September 10th
Haha, we said we were gonna do a time skip but we did a flashback first.
Got your ass!
Anyways, Ven is suffering.
From all the running I mean. Guy has absolutely zero stamina ya know?
Zilch.
But of course Melissa is in front of him, with a solid 5 meter lead, on such a respectable and good pace that it makes Ven jealous with the amount of stamina she has.
After turning a corner, Melissa eventually stops.
-"How are ya? Hanging on?"
Try to use your eyes please.
-"I'm *pant* dying. Scratch that, my *huff* funeral already *ragh* took place."
Dude's gonna collapse soon if he doesn't get some rest.
-"Woah, you're lacking a lotta stamina there Ven. That's no good, girls love guys with great stamina."
-"Was the sexual annotation necessary?"
Did he mess the literary device up? No he totally messed the literally device up.
-"*Sexual allegory*"
Oh yeah, that was it!
But wait, wouldn't "sexual innuendo" be a better fit?
-"Same thing!"
-"Yeah, say that when you get a c in English. They'll surely accept whatever excuse you try to cook up."
She's such a cheeky woman.
Always trying to make fun of Ven and tease him.
Oh, so this must be the romanticized version of the "sibling dynamic".
Ven, wouldn't know, he doesn't have any siblings.
She's funny, but she's such woman.
Ven is not used to women.
Guess that's why he and Rains are such good friends.
I should probably do a physical description of Melissa shouldn't I?
She's a blonde woman with shoulder length hair, bright blonde, very bright.
Anime bright.
Height?
Taller than Ven, that's for sure. But above average for a woman I guess.
180 cm maybe?
For reference, since this series takes place in an alternate universe, America doesn't use the imperial system.
Fahrenheit still exists though.
She has a very, very aesthetic body, quite balanced honestly. Her skin is a isn't pale but it's not very brown either, it's somewhere near the middle leaning towards pale.
Her skin looks incredibly rigid and smooth at the same time, the sweat beads and droplets roll down her athletic body like rain droplets, she's covered in sweat but the sweat looks like a natural part of her body.
Not to say that sweat droplets aren't a natural part of your body but that she would look a bit incomplete if she didn't have sweat all over her body, like it's her main characteristic, in this outfit at the very least.
She's wearing a sports bra, shorts and running shoes. I would do a very detailed description of the other aspects of her body but the author gets the feeling it would piss off someone he knows personally (same person as last time) so I won't.
She has a…cute face? It's hard to describe honestly. It's the type of face whose mouth would turn into that of a cat's and spout cat ears when they're teasing someone; if this was an anime.
They should totally add that as a detail in the anime adaptation!
It certainly has cute aspects but it's also pretty in a way.
Neat.
-"You've been staring at me pretty inconspicuously Ven, does the sight of me in a training outfit excite you?"
I'm going to say this as politely as possible, yes it does, but only because it would excite pretty much anybody else.
-"You didn't describe your physical appearance earlier so I need to look at you so that the readers can get an idea as to what you look like in the narration."
Yeah, in my narration! But I won't be mentioned even as a gag so this just pisses me off!
-"Is that so? Well then take a good long look!"
How bizarre, Ven is staring daggers into an oddly placed rock that's situated 90 degrees away from where Melissa is standing.
-"No thanks I'm uncomfortable now."
-"Huh? It's fine I don't mind, you can look but don't try anything weird."
You're way too easy-going, don't you have any shame?
-"That was never the intention dagnabbit! Also don't most girls get uncomfortable when guys stare at them?"
Public reminder, gender doesn't matter in this context, staring at a stranger will make them uncomfortable so don't do it.
And if a stranger is staring at you, don't get any ideas, it's not an invitation unless it's stated as such.
-"I don't mind if guys stare at me…this doesn't mean I like it, I just don't care. I would care much more about the gaze of a cute girl though!"
What, you're the tomboyish top in a Yuri
one-shot or something?
-"K."
When will this guy start to care about shit like this?
-"Well, ready to return?"
-"Can we walk?"
Reasonable request, he is basically wiped out after all. Maybe a light jog every 500 meters wouldn't hurt.
-"Haha. That's just too precious."
Dammit, I know that type of condescending response!
-"That's a no?"
-"Of course it is."
Ven is suffering even more right now.
The fatigue is getting to him, we haven't even introduced enough characters to do an impactful funeral scene!
