What is Right and Just (Rewritten)

Chapter 2 - Unwelcome News.

Kellan and Vivian would leave the H.O.H building after returning there to report what had happened in the Gray household. After getting an earful from one of the higher ups, the two parted ways to return home.

Kellan lived in a simple apartment complex, much different than the rented home he used to live in. He had to move out because of the rising inflation and housing costs in Australia screwing him over, and he didn't have as much money as he used to to pay the rent. He spent all his savings on his late sister's funeral.

Kellan had to crash at Vivian's place for a while until he found the cheap apartment.

There were lots of little things in Kellan's room, most of it he chucked on his desk and atop his bedside drawer. He didn't have much in terms of clothes in his closet, but he kept the school uniform he used to wear in highschool. Kellan's gray bed sheets were a bit crumpled, he didn't bother fixing it. The carpet was a nice gray color, though.

In the corner, behind his bedside drawer, was a violin case, inside was a violin his sister gave him when he was sixteen. He used to play the violin with his sister, who taught him, before she had to be hospitalized for breast cancer. But now he couldn't remember the last time he touched the instrument. A part of him wanted to get rid of it; just looking at the instrument case made him feel upset. But he never had the strength to do it. Perhaps, Kellan was afraid that if he threw it out, he'd soon forget about Lydia.

In fact, Kellan never really brought himself to get rid of anything that was related to his sister.

His apartment was of decent quality, though not as spacious and well-kept as his last home. The same couldn't be said for his dingy bathroom. The lights were dim, and he could see dead flies trapped inside them. The walls were an ugly green color, something out of a horror movie. Though, the shower, sink and toilet worked, so Kellan couldn't complain.

Kellan's body felt exhausted, and his arms still stung from the sharp grip of one of Carlos' skeletons. He stared at himself in his bathroom mirror. His short, ashy brown hair was a bit messy, and he saw that he was starting to form dark circles underneath his sharp, lime green eyes. His skin was pale and littered with dark scars all over his body, some of it visible on his arms. The green lighting made Kellan look sick.

He sighed, opening the sink drawer and pulling out a first-aid kit. He contemplated going to the Medical Department instead, but he felt too much shame to face anyone other than his friends in H.O.H after being told that he was quite possibly going to be kicked out. So Kellan decided he was going to take care of himself.

He took some antiseptic and applied it to the wound, crying out in agony as he felt the burning sting. He bit his lip, trying to keep tears from falling. He turned on the sink water and doused the cuts underneath it. Kellan winced as the water made contact with the wounds. His brain kept telling him to pull away, but Kellan didn't. He knew that for other people, the pain of cleaning these kinds of wounds would be a lot less. But for Kellan, the pain was unbearable.

Kellan finally turned off the water and grabbed a towel to dry his arm. It was difficult to not touch the wounds with the rough surface of the towel, as his hands were trembling. He chucked the towel back on its rack when he finished, and took a bandage roll to dress the still stinging scratch on his arm.

Kellan eased up once the pain dialed down, staring at himself in the mirror again after putting away the first-aid kit.

I'm running out of bandages again, he thought. I should go and buy some later. Or maybe ask Hiro for spares.

Kellan was still being bothered by the possibility that he, Trez and Vivian would be kicked out of H.O.H. Kellan couldn't help but picture him and his friends, unwelcome in H.O.H, having to deal with the ultimate shame of being not good enough. Stares from bypassers on the streets and people laughing at them, forever slapped with a title similar to 'Faulty Hero'. Living with the pain of breaking his sister's promise before she passed away: "Become the best hero for me, okay?"