File type: Text File (.txt) [Download]
-----------------------------------------
Winter comes, time to reflect
Spring comes, time to rejoice
Summer comes, but nothing got left.
…
Natsu looked at the poem his Mom and Dad hanged on the wall for him. A golden frame that held some lazily written words and crudely done drawing of himself and the family. It was the only thing that was his that hanged on the wall, and even though they praised it non-stop as the best thing ever, he still felt like it belonged in a trash. As a matter of fact, why shouldn’t he put it there now? Might as well too since it was very fitting!
And so, he took it out. He fiddled with the frame, and after a minute of being unable to move small pieces to open it, he decided to jump dump the whole thing. That’s right, the whole thing altogether! Exactly like the dreams of his parents and relatives, let their hopes die in the trash like it did for him. Who cared about that stuff anymore, cause it wasn’t him. He found the truth, and it was time to show it to their happy, smiling faces.
And it felt good.
He gazed to the letter. The “We are sorry to inform you that…” was very visible from where he stood, and so, he grabbed it too. He ripped it into eight pieces, which all he could manage because the paper was made of strangely strong material. Still, he got another wave of happiness once he threw it into the bin along with the poem.
He then looked to the wall. It was time to up the ante, as he gazed over several pictures of his brother. All of them, smiling, standing proudly, with either a big fish, a giant sandcastle, a first place prize for a marathon, or a diploma. That wall, right above his desk was adorned with all of these mementos of each of his successes. His eye landed on one with the diploma, as it also showed him, and their parents smiling. A bunch of wolves, with their toothy, perfect smiles, ready to send their son to the perfect future. It was time to give it an appropriate send of.
And so, he grabbed the frame by the bottom.
…Then pulled his hand back, cause the frame was metal and he stabbed his finger on it. He cursed a bit, seeing some of the blood coming out, and started sucking on it.
“Hey lil’ bro, how are you doing?”
Natsu froze in place. His rampage apparently ceased far too early, as he was literally caught red-handed. Despite the cool and friendly demeanor of his elder brother always gave him, a bigger than him in size and heart, he didn’t want to admit to his wrongdoings. Last he needed is to be given some form of self-reflection therapy for why he chose violence as his life’s answer, or even worse, pity. And so he stood there, eyes disinterested, brows furrowed, head looking away coolly, and sucking on his thumb.
“Is…everything okay?” His brother asked, showing some of that elder sibling worry. To that, Natsu turned further away, just to show him his disgust. “Aww, did someone get a boo-boo?”
“Can you stop that Noël!?” Natsu exclaimed.
“Why? What is it? Does the finger hurt that badly? By the way,” he move to their shared closet and opened it, “have you seen my favorite tie? I asked Nova, but she said to keep looking in here,” he said, referring to their sister. Natsu could hear him smile, “People at the party would LOVE it! I want to make a good impression in Mr. Garrison, he’s probably gonna take me as an apprentice next summer. Said apparently I have a bright future ahead of me. And he seems like a definite swell guy, too. Say, thinking about it, didn’t you get a letter this morning? We were wondering when the university will answer…”
Natsu was moving quickly towards the desk, grabbing the bin from under it. Before his brother would figure out what he was doing, he had to get rid of the evidence, as fast as he could. However, before he could a two step forward, he bumped his toe against the leg of the desk.
“Ow, ow ow!” Natsu yelped, as he continued to move forward by hopping on one leg.
“Nuts, you alright?”
“I’m fine, and don’t call me-“
His balance left him in millisecond. His leg gave out against the rug, and he fell face flat against the floor. Sharp pain came to his nose and teeth, enough to make him woozy, and regret for ever making any sort of attempts at life at all. And as if it was conspired against him, the contents of the bin spilled all over, the letter pieces neatly sliding to Noël’s feet. And to add insult to injury, Natsu felt pain in another one of his fingers, which was apparently a splinter.
“Woah, you okay?” He felt Noël’s hand grab him, only to then say, “Hey, what do we have here?”
He picked up few of the pieces, and carefully laid them on the rug.
“This looks like a letter. A ripped one too, for some reason. You know, when you put them together, it says ‘Sorry to inform you, but your appliation has been…’, what’s an appliation?”
Natsu made a very loud and very discernible groan that portrayed both guilt and utter annoyance.
