What defines a villain?

Chapter 12

~Ryujiki's POV~

I sprinted through the streets as fast as I could, hoping that the wind against my ears would block out all the thoughts. I hoped that if I just ran, I would run away from all my problems. If I just ran, maybe Hitoshi wouldn't be mad at me anymore.

Who am I kidding. I messed up so bad. 

I don't even know what I did, but if Hitoshi spoke up about it...

How do I make this better?

My brothers words echoed through my thoughts. 'Leave' he had said. Does he truly want that?

Maybe.

It might be better if I left actually. He will have more space in his room, I won't be such an eyesore to him, he won't have any distractions... Yeah. I should leave.

I will leave a letter to mom and Hitoshi. Separately, I nodded along with my thoughts. I don't know if they will read them, but I shouldn't just disappear. That's too cruel. They might think I got kidnapped again.

A quick turn later, and I was swiftly making my way back to my house.

I have never ran this fast in these streets before. I only ever jogged, making sure to breathe deeply and enjoy the night air. This speed was a nice change of pace, quite literally.

Soon enough I left the city and was running through the suburbs. Once I made it to my house I slipped in through our bedroom window. It was still open, just like how I left it earlier.

I crept to the living room, as to not wake up Hitoshi who was actually asleep this time. There I grabbed the necessary items for two letters and began writing.

"Let's see... 'Dear Mom, I'm sorry but I decided to leave.'," I began, mumbling along as I wrote. "'As you know, I already graduated from online school, so education isn't a problem for me. What really troubles me is that I have become an extra mouth to feed for you, leaving you struggling for scraps. I'm sorry.' That is a lie, but I don't want to blame Hitoshi."

I sighed, signing off at the bottom and folding it.

Now for the harder letter... I can't wait, I thought sarcastically.

I wrote this letter slowly and carefully, making sure to choose my words with great care. Honestly, I didn't know what to say. I racked my brain, but barely came up with anything.

"Ugh, this should do." I finally gave up. "It's not like he will pay much attention to it anyway, considering he hates me."

I sat back and looked at my handiwork. Minutes past, but I still sat there, unable to tear away my gaze.

My trance was interrupted by the sound of footsteps. I glanced back, seeing my brother shuffling past me and into the kitchen. Soon enough I heard the sound of the coffee machine and a small groan from Hitoshi.

With a sigh, I wrote the respective names of my family members on the cards and left them on the table and walked back to our shared room. There I picked up my old school bag way back from when I was only eight. I stuffed a spare set of clothing and other necessities in it, and grabbed my mask from the dresser beside my bed.

After my first bloody encounter, I decided it would be best if I concealed my identity next time I meet someone. I still leave witnesses every now and then, but I don't want to be caught by the police.

I slipped the mask on, which consisted of two parts. One was a thin ski mask that covered my whole head except for my eyes, mouth, and ears. The second was a almost flat, black lightweight metal sheet shaped like my face that went overtop the ski mask. It had a small gap covered in black fabric, so that I could see through it. If I pull up my hood, not an inch of my skin is visible.