ritsu to cry. Turns out Ritsu crying made everything worse. Ritsu…he was the reason that Ritsu was crying…and he just…he needed….he needed to…to do….to do something…
So he did the only thing in this world that he was good at. He talked.
"You." Said Ritsu. He didn't want to talk. If he started to talk then maybe…maybe he would do something stupid, like start crying. He couldn't cry. Crying wouldn't get him out of this. Crying wouldn't make these people, the ones who kidnapped him, feel so bad for him that they let him go. He had to keep calm and…and figure out how to get…to get out….
"Right. So anyway, yeah, there was no way in hell that I was going to sell all of this detergent. I would have quit and just played sick the day of the trip but our class rep was really, REALLY, serious about everyone doing their part. So you know what I did?" asked Reigen
"Used your own money to buy the detergent and then you threw it away when you got home?" asked Ritsu. That's what he would have done. That was what he did, actually, when his class had to sell candy and stuff….and he would never have to deal with that again…even though he kind of did want to deal with that again…because at least he knew what he had been dealing with there….and he knew what he was dealing with here…but not really and…
And he wanted to go home.
"Close but no. I decided to do a live demonstration of how 'amazing' this detergent was. So I got some disappearing ink and-" said Reigen. Ritsu put a hand over his mouth and pointed towards the door of their cell. There, getting closer, was the sound of footsteps…a person was coming…
Maybe someone who could be reasoned with.
Reigen knew that there was no jam that he couldn't talk his way out of. He knew that he had to bring his 'a' game here. For Ritsu. He had to at least buy Ritsu enough time to get out. He didn't care what happened to him. He was almost thirty, he'd lived his life, but Ritsu was just a kid. He had so much time left and so much to do…and Reigen hoped that his lectures about never smoking had taken affect….and he hoped that Ritsu made it far enough in life that he got to make the choice about whether or not he started smoking.
He had to get Ritsu out of here.
Maybe these were reasonable people. Sure they kept prisoners…and were a part of a cult…but maybe he could convince these people that he and Ritsu had just been in the wrong place at the wrong time. That they had just been doing some hiking in the woods…in a suit and dress shoes…and that they had no idea that this…evil base thing…was out here. If that didn't work then maybe he could convince them that Ritsu had nothing to do with anything and that they should just let him go…and if that didn't work then there was always the almost green belt he had in judo…
He kind of wished that he had stuck with judo now…because he totally could have taken that cult guy!
There was a cult guy coming in now. He had a red and black uniform on with that same symbol….the one that Ritsu had shown Reigen. Those symbols, and ones that looked like it, were all around town. They were in little, hidden away, places. Carved into trees at the park. Scribbled in the backs of library books. Scratched into bathroom stall doors. There was even one written in cement down by that fancy gifted high school. Reigen…he wished that he had paid more attention…and when this was over he was paying all the attention in the world.
When, not if, when.
"Dinnertime prisoners!" said Claw Member Sato Isamu Level Three as he pushed the meal cart in to the newest prisoners. This was going to be great! More friends made them stronger, Mob had said so. Friendship was the only true show of strength in this world. They were stronger with friends than they were against enemies and that was why once they had enough manpower and money they were going to make the entire world their friends!
But first it was time to start with these two prisoners!
"Don't eat it, it could be poisoned." Whispered Ritsu. Reigen would eat anything, he was like a human garbage disposal, but this was not the time for that. Ritsu wasn't going to eat a single bite…even though it did smell good. Two trays were slid under the slot in the cell door. There was miso soup and white rice…fish….salad…even some fried pork. There were paper cups of what smelled like green tea, too, and also…a lot of milk cartons. White milk…and then chocolate milk…and then strawberry milk…and he was not going to drink the milk. That was how they got you, Ritsu had read, they drugged the milk to make you more suggestable.
To be safe he wasn't going to eat anything…even if he was really hungry…it was around dinnertime…and mom had been fixing pork curry….
"Don't be silly, little boy! We won't poison you, we want to be your friends. That's all. We want the both of you to join our friendship." Said Sato. He made sure to smile a lot, Mob said that smiles made everyone's day a little brighter. That was another important thing to do. Always smile, always be happy, always brighten people's days, and always make friends with everyone you met. When they took over the world then the only feeling that anyone would ever feel was happiness and everyone would be friends with everyone else!
