My Pink Rose | Army x Aloha

❁Part 1❁

It was a few weeks after that experience. 

Yes, a week. In all honesty it felt like months. Every time I saw him, he looked worse. Pretty soon he didn't even look like Aloha anymore, and Mask and Skull finally noticed his changes. 

I tried to talk to him, asking him what was wrong, but he'd never answer me. He'd either run off or just ignore me. 

After a bit it looked like he was going to collapse at any second, and I was ready to catch him. Aloha would just disappear sometimes, and we could never find him. He wouldn't even be at his house! 

One day I couldn't take it anymore, I couldn't take Aloha ignoring me like that. I saw him speeding off somewhere, and I followed. 

"ALOHA WAIT!" 

He stopped and looked at me, confused. I was stunned that I now finally had his attention, but now I didn't know what to do with it. I can't just ask what's wrong, or else he'll run off again... 

"Hey, I was wondering if maybe you could come with me tomorrow to the cafe." I blurted out suddenly. Aloha looked perplexed for a bit, but the look on his face had a bit of confusion on it. Almost wondering why I was talking to someone like him. 

Then he ran away. 

I noticed how weaker Aloha had been getting, and he was much slower than before as well. I decided to run after him, and this time I could finally catch up. 

"W-wait, Aloha! Where are you even going?" I asked, grabbing onto his arm. 

"...I'm gonna go train." He finally spoke, in a flat and dull tone. 

What had happened to him...? 

He always said training and practicing was a pain, so why was he doing it now? 

Is this even Aloha?

Any other attempt I made to contact him or ask what was wrong ended up with no response. This really wasn't like him at all, every time I tried to figure out what was going on he'd be gone. Right here was the most out of character I've ever seen him be in. 

Maybe I should just try and figure it out myself instead of asking him..?

Think... when was the last time he was happy?

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"Hey Army!" Aloha ran at me and threw himself at me in a tackle hug. I groaned and shoved him off, fed up with his carefree attitude already. Aloha chuckled a bit, a small bit of sweat running down his face. 

"Ugh, quit playing around and come on! We're here to watch the battle." A new team that wasn't known that well was battling Team Emperor, and of course The S4 were going to watch. They looked like your average normal team, someone that maybe they themselves could beat easily. 

Yet, that wasn't what happened. 

This new team beat Team Emperor like they were nothing, astounding everyone in the crowd, including the S4. Whatever happened in that battle made Aloha suddenly go pale, and walk away before the timer dropped to 0. 

In all honesty, watching the battle made me feel weak. I knew that Aloha was still beating himself up about not beating Team Blue, how his mistake of going off guard during the Blue-Per battle cost us the game, how he was never gonna be as good as maybe someone like Eging Jr... 

But it's okay, right? His team will probably just cheer him up and he'll go to his annoying old self, although it wouldn't hurt to see a change. 

...Right? 

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Aloha's POV

One more battle, one more battle, don't be such a weakling.

I pushed myself from off of the ground as my body seemed to ache, the rest of my random teammates sulking in defeat. I checked my ranked stats and grumbled. I still wasn't anywhere close to Rank X. 

I'm so pathetic.

Out of all the S4, I'm the second weakest and the most insecure; Army is the only one that isn't as weak as me, but even then, he's much more mature. I was so so stupid. I didn't take anything seriously. The more I think about it, the more I realize that everything had been my fault.

We lost against Team Blue because of me.

We lost against Team Emperor because of me.

The S4 doesn't get along because of me.

We lost again to Team Blue-Per because of me.

I just want people to like me.

That didn't work with the S4. I knew they loathed me. I found out that everyone did. They all thought of me as some annoying, idiotic, party animal. I just wanted to be liked.

I ruined everything...

Why couldn't I just be better? Why couldn't I just be more powerful, so I didn't ruin everything? Why couldn't I have made everyone satisfied with who I was, instead of making them all wishing I was dead because of my upbeat attitude?

Maybe I would be better off dead...

If I made it to Rank X, everything would change. People would like me. I wouldn't bring the team down. Part of me wanted to stop, part of me wanted to relax and head back to normal, but that won't happen.

I won't let myself relax until I prove I'm not a burden.

However, I wasn't doing as well as I wanted at all. The more I pushed myself, the more I could feel myself slipping away. I now had a losing streak, and it was tearing me apart.

I struck my arm in anger and began to feel my entire body begin to ache again. I felt like I was going to collapse as my eyesight began to blur, and I started to get shaky.

Not now, I need to make it to Rank X.

It wasn't like anyone would care if I dropped down on the floor anyways, the S4 obviously wouldn't. Everyone hates my carefree, bubbly, happy, goofy, stupid attitude anyway.

I just wish I could be better for everyone else.

I slowly started to walk back into the lobby when I heard a familiar voice echo through my ringing ears.

"Aloha?"

I turned around as I heard what I thought was Army's voice, only for me to find out it was just a hallucination.

Of course, Army wouldn't care about me.

Then again, his previous proposal when we left still rung in my ears, or was that just its usual ringing? The café tomorrow, he didn't give me a time. Then again, I ran off before he could.

Why was he even trying to like me when I knew he hated me?

Yet, what if somewhere in the universe, there was a world where he didn't? A world where I knew he would accept how I felt about him?

I'm sorry, everyone...I wish I wasn't a burden...

Maybe when I reach Rank X, he'll accept me...