1 i. Sleeping Pills (cleaner version)

[Ｔｉｍｅ－ ４:２０ ＡＭ]

I ran my fingers through my curly locks, improvising on what to type next.

As you may or may not know, my name is Xander Reinhardt. My friends call me Xan, but, unfortunately, I don't think I have those (mostly because I'm homeschooled, and I don't frequently leave my apartment). For a 15-year-old dude that loved the thought of writing, I sure look blank. I mean, I normally stutter when I speak, pause every now and then, and basically hate the thought of public speaking, but when it came to writing, I felt like I could write the world. Thoughts reverberated around my head, mutters filling up the pleasant silence. I nibbled on my index finger, darting my eyes towards the flickering cursor that was waiting for me to type.

"This is impossible." I groaned as I sunk beneath my chair, the springs squeaking from the weight. My eyes followed the hands on the clock, my ears catching every ticking sound it made, and my restlessness growing per second. I glance at the computer screen once more, now focusing on my reflection. I look like a child's nightmare; like as if a clown sneezed his problems on my face. Dark circles hung under my hazel eyes, my skin seemed to have broke out slightly, my freckles still scattered, as usual, my lips as pouty as ever, and my almond eyes halfway blocked from my golden curls. I shook my head in surprise, wondering if the person I'm looking at is me.

"Damn, you're lacking sleep." I murmured to myself, analyzing my features. Shrugging, I threw on my jacket from a secondhand shop and zipped it up. I took my laptop bag, and before leaving, I locked my door to keep out the nasty intruders. The streets of Japan (yes, I live in Japan. It's mostly because my mother is Japanese, while my father is American) wasn't packed with cars, the shops' light was dim yet still welcoming (it's closed, though, so no point) and the busy chattering of the village died down. Due to how early it was in the morning, I wasn't fazed by this. The stone platform that I'm walking on is cracked and soaked from last night's heavy rain. Since I couldn't find any motivation from earlier, I decided to find the nearest coffee shop (yes, coffee shops are still open) to drown myself in coffee while I write away.

'Oh, there it is.' I thought, my direction changing. In my opinion, this coffee shop is one of the best. Plants were hanging from above, flowers this season were blossoming brightly, and the sign, though flickering, still as inviting as ever. With a small grin on my face, I push the transparent door and stepped in, feeling that refreshing cold breeze hit my face.

"Welcome to Brew H20, sir." The person standing behind the cashier bowed politely. As I walked towards the counter, I formed my speech in my head.

"U-uh, hi. I would like to order a latte macchiato and, um, a slice of vanilla cheesecake." I ordered, twiddling my thumbs throughout the process. The cashier pressed a few buttons on the monitor before gesturing me to take a seat. I bowed slightly and left to find a seat,

"That felt like forever..." I sigh to myself, plopping myself onto a seat near the window. I took my laptop out of its bag, turned it on, and clicked Google Chrome to continue working on a chapter in my story.

"Woah, you write well!" Someone complimented me. My heart raced, and I quickly reacted by flinching.

"Thanks, but who are you?" I asked, trying to sound respectful. The lady gave me a 'you- don't -know?' look.

"Dude, I was in the shop before you. I was sitting in that corner." She pointed out a table where books were messily piled on one another. My eyes trailed from her table to her.

"Gomen' (that means sorry in Japanese), I thought I was the only person in the cafe." I awkwardly smiled. A waiter comes to me with my order on one hand.

"Enjoy, sir!" The waiter bowed, walking back to his station.

"Anyways, my presence isn't always noticeable, so I can't blame you. I'm Koizumi Yuki. I just stopped by to say that you're good at writing. So, uh, bye." She dashed back to her table. Like all clumsy people, she left something at my table.

"Uh, Miss. Koizumi, you left something-" I stood up to give her the ring she left on my table, only to realize that she was gone, "queer." It's like she disappeared or teleported without anyone noticing. I looked at her possession in my hand. Instead of handing the ring to the person in the counter, I kept it in my pocket. Hey, don't look at me, my instincts told me to do it. I took my cup of coffee with me and exited the shop.

"Alright, I have to stop by the pharmacy to look for some sleeping pills," I say silently, taking a short sip of coffee. And then, that's when I noticed it. There was a bright white light that was shining in the distance. My feet started moving on its own, wanting to know what it was.

"Well, what do you know. It's a pharmacy." I mumbled, squinting my eyes because of how the bright light jabbed my eyes, making my head ache slightly. With a reluctant feeling, I pushed the door open, and the first thing I encountered was a quick whiff of mint and medicine.

"Welcome to the pharmacy, blah blah blah..." I hear the pharmacist say, resulting in me chuckling silently.

"Sleeping pills, right?" I hear the pharmacist assure himself.

"Yeah- wait..." My voice trailed away, a question forming in my head. How does he know?

First, I encountered a brunette lady with glasses that disappeared in a jiff, and now, I'm hearing a pharmacist 'guess' what I came here for.

"Hurry and come to the counter quick, I think I have the bottle you need," I called out, hearing him rummage in the cabinets above him. Once again, my feet dragged my body on its own. I gulped, hoping the pharmacist wasn't a monster in disguise.

One-step... Two-step... Three...

I counted the steps I took before reaching the counter. There he was, he was wearing a doctor's coat, his black hair was tied up in a short ponytail, and he looked pale.

"Here, take these. This will help your insomnia," he grumbled in his laziest voice. I heard a little click from the cabinet before he closed it. He then handed me a medium-sized container that sounded like maracas every time he shook it.

"Tiaphine...?" I read the name of the bottle containing pills, receiving a curt nod from him. He tears a piece of paper from the book, explaining the details:

"The pills you're holding now is called Tiaphine, a container holding 80 pills that are about 50-mg. Take at least one per night with milk or any type of liquid and sleep. Your insomnia will surely be cured once the bottle is finished." He mutters quickly, his hand gracing the paper as he writes on it. He suddenly shoved me the prescription before shoving me out the store, "you better get some sleep, kid."

"Hey, how are you so sure that my insomnia will be cured in 80 days?"

"Magic, boy." He replied, sarcasm evident in his voice, "I swear, you better be getting sleep."

"Arigato, Sato-sama. See you when I need you?" I questioned, awkwardly putting my stone-cold hand behind my heated nape.

"That, however, is not needed. Goodbye, kid." Sato said his final salutations before shutting the doors of the pharmacy. Unfortunately, that's his nature. Always grumpy and sleepy, but he's, uh, nicer one you get to know him supposedly. I've know Sato-sama for a while, because he was my dad's pharmacist, too. As I was on my way back to the old apartment, I stop in my tracks. I pull the container out of my pockets before reading the name once more,

"Tiaphine, eh?"

[𝙋𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙨 𝙩𝙖𝙠𝙚𝙣 𝙨𝙤 𝙛𝙖𝙧: 0]

- Is my story boring? I'm sorry if it is. I would appreciate it if you comment on the errors! Until next time! <3<3