𝚙𝚊𝚒𝚗𝚝 ペイント 𝚕𝚎𝚘𝚗𝚊𝚛𝚍𝚘 𝚡 𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚍𝚎𝚛

chapter ten: what's worse- gangsters or stick figures? stay tuned to find out!

Isidore hated... people.

   From the various men and women, (who didn't seem to understand the concept of hygiene or personal space), who pressed up against him in the subway, to the gremlins that littered his high school with their loud vulgar mouths and vapes hanging from their ulcer littered lips. There was even that girl in his church who always tried to talk to him after service; no matter how much he glowered at her and grunted responses to her bubbly little questions. He was going to be fifteen soon for God's sake- he was too mature to be running after girls like the rest of his classmates.

   Now, as he scuffed his vans along the dented and cracked sidewalks of Manhattan, the pink and blue sky of the city yawning to life and stretching its array of clouds across the heavens. He felt his backpack bounce against the small of his back, keychains tinkling quietly against one another. His little golden coin flicked into the air and slammed into his palm. He focused on how the chipping yellow paint reflected the golden arrays of sunlight that creeped over the hundreds of buildings. He avoided the gaze of the few stragglers shuffling by on their way to work, or to the various little coffee shops and cafe's opening up to feed the insomniacs of New York.

A woman in a pantsuit and a tight brown updo smiled at Isidore as they passed by each other. Isidore glared and scrunched up his face in annoyance, until the woman frowned and looked away. Good. It was better that way. Besides, who smiled at seven twenty five in the morning? Horrible. Those sort of people needed to be stopped; immediately, if possible.

   Isidore watched as fellow store owner neighbors opened up their business, unlocking the steel shutters and pushing them from over the front of the storefronts. Many had graffiti and bullet hole dents littering across the metal, but many stayed intact and gave those business owners a sense of security and peace. Especially with those purple dragons running around, extorting money from local owners and shaking them down for personal goods.

   The daughter of the local grocery store a block down from Murakami's restaurant smiled and waved at him, her father wrestling with the padlock of his roller shutter. Parvati was her name, and sometimes she brought over her homemade candles that Murakami loved to litter his apartment and the restaurant with, in return for giant hearty bowls of Japanese soup that she brought to her family. She was nice- he couldn't just glare at her.

   Isidore groaned loudly, glad that he was on the opposite side of the road. It pained him to raise his hand and wave, even more so to force a tight lipped smile in her direction. She grinned back, her long black hair pulled into a tight braid. She was about his age, and they both went to the same school- even if they didn't talk much. Yaki was always on his case to make new friends, but giving Parv a smile drained him of his social battery.

   Isidore quickened his pace, hoping that there would be no other business neighbors for him to force a good morning; or else Yaki would smack the back of his head as a punishment. Strands of platinum blond hair kept sticking to his lips and attempting to wiggle inside of his mouth, as he yanked them away in annoyance. He stuffed his fake golden coin deep into his jeans pocket, making sure it was firmly inside.

   He stopped.

   There was a crowd around the storefront of Murakami's restaurant- and the steel shutter was gone. Oh great. More people!

He let out a long sigh and quickened his pace. Yaki and Y/n would be here in half an hour, as he always woke up early to start with the preparations before rushing off to school. First period would start at seven forty, so maybe he could figure out what was going on and alert Sukiyaki of it. It would be so much of a hassle, but at least he wouldn't get in trouble for not... saying anything. Then, he could shuffle off to his leaking mold riddled public high school and camp out in the library with a few good comic book and manga's, avoiding the poor librarian who always tried to make small talk.