Vol. 3
Chapter 12
High Hopes
Dazai's eyes narrowed. "You're kidding right?"
"No. I will be traded for that girl," Alu said, serious, looking at the three men. "I have an ability, and this is the only thing I can think of!"
Ranpo was quiet. Fukuzawa gazed at the girl and then Dazai. "We have no reason to believe he'd make the trade fair, and we won't risk one innocent life and lose both in the process," Fukuzawa said curtly.
"Everyone," Alu said, smiling sadly, "I appreciate your concern. But this is the only way."
Dazai grit his teeth. "It can't be!" He looked at her. "Can't you use your ability to just go back and grab the girl from his clutches?"
Alu smiled sadly. "Dazai, my ability works best when I have the details. Since I wasn't there at all, I don't have the means to save her that way. Even if I traveled to a point before that— he will always be one step ahead." Her tone was sharp and stern. "This isn't a man we can beat—I already tried."
"You failed once, we can try again!" Dazai said, urgent.
"It wasn't once," Alu said, looking at him with the eyes of someone who was trying to get him to understand the grave situation. "I tried to thwart him three times."
"You tried three times?" Ranpo asked, thoughtful. "Huh, interesting ability…it's a —-rewriting of a situation that's already happened—unique ability correct? However, you're limited and overexertion has it's toll. So is that why you're bleeding?" He pointed casually to the blood now coming out of her mouth in the corner.
Alu coughed, and covered her mouth, as Dazai and Fukuzawa's eyes flashed with alarm. "Tch," Dazai grit his teeth. "We need to get him, somehow!" He exclaimed with frustration. He had to think—what would he do now if he were in Fyodor's shoes?
"Mister Fyodor will see you all now!" A cheerful voice interrupted them from their conversation. They all turned, to see the little girl from before, smiling and gazing at them, hands clasped behind her back. She wore a little black dress, and no shoes. Just white knee high socks on her pale feet.
"Alu, don't go with her," Dazai said sharply.
Fukuzawa didn't want to strike down a child—even a dangerous one like this little girl. It left a bad taste in his mouth, though he knew that the possibility of fighting her was a very real unavoidable possibility. "Ranpo, go with Dazai and Alu, I'll draw her attention," he said curtly, stepping in front of the little girl, between her now and the others.
Alu wiped her mouth on her sleeve, and straightened up. She glanced at Ranpo though. Though she felt awkward being in his presence—this was not the time to bring her own personal problems into the mess. She was pleased that he was at least catching on. It made having to explain things so much easier. "Well, this situation sure isn't ideal," she huffed, commenting to Ranpo.
Ranpo blinked at her, and he adjusted his hat, replying, "We'll turn it in our favor. We always do!" He hummed, glancing at Dazai. "Okay! You there! Make yourself useful and take Alu wherever she asks you to!"
Dazai quirked an eyebrow at being bossed around by this short stack—he oddly reminded him of a certain brown-orange ginger shortie bad-taste-in-hats Mafia Member. He was going to make a snarky comment but just then, the little girl opened a hole near Alu. Alu however moved quickly and dodged. The little girl clicked her tongue in frustration. "Mister Fyodor just wants to talk to you all! Be good!" She whined, and she instead directed her black hole directly under Fukuzawa.
"Use your ability, Mister Fukuzawa!" Alu shouted, urgently.
Fukuzawa's eyes glinted —so that was her plan—and he brought out his sword swiftly, as though slicing through the physically space-based nature of the little girl's portal. It flickered with his sword tip glowing pale silver, like it had been bathed in moonlight, and her portal actually shimmered and then simply vanished. The little girl's eyes widened with alarm.
Before she could actually react, Fukuzawa let out a martial arts cry to draw on his energy, and used his strong martial arts energy to block her from escaping—proceeding to knock her out with the speed unmatched to anything or anyone Dazai had ever seen. This man was no joke. Even if he was odd and old. "What did you do?" Dazai found himself asking, stunned.
"It's a technique to relax the body and temporarily render it unconscious," Fukuzawa explained.
"Eh, it's a fancy way to say he just knocked her out," Ranpo interjected helpfully, shrugging.
Alu breathed with relief. "Oh thank goodness that worked," she said, smiling at Fukuzawa and Ranpo. Ranpo and Fukuzawa looked at her. Fukuzawa picked up the little girl in his arms.
