FicWad

Sho and Kei headed out of the building, on the other side of the structure from the waiting bus. Blending into the crowds that were still out even at this late hour was easy, and both had plenty of practice in being invisible. Mallepa was a city that never slept, if your idea of staying awake involved drugs, booze, and women. Heading towards fifth street, the two stayed silent, one deep in thought, the other more interested in getting to the park in a hurry. It was Sho that was walking fast, having to stop every so often to let Kei catch up.

Kei was the one thinking. 'How did I get into this? All i wanted was to burn in peace in the sun, and now I'm watching over three kids.' he thought to himself. 'But... the kid I'm walking with... he didn't look away. He didn't freak out. He accepts me as I am. He... cares. I can't just leave, not yet." Catching back up to Sho, the two continued walking to the park.

Toshi and Shinji were easy to spot. Shinji was sitting on a graffiti covered bench, whole Toshi was bouncing from foot to foot, looking everywhere for Sho and Kei. Sho walked up to them, and smiled at startling Toshi from the darkness. "See? No problem at all!" Taking a look at Shinji's let, he grimaced. "Yuck, you're oozing again. Why didn't you take more care on your way over here?"

Shinji took an only half-playful swing at his little brother. "You bakayaro! If you had left when we first headed out, I wouldn't have had to run so hard. It's all your fault! You are so selfish, Sho, it's all about you!" Propping his injured leg on the bench, Shinji leaned back and took a few deep breaths. He loved his little brother, but sometimes he would have been happy to punch Sho's lights out.

Kei took a look at the sky. It was still dark, but the birds were beginning to chirp, and there was already an early morning jogger on the weather worn track that ran around the perimeter of the park. Kei had managed to lose his watch somewhere in the tussle with the men from earlier. 'I have to know the time, or I might become a crispy critter in a short while.' Trying to remain calm, he asked the boys, "Does anyone know what time it is, by the way?" Kei wondered at that for a moment. Earlier, he wanted to end it all. Now he was trying to survive. Odd.

Toshi was the one that still had a watch. He was rather proud of it, he had palmed it from a street vendor a few weeks ago. It was a simple plastic watch, but Toshi liked it that he could push a button and a little light would let him see the time in the dark. With a flourish, Toshi pulled his sleeve out of the way, and took a look. "It's five thirty in the morning. Another half hour or so, and we can grab some bagels for breakfast."

Internally, Kei winced. Only half an hour, and he would have to find shelter from the rising sun. There was not a cloud in the sky, so he would not even get those extra few minutes of safety. His faced never changed though. Sho, on the other hand, smiled. "Yeah, there's a bagel shop just a few blocks away. Toshi, you have some cash, you get to get the bagels. If I have to eat cold pizza this early in the morning again, I'm going to hurl Bagels sounds really good." Sho thought for a moment, then continued. "I need to get to a pharmacy, to get Shinji something for his leg. I don't know, I guess we'll need some bandages and some pain pills. I'll get the stuff from the store. Finding a bagel is easy, but this time in the morning, it's going to be easier to find an open bar than an open drug store." Sho turned to Kei. "You want to go with Toshi for food, or with me to the drug store?"

Kei thought for a moment, then smiled. "I'll go with you. Your friend can handle breakfast." Inwardly, Kei thought he stood a better chance of finding a place to hide from the light if he followed Sho. That was his official reason. Deep down though, he simply wanted to spend more time with a child that accepted him as he was, instead of running from him.

Sho was about to head out, when he realized something. His new friend didn't know their names. Actually, he didn't know his friend's name either. Introductions were in order. "By the way, my name's Sho. That's my older brother Shinji, and our giggling friend is Toshi. What's your name?"

"Kei. No last name, just Kei."

Shinji frowned for a moment at this news. He knew that this adult was a monster, and he could not understand what his little brother saw in the creature. Sho was always the one doing the daredevil stunts, he was the one out on the limb. But the pain in his leg was more urgent than trying to talk some sense into Sho's thick skull. Leaning back on the bench, Shinji said, "I can just stay here. No one will probably bother me for a bit, with everyone going to work... just be careful you two. And stay out of trouble, Sho!"

Sho grinned. "Me? In trouble? Never!" Heading out of the park and down the streets, Sho and Kei headed into the district, looking for an open yakkyoku (pharmacy). Kei was more interested in finding a place to hide from the rising sun, and kept looking down alleys and into empty windows. Sho thought nothing of this, figuring that Kei was just watching out for the two of them. This was a rough district, and one bad day could be Sho's last. The first store Sho remembered was not only still closed, but it would remain that way for a long while. There was an official notice stapled to the door, condemning the building. This was nothing new, considering the maintenance of the immigrant district structures was slim and none. The second place Sho arrived at was just opening, the owner still yawning as he unlocked the door.

Ignoring the dirty stare of the cashier, Sho finally found a kit with gauze and tape, and he grabbed a bottle of pain pills. Sho paid in a hurry, and turned back towards the park. Halfway back, Sho realized that he had lost his friendly shadow. Sho doubled back for a few blocks, but could not find Kei. 'Oh well,' he thought, 'he knows where we are.' Arriving at the park, he found Toshi and Shinji munching on bagels. A few minutes of wrapping, gauze, and some tape, Sho then took a step back to admire his handiwork. "Well, that should do it. Now we just have to find a place for us to relax, and so Shinji can get some rest. Any ideas?"

Shinji was already feeling the relief from the pain medication, but he was still listening. He had an idea. "We could always go to the empty bakery. It's pretty clean, and no one really goes there." Sho and Toshi agreed, and each took a side of Shinji to help him walk to the bakery. They headed down the streets until they arrived. By then the sun had been up for about an hour. After Shinji was settled, Sho headed back to the park to wait for Kei. He had to tell him where they were staying, so he could catch up with them. So he waited. And waited.

Kei never showed up. After a week and one serious sunburn for his troubles, Sho finally quit waiting.