Angel of a Rotten World

Rotten World (Light)

     'English class is boring,' of course I would think that. At a young age I made a point of studying as many languages as possible and becoming conversationally fluent in them. It helped that I possessed an eidetic memory.
     That day was a lot more boring than usual. Learning English poetry to sharpen our pronunciation, it wasn't like my classmates were going to use English in their daily life, let alone actually remember it. No one usually did, but people found it incredibly impressive when you could point a foreigner in the right direction in their native language. My mother especially found it endearing, pushing me to any foreigner she saw just so she could flaunt a multilingual son.
     I'm not angry about that, my parents are proud of me. I'm everything a first born son should be, dressed impeccably, not a hair out of place, and making achievements they can brag about to everyone else as if saying "The child I raised is the best therefore I am the best parent." Maybe I was a little angry.
     I was just happy they were so lenient with Sayu, she was too sweet for them to push perfection on. Speaking of Sayu, after I walked her from school, I was going to take her to the mall. A new foreign store opened and she was incredibly excited to see all of the foreign merchandise. Sayu was like a little light in a dark World.
     I've seen the people my father has had to deal with on a daily basis. Terrible criminals, sick perverts, and helpless victims. I've helped solve a case or two when they were really stuck. It still made me shake, just thinking of the photos the police showed me to analyse. Showing a nine year old a grotesque crime scene of a victim of a sexual sadist really did not make the best father/son activity. Not like that bothered my father. I could get over it, I was the perfect elder son after all.
     I heard the teacher call my name to read aloud and without a second thought, I stood and recited the English words without looking, I had them memorized after all. I sat down once more when I finished and smiled graciously at the praise the teacher gave me. As expected.
     I stared out the window again, losing myself to my thoughts. I wonder, when I become a detective, will I successfully help rid the world of filthy people? The ones who take advantage of the weaker, the more innocent? I want a beautiful future for the next generation, for Sayu even. Even if the world is rotting... I could make it just a bit better?

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     "Whoa!!! Everything is so weird," Sayu said as she tried on a Cowboy hat from the new store.
     "Yeah, I wonder if that's real Leather?" I took the hat off of her head and checked for a production tag.
     "Did you see the section on Spain? I think that dress is handmade." I looked over at the extravagant dress.
     "I'm not sure. I do know that it's a Flamenco Dress, a dance dress worn at festivals in Spain. Andalusia, specifically if I'm right?"
     "How would you dance in this? It looks like it'd be difficult," Sayu pulled the fabric to fan out the bottom layers a bit.
     "I do believe Flamenco is very difficult. It's not like our traditional dance, that's for sure. Do you want to stop by your fancy clothes store before we leave." Sayu pursed her lips.
     "Of course I do. Misa Misa modeled this season's collection and I just have to see it." She continued to tell me about the clothing line as we entered the store, telling me about the fabrics and styles.
     I smiled indulgently at her as she picked at clothes and held them in front of her. Sayu got so excited sometimes it was really hard not to make her smile all the time. I've always worked really hard to make her happy, ever since she was born, I think it's the older brother instinct that makes me want to make sure she's taken care of.
     "Awww man! This one's really cute but I'm short 10000 yen. Stupid expensive clothing line." She pouted at the shirt and placed it back on the rack. It was a pretty light blue with ruffles at the bottom. The sleeves were a nice lavender and the collar was cut wide but not low. She moved on to a different rack and I snuck the shirt off of the rack. She wasn't paying attention to me so it made it very easy to buy it without her noticing.
     I checked the time and walked back over to Sayu. "I think it's time to go home. Oh, and here," I said, passing over the bag holding the shirt I bought for her.
     "Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you! You are the best brother ever!" She launched up and hugged me as tightly as she could and I couldn't help but chuckle at her shenanigans. Then, we turned to leave the store.
     Walking through the mall with Sayu wasn't bad at all. Sayu actually knew me better than anyone. She was my younger sister, but also, she was the only one I could have faults around. She knows how I think, and she thinks I'm perfect without me actually trying to be perfect.
     Suddenly, something crashed into me. I fell to the the ground, landing on my hip as I heard the frantic clacking of heels trying to regain balance. I looked up and saw a girl in a school uniform with extremely short hair and thick rimmed glasses.
     "Oh my goodness! I am so so so sorry!" She had her hands up in front of her mouth. I picked myself up and waved my hands in front of me.
    "It's fine. Nobody got hurt so there's no need to be worried." The girl looked around like she expected someone to pop out a take her.
     "My name is Misa Amane." I nodded through an introduction.
     "Light Yagami. This is my sister Sayu Yagami."
     "Did you say Misa Amane?" Sayu looked at the girls face very closely. She gasped and fanned her face a bit. "Oh my God I'm a big fan."
     "It's an honor to meet one of my fans. I really am sorry for running into you. I could take you out to a nice dinner." She reached forward and dragged a hand down my arm. I felt a disturbing tingle follow her fingers and I flinched back a little bit. I chuckled it off.
     "I'm sorry but we're a little late for dinner and I have a schedule to keep for a while. It was very nice to meet you though." Sayu must have caught onto my discomfort because she quickly bowed and we both rushed away.
     Misa Amane made me very uncomfortable. She had a look in her eyes that seemed like she wanted to eat me up. I sighed and focused on getting home with Sayu.

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      Sayu rushed through the front door barely having the time to take off her shoes before she rushed up the stairs to her room, most likely going to try on her shirt and show it off to our mother. Mother was standing next to the stairs and smiling after her young daughter. She turned to me with a smile.
     "Did you do well on your essays?" I smiled at her and handed over a marked paper. "Of course you did well. Continue your hard work."
     "Yes, of course mother." Sayu came running back down the stairs wearing her new shirt. She began talking her ear off about the new shirt and other such subjects. I made my way upstairs, heading straight to my room.
     I turned on my tv and laid on my bed, barely bothering to loosen my tie or take off my school uniform jacket. The news was on and I was barely paying any attention. There was a breaking story on about a school being held up by a crazed gunman.
     That was when I started paying attention. My heart aches for those children and teachers. I've seen the pictures and videos that sort of crime scenes and I really hoped it would not turn that way. I don't know how but I ended up sitting on the edge of my bed, chewing my forefinger nail as the reporter updated the camera about the situation.
     In the next moment, children and teachers began rushing out of the building, being intercepted by medics and police. I felt my breath release from my chest and I relaxed back. Apparently, the man seemingly had a heart attack and was the only casualty in the situation.
     I turned off my television and changed into my pajamas. I reached into my desk drawer and took out the false bottom that hid my medication and I swallowed the pills down with water I kept next to my bed. I hid the bottle down in the false bottom and laid down. I hoped I would stay asleep but sometimes even my medication didn't help with.
     I took a breath and stared at the ceiling until I felt myself drift off, ready to face the mock exams of the next week and forcing myself to be the perfect son in this Rotten World.