30 minutes later, Melissa has a 10 meter lead now.
Ven is struggling to stay alive, it's a symbolic journey that represents the complexity of life and death and "reaching for the light".
The run back to the house could honestly be adapted into a short movie by a Spanish producer done in black and white with almost no dialogue and ambiguous themes and shots and be regarded as one of the best pieces of cinema and a revolutionary piece of fiction that could impact even the harshest and stupidest film critics alike.
It would start with some dialogue of two people that don't appear in the story and we don't learn who they are which gives some very abstract insight on the surface level themes of the movie, which would then be followed up by shots of the sea and the sky and ocean and gardens with a mind boggling sound in the background that feels like it should lead to something but it doesn't so it just scares the viewer and then we get introduced to the protagonist doing random things and just walking around visiting museums and observing paintings with decorations insinuating a 150 different things with an additional 300 possible meanings to it and it would end off on the protagonist finally talking and reading a book that has actual heavy implications and closing his eyes and saying a single word that resonates through the cinema and the movie just ends with no credits and everyone is left confused.
Hell yeah.
Peak cinema experience am I right?
Hey if there are any directors here, you guys think I has the talent for being a director or something of the like?
And I'll punch you if you suggest screenwriter!
-"I *eugh* made *ough* it."
-"Breathe Ven. And improve your stamina will you? You don't even smoke, how are your lungs so frail?"
Maybe it's because he doesn't have the amount of training that you have???
-"Genetics?"
-"You have a lung condition?!"
God forbid that'd be horrendous to live with, my heart(?) goes out to everyone with a lung condition.
Scratch that, my heart(?) goes out to anybody with a condition that negatively affects their body or mind.
-"No, I think I'm kidding."
I hope you're kidding.
What the hell am I saying, I know you're kidding because I was there when you went to the hospital a few months back and they said you didn't have any type of condition!
-"You have a terrible sense of humor."
Yeah we try hard to incorporate a lot of meta humor and absurd humor like Monogatari and Gintama but I think most of our jokes fall flat.
This series' sense of humor might not be a crowd-pleaser.
-"I do?"
-"Well, that's not a problem, people find ways to find people with zero sense of humor endearing."
It's just fun to poke fun at them for not understanding or not showing any reaction to the joke.
-"And?"
-"The more you know."
But that was a totally useless piece of information!
-"I think I know enough, thank you very much."
You can never quell the thirst for more knowledge.
-"Then what's the meaning of life?"
What an easy question, give it to her straight Ven!
-"There isn't one."
Melissa cringes, and cringes hard. To the point where she has to turn her head and cover her mouth with her hand.
Wasn't that a satisfying enough answer for you, you damn tomboy!?
-"My goodness…you're such a teenager, it's so sad and so uncouth. You think that's edgy and cool and very meaningful but it just goes on to show how much you haven't experienced or thought about life as a concept. Poor baby. You'll think about this when you're an adult and the embarrassment will prevent you from sleeping and you'll have to drink extra amounts of coffee and even a can of your preferred energy drink to get through the day. But don't fret! I'll surely be there to help you get through those times!"
You annoying-ass older sister figure, I'm getting so dam pissed off!
-"You're heavily underestimating me. I've been told I'm a very intelligent person who is very thoughtful."
So, "You've been told", you're actually quite different then how people perceive you, believe it or not.
-"But you lack experience. The meaning of life isn't something you can just think about, you have to experience it and relish in it. You can think about it all you want but you're still just a kid, it's not normal for a kid like you to think about life so much to the point where you think you understand the meaning of life. That's not a sign of intellectual capacity, that's a likely sign of depression and it's pretty saddening actually."
Psychology major, right. Why should Ven have to argue with you if he's going to get his ass handed to him in most debates?
Are you gonna "take consideration of his POV and lead him on the right path" or something along those lines?
-"…"
Still keeping the silent protagonist inspiration are we?
-"Well let's go inside shall we, crumbs?"
Scuse me? Did you refer to Ven with a nickname perhaps?
-"What could possibly be the context of that nickname?"
-"Creativity."
You may not be that old, but you're old enough to stop giving answers along those lines.
-"Your answers are just like your cheeks."
-"My asscheeks?"
Great, now it's become a sexual innuendo, kill me now please!
-"The ones on your face! I'm trying to make a joke about how your answers are cheeky!"
