This World

by Lee, TD

  “I can’t possibly imagine what it’s like to live in that kind of world or mindset Hiro. I wish I could, but I can’t. What I want to do is to help you. It hurts seeing you like this. So please, Hiro, let me help you. Let Sadie help you,” I respond.

  “But I don’t want to burden you two. The two most important people in my life, I can’t do that,” he says as he shakes his head.

  I squeeze Hiro into me tightly. “Burden us. You can’t live life alone. We want to help. So please, let us help. Even if it’s hard for you to come to us with this stuff, just try. We’re here for you, we’re friends for a reason. Sadie’s your girlfriend for a reason. It’s not because we feel bad for you, it’s because you’re an amazing guy who deserves amazing things. We care and we hope that you know that.”

  "I dunno, I just really don't want anyone to worry about me,” Hiro remarks.

  "You sure chose the wrong kind of dream to have if you want people to not worry about you," I laugh. Seriously, being a hero is like the worst kind of profession if you don’t want people worrying about oyu.

  Hiro returns the laugh, saying, "Yeah, you're right. I just feel bad, like a burden when people are worrying about me. My mind just can't stop thinking that people have way more important things to do or think about than to worry about me. Just, who am I to occupy someone's time like that you know?"

  "Listen Hiro, people worry about you because they care. You can't change that, it's just human nature. Some people may worry too much, but it happens. And it's normal for people to worry about people they care about," I respond.

  "Yeah, I know. It's just, I feel bad."

  "Don't."

  "Yeah, I know." He chuckles quietly, his arm wraps against my body as he pulls me in for a really tight hug. “Thank you Ridley. It seems like I have a lot to work on.”

  “Me and you both bud,” I respond, patting my hand on his shoulder.

  So this is Hiro, this wonderful, awesome guy who does his best to help everyone and be happy for the sake of others thinks he’s the worst. No matter what he does, he doesn’t feel like it’s enough nor does it seem he think he’s good enough. No wonder he always has such a passionate drive to help others. In order for him to be satisfied with himself, he has to get that confirmation that he’s actually helping others. It’s not easy living like that. These self-placed expectations aren’t healthy. He knows that.

  We release each other. “You know, I would be piloting Lancelot and going through all of these hypothetical, fake arguments with you that I would win because I would make all of these points that you couldn’t possibly refute. I’d be frustrated, angry, even sad when I would be going through these hypotheticals. But in the end, now that I know you’re safe, all of that has gone away. It’s quite the relief,” he says, tossing a nearby stone into the waters far below.

  “I feel like everyone does that every so often,” I add, chuckling a bit.

  Hiro turns his head towards me and asks, “How are you feeling by the way? Considering what happened today, it wouldn’t be weird if you’re feeling off.”

  “How am I feeling?” I murmur. How am I feeling? Sure, I did get mind controlled again, but the after effects are different than the first time from what I can tell. Maybe it’s just the fact that Hiro and I reconciled, but I feel better than I have been for a while now. “I’m feeling pretty good now. The mind control isn’t much of a problem anymore,” I answer.

  Hiro smiles, his eyes gazing back at the city in front of us. “Good. I was afraid you’d be feeling weird from the mind control and just generally lonely because of what happened between us.”

  “Lonely?” I question, tilting my head a bit. “I’ve been okay, but what about you? Sadie said something about you feeling lonely to me earlier.” I haven’t been feeling lonely. Or have I? Sure, when I was with Jaron and the others, I wasn’t lonely, but I didn’t quite feel like I was a part of that group either.

  Hiro smiles. “She sure told you everything didn’t she?”

  “Yeah, but it at least got us talking again,” I reply.

  “Well, yeah, I’ve been feeling lonely. I feel bad because I do have Sadie, but even then I feel lonely. It probably doesn’t make sense, but it’s possible to feel lonely even when you’re around other people. Kinda like you’re just lost within the crowd kinda deal,” he explains, sighing deeply.

  “You always seem to be having such a great time with other people that it's hard to see that you're lonely,” I say, kicking my feet against the cliff. “But, you’re right though. Loneliness isn’t something you necessarily have to feel when you’re alone. But I’ll do my best as your friend to ease that on you.”

