For The Sake Of

CHAPTER 12: How Long?

It was Friday evening, when I finished my work and started packing my things.
Isaac said that he will be late so, I was going home alone untill Nyle called me and invited me to his house for playing Red Dead Redemption 2.

I agreed to him happily and reached his penthouse at seven in the evening and I didn't even bother to tell Isaac.

"Take cover Nyle! Look more O'Driscolls are coming", I shouted to Nyle as he fought with the O'Driscolls and I just sat there and watched him play cause I don't know how to fight, I mean I have never been able to kill someone properly in that game but Nyle was expert in that.

Empty pizza boxes laid around us as we played and ate pizza for dinner.

"Finally!", Nyle exclaimed when he killed all the enemies and then he switched off the PS4 because we have been playing for a long time.

"I didn't even realise that it's too late", he said glancing at the wall clock.

He was right, it was quarter past ten already.

"Nyle?"

"Hmm?"

"You and Isaac are childhood friends, right?"

He looked baffled on hearing me asking him a question all of a sudden.

"Umm...yes. Why?"

"Nothing...I just...is Isaac angry with you?" I wanted to ask him that for a long time because they both are best friends but they don't act like that. Isaac doesn't even hides the fact that he is uncomfortable by his presence.

"No...he is not angry", he said, avoiding eye contact with me.

"But why does he acts like that towards you?"

Sighing he leaned back on the couch, "We are like that since childhood, Thera. There is nothing wrong."

"No, I know it's not necessary for two friends to show affection for each other but Isaac seem to not like you, I don't mean to offend you but he does accept you as his best friend but you both don't seem to get along, why?"

He closed his eyes for a moment and then opened them, still staring at front.

"First of all...I am not supposed to tell you much but all I can say that he and I grew up together, we were best of friends but for the past ten years, he has built a wall around himself and I have been trying for the past ten years to break that wall and hangout and do stuffs like we used to before but he just doesn't listen to me...we are still friends, we are like siblings, we love each other but Isaac is...broken."

Isaac is broken was all I could understand. Why?

"What happened ten years back?"

"I can't tell you...he will kill me. But all I can say is that Serah died ten years back and since then...he had been blaming himself for her death."

"Why is he blaming himself?!"

He gave me a sad smile, "You should ask him not me about that because I don't want to die single."

At that I let out a small chuckle but I was not done asking questions, "At least you can tell me what relationship he had with her, please?"

He looked at me for a few seconds, debating whether to tell me or not.
I thought he wouldn't but he finally said, "Serah, Isaac and I were best friends, our families were friends and we three grew up together; we were inseparable untill death took her away. That's all I can tell you."

His eyes looked empty talking about her, they lost their best friend.

"Don't tell Isaac I told you all this because he doesn't likes to talk about all this to anyone", he added.