After the awkward meeting two days ago, we decided to meet again at the same time today, precisely when Sher and I share the same working hours. Our shifts were about to finish, so we thought it would be okay to take some time off work to mingle with that annoying new regular.

“Hey, don't call me that again! Customer is the king, right?” Farkas exclaimed while lighting his cigarette. Ashes are already piling up in the ashtray; this person doesn't love his lungs.

"Want a smoke?" Farkas handed us a cigarette. I refuse to take care of my body, especially if I have to play that kind of game again. While Sher refuses for a reason I don't know.

"Tch, tasteless kids." Farkas was disappointed with our answer.

This very Friday we gather to discuss more about that day.

We didn't talk much a couple of days ago, perhaps in shock from the sudden meeting. Me as well; I thought I would never meet Farkas or Sher in the real world. So we just glared at each other in confusion for a few tens of minutes, only then to confirm that our TickBit brought up the same screen when tapped seven times. In addition, we had also confirmed that the events we experienced before and after the game were similar; time stopped, bodies and souls that seemed to float away taken to a nowhere dimension, coconut drink that suddenly appeared as if we bought them, all of them.

"What do you think about that premier game?" Farkas chirped, opening a heavy conversation.

“That was a crazy day… That life-threatening game… Especially when… You know, that punishment really happened…” Sher replied in a trembling voice. I think he still can't accept the fact that someone we met in that world a week ago actually died in the real world.

"You're the one that reported the incident to the police, right?"

"How'd you know?" Sher's eyes widened, his forehead also frowned.

"Ah, never mind. In this day and age, a wide connection is necessary.” Farkas took a few seconds to smoke his cigarette. A quarter of his cigarettes were gone in one puff. I wonder why this guy can still have so much strength.

"No hope?" He continued.

Sher shrugged, “They didn't listen, even believed I'm a lunatic."

Exactly what I thought, who would believe a story full of crap like 'my surroundings suddenly turned black and white'. Someone who heard the story would just give eye drops and think they solved the problem.

The two of them then turn their attention toward me, curious as to how I'll respond.

“I-In my opinion… It all seemed unreal, but I don't know.”

Sher spoke in between gulps of the instant latte he stole while working earlier, “Hmm, then it's more like a dream? Didn't we all feel 'waking up' from that long sleep?"

"Hmm, if it was a dream, was it possible for a hundred people to share the same dream?" Farkas nodded, then lit the second cigarette. I swear I'll count how many cigarettes he burns in the next hour.

"How do I put this... I do feel unreal, but it all feels so unbelievable real..." Subconsciously my hands covered my ears.

"Oh, that's true. Out of the three of us, you're probably the one who suffered the most, huh." Sher, who picked me up at that time, understood best how tormented and desperate I was in that sound-hell.

“Everything felt real, the tension, the fear, and the confusion… Also all the pain… U-Uh?”

I rub both of my knees and confirm by touching every inch of my leg. I couldn't find any hurt nor pain from it. My knees, which are slightly perforated from being punctured by some pointy pebbles, are unlikely to heal within a week. How come I just realized this?

"Oh really? Are you sure you come back clean without any wounds on your body?” Farkas leaned toward me and beamed, interested.

Once again, I make sure the entire surface of my leg; I even scratch my ears. There was no significant damage either to my hearing after I came back to the real world.

“This makes me wonder… If all the wounds received don't carry over to the real world, what if we die during the game?”

"There's only one way to find out." Farkas looked at Sher and me with a wolf-like grin, his signature smile. His aura and pressure were so overwhelming that I couldn't judge whether this person was serious or just joking.

“Oh, faces, your faces! Ghahahahaha!” Farkas pounded on the table, making it more wobbly, unable to contain his laughter. Well, I don't really mind if he makes fun of me as long as he really won't 'find out' with whatever his methods are.

“Speaking of death,” Farkas returned to his serious mode, I realized that. He stubs out his second cigarette, which was half-finished, and prepares to burn a new one, “There is something I want to tell you. It's been keeping me out from sleeping well all night; maybe telling you this can lighten it up a bit."

Farkas told me something that really ignited my emotions. I never once thought of this possibility.

“Have you lost your mind?!” I banged on the table hard; all the junk food wrappers jumped a few inches and ashes flew. Oh, poor wobbly table.

“All of that was your doing?! And you too, Sher?! You guys conspired to bring Mr Wayne down?!”

Farkas remains silent, turning his face towards the cashier while exhaling his full of smoke. Meanwhile Sherwyn lowers the hem of his hat to hide his face.

“It costs someone's life, damn it!” I tightly gripped the collar of Farkas' shirt. I don't care how old apart we are. “You… You killed someone!”

