yutaeki

[yutaeki]

A date with Nilou

 (A date with Nilou)

This day seemed especially boring and dull. It was gloomy and dark, so I decided to go to the Grand Bazaar. Paimon scurried behind me while I was walking down the stairs, we went past a few stalls and bought some snacks, after that sat down to have a little snack break.

We were eating when Nilou suddenly appeared right behind me, having the brightest and most adorable smile I've ever seen.

“Hello Traveller! Do you mind if I sit next to you?” I shaked my head as she sat down close next to me, she fixed her hair , looked at me and smiled, I blushed a bit and continued munching down on my Coconut Charcoal Cake. Nilou stared at me and giggled while handing me a napkin as she said: “You've got it all on your face silly!” “You seem to be in a bad mood, is something off?”

I nodded and explained to her how everything seems boring and dull, and while it seemed like something was missing, the weather seemed gloomy as well. “The weather and our moods are the same - they can both get gloomy. It's all right, though, because the sky will become even brighter after the rain.”

I talked to her about my recent problems for a bit while offering her some food, everything seemed to brighten up after that and I stood up preparing to leave, I decided to ask Nilou to tag along as she has been with me for the whole morning now, so we packed our things and set off.

I decided to make this a fun and memorable day for her for everything she’s done, so I decided to take her to Liyue, it was the day of the lantern rite after all! We went to Sumeru’s dock and set sail.

While on the ship, Nilou got seasick and passed out on my lap. I instantly turned bright red while my heart pounded like crazy. I didn't know what to do so I just stayed still. The cool breeze of the wind blew by while the boat was moving forward. I thought about what Nilou said earlier about moods and smiled to myself.

By the time we arrived it was already night and the stalls were very crowded. Luckily I had enough mora to bring her to Wanmin restaurant for a good meal. I ordered us some Triple-Layered Consommé , Almond Tofu and some Wolfhook juice for refreshments.

We enjoyed the meal while around us were thousands of lanterns in the sky, swarming half of the night’s view!

I decided to bring her to the Jade Chamber for the best view of the festival! We held each other’s hand while jogging towards Bu'yun to bring us to it. 

We sat down at the edge of the Jade Chamber looking at the view of the night sky with lanterns all around. I took a glance at Nilou and saw her beautiful glistening eyes glowing with happiness and hope.

“I really like being with you. I don't know why, but it feels like a butterfly is trying to burst out of my chest…”

After she said that, I held her hand even tighter, not wanting to let go of her or the moment, hoping this will last forever. Eventually it got late and we were about to leave, But before that, we had one more destination to go to, and that was the Heyu tea house. We arrived and we were just in time for Yunjin’s opera performance. I waved at Yunjin then it started, Nilou watched with inspiration in her eyes. Seeing her happy made me grin. As we watched the performance, we had tea and chatted.

Yunjin saw Nilou staring at her with excitement, so after the opera they came up to each other to chat. Nilou introduced herself to Yunjin before she invited Nilou to go on stage. Nilou got nervous for a second and brought me along on stage, for a second I was confused but then she said:

“Since we’re in a festival, why not have one final dance before we leave?”

I gathered up my courage and followed her dance, she looked at me and giggled while I was struggling to follow, she spun and fell into my arms, I froze, smiled, and continued to dance in the night. Everyone clapped and we bowed, preparing to leave the stage.It was time to head home.

Nilou fell on my lap once again on the ship, but this time I felt warm and fuzzy instead of nervous. We slowly set sail for Sumeru… I tried waking her up after we arrived, but she passed out…again so I carried her back to her place and went home to tuck in Paimon. I passed out from exhaustion….

I woke up to a note on my front door, it was from Nilou, asking for another date sometime soon…  

I’d be happy to accept.

[yutaeki]

Like there's no tomorrow

1.

School was boring, nothing in the world would interest him. Everything just seemed gloomy and dull. He didn't have outstanding grades as well, a passing grade would be enough for him, he had no one special , nor did anyone notice him.