“No wait, that’s application! Oh man, how silly of me! ‘But your application to McGale University has been declined. We cannot take…’”
Natsu was silent. It was only after his brother left the letter on the table, took a seat by the chair and gave out a big sigh that he decided to say, “Guess I’m done here.”
“C’mon, don’t say that…” his brother tried to console him. Natsu pressed his muzzled further to the rug.
“You know how Mom and Dad will react…” he mumbled, the thought even made him wan to disappear into the floor.
“Uh what did you say?”
Natsu just groaned.
His brother continued, “How about you get up and talk to me, instead of lying on the floor. You’re not to hurt, are ya?”
Natsu didn’t respond. There was no way both of them could look each other in the eye, truth be told. Between the two of them, Noël was born with a perfect set of features like ike a long yet not too big of a muzzle, perfectly groomed and tan fur, and his mane even manages to be easy to style to whatever he wanted without looking weird. The guy was always the most charming person in the room. Natsu himself was short, though, and skinny too. A round face with a muzzle that looked like it belonged to a cub, and long ears that made people literally compare him to a rabbit! This was completely unfair!
Education was also ostensibly different. The dude was always at top of his class, and he himself nearly got held back several times. And so, there was now this. One brother, already planning his first career, and the other, with no future at all. Life is just so unfair, at times.
“Listen, Natsu,” His brother got down on his knee. He felt the latter’s strong hand thrying to pull him by the shoulder. “Sure, Mom and Dad will be disappointed, but that doesn’t mean it’s just over! C’mon, we can just sign you up to our nearby college.”
“What’s the point?” Natsu said bluntly. He didn’t care enough to argue even. Even if he got in somewhere, he wouldn’t live with the shame of having gone to some random college that only took him in because their standards were lower. What was the point of doing things anymore if that was how he was going to live his life!?
Natsu wanted to just disappear. Soon enough, his brother got up from the chair and walked out of the room without saying anything. Might as well start thinking on getting a job, Natsu thought. Maybe as a cashier at some retail store or fast-food place, those don’t require experience, right? Maybe at some point later, just go and apply to work at a warehouse. Sure, the stress of work will make him puke everyday, and maybe he won’t make enough to live normally, but that’s at least a start too. And if his feeble, pathetic body won’t even manage that, he can just go and live with the jobless, then wait for his turn among others like him, and wait and wait and wait and…
“Hey, Natsu! How free are you for the next week?”
Natsu tilted his head to see Noël better. He peeked a phone in the latter’s hand, the screen showing that there was someone talking to him.
“Why do you ask?” Natsu mumbled.
“I…don’t want to lie…but we can fib a little,” Noël said, trying to sound innocent.
His big brother lowered himself, again. He then felt his hand carefully pat him on the head.
“Don’t you worry bro! Whatever happens, I won’t leave you hanging!”
Natsu kept his head in place. “Thanks. But…can you please not pet me when you say that?”
“Why?” He felt his long ears getting grabbed. “You know you are my best lil bro I ever had!”
“Hold them any longer and I’ll cut every finger you used.”
They were let go with a flop on the floor.
“So, what did you do?” Natsu asked, finally moving his face to look upwards.
“Let’s just say, I have a friend…And I think, you’ll really like him.”
…
-----------------------------------------
Winter comes, time to reflect
Spring comes, time to rejoice
Summer comes, but nothing got left.
…
Natsu looked at the poem his Mom and Dad hanged on the wall for him. A golden frame that held some lazily written words and crudely done drawing of himself and the family. It was the only thing that was his that hanged on the wall, and even though they praised it non-stop as the best thing ever, he still felt like it belonged in a trash. As a matter of fact, why shouldn’t he put it there now? Might as well too since it was very fitting!
And so, he took it out. He fiddled with the frame, and after a minute of being unable to move small pieces to open it, he decided to jump dump the whole thing. That’s right, the whole thing altogether! Exactly like the dreams of his parents and relatives, let their hopes die in the trash like it did for him. Who cared about that stuff anymore, cause it wasn’t him. He found the truth, and it was time to show it to their happy, smiling faces.
And it felt good.
He gazed to the letter. The “We are sorry to inform you that…” was very visible from where he stood, and so, he grabbed it too. He ripped it into eight pieces, which all he could manage because the paper was made of strangely strong material. Still, he got another wave of happiness once he threw it into the bin along with the poem.