"You mean you didn't know if it would?" Fukuzawa asked, deadpan.
Alu scratched her head, meekly, "Not really. I mean—I don't know much about your ability. Just that it can simplify another person's and make it less powerful…"
Dazai had a feeling she was someone to wing things on the daily basis. Not always a great plan for strategy. He worried that wouldn't actually work against someone like Fyodor—especially since he was beginning to understand Fyodor's perspective on the kind of person Alu was and how she would act according to prediction. Thinking like that rat wasn't what worried Dazai—he could level with someone as cold and calculating as himself— what he was worried about was that he knew whatever he was capable of—was exactly what Fyodor would be capable of also.
Ranpo pointed at Alu, impatient. "Okay, so what's the plan?"
Alu blinked. "Oh, uh…" she said, realizing she didn't have a speech prepared. Ranpo was being bratty—but she had a feeling he was always like this. She wondered why he was getting involved if this wasn't technically a mystery case—but a rescue mission. She grimaced, remembering with a pang their differing views on the boy, Ryou. Gazing now, at the little girl, Alu knew for her plan to work, everyone else would have to be kept in the dark, for now. However, Ranpo was sharp, and she was weary about her ability to hide her true intentions from him. Sure enough, he made a noise of irritation, having put on his glasses.
"You really think going with him will get you closer to the boy?" Ranpo asked, sharply. "You know the risk—if you go with that man it's only because you're not planning on coming back to us, are you."
His accusation hung in the air.
Dazai and Fukuzawa looked at Alu, bewildered.
Alu however, felt her heart sink. She looked at Ranpo, pained. She knew hiding this intention from him was impossible. "Yeah. I want you to take the girl—get her somewhere safe. It's too late for me. Dazai… you and I will go to Odasaku and Miss Yosano. Mister Fukuzawa and Ranpo… you do what you feel is best to ensure that little girl doesn't return to Fyodor," Alu turned away, breaking eye contact from Ranpo's angry piercing green eyes.
Fukuzawa was about to interject but Ranpo just grabbed his sleeve and began to drag him away, irritated. "Don't bother. She wants to run a fool's errand, then let her," Ranpo said, curtly.
"But—?" Fukuzawa tried to protest but Ranpo's angry face made him quiet. He just followed Ranpo, still holding the little girl.
"For now, we have to prioritize keeping this little girl out of the way," Ranpo said sharply, still walking and tugging Fukuzawa along the sidewalk, as they turned out of the apartment complex. "Alu will have to deal."
"Can you explain more clearly what we're supposed to do? How can we prevent this dangerous man from getting his hands on her?" Fukuzawa asked, upset and confused.
"President," Ranpo glanced at him, slowing down, and finally letting go of his sleeve. Fukuzawa blinked.
"Ranpo?"
"That girl—" Ranpo finally said, looking over his shoulder at Fukuzawa. He remembered the way Alu had looked at him. Her eyes. Her eyes said it all. She never voiced anything. She didn't have to. An apology beyond words was present there—and a resolve to see this not fail another time.
"—Has chosen her path."
—X—
Dazai gripped the steering wheel. Alu sat in the passenger seat, just gazing out of the left side window of the car. It drove along the road, headed for the address Alu put into her phone. They'd already notified Fyodor that she was on her way. Dazai hated feeling like they were playing right into that bastard's hands.
"Dazai, it's okay," Alu said, gazing at him.
"Just answer me," he said curt, eyes staring straight ahead at the road "why the hell can't I remember the last three rewrites?"—without missing a beat.
Alu smiled wryly. "It's not exactly a memory wipe but let's just say that I spared you the first three failures…" she gazed at the scenery going by. "This man—no matter what we did, found a way to kill that little girl every time. Not only that, but in one of those attempts Odasaku was injured badly and in another one—all the orphans did die." Of course, she left out the parts involving everyone she cared about getting harmed. The less he knew the better. Especially since she planned to get it right this time. There was no other option for failure. If she couldn't do it right this time…then it really would be a win for that man, Dostoevsky.
Dazai grimaced. Yeah, this guy sounded like a piece of work. He wouldn't expect anything less from his evil Russian twin. Evil? No… Dazai's eyes flickered. Was he really different from that rat? What was it, Fyodor had said?
