Withering Head Wounds - Soudam

The Joy in a Silent Saturday

The day of the date came much slower than Kazuichi wanted it to. It felt as though every second waiting was a whole hour, he was simply far too excited. He left his house much too early, immediately heading by a florist to get some roses for the princess - she must love them. It's the flower of love! ...and one of the more expensive options...
Nevertheless, Kazuichi was dressed in his finest clothes, almost racing to the restaurant that they had planned to meet at for their date. By the time he got there, he was probably about half an hour early. He hoped Sonia would come early as well so he wouldn't have to wait too long.

Unfortunately, she didn't.

She never came.

Kazuichi waited at the table for about three hours, slowly losing hope every minute that the princess still hadn't arrived. He checked his phone repeatedly. No messages from her. Was this all just some sick joke on him? He wanted to cry right then and there, but he didn't want to humiliate himself even more in front of all these people.
He eventually got up and left, throwing the rose in the trash as he trudged back to his own place, feeling utter heartbreak. He couldn't believe he got his hopes up like that. He really thought that he finally had a chance with Sonia, only to be ghosted.
People were always so cruel weren't they?
Kazuichi spent the entire weekend just sulking in his bed over the fact that he had gotten ditched on his date with Sonia. He knew he was going to question why she would even do such a thing once he got back to school the following Monday...that was, until he had heard the news.
She was dead. How?
Did she really not want to come so badly that she killed herself? He knew realistically that it was just ridiculous to think that; who would do such a thing? Alas, he simply couldn't think straight right now. He was scared. Those thoughts wouldn't go away; the idea that it was his fault. That he had pushed her to the edge with his non stop attempts after endless rejections.
Once Monday finally came, he looked like a complete mess. It was obvious that he had spent the entire weekend practically bawling his eyes out; they were all red and puffy, and his hair was even messier than usual. Even just seeing her empty desk made him feel horrible. He slowly walked over to his desk, taking a seat, before burying his head in his hands as he sobbed. Was everyone going to blame him? They knew he was going on a date with her that weekend, he bragged about it non stop to everyone. Even if they didn't, he was blaming himself just fine.

To say that Gundham felt bad was an overstatement in all honesty.
He couldn't decide if he ever regretted what he did; if he felt sorry for any of it when he had been informed later that weekend that Sonia Nevermind was dead on suspicion of suicide. He didn't exactly feel anything when he lied about how shocked he was to hear the news, being her closest friend and who they had assumed should know before it was announced to the rest of the class when they had more information. Honestly, he was starting to wonder if he even considered her a friend at all. But really, why should it matter now? She was dead. She didn't exist anymore. His problem was solved.
Gundham decided he couldn't just disrespect her death. She meant a lot to many students, and it would be rude to just throw away a victim so close to you like that. And so, the following Monday, the breeder came into class holding a white orchid, carefully planted in an appropriately decorated pot. It wasn't strange for him to come into class with something, but it was never plant life. That is, until he placed the flower on Sonia's desk, standing there in a moment of silence before taking his usual seat. Perhaps it was best to not dwell on the past.

Gundham had been receiving condolences all morning. He honestly didn't feel like he understood why so many people were upset over this. Was Sonia really important to so many people? How was that possible - she was nothing but a road block between himself and Kazuichi and she needed to be eliminated. Gundham knew why he did it, and he would choke on his morals and guilt before he ever shed a tear over the situation.
But by the gods, he hated hearing Kazuichi cry.
Kazuichi hated crying like that so publicly which hurt him even more. He looked horribly maintained and defeated, and something about that made Gundham bite his tongue. He needed someone. He needed to be taken care of. He needed love and support, and oh did Gundham dream of being the soul provider of such things. The breeder would gladly bend over backwards to please him, and with a small fire inside that told him he was winning, he could almost taste the strange sweetness of the mechanic's uncared for skin.
And he loved it.
His plan had worked, why waste the opportunity?