Kamaji, a 15 year old boy with no goals or achievements, all he wanted was a less normal and more exciting life. Having even a little hope that his life would be like an anime, to have a main love interest, and to set goals and fun adventures or experiences.

Having little to no friends at all he would sit at his desk all day with one earphone plugged in to listen to music, while laying down on his desk for the teacher not to notice. An hour seemed like five, the teacher seemed slow, even the school bell sounded as if it was slowed down, yet it was only the first period.

Recess came, as he slowly got up to walk to the bathroom. The sound of Footsteps approached him, he turned around to see a classmate named Norman, the guy had dyed white hair, a little over 5 foot 9. Norman is usually the type of kid who would initiate in a conversation when you bump into him, Kamaji didn't really like him for his silliness but he didn't say that out loud.

"Hey man! How was the first period?"

“Boring”, Kamaji replied, trying to walk away, but Norman caught up to him and kept speaking. Kamaji tried ignoring him and eventually Norman left in disappointment. Kamaji went to the bathroom and prepared for the second period.

Is anything in this world worth it? Everything is hard and that was the brutal truth, in Kamaji's mind he thinks that everything has an end, and that includes the world he's in right now. Everything people do in this world will eventually be gone. And so will everyone’s achievements.

So what's the point?

He was lost in his thoughts for a while, 15 minutes lasted until a girl he sat next to started calling him.

“Kamaji….Kamaji, hello? Are you awake?” Kamaji honestly didn’t know anyone other than a few students that had been awarded on stage before. He barely knew this girl. He replied: “Yeah? Is there something you need…”

He didn’t know her name and paused.

The girl seemed to notice his confused expression

‘’It’s Rachel, keep that in mind will you? I was about to tell you that we’re going to become lab partners for the term, so might as well start by remembering my name.”

Kamaji stopped and looked around.  

“It's science class?”

Rachel sighed and continued working on the assignment. While Kamaji  just laid on the desk with nothing to do.

2.

The recess before third period started, and to avoid bumping into kids like Norman, Kamaji went to the left stairway where it’s the farest from his classroom. He went to the vending machines where he could get snacks, then went to the cafeteria to eat. Surprisingly it looked empty. The cafeteria was a very popular place among students, there was even a sports ground next to it which is usually crowded at recess.

Kamaji thought: no big deal, this is just good news that no one’s here being all noisy and stuff.

He took four candy wrappers, balled them together and threw them in the trash while he was chewing. He looked up to see broken windows on the third floor, he ignored them and finished up his sweets.

As he walked up the stairs, he heard screams and cries, as he didn’t see anything, he assumed it was the fifth graders playing around and went back to his class. 

He couldn’t open the door as it was locked, so he went by the side and looked through the window. 

“No one seems to be in the room right now, did I head to the wrong class?”

As Kamaji checked the schedule on his hand book he walked towards the hallway, trying to find someone to lead him to the right room. Suddenly he heard the sound of footsteps rushing towards him. Kamaji dodged as a white haired kid came crashing on the floor. It was Norman, and he looked terrified.

“What's wrong? And where’s everyone”

Norman tried calming down and started speaking:

“Dude… everyone’s gone, the school is closing down and everything will be torn down in an hour.” Kamaji kept a straight face and tried not bursting out laughing

Kamaji went towards the staircase as Norman hurried behind him

“You don’t believe me? Check the news, right now.”

Kamaji turned on his phone and saw 51 spam calls from his friends and family for the past hour since…recess.

There were so many things Kamaji had to process, but they needed to get out if what Norman said was true.

“Kamaji! Where are you going?”

“I’m leaving. What do you expect me to do? Wait here till we get crushed by concrete?” “Kamaji, that's the thing, the school gate is locked. I tried climbing but the walls are too high and slippery, while you’ll get electrocuted touching the school gate when it’s closed’’ Kamaji thought for a second, he stared looking at the gate from the 6th floor while Norman followed. Kamaji and Norman decided to search for tools to get them out in the laboratory since that might get them out. While walking down the stairs to find the lab, Kamaji asked Norman why there were no broadcasts from anyone like the principal and the teachers. Norman explained his story.

