17

'Airi! You need to do something about your schedule! You're always late! Always late!!' yelled her mother by way of greeting as she sat at the breakfast table.

'It's only a few minutes. And I always reach on time, anyway,' pouted Airi, but her mother was still annoyed at her.

'Whatever. When I was your age, I was always careful of what I was doing and when I was doing it. But you...'

'Please, Mom, I'm sorry, okay?'

'Don't "sorry" me, are you going to go or what?'

'But I'm still eating!'

'Well, hurry up already!'

Airi hastily ate the rest of the messy jam sandwich and got out as fast as she could, not so much for fear of getting late than to avoid her mother while she was in this dangerous mood.

When she reached her classroom, she was a few minutes late, but thankfully, no one said anything and she settled in her chair with a satisfied sigh.

She glanced sideways at Kenji and smiled at him, but he looked at her coldly and then ignored her completely. Oh dear... what had gotten in him now? He seemed to have a completely different personality with each passing day, and she was seriously beginning to question his sanity. How else was she supposed to explain his hot and cold behaviour?

She decided to confront him today once and for all, during the lunch break. She would ask him why he acted the way he did. He would have to tell what was the matter, and until he did, she wasn't going to let go of the topic.

The bell rang at last and Airi walked up determinedly towards Kenji, who was unsurprisingly still at his desk.

'Go away!' said Kenji rather rudely.

'Excuse me?' said Airi.

'I said, go away!' said Kenji rather hotly. 'You're the one who ruined everything anyway! I was going just fine and then you had to come along!'

Airi looked at him, puzzled. 'But, what did I do?'

'Nothing!' said Kenji. 'Just, go away, okay?'

'No, I won't!' said Airi, making Kenji glare at her.

'What do you mean? Why?'

'I should ask you that!'

'Look, please, I can't talk to you anymore, okay?'

'Why? What's your problem? One day, you're so nice, so friendly, and the next day, you're back to being a cold jerk!' said Airi heatedly.

'Don't talk to me about being nice and friendly!' exclaimed Kenji, getting up. 'These things don't exist! Humans can never understand what they mean!'

'How can you say that?' said Airi. 'Of course they exist! What makes you think otherwise?'

'Because humans are attacking other humans! What kind of sick creature does that?! Humans are vain and cruel and have no room for anything kind or selfless, because they are bogged down by stupid emotions and feelings that lead them into their own doom!'

Airi stared at him in surprise, but then narrowed her eyes as she said, 'What on Earth are you talking about? Yes, humans can be downright evil, but they can be good, too! Humans can hurt each other, but they are the ones that heal one another too! And what's this obsession of yours with emotions and feelings? Why must you always blame the very thing that makes us who we are? The day you saved that little girl, you felt for her, didn't you? It was those feelings that made you a good person!'

'No, I don't feel anything!' said Kenji, but his conviction was faltering.

'You do! Why are you denying it?' said Airi. 'You're saying all these things about humans, but who are you yourself? You're saying all these things about feelings, but you have them yourself!'

'NO!' said Kenji in panic, and he applied the Force on Airi, to make her go away from his life, to make her hate him; that was the only thing he could do now before she succeeded in restoring the dream he had woken up from yesterday; the last thing he could do before he ended up failing his father and his people yet again due to his weakness and ineptitude.

He stared at her and the daze she was clearly in, and it hurt him to manipulate her like this; it hurt him to send her away with his own hands; it hurt him, yes, it hurt him and he didn't care what his father thought about that, but doing this was the only right thing, wasn't it?

He closed his eyes and strengthened his energy as he applied the Force on the one human whom he liked more than anyone else, and told her to go away and never talk to him again. He felt an overwhelming sense of loneliness as he felt his energy consume her and he knew that he had wielded it perfectly; any moment now, she would turn around and leave him, and then he would be all alone, ready to carry out the rest of his mission without hindrance or distraction, but in empty turmoil himself.

He opened his eyes and looked at her; the Force was working, and she should have left by now...

But she hadn't.

She stood there, as if in a daze, but she did not move an inch.

'Go away!' he repeated, and applied the Force again, but she didn't move. She looked at him resolutely and said weakly, 'No?'

Kenji felt his energy drain from him, and he knew that he could not apply the Force again until the next day. He looked in dismay as it broke and she came to again, but the feeling quickly changed to awe and shock. How had the Force not affected her?

'I'm sorry, I — I don't know what happened to me,' said Airi, sitting down. 'What was I saying?'

Kenji stared at her.

'Yes,' continued Airi, 'I was saying that Kenji, I genuinely believe you are a good person, and it pains me to see you act like this. For some reason, I really think you have something that others don't; please, don't waste it away and become immune to the world around you like others have; plesse, don't ever lose your heart!'

'Who cares what my "heart" is like?' said Kenji with a sigh.

'I care,' said Airi earnestly. 'I really do!'

'You're lying,' said Kenji, looking away. 'All humans lie, anyway...'

'What's this "human" thing that you keep insisting on?!' said Airi in exasperation.

'Because that's the truth about humans!!'

'You're a human too! How can you say that?!'

'Because I'm NOT a human,' said Kenji,  turning towards her. 'There, I said it! Maybe that will make you go away!'

Airi stared at him, and then began to laugh. 'Was this your idea of a joke?'

Kenji clicked in exasperation. 'Jokes! I hate these jokes! I'm serious right now!!'

'That you're not human?' said Airi, unsure whether she was supposed be amused or concerned about his mental health.

'Yes!' said Kenji in earnest. 'I'm not a human! I'm from another planet!'

'Another planet?' said Airi with a sigh, thinking that the second option seemed more apt. 'Are you like, an alien or something?'

'Exactly! I'm an "alien" as you humans would call me!' said Kenji.

Airi laughed in spite of herself and shook her head.

'What, you don't believe me?'

'Well, you look just like a human to me!'

'I'm a different person at night. If you want, you can see,' said Kenji.

Airi stared at him. 'Okay, I'm game.'

'What?'

'Let's see what happens to you at night, alien,' said Airi, rolling her eyes and walking away.