But you totally walked into that one by not wording it better.
-"Your sense of humor still hasn't improved I see."
Trust me, "onee-chan", it won't improve once throughout this entire story.
So they make their way inside, Melissa rushes to the shower and immediately locks the door.
-"You snooze you lose!"
Did you play a lot of Sonic during your childhood?
Just a hunch.
-"Fine! I'll get started on breakfast."
We won't be including a Melissa shower scene, mainly because I can't and also because the author would probably get crucified if he did that.
Ven opens the fridge door, since he only ate bread for dinner everyday and ignored breakfast, lunch too, there are plenty of ingredients in the fridge.
Tomatoes, onions, cheese…the cheese doesn't look very appetizing though.
Some bacon and sausage, sure why not it's protein.
Eggs, 4 of them.
No bread left, it was all consumed during the week.
A tragedy deserving of the most appreciated theatre play with the best actors possible. Orange juice?
Expired.
Milk is good enough.
Calcium, am I right?
Well, the stage is set, the ingredients are on the counter, only thing left to do is cook!
Wait, let's not forget to take out the utensils and olive oil.
Frying pan, such a shame there's not a drying pan, spatula, knife, the plates for when the food is ready, and I think we're set.
Let's cook, Jessie!
First, Ven washes the lettuce and tomatoes, hygiene is important.
He then puts them on a cutting board, along with the onion that he peeled swiftly.
He then carefully picks up the knife and gets his hand in position, (not carefully mind you) and starts chopping the lettuce into neat thin slices.
Slowly but surely, the lettuce is cut into neat little rectangles that are easy to pick up with a fork.
On the flat and smooth surface of the varying pieces of lettuce, it looks like there are vast meadows filled with lush greenery and wonderfully trimmed grass with little cows eating it up.
Ven then moves on to the tomatoes, cutting them into little squares, the tomato resembles the red part of a beach ball usually seen in the poster of summer movies.
It's bright, appealing and looks lovely.
Each individual square has so much juice it makes your mouth water, the tomato is glistening with the droplets of water from being washed.
And the onions?
Ven cuts them up quite nicely I guess.
So good that the description would make the reader cry and I don't want to see our dear readers cry over such a minor scene.
We have so much plot-lines and story beats in store that you should totally save up your tears for!
But ven doesn't cry while cutting the onions, his eyes are too dry for tears.
He takes out a bowl and puts all the vegetables in it.
He mixes them together impeccably, until it looks like the salad was always meant to adopt the shape it has right now and the ingredients by themselves just look out of place.
He douses the salad in some olive oil and very small amount of vinegar.
He then grabs the cheese, it's white cheese thankfully so it can't taste bad.
He cuts the cheese into thin rectangles, even smaller than that of the tomatoes.
The cheese looks so appetizing that Jerry is feeling an emptiness in his heart that can't be filled.
He adds the cheese into the salad and mixes it up.
He puts the salad server in the bowl and the salad is transported safely to the table.
He then grabs the sausage and slices them into perfect, immaculate and geometrical circular shapes that are so symmetrical it would make the son of death cry out in ecstasy.
He then puts the pan on the stove, and dribbles a generous amount of olive oil on it and puts the heat on 6.
He then takes out 4 strips of bacon and after a minute of waiting gently sets them on the pan, getting some oil on his hand that doesn't bother him.
He grabs the spatula and checks frequently to see if the bacon is cooked on one side. After verifying that it is, he flips it over and grabs the eggs.
He cracks each egg so delicately that the rotisserie chickens that conceived these eggs feel proud that someone is handling their very own creation so perfectly.
The eggs are perfectly sunny side up, so perfect in fact that you can see the actual sun reflected in the eggs.
After letting them cook for a bit, he adds the sausage onto the pan, letting the eggs cook for a very good amount of time, after seeing the white part pop, he turns off the stove and cuts the eggs with the spatula.
He attentively lifts the eggs, relatively easy since the bacon makes a good base, not forgetting the sausages and succeeds in placing the eggs on the two plates.
He grabs two glasses and places one of them inside of the other, then, grabs the two glasses with his pinky and ring finger and grabs the plate with his middle and index finger.
He then uses his other hand, right hand, to lift the other plate, laying the plates on opposite sides of the fairly large table, it could probably fit 8 or so people, and places the glass close to the top right of the plate, then grabs a fork and knife for the both of them and places them on the table.