The city is full of rats, rats that fester in the underbelly bringing their plague to humanity. An inescapable wave of death. Yeah, Dazai sort of only half-listened to this man waxing poetry about rats. To be honest he had been more concerned with the knife sticking out of his stomach at the time they'd spoken at Alu's old hideout.
"What's different about this time?" Dazai found himself asking. He didn't really enjoy the thought of her wiping his memory or whatever, but there had to be a reason. He could feel something in the back of his mind, like an itch. He just had to find a way to scratch it.
"We let him win," Alu said bluntly.
"Alu, I'm not handing you over to him," Dazai said, slowing down behind some traffic. He gazed at her, frowning.
"If you don't, he'll continue to target Odasaku," Alu said bluntly.
"What the hell would he even want with Odasaku?" Dazai grimaced. "You two don't even know each other that well!"
"It has nothing to do with me," Alu said, curtly. "Let's just say I gleaned some information about Mimic from him. Apparently, he is working with their leader—as we speak," she said darkly, explaining to Dazai as his expression flitted to shock and then cold realization.
"I see…So he picked up the pieces then," Dazai growled, referring to Mori Ogai's original involvement with Mimic and Gide. Dazai had a hunch before but Alu had confirmation. Although it appeared Mori Ogai had no more use for Mimic's leader, he had done nothing to stop Gide from still targeting Odasaku—apparently through this new lead. Between the devil he knew and the devil he didn't, Dazai actually wished Gide was still working with the devil he did know. At least then, he'd be predictably easy to pick off.
"Yeah, and his men have Sakura," Alu continued, demeanor serious. Dazai thought hard about what the best course of action would be here. His mind raced for ways to win but the damn kids kept getting in the way. He couldn't figure out a solution that didn't involve some level of damage. Damn that Fyodor Dostoevsky. Odasaku taking care of orphans that weren't even supposed to be his problem also still frustrated Dazai even if he didn't say it out loud. On some level, he wished Odasaku was able to give them up—after all in this world you only have yourself to look out for. Things just get messy when you start caring about other people.
Of course, he was one to talk. He cared little about humanity but when it came to Odasaku, he couldn't bring himself to not care.
Click.
Dazai blinked, confused, and his head turned. His eyes widened. "What are you doing!" He watched as Alu just opened the door of the car, and the light turned green at the traffic stop leading out of the city. She got out and shut the door. Dazai was bewildered. He quickly unbuckled—screw the car— and he got out as well. Cars honked at them but Alu dashed down an alley.
Dazai followed, in hot pursuit, honestly confused at this random turn of events. "What the hell is going on! Hey!"
It was like his questions fell on deaf ears.
Rounding the corner, his eyes widened with shock. Standing, in between two buildings, in the alley, casually, was Sakaguchi Sango, and with him were Ranpo and Kunikida. Ranpo waved. "Yo~ glad you made it!" He grinned at Alu.
Kunikida tapped his foot, anxious. "This isn't the time for cheerful chatter! There's a little girl's life on the line!" he barked at Ranpo.
Dazai just stared, slowing to a halt. His eyes were wide as he looked back from Alu and forth to the others. Ango didn't address Dazai, instead looking to Alu, like Dazai wasn't there. "Did they take the bait?"
Alu nodded. "Yeah, looks like the ones tailing us were dealt with by Kunikida, right?"
"Tch, I'd like to remind you crazy people that I'm a math tutor, not a super spy," Kunikida griped. "I would like some context before I get thrown into a fight against some crazy ex-militia!"
Dazai just continued to stare. What was going on? He was so confused. Alu had been talking like there was only one way to win. Wasn't turning herself in, the only way? Dazai didn't think he had been deceived, but he had no idea just what her plan was. Spontaneity was dangerous. He worried that more than anything that her disorganized way of planning was what had made her fail the first three times. But he had no way of assessing that because his memories of all three times were hazy at best. Just what was it that this girl couldn't do? What was this "fox" of hers? Dazai found himself with so many more questions than he even had the time for.
"Alright, time for operation "MilkShake!" Alu said brightly, putting her hands on her hips, and pointing to Dazai and Ango.
The four men stared at her. Ranpo however stroked his chin. "huh, I like it, but wouldn't this mission be best suited to be Cookie Crumble?"
"Sure if we want to imply it's going to fail," Alu said, shrugging.