3. Before recess, Norman was talking to some teachers when all the lights in the room turned red, flashing. The teachers started gathering all the students in line to leave the school, everyone was confused until they got a notification from their phone. Everyone started freaking out and ran to the exit, no one could go through and the line went on for very long. Norman stood in shock as everyone was panicking for their lives, they eventually all left, leaving the metal doors shut and locked.

Norman didn’t get there in time and he was the only one left. He didn’t know what to do or what to think, he tried calling everyone he could but the internet was not functioning. Norman started to search every classroom for answers, and eventually found an internet connection. Unfortunately it wasn’t enough for a phone call or a text message, but he got notifications from local news report apps that the school will be torn down in an hour.

Norman went to the school gate and tried opening it, it wouldn't budge, he tried a second time and it electrocuted him. Norman screamed in pain while crawling away from the gate, then he threw chairs and solid objects at it, Yet not even a scratch.

Seeing that as useless, he went to the wall and tried climbing it, slipped and fell to the ground. Norman tried other exits as well, but he didn't dare to touch them seeing what happened to him earlier. He decided to run up to take a look at where it was safe to climb down, but the walls were too tall and he would fall off the building if he tried.

He ran trying to think how to get out, suddenly he ran into Kamaji and fell.

4. 

Both Kamaji and Norman arrived at the Laboratory, searching for supplies to break the both of them out. They put tools like screwdrivers and hammers into their bags and prepared to move along when suddenly a pencil fell and rolled by Kamaji's shoes. Kamaji looked towards the desk to see a girl dozed off while having multiple assignments under her arm.

“Kamaji, you know this girl?”

Kamaji explained how she was his new lab partner for the term and her name was Rachel, they both went over to wake her up. Rachel’s eyes slowly opened.

“Kama..Kamaji? Oh no! How long have I been dozing off for? I might miss third period-” Kamaji and Norman explained the situation to her calmly while Rachel slowly turned pale.

“Please tell me this is some kind of prank…are we going to die here?” “Rachel calm down, there’s not much time left, we might as well find an exit and leave the place.”

She didn’t complain and followed us along to the entrances. Before attempting to break the gate open, Norman warned me: “Look man, I tried breaking it open with a chair earlier, so I doubt this would work right now, but it’s worth a try.”

Kamaji nodded and threw the hammer at the gate with all his power and strength. The door made a “CLANG” sound. It made a dent so he tried attempting a second time, but when he tried picking up the hammer, the plastic handle fell off.

Everyone stared in shock as Norman took out the screwdriver and kept hitting it against the gate, until the screwdriver broke as well.

Eventually they gave up on the idea, and moved on to finding a spot to climb from to escape. Kamaji ran to all the floors scanning for escape routes and found one, but it was locked shut.

Norman broke the glass with his bare fists, but the hole in the door was too small for anyone to climb out. Since the place was a construction site and was about to be torn down, no one was around the area so calling for help was impossible.

They went to the first floor and entered some unlocked rooms. Unfortunately for them, the windows only lead to the basketball court near the gate, and that wouldn’t help them escape. They’ll have to search for another way.

5. 

Thirty minutes were left and they were thinking of ideas, Kamaji tried searching for keys, Norman tried breaking windows and doors to search for exits, while Rachel sat in a room brainstorming ideas for the team to leave. After finding nothing, the gang got some snacks by breaking the vending machine with a baseball bat and sat down in one of the unlocked classrooms.

They started chatting about their lives and how they felt about dying.

“Yo Kamaji, you seem pretty quiet, why don’t you talk?”

Kamaji grew silent, he started talking about his life and how he wanted to improve it but with lack of motivation and empathy for strangers. He could not communicate with anyone or do anything right.

