Seiza and "Family"

⌊ I turned twenty soon, and I was still living in the orphanage. I liked it here... I thought it was an awesome house. I enjoyed spending time with the new orphans and sisters. I love them...

"So, her name is Seiza, huh?"

One day...

"Yes. Her name is... actually, her name is Syairah."

That one fateful day...

"She... can't spell her name right."
"So, you let her just call herself Seiza?"

Someone wanted me to be a part of their family...

"Yeah. I mean, she's a kid with disabilities. You should understand it, right?"
"... Riiiiight."

Sister Dara was talking with someone called Kenneth.

"So, sister... Dara. How is the deal? You okay with that?"
"I don't know, Ken. She isn't stable. I don't want her to be alone out there."

I remembered it. His smile... It was sinister. It was like he... wanted me not to be my father... but something else.

"You just need to believe in me, Sister. I'll take good care of her."
"Are you serious about this, Ken? Don't just smile like that!
"I promised to get care of her."

And that night, I was out of the orphanage. I lived in a new place with my new... "family".

"Should... I... call you... dad?"

I was nineteen. I was sure he would ask me to call him...

"Whatever you want. Besides, we..."

He smiled... widely.

"We're family anyway."

I was scared. He didn't seem to have a malicious look, but it was thrilling, to say the least. He kept smiling even when there wasn't anything funny. It was unsettling.

"Are you... lived alone?"

He smiled... again.

"Yeah. I am."

I could tell this would go in another direction.

...

I was wrong. He actually cared about me. I didn't know he was a mechanic. He let me fix, tinker, and invent things. It was like a dream come true.

"Kien! May I buy another...?"
"Sure, hon. I always welcome you to help with my shop."
"Yipee!"

I had a... family... again.

"Hey, Kenny. I got something to..."
"Welcome back, sir. I can help you with your LedRectangle."
"Ahh, Seiza. How is it going, my little helper?"
"I'm okay, Mr. Rasmo. So, may I help you?"
"Sure, hun."

I dashed to my table. I overheard a conversation while I was fixing it.

"She got your order again, huh?"
"Hahaha. She's like a little girl. I'll let her pass."
"... So, Morse. What do you think about Syairah? She has been in my workshop for a year now."

Kenneth and Morse talked about me. I never expected the conversation to be... like it was.

"She was great, but not great enough."
"True. She was raised in an orphanage after all."
"Not only that, she can't read and write. I'll let it slide that she kept calling me Rasmo, but can't read or write? That was just pathetic."
"Hey, don't say that out loud; she can hear you."
"And what? She would get mad?"

Deep down. It hurt. But what can I do? That was the fact. I tried my best, okay. I really did. When Ken wasn't home, I practiced writing. When we were out shopping, I tried to read. I did what I could.

... but alas, I wasn't able to.

"Sei? What's wrong? Why are you crying?"
"Hiks... Kien... Am I... pathaik? I don't even know what that meant."
"... Oh, sweetie. You don't need to hear those. Okay... You'll be alright."

I was, in fact, not doing well.

I turned twenty-five that year. People around Ken's workshop kept asking me something. I wasn't sure what they meant by it.

"Hey, Seiza. Have you gotten any... boy yet?"
"Huh...? What did you mean, Heiler? I got Kien."
"It was Hellen, but no. That's not what I meant. Come on, girl, you're twenty already. How could you not understand?"

I really didn't get it.

"I... I don't know."
"Hooooh, don't tell me."
"Wh... what?"
"Are you seeking... him?"
"Huh...? Who?"
"Kenny!"
"Ki... Kien? What about him?"
"Uuuuuh, you're getting red, girl. Oh, what a forbidden love."

I was serious when I said I didn't get it. It wasn't just her, though. People kept implanting this weird concept into me, like I was normal like they were. It bugged me.

So, I decided to ask... him, myself.

"Hey... Kien."
"What is it, Sei?"
"... What is... Roku?"

He was confused. I got confused too, but I caught on really quickly.

"Ah... I mean... the one people kept asking me. They pondered about this weird concept of boy and girl... I don't understand it."

After I explained, he smiled and approached me. I got the same feeling when I got adopted by him... it was scary. I closed my eyes and...

He hugged me.

"They were just teasing you, Sei. Don't worry about it."
"Really?"
"Yes."
"Then how about... for... fore.... fode..."
"What are you...?"
"You! They said I might have a feeling for you. Is that... true?"

He stopped me from talking about this, and he just said, "It wasn't a big deal, so please forget about it.

...

It was my thirtieth birthday that day...
Kenneth got some bad news.

"Sei... I'm sorry. I couldn't keep up with the trend anymore."
"What do you mean?"
"You have to leave and find another place to live. I... couldn't afford our house anymore."
"...We'll get separated?"
"... I'm sorry."

It was supposed to be a happy day, but it wasn't. Kenneth had to leave to do something I had no idea about, and he sent me to another city... Jakarta.

For five years, I worked on the move. I lived on the street. I had to get money with what I had...

"Hey, I heard you're great at fixing things. May I have your help?"

And there it was: our first meeting.

"Sure. Who is the one asking for help?"
"Jordan. Jordan Yondelfield."
"... Nice to meet you, Yardoo. I'm Seiza."

He froze.

"Did... you just call me...?"
"Don't care. Let's just move on and go on with the work."

In that moment, I met with the whole group. Harold welcomed me, and I naturally became a part of the team. I didn't have any feelings toward what the team wanted to achieve. I just wanted to live normally...

Until that day...

That day, I sniffed my OWN glass. The glass that Jordan used to drink Electrica's heart's blood. In that moment, I felt... like a human. I understood rage; I understood sadness, and...

I understood... family. I just wish I had never wished to be normal. Now I got what I wanted... with a bit of a side effect that I might die in three to five years because of this power. ⌉