Revenge (2)

As Aiden made his way through the park, the weight of his troubles seemed to temporarily lift as he caught sight of someone familiar. Aiden's face lit up, and he quickened his pace.

"Torao!"

The relief in Aiden's voice was palpable as he approached Torao, who was engaged in conversation with a little girl wearing an elementary school uniform. The worries that had plagued Aiden just moments before momentarily faded away, replaced by the warmth of friendship and the joy of reconnecting with a friend.

"What are you doing here?" Torao asked with a somewhat worried expression.

"What do you mean? Huh, is this your younger sister?" Aiden inquired about the little girl with Torao.

"Oni-chan, where is the ice cream you promised me?" the girl asked as she grabbed Torao's uniform.

"Huh?" Aiden's expression shifted to one of horror. Now, he had to face another problem.

"EVERYONE, THE SNOWMAN IS HERE, AND HE EVEN BROUGHT HIS GNOME," shouted one of the fathers.

"RUN!" screamed Torao as they made a dash for their lives.

IN THE SCHOOL ENTRANCE

"*huff**huff* WHY ARE YOU NOT EXHAUSED?"

Aiden's breathless scream echoed through the park as they dashed away, but Torao seemed unfazed, breathing calmly and effortlessly.

"*sigh* Rokie."

Torao's composed sigh hinted that escaping from angry parents might have been a routine occurrence for him. Aiden, on the other hand, struggled to catch his breath, questioning how Torao managed to stay so composed during their hurried escape.

At that moment, an unfamiliar voice echoed through the air.

"I AM NOT GOING ANYWHERE WITH YOU!"

A woman's defiant scream cut through the surroundings, drawing attention to a tall, handsome man adorned with an expensive watch and sunglasses.

"Ahh? What? How can you refuse an invitation from someone as handsome and rich as me? It's understandable that some people prioritize real and committed love over money and looks, which is a very honorable thing to do."

The man spoke with a pleasant tone but an arrogant face, leaving an impression of self-importance.

"He is... the young master character," Aiden muttered, widening his eyes in recognition.

"HEY, what do you think you are doing?" Aiden confronted the handsome man.

"Leave this woman alone," Aiden demanded as he positioned himself between the man and the woman.

"YOU!!! How dare you stand between me and my woman! If you want to be included in the conversation, you should've said so. I would like to be your friend," the handsome man responded, his face expressing arrogance but his words carrying a softer tone.

"She clearly doesn't want to be with you," Aiden retorted, trying to embody the hero archetype.

As the confrontation unfolded, curious onlookers gathered around, drawn by the spectacle.

"Huh? How would someone like you even know? I mean, it's better to know the full story before you make assumptions," the tall, handsome man spoke in his usual confusing manner.

"*sigh* I understand you won't back off so easily. I actually know who you are, MR president of the track club," Aiden said with a smirk, hinting at a plan.

"Oh, you know me? Thank you; you're pretty popular too," the handsome man replied, his face blushing as he ran his hand through his hair.

"Let's make a bet. If you can win and beat me in a quick sprint on the running field, then I will let you do whatever you want. But if I win, you will leave her alone," Aiden proposed, wearing an arrogant smile.

"Huh? Do you want to embarrass yourself? I appreciate your effort to better your health, and competition is a wonderful thing. But other people are ruthless and will make fun of you if you don't win. And you got it wrong; it's called a 200-meter sprint on the track field, not 'a quick sprint on the running field,'." the handsome man tried to be helpful but inadvertently sparked laughter from the crowd.

"HEY, how dare you laugh at someone who wants to be a better man? How many of you even knew what's the right term?" The man shut down the laughter, making the crowd feel ashamed.

Unfortunately, Aiden's embarrassment grew as everyone continued to laugh, and he missed the correction.

"You will soon eat your words; be ready because after school, I will prove you wrong," Aiden declared with an embarrassed blush.

"HEHE, I will look forward to it, my friend. Good luck," the handsome man responded genuinely, but his arrogant smile suggested he might still be enjoying the situation.

*DING*

The bell rang, signaling the end of the confrontation, and they began to part ways.

AFTER CLASSES

*DING*

The bell echoed through the school, signaling the end of the day. Aiden gathered his belongings and joined his friends on the way to the track field. Conversations were buzzing around, but the anticipation for the upcoming race lingered in the air.

"I can't believe Mineta thought of doing something this dumb," Andrew remarked, mocking Aiden.

"Dwarfs don't usually have good agility stats," Ashley chimed in, adding to the jest.

"Neither will your hunger bar increase your charisma-"

Aiden was about to retaliate, but a girl standing at the classroom door interrupted him.

"Amm."

