Chapter Text
It's been often said that the world can be filled with titular hardships, some occurrences more painful than others. They say that these moments in your life are meant to mold you, shape, and transform you; turn you into the person you are supposed to be today? Still, if this is all, apparently, supposed to happen, then why does it still hurt? Because the truth is, sometimes we never grow from our hardships, and the people around those hardened individuals only make it worse.. a ticking bomb towards the destruction of a person, watching them break down violently, tears in the eyes of those once known to be so kind, or perhaps they never were.
And yet, why are we angry? Why are we sad? It's been said that these difficulties, roadblocks throughout our lives are supposed to make us stronger. What doesn't kill you makes you stronger, right? Is that how it's going to be? To just magically be okay after what feels like the downfall of one's life after it takes a turn? Is that how society is meant to work?
If so, I guess I don't know how to live. Actually.. allow me to make a correction, when I say “I”, it truly means “we”. We don't know the first thing about living.. but I think that's fine, as long as it's just us.. just the two of us taking this on together. Right?
After all, the world has always been an unforgiving place for ordinary individuals. Those who are genuinely good people end up getting hit with it the most, whether they like it or not. Unfortunately for us, we learned that the hard way. It's always been a little cruel, and if there was anything we could ask for, it would have been to be more prepared for it. However, in order to break such peace and silence, you'd need a tragedy, wouldn't you?
Perhaps I'm sounding a bit too casual when I say that, but truthfully, it's because I've dealt with it before, and yet I still can't seem to understand when it occurs, nor where it will be. The point is, sometimes tragedy follows those who don't deserve it, but in no capacity would I ever wish it on anyone, either. You might be wondering; Where am I going with this? Why supposedly preach about society? Why do you choose to talk of these things when they feel as though they are retracting from the point?
It's as I've already said, that I- no. WE have dealt with this before.. and the only way for you to understand is to tell you how we got to the point we are at now.
The time is around 5:30 in the afternoon. At this point you can hear the subtle beginning of the crickets, beginning their night by chirping loudly for others of their kind to hear through the tall blades of grass that they seemed to get lost in, illuminated by the glare of the traffic lights that littered the streets, in order to show passing cars the way.
As the rumbling, speeding engines of vehicles sounded out, blocking out the crickets sounds, they pass by, not too fast, or not too furious either. The neighborhood otherwise has not too much activity, as children have already begun to go home, or have made it to their doors. The lights in the windows were an indication of the continued display of normalcy.. at least that could be seen on the surface.
At one particular house, the outside layered by brick as the door, while cracked open, proceeds to close from someone pulling it. That was the sound of my older brother.. finally arriving home, but I wasn't downstairs, no. I was in fact in my room, but the bedroom wasn't too decorative, aside from a standard desk, and a few miscellaneous posters that depicted a few storybook characters, one seemingly of a red capped man wearing overalls, hopping over a green pipe, accompanied by what looked like a brown mushroom shaped creature below him.
I stood at my closet, having finished trying on my new worker's uniform: a yellow office shirt, khakis, black dress shoes, and a matching tie.
In truth.. I felt I didn't look too bad, with my red eyes, brown hair and darkened skin, but in truth, I was also judging myself heavily. I wasn't sure if I looked well, or if I wasn't professional enough, and yet..
“I got the job anyway. I should really stop worrying.”, came instinctively out of my mouth, as if I were to be silently having a mental argument with myself. Letting out a sigh, I slowly walked from my closet and sat on my bed, unsure how to go about the night. While I said out loud to stop worrying, I really couldn't stop the nagging thoughts in my head, especially with what was to come soon.
Despite my constant, overarching thought, that pace would be interrupted by the sounds of knocking on my door. Snapping out of my daze, I quickly replied “Come in!”, waiting for them to open the door. Soon enough, I heard the sounds of a feminine voice on the other side.
“..Before I go in here, are you fully dressed?”, the voice would say, and I could hear the mischievous giggling that came with it. I knew exactly who that was at my door by now. With a small sigh, and a small smile on my face, though slightly annoyed, I replied back;
“Yeah. Just get in here, sis.”
My door opened, and walking in would be a girl, whom I just referred to as my sister.. wearing the exact same outfit as I was, but what is important to note is that she has the eyes and facial features as I do. She's my twin..
“Ariel. You're done already?”, I asked. She just smiled and nodded as she closed the door, an excited tone in her voice as she proceeded to mosey on over to the bed and sit down right next to me.
“Yeah, Gabriel! Say, I didn't expect the uniforms to be the same for both genders..”, she'd reply, pondering her gaze at my uniform. Now that she had brought it up, it made no sense not for me to talk about, since I had that thought lingering when she came in.
Ariel is my twin sister. She and I have been together since we were born, and if I could describe her, she would be what I think would be my better half. For as long as I've known, there's barely any times I haven't seen her with that smile on her face. I envied her energy, at least a little, because I could never really understand what made her feel like she was so full of life. I didn't mind it, because it made me smile too. She's a little contagious, the bubbling excitement she brought to others, would only continue to have an affect on everyone she met, which would only highlight her own future career later down the line.