He then looked to the wall. It was time to up the ante, as he gazed over several pictures of his brother. All of them, smiling, standing proudly, with either a big fish, a giant sandcastle, a first place prize for a marathon, or a diploma. That wall, right above his desk was adorned with all of these mementos of each of his successes. His eye landed on one with the diploma, as it also showed him, and their parents smiling. A bunch of wolves, with their toothy, perfect smiles, ready to send their son to the perfect future. It was time to give it an appropriate send of.
And so, he grabbed the frame by the bottom.
…Then pulled his hand back, cause the frame was metal and he stabbed his finger on it. He cursed a bit, seeing some of the blood coming out, and started sucking on it.
“Hey lil’ bro, how are you doing?”
Natsu froze in place. His rampage apparently ceased far too early, as he was literally caught red-handed. Despite the cool and friendly demeanor of his elder brother always gave him, a bigger than him in size and heart, he didn’t want to admit to his wrongdoings. Last he needed is to be given some form of self-reflection therapy for why he chose violence as his life’s answer, or even worse, pity. And so he stood there, eyes disinterested, brows furrowed, head looking away coolly, and sucking on his thumb.
“Is…everything okay?” His brother asked, showing some of that elder sibling worry. To that, Natsu turned further away, just to show him his disgust. “Aww, did someone get a boo-boo?”
“Can you stop that Noël!?” Natsu exclaimed.
“Why? What is it? Does the finger hurt that badly? By the way,” he move to their shared closet and opened it, “have you seen my favorite tie? I asked Nova, but she said to keep looking in here,” he said, referring to their sister. Natsu could hear him smile, “People at the party would LOVE it! I want to make a good impression in Mr. Garrison, he’s probably gonna take me as an apprentice next summer. Said apparently I have a bright future ahead of me. And he seems like a definite swell guy, too. Say, thinking about it, didn’t you get a letter this morning? We were wondering when the university will answer…”
Natsu was moving quickly towards the desk, grabbing the bin from under it. Before his brother would figure out what he was doing, he had to get rid of the evidence, as fast as he could. However, before he could a two step forward, he bumped his toe against the leg of the desk.
“Ow, ow ow!” Natsu yelped, as he continued to move forward by hopping on one leg.
“Nuts, you alright?”
“I’m fine, and don’t call me-“
His balance left him in millisecond. His leg gave out against the rug, and he fell face flat against the floor. Sharp pain came to his nose and teeth, enough to make him woozy, and regret for ever making any sort of attempts at life at all. And as if it was conspired against him, the contents of the bin spilled all over, the letter pieces neatly sliding to Noël’s feet. And to add insult to injury, Natsu felt pain in another one of his fingers, which was apparently a splinter.
“Woah, you okay?” He felt Noël’s hand grab him, only to then say, “Hey, what do we have here?”
He picked up few of the pieces, and carefully laid them on the rug.
“This looks like a letter. A ripped one too, for some reason. You know, when you put them together, it says ‘Sorry to inform you, but your appliation has been…’, what’s an appliation?”
Natsu made a very loud and very discernible groan that portrayed both guilt and utter annoyance.
“No wait, that’s application! Oh man, how silly of me! ‘But your application to McGale University has been declined. We cannot take…’”
Natsu was silent. It was only after his brother left the letter on the table, took a seat by the chair and gave out a big sigh that he decided to say, “Guess I’m done here.”
“C’mon, don’t say that…” his brother tried to console him. Natsu pressed his muzzled further to the rug.
“You know how Mom and Dad will react…” he mumbled, the thought even made him wan to disappear into the floor.
“Uh what did you say?”
Natsu just groaned.
His brother continued, “How about you get up and talk to me, instead of lying on the floor. You’re not to hurt, are ya?”
Natsu didn’t respond. There was no way both of them could look each other in the eye, truth be told. Between the two of them, Noël was born with a perfect set of features like ike a long yet not too big of a muzzle, perfectly groomed and tan fur, and his mane even manages to be easy to style to whatever he wanted without looking weird. The guy was always the most charming person in the room. Natsu himself was short, though, and skinny too. A round face with a muzzle that looked like it belonged to a cub, and long ears that made people literally compare him to a rabbit! This was completely unfair!
