#kpara

@whitelightcr

The chime of the bell as she pushed the door open, hand flexing slightly from the gesture that was not as effortless as it once had been, teased her ears in a manner that was neither grating or irritating, but couldn’t claim to be entirely enchanting either. It announced her presence as she entered the coffee shop, and these days, she would try to lay low, so as innocuous as it may have seemed - after all, it rang for anyone coming in or going out and surely most patrons would be used to it by now - it made her flinch just the slightest bit. 

Yet, the following instant, the bell would be all but forgotten as she’d notice an all too familiar face sitting at a table alone by the window. A brief moment of panic threatened as her skin flushed in frustration. She hated being caught off-guard as she’d done remarkably well to avoid it for 500 years, and she’d specifically avoided going to the Mystic Grill for lunch not wanting to deal with the ghosts of her past. She regained her composure and tried to walk by his table without getting noticed. Of course, they being doppelgängers, the Universe just had to meddle. The sugar which for some reason had been precariously camped on the edge of the table, finally gave way to gravity, falling at her feet with an audible clang, and forcing her to crouch down to pick it up, holding her breath and bracing herself for the possible reaction it’d garner.

@naturally-recklessly

@warriorprincss

For all that could be said about the devil being in town, and three separate factions engaged in a literal war to end all wars about a century after the first ‘Great War’ of the same epithet, come literal hell or highwater, at least the solar system was continuing to do it’s thing, and the warmth of Summer was already being felt here in the South, without however creeping towards the oppressively humid and unbearable heat usually felt at the seasonal peak.

Katerina had to admit that after having been undead... then dead then... a hell spirit... then dead again... it felt nice - if stupidly simple to enjoy something like the rays of light warming her skin with just enough insistence that a cold, refreshing drink would feel perfect. A light breeze enchanted strands of her mahogany curls as she walked up to the side window, open only during the high season to help divide the flow of customers and serve them more rapidly. 

She was already thinking of what she was going to order, absent-mindedly looking to the rainbow chalk menu set up on the easel outside, before she even got to the window, causing her to trip on the small step she hadn’t seen. A sound resembling something in between a gasp, a shriek and swearing (there was definitely swearing) whistled past her lips as she tried to catch herself and avoid falling flat on her face. 

Kyle had been on his way home from work when he saw a car at the side of the road and a girl by the side of it. It was the mechanic in him that caused him to pull up behind her and get out to offer assistance. “Having trouble?” He called out as he shut his car door and walked towards. He held his hands up as he got closer, realising how threatening he might seem to a girl stood by the road alone. "I'm a mechanic. Was just thinking maybe I could help?"

@bluedreamswhitepearls Kyle made his way into work. Dropping some files off at his secretary’s desk he let out a sigh as he remembered he didn’t have one. He was meeting the new one today. Making his way into his office he sat behind his desk. Calling one of his employees. “Send the new secretary in as soon as she gets here.” He checked his watch before adding. “Looks like she’s already late.”

The school bell chimed twice, signaling the start of lunch break as well as a mass of students to flood the halls, rushing to meet up with their friends for their meal. Kaito, however, had been out in the halls long before the bell had rung, skipping class for what he considered a more important matter.

It had taken Kaito weeks of killing himself over recent events to realize that he would never get over Himeko unless he told her outright how he felt. Thus he had decided that on that Monday, he would pour his pathetic heart out to the girl, and after receiving his guaranteed rejection, maybe he’d be able to move on. So there he stood, back against the wall, in a connecting corridor beside Himeko’s third period class, waiting to catch her as she walked out.

After the bell rang, Kaito kept a lookout for the girl as students began to exit her classroom. Only a minute had passed when he caught glimpse of a familiar face. There she was, walking down the halls with a group of friends, chatting right beside Luchia as they made their way towards the cafeteria for lunch. A potentially dangerous situation, but that did not stop Kaito.

‘Fuck it.'

Without a second thought, Kaito walked up behind her, grabbed her hand, and pulled her away from the group, leading her in the opposite direction towards the garden.

“Before you say anything just listen to me,” Kaito stated in a cool tone as he pulled the girl behind him as gently as possible, keeping a strong grip on her hand. Pushing through the garden’s double-doored entrance, he continued to pull Himeko along until they reached a seemingly desolate area. It was mid-blooming season and most of the tree’s in the garden’s orchard had sprouted beautiful pink and white flowers upon their branches. Noticing the tree’s shade, Kaito redirected the couple towards the orchard, moving both Himeko and himself to stand behind a blossoming peach tree, hidden from any passerby. He took a deep breath- with his goal within reach, it was no time to get flustered or frustrated. No matter the outcome, he had to tell her his feelings.

“I don’t care if you hate me, I don’t care if you’d rather choose Luchia over me, and I don’t give a damn if you don’t give two shits about me,”

The moment Himeko walked away was the moment that the fragile stitching that held Kaito’s frail being together disappeared. He had failed once again, and in the most embarrassing way possible; she had chosen Luchia. To think only moments before their lips came close to touching he had appreciated her for her inability to be swayed by her manipulative best friend- he had been so wrong.

He had sat there for hours after her departure, pondering how he could be so naive and idiotic as to believe that Himeko would actually chose him over Luchia. He was sick to his stomach, he hated everything, including himself. Thus from that day on, Kaito did everything in his power to avoid her. His heart had been crushed too many times for him to give a damn anymore. He roamed the halls with an endless glare dressing his face, refusing to give anyone a second glance.

It was not until one day at school, a week after his rejection, that he stumbled upon something that broke his state of melancholy. Walking through the halls, he came across a group of girls from the grade below him softly chatting in a corner. Normally, he’d walk right by them, but what caught his ear made him stop in his tracks.

“Luchia’s father has been killed.” 

What. No. That was not possible. There was now way. But the girls continued, discussing how Luchia had not been at school that past week, and hoped for her wellbeing. He admitted that he had not seen Luchia around the building during the past few days, but he never realized that she was completely gone. Could that be reason enough to prove her father death? Knowing how gossip could spread, he confronted anyone who was willing to speak to him, gathering information, wondering if it could truly be possible, and if so, how?

“It was a drive by shooting,” One of his classmates spilled the details of the gruesome story, “Apparently, he had been out on business in another town when it happened. Sources say a tinted black car followed him to the sight of a company meeting and shot him six times in the chest as he exited his car. They had to sent his body here only a few days ago.”

Now he fully understood by Luchia needed Himeko on that day, and it crushed him. How could he be such an ass? Had he known before that Himeko’s departure had to do with an untimely death, he never would have acted out in such a way. But it was too late. There was no way that he could confront Himeko about it now, he had already acted out. 

But that got Kaito to thinking, maybe Himeko never held any feelings towards him in the first place? Maybe that call was perfectly timed? Maybe Himeko never wanted that kiss? Poisoned thoughts swirled around his head to no end, forcing him to question even his own feelings. With no answers to calm his mind, he froze up, returning to the grimacing state that he had been the entire week before. He never mentioned his realization to his family, nor friends, nor even Himeko herself.