Mask / sk8 the infinity ff

Chapter 5

Reki sat nervously with Langa, waiting for his parents. The room was too quiet, and Reki couldn’t stop thinking that the doctor might tell his parents something bad. Langa seemed calm, staring off into space. The tension between them was strong.

“Hey, Reki,” Langa said suddenly, breaking the silence and making Reki jump a bit. “I forgot to tell you something…”

"What is it?” Reki asked, glad for a distraction.

“Your skateboard is broken.”

“Really? Oh no,” Reki said, finally moving from his stiff position.

“Well..." Langa hesitated, shooting a mischievous glance at Reki.

"Wait, did it break in two?" Reki asked, his eyebrow shooting up in shock.

Langa tried to suppress a grin. "No, no,"

"it... actually, never mind." Langa burst into laughter, clutching his stomach.

Reki's jaw dropped, staring at Langa. "What? What happened?"

Langa doubled over, tears forming in his eyes from laughing so hard. "You should've seen your face!"

"It didn't actually break, did it?" Reki asked, a mixture of confusion and concern on his face.

Langa managed to compose himself enough to say, "Nah, just messing with you."

"Are you laughing at me?" Reki feigned offense, wrapping his arm around Langa's neck and playfully tousling his hair.

"Hey, my hair!" Langa protested, still chuckling, and retaliated by tickling Reki.

"Hahahahaha," Reki laughed heartily, trying unsuccessfully to fend off Langa's tickles. Langa found it amusing how easily Reki fell for his playful teasing.

They caught the attention of the others. Joe, who was chatting with Kaoru, glanced over and grinned.

"Looks like they're having fun," Joe remarked to Kaoru, who simply nodded and rolled his eyes.

"Should I tickle you too? Maybe then you'll smile a bit," Joe teased, widening his grin.

"Don't even think about it, you gorilla," Kaoru said, delivering a light kick to Joe's shin.

"Ow! It was just a joke," Joe rubbed his leg.

After a while, Langa released Reki, who was breathless but still grinning. His cheeks were flushed because of all the laughing.

"Well, that was payback for my hair," Langa said proudly, flashing a big smile.

"Oh man, I can't catch my breath," Reki chuckled, wiping tears of laughter from his eyes. It had been a while since he'd laughed so freely.

Just then, Reki's parents returned, their expressions serious. Reki's laughter faded, replaced by silence that hung heavily in the air.

"Reki, let's head home," his mother sighed softly, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder.

Reki nodded silently, rising to his feet, his mind racing with worry. What if the doctor had told them something?

“The doctor said you were lucky the cut wasn’t too deep,” his father added, looking at Reki with concern.

Reki simply responded with a quiet “good”

His parents had already started walking out of the hospital when Langa and Reki hurried over to their friends, who were still watching them closely.

"My parents said we're heading home now. Turns out it wasn't anything serious," Reki said, trying to smile.

"That's good. I'm really sorry again for suggesting that race," Shadow apologized, looking regretful.