  “Thanks,” Hiro responds quietly with a smile.

  Another silence falls upon us. It’s peaceful though, not awkward. A silence of understanding. We’re just enjoying the view of the city, the gentle droplets of rain, the fresh sea breeze, and the embrace of the night.

  Hiro quietly starts chuckling. I turn to him asking, “What’s up?”

  He continues to chuckle. “So did you see? I got to work with Meteor. It was awesome!” he repeats himself with more enthusiasm.

  I return the laugh. “Yeah, I saw. It was pretty great.”

  “Great? It was amazing! Finally, I got to work with my favorite superhero, even for a little bit! It was so cool. He called me MechaKnight, maybe that should be a new codename for me. MechaKnight, sounds cool doesn’t it? And did you see him holding the explosion in place and sending it into the air? How cool was that!? That must take a lot of energy and focus to do, it’s so cool that he was able to do it. Oh man, I wish he would’ve said his catchphrase to me again, that would be so cool!” Hiro rambles about the events that happened earlier. This is the usual Hiro I know, the guy who loves superheroes and will talk your ear off about them. It’s amazing, really, to see how much passion this guy has when it comes to superheroes.

  “Anyway,” Hiro remarks. He stands up and dusts off the dirt on his suit. “You hungry?

  “I could eat,” I say. I can feel my stomach grumbling quietly. “Got a place in mind? It’s pretty late.”

  Hiro gasps happily, “What about that sushi place with the capsule toys.”

  “Uh, sure, it’s open this late?” I question.

  “Yeah! I go all the time. It’ll be my treat, let’s go,” Hiro says as Lancelot’s hands move to the ground, allowing the rain to hit me.

  I chuckle quietly to myself. “I would’ve thought you’d want to go to a fancier place since you’ve become a hero and all.”

  Hiro chuckles as he hops onto Lancelot’s hand. “Believe it or not, being a hero doesn’t pay very much.”

  Chapter 15

  100 plates. Hiro ate 100 plates of sushi all by himself! He said that he didn’t really eat at all that day so all of his appetite just sorta happened at the restaurant. The guy can definitely pack away the food, holy shit. For every five plates, you have the possibility to win a capsule toy. Hiro won four toys, which is actually kinda sad considering he ate 100 plates, but he’s satisfied that he just won anything at all. The owners of the restaurant were so surprised by Hiro’s appetite that they even wanted to take a picture of us, or well they wanted a picture of Hiro, but Hiro dragged me into the picture anyway. On the other hand, I didn’t win any, but I only ate ten plates.

  We ended up talking a lot about so many things. Superheroes, games, shows, people, food, places we want to go, almost anything you can think of. We were at the restaurant for hours into the morning as if we were rekindling our lost friendship. Luckily, it’s a weekend tomorrow so we don’t have to worry about waking up early for school. Although, he did mention something being on patrol pretty early. Tonight was pretty invigorating to be honest. It’s been a long time since Hiro and I have talked about nothing and everything. What is it about eating that kinda brings out conversation in people?

  Regardless, it was getting really late so Hiro dropped me off at home and he flew off to the Mobile Knights facility.
I have to admit, it was pretty cool being flown and carried by a mech like that. Not many people can say they’ve experienced something similar. As soon as I get into my room, I fall flat on my bed and knock out for the night.

  A combination of loud cars and the cold breeze wakes me up. Rain rhythmically hits everything in its path. A bit of rainwater seeps through my window, trickling down the wall. I must’ve forgotten to close the window last night. My body shivers as I try to make myself even more cozy with my blankets. It’s a weekend, can I just sleep in?

  My question is answered when my phone lets out a wail. A text message?

  Yo Ridley! You down to hang out today? I just finished with my errands for the day. So I was thinking about hitting up the new arcade that opened up downtown!

  Ah, Hiro. Classic Hiro.

  Going to an arcade does sound fun. I have nothing else better to do today anyway, except finally finishing the RPG I have yet to touch. Oh well. Now that I’ve rekindled things with Hiro, I think hanging out with him some more is good. Plus, it’ll give me an excuse to see if I can find any Kirika stuff downtown.

