Koa
You keep telling me to live right
Rain would be thematic, right about now. You can see it, right? The night sky is starless, cast in shades of grey; a moody drizzle dims the lights; rivulets of water run red with blood as they make their way down the soldier's face. A late-night carriage might rumble past, its wheels catching the edge of a gutter, sending water crashing on Koa's shoes. Dark and dingy, a monochrome scene but for the stark swathe of red on his mouth. Sin City meets Caido, if you will.
That's the scene that ought to play out- but no, the boy can't even have that. No, the night is clear and warm and starlit, a perfect ode to the waxing summer, as fair as one could ask. It's a night for late night strolls with a lover, a night for secrets, a night for laughter. Koa watches over Mateo's shoulder as a couple wanders their way past them. His arm is around her shoulder; she giggles into the warmth of his chest. They take no note of the two young men, and why should they? To them the world is fresh and magical, flush with the bloom of summer love. They live in a reality Koa inhabited not twelve hours earlier.
What happened, indeed?
Shrugging off Mateo's offer of assistance, the young man forces himself to stand, teeth grit and hands clenched as pain shoots to his head. "I got dumped by your sister." Maybe not the most tactful answer, but Koa isn't feeling exactly rocking subtlety just now. Biting hard on his lower lip, he slams his fist on the wall behind him, willing another burst of healing through the boxing wraps and straight to his blood. "But sure," Koa continues flatly, pushing off the support of the wall and taking a stubborn step forward, as though by walking fast enough he might outpace the inevitable consequences of his ongoing mistakes. "I could use a drink."
That's the scene that ought to play out- but no, the boy can't even have that. No, the night is clear and warm and starlit, a perfect ode to the waxing summer, as fair as one could ask. It's a night for late night strolls with a lover, a night for secrets, a night for laughter. Koa watches over Mateo's shoulder as a couple wanders their way past them. His arm is around her shoulder; she giggles into the warmth of his chest. They take no note of the two young men, and why should they? To them the world is fresh and magical, flush with the bloom of summer love. They live in a reality Koa inhabited not twelve hours earlier.
What happened, indeed?
Shrugging off Mateo's offer of assistance, the young man forces himself to stand, teeth grit and hands clenched as pain shoots to his head. "I got dumped by your sister." Maybe not the most tactful answer, but Koa isn't feeling exactly rocking subtlety just now. Biting hard on his lower lip, he slams his fist on the wall behind him, willing another burst of healing through the boxing wraps and straight to his blood. "But sure," Koa continues flatly, pushing off the support of the wall and taking a stubborn step forward, as though by walking fast enough he might outpace the inevitable consequences of his ongoing mistakes. "I could use a drink."
You don't gotta pretend, baby, now and then