Rachel stared at him and smiled, reminding her of how depressing her life has been, being forced to be the top student for many years although that isn’t what she wants to do, her dream and goal was to travel the world and travel with friends, not be a doctor or lawyer like her parents are telling her to.

To that, Norman replied:

“If we ever get out of this hellhole I promise me and Kamaji will travel with you one day, right Kama?”

“What did you just call me-” “Yes or no?”

Kamaji replied with “Fine.” and turned away with a bright red face Deep down Kamaji was happy, he felt warm to have friends, and a goal now. To get out and wanting to one day travel with both of them.

They finished their chocolate bars and their phone started vibrating at the same time.

6. 

The kids were blessed with another 20 minutes of extra time to search for an exit, giving them 40 in total. The construction workers encountered an accident which they had to fix. They decided to search for twenty minutes and if they didn't find an exit by then. They’ll give up.

Norman searched for keys and items this time, while Rachel and Kamaji would search for nearby construction workers to ask for help. They gathered materials, food and some games just in case they were sure they wouldn’t make it. They also tried sending last messages to their parents.

Nothing was found.

But the kids played jango, joked and laughed. For once, Kamaji felt included, in primary school Kamaji would get bullied and isolated from people, he never had the chance to talk to anyone. But to believe that his life would end like this- having friends by his side made him comfortable and relaxed it felt like his life was already fulfilled.

Norman was a different case, he was indeed scared of dying, but it didn’t seem like they could’ve done anything to escape. Norman accepted his fate of losing his life in a terrible accident like this, but yet he stays positive, brightening the mood.

For Rachel, after listening to Kamaji’s speech. Rachel already accepted the fact that her goals wouldn’t be achieved. She went to the bathroom and looked in the mirror, combing her brownish hair for one last time, put on makeup she got from a random drawer and went out to have fun with the two boys.

This school, a big building containing so many facilities. Having  four big pillars holding the school up, and a huge building in the middle . A cafeteria on the first floor and a hall on the second. Having handrails on each floor for students to view the school from above, it looked like a square in shape. Thinking this is where they die is quite depressing.

They got cardboard boxes and drew a plane on it. Then went inside pretending like it was an actual plane.

“This is Norman airlines and your destination is…..Heaven! So sit tight as it's going to be a tough ride!”

They cut holes for their legs on the cardboard boxes and ran to the basketball court to have one last stroll in their ‘’plane’’.

Laughter filled the air as the end was near.

Their last evening.

7.

All the lights turned off, electricity was gone.

“Uh-oh, guys this isn’t looking good for us-”

A loud noise erupted from afar, not just any noise, it was loud banging as if the walls were being hit.

Suddenly, a bright light shined on their faces, it was a security guard making sure everything was fine. “KIDS, YOU SHOULDN’T BE HERE, GET OUT, NOW!”

Kamaji Norman and Rachel’s hope of leaving the place rose until.

“CRAP I FORGOT THE KEYS TO THIS DAMN PLACE”

The guard ran yelling for the construction to stop as pieces of concrete were already falling all over the place.

“Goodbye…friends” Kamaji’s last words as his friends were in fear.

The plane was hit.

Under the rubble was a beautifully drawn cardboard plane, with their blood all around the cardboard sides, and an everlasting friendship.

Goodbye… World.

8. Kamaji woke up from his desk, ran back to the second period and bumped into a white haired boy. “Norma…Norman?” Norman’s response was: “Oh I don't believe we’ve met yet have we? You’re that new transfer student from Japan right? Nice to meet you! I love anime! Welcome to America!”

“It’s nice to meet you too Norman, let's go meet my lab partner shall we?”

                                                                   -Part one (ill update this soon, if you wanna catch up, the link of the document will be below) https://docs.google.com/document/d/1C9APbyKW5FiLaTAyRRpu2EA--43Ye7a_WqWqChySS7U/edit