I, on the other hand, was less energetic than she was. As she had previously mentioned before, my name was Gabriel. For her, she'd probably describe me as the better half in comparison, because I tend to be more calm and serious. Yet, I still smile despite not seeming like I was one for jokes. She would probably say she envied how I take things slowly and adapt to it, or how I welcome life as it goes, taking things one step at a time. She's said I calm people down when I'm around them, but I personally don't see it.
“..You could say the uniforms are this way to keep things simple. Less money for the company to spend if they made both male and female outfits.”, I said, giving my sister a side glance before continuing. “Besides, it's not like you're one to complain. I know you prefer pants.”
She gave me a playful scoff, mocking offense at being called out. Ariel then dramatically put a hand on her chest as she spoke back, looking at me with leering, half opened eyes. “I mean, you're right, but must you wound me so, dear brother? I get that I don't dress normally for a girl my age, but you don't have to call me out!”
“It'll get worse if you keep that up..”, I gave a similar leer, raising an eyebrow as I stared back at her. It didn't take long for both to start giggling afterward. In a way, it's only something siblings would understand when it comes to humor that wouldn't make sense. In comparison to that laughter, our expressions became serious, our faces turning to look each other in the eye with a slight look of worry.
“So, we leave tomorrow, right? I can hardly believe we even got accepted.”, I said, quickly changing the subject. To that, my sister nodded, and that's how I knew that's what she was here for: she wanted to talk about our new jobs.
Ariel then replied with, “Yeah! In truth, I'm a little concerned.” I couldn't exactly blame her. We were being accepted into one of the biggest companies in the world as assistant workers. That we even got in at all was surprising, especially that they were willing to let in two people who were only fifteen. Ariel would proceed to add, “I always dreamed of visiting Playtime Co! The last thing I expected was for them to be hiring at all.”
“Playtime Co..”, I murmured, trailing off a little as I broke contact with my sister. “It almost sounds like a myth. A fever dream, nearly.”
Playtime Co, probably one of, if not one of the biggest toy corporations in the world was well renowned for their work. With hundreds upon hundreds of workers, their sales have always been the highest when it came to it. I even heard that there was an orphanage down there to help kids, called Playcare. Numerous children that were taken there usually were adopted at some point. I was kind of jealous, considering we could have lived there as well.
More importantly, their toys. They had so many to choose from; the Poppy doll, Mommy Long Legs, or maybe even their most famous creations: the Smiling Critters. To be honest, Dogday was my favorite out of them all. Someone would describe me plain for it, but if that's the case, they could just call me Jane too.
“..You have to admit, sis.”, I began. “Despite the concern of whether or not we'll do well when we get to the factory, I want to think the experience would help us down the line.”
“True! We might even stay long to make it a career!”, she exclaims, her eyes lighting up to the idea. “Still though.. we're also doing this for a reason.”
“Yeah, it's for those two.”, I replied, giving a small nod. “More than anything, we just have to lesson the load for-”
As much as I wanted to keep talking, my words were interrupted by the sounds of a masculine voice calling from downstairs. “Hey! Gabriel! Ariel! Cheryl! Get down here! We've got something to discuss!”
The two of us looked towards my door, recognizing the voice as someone we knew. It belonged to our older brother, Dominic. To be honest, we knew that was coming, considering the fact we were leaving tomorrow. He probably wanted to talk with us before then. I turned my head to look back at Ariel, who was already getting up and heading for the door. Opting to follow her, I slowly stood from the bed and left behind Ariel as she opened my room door.
We slowly walked downstairs, the view of the living room becoming apparent. The TV sat on the counter with the remote on top of the rectangular coffee table, surrounded by the L-shaped couch that we all sit on when. Oval shaped frames containing picture adorned the wall behind the TV, with there being a window to the right, as well as the front door. Sitting on the couch would be our younger sister, Cheryl. Meanwhile, standing next to the TV would be Dominic.
Dominic? As stated before he's our older brother, with blue eyes, and the same brown hair as us. and is the owner of the house. Currently? It's his first year of college, under the sports scholarship, with a minor in teaching. You could say he's our protector; someone who's been there for us for as long as we've been alive. As the oldest sibling, he's had to sacrifice many things he wanted to do just for us, and it makes sense when you consider the things that happened to us before. Unfortunately, I'm not going to bring that up right now.
On the opposite side of that spectrum is the youngest person in the house. That person is our baby sister, Cheryl. At this current time she's 15, and is about to go into her first year of high school starting this fall. She's the only one here who wears glasses, sporting green eyes underneath. On top of that, she's the only one who's got short hair, and prefers it that way. She's a sweet person that tries to see the good in others, and while gifted and intelligent, is a bit of a recluse due to the fact people don't want to listen to what she has to say at school. Though perhaps, at her new school, she'll break out of her shell.. hopefully.