Kunikida politely pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose, and interjected with the tone of a man attempting to be a cool cucumber and not a hot pepper, "Kindly let us get back to the more serious topic at hand."
"Ah, right," Alu blinked and she pointed again to Ranpo and Kunikida. "You two will go with Dazai to the Fairgrounds. Agent Sakaguchi and I will head to where Fyodor is."
"Wait—why am I not going with you," Dazai cut in sharply. He glared at Ango.
"Logically speaking, your sharp intellect will prove more useful to safely procuring that girl from the grasp of Mimic than chasing after Odasaku and getting in the way," Ango said, curtly.
Alu sighed. Ah, the boys were going to chew each out. Grand. "Boys, please!" She said with a huff. "I will flip you both again," she said darkly.
Surprisingly enough—they both remembered how that felt and grimaced, shutting up at least for the moment. Alu clasped her hands together. "Wonderful! Ranpo," she turned to him, and she nodded. "I'm counting on you," she said, gazing at him. Actually, she still hadn't had a chance to apologize in any of the rewrites—-but after Sakura was safe and Fyodor was dealt with, she made a mental note to properly address Ranpo about before. The fact he was being mature and helping with this rescue attempt was enough for Alu. She figured he was doing it since president Fukuzawa had ordered it but still, she appreciated his sharp mind on this case. She had a feeling both he and Dazai would make a good team with Kunikida as brawn to back them up. Ranpo just gave her a thumbs up, hand on his hip, with a smirk. She gazed at him for a moment, before she turned to Kunikida. "I know today was a lecture day—I'm sorry for asking this of you on short notice," she said, smiling apologetically. She still found it hard to believe that Kunikida was no older than Dazai. He really did act so much older.
Kunikida huffed but he crossed his arms. "Tch. School is important but so is the safety of a young child's life—I could hardly sit in a classroom while someone is in trouble before my eyes."
"We have our roles, let's get started then, shall we?" Ango curtly interjected, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose, impatient.
Dazai grimaced. Oh well. At least he didn't have to work with this guy. "Can he take the bullets?" He asked, helpfully and hopefully.
Alu rolled her eyes. "No, Dazai. Bad Dazai. We're not using him as a human body shield," she replied, chastising Dazai, deadpan. Dazai's face fell comically.
Ango just sighed deeply. At least the girl was on his side. Huh, that oddly made Ango feel something unfamiliar. He couldn't place this feeling. It wasn't romantic—to be clear— it was just calming.
"Alright. Let's go," Ranpo said briskly, with a grin.
Dazai did blink. "Wait, so what is the plan?"
Alu gave him a thumbs up, "These three will go to the Ferris wheel where the little girl is tied with a bomb in one of the cars—and you'll be the one to undo it somehow before it goes off in the next hour. "
Dazai blinked. "Wait, that's —incredibly dangerous! That's practically suicide!"
"Then it's perfect for you," Kunikida interjected, glaring at him, hands on his hips. "Mister Suicidal Womanizer," he huffed, glaring at Dazai. Dazai smiled at him, scratching his head like he was completely innocent of that title.
"Oh, I see my reputation has gotten around quickly," he chuckled.
"I still have every intention to get you to apologize to the president for how you treated him!" Kunikida got revved up and Alu patted his arm, causing him to momentarily break from his incoming lecture rant for Dazai.
"You three, get going," Alu said serious.
Kunikida quieted. He huffed though. He normally didn't care to take orders from a child but Ranpo trusted her—so he would as well. Alu watched as the three men left. When they had, she turned to Agent Sakaguchi.
Ango gazed at her, still confused about one thing. "How are we going to get to where they are?"
Alu tilted her head. "We're going to get this russian rat to go for the cheese."
"Huh?" Ango was confused. She was speaking like Dazai would honestly.
Alu smirked. "Tell me, Ango, why do you think you're here?"
Ango gazed at her. She was asking him this question but her tone was unsettling. He grimaced. Did she perhaps harbor some dislike towards him after all? Or had Dazai actually managed to convince her that he was really someone incapable of having a good opinion of? Then again, he had tried to kill her. "I chose to be here to help you when you asked for it," he said, giving what he felt was a scripted answer but it was the best one he could think of.
"Is that all?" Alu tilted her head. "Or are you here out of a sense of guilt?"
