Of Phantoms and Thieves

Take These Words to Heart

Ren woke up to the sound of knocking on the door downstairs. He sat up and rubbed his head. How long had he been asleep?

"Who is it?" he called out.

"It's Sakura," Sojiro called back. "Can I come in?"

Ren sighed. "Yeah, one sec."

He slowly climbed down the stairs and unlocked the door.

"I want to ask you something," Sojiro stated. "You wanna come out? I made you some coffee."

Ren shook his head. "No. If you want to talk, can we do it up here?"

Sojiro sighed. "Alright, I'll go get the coffee."

Ren walked back up the stairs before Sojiro could come back. He sat at the table and stared at a speck on the table. Sojiro came back up and placed the coffee in front of Ren, then grabbed a chair and sat across from him. Ren put a finger in the liquid and stirred it around, making sure it wasn't too hot.

"So, I've been wondering about your view on life right now," Sojiro finally spoke after a few awkward minutes.

"My view on life?" Ren responded. "It sucks right now. Why do you want to know?"

"Well, that wasn't really what I was searching for," Sojiro stated. "What do you feel like your life is like?"

Ren stared at the coffee, still not having taken a sip.

"I just want to be able to understand what you're going through," Sojiro urged.

"Well, I guess you could say my life feels like a terrible play where I'm forced through the worst crap ever."

"A... terrible play?"

Ren nodded. "That's just how it feels, anyways."

Sojiro studied Ren for a moment. "Is there anything else you have to say?"

Ren shook his head. "No," he whispered. "I... I don't really want to talk about it."

"You wanna be left alone right now?"

"I'd appreciate that," Ren breathed.

Sojiro stood up and left the room.

"So, guys," Sojiro whispered quietly, turning to the Phantom Thieves. "He said something about a play. Oh, and you can come out from behind the counter. But quietly, now."