Two Rooms Apart

It's always when things are looking up and feeling hopeful that life decides to strike. 

"No, you can't do this!" Ren shouted as her mother began walking out of her room.

"I can, and I will," she scoffed. "I've indulged this fad of yours for long enough."

"But, I'm doing everything I agreed to," Ren pleaded, tears streaming down her face. "My grades have stayed up and I've worked hard to make sure all the chores stay done!"

"Yet you still find enough time to practice for a couple hours each day, from what I hear. Do you realize how many more chores and tasks I could give to you in that time? You could be cleaning my car, ironing my clothes, or maybe I'll even let you get your license so you can run errands for me! I've been kind enough to hold off for now, but now I see that you can do much more when you put your mind to it."

"Please, this is the one thing I have. It's given my life so much more purpose; I won't let you take it from me!"

Ren's statement stopped her mother in her tracks. A few moments later, she spun around and stomped right up to Ren, grabbing her by the shirt and pulling her in close. 

"How dare you..." her mother growled. "This is exactly why we're putting an end to this. You are my daughter, I own you, and I will not have you defying me and getting uppity. Perhaps we need to test how effective that training of yours really is..."

Ren's body was trembling uncontrollably. Her lip was bleeding from how hard she was biting down on it, pulling on every reserve of strength she had to restrain herself. Her mother was not above physical violence; it had happened before. She was a larger woman, and Ren herself did not possess the size or strength to defend herself in the past. 

Now was different. Even if it ended in tragedy, the memories of everyone at class were flashing through her mind. Each one caused her blood to boil hotter as the thought of losing it all sank in with painful clarity.

As if sensing the heat, her grandfather appeared and separated the two from each other. 

"Enough!" he declared as he stood between them. "Ren, go to your room."

"But..."

"Now!"

Ren wanted to argue, but she knew there was no way to get through to both of them. She sprinted to her room, slamming the door behind her.

She didn't even make it to the bed. She simply collapsed onto the floor and began bawling uncontrollably. Normally she tried to hide it better, but her spirit had fully broken. Years of abuse finally boiling over, causing everything to release at once. 

Minutes turned to hours. Her voice grew too hoarse to cry, her eyes had swelled too much to produce more tears. She had managed to make her way to her bed, but that was it. She simply remained still, eyes on the wall but staring into nothingness. There was no desire to move; nor was there a desire to live. 

"How are you doing?," her grandfather called as he stepped through the door and closed it behind him. "You still breathing in here?"

Ren didn't answer. 

"I talked to your mother. Sounds like she intends to call off your classes. Sounds like less of a headache for me. I was about done being the one to ferry you back and forth, anyway..."

Ren remained silent, simply curling deeper into her blanket. Her grandfather watched her for a few moments. He then closed his eyes and sighed. 

"I talked with your Sensei," he admitted. "He pushed back pretty hard on the idea of you quitting. He even managed to convince your mother to let you continue for at least one more month. More importantly for me, he agreed to find someone to pick you up and bring you home after."

With those words, Ren took in the first breath she had felt in hours. She wasn't sure whether she wanted to cheer or cry, but her body was too exhausted to produce anything. 

"Thank you, Grandpa." she managed, her voice hoarse. "Who will be bringing me?"

"One of his assistants, it sounds like," her grandfather responded. "A boy named Natsu?"

***

Sota and Riku stood outside the dojo, enjoying the fresh morning air. Class wasn't for another ten minutes, and the dojo was already filling up with students getting dressed and warming up. Sometimes they were social and hung out inside, but today they had decided to hang outside and enjoy some peace and quiet. 

"I gotta say, I think this is the most frequent I've seen you attend class in years," Riku taunted, nudging him playfully. "Seems like someone might have been motivated by a strapping young pupil..."

"Pound sand, Riku..."

"I'm serious, girl! You've been here helping her every class and you've been more talkative with her than I've ever seen. You don't even talk to me that much..."

"I guess you should up your game, then."

While Riku was insinuating far more than he should have, Sota couldn't pretend he wasn't bringing up valid points. Even one month after the tournament, they still didn't seem to run out of things to talk about. This was also the first time in a long time he had looked forward to doing anything, let alone a physical activity like martial arts. 

"I'll remind you she's sixteen," Sota noted. "I'm going to be turning twenty in a couple of months. You're certainly not going to convince me that getting in a relationship with a minor is a good idea."

"I'm not suggesting you do anything stupid," Riku replied with a rare moment of seriousness. "Just make sure you're not lying to yourself about how you feel."

"Trust me, that's not the case."

It was at that point that they watched Natsu pull in and park his car. He got out, smiling and chuckling as he got out and grabbed his bag. Sota could see a silhouette in the passenger side. Perhaps Natsu had brought another acquaintance or girlfriend to try out a class. 