Farkas put on a sour face,

“I didn't know that they would give such a terrible punishment, but it's definitely not an excuse you can accept.” Farkas again stubbed out his half-spent cigarette and keened toward me.

“That person deserves to be a loser. With his nature like that, maybe he deserved to die. Bad people deserve punishment."

“But he was only trying to save himself! Haven't you ever thought about his family-”

“Then you want to take the life of your mother for such a bastard?!” His words made my whole body go limp. My head feels so light, empty. My grip weakened, but Farkas didn't struggle and didn't try to let go of my hand.

“…Don't be naive, young man.” I finally voluntarily lowered my hand from his collar. The sentence was really striking. My whole body is shaking now. I couldn't refuse his words.

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But… That doesn't mean Mr Wayne deserves to die… Right?

“Forget it, there's no point in discussing the dead. I just wanted to tell it for the sake of my sleep." Farkas smoothed his collar and shirt, which was wrinkled because of me, “There are a lot of things you didn't know either, Grey. Are you saying that I don't think about the fate of his family? Can you still care about Wayne's death after hearing this? He-"

The ringing of Farkas' cell phone cut him off. He was busy reaching into all his shirt and pants pockets, though his cellphone had been in his hand for a long time. Farkas speaks awfully sweet to whoever is on the other side. It's the complete opposite of his appearance, and it makes me a little uncomfortable.

"Sorry comrades-in-arms, looks like that's only it for me today." Farkas said after that incredible 5 minutes on the phone.

Farkas taps his TickBit seven times and shows us its contents.

NEXT RIDE

TOMORROW, 8:30

“Tomorrow, maybe that day will come again. We won't know what will happen, so be as prepared as possible. I really hope we can meet again in good shape in this place. There's a big age difference between us, but I feel like I can get along with you guys! I'm also happy to have a new chat-mate."

"Oh." Farkas turned around again, even though he was already a few steps away from the two Oasis employees. Then Farkas looks right into my eyes. He says nothing. Instead, he raises his right palm with his thumb folds inward. Then his other four fingers trap the thumb.

“Come back to that wobbly table next Monday if you're still alive. I sincerely pray for your safety.” his right hand, which had been showing a punching-like gesture, had now turned to wave.

By the way, Farkas only lit three sticks today, even though he only consumed half of them. I think it must be way below his standards.

***

I tightly grip my daily wage as I leave Oasis. Looks like I'm going to have a hard time getting Dreamland's grand opening ticket. Moreover, if you buy directly on the spot, it will be much more pain in the ass. Darn it. How can I collect 4500 yen in just a couple of days? If I spent all my savings, what would I eat in the next month? I heard that eating rice with salt is not nutritious.

I'm afraid of getting bad luck if I can't keep my promise. Well, at least maybe I can greet Marie at the Dreamland's gate. I don't want to cut my little finger.

I sighed, looking at a little sum of money in my hand, when a familiar voice called me out from behind.

"Yo, Grey!"

"Johann? What are you doing around?”

"You forgot?" Johann's thumb pointed at the kebab food truck parked in the Oasis lot. “We work part-time in the same place, day and shift. I'm the one who should ask that question. You haven't told me that you've started back to work."

"Well, I really need cash, out of nowhere."

"Who's not?" joked Johann while showing his empty wallet.

I decided to go home with Johann, just like in old times. Oasis isn't far from the train station, so we didn't have to book a taxi. And also, there will always be many topics of conversation with this buddy of mine. So I will not refuse to walk at any distance with him.

Oh right, I decided to return to my trusted public transportation, because travelling by taxi would definitely cost a lot of money. I had to deal with my temporary trauma to save.

A horrible flashback hit me as I looked at the station building. Exactly a week ago, I went to what American female robots call the 'Chronosseum' to take part in that game. It all started after parting with Johann.

In this somewhat empty carriage, I suddenly fantasized about what it would be like if Johann joined me in the race. That game wouldn't feel awkward and full of emotions. We'll definitely try everything to be the number one. We could even bet on who'll get to the finish first, just like we bet on who scores more points in the inter-high basketball. I'm also entirely sure that there'll be no casualties if Johann was my partner.

But maybe it would be better if my close people didn't get involved with that crazy game. I shake my head fast, trying to get the delusion out of my head.

Johann is always busy with his phone while on the way. It's hard to separate him from his gadget; nothing will be able to distract him if he's that focused. I don't know how often Johann has been going back and forth between the dating app and his social media. Once he was careless and I could steal his phone, he only argued that it was abnormal not to have a girlfriend at his age—what a lonesome.

*Thwack* "Hey Johann."

"Ouch! What are you doing?" Johann held his nape, which I hit hard enough. I had to do that to get his attention.

“Understