tragic.

                The taste of warm COPPER fills his mouth-- sharp, bitter. && suddenly he feels sick again. The knots  were coming back, && this time with VENGEANCE. They banged rhythmically && with FURY on his insides  ( they will be HEARD this time ). They clawed at his stomach, BURNED the linings of his THROAT. He broke into a sweat, his fingertips HOT, && the ice-pack he kept firmly against his cheek was slowly turning into LIQUID.

                     How long had he been standing there? He’s not sure. Everything is  BLUR, && he doesn’t remember much anymore. TIRED EYES carried by heavy bags flutter open, && uneven STARS raise themselves to look ahead.

                                                               (   When did he get benched? When did the game start?  )

           He can feel their gazes, scalding, burning. Each one was an EXPRESSION Kei could only conclude was pure HATRED THROWN in his direction. But what had he done to gain such attention in the first place? He’s not sure, && that SCARES him. Nervous, STAR BORN eyes dart in every direction, sweeping for clues to give him bits && PIECES to tell him what happened. 

          What had he done to deserve being OSTRACIZED by his own teammate? Had he said something? It wouldn’t have been the first time since he’s pissed off a teammate with his WORDS, but never the whole team at once.

                                                                            (  What did you do, you idiot!?  )

     && finally the buzzer goes off.  The OTHER TEAM was announced the winners.

                  His head snaps to his left to look at the scoreboard. && his heart sinks. Their score had been so pitifully low compared to the other team. Then it dawns on him.

[Text to: Space Cadet] : so, are you going to the solar gala or [Text to: Space Cadet] : are we going to become introverts and stay home watching b-listers again?

             Okay, so MAYBE the public bathroom was not the IDEAL place to hideout while waiting for one’s manager, but it was surely better than NOTHING. The company building didn’t shelter that many SECLUDED SPACES, so it’s only natural to make DO with what you can SCROUNGE up together at the last minute. && as it would turn out, Kei was not the only one with the idea in mind.

        He doesn’t say ANYTHING when he approaches the window, QUIET && as sociable as a rock, Kei walks past the other by the sink && seats himself on the window sill, PRESSING his back against the cool glass. One, two, three minutes PASS && neither boys say anything-- they don’t even look at each other. But Kei SWEARS this guy by the mirror was familiar, && curiosity was a PERSUASIVE mistress so he tears his eyes away from the SCREEN of his phone for just a second, && that’s all it was; a second (he swears nothing more), && now he wishes that he hadn’t.

                 An ugly feeling of PITY washes over him when DIAMONDS reflected in the mirror clashes with the STARS. Kei has seen this guy before, though only briefly, their schedules prevented them from CLASHING, but this would have to be the first time that they’ve so much as GLANCED in one another’s direction. Now, for the first time ever, Kei is able to look the other in those tired dark eyes which were barely being carried by the BAGS under them.

        “Are you… feeling okay?”

             His voice is BARELY above a whisper because he is unsure if he should try && GRASP the others attention. He’s unsure if he should just LEAVE things as they are or dial up the main office && ask them to bring this man an ENERGY bar. He looked exhausted--- or rather, he didn’t look completely there. Like he was just filling up SPACE to keep the room from feeling so empty. He was there, but at the same time he WASN’T.

     As Kei’s expressions changed, Umeko knew she had won. There was nothing greater than putting troublesome idols in their place. Even if he did go through with it, she knew he would not be able to lose so easily. He was chosen to be an Adamas idol, after all. Being able to accept defeat so easily would grant him a one way ticket out of Adamas, which, at this point, was not the best option for him.

          “Thank you for understanding, Kei-kun.” She tapped a few more things on her tablet, closing the email and setting her tablet down. Turning her gaze back to Kei, she pointed to the chair that sat across from her desk, asking if he would sit. “Then, shall we get to the root of your problem, then? I will call us in some tea, and we can chat about it.”

                  Kei could feel her SMUG ASS sense of ACCOMPLISHMENT from where he stood. She had some NERVE, using such a CHEAP extreme to coax him into BENDING towards her demands wasn’t exactly something to be so PROUD OF in the first place--- but it was mainly his bitter attitude talking. He had no reason to sit there acting SPOILED because he couldn’t get his WAY. She was just doing her job.

                “No thank you,” his expression became blank “To both the talk and the tea. I think I’ll be fine.” 

   The first thing Rico noticed as he approached the young man was his height. Rico had served with Asians as a mercenary and they usually only topped at 5'7". This guy was half a head taller than him, and Rico wasn’t used to talking up to people. Wonder if it’s the genetic research that goes one here? He thought as he gave him an inquisitive look.

   As Rico listened to the young man’s explanation he couldn’t help but chuckle internally at the young man’s predicament. there was an odd nostalgic familiarity to it. Rico took some comfort in knowing that no matter what a major organization did, dissemination of information was always a problem.

   "The Therapists were consolidated to the 11th floor,“ Rico stated matter-of-factly, Trying to bring himself back into a professional mindset.  

   "I’ll escort you and help you find her office,"he added when he noticed the young man’s anxiety over the situation. That, and it didn’t hurt to be a little cautious. Just because he didn’t think of the young man as a hostile intruder, it didn’t mean he couldn’t cause other trouble if left unattended. He wanted to confirm the appointment before letting the unknown young man off the hook.

   Rico then held out his hand, asking the silent question of wanting to see the slip of paper. "you said your doctor was named ‘Grace’ correct mister…” Rico let the sentence hang in the air as he waited for the young man’s reply.

                Kei LOOKED DOWN on the man, of course, not in a way that displayed any signs of disrespect, but instead quite LITERALLY. When Kei was younger he was USED TO being the tallest in his grade, && even now, it would be more of a SURPRISE to find someone taller than Kei instead of the other way around. For a second, he EXPECTED to be teased or scolded for not knowing his way around the building. But could you blame him? It was a maze. 

              There were so many unnecessary floors, constant room changes that BARELY got through to the ones who would be AFFECTED BY their impulsive acts. It was all a pain in the ASS && Kei was tired of it.

                     " You don’t have to--- "  he says this almost too quickly "I mean,” so he tries again after catching himself. “It’s not necessary, but it’d be greatly appreciated none the less.”

               He almost refuses to ACCEPT his help, Kei nearly TURNED HIM AWAY, but his expression changed slightly as he gave the others offer some thought. He’d get lost again, he just knew it, so he didn’t have that much of a choice but to SUCK IT UP && take whatever help he could GET.

             Besides, the man didn’t seem all that terrible. At least, from a glance. Kei was wary of people, mainly those who fell out of the IDOL category. For his safety, he’s learned that it’d be best to keep away from people who weren’t THAT close within the company's inner circles. People were SHADY. Even the managers, the people were supposed to be the TRUSTWORTHY ones, were not always the RIGHT person to be trusted.

:// FAME MONSTER PROJECT.

-------------------   && During our CHASE for  their LOVE && ACCEPTANCE, we clutched onto their adoration--- so tightly that our KNUCKLES TURNED WHITE && our fingers shook. Choking on GLITTER, our lungs coughing on STARDUST, they’ve grown DEPENDENT-- && we’ve UNWILLINGLY become their lifeline. Like sickly CHILDREN hiding behind the DISGUISE of rabid DOGS, they can no longer bare harsh SILENCE nor face REALITY. So like selfless SAINTS we SWALLOW OUR PRIDE && we wash it down with THEIR PILLS. We’ve given up our HUMANITY for what we felt was WORTH IT--- && now QUESTION what they call a GIFT. We’ve grown so tired.