Aya ate bread, smiling faintly.
"What are you so happy about, eh?" Milo asked.
She snapped out of it. "Oh, nothing."
"It's obviously something. Come on, spit it out."
Aya let out a faint chuckle. "I guess I'm just... reliving old, happy memories."
"Yeah?" Milo leaned back slightly. "Like what?"
"All the times we did stupid things and Benjamin would scold us like he was our father."
Milo laughed. "Yeah, it wasn't funny at the time, but now it's fucking hilarious."
"You remember that time we played with his prosthetic arm while he was looking everywhere for it?" Aya reminisced.
Milo laughed, "He was fuming! And when he finally found it, his eyes looked like he was about to kill us!"
Aya smiled to herself. "Good days..."
"Hey, what you said back then during Perfect Preparation Day about how you'd never be with me..." Milo cleared his throat. "You didn't actually mean it, right?"
The air between them tightened.
Emma, who had been quietly listening nearby, immediately picked up on the sudden mood swing.
"Hey guys! Having a little talk, huh? Mind if I bump in?" she asked.
"Yes!" Aya and Milo answered at the same time, both relieved by the interruption.
---
"Hermano Benjamin, what do you think they're doing?" Diego asked.
"Diego, this is the third time you've asked about John and Hannah." Benjamin pointed toward the door. "If you really wanna see them, then go ahead, guv."
"No, that's not what I mean. What if they are plotting something against us?"
Benjamin laughed. "Mate, that's a shitty lie. You, me, and all of us know damn well those two blokes ain't doing shite to us."
"So you do trust John," Mitch said.
"What do you mean?"
"You've never trusted John because he's a 'richie', but I can see that you now realize John isn't a bad person."
Benjamin stayed silent and took another sip of coffee.
"But even then, somewhere deep in your heart still rejects that." Mitch paused briefly. "Because your hatred towards the rich is so powerful. Too powerful."
Benjamin scoffed. "Nah, mate. That's just what they deserve."
Before Mitch could respond, Diego grabbed his arm and shook his head.
"There's no point, amigo."
"What? You're siding with him?" Benjamin asked.
"No. But we both know that no matter how much sense we put into you, you will always hate the rich."
"Lads, our job is to eradicate those cunts off the face of the earth."
"Why—"
"Because that's what they've done to us," Benjamin cut in.
Silence settled over the group.
Mitch stared into his cup before speaking again.
"I grew up in a camp called Monkey's Power where the higher-ups forced us to train beyond our limits ever since we were children. We were meant to protect the elderly and sacrifice ourselves for people who wouldn't even bat an eye toward us."
His jaw tightened.
"Of course, we couldn't do anything because they all had guns. We didn't live underground like the poor did at the time because the rich wanted to use us as soldiers."
"But you said you were used to protect the elderly?" Diego asked.
"Sorry." Mitch gave a dry laugh. "We always called them the 'elderly'. We were used to protect the rich, hence why they had guns. The rich are the elderly."
"During that time, Composite V was still under development, but news of it spread across the world. Large and powerful countries tried relentlessly to gain control of it. They tried purchasing it, replicating it, but nothing worked. So they resorted to violence."
Benjamin and Diego listened quietly.
"Hundreds of us died during every raid. The elderly survived, but families were torn apart for their own satisfaction." Mitch looked down. "Then when Composite V was officially created, they... they killed us all."
His voice faltered slightly.
"We always knew we were nothing but weapons to them, but to think they'd slaughter all of us after getting what they wanted..." He shook his head. "Shocking."
"Of course, I was one of the few lucky survivors. I met a group of fourteen, and Emma was among them. I don't know where the others went, but only me and Emma managed to find each other again."
"You are a very strong man, my friend," Diego said quietly, patting his shoulder. "No matter what happens, you keep pushing through."
"There was a night where we found a drunk man who accidentally fell into the sewers. He was unconscious, and we were all enraged just by his presence. We rushed in to kill him, but our leader—Kanel—stopped us."
Mitch looked off into the distance.
"There was a photo in the man's wallet. A picture of his family. All smiling, all happy." He exhaled softly. "That's when it hit me. These people are no different from us. They were just fed the wrong ideals."
Benjamin's eyes widened slightly.
"Do you understand, Benjamin?" Mitch asked, resting a hand on his shoulder.
Benjamin grunted. "I understand every word you've said, yet not an ounce of my hatred for the rich has faded."
Mitch slowly nodded. There was no point trying to change Benjamin's mind.
---
Junior shook Alfie Sr. awake.
"You're snoring way too loud, Dad. It's annoying. And why haven't you woken up yet?"
"Huh?" Alfie Sr. sat up, eyes still heavy. "Oh, sorry. I couldn't sleep last night. Don't really know why."
"Here." Junior handed him a slice of bread. "I wanted to wait so we could eat together, but you took way too long."
"You should've woken me up. I don't like sleeping too long." He glanced toward the others. "Why didn't you eat with Benjamin?"
"I just didn't want to. Don't really know why." Junior looked over at Aya's group. "Come on, let's go there."
Alfie Sr. groaned as he stood up, and the two of them walked over.
"Oh hey, guys!" Emma called out.
"Hey. Sorry, my dad woke up extra late today for some reason."
"Come, take a seat," Emma said. "We were just talking about what we'd do if we had money."
"I've always noticed one thing about you, Emma."
She raised an eyebrow. "What is it?"
"You're always so... lively. I'm not saying that's a bad thing. No matter how bad the situation gets, you always bring the mood up."
Emma laughed. "Thank you, Mr. Alfie!"
"Oh please, just call me Alfie. He's Junior."
"I'd buy a nice fat juicy piece of steak," Junior suddenly said.
The group looked at him.
"Huh?"
"That's the first thing I'd do if I had money. Buy a really nice piece of steak."
Milo burst out laughing. "Yeah, that's exactly what I said I'd do too, mate! Finally taste what real good food is like!"
Junior laughed along with him.
"I'd book a reservation for five!" Alfie Sr. added.
The group broke into laughter together.