Education was also ostensibly different. The dude was always at top of his class, and he himself nearly got held back several times. And so, there was now this. One brother, already planning his first career, and the other, with no future at all. Life is just so unfair, at times.
“Listen, Natsu,” His brother got down on his knee. He felt the latter’s strong hand thrying to pull him by the shoulder. “Sure, Mom and Dad will be disappointed, but that doesn’t mean it’s just over! C’mon, we can just sign you up to our nearby college.”
“What’s the point?” Natsu said bluntly. He didn’t care enough to argue even. Even if he got in somewhere, he wouldn’t live with the shame of having gone to some random college that only took him in because their standards were lower. What was the point of doing things anymore if that was how he was going to live his life!?
Natsu wanted to just disappear. Soon enough, his brother got up from the chair and walked out of the room without saying anything. Might as well start thinking on getting a job, Natsu thought. Maybe as a cashier at some retail store or fast-food place, those don’t require experience, right? Maybe at some point later, just go and apply to work at a warehouse. Sure, the stress of work will make him puke everyday, and maybe he won’t make enough to live normally, but that’s at least a start too. And if his feeble, pathetic body won’t even manage that, he can just go and live with the jobless, then wait for his turn among others like him, and wait and wait and wait and…
“Hey, Natsu! How free are you for the next week?”
Natsu tilted his head to see Noël better. He peeked a phone in the latter’s hand, the screen showing that there was someone talking to him.
“Why do you ask?” Natsu mumbled.
“I…don’t want to lie…but we can fib a little,” Noël said, trying to sound innocent.
His big brother lowered himself, again. He then felt his hand carefully pat him on the head.
“Don’t you worry bro! Whatever happens, I won’t leave you hanging!”
Natsu kept his head in place. “Thanks. But…can you please not pet me when you say that?”
“Why?” He felt his long ears getting grabbed. “You know you are my best lil bro I ever had!”
“Hold them any longer and I’ll cut every finger you used.”
They were let go with a flop on the floor.
“So, what did you do?” Natsu asked, finally moving his face to look upwards.
“Let’s just say, I have a friend…And I think, you’ll really like him.”
…
Announcements: I'll be away for a bit now. SO, I'll be posting what's I've been working on as of late. It's still a prologue, so do keep in mind.
<<< PREV | FIRST | NEXT >>>
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Winter comes, time to reflect
Spring comes, time to rejoice
Summer comes, but nothing got left.
…
Natsu looked at the poem his Mom and Dad hanged on the wall for him. A golden frame that held some lazily written words and crudely done drawing of himself and the family. It was the only thing that was his that hanged on the wall, and even though they praised it non-stop as the best thing ever, he still felt like it belonged in a trash. As a matter of fact, why shouldn’t he put it there now? Might as well too since it was very fitting!
And so, he took it out. He fiddled with the frame, and after a minute of being unable to move small pieces to open it, he decided to jump dump the whole thing. That’s right, the whole thing altogether! Exactly like the dreams of his parents and relatives, let their hopes die in the trash like it did for him. Who cared about that stuff anymore, cause it wasn’t him. He found the truth, and it was time to show it to their happy, smiling faces.
And it felt good.
He gazed to the letter. The “We are sorry to inform you that…” was very visible from where he stood, and so, he grabbed it too. He ripped it into eight pieces, which all he could manage because the paper was made of strangely strong material. Still, he got another wave of happiness once he threw it into the bin along with the poem.
He then looked to the wall. It was time to up the ante, as he gazed over several pictures of his brother. All of them, smiling, standing proudly, with either a big fish, a giant sandcastle, a first place prize for a marathon, or a diploma. That wall, right above his desk was adorned with all of these mementos of each of his successes. His eye landed on one with the diploma, as it also showed him, and their parents smiling. A bunch of wolves, with their toothy, perfect smiles, ready to send their son to the perfect future. It was time to give it an appropriate send of.
And so, he grabbed the frame by the bottom.
…Then pulled his hand back, cause the frame was metal and he stabbed his finger on it. He cursed a bit, seeing some of the blood coming out, and started sucking on it.
“Hey lil’ bro, how are you doing?”
Natsu froze in place. His rampage apparently ceased far too early, as he was literally caught red-handed. Despite the cool and friendly demeanor of his elder brother always gave him, a bigger than him in size and heart, he didn’t want to admit to his wrongdoings. Last he needed is to be given some form of self-reflection therapy for why he chose violence as his life’s answer, or even worse, pity. And so he stood there, eyes disinterested, brows furrowed, head looking away coolly, and sucking on his thumb.
