Escaping Reality

Scene I

Ryu was one of the most confusing people Akira had ever met.

He could be quiet one second and bursting with energy the next. He would come over at 8 in the morning one day and then at 3 in the morning the next.

They understood that normal people had busy lives, but Ryu's seemed to have an extremely erratic schedule compared to everyone else. He was lucky that Akira's terrible schedule paired up with his own so well.

They were still waiting for their friend's arrival as they read more of the latest Percy Jackson book their father had given them, every so often glancing at their phone to check the time.

Two a.m wasn't the latest Ryu had been before, so they didn't give up hope to see him again just yet.

The gentle summer-night breeze ruffled their hair and the pages of their book, reminding them of the future heat to come- the heat that they wished to feel on their skin once again.

Being forced to stay in a building all day does something to people, or to Akira it did at least. It made them regret taking their freedom for granted; their freedom to go somewhere- anywhere that didn't have four walls and a roof.

In the corner of their eye, they caught a small flash of red next to the window accompanied by a quiet grunt.

Closing their book and setting it aside, Akira looked towards the man in amusement as he shimmied through the open window, making sure not to mess up any of the flowers that resided alongside it.

Just before he finished getting through the window, a purple speckled frog, about the size of a tennis ball, hopped off of Ryu's shoulder and made its way over to the orange-haired person in the bed. It seemed quite pleased to have beaten its master to them.

" Y'know, it seems like you're trying to impersonate spiderman right now. That's what he did in the first movie right before he realized Ned was there." They said, a light chuckle leaving their lips.

Ryu tilted his head to the side, a grin coming to his face before speaking. " He's your favorite Marvel hero, right? That means that that had to have been a compliment."

Akira didn't say anything to deny it, but the look they gave him made him question whether or not they were making fun of him.

With a loud croak, the frog jumped onto their left hand and stared up at them as if demanding attention with its beady black eyes. Akira happily complied, gently petting the frog with two of their fingers with a smile.

Ryu's familiars were always extremely loving no matter what kind of creature they were. While they pet his frog, Ryu made his way to the seat next to his bed as usual and positioned it to face them before sitting down.

" How was the outside world today?"

That was always their first question whenever he got comfortable, and, as usual, Ryu responds. " It was loud and crowded. It's starting to warm up too."

Akira rolled their eyes, letting out an exaggerated sigh as they glared at him.

Ryu never gave them the answer they wanted to hear, no matter how many times they've asked. They debated whether or not to ask again, but they decided against it, not wanting yet another painfully vague response.