  I reply back with a simple:

  sure

  Hiro also replies back quickly:

  Awesome! Let’s meet up at the train station!

  With that, I quickly get ready for the day. Wait, it’s 12 already? Yeah, I better hurry actually.

  Good thing I’m not fashionable, otherwise it would take me forever to get dressed. I throw on a simple outfit, shower, brush my teeth, and head out the door with an umbrella.

  I inhale deeply, taking in the cold air and rainy smell. A weird tingling sensation overcomes my fingers. Is it because I’m cold? Gah, whatever, I have to go meet up with Hiro.

  There’s strangely a lot of people out and about on this rainy day. Or is this normal? I can’t really even tell anymore. I’m still a little shaken up by the incident yesterday. I’m not traumatized or anything, but it does rub me the wrong way every time I think about it. It’s probably really weird that I’m not really freaking out about what happened, but it’s nothing too different from what has happened in the past anyway. That reminds me, I should text Jaron, Beth, or Pat to see if they’re okay. I haven’t heard anything from them since yesterday, but maybe they’re just recovering. Disaster Relief really does work wonders considering the city still looks as polished as it always has.

  As I’m waiting for the train, I take a quick glance around. A familiar girl is leaning against one of the many pillars. Her name, I think, is Ainia. She’s in my class, but I’ve never talked to her. Never had a reason to. She always looks like something is on her mind. Right now she’s staring intently at her phone, large headphones cover her ears. She’s completely engrossed in her own world right now. She’s a superhero isn’t she? She was part of that assembly after all. Hmm, wonder what kind of powers she has.

  The train arrives and it’s a pretty quick ride to the correct station I need to stop at. There’s something about rain in the city that makes me really admire the cityscape. Maybe it’s the somber, gray clouds that loom over the city. Maybe the raindrops making everything wet just gives a nice aesthetic. Or rather it’s the nice rhythm of the raindrops that add some music to the loud world. Or maybe it’s just me being weird today. Seriously, is it just because I patched things up with Hiro that I’m feeling this way or is it because I’m just admiring the world more?

  When I exit the train station, I’m greeted by the familiar pilot. “Ridley!” Hiro greets me, pulling me in for a strong hug.

  “Hey.”

  He releases me. He’s wearing normal clothes for once. Even though I’ve probably only seen him in that jumpsuit a handful of times, it feels like he’s always wearing it. “You eat yet?” he asks as we start walking.

  “Nope, you?” I ask back.

  He shakes his head. “Nah, let’s get some food before hitting up that arcade.”

  “Got a place in mind?”

  “Hmm. Choose a number: one or two?” he says, even putting his hands up to represent the numbers.

  “Uh,” I stammer, “two, I guess?”

  “Cool, Chiffon Room it is,” Hiro announces, taking the lead as usual.

  I smile a bit. “What was the other choice?”

  He rubs the back of his neck, smiling as he says, “I was actually kinda feeling for more of the capsule sushi place.”

  I pause a bit before I reply. “You really wanna go back there for the capsule toys don’t you?”

  “Yeah, you right,” he replies with a chuckle.

  As we’re walking to the Chiffon Room, a rather large imposing man hastily bumps into us. Without saying anything to us, the man continues to keep walking. Looking behind us, the man is doing the same to the several other people that were walking behind us.

  “Wonder what’s up with that guy,” Hiro remarks.

  “He kinda seemed like he was in some sort of daze or something like that,” I add. Seriously, the guy didn’t even look like he knew where he was going.

  Hiro shrugs his shoulders, resuming to keep walking. “As long as he’s gonna be okay and doesn’t do anything to anyone, then I think it’s okay.”

  We continue walking in the cold embrace of the rain until we reach the Chiffon Room. We’re immediately greeted by the usual host who shows us to a table next to a window. Hiro and I order our usual today rather than trying something new.

  Rainwater taps the window gently. There’s quite a bit of people wandering outside, each of their steps splashing. There’s a weird peaceful ambience that drifts throughout the city as I stare at it. Could it possibly be just because of the rain? I don’t know, but it’s just so weirdly nice right now.

