➹ LEFT TO LOSE ➷ chishiya s.

➸ CHAPTER TEN

NOW PLAYING ...
Leaving Tonight • The Neighbourhood

! AUTHORS NOTE !
happy 10 chapters! also hit 2k reads just 2 days after i thanked all of you fro 1k?! that's crazy! i appreciate you all sm you're all great and awesome and sweet and cool and perfect : ) while i've got your attention, what other potential AIB characters would you like a story about? i was thinking kuina just to have a female character story on the market, but it's up to you guys!

! AUTHORS WARNING !
no bad stuff today : ) this is more of a small filler chapter, just to give everyone more development and more dialogue before... well, you know what, happens. you'll know what i mean soon... too soon, honestly :' (

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➸ "I don't think..." The trembling boy hung his head low to his feet, ashamed of the ground he stood on. "I can keep playing this game."

You looked up at the digital board near the ceiling, there were only seven profiles lit up, the names titling the individual squares appeared blurry to you. Yet, you knew there was exactly twenty profiles just a few hours ago. It had been only a handful of rounds since you and Chishiya's last interaction that lasted longer than a minute. If this were any normal scenario, the third boy would bounce in between of you and stomp out the tension in the air like a cigarette, however this scenario is far from normal.

Everyone was on the edge of their imaginable seats, as the main instigator, who you referred to as the blue doll, had been eliminated not too long ago. It has been uncomfortably quiet ever since, each pair of teams barely exchanging words to one another.

Being put in a life-or-death game with a face card of hearts difficulty so soon after entering the Borderlands wasn't a greeting that eases you into the playing field easily. Unfortunately, the boy before you fit those shoes, and he was not handling it well.

"Diamond." Despite the painful sight, Chishiya kept his eyes on the task at hand and read out the kid's symbol.

You and Chishiya already shared your symbols to one another before approaching your third member of the alliance, but knowing him, he's going to want to have a second opinion. So, even if a kid in desperate need of a mentor to guide him through this horrid game, Chishiya would only see it as a distraction. He sees it as unnecessary extra steps to reach his goal, while you see it as necessary steps to keep a hold of who you were as a human before the Borderlands. Doing good acts for those in need benefits both parties more than intended, it's a gentle reminder that there's still good people in the world and you're one of them. Being titled a good person is worth more than some cards.

The boy in the overalls turns to both you and Chishiya, the lights hanging overhead reflecting his watery eyes. "How much longer, man?" The two of you knew what he was referring to, as not just this game but regarding your this whole deadly world you all had the misfortune to be dropped in out of nowhere.

Even though it was a semi-rhetorical question, he deserved a response and Chishiya didn't donate him one, he didn't do anything but stare at the boy slowly sliding down the wall. He hovered over the cold ground, "It's so messed up."

You desperately wanted to bend down to his level and whisper another motivational speech in his ear while rubbing his back, but you couldn't, and you shouldn't. Chishiya could tell that your other attempt at cheering up the sensitive guy was mostly bullshit, as you can't tell someone things that you don't believe yourself and expect them not to do the same.

"I thought that," You heard the boy pause to sniffle a bit more before continuing, "People were much better than this."

Not knowing what else to do to help the poor boy's mental state, you elbowed Chishiya beside you. He gave you the side eye, sort of shaking his head a bit in a "what'd you do that for" way. So, you nudged your head towards the boy on the floor, Chishiya's eyes following to see what you were referring to. He knew what you wanted him to do, but didn't seem like he was gonna do anything about it.

Then, he shrugged. "Man," Chishiya sighed into his reply to the boy, "You've led a charmed life." You couldn't believe your ears, is he really being a smart-ass at a time like this? And, on top of that, he dared to look back at you with a "did i do good" look. So, you shot him a "are you serious right now" glare, which made him clear his throat.

"I'm sorry, but this is our reality now." Chishiya stepped closer to him, but really to avoid the nasty look you were giving him. "Maybe we won't get out of this alive."

You thought real hard whether you should kick the back of his legs so he'd crumble and lay on the ground to think of his horrible comforting tactic, but you decided to stay put. His realistic point of view on our reality is not the way to go when comforting someone as young as the guy in front of the both of you, and yet it seems like Chishiya doesn't know any better way to do it. The man in question didn't even need to look back at you to see your sour face at his words, as he can feel your eyes burning through the back of his scalp.

And so, he continues. "Even so, all we can do for now is help each other, so that we can get out of this game." Your arms drop to your sides, limply swaying as you tilt your head slightly at the suddenly-tender interaction. You patiently waited for him to continue, "Okay? We can do this."

Now you really couldn't believe your ears, Chishiya was actually being... nice? To someone in need? And he's not doing it to benefit himself? But to keep someone else alive? ...Huh, that's a sight to see.

Dumbfounded, you just watched how Chishiya bent down to his level, same as you thought of doing, and gave the boy gentle eyes. Though, not the same eyes he gave you that one time in the cafeteria, but they were friendly. Under all that tough exterior is a mushy interior, maybe he's just trying to protect it, protect him.

Since you were too busy giving google-y eyes, you didn't realize how much time had past and that Chishiya had stood up to walk back near you. His back was turned on the kid, who was still sulking on the floor. "Was that better?" Chishiya teased you, his eyes still icing up to its usual cold, but you still could see its warmness.

"Better." You popped your lips, smiling.

He shuffled his hands in his pockets before leaning on the pillar behind him, "See how easy it is to not bullshit someone upset?"

By the smirk creeping on his lips, you knew he wasn't being that cold of a critic to you, allowing you to roll your eyes playfully. "Oh come on, you're still on that?" You walked around him to lean on the solid beam for support. "It's not bullshit, it's just giving them a look at a more optimistic perspective on things." You truly did believe in those, as not everything is possible, but good endings are.

Still, he managed to scoff at your statement. "Remind me to not look to you for comfort."

"Oh, that won't be a problem," You gaped your mouth open sarcastically, "Because you don't have any emotions! Remember?"

Despite your mostly-true claim, Chishiya found it in his heart to laugh. His cold, still heart with an icy exterior, protecting its mushy interior.

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THANK YOU FOR READING!