“Is…everything okay?” His brother asked, showing some of that elder sibling worry. To that, Natsu turned further away, just to show him his disgust. “Aww, did someone get a boo-boo?”
“Can you stop that Noël!?” Natsu exclaimed.
“Why? What is it? Does the finger hurt that badly? By the way,” he move to their shared closet and opened it, “have you seen my favorite tie? I asked Nova, but she said to keep looking in here,” he said, referring to their sister. Natsu could hear him smile, “People at the party would LOVE it! I want to make a good impression in Mr. Garrison, he’s probably gonna take me as an apprentice next summer. Said apparently I have a bright future ahead of me. And he seems like a definite swell guy, too. Say, thinking about it, didn’t you get a letter this morning? We were wondering when the university will answer…”
Natsu was moving quickly towards the desk, grabbing the bin from under it. Before his brother would figure out what he was doing, he had to get rid of the evidence, as fast as he could. However, before he could a two step forward, he bumped his toe against the leg of the desk.
“Ow, ow ow!” Natsu yelped, as he continued to move forward by hopping on one leg.
“Nuts, you alright?”
“I’m fine, and don’t call me-“
His balance left him in millisecond. His leg gave out against the rug, and he fell face flat against the floor. Sharp pain came to his nose and teeth, enough to make him woozy, and regret for ever making any sort of attempts at life at all. And as if it was conspired against him, the contents of the bin spilled all over, the letter pieces neatly sliding to Noël’s feet. And to add insult to injury, Natsu felt pain in another one of his fingers, which was apparently a splinter.
“Woah, you okay?” He felt Noël’s hand grab him, only to then say, “Hey, what do we have here?”
He picked up few of the pieces, and carefully laid them on the rug.
“This looks like a letter. A ripped one too, for some reason. You know, when you put them together, it says ‘Sorry to inform you, but your appliation has been…’, what’s an appliation?”
Natsu made a very loud and very discernible groan that portrayed both guilt and utter annoyance.
“No wait, that’s application! Oh man, how silly of me! ‘But your application to McGale University has been declined. We cannot take…’”
Natsu was silent. It was only after his brother left the letter on the table, took a seat by the chair and gave out a big sigh that he decided to say, “Guess I’m done here.”
“C’mon, don’t say that…” his brother tried to console him. Natsu pressed his muzzled further to the rug.
“You know how Mom and Dad will react…” he mumbled, the thought even made him wan to disappear into the floor.
“Uh what did you say?”
Natsu just groaned.
His brother continued, “How about you get up and talk to me, instead of lying on the floor. You’re not to hurt, are ya?”
Natsu didn’t respond. There was no way both of them could look each other in the eye, truth be told. Between the two of them, Noël was born with a perfect set of features like ike a long yet not too big of a muzzle, perfectly groomed and tan fur, and his mane even manages to be easy to style to whatever he wanted without looking weird. The guy was always the most charming person in the room. Natsu himself was short, though, and skinny too. A round face with a muzzle that looked like it belonged to a cub, and long ears that made people literally compare him to a rabbit! This was completely unfair!
Education was also ostensibly different. The dude was always at top of his class, and he himself nearly got held back several times. And so, there was now this. One brother, already planning his first career, and the other, with no future at all. Life is just so unfair, at times.
“Listen, Natsu,” His brother got down on his knee. He felt the latter’s strong hand thrying to pull him by the shoulder. “Sure, Mom and Dad will be disappointed, but that doesn’t mean it’s just over! C’mon, we can just sign you up to our nearby college.”
“What’s the point?” Natsu said bluntly. He didn’t care enough to argue even. Even if he got in somewhere, he wouldn’t live with the shame of having gone to some random college that only took him in because their standards were lower. What was the point of doing things anymore if that was how he was going to live his life!?
Natsu wanted to just disappear. Soon enough, his brother got up from the chair and walked out of the room without saying anything. Might as well start thinking on getting a job, Natsu thought. Maybe as a cashier at some retail store or fast-food place, those don’t require experience, right? Maybe at some point later, just go and apply to work at a warehouse. Sure, the stress of work will make him puke everyday, and maybe he won’t make enough to live normally, but that’s at least a start too. And if his feeble, pathetic body won’t even manage that, he can just go and live with the jobless, then wait for his turn among others like him, and wait and wait and wait and…
“Hey, Natsu! How free are you for the next week?”