Also there would be plentiful milk and jello for all!
"Yeah, you guys have a funny way of showing it." Said Reigen as he tapped the bars that held him in. That guy…his building was clearing missing a few bricks. Normal people did not smile like that….but this was not the place for normal people. This was some kind of new religion…evil cult…with deep ties to the yakuza…
Reigen was not in over his head. Not at all.
"Don't worry, the cell is just until we figure out what to do with the both of you. The Division Leader wants to keep you here but the President might want something else…and the both of you need to properly Awaken anyway…but don't worry! It's not so bad! Eventually you'll stop feeling anything at all. You won't even be able to tell if you're alive or dead!" said Sato. It had been worth it. Not only did he have powers now, he had a bright red aura like everyone else, he could move a playing card across the table in just under an hour without touching it once. That was amazing…and not only did he have powers but he was a part of the biggest friend group in the world…and Mob loved him too! She loved everyone and everyone loved her and she would take care of all of them for the rest of their lives…
She was such a good person….he got a little teary eyed…she was the best person in the whole world next to the President….
"Yeah that sounds great and all but we really aren't meant to be here. I mean we were just hiking in the woods and we had no idea that this…church…was out here. We're very sorry to have intruded on your house of worship and, honestly, we wouldn't be any good for your religion. I mean I'm a Buddhist on my father's side and that kid…he's…something…" said Reigen
"Shinto." Said Ritsu. He wasn't really anything but mom and dad were Shinto so maybe it was genetic…not that these people cared about religion. They only cared about worshipping their president and his family.
"Right. So, yeah. We don't know your religion or-" said Reigen
"It's not very complicated at all…and we have lots of Buddhists and Shintos too. If you need a religious holiday off then you just have to tell Mob and she'll make it an official Claw holiday. We get Christmas off, Hanukah, both the solstices, Buddha's birthday, Setsuban, children's day, lunar new year, normal new year, a bunch of feast days for Christians, golden week…that one's not religious but we have it off, Mob's birthday, Sho's birthday, the President's Birthday, all of Mob's very closest friend's birthdays, the first day each Disney Park is opened, but not the Emperor's birthday because that's a direct affront to the Suzuki family." Said Sato
"So your bosses are the Suzuki family?" asked Reigen. That was the same family, maybe, that owned the Suzuki Holding Corporation…the same corporation that owned a big chunk of Seasoning City….Ritsu had been right. The conspiracy went deep…
"They aren't just out bosses, no, they were sent down from the heavens to lead us. God, or the Gods, bestowed upon our President the greatest power that the world has ever seen. He's going to use that power to remake the world in what it's always been meant to be. The President took some of his power and made his two children. He has his firstborn son, Sho, and he's…around….and also there's his daughter Mob. Mob is the living avatar of the goddess of kindness and friendship. She loves us all and we all love her. We live by her kindness and one day if we work hard enough we can be her very close friends…sorry to cry….I just love her so much…" said Sato as he wiped his eyes.
"R…Right….." said Reigen. He was confident in his verbal sparring abilities…but with sane people. This guy…was messed up. He was pretty thoroughly messed up and…Reigen…for once in his life he had no idea how he was going to talk his way out of this one.
"You'll meet her one day. She'll come. She'll come…the President will send us his daughter…his first born daughter. He already gave us his second born daughter….she's cute…and his firstborn son so it's only a matter of time before he sends us Mob…and then everyone can be…we can all be happy…you'll both be so happy. If you make it through the Awakening. Not everyone does but it's ok. If you leave your physical body behind then you can stay here as a spirit. Like this guy I came in with, he was called Sato too, he didn't make it but that's ok because-" said Sato
"You're crazy!" said Ritsu. He couldn't listen to this. If he had to listen to another word, just one more word, his brain was going to melt out through his ears. This was…he had no idea how anyone could have been so insane!
"Ritsu, be….polite…" said Reigen. He was going to talk to Ritsu, later, about getting on your captor's good side. They needed to get these people to believe that they were all about….whatever the hell this was. These people thought that he and Ritsu were a good fit? Alright then, he and Ritsu would be the best damn cultists that this group had ever seen! Then, when they gained their captor's trust, they could make a run for it.
"This is the craziest thing I've ever heard! This is-" said Ritsu
"You'll come around, don't worry. I have faith in the both of you. You'll see. Now eat your dinner, there won't be any more food until breakfast…and I hope you like omelets because that's all we have for breakfast." Said Sato
"That sounds great! We love omelets…and praying to living Gods…and red jumpsuits too! And wearing blue ribbons!" said Reigen. He nudged Ritsu when he said that. This was…when Reigen got out of this he was writing a book. A nice tell all book about his time in the psychic cult. Then he was getting out of the psychic business, going back to law school, and also at some point he was taking a babysitting class too because he could not let this happen ever again. From now on he was being better to Ritsu…how could he ever have doubted him?
"Really?! Great, this is perfect! I'll can't believe I got you to come around so fast…I might just get a promotion for this! Maybe they'll let me be one of the people who shines the Suzuki family's shoes…" said Sato. Wow! Mob was going to be so happy with him. She didn't promote people personally but…well she would be happy with him and that would be even better than any promotion. Even the guy who shined their shoes…or even better…the guy who cut the President's hair. That was a good job, you got to keep the hair…though he would much rather have kept Mob's hair than her father's. He could have made a doll of her out of it and it would have been almost as good as having her near…
But that was insane. She never cut her hair.
"Yeah, we are one hundred percent on board for this. So you can get us fitted for our red jumpsuits right away." said Reigen. He had seen this, once, in a TV show. The trick was to identify with your captors…no. That was that thing he'd seen about Stockholm syndrome…and he had to make sure that they didn't catch that….what had they said in that thing about cults? If you were in a cult like situation you had to gain your captors trust and then escape the first chance you got…
He winced.
He wasn't going to be running away anytime soon…but Ritsu could. Ritsu could run away and get help…yeah. That would work. Ritsu could send help and then someone could do something about this. To think that there was a cult like this just…sitting out here in the woods. How many people had stumbled onto this insanity? How many people…he'd think about that later. Not now.
Now he just had to get Ritsu out of here.
"Don't be silly, you won't go straight to red. That's the highest level before you get to the Scars and squads. You'll start on black…and they aren't fitted. We have small, medium, large, extra large-" said Sato
"We don't want-" said Ritsu. He knew what was going to happen with him…and he just…he didn't want to…he didn't want any of this! He wanted to go home and…and he knew what was going to happen to him….he knew and…and he didn't want any of that stuff to happen! He didn't want to be Awakened and he didn't want to wear a red jump suit and he didn't want to go crazy like this guy…and…and he wanted to go home! Mom and dad were probably crying…..and they had already lost one kid….and he wanted…he didn't want…he didn't want to end up on the shrine next to Shigeko! He wanted to go home…and he wanted to play house with Tsubomi….and do his homework…and…and he wanted to visit grandma too!
He wanted…he wanted….to see his family again…and visit grandma too…and…and…and he wanted….that was what he wanted!
Even if mom and dad could be all….mom and dad…and even if grandma smelled like mothballs and pinched his cheeks…and even if cousin Tobio hit him with volleyballs when he messed up…he still wanted to see his family again….he wanted to see his friends again. He wanted to see Tsubomi again…even if she had been really weird lately….and if he ever saw her again he was telling her that he wasn't in love with her and he never could be in love with her. He was going to tell her that he didn't like girls….and he was going to tell mom and dad…and anyone else who asked…and if he ever saw Sho again he was going to tell him…
When. When he saw Sho again...not if. When.
He could feel Sho coming…he could hear him and feel him. Ritsu smiled. For the first time in forever he could feel himself smiling….because…Sho was there. He was there and….and Ritsu…he felt like he was melting from the inside. He knew that Sho was probably going to be pissed at him and…and he knew that he had messed up but…but was going to save him…
If he had been Tsubomi then he would have sighed.
"Hey! Leave them alone!" said Sho. He pushed that Awakened away with his powers. Fuck him and fuck this…and fuck Ritsu too! He had told Ritsu to stay the hell away and now…now he had gotten himself captured…Sho was going to save him. Sho didn't care if saving Ritsu made him a traitor. He didn't care if dad threw him down a traitor hole to die!