  Then, I have that sudden invasive image of me choking Hiro. Goddammit!

  “Hey Ridley,” Hiro calls out for my attention. “You feeling okay?”

  “Huh? Yeah, feeling just fine, what’s up?” I question. I can’t possibly tell him that I keep seeing myself choking him because of King. How exactly would that sound?

  He looks at me with protective eyes. “Just making sure. You’re spacing out a bit, I read that a side-effect of mind control are repetitive blank moments where you just stare off into nothing.”

  “Don’t believe everything you read, I’ve been pretty much okay , so don’t worry too much,” I respond. How am I supposed to tell the guy that I keep seeing myself choking him because of King? Before he can probe into the subject even more, I quickly ask, “So, is today your day off?”

  He nods, pulling out his phone. “Pretty much. It’s my day off from patrolling, but if they need me, I’ll have to be there.”

  “What do you do when you patrol anyway? Is it what I think that you just go around the city making sure nothing bad is happening?” I ask. I’m genuinely curious considering patrolling is such a big part of this guy’s job description.

  “Other than literally what you just said, we just fly around, help people or other heroes if necessary. It’s pretty boring for a hero to do, but it’s what we have to do. Some might even call us the security guards of the city,” Hiro explains, quickly glancing down at his phone.

  “Security guards of the city? Doesn’t that just mean you’re a cop?” I respond questioningly.

  “I mean, if you wanna think of it that way,” Hiro chuckles quietly.

  “Who knew heroes would have such, uh, normal duties,” I say.

  Hiro smiles a bit. “Well, it’s not all saving and rescuing people all the time. Most of being a Mobile Knight pilot is pretty much patrolling. But I at least get to fly around in a mech and take in the view. There’s tons of great perks for being a hero though so there’s that too!”

  A waiter comes by with our food. A nice aroma wafts around us. Even though it’s been a while since I’ve been here, just looking at the meal in front of me comforts me. Without too much thought, both Hiro and I dig in. Many I really like this place, it doesn’t matter how many times I get my usual, it’s still good.

  “Hey Ridley
,” Hiro gets my attention in between bites. He pauses a bit before he asks, “Do you think I’m gonna die being a hero?”

  What brought this on suddenly? I answer in between chews, “I mean, you’re a hero, so you’re gonna die as a hero regardless.” I look at him, his whole face completely overtaken by seriousness.

  He chuckles, smiling a bit. “No, I mean, do you think I’ll die while doing hero stuff?” The smile quickly fades from Hiro’s face, only to be replaced by a slight frown of sadness, concerned, maybe even fright.

  I answer, “Well, I can’t really say, people don’t exactly choose when they die for the most part. Why? You okay?”

  “Maybe I’m just being a bit paranoid, but these superhero murders have really been getting to me. A lot of people have been talking about it, people are even taking bets on who the next hero to die will be. It’s got a lot of people freaking out, Sadie is freaking out too,” he answers somberly. His eyes shoot downward sadly, concerned.

  The way he’s being is really making me worried for him. He’s so sad. “Aw, c’mon Hiro. You’re a buff hero who, honestly if I didn’t know you, can be extremely intimidating. I doubt anyone would mess with you. Seriously, it looks like you can just pummel anyone who gets in your way. You’ll be okay,” I assure him. He’s a young hero after all, this is his prime.

  He grins a bit. His eyes lift up to meet mine. “Yeah, thanks. It’s just something that’s been on my mind a lot lately.”

  “I can understand why, it’s been something that the news has been talking about recently. Plus, you’re a hero, I can get why you would be freaked out by something like this,” I say before taking a big bite. Can’t blame the guy for worrying, if the targets are specifically superheroes then he falls under it. But really, who would go after him?

  He chuckles quietly. “Yeah, thanks.”

  We finish eating with some small talk. Hiro basically inhaled his food, leaving me to catch up to finish mine. Hiro, the generous bastard he is, pays for me. We head out of the Chiffon Room and back into the rainy street. Somehow, it seems a lot busier now than it was just a few moments before. There’s a lot more people moving around and cars stuck in traffic. Is there some sort of even today? No, if there was I’m sure Hiro would know about it. Whatever, it’s all good.