Empathy Has No Friends!

Today’s UN Training --- Get rid of empathy to achieve desired results

Is empathy a rung on the ladder to the top of the world? Or is it instead the lack thereof?

Well, that depends on what kind of leader you’d like to be.

Some would say that most world leaders throughout history have existed with a stunning absence of empathy, many of which being responsible for atrocities both on foreign soil and within their own walls. Those same people would tell you that most modern leaders are no different, but the presence of international laws and the consequences of economic sanctions hold a lot of their worst nature away from the public’s body and mind.

Tani is in line with the group of people who believes that.

For these diabolical leaders that ruled throughout time, just where was that empathy lost along the way? Were they born without it? Or is it a learned human emotion that they simply failed to grasp as they grew up?

He has yet to entertain thinking up an answer to those questions for others, but he has looked within himself and can confidently diagnose an answer for himself.

Akihiro Tani is very aware that he is an empathetic person.

He views this humanity as both a blessing and a curse. It is one of the altruistic notions that pressed him into learning new languages in the first place, but the curse is that the world he wishes to use his talents in is full of people who simply don’t share that trait.

He’ll have to navigate his way around those dangerous people, and eventually he’ll have to lead them. So in order to prepare himself for those future opponents, he has worked tirelessly to eliminate much of the empathy he was born with and has learned throughout his 18 years of life. Of course, he couldn’t coach himself into a form of psychosis, nor would he want to, but he has coached himself into the ability to manipulate people to benefit him in ways not possible if he truly had their feelings in mind.

So what would happen if someone came into his life that served no benefit to him, but at the same time is a person he can’t help but empathize with? Would all that hard work spent on quelling that cognitive response allow him to just toss that person aside?

Our ambitious high schooler is about to be confronted with just that type of person.

------------------------------------

It is Thursday afternoon, day 3 of the Languages Club’s official existence, and the countdown to add four more members by the end of next week seems to be moving egregiously fast. Because of this, an impatient Tani is standing by the door tapping his feet in reflex while Anita is casually writing new words on the chalkboard.

The sound of their particular movements are echoing off each other and are the only things heard in this silent room, creating a distinct tension that makes time pass like the moment before a jumpscare in a horror film.

“Tani.” Anita says, grabbing his attention.

She points to the blackboard and motions for him to look.

‘Relax’

Although she had written words to sooth him, the perfect posture he focuses on is coming across especially tense.

“Ha!” Tani scoffs. “Easy for you to say that, I have a lot riding on this new member, if she doesn't show up then I’m right back to where I was yesterday. Stuck with a Foreign Girl who serves no purpose other than to destroy me.”

The poison tipped darts that are his words fly right over Anita, who can’t understand them. She simply smiles at him without a clue to how rude he's being. Getting a response like that makes Tani realize that he is being dishonest in his frustration.

He sighs and says, “Ah, I’m sorry. You actually do serve a purpose, so keep up with your studies.”

Anita is still looking at him with that same smile, without a clue to his flip flop in attitude and tone.

This response makes Tani realize that, in his guilt, he is trying to make peace with a phantom problem.

He sighs again and asks, “Just how am I supposed to act around you anyways?”

‘Knock, Knock, knock.’

The gentle sounds that come from the door pulsate in Tani’s chest like three thunderclaps.

His newest member has finally arrived.

He could allow himself to be nervous internally, but with the deftness of an ancient Greek stoic, he is able to shake off the butterflies enough to hide it externally. He confidently pushes his glasses further up the brim of his nose, and like a hardened stone he makes his way to the door and slides it open in one smooth motion.

“....”

He looks to the left and right, and sees nothing but an empty hallway.

With no one there, that composed form he likes to present to people immediately withers like flowers in a vase of chlorine water.

He slams the door shut and turns to Anita.

“Someone ding-dong-ditched us!”

‘Knock, Knock, Knock.’

The sound at the door twists his body around and he abruptly slides it open to investigate.

“I will make sure you’re punished for this ill timed prank!” he threatens.

A little hand is raised in front of his face, and it’s only then his attention is taken away from the empty school hallway.

Looking down, he finds that there is a tiny girl standing about chest high dressed in Kokusai’s navy colored second year uniform.

“Is there a reason why I’ve had a door slammed in my face and am currently being shouted at?” the girl asks.

Her green eyed glare is as blank as her monotone voice.

“Oh!” Tani backs away into the clubroom. “I didn’t see you there, my apologies! Please, come in come in!”