Ango grimaced. She was looking right through him. Honestly, she and Dazai did have a lot of similarities. If they had gone around claiming to be related—he honestly could believe it. "Do you hate me?" he found himself asking, countering her question with another question. He may as well establish where they stood now.
"Why would I hate you?" Alu held out her hand to him, smiling, bemused. "I chose you because I like you."
Huh? Like? Him? Ango looked comically confused. Alu snickered. "So I'm here because you like me?" He asked, confused. Was this a confession? No. Not a romantic one. It didn't feel that way. It felt more like she was interested in him as a partner of crime.
"Yeah, you're someone I'd like to work with," she said, confirming his earlier thought. "I just want you to know that having you here, honestly puts me at ease." She smiled at him, and he couldn't detect anything negative. She was trusting him? He put her at ease? He didn't know what to make of that. "Let's work hard, okay?"
Ango felt something cold soften just a little inside himself. His job demanded perfection, no room for error, amongst other stressful and sometimes cold calculations. But working with her? Trying to make up for his mistakes. Was this how he could redeem himself? He realized this girl was giving him a chance to redeem himself. He wanted to—in her eyes at least. He nodded, determined to save that little girl from the russian terrorist for the sake of getting Alu to fall more to his side—he would recruit this girl for Chief Officer Taneda, no matter what. "I'm ready."
In the meantime, Odasaku and Yosano stared off tensely with Fyodor. The boys were still outside, playing and they could hear the shouting from the glass door, though it was muffled. Fyodor himself lounged comfortably against the sliding glass door itself, just smiling, arms crossed.
Yosano grit her teeth. She hated feeling so helpless.
Odasaku too, just stood numb, honestly. Nothing he could do would keep those orphans safe. Fyodor had made it clear that one wrong move would lead to their demise. He had no choice but to rely on the agency members. But, Fyodor was counting on that—which made Odasaku and Yosano both worried.
Kousuke tapped on the glass door and Fyodor moved aside, letting Kousuke open it. "Hey! Odasaku! We're bored! Wanna play?"
Odasaku felt his heart drop. He had to act naturally. He had to act like a crazy mad man was not standing between him and Kousuke. Fyodor gazed at Odasaku and then turned to Kousuke, smiling. "We're in the middle of an adult conversation, maybe he can play after?"
Kousuke looked at Fyodor. "Oh, you can play too," he said blankly. "But we're bored and we need to add some more players!"
Fyodor thoughtfully tapped a finger to his lips. "Oh? I suppose you're right." He hummed. "Why don't we all play with the boys," he smiled, beaming at Yosano and Odasaku. "I personally love spending quality time with them," he hummed, knowing it would further agitate Odasaku and Yosano. Plus, he knew flexing this would allow him to keep an eye and get close to the others. He did wonder where little Yari was. She was supposed to be the connection for that girl and Dazai to come through.
Fyodor wasn't concerned. He had many clever ways to go about cornering that girl. Besides, if that little girl had been captured again that was her own fault for being useless. He sighed. You can't trust children to do an adult job, after all. Going outside, he hung back, as Odasaku and Yosano stiffly just walked out as well. He beamed at them. They both looked uncomfortable. Excellent.
Kousuke just smiled and waved to Katsumi, Shinji, and Yuu. "Okay! We're going to be playing against the adults!"
"Four against three isn't very fair," Fyodor mused.
"Oh, Shinji asked to be tagged in. He'll just be on the sidelines reading one of his boring books," Kousuke replied, shrugging.
"Reading isn't boring," Fyodor replied, amused. "I find it's a very enlightening experience," he hummed, good naturedly.
Kousuke just raised his eyebrows. "You're weird," he remarked, and he ran off to the others. Fyodor just continued to smile, unaffected.
Odasaku's muscles were screaming. His mind was screaming. His boys were still in the dangerous viscinity of this man. He had no way to free them. There was no way to get them away. No way to predict what this man was capable of. Yosano, though she hid it well, was also very frustrated as she took her forward position.
Kousuke and Yuu took position as the Forward/Midfielders and Katsumi took the goalie position. Odasaku and Yosano found themselves on the front lines, with Fyodor taking the goalie position. They wondered if that was symbolic of their current situation somehow. It was ironic, their last line of defense to prevent losing was that Russian's position.