He fills the glass with milk and waits for Melissa.
-"Man that shower was so refreshing, how you doing Ven- OH MY! That looks delish! You actually cooked this?"
Surprisingly, Ven isn't a half bad cook, he just doesn't like to do it.
-"No, it was the talking animals, I just helped set the table."
See, cooking embarrasses him for…no, it embarrasses him because he cooked for someone.
-"I guess some things just won't improve. But really, great job! It's been a very long time since I've been treated to such a good looking breakfast! I'm sure it tastes great too, the description probably took three pages at the least!"
I doubt it took three pages, but we're not using a traditional page format at this point in time, so who knows.
-"More like 2 and a half but no worries. Let's eat then. The only thing missing is bread but…It's fine, I should've known there wouldn't be enough left for the weekend."
-"You like bread?"
This answer will knock your socks off guys, so prepare yourselves.
-"I cherish bread."
What a shocker!
Incidentally, I love huge knockers!
-"How intriguing. What type of bread do you like?"
As long as it isn't sour, it's alright.
-"Bread that tastes good."
Well yeah, you wouldn't like bread that tastes bad would ya?
Unless you're a masochist.
Do masochists like to eat bad tasting or expired foods and stuff because they like the way it makes them feel bad?
Does that turn them on?
I…feel a bit scared and disappointed in myself for asking questions like these.
-"So…just bread?"
-"Bread."
Peak of conversations everybody, Make sure to write a 5,000 word analysis on just these 2 lines alone.
Melissa sits on the table and her expression is one of contained excitement.
It's a pretty charming expression if no lies are being told.
I wonder in which other contexts she uses that expression in.
She devours the salad, vacuums up the eggs and chugs the milk in such record speeds that Ven's eyes don't process it correctly, it's like she moves at speeds impossible for any normal human being.
-"Exquisite! So, what's the lunch in the school cafeteria like, I remember it always used to be 50/50 whenever I went there, it was like playing Russian roulette."
Ven starts eating the food, he doesn't think it's particularly good or anything just alright.
-Not really.
-Well that's a surprise. What do you eat during the rest of the week then?
-I skip breakfast and eat lettuce for dinner.
Melissa has officially passed away. She falls to the ground dramatically, the chair falling with her as trumpets play in the background. Her expression is that of shock, sadness and pity. She then suddenly rises up and points to Ven. She's pissed.
-WHAT THE HELL!!! You mean to tell me that you can cook so well, yet you skip breakfast and eat basically nothing for dinner. Are you trying EXPLICITLY to harm yourself?! I don't care if your right arm was broken, you could have still cooked and eaten food. At this rate you'll collapse in a matter of weeks! Do you eat lunch at the very least?
Ven wasn't expecting this reaction.
-Yes, sometimes.
-SOMETIMES!? That's it, I'm taking matters into my own hands!
Melissa gets up and takes out her bank card from her purse.
-Pops gave me money so that you can take care of yourself or have fun sometimes ok? And I was planning on giving it to you on certain occasions like if you were doing good in school or something else but I realize now that it's not going to work like that! You're gonna take this money and you're going to move your ass to the damn grocery store, and you're going to buy some food!
-I'm always doing good in school though.
-The point got on an airplane and flew over you! You won't escape this Ven! Every Saturday, you'll go to the grocery store and you'll do your groceries. And every week, I'll check if the ingredients have been used and ask you what you ate for that day.
-Can I skip breakfast at the very least?
-Only if you promise to never skip lunch.
Ven doesn't look annoyed, just mildly perturbed by this.
-…Fine.
-*phew* Are you trying to go on a diet? Lose some weight maybe? Cause this ain't healthy. You can always come to me for nutrition advice, understand?
-Not really I just…don't feel like eating most of the time.
Melissa reaches out and grabs Ven's head, pressing down on it and aggressively rustling his hair.
-Finish your meal and go to the grocery store. Don't forget to shower. I'll put my dishes in the dishwasher.
-Why do you care so much?
-Cause you're a kid. You're supposed to care about kids and help them.
-But that's way too simplistic!
-Not everything has to be complex or possess a high level or philosophy. It's nice to appreciate the simplicity of certain things, like kids.
-But I'm a complicated person though?
-Still a kid. Talk to me when you're 18 and we'll have an interesting conversation about this topic, ok canapé appetizer?
