Emotional Strains

\Crash’s POV/

    ‘Stealth… Well, I guess it beats having to go underwater.’ I thought to myself as I made my way through the alleyways of Norwich. ‘I gotta move fast, cause if I don’t then I might run into her and that’s the last thing I need right now…’ Letting out a light huff, I continued on, looking around for any sign of the things I was looking for. ‘If I go near the weapons, I might run into Loke and I know that woman can literally bury me into the ground and that’s something I’d like to avoid… I prefer having my bones intact and not in a million pieces.’ Narrowing my gaze as I stopped and hid in the shadows, hearing a few other aphex walk by. ‘So that leaves my only option to be…’ Gazing at the area across from the alley I was in, my eyes widened. ‘Ah ha! Found it!’ Right across from me was the building where all their heavy machinery was stored. ‘Finally! Now to just mess with it and get out of here before I get spotted by anyone.’ Carefully, I poked my head out of the alleyway to make sure no one else was around. Once I was positive on that, I darted towards the building and hopped in through an open window. I crouched down underneath the window and stayed hidden there for a few minutes, on the off-chance someone was coming by and saw something go through the window. I let out a sigh of relief when I heard no one coming and no one walking by, turning my gaze to the inside of the building. There were several different kinds of machines and tools all around. ‘So many things to tamper with… Unfortunately, not a lot of time to do so.’ I reached into my pack and took out a vial of black liquid. ‘Hopefully this acid will cause enough damage…’ I got up from my spot and started towards one of the large machines in the back. However, that was an extremely bad idea to do right at that moment.

    “CRASH!!!” A female voice shouted out from outside the building… One I knew far too well to ever forget or ignore for that matter. I froze, hearing her yell out my name and very quickly pocketed the acid before she could run over here. I turned to face the door of the building just as it opened, revealing the very woman I was hoping I wouldn’t see until the war was over with…

    “O-Oh! H-Hey Wame…!” She just giggled and walked into the building. ‘Please, whatever gods may exist in this world, please, don’t have her see through the shit I’m about to say for this entire conversation.’ I just waved at her as she approached me. Although, it took me a moment to notice the two Kekes that wandered in with her, the both of them looking around at all the machines around them. “Why are they…?” Wame blinked then looked down at the Kekes and her eyes widened.

    “Oh! These are Emory…” She first gestured to the one on the left, who was a forest green in color.

    ‘Kind of looks like the things you’d find in old temples that are hidden far in the forests…’ I watched as Wame then gestured to the one on the right, who was white with lots of pink, yellow and blue stripes about her.

    “And Evelyn!” The right Keke chirped up, hearing her name and grinned up at me.

    “Hi mister!”

    “Who is this, Miss Wame?” The green one asked my friend. Wame looked at me, her eyes bright.

    “This is my friend, Crash!” She then tilted her head, eyes still on me. “I didn’t know you were here… I figured you wouldn’t want to get involved with all this going on. I’m pretty sure you’d call it--”

    “Nonsense?” She just giggled and nodded her head. “I do still think it to be, but I have people I care about being involved with this whole thing, so I guess I don’t rightly have a choice.” She blinked then her giggling started right back up. I just stared at her completely confused as to why she was giggling now. “What did I say that was so amusing??” She proceeded to shake her head.

    “It wasn’t something amusing that you said… It was something cute and sweet~!” I blinked, now just staring at her as the words settled in and a blush made its way onto my face.

    “...Is now really the time for you to be teasing?”

    “I wasn’t teasing! I was being honest!”

    “Same thing at the end of the day.” She just huffed at me with a light glare on her features, before it dissipated.

    “Well, since you’re here, wanna help me get these two somewhere safe? They’re quite the handful for me to be dealing with on my own…” She sheepishly scratched the back of her head as the two Kekes by her feet started giggling in an almost… maniacal sense. I thought it over for a moment before nodding.

    “Just let me finish something here real quick and I’ll help.” She excitedly clapped her hands together.

    “Perfect! You’re the best, Crash!” Wame immediately darted forward and hugged me tight, causing me to tense up. I cautiously returned the hug, more unsure if I have any right to do this right now. She pulled away and gently ushered the two Kekes out of the building. “Come on you two, gotta let my friend do his work.”

    “Awwwww, but I wanna stay and watch!”

    “No Evelyn, it isn’t safe for you two.” I watched as she got them outside and closed the door behind them. I just stood there for quite a bit, staring at the door with sad eyes.

    ‘Wame… I’m so sorry… For all of this…’ I took the vial back out and walked towards the machines. Choosing to walk by all of them, I placed several drops in each one until the vial was empty. ‘I’m sorry for lying to you… I’m sorry for betraying you… I’m sorry… So, so sorry…’ Tears started to well up in my eyes as I closed the now empty vial and put it back in my pack. ‘I… I don’t deserve to be near you or to have your happiness… I deserve none of it…’ Looking back at the door, I wiped away the tears before they could fall and slowly began making my way outside, hearing the sizzling of the acid going through the machines. ‘Please… One day forgive me…’