"We'll see..." Riku muttered as they both watched Ren come out of the passenger door. 

"Hey Riku! Hey Senpai!"

"Hey, girl; glad you could make it! I didn't expect to see you with Natsu, though!"

"Yeah, he's going to be bringing me to class from now on!"

"Well, look at you go!" Riku teased. "Careful, though. Senpai Natsu can be a bit of a womanizer!"

Ren chuckled, "I'll keep that in mind. See you both in class!"

With that, she ran into class with Natsu as they finished up whatever conversation they had been having. Riku kept a smile on his face while he watched them head inside, then put a firm hand on Sota's shoulder as soon as they were out of earshot. 

"Something on your mind? You got quiet all of a sudden."

"You're delusional, Riku," Sota shot back, his tone more poisonous than intended. 

But maybe he wasn't. As Riku sighed and headed into class, Sota was left with a minute to process the moment that had just transpired. Moments like this had happened before. It was well known that Natsu would pursue the girls he liked, and usually got them. It had never bothered Sota, because Natsu was an attractive and kind person. 

Why, then, did it feel like a time bomb had just set up shop in his soul?

***

Class proceeded in a very traditional manner; running, jumping, kicking, practicing. At one point, Shinji accidentally smacked Ren in the head with a stick. Natsu, who was running the class at the time, scolded Shinji and made sure Ren was okay. Once it was clear she was fine, Natsu made a friendly joke that the both of them were able to laugh to. It was a basic gesture of goodwill that any instructor would have done, but Sota became tense nonetheless.

"Something seems off about Sota, today..." Sensei noted, having called Riku over during a drink break. "Any idea as to why?"

Riku's gaze shifted to the dojo door. Sota had completely distanced himself since they were outside earlier. Even now, Sota had decided to take his drink break outside rather than converse with anyone. Usually, he would've chatted with himself or Ren. 

"Not sure," Riku lied. "Maybe he's just having an off-day."

"Maybe, but it seems different from usual. Let's just keep an eye on it for now."

Sensei then departed, leaving Riku to his thoughts. 'Different from usual' was an understatement. Sota's gloomy nature was usually presented differently. It was typically aloofness, laziness, sarcasm, curtness. 

This, however, was different. Sota's eyes were hollow, and only silence and self-loathing remained. 

Riku and Sota had been friends since a very young age, even before Riku had joined class. He had seen firsthand the abuse Sota had lived through. His family had abandoned him and left him in social isolation for years. He had been bullied at school and constantly told he was worth nothing. Girls had constantly rejected him and told him he'd never be enough. 

It was obvious why Sota felt the way he did towards himself. That self-hatred would be something he battled the rest of his life. Sota showed up as best he could each day, despite constantly draining his battery by fighting off his demons. 

If something were to break that resolve or drain him too much, however, then it got dangerous. Every day that Sota made it through was a victory for him. The demons only need to win one battle, though, and that day could be the end of everything Sota had worked to survive for. 

***

Later that night - in completely unconnected universes - Sota and Ren both sat within the darkness of their own bedrooms. They both lay there, staring at their respective ceilings as a sensation of dread and inevitability washed over them. 

For Ren, it was the inevitability of what came next. Maybe her mother would let her stay the whole next month, maybe even the next if Sensei convinced her to wait for one more tournament. Time was running out, though. Her mother wanted full control back of her Cinderella, and it was only going to take one bad day to make it happen. Then, she'd have nothing. No class, no license, no happiness. 

For Sota, it was the whirlwind of emotions that were spinning around in his mind. Having seen this behavior before, he knew what came next. Natsu was younger than Sota and was very good with women. If he took an interest in Ren, then they would assuredly end up together. If that happened, he would make a point to oversee more of her training. Sota wouldn't be needed anymore. 

Why did that seem to bother him so much? Why did he suddenly feel like throwing it all away because of that one silly thing? Was he really depraved enough to have feelings for a girl that much younger than him?

As the days went on, the two handled their grief in heartbreakingly different ways. Ren locked in on embracing every moment of class, like a terminally ill patient that could lose their life at any time. For the next few weeks, she took extra care to cherish each moment with Riku, with Natsu, and with Sensei. 

But for some reason, Sota seemed more distant. He gave feedback, but never conversed; if he even showed up at all. 

That's because for Sota, he was beginning to spiral out of control. His sanity had always been a bit shaky, and this was threatening to be the thing that finally did him in. Each time he saw Ren and Natsu show up, his heart would ache. When he denied that emotion, it would only ache more. 

When he could no longer ignore the aching, he would scream and tear himself apart for being that depraved. 

Both were rocketing towards their final destination. For Ren, it would be the end of her class and the people who treated her with humanity. For Sota, it was the kind of fall that could lead him to end everything.

But the winds of change were not done blowing - not yet.