Pandering like a madam at a beachside massage parlor, his gestures to get her to enter would come across as uncomfortable to anyone watching. But the short girl doesn’t seem to notice and makes her way inside.

Immediately making eye contact with Anita, the two acknowledge each other’s presence. Anita sends her a welcoming smile, and the short girl nods her head and looks away.

“Let me get you some tea!” Tani says, rushing to the kettle and making a ruckus in his attempt to placate her with niceties.

The time it takes for the water to boil encompasses the room in an awkward silence, and Tani begins squirming when he realizes how it’s making him feel.

“S-So, what brings you to the Languages Club?” he asks, trying to make small talk as he hurries along the boiling of the water in his head.

“A few reasons actually.” the girl replies, and then follows that up with silence.

Tani and the girl look at each other, and he awaits the continuation of that explanation like someone standing on hot sand desperately seeking relief for their burning feet. An unpleasant sweat is felt on his temple.

Tani is someone who prides himself on his wit and his ability to smoothly converse with anyone, but when the person he’s talking to doesn’t give him any social cues to work with, the awkwardness has the effect of causing him physical pain.

His mind begins to race, wondering if and when she’ll add to her declaration.

(Could it be that she intends to leave me hanging?)

His stomach begins to cramp.

(Am I supposed to be the one to ask about the other reasons?)

His eyebrow involuntarily twitches.

(Is that a normal thing to do in this situation??)

The sound of the water in the kettle boiling breaks the silence, and Tani rushes to prepare her cup of tea as though the act of doing so would save him from a life threatening dilemma.

“My name is Akihiro Tani and I am the president of the club. Here’s some tea for you.”

With the face of an antique painting, the girl looks to the cup of tea, and then to Tani. Hiding her hands under her arms she says,

“I don’t like tea.”

Tani clenches his jaw.

(Then why did you watch me make it for you and not say anything!?)

“O-Oh I see. I must not have heard you mention that while I was preparing it.” he replies, not so delicately hiding his passive aggressiveness.

“That’s fine.”

(Ugh!)

He’s doing his best to avoid outwardly showing his agitation, but the thunderstorm brewing over the top of his head is casting its shadow over his fake smile.

Seeing this, Anita comes to Tani’s side and takes the tea out of his hand and begins drinking it in the girl’s stead.

This did enough to ease the tension, and allowed Anita to look at the girl and say, “My name is Anita Pederson, nice to meet you!”

Though it’s only her second day, she managed to fix her ability to introduce herself in Japanese.

The short girl twiddles with her wavy dark hair and replies, “My name is Emilia Mazzoli…”

Although Anita greets her with a smile, hearing Emilia’s introduction comes in the form of a shockwave to Tani. He has made the same mistake as he did when he met Anita. Allowing himself to be so excited about the prospect of a new member, he failed to pay attention to the features of the person in front of him.  

“You’re a gaijin!?”

“Is that a problem?” she asks.

To Tani, it’s not so much a problem as it is a disappointment. Since he is planning on attending a Japanese University, he formed this club with the express goal of teaching fellow Japanese students how to learn Mandarin or a western language. Having two foreigners in his club kind of alters the optics of whatever he’ll be able to accomplish, whether it alters them in a positive or negative form remains to be seen.

“Well it depends on what language you’re trying to learn.”

“I’m not necessarily trying to learn a new language.”

Now that is a problem.

“Then why are you here?”

“....”

She responds with silence yet again.

This time however, Tani doesn’t stress about the social maneuvering that goes along with the presence of a conversation partner.

“I’ll need an answer to that.”

"...."

Crossing her arms and hiding her hands once again, Emilia emanates a somatic discomfort at the prospect of answering that question. Her discomfort then escalates to a point her brain short circuits and steam escapes her ears with a sound akin to someone sitting on a whoopie cushion. Any semblance of light in her dark green eyes seems to float off into a different realm. 

This reaction compels Anita to finish up the tea and walk to Emilia’s side to express her support.

“You’re okay.” she says.

Anita’s voice is like a siren's song. Even Tani is moved by it, especially when she says those words specifically.

Such a tender assurance does enough to snap Emilia out of her trance like state.

“The truth is…” she admits, looking to Tani as though she were confessing a great sin. “I have no friends.”

“...So?”

If Tani’s reply had a physical property, it'd simply be classified as sharp.

Emilia turtles up within herself and looks as though she's about to return to her catatonic state.

