Camelopardalis

Yvaine's POV

"You took so long to come out." Stella complained when I arrived at the parking lot.

"It'snot like it's my fault if they let you out early. Move." I answered and pushed her away from sitting on my motorcycle. I just then adjusted my clothes and put on my helmet before riding and warming up the motorcycle.

"I told you that we should have gone first. This is wrench will just leave us behind."

"Then you should've left first." Rigel answered.

"What if you go to hell first?"

"Closed. Satan is gone, roaming around."

"Yes, that's why you're here."

I just accelerated my bike and left them. They won't stop and I'll only hear their pointless fight.

When I arrived at the parking lot of the mall, they had just caught up. Keiji from training is also with them.

"Hey." He greeted me so I smiled a little before walking inside with Seren and the others. When we reached the arcade, there were people everywhere. It's kinda crowded, but there aren't too many people either.

Normal for a weekday since students have school.

"Let's go to the photo booth first." Rigel suddenly pulled me so I just let him. I looked at Stella who was following. But Keiji is talking to someone I am not familiar with. He's frowning and it was obvious that they were talking seriously.

When Eoin noticed it, he approached Keiji but he just left the conversation to meet Eoin and said something, so Eoin just nodded.

"Eoin, let's go inside now. Oh, where's Kei?" Stella asked as Eoin approached.

"Ah, he's with his friend. He's just going to see someone, but he'll be back." He said so we just went inside the booth. We took a lot of pictures with a lot of different poses, but goofiness will always be there. I think there are no normal shots.

After developing our pictures, we took them and scanned each of them. We all have our own strips because of how many we took. These Kingdom Animalia really don't want to be left with nothing.

"Look at Astro, he looks like an old man who is about to wobble." Rigel teased.

"And you? Well, you look like you fell in the crib as a child." Brother showed him the picture he was holding and they both laughed because they saw Eoin.

"Let me see." He grabbed the strip from my brother.

"Look at this. It looks like our picture when we were six years old, almost all of us." Seren reached out and showed us what he was holding, so we are all looking at the strip now.

"Yes, almost because Astro is going to be sixty-five that time, isn't it?" said Eoin.

"Piss off." He answered so Eoin just laughed.

Seren is right, it looks like the picture we had as a child.

Brother is having a fight with Rigel, just like when we were kids, they were fighting in the back while Eoin was just standing straight but looking at Seren. While Seren is not yet ready so he is a bit blurred. I'm frowning at Rigel, while Stella is wacky posing at the camera.

"Give it to me." Rigel grabbed the strip that Seren was holding.

"Hey, what? That's what you chose, so this one is mine." Seren grabbed back to the strip.

"Alright, whatever. Just scan it, send it to me."

"Me too." My big brother joined.

"Hey, don't forget about me." It's Stella.

"Yes, yes. I'll send it to all of you, you big ass trouble. Let's go." While putting the strip in her bag. Stella walked to the dart board, which she bumped my brother into so that she could go first. Seren was pulled by Eoin to the strength test machine so I just walked to where the world combat was.

"Dual." The person next to me suddenly said before I could press the player. I turned around and Keiji was there. I pressed the dual player because he took his gun and we played.

"Do you guys always come here?"

"Before. Not much now because it's a bit busy." I responded so he nodded.

"Let's play basketball." He came to me when we finished playing. I agreed so we moved places. We even passed Stella and my brother fighting over the barrel of a dart.

"You first then me. Alternate." He said and smiled so I just agreed, because it would be embarrassing if I didn't. He's not Rigel for us to argue over this little thing. Small things.

While waiting for the timer, his phone suddenly rang so I looked at him.

"Excuse me, I'll just take this." He said so I just nodded. I just played because it was a waste of time and I paid with card if I didn't play. After a while, he came back but he didn't take the ball so I stopped to look at him again.

"Yvaine, I really have to go. I promise to make it up to you, it's really just an emergency."

"Oh... Okay."

That was all I answered and he ran out of the arcade.

How about that? I don't want to look like a fool playing here alone. What, I'll do shooting alone? Nah, thanks.

When Keiji disappeared from my sight, I turned to my side and Rigel was there. He was playing pacman.

"Hey." I pushed him as I approached and sat next to him. "Looks like you're in the depths of your thoughts."

He just looked at me for a moment and smiled briefly before staring out of nowhere again.

"Just remembered something." He responded after a moment.

He used to play here alone when we were young. He used to ask their driver to bring him here because he has no friends.

The way I saw him earlier, he was always like that, he was always like that before.

When he comes here, a group of boys will make fun of him and bully him. They used to mock him because he had no friends and no one would accompany him. Because they questioned why he was playing the piano and guitar, which is not a typical child's leisure activity.

Fucking absurd. What's the matter if he's talented?

And then, that thing happened.One of the group played with him and then he said that Rigel cheated on him and humiliated him. They shouted at him and told him to get out, while everyone inside the arcade are looking at him.

"What if you weren't there that day, Yve?" He suddenly asked.

"That's impossible. You know, Eoin and I are always here."

"I know. But what if, what if. Just what if, stupid."

"I do not know." I answered with a shrug.

"I think I'm still the quiet and lonely boy."

"What are you? Eoin and I are your friends since before that happened, right?" I answered before swallowing the lollipop I had just opened.

"Nope. You're just messing with me because you said it's a sport to punch in the strength test machine that we can't even reach."