The girl hesitated, clearly shy but determined to speak her mind.

"Thank you!"

A flush of red adorned her cheeks as she continued, "I wanted to say that you looked really cool and..."

In the background, Aiden's friends grew increasingly impatient with the exchange.

"Do something!" Torao nudged Andrew.

"MINETA. Don't ruin her life too," Andrew warned, bringing silence to the room.

"Mineta? Who is this?" The girl looked confused.

"This is the name he uses when he goes to nightclubs," Torao explained with a tinge of sadness.

"You have to stop yourself, Aiden. You cannot make another girl pregnant again!" Torao pleaded with concern.

"What??? That's not tru-" Aiden started but was immediately cut off.

"Please, Aiden, you have to first take care of our baby," Naomi claimed.

"Your... Baby?" The girl's eyes widened in horror.

"That's right. Me and my boyfriend," Said Naomi as she wrapped herself around Torao, who seemed visibly uncomfortable with the situation.

"We had gone on a date, but out of nowhere, Aiden seduced me and invited me to a love hotel, and made me pregnant," Naomi spun a false tale with confidence.

"You don't even think about the rest," Ashley informed, holding her head.

"The rest?" The girl looked even more dumbfounded.

"They are lying. I am literally a virgin," Aiden tried to reassure the girl.

"I think that I have to think about it," the girl said, running away.

"Not again..." Aiden sighed as he slumped onto the floor.

"Let's go, you have a race," Torao encouraged, patting Aiden on the shoulder.

"Yes... yes," Aiden replied with empty eyes, getting up and following his friends.

Just then, a phone rang.

*DING*

Aiden's phone rang from his pocket. He opened his phone, which was the latest model, and answered the call.

"Hello?"

The words that followed were an unforeseen cascade of tragedy. Each sentence felt like a crushing weight, freezing him in place. Time seemed to linger, a cruel pause in the face of unbearable news.

As the news unfolded, a suffocating sense of sorrow overcame him. His grip on the phone tightened, his knuckles turning white as if trying to anchor himself against the impending storm. Tears welled up in his eyes, their unspoken weight adding to the burden he now carried.

In an instant, Aiden dropped his phone and abandoned his backpack. His every step forward carried the weight of the unbearable truth. The world around him turned into a somber backdrop, the colors fading into shades of melancholy. Each footfall echoed a heartbeat, a desperate attempt to outrun the pain that chased him relentlessly.

IN A HOSPITAL

In front of a closed hospital room, Aiden stood frozen, his hand hovering over the doorknob. The sterile, hushed atmosphere of the hospital corridor pressed against him, but an inexplicable force kept him rooted in place.

His mind raced with conflicting emotions — fear, guilt, and an overwhelming sense of responsibility. Aiden hesitated, knowing that the room beyond the door held the answers to questions he might not be ready to face. The weight of potential blame and the uncertainty of what awaited him behind that door paralyzed him.

"Why am I just standing here?" he wondered aloud, though the question seemed to echo more in his conscience than in the empty corridor.

Aiden wrestled with the inner turmoil, not only fearing what news awaited him but also the thought of facing his family. The possibility that they had suffered, perhaps because of him, gnawed at his conscience. The door to the room symbolized a threshold between ignorance and the harsh reality he was reluctant to confront.

Before Aiden could muster the courage to open the door, a familiar figure stepped forward.

"Is this why you left my friend?" The man's voice was firm, carrying a certain weight of concern. He was the captain of the track team Aiden had to race with. Behind him were four familiar figures: Torao, Andrew, Naomi, and Ashley.

Torao, with a somber expression, chimed in. "Aiden, life's not a sprint. It's more like navigating a minefield. But you can't just stop, you gotta keep moving forward, even if it's a crawl."

The unnamed man, his eyes reflecting empathy, added, "Exactly. Life is about enduring, not just sprinting. It's about pushing through when it hurts the most."

Naomi, Ashley, and Andrew joined the conversation, sharing their insights in a way only true friends could. Naomi spoke softly, "You're not the only one dealing with challenges, Aiden. We all got our baggage. It's about carrying it with pride."

Ashley nodded, her tone compassionate. "You think winners never stumble? They do, but they don't let a fall define them. You gotta stumble to learn how to rise."

Andrew, typically more straightforward, remarked, "Life's a tough game. It doesn't care if you're down. What matters is getting up and showing it you're not backing down."

"I Just. . ." Aides said as he started to tear up, but was stoped by the track field captain who grabbed his hand.

"My name is Kaito Yoshida. Remember it." Said Kaito as he smiled and opened the door for Aiden. 

The door emitted a radiant, almost blinding light. Aiden hesitated for a moment, gathering the strength he needed, and finally entered.