Anita furrows her brow and places her hands on her hips combatively and directs her gaze towards Tani, she may not have been able to tell what was just said, but even she can see that it has damaged Emilia's psyche.

“Listen, Emilia-san, there’s nothing the Languages club can do to help you with that.” Tani says, scratching his head in exasperation.

“It has to be you.” Emilia declares, “I used to have a few friends back in Italy, but ever since I moved here my first year of middle school, everyone has avoided interacting with me. No matter what I do, I can't seem to find a friend to hangout with."

“And you think learning a new language would solve that problem?”

“I think learning how to properly speak Japanese would. You have the ability to teach me your own language, don’t you?”

“But you speak Japanese just fine, you barely even have an accent.”

“Do I really, though?” Emilia asks, her facial expression has yet to change once this entire time.

Staring at the little Italian girl in front of him, he thinks back on their interactions thus far. He really does believe she can speak Japanese very well, but he can also acknowledge that there certainly is something about her that doesn’t translate.

There’s a rhythmic timing of inflections in Japanese that is vital to properly communicate. If one’s tone doesn’t fit what the person says, the two can conflict with each other and come across as two different things. Although that issue fits with most, if not all languages, perhaps the most important part of speaking an eastern language is understanding the process of tone control.

Emilia has obviously never grasped this concept, and the result of it has been unintentionally pushing peers away from her. Tani can picture classmates snickering behind her back and making fun of her for not being able to ‘read the air’.

It’s something he could help her with, but it’s something that would quite literally do him no good other than to gain a member for the sake of gaining a member. If she were a Japanese student and he taught her how to speak Italian, the level of accomplishment that would be afforded to him and his club would be huge for building up his resume. Teaching a foreign student that already speaks fluent Japanese how to ‘read the air’ and make friends would most certainly go unnoticed.

All he’d be doing is wasting time and effort on someone that won’t get him any closer to the top of the world. Because of that, he has no choice but to send her on her way. There are many other clubs she could join that would be better suited to accomplish her needs, he can already think of a few.

“I think you should join the drama club, learn how to act in skits and theater plays alongside your peers, it’s a good unifying activity. Worst case scenario you would learn how to act like you're friends with them.”

“I tried joining them last year, they said I wouldn’t be able to act out the lines with any emotion.”

Surprised by the callousness of the drama club, Tani clears his throat.

“How about the literature club?”

“Tried it, they said my reading and writing skills aren’t good enough to convey the book’s message.”

“Yearbook club?”

“They said that I needed to have a better relationship with my fellow students.”

“Newspaper club?”

“No interviewing and reporting skills.”

“Calligraphy??”

“I barely got through the door, they knew I was rejected by the literature club.”

“A sports club! Swimming, softball, track!”

“They all said I’m too small.”

Tani grabs at his hair. “Such blatant discrimination!!”

Now he wishes he had gone through with his plan to infiltrate the student council and change the system from within, there should be rules in place to avoid such prejudicial behavior. He can’t believe that all these clubs would turn her away without giving her a chance.

“I’ll find a club for you, it won’t take much blackmail to get one of them to let you in.”

“It really can’t be yours?” Emilia asks.

Even though her tone is flat and she wears an uncaring facial expression that matches it perfectly, Tani can sense a twinge of pain in her voice.

“....”

The question he’s forced to ask himself is whether or not he can ignore something that he could so plainly see, even if it meant hurting her. Deep within himself, he’s cursing the fact that he wasn’t born with the ability not to notice something like this.

But if he really wants to become a world leader, he knows that he has to abandon his empathy and learn how to refuse the requests of the needy. This little Italian girl does nothing to further his development, if he lets her join the club she’ll only serve to distract him from teaching Anita and the future members.

“Emilia-san…” 

Tani struggles to look her in the eyes and deliver the news that will most certainly crush her. It’s then that his phone vibrates in his pocket, his instinct welcomes the diversion and he pulls his phone out of his pocket on impulse.

It’s a text from Anita; he looks her way and she gestures with her head to read the message.

[You’re also not allowed to be someone you’re not! (>_<)]

Anita steps in front of a frozen Tani and holds out her hand to Emilia before saying, “Welcome!”

Although not outwardly broadcasting excitement, Emilia’s face does light up.

She shakes Anita’s hand and asks, “Really?”

