Lotus

PART ONE - Ren - 1: Start

“I never wanted to move into this deserted town, but after I met her, I never wanted to leave.”

“Kiiroibara,” Ren sighed. “This place looks so deserted.”

He wandered around his new neighborhood, observing all the unoccupied stores and restaurants. He walked up twenty blocks until he reached the town’s edge, and then walked back down to where he started. Of the twenty blocks, Ren encountered twenty people walking. He counted about twenty cars driving into town, and sixty cars driving out of town. Ren was jealous of the latter.

When Ren returned to the driveway of his new home, he groaned, angry at his family’s decision to move out of his old neighborhood ten miles away.

“Nii-chan!” shouted Ren’s little brother.

“Go back inside, Alex!” Ren shouted back.

Alex was sick with the flu. It was 97 degrees outside and Ren did not want his little brother to become overheated.

“Where’s mommy and daddy?” Alex asked. “Why haven’t they come back home yet?”

“Alex, I’m taking you back to your room. You need to rest, and I’m not letting you miss your first day of school. You need to make new friends in this town,” Ren said, ignoring his brother’s question.

Ren picked up the small child and threw him over his shoulder. He then carried the boy into his room and tucked him into his bed. He felt Alex’s forehead. It was still burning. It had been burning for almost a week.

“Stay in bed, alright? I’m gonna go get some stuff at the store.” Ren got up from his brother’s bedside and hurried back out of his house. There was a market right on his block and a drug store across the street.

“I hate this,” Ren said to himself as he began walking towards the market. “I hate this town. I hate my life. I hate—”

Suddenly tears began streaming down his face. Ren stopped in his tracks, overwhelmed by his own emotions. He began wiping his unending tears with his hands, too upset to continue into the market.

A small girl walked out of the market carrying a plastic grocery bag. Her name was Rina.

“Ah, so heavy!” she sighed to herself, agitated by the weight of her groceries. “I clearly have no upper body strength, so why am I always being sent to—”

She spotted Ren, who has just begun his emotional meltdown just a few feet away. What should I do? she thought. I feel so bad… but this is none of my business… but he’s crying!

Rina inched hesitantly closer to him.

“Um…,” she said nervously. Using her free hand, she tapped on his shoulder. “Are you okay?”

Ren looked at her, startled by Rina's attempt to speak to him. He instantly noticed her unusually large, dark brown eyes staring up at him in deep concern.

“Yeah, I'm fine,” he answered.

“Oh… um… are you sure?” Rina asked him. “I mean, it's none of my business, but you look pretty upset.”

“It's nothing, but thanks for your concern,” he replied with a hint of arrogance in his voice. “Who are you anyways? No, never mind. I need to go buy something.”

Ren disregarded his encounter with the tiny girl and began to head into the market. Rina, however, was angered by the rudeness she heard in his voice.

“Hey!” she shouted angrily.

Ren turned around, shocked at the girl's sudden boldness.

“You're the new guy, right? You moved into that house over there a few days ago. If I were you, I wouldn't be so rude to the people who live here because most of them aren't as nice as I am!” Rina warned him.