"Let's play!" Kousuke said loudly, and he passed the ball. Odasaku and Yosano didn't have their hearts in the game—but they had to stall for time. Just as Fyodor was close—they could at least be just as close.
The ball passed around, before Kousuke grinned, passing Odasaku with a cackle and he aimed a kick at Fyodor with the ball. Fyodor was oddly quick and he managed to stop the ball gracefully though Kousuke had put in a powerful kick. Kousuke and Yuu looked dissapointed.
"Aw!" Yuu panted. "He's good!"
"Yeah! You should play for our team next!" Kousuke shouted at Fyodor.
Fyodor hummed, and he placed the ball on the grass near the corner of the goalie pole for a kick. He used to play various games as a small child himself. But, he didn't dwell too much on his own past. It'd been a long time since he'd even thought about his own childhood. Playing soccer was a bit surreal. He found he disliked reminders that he had once been small and helpless. But this game did benefit him in this case. He kicked the ball so it passed to the opposite side. Kousuke and Yuu scrambled for it.
Fyodor just slunk back to the goalie post, to lurk and observe.
Odasaku and Yosano half-heartedly tried to stop Kousuke and Yuu from getting a shot in. "Our only goal is to keep them away," Odasaku said quietly, just so Yosano could hear, while they panted, side by side.
"Agreed," Yosano said. She wiped her forehead. "Let's do our best."
Odasaku nodded. "Yeah."
Kousuke got to the ball first, and he turned on his heel, redirecting it down the line. Fyodor eyed the ball, keen to not allow it to get into the goal—or hit himself. He was bemused at how natural everyone was supposedly acting, and revelling in the panic the adults were feeling. He always had found a sadistic pleasure in stripping away the sense of any control from others.
Odasaku and Yosano half-heartedly tried to block the ball from being passable to Yuu. Kousuke grinned and he aimed his kick really hard for Fyodor's goal. Fyodor's eyes flashed and he reached up, catching the ball. His fingertips brushed the ball and he found himself actually off balance before he skidded back, his back against the net. Breathing hard, he opened his arms, revealing the ball. Kousuke stamped his foot with frustration. "Aw darn! I was so close! For an old guy you're really fast!"
"I'm not that old," Fyodor said, bemused, catching his breath, regardless. Kousuke started to trot over but Odasaku blocked his path.
"Eh, Odasaku?" Kousuke whined, "no fair! You're so tall!" He grinned at Odasaku with a mischievous smirk, and ducked past him, headed towards Fyodor. "You gotta teach me how you block like that!" Fyodor was quiet, as he just tossed the ball to Kousuke. He was getting a little impatient, himself.
Odasaku tried to grab him. "Kousuke! Don't!"
Kousuke paused, looking at Odasaku, wide eyed. "Odasaku? Is something wrong?"
Yosano tried to think of something but the tension was just building and now it was something even the kids were detecting.
Fyodor figured now was a good time to really get the ball rolling—heehee, a soccer joke, so clever. Yes, he would grab this boy and start taking their lives one by one if he had to. His eyes widened as he felt the ground underneath him give way with no warning. Kousuke hopped back with wide eyes.
"!?"
Fyodor's jaw suddenly connected with the knuckle of a blurred entity, rising out of the very earth itself. He felt his head snap back, jaw in excruciating bruised pain, as he suddenly found himself flying through the air and back into the goal he had been defending.
Odasaku and Yosano looked on, with surprise as Alu straightened up, grinning, and rubbing her knuckle, "Sorry I'm late. It's only half—time right?" She smirked at them.
"Alu!" Yosano sounded relieved and confused.
"Tch," Fyodor recovered quickly, straightening up from the goal, wiping his bloody lower lip. "That wasn't very civil."
"I thought that was very democratic," Alu smiled at him. "I took a vote before we decided to punch you and everything~"
"We?" Fyodor's eyes narrowed.
Alu whistled shrilly. Ango slid open the sliding glass door, gun drawn, and pointed at Fyodor. Fyodor's eyes flickered. He began to smile, absolutely gleeful. She was going to try something after all? How entertaining! He couldn't wait to ruin it for her and everyone else involved. His jaw hurt like a lot though. But he was used to pain. Tasting the blood agitated him. He hated that he was physically weaker than a normal person. But God put him on this earth for a reason. He just took out his phone, smiling. "You're right. It's time to begin the second half."
