No Longer Human | Arlecchino

Chapter 1: Love

"I've killed them. my family." Ren's voice shook, not from grief, but from something far darker, colder. Standing over the bloodstains, his eyes were as hollow as the vaccuum now at his feet. "All my life they were trash, treating me like vermin, like I was less than human.

His fists clenched, nails digging deep into his palms as memories of every insult, every beating, flashed before him. "They made me feel worth nothing. but not anymore. I stopped it. I finished them off just like they deserved."


Ren took a deep breath, his chest heaving with the satisfaction of twisted revenge that he was finally free. "I was never their son. I was a mistake, a burden to them. But now... now I am free. No more chains, no more lies."

The room was eerily silent now, its space that had reverberated with the sound of their voices, where even the world seemed to hush and not acknowledge what Ren had done.

Ren ran, his feet pounding against the earth as he left behind him the shattered remnants of his past, the bloodsoaked house disappearing into the gloom of night. Yet with every step, the weight in his chest seemed to grow heavier, but he couldn't stop-he wouldn't. The open road was now his home, one place he could disappear and maybe hide from his transgressions. Towns and cities came and went, a blur as Ren flowed by, becoming a ghost without a name, faceless in shadows.

He had slept under bridges, in abandoned buildings the world forgot existed. Each night, he waited for the sound of sirens, but they never came. Yet the paranoia never left him, he could feel the eyes of the law lurking around every corner. So he kept moving, driven by fear that one day they'd catch up.

Mumbling to himself, Ren slumped against a brick wall, the cold of the night nipping at his skin. His legs ached from walking for days, and his stomach growled with hunger, but he didn't care. It was another faceless alley in another nameless town, just like all the rest. He stared blankly up at the stars above, wondering if he'd ever be able to stop running.

That was when he heard the shuffling footsteps. Out of the corner of his eye, a figure hobbled toward him, an older man, his clothes filthy and torn, a half empty bottle of something strong swinging from his hand. The man's eyes, red and unfocused met Ren's and for a moment they stood in silence.


Got any change, kid?" the man slurred, words thick with the weight of alcohol. He took another swig from his bottle and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.

Ren shook his head, his voice hoarse from disuse. "I don't have anything. Just like you.

The homeless man laughed mockingly. His laughter trailed into a cough. "Yeah, we're all just beggars out here, huh? But you... you look like you don't belong in this world yet. Still got a lot to lose."

Ren glanced away, his jaw clenched. "Lost everything already."

The man's smile twisted and darkened. "Everything, huh? You don't know what real loss is, kid. Out here we all got nothing. And if you got nothing, you got no right to take from someone else."

Ren's eyes flickered and confusion crossed his face. "What are you talking about?

The man stumbled closer, his eyes squinting. "You took something, didn't ya? I can see it in your eyes. You're hiding. Cops are after you, aren't they?" He spat on the ground, taking another swig before his grip tightened on the bottle. "You're no better than the rest of us."

Ren's heart was racing, and tension crept into his tone. "Back off Bro! I didn't take anything from you.

The homeless man sneered, his body swaying as he reached into his coat. "Didn't you? Maybe you didn't steal my money, but you stole something... you stole my peace. You and your type, always running, always thinking you can outrun the hell you made for yourself."