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The abandoned factory.
After an hour they make it to the abandoned factory.
Kaoru shows off with ease lazer flips a 360, to an impossible, to the cheers of Kojiro; to Ainosuke, he might as well be flying on air, he isn’t as good as they are; he doesn’t have the time to practice as they do.
With his school work and interviews, he wishes he could be free like them, but that is just a fantasy a dumb foolish fantasy.
He isn’t a terrible skater, but he isn’t as good as Kojiro and nowhere as good as Kaoru.
He attempts to do a lazer flip like Kaoru, but he bails, sending his board flying and himself falling hard on the ground.
He must have landed hard because Kaoru and Kojiro came rushing over to him
“Dude are you okay? It looked like you tripped twice.” Kojiro says, helping him up.
“Yeah, I'm fine.”
He didn’t mean to wince in pain, but he did.
“No, he’s not fine, look at his back. it’s bleeding!”
Kaoru says, rushing over to him.
“Holy Crap dude, how hard did you land?”Kojiro said, but his voice was fading out; he could hardly answer him.
His heart hammered in his chest panic surged through him. He felt like he might throw up the punishment marks, they must have opened when he fell.
He cowered away from Kojiro’s grip.
“Let me see, your shoulder Ai’ you could need stitches.“ Kaoru says, sternly.
“It’s fine! I’m fine! They wouldn’t do it if they didn’t love me!” He screamed, he didn’t mean to.
You could hear a pin drop in the Factory.
“Who wouldn’t do what?” Kaoru says softly, approaching him as if he were a feral animal.
“Did your Aunts do this to you?” Kojiro asks, his voice kept to a low tone.
He has to get out of here. His aunts weren’t being mean; he never should have tried out for the theater; it distracted him from his studies, He needs to pay them back they raised him.
they showed him their love by hitting him he deserved it.
He was acting rude by going against their wishes for him to marry a woman...He deserved it for being caught with Tadashi in the pool house.
He deserved to say goodbye to the only childhood friend he had when his aunts fired Tadashi’s father making Tadashi go away.
Damn Tadashi he had corrupted his mind with “the ungodly Sin.” they said.
He deserved to be sent away that summer to that camp; they fixed him his aunts said.
So many things raced through his mind.
What happened to the air? Why was he suffocating? Is it raining? Why is his face wet? Was he dying because the sound of his heart was so loud?
“Ainosuke? Hey, Ainosuke”
He hears a voice, but he can’t find a face; his vision is cloudy.
"Ainosuke, where are you right now?" "Can you recall what we were doing?" Says, the voice once more.
Good question where is he? Oh, he was skateboarding, but he still doesn’t know where he is.
“S-skateboarding, but I don’t know where I am, sorry.” he says, trembling.
He falls to his knees he's never felt this powerless in his life worthless.
“Okay, sit up, watch me, and breathe. We’ll do this together okay?.” the voice says, before taking a deep breath.
He tried to copy him against his judgment.
"Just keep breathing. In and out.."
He felt dizzy and exhausted his vision was slowly coming back to him.
Kojiro was kneeling in front of him his hand on his hand.
Kaoru was next to him.
“Hey, listen to me. You’re safe. Nothing is going to hurt you.” Kaoru said.
What the hell happened to him.
He was just skating with his friends-...when he fell.
His fall opened the wound, on his shoulder from when his aunts struck him.
His breathing had returned to normal.
His best friends sat beside him.
“would you mind telling us what that was about?” Kojiro asked lighting a cigarette.
No use in lying to them, they saw his wounds how weak he was how imperfect he is.
He told them all about his aunts, about Tadashi, and about the camp in America, how he had lied and said he was going there to study English. He told them everything he had hidden from them.
They stood in the quiet until Kaoru threw his board into the cement wall next to them in anger.
“Kaoru, Don’t! I know what your thinking.”
Kojiro says, following Kaoru to pick up his board.
“Then what do you suggest I do?” Kaoru said arms crossed.
“I don’t know gimme a minute.”
He stood by watching his friends argue.
“Maybe I should be headed home.” he said gathering his board and turning away from his friends.
“No way, you're not going back there.”
Kojiro said grabbing his hand, Then the light went off in Kojiro’s mind.
“You can stay with me, Ainosuke.” Kojiro said.
“Your parents wouldn't let me stay-”
Kojiro’s laughing cut him off.
“I now live in an apartment, my parents thought moving closer to the culinary school was easier for me.”
Kojiro said kindly.
“so what do you say? Wanna be roommates?”
“Uhm,” he said
"Let me talk to him, he clearly doesn't understand your grunts. Move aside, you gorilla.” Kaoru says pushing Kojiro out of his way.
“Ainosuke your not going back to that house we care too much about you to send you back so the answer is final your moving in with us”
He didn’t know what to say he never did when Kaoru was looking at him.
“Hey! I never offered to be roommates with you Pinky” Kojiro said elbowing Kaoru in the ribs.
“That’s too bad, I am moving in. I am positive there is sufficient space in your nest for us both.” Kaoru said as he dodged Kojiro’s elbow to the ribs.
He didn't notice at first but he was crying.
“Good job idiot, You scared him!” Karou said to Kojiro.
They both were looking at him.
“Ai’ it’s okay, You don’t need to be afraid of him.” Kaoru said softly.
“Yeah, he needs to be afraid of you.” Kojiro said under his breath.
“I don’t speak gorilla.” Karou said.
“Would you stop calling me that!” Kojiro said desperately.
He was laughing, it had been so long since he laughed Kojiro must’ve noticed because he started laughing which made Kaoru laugh.
“Okay, I’ll move in with you guys.” he said.
He was thankful he had friends like them.
“Alright, roommates!”Kojiro said cheering, Running off toward the exit of the factory.
“Dinner’s on me tonight!” Kaoru says, running after Kojiro.
but he grabs his hand.
“Kaoru would you like to go on a date with me?!” he says,
afraid of the harsh rejection, he knew he was going to receive.
“Sure how's tomorrow night at seven?” Karou said smiling softly then running off.
“Yeah, that's Perfect!” He Laughed Running after his friends.