"My Enemy" A Karamatsu Short Story

"Oh, the Misery.."

Tw: depression, anxiety, unhealthy thoughts, smoking

After so many days, he let himself let out a good cry.

There he was again, alone in that filthy bathroom. Tired of getting drunk every night to fall asleep. Tired of feeling lonely.

Tired of his brothers.

It was midnight, and all his brothers were asleep. He sobbed silently in that lonely bathroom, feeling the cold concrete walls that surrounded him.

His hair was becoming messy—not as messy as Ichimatsu's, but he didn't feel the need to brush it nor had the encouragement to do so.

His body shook with anxiety and loneliness. He felt like he had done something wrong, yet he did nothing.

His heart felt hollowed and sorrowful; he just wanted the pain to go away.

Without waking up his brothers, he looked for his leather jacket, his pajamas still on him. Before heading out, he took a look at his guitar, which had been sitting in the corner for several days now. He brought it with him. Taking his shoes with him as well and walking silently, he left the house.

He decided to go for a midnight walk on his own.

It was a little bit cold outside, so bringing his leather jacket wasn't such a bad idea.

Walking without any predetermined destination, the man in blue arrived at a bench that was in the middle of a street with a view of the entire city. There were still some trees and bushes here and there, but what stood out the most were the colorful lights of the city.

He sat down, not wanting to think about anything. He wanted his brain to go blank. A moment of inner peace. He raised his head towards the dark blue sky, contemplating the stars while he thought of nothing and sighed.

Grabbing out of his pockets, he took out a box of cigarettes and took one out. While holding it in his mouth, he lit it up with his lighter and inhaled the intoxicating toxins that helped him cope with his anxiety when he felt like his pills weren't helping.

He let out another big sigh.

He stood like this for a few minutes, feeling the chilly wind of the night and the sounds of the cars downtown. Accompanied by the meowing of stray cats that hid in the shadows.

It reminded him of Ichimatsu, and that bothered him.

He finally grabbed his guitar and took a glance at it. Gently strummed some chords he hadn't played in a while, making sure to tune the strings first before he played one of his favorite songs for himself.

After a couple of touches, he started a tune. One that was soft, melodic, and beautiful.

He remembered that scene from a movie he had watched not so long ago, where a young couple sang to each other while looking at the night sky while they roamed peacefully in a small boat. The girl had beautiful long hair and had fallen in love with a criminal who had saved her from her imprisoned tower.

A fairytale that's well-known by those who believe in magic.

He listened to his tune and hummed for himself, finally feeling like his reality was far away from where he really was.

For a brief moment, he felt happiness.

It was finally daylight, and Karamatsu finally went out to the usual places he visited when he was "his normal self." The only people remaining were his five brothers and his mother, who was doing her usual chores around the house.

Everything seemed to be in order with the same morning routine.

"I'm so bored," Osomatsu said, whining like a child, stretching himself.