He couldn't let this happen to Ritsu
"Sho! This is Suzuki's son, the one I was telling you about. He's-" said Sato as he picked himself up. This was such an honor! Mob's younger brother, and President Suzuki's firstborn son, had knocked him over! He couldn't think of a greater honor!
"Did I fucking stutter? Get out of here!" said Sho. He kicked the Awakened again, this time even harder. He didn't care if he hurt this guy. He didn't care about anything anymore.
"Yes Sho-sama." Said Sato as he ran away. This was one of the best days of his life! He had made new friends for Claw and he had been hit, too, by a member of the Suzuki family…what had he done to deserve this!?
"I'm sorry about him…and all of this…just…hang on! I'll get you out of here and then I'll say sorry…just…hang on!" said Sho as the Awakened ran away…probably to go and tell his boss about this. Sho knew that he was going to get it…they were telling dad right now what had happened probably….he didn't have a lot of time.
"Sho…you came…" said Ritsu. Ok…he sighed that time. He hadn't meant to do that. He should have been telling Sho that he sucked for being a part of this and letting it get this far…but he was just so happy to be saved….and by Sho. He was just…he was in love. This was what love felt like. He had been about to get tortured and experimented on and whatever else they did to make people crazy here….
"Who's he?" asked Reigen. If this hadn't been such a life or death scenario he would have taken a picture just so he'd have something to torture Ritsu with later, when he grew up, and he would be growing up….not that there had been any question as to whether or not Ritsu would be growing up. No, the question had been as to whether or not Reigen would be around to watch Ritsu grow up…and he would…and he'd have years to take pictures to embarrass Ritsu with later on.
"This is Sho…the one who gave me the scar…" said Ritsu. That was all that he could come up with. He touched the scar….that was when they'd be. That was the first time Sho had saved him…and…he felt light. Sort of like that day when he'd been falling. He felt like…but also heavy. He was going to live…he was getting out of here. He was going to go home and see mom and dad again and see Tsubomi again and go to school and visit grandma…
He felt like he could have floated right off the ground….
"Hey! You only got that scar because I had to save your stupid ass….just like now! I told you to stay the fuck away from here! I told you to stay away from Claw and…and here you are! Your girlfriend told me you were going to the woods-" said Sho. Ritsu was a moron. He was a dirty, sweaty, smelly, crying, incredibly….a lot of things…moron! Sho…he had to focus. He tried to undo the lock…and this was hard! He knew how locks worked…door locks…and this wasn't a regular door lock. This was…something else….but he could get this! He would get this!
He had to get this!
"She's not my girlfriend." Said Ritsu quickly. No. Sho…couldn't think that. Ritsu…he wanted…a lot of stupid things. He loved Sho. This was what love felt like and he wanted to tell Sho that he loved him and that he was like nobody Ritsu had ever known before and that he wanted Sho to be his boyfriend…but that would have been stupid. He had to escape now and…and he felt like he had already escaped….but he hadn't.
He was still behind these bars.
"This is not the time, guys, this is not the time." Said Reigen with a shake of his head. His ankle was killing him, it was a long walk home, and he still had to worry about looking over his shoulder for the rest of his life. As cute as this was…it was not the time. Also that kid did not need to be distracted from…whatever it was that he was doing. Reigen could hear the lock clicking…but judging by the kid's face they weren't out of the woods yet…or even about to go into the woods…
They had to get out of here.
"What? I was just saying…she isn't my girlfriend. I don't even like girls." Said Ritsu. He was red. He…didn't even know how to say it…but he had to…if he never saw Sho again…and if he did escape he would probably never see Sho again…he just…he had to say…it was a dumb thing to worry about…being kidnapped and trapped and all….
Better to worry about this than all the other stuff that he had been worrying about.
"What?" asked Sho. He stopped working and looked up. Ritsu was red…and…and had he just said what Sho thought that he just said? Sho…he must have been losing it because…that just…for a minute it sounded like Ritsu had just said….