Tani averts his gaze from the two of them and to the ground, he was just a moment away from ruthlessly barring her from developing relationships and relegated her to a bad high school experience. Faced with the choice of furthering his goals or doing the right thing, he’d become just like everyone else who had turned her away. The only thing making him unique is his own brand of selfish reasoning behind it. Such a dreadful familiarity with the people around him is a bitter pill to swallow.

Anita puts her hand on his shoulder, the touch lifting his spirit enough to convince him to look at her.

She smiles at him and says, “You’re okay.”

Tani’s heart skips a beat.

Those golden eyes of hers are as keen as an owl's.

More so than anything, having her step in and make the decision for him comes as a stunning relief. He should have been angry, he was going to reject Emilia’s request before Anita forced his hand into the opposite result, yet the sudden change has the effect of a parachute saving him from a free fall.

He has an idea of the guilt she has saved him from, and he’s willing to accept any challenge to make up for it.

“Alright, fine.” Tani says with a puff of resignation escaping his nose. “If it’s something you’re passionate about, then the Languages club will help you.”

Emilia doesn’t smile, but she is able to convey her appreciation when she says, “Thank you, I will do my best.”

Tani can understand the handicap he’ll put on himself by accepting the presence of empathy, but he’ll flip that narrative and grow to wield it as his greatest weapon. He was close to giving it up and taking the planned route, but situations in life tend to come about in a chaotic jumble, he can’t afford to take them on with a singular frame of mind. Instead he’ll prove to himself that he can teach this tiny Italian girl how to become the best version of herself, not for the sake of his future, but for the sake of doing what he is capable of.

He doesn’t hold his hand out to express any form of camaraderie, but instead grabs a contract from a neatly stacked pile of papers on the desk and presents it to her.

“If you can do me a favor and just sign right here please.”

He returns to his used car salesman mode.

She may not benefit his resume per se, but she will certainly count as the second of five members he needs to at least keep his club afloat.

Emilia doesn’t hesitate to sign.

“I’m glad.” she says, not bothering to look through the fine print. “When Wakanda-sensei insisted on this club, I really didn’t expect it to work out.”

A low wheeze escapes Tani’s nostrils upon hearing that, he sends her a quizzical glare and asks, “Wakanda-sensei?”

“Yes.” Emilia answers. “He’s my homeroom teacher. If not for him frantically telling me about this club, I never would have found you. I was so close to going through my second year of high school without any after school activities. I’ll have to give him my thanks.”

Tani had completely forgotten about threatening Wakanda into helping him recruit members, he was so lost into dealing with Anita that the backwards methods he used to get the world history teacher’s cooperation were a complete afterthought.

Emilia’s surname crashes into his mind like a tidal wave, and a beady eyed smile hijacks his face.

“Emilia-san… Did you say your last name was Mazzoli?”

“Yes.”

Surely, such a coincidence couldn't be possible...

“And does your father happen to be named Don?”

“Well, Donatello is his real name. His friends call him Don.”

Tani is sweating like a sinner in church.

“Does he own a pachinko parlor?”

“No, he owns a grocery store in Shibuya. Does this matter at all?”

Tani had taken on the identity of a fictional Sicilian mob member to bribe Wakanda into recruiting a student for his club, and only two days prior he had left a threatening message telling the frightened teacher that actions have consequences. Wakanda has sent her to the Languages club because he genuinely believes that the person Tani pretended to be is the gangster father of his foreign student.

Tani had never bothered to see if Wakanda had an Italian student with the surname Mazzoli, because Tani had made up the name on the spot. By sheer means of misfortune, the typical Italian name given happened to match a real life student. It now makes sense why Wakanda so easily went along with Tani’s scam.

Not exactly knowing how to respond to such a sudden revelation, Tani sheepishly smiles and averts his gaze when he replies, “Well… not really.”

In his head, Tani begins berating what has become an obvious flaw of oversight that he’ll need to remedy if he wants any chance of success in life. He can’t afford to be hatching up dastardly schemes without thinking about every possible result, no matter how slim the odds. He can only be comforted by the fact that Wakanda-sensei seems like the kind of person too scared to do any digging going forward.

Emilia can see that Tani is agonizing over something, but chooses to ignore any thought of what it could be, she’s too happy to be a part of a new club to find anything Tani does to be suspicious.

“So…” she says, drawing his attention to her. “When can I start learning?”

Our resident high schooler arrogantly pushes up his glasses and puffs before replying, “That depends. When do you want to make your first friend?”

Today’s UN Lesson --- Empathy is something worth keeping!