drawn to the flame

of coffee and rage

"sure,let me take you downstairs." Yosano murmured, looking at her hands and cleaning the sore areas and the small cuts that had taken off her palms skin entirely.

"I once opened my bags zip when my hand was like,blood shot out like a fountain" Aida made a whistling and a crash sound.

"How did your hand get like this? It looks like you rubbed it on the concrete for three hours." Her voice was clinically cold.

"Well it's usually a seasonal sore occurring in winters or summers depending on how much pent up—" Aida paused to think,she couldn't lie to people about her ability now,this straight up sounded stupid and the doctor looked at her with a twitching brow.

"— I mustn't lie to you yosano San,it's really just my ability that sometimes causes horrible rashes after being used."

"What's this ability?" Yosano enquired, stiffening in anticipation.

Aida chuckled and shrugged, immediately wincing at the wound at the base of her head. "Light manipulation." She said with a strained tone,"I'd explain more but my head is ringing."

"Right, I'll get that coffee"
"I like mine iced and sweet" Aida chirped, looking at her bandaged up hands and slowly closing them in fists, walking downstairs. She'd done nothing wrong,if anything goes wrong... She checked her jewels on her bracelet to see the white clear quartz shining in the sun and smiled to herself,she'd escape this place in a jiffy if needed—

"What you did was brave."  A soft voice croons at her.
She pursed her lips together and nodded at the girl,"thank you miss." She gladly pocketed her phone inside her jacket from the girl and the ginger haired man behind her gave her a thumbs up.

Aida thought how Nelson Mandela at first only wanted freedom for himself then slowly realised that if he wanted freedom then everyone else who was also oppressed needed it too just as much as him. The obscure recording videos and the male predotary gaze needed some action to be taken against,maybe araminta would have gotten more problems after uploading the video. Shit. She needed to contact her atleast to let her know how she was. Lost in thoughts she stared at her bandaged hands,how the blood was seeping through the white slowly disgusted her.

Yosano was doubting her medical expertise by how hard of a stare Aida was giving her hands. Lucy,the cafe waitress put the drink on the table and left quickly.
"Iced coffee,here you go"

Aida seemed to smile at that, admiring the brown color and the clinks of ice swirling around the liquid and took the drink,holding it carefully by her fingertips to not wet her bandages.
Silence occupied the booth they both had occupied, Junichiro joined in with a skittish kunikida. Aida hated the three staring at her while she sipped her coffee but since they got her the coffee she couldn't just ask them to leave. Besides the three were in one bench already gazing at her curiously.

"Just a moment—" Aida pulled out her phone "hey siri!" She called out, alerting the trio. "Text araminta phone contacts that im home safe." The artificial intelligence answered,"texting Minty that you are home."
Aida turned her data off and flipped the phone to show the cover and looked up at the expectant gazers.

"Um, who's this siri?" Came the first question from kunikida.
"Artificial intelligence built in to listen to voice commands,only my voice though." Aida explained.
A hum of amusement broke out the silence.
"What exactly is a light manipulator?" Yosano asked.
Junichiro recalled how the room was pitch black and how she commanded light to illuminate the room.
"It means she can command light to illuminate or diminish any light as she wishes" Junichiro said.

"Correct yes sir," she chirped and sipped a  large portion of her drink in one slurp.
"My name's Junichiro Tanizaki" he smiled at her.
"Aida kumaruno" she murmured,eyes downcasted at her coffee.