"I don't like girls." Said Ritsu simply. He just said it. I'm Ritsu. I'm ten years and ten months old. My favorite color is blue. I don't like girls. There. That was….not liking girls was just as much a part of himself as all of that…and he wanted to live…and if he made it through this then he was living his best life. Like mom's coffee cup said, you had to live your best life, and his best life was telling the truth about himself.
"Like…yet? Or at-at all?" asked Sho. His powers stopped listening and so did his voice…it took a couple tries to say that…but…Ritsu had just said….
"I'm gay." said Ritsu simply. He said it like he said everything else….but on the inside he wanted to run and hide…but he was in prison. There was nowhere to go. There was nowhere to hide. He just had to…stay there…with what he just said…
And also with Reigen and Sho staring at him.
"Wait…you're-" said Sho. How could he have just…SAID that?! Like…like it was nothing?! Like it was just a thing that you were allowed to say? That it was just a thing that you were allowed to be? That just….what!?
"Ritsu, way to figure yourself out. Let's discuss this in depth when we get out of here…unless you want to be fitted for a red jumpsuit that is." Said Reigen as he patted Ritsu on the back. Well good for him. He had figured himself out. He was gay and Reigen had no problem with that...but he did have a problem with being indoctrinated into a cult. So, yeah, maybe this wasn't the time to confess to the boy he had a crush on.
"You know I don't want that." Said Ritsu. He could feel himself blushing…he looked down at his shoes. He couldn't look up. He knew that Reigen was ok with it…and he hadn't been super afraid of Reigen not liking him anymore since he was Reigen….and it wasn't Reigen who he was worried about.
Sho was still looking at him.
"Then let him get us out of here." Said Reigen
"I'm trying….just…these locks are psychic proof or something….but at least it's not a power nullification room." Said Sho as he got back to work. Ritsu was gay and he was gay and he liked Ritsu and Ritsu could potentially like him…and he had a girlfriend but he could always break up with her…it would have hurt her but…but Ritsu might have liked him!
But that wouldn't matter if he didn't get Ritsu out of here!
"So you do steal people's powers here." Said Ritsu with a cough. He had to say something. He had to say something to cover up what he had just said. Ok…now people new…and when he got out of this then more people would know…and he didn't even know if he would ever see Sho again…or if Sho even liked him…but…
He needed to think about something else.
"What? No! We give people powers…well sometimes…just…we have to get out of here! Then we can talk and….and I just….why are you even here!? I told you not to come here! I told you to stay away! I told you that…that you'd get kidnapped and…and you had better run when I let you out! You had better run and then never come…come back…because you're not safe here!" said Sho. Ritsu had better not have been on this shit again! No! They didn't steal powers here….and…and he wasn't going to tell him what they did! The only thing that he had to do, that Ritsu ever would have had to do, was to run the fuck away already!
"Me? What about you? This place…the people here are crazy! This is a bad place! You…you need to leave to and-" said Ritsu. A crazy thought. They could run away together. They could run away together and…and they could leave all of this behind. He could hide Sho in his wardrobe and feed him leftovers from dinner. They could hide until they were adults and then they could run away together and live with false names in another country. He spoke pretty good English so they could move to one of those English speaking countries…and then they could be together…
Crazy thoughts.
"You think that I don't want to! I want to but I…I can't….but you can! So go already! Go before someone notices! Go and….oh shit." Said Sho. He felt it…his range was good…but he had been focused on Ritsu and his stupid face and the stupid stuff that he'd said and…and stupid stuff like that! He had been too focused on Ritsu that he had noticed that he'd been followed…
Mother fucker!
"That doesn't sound encouraging…." Said Reigen
"What? What're you freaking out about?" asked Ritsu. He reached through the bars and touched Sho's hand. He had stopped messing with the lock…and that didn't seem…good. He looked scared. Scared and mad and…and Ritsu…
Maybe he wasn't going to be escaping after all….
"Fuck…Fukuda followed me….fuck!" Said Sho. He held Ritsu's hand. He knew that he shouldn't have been doing that…because someone could have seen…but he had to! If he never got the change to again then…then he needed to do it now…or whatever. Fukuda…Fukuda wasn't on his side about this stuff. He was on dad's side when it came to stuff like this…and dad wanted as many espers as he could get…and…
And it was over now. It was all over. All he could do now was hold Ritsu's hand…and have his hand held back.