"Recollection"
Why? The question being repeated over and over again within her head.
Why did this happen so soon. To dream about it last night and become reality today just isn't fair. She hadn't thought it would happen right away. She had thought that they would have some time to prepare…To have a chance.
What could they do now? The girl's frustration was almost overcoming the sadness she felt for her friends. She stood there now gawking at the sight that which beheld her. She saw her friend, gun to his head, awaiting the fate that this man had in store for him.
They had overcome much in the past together, but now they were weak, in shock, helpless, and nothing was going to change that. She knew full well that they would get no help; there would probably be no miracle for them or Keiichi for that matter.
She could see Rika next to her, on the brink of tears. She could see that this was tearing her apart. Not the fact that Keiichi was going to get shot, but the fact that she couldn't help. The fact that the pledge she had made this morning would be left hollow and unfulfilled.
She watched the man adjust his stance in preparation. She could tell he wasn't going to wait much longer before he ended things. They were out of time.
He couldn't believe it. What had he done to deserve this?
He and his friends had banded together to stop themselves from being killed, and now someone was going to finish the job? That was shit, pure utter shit. It felt like a sucker punch what was going on.
He glanced back at his friends who were still standing where they had been at the window. They were all scared, scared for him. He hadn't thought about being afraid of what was going to happen. All he thought about was the unfairness of it all. He also thought about how him getting shot would affect the group behind him. He could only imagine the shock it would create. Mion would probably go ballistic; she never took anything lying down. Rena would most likely do the same, or remain in shock. The others were kids, young ones at that, he doubted that they would be able to hold it together if they saw him get shot. He didn't want that to happen.
"Hey!" He said to the man in front of him. "I want you to do me one last favor before you shoot me." The man chuckled lightly at that.
"And what would that be?" He didn't seem interested in whatever he had to say.
"I want you to let them leave before you shoot me."
The man focused hard on Keiichi. The request looked to have had an impact on him somehow.
"You want me to let them leave?" He sounded dumbfounded.
"Yes." He said, keeping his cool, "please let them leave and then you can do whatever it is you want to me."
"Kei-chan!" the expression coming from Mion who was unable to contain her disapproval over what he had said.
"Mion, take everyone outside, I don't want you here when this goes down."
"But Kei-chan that's-." She had been interrupted before she could finish her sentence.
"That won't be necessary," said the man from in front of him. "No one's going anywhere," the jurisdiction in his tone was undeniable.
"Why not?" He said, trying to convince the man of his choice.
"They are going to see this whether you like it or not." He didn't seem to care about the impact it would have on all the children in the room.
"I intend for everything to play out just the way I'd planned it." He could bet the man was smiling underneath the bandana that covered his mouth.
He couldn't believe what he was hearing. The man was intending to inflict such a large amount of emotional trauma on everyone else by killing him. That sickened him. Why should everyone have to suffer when he could bite the bullet himself? Fuck it. He told himself. He would just have to hope that everyone would be strong, that they would be fine even if he did get shot.
"Then don't harm them after you're done with me." He was speaking the words through clenched teeth.
"That, I will grant you." The man had said it with the ever so slightest bit of sympathy in his voice.
"Thank you." He said to the man, thinking that that would be the only gratitude he would ever give this man.
The man adjusted the gun so that it was a bit farther away from his face. He could now see clearly down the barrel of the weapon, the darkness inside beckoning to him.
He didn't close his eyes. He wouldn't give him the satisfaction of his total conceit. The gun would be the last thing he saw.
"You're brave," said the man, his tone easing up a bit.
"No, just stupidly determined." He felt that those words were a high enough note for him to end on. He was finished. He had done everything he could. He braced himself for impact…
He was expecting to hear the crack of the gun as it went off in his face, before the bullet hit him. But he heard nothing. He had accidentally closed his eyes as the man pulled the trigger. He had instantly regretted that. But now his regret was replaced with a new feeling, a wet feeling.
Water?
He felt water running down the front of his face where he imagined the bullet should have lodged itself.
Water? He thought again. He opened his eyes to see a thin spray of water coming out from the barrel of the gun, which was gently batting against the front of his face.
"What the hell?" He thought out loud as he took a few steps back from the man in front of him. He was aware that the man that had stood before him earlier and was emotionally devoid, was now laughing.
"The look on your face!" The man said aloud so that everyone in the room could hear him, "It was priceless." This was followed by an even stronger torrent of laughing.
He was furious. What the hell kind of game was this man playing? He had played a sick joke on him and he wanted to know why.
"What the hell was that for?" His question had made the man stop for a second before continuing his laughing.
"Oh come on, that was hilarious. You never get to see a reaction like that twice." He had absolutely no concern for the distressed teen in front of him.
He was about to say something hateful before the man started to take off the gear that was covering his face.
"What are you-?" The question was interrupted by the man speaking again.
"Honestly, I thought you would have understood what was happening Keiichi. You're so dense..." He realized that the man's voice was becoming less harsh, it almost sounded like a kid's.
Before he could say anything else the man tore off the mask and bandana hiding his face and dropped them to the classroom floor.
He was astonished. He couldn't believe who the man that stood before him was. But he knew the man, he knew him well. Also he couldn't necessarily call the man a man neither; he was still a bit too young to be called that.
"You're…" He couldn't find the words to say the person's name.
"It's been a while Keiichi. My friend.
Author's Notes
I wonder who the person in front of him could be.
Oh wait…I do.
After this chapter you'll start to understand just who this person really is.
Send me a review if you have some free time on your hands. Which you probably do since you took the time to read this.
O_o