Natsu tilted his head to see Noël better. He peeked a phone in the latter’s hand, the screen showing that there was someone talking to him.
“Why do you ask?” Natsu mumbled.
“I…don’t want to lie…but we can fib a little,” Noël said, trying to sound innocent.
His big brother lowered himself, again. He then felt his hand carefully pat him on the head.
“Don’t you worry bro! Whatever happens, I won’t leave you hanging!”
Natsu kept his head in place. “Thanks. But…can you please not pet me when you say that?”
“Why?” He felt his long ears getting grabbed. “You know you are my best lil bro I ever had!”
“Hold them any longer and I’ll cut every finger you used.”
They were let go with a flop on the floor.
“So, what did you do?” Natsu asked, finally moving his face to look upwards.
“Let’s just say, I have a friend…And I think, you’ll really like him.”
…
<<< PREV | FIRST | NEXT >>>
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Winter comes, time to reflect
Spring comes, time to rejoice
Summer comes, but nothing got left.
…
Natsu looked at the poem his Mom and Dad hanged on the wall for him. A golden frame that held some lazily written words and crudely done drawing of himself and the family. It was the only thing that was his that hanged on the wall, and even though they praised it non-stop as the best thing ever, he still felt like it belonged in a trash. As a matter of fact, why shouldn’t he put it there now? Might as well too since it was very fitting!
And so, he took it out. He fiddled with the frame, and after a minute of being unable to move small pieces to open it, he decided to jump dump the whole thing. That’s right, the whole thing altogether! Exactly like the dreams of his parents and relatives, let their hopes die in the trash like it did for him. Who cared about that stuff anymore, cause it wasn’t him. He found the truth, and it was time to show it to their happy, smiling faces.
And it felt good.
He gazed to the letter. The “We are sorry to inform you that…” was very visible from where he stood, and so, he grabbed it too. He ripped it into eight pieces, which all he could manage because the paper was made of strangely strong material. Still, he got another wave of happiness once he threw it into the bin along with the poem.
He then looked to the wall. It was time to up the ante, as he gazed over several pictures of his brother. All of them, smiling, standing proudly, with either a big fish, a giant sandcastle, a first place prize for a marathon, or a diploma. That wall, right above his desk was adorned with all of these mementos of each of his successes. His eye landed on one with the diploma, as it also showed him, and their parents smiling. A bunch of wolves, with their toothy, perfect smiles, ready to send their son to the perfect future. It was time to give it an appropriate send of.
And so, he grabbed the frame by the bottom.
…Then pulled his hand back, cause the frame was metal and he stabbed his finger on it. He cursed a bit, seeing some of the blood coming out, and started sucking on it.
“Hey lil’ bro, how are you doing?”
Natsu froze in place. His rampage apparently ceased far too early, as he was literally caught red-handed. Despite the cool and friendly demeanor of his elder brother always gave him, a bigger than him in size and heart, he didn’t want to admit to his wrongdoings. Last he needed is to be given some form of self-reflection therapy for why he chose violence as his life’s answer, or even worse, pity. And so he stood there, eyes disinterested, brows furrowed, head looking away coolly, and sucking on his thumb.
“Is…everything okay?” His brother asked, showing some of that elder sibling worry. To that, Natsu turned further away, just to show him his disgust. “Aww, did someone get a boo-boo?”
“Can you stop that Noël!?” Natsu exclaimed.
“Why? What is it? Does the finger hurt that badly? By the way,” he move to their shared closet and opened it, “have you seen my favorite tie? I asked Nova, but she said to keep looking in here,” he said, referring to their sister. Natsu could hear him smile, “People at the party would LOVE it! I want to make a good impression in Mr. Garrison, he’s probably gonna take me as an apprentice next summer. Said apparently I have a bright future ahead of me. And he seems like a definite swell guy, too. Say, thinking about it, didn’t you get a letter this morning? We were wondering when the university will answer…”
Natsu was moving quickly towards the desk, grabbing the bin from under it. Before his brother would figure out what he was doing, he had to get rid of the evidence, as fast as he could. However, before he could a two step forward, he bumped his toe against the leg of the desk.
