1 Week Later
I stare at the screen, doomscrolling and accomplishing nothing as I rot in my bed. I put down my phone as my hand starts to ache from the presumed lack of usage of my powers. He still hasn't come back. Where are you, Rico?
I sigh and sit up on my bed, and try to focus and recall the use of the flames, but as soon as I remember, my mind rejects the use of the flames as the fear inside wells up, and pushes the feeling back down. I pick myself before I inevitably go back to bed rotting.
My steps feel heavy, and I almost fall before catching myself. I drag myself across the wall before nearly collapsing as I finally get to the bathroom sink. I take a look at my deteriorating figure in the mirror. The dark bags under my eyes, my drooping hair that hasn't been taken care of in days, and some scars that have yet to heal from the battle.
I start brushing my teeth as I recall with what little sanity I've had left from the battle, the aftermath. Shortly after we fell out of the portal, Yohan and I were rushed to the hospital, where we were not only scolded for jumping into a boundary illegally. I freaked out and almost caused a fire because I hadn't been around that many people at all, and due to the lack of control I had over my powers.
I had to receive a basic education on my own powers, but it was explained that it was mostly instinctual anyway, and I snuck out before the class could even start, as there was no way I was gonna stay in that place for more than a day.
Maybe I should've stayed there. Maybe I wouldn't feel this shitty right now IF I did. I spit out my toothpaste and gargle the water promptly, spitting it out as I open the door and leave.
I haven't been able to get a good night's rest, as I continuously have the same dream of encountering the shadowy figure at the burnt-down mansion. Not only do I not know who it is after days of seeing it over and over again, coupled with the fact that my body's rejecting my powers, I feel like I'm slowly dying.
I open the fridge, take out a couple of waffles, and put them on the plate. I grab the syrup and pull out the properly microwaved waffles. I pour the syrup on it, watching as it descends.
I set it down hard as the table shakes a bit, and just sit there thinking about what to do. I then consume the waffles faster than normal as I get up and put the plate in the sink. I don't even bother cleaning it, as something else has my attention.
I walk towards the door, remembering the excitement I first felt when enacting my plan, as it is now replaced by anxiety. My hand trembles as I place it on the knob, about to open Pandora's box without any preparation.
The memories of the battle are rushing back to me, destroying my half-baked motivation. I internally sigh as I give up on trying today.
I go back to bed, stumbling all the way there. I just lie there sulking pathetically in my mundane world.
Eventually, after hours of doing nothing but playing gacha games, I reach my breaking point, deciding that at this moment, even playing games isn't enough. I get off my bed and look around the house for something to do. TV? Nah. Cooking? Hell no. Exercising? Too lazy.
I sigh and take a couple of deep breaths. Nah, what really want... The fight flashes in mind once again. I want to do that again. Ever since leaving that cave, doing everything I used to just feels boring. I steel my resolve and walk towards the door. I grab the cold doorknob, hoping that this won't be a gateway into a nightmare, and push open the door.
A calm breeze brushes my face, staring out at the sunset of the evening, I can't help but say, "It feels nice to be outside again." Not as excited as before, I take caution as I leave the house. I take a walk, reminiscing on the day I left the house a week ago.
The alley where I beat up all those guys with a pipe, and the place where I first met Yohan, I wonder why he was even letting them do that to him? He's even stronger than me as I am now, so there's no way he couldn't beat them.
I see the pipe I used, and I pick it up, feeling kinda nostalgic. I reenact some of the moves I pulled with sound effects, only to awkwardly put it down after noticing a bunch of kids were watching me.
I walk towards the statue of Ricardo. It still kinda pisses me off, but I don't make a scene this time. It ain't worth it. Although if there weren't people around me right now, the first thing I would've done is melt this stupid fucki-.
"Hey! Are you that Reckless Rookie guy?" I whip my head around, questioning what kind of nickname that was. "Yeah! It's you, the guy who jumped inside the Boundary like an idiot!" Rude.
"You know it's rude to come up to people and call them an idiot, right?" I look down and see a group of excitable little kids.
"Ooh, Ooh, tell us!"
"What was it like?"
"Did you really kill an ethereal?"
Okay... This isn't a very good situation.
My anxiety wells up, and before I even say anything, I see a crowd of people rushing towards me. Yeah fuck no. I turn around and make for the hills as the crowd tries to catch up to me.
I get stopped and interrupted by a news crew trying to interview me. "Hello, young man, I'm Oscar Flair with the Ventoria news. And you are?"
"I-I'm a uhh.. I'm Jake."
"Well, it's nice to meet you, Jake. Now, can you confirm that you are the so-called Reckless Rookie that's been the talk of the town?"
"Well, I don't know bout allat..."
"And can you confirm that you indeed jumped into Boundary Break headfirst and managed to kill the Ethereal and clear it?"
"Well, it wasn't all me..."
"Well, folks, you heard it here first, he indeed managed to clear it, albeit with help."
The crowd starts to catch up, and I start to get anxious again.
"IM SORRY I GOTTA GO!"
I push off the ground with flames, causing a tiny shockwave as I soar through the air. Although I'm still not used to controlling my powers, I scrape hard across the ground, but my skin remains undamaged.
Finally, some peace and quiet. I take a look around, wanting to explore the city more than I did before. I go inside a coffee store and try some, but some of the people give me strange looks as I violently spit it out. "Hehe, sorry guys..." I am then promptly kicked out of the store by staff who now have to clean the mess I made.
I go to the arcade and play some games with some kids who don't know me, as I destroy them in some retro games. I play so much that I don't even register how late it was, and as the parents come to get their kids the give me nasty side eyes and presumably tell their kids to stay away from me. Figures. Nobody ever really wants their kid around someone like me anyway.
I take a stroll around the city, taking in the beautiful lights of the night. I sit on a bench, alone, but still happy. Doing things I've missed out on these past 4 years feels really nice... But at the end of the day, there's still something missing. Like, there's something I wanna do, but I don't even know what it is.
Sharp pain rings through my head as I sense something far away. The voice speaks to me again, "You know what you want, boy." "Do not be afraid to chase whatever it is you're looking for."
A clash. Someone's fighting around here. My body instinctively reacts as I get up and rush towards the action. I glide across the ground as I start to get excited, and I start to smile hysterically.
In the distance, I see a raider center with two people outside going at it like crazy. One of them uses lightning, while the other uses wind, but they seem worse at it than the Ethereal who fought us before.
Then, it clicks. I KNOW what I want now!I want to do it again! I wanna feel that rush of adrenaline as I struggle, I want to push myself and understand these powers even more, I want that feeling of victory to flow through me again. I wanna... I wanna...
"I WANNA FIGHT!