-I don't get it.
-So basically, canapé appetizers can usually be an eaten in one bite. And if something can be eaten in a bite it's relatively small. So I'm referring to your stature and the fact that you can be "eaten in one bite". I'm making fun of your size and also calling you a snack at the same time!
Melissa misunderstood. But I don't think that's a problem.
-Thanks?
-You're welcome! Now eat.
Ven finishes his food and puts the dishes in the dishwasher and turns it on. He then goes to the bathroom and takes a shower, making sure to use a respectable amount of soap. He finishes taking a shower and goes to his room, putting on the clothes and accessories he usually wears for school.
-Hey Melissa?
-What is it?
-How do I get to the grocery store?
-Huh? Oh crap. No one explained how this city works to you didn't they?
-No they didn't.
-Well, allow me to explain the city of clevarnayme to you!
Author. That name better be a stand-in or you'll be served with a large portion of problems tonight.
-Go on.
-So, this city is built around a giant, perfectly circular lake. Because the lake is perfectly circular, the people living here decided that the city shall be perfectly circular as well! To their surprise, this was super easy since the area surrounding the lake is completely flat. Just like Ellie.
Who's Ellie?
-So? What does this mean exactly?
-İ'm getting there. After a while, some people realized that the geography might not be completely adjusted for everyone so they decided to split clevarnayme into 8 districts, in clockwise order. The district we live in is 5, it's mainly a residential district and the main attraction is black lily. My university is in the outskirts of district 3.
-But how do you get to different districts?
-By water transportation of course! Each district takes around 15 minutes to go to by boat, and every district has a small harbor. The big harbor's are located in the middle of the line that separates districts, they go directly to the district in the opposite direction without any stops.
-I understand. So what you're saying is that I should get accustomed to taking boats?
-That's it! There are a few grocery stores here but they're small, the good stores that are big and have basically everything are in district 6, which is right next to us.
-So, if I understood everything correctly, I walk to the harbor, take a boat, get to district 6, walk to the grocery store and do that but in reverse?
-Exactly! There is a massive grocery store just 30 minutes away from the harbor. You can take the buses too if you don't want to walk.
-No thanks, I'm a fan of walking.
-Well, that's an overview of the city of clevarnayme. This is pretty abridged if you ask me, this is the type of stuff that Bea would be good at explaining.
She mentions another person that Ven doesn't know. Why should he bother asking.
-No worries, that was pretty comprehensible. Wait, do you have something to carry groceries with?
Melissa gets up and opens a closet.
-Yeah, we have some plastic bags and even some cotton bags.
-Wait, what's that next to the bags?
-Oh this? It's a grocery shopping trolley. We got it as a gift for grandma a long time ago but she said she was happy with the trolley she had so it's been sitting here for a long time.
İt's no wonder that the grandma didn't take the trolley because that looks very inconvenient for an old person. It's massive, most trolley's only reach to the waist at most and isn't wider than most people but this one is wider than your average person and reaches basically the stomach. It's also three-wheeled, it makes getting on pavements easier I guess. It also looks very durable, not low quality at all.
-Can I use it?
-…You want to use a grocery trolley?
-It's practical.
-You're not an old grandma.
-It's very practical.
-You can carry normal bags just fine.
-It's stupendously practical.
-Fine! Here's the trolley! I can't believe you're actually using a grocery trolley.
-Is there anything wrong in using it?
-Not particularly, I just wanted to mess with you.
-I…see?
-But let's talk about your fashion sense for a bit. You didn't tell me you had ear piercings! And you have such a long trench coat! And very weird color combinations! And a very weird neck accessory! This is just too cute!
-My fashion sense is very dignified thank you very much.
-Dignified if you were a 16th century performer! Rohohohoho! But seriously, your fashion sense isn't half bad!
-Really?
-Yeah, I've seen worse. You spent a lot of time deciding on this haven't you? Good on you.
-W-well then I should get going.
-Good luck! Just get out of the house and walk right. There are signs that point to where the harbor is. It's a 30 minute walk.
-No problem at all.
-Well…that's great! Now go before you get lazy ok?
-Fine. See you later.
-See ya.
Ven gets out of the house and starts walking to the right. There is a sign that points to where the small harbor is. "Grocery store" refers to a big-box store by the way. Normal sized grocery stores don't exist near here. Very saddening.
End of chapter