I remember that. Eoin has always wanted to try that but he hasn't gotten around to it yet at that time.

"Eoin is messing with you because he sees you're always alone. You know him, he's in different moods."

"Well, at least he got the chance to punch. Just to the kid's face." He laughingly said.

"After that we never saw them here again." I said. "Do you know those boys?"

"He used to be my schoolmate before I moved."

"You still know his name?"

"Of course. How could I forget him?" He chuckled. That bastard. I hope his dish would not always be delicious.

"Good thing Eoin put up with you back then?"

"Are you crazy?" I hit him on the back of his head.

"He has no choice, we have the same service." I answered so he laughed. Because it's true, my brother and I are both in the same service with Eoin because they are only three houses away from us.

Besides, he will really persevere because he is annoying me so we can force Gael to take us here to the mall first so we can go to the arcade every time we go home. We are even leaving my brother and Gael who is our service will return to him because I know he will report me to mom and dad.

"Lend me a hundred first."

"Nothing! A hundred your face." I answered then stood up, but he suddenly pulled me when someone suddenly shouted. When I looked up, I saw the people rushing and panicking near the doorway.

I saw Seren blocked by Eoin and Stella is next to my brother.

"Shut up!" The man with the gun screamed while knocking on the head of the female student he was holding.

She's not from Moirai.

"Crawl." Rigel said so we crawled closer to Seren because they were closer.

"I don't think he's here for money." Seren said as we got closer.

"Same thoughts." Rigel agreed.

"I'll take the back door." Eoin said and simply walk into the staff area.

"Put your useless hands up! Follow me or I'll pull the trigger."

I have a feeling that Rigel is about to make a scene. After a while, he pushed the machine so that it will fall and the noise made by its falling echoed.

"Who's that?!"

"Sorry... I'm just nervous." He answered after standing up. I was about to stand up but he stepped on my hand.

"Ouch. What the hell?" I said with a very low and quiet voice

"Are you stupid?!" The armed man asked Rigel.

Can't he talk? All he did was scream.

"He's here." Seren whispered, just barely audible.

The man pointed the gun at his left side because he heard a student crying. Stella threw the dart barrel that pierced the armed man's wrist so he let go of the gun.

"Not bad for your poor eyesight." My brother said before running towards the armed man so Seren and I followed. Eoin is now holding the gun and pointing it at the man's temple. When we got closer, Rigel took off his mask.

"What if I put it back again?" he asked.

"Fool. Move away." I said and approached the man. He was about to attack me but Eoin cocked the gun and my superhero brother pushed him so I smirked at him with my lollipop still in my mouth.

"We'll go back inside." Seren said before going back inside with Stella.

"Just surrender, Ice. They just want to talk to you." He said.

"Jerk, I am not--"

"You are under arrest and the best thing you can do for yourself is to keep quiet until you are represented by a lawyer." Aiden said while his man is handcuffing the guy.

Are we just going to be like this? He always shows up when I'm mistaken to be Ice? I'm not Ice, for pete's sake! Damn it.

His other companions have taken the man while the others are inside calming people down. Eoin handed him the unloaded gun and put his hand inside his pocket.

"Where'd you learn to use a gun?"

"YouTube." He answered with a shrug that made Aiden shake his head.

Liar.

"Oh, I almost forgot. I cocked that once."

"I'll keep that in mind." Aiden answered nodding. "Who--"

"Stella did it." I answered while leaning against the door, still eating the lollipop. He just flashed a gentle smile and said, "Okay". He then also went inside and took a statement from the others about what happened.

We just waited outside with Seren who just came out again because Aiden said we should wait for him.

"What really happened?" RIgel asked.

"The other student said that the woman was about to leave when the man entered, so she was the only one taken hostage." Stella replied.

"But he didn't ask for anything. So, he's not really after anything, not even money." Seren continued.

"Obviously," Brother replied, "because if it's for money, why is he alone, and why didn't he go to a bank?"

"He's here for Yve." Eoin said. "Well, not really Yvaine, but Cali. Remember what Aiden said? That's why they're still looking for her."

"Can you go abroad first? Your life is already dangerous, man."

"What if I kick your face and you fly to another country?" I answered Rigel. "Abroad you mean?"

He just made a face so I didn't pay attention to him.

"I need you guys to come with me." Aiden stated that when he came back.

"Again?"

"It's boring there." Stella added and she and Rigel did a high five.

"This is really important, don't make it a joke." He answered so they settled down. Oh, so they're thrilled now?

"This is getting serious now. Yvaine is in danger."

"As always." Rigel answered so Eoin elbowed him.

"They are not just looking for her. Well, not her, but they mistook her for Cali, so they are looking for her. So I need you guys to come with me because we have an important thing to discuss."

"K, g."

"It's Rigel, dud, fix yourself."

"I said, g, are you stupid?"

"K." Brother answered.

"Are you guys okay?"

"Oh right you see, perfect timing, Kei is here." He added as he extended his hand to Keiji. No one noticed him. It's stupid.

"They're fine. After all, you're here, you will also come with us."

"Okay." He answered breathlessly. Obviously, he ran back here.

We started walking to leave when Keiji held my hand, so it kinda startled me.

"Were you scared?"

I looked at him confused but then I flashed a smile.

"What? No."

I slowly released his grip on my hand and approached Stella who was clinging to Seren.

The word scared is not existing for me anymore.

Never it will be again.