“Ow, ow ow!” Natsu yelped, as he continued to move forward by hopping on one leg.
“Nuts, you alright?”
“I’m fine, and don’t call me-“
His balance left him in millisecond. His leg gave out against the rug, and he fell face flat against the floor. Sharp pain came to his nose and teeth, enough to make him woozy, and regret for ever making any sort of attempts at life at all. And as if it was conspired against him, the contents of the bin spilled all over, the letter pieces neatly sliding to Noël’s feet. And to add insult to injury, Natsu felt pain in another one of his fingers, which was apparently a splinter.
“Woah, you okay?” He felt Noël’s hand grab him, only to then say, “Hey, what do we have here?”
He picked up few of the pieces, and carefully laid them on the rug.
“This looks like a letter. A ripped one too, for some reason. You know, when you put them together, it says ‘Sorry to inform you, but your appliation has been…’, what’s an appliation?”
Natsu made a very loud and very discernible groan that portrayed both guilt and utter annoyance.
“No wait, that’s application! Oh man, how silly of me! ‘But your application to McGale University has been declined. We cannot take…’”
Natsu was silent. It was only after his brother left the letter on the table, took a seat by the chair and gave out a big sigh that he decided to say, “Guess I’m done here.”
“C’mon, don’t say that…” his brother tried to console him. Natsu pressed his muzzled further to the rug.
“You know how Mom and Dad will react…” he mumbled, the thought even made him wan to disappear into the floor.
“Uh what did you say?”
Natsu just groaned.
His brother continued, “How about you get up and talk to me, instead of lying on the floor. You’re not to hurt, are ya?”
Natsu didn’t respond. There was no way both of them could look each other in the eye, truth be told. Between the two of them, Noël was born with a perfect set of features like ike a long yet not too big of a muzzle, perfectly groomed and tan fur, and his mane even manages to be easy to style to whatever he wanted without looking weird. The guy was always the most charming person in the room. Natsu himself was short, though, and skinny too. A round face with a muzzle that looked like it belonged to a cub, and long ears that made people literally compare him to a rabbit! This was completely unfair!
Education was also ostensibly different. The dude was always at top of his class, and he himself nearly got held back several times. And so, there was now this. One brother, already planning his first career, and the other, with no future at all. Life is just so unfair, at times.
“Listen, Natsu,” His brother got down on his knee. He felt the latter’s strong hand thrying to pull him by the shoulder. “Sure, Mom and Dad will be disappointed, but that doesn’t mean it’s just over! C’mon, we can just sign you up to our nearby college.”
“What’s the point?” Natsu said bluntly. He didn’t care enough to argue even. Even if he got in somewhere, he wouldn’t live with the shame of having gone to some random college that only took him in because their standards were lower. What was the point of doing things anymore if that was how he was going to live his life!?
Natsu wanted to just disappear. Soon enough, his brother got up from the chair and walked out of the room without saying anything. Might as well start thinking on getting a job, Natsu thought. Maybe as a cashier at some retail store or fast-food place, those don’t require experience, right? Maybe at some point later, just go and apply to work at a warehouse. Sure, the stress of work will make him puke everyday, and maybe he won’t make enough to live normally, but that’s at least a start too. And if his feeble, pathetic body won’t even manage that, he can just go and live with the jobless, then wait for his turn among others like him, and wait and wait and wait and…
“Hey, Natsu! How free are you for the next week?”
Natsu tilted his head to see Noël better. He peeked a phone in the latter’s hand, the screen showing that there was someone talking to him.
“Why do you ask?” Natsu mumbled.
“I…don’t want to lie…but we can fib a little,” Noël said, trying to sound innocent.
His big brother lowered himself, again. He then felt his hand carefully pat him on the head.
“Don’t you worry bro! Whatever happens, I won’t leave you hanging!”
Natsu kept his head in place. “Thanks. But…can you please not pet me when you say that?”
“Why?” He felt his long ears getting grabbed. “You know you are my best lil bro I ever had!”
“Hold them any longer and I’ll cut every finger you used.”
They were let go with a flop on the floor.
“So, what did you do?” Natsu asked, finally moving his face to look upwards.
“Let’s just say, I have a friend…And I think, you’ll really like him.”
…
Category Story / All
Species Unspecified / Any
Gender Any
Size 50 x 50px
Comments