As the two of us walked closer to the couch, we sat down, Ariel sitting next to Cheryl on the far left. I on the other hand sat away from them, while Dominic still stood, just about to bring what he wanted to talk with us about. I had a feeling what it was already, but I didn't want to just interject unexpectedly. Like I had thought, here's what he had to say, putting a hand in the pocket of his black jeans, maintaining a lighthearted, yet serious tone.
“So, it's come to my attention that you two will be leaving tomorrow.”, he starts, sounding a bit pained to even say it, but keeps going regardless. “Although, I say tomorrow very loosely. The driver is meant to come at one o’clock tonight, and is supposed to take you there, correct?”
Ariel immediately piped up at the question posed by our brother with a “Yeah!”, before continuing on. “It seems a bit suspicious to me, though. Why not just pick us up tomorrow? You know.. like a normal person?”
“Well, to be honest..” I interject, now feeling it was appropriate. “..It's a long drive from here. They probably want us to get there as soon as possible, you know?” Even though I was saying that, I wasn't exactly all that enthusiastic about it either. To be honest, I agreed that it was in fact a bit suspicious, but it wasn't something we would ponder for long. Ariel raises her eyebrows at my answers, finding some sense in it as she turns to look at our brother.
“..Still. Regardless, I've got some words for you both, alright? So, I want you to listen for a second.”, he says.
The two of us just nod silently, and Dominic begins. “Regardless of what we're doing, I want you two to focus on the job and what's in front of you. Don't worry about us. You can call to check in, but.. this is a choice that you two made and should stick by it. However, don't make your job more dependent than your lives. More than anything, don't put your lives at risk if something doesn't seem right. It's alright to question things if you don't understand, especially if it potentially can put you both in danger. Moreover, I want you to be there for each other. You're all you've got, but that doesn't mean you can't make friends. Laugh, love, and defend each other. You're siblings most importantly, and the two of you come before anyone else. And I don't care who says it. Not your boss, not the CEO. Not anyone. Promise?”
Almost instantly, I understood those words. It was the mantra that Ariel and I always knew as siblings. It was something we knew having been twins. We needed to be there for each other, especially now that we were going to be away from Dominic and Cheryl. We have to worry about each other, as we're the most important thing there, at least more than our job.
“I promise.”, I said that with no hesitation. As if to enforce that promise, Ariel would pipe up behind me. “Yeah, we promise. If anything happens, we'll call you!”, she said.
“Good. Now, as for you, Cheryl.”, Dominic says as he addresses her. Cheryl pushes up her glasses, giving him a small smile as he waits for an answer. To be honest, he had to be patient with her, and it makes sense given her hardships from prior events in school. He knows he has her attention, so he continues.
“You'll be starting school soon. I'll need to take you to go take your assessment test. Knowing you, you'll be fine.”
Cheryl just nods, replying with “Yeah! It'll be easy. To be honest.. makes me wonder if it will make me stand out again.”
“I wouldn't worry about it.” He says. “If it does, then it should only attract people that like you because of you. If not, I'll be there.” This statement only proves to reassure our little sister more as he finished. But, there was one more thing to talk about. Dominic turned his head to look at us as he then brought up something else, the seriousness in his tone having left him now.
“So, because this is the last time the four of us will be together for a while, I'm not cooking tonight. In fact, I ordered pizza earlier. So it should be here any-” As he said that, the doorbell rang. At that notion, the three of us excitedly cheered. “..Second. Well, guess they're here. Let's have fun tonight, okay?”
Everyone had their own pizza, and despite what you might think, I downed that entire thing. It's hard not to when watching movies with your siblings. You get so engrossed in it, that you just kind of forget just how fast you eat. Cheryl went to bed at around eleven, but Dominic stayed awake with us until the driver would park in front of the house, two hours later.
It was now one o'clock, at the dot, as we stepped out with our luggage, we were stopped by Dominic, who proceeded to hug us both. We quickly returned that, completing the exchange as he then said, “Remember: all you two have is each other. Be safe, please. I love you.”
“We love you too..”, Ariel and I said in unison, but after a few seconds, we stopped. As we turned around.. we walked towards the black colored vehicle. Strangely enough, a limo of all things, as the door was opened from the inside by what looks like a man wearing a security outfit. He doesn't say anything, however. Rather, he just motions us to get in. Although skeptical, we slowly went in, as I closed the door behind us.
“..So. Are you the new guys?”, the driver said. We couldn't see him, but I could hear him from the front. Without hesitation, I just replied back with a “Yes”, before he just chuckled, almost a bit morbidly.
“Well now.. this'll be fun to see. Try not to get killed while you're there, kids. You're young, but don't be naive enough to stick around.”
Those words hung over us heavily as the vehicle started, driving us away from our home, with Dominic watching until we were out of view, fading into the dark of the night. I wanted to know what he meant by that, but.. everything felt too awkward to ask. I could only ponder it for now. Why would we regret it? Furthermore, why was even death in the equation? To me, that didn't make sense.
Little did we know, this morbid warning wouldn't be the only thing we would experience. However, that wouldn’t be the case until we arrived where we needed to be.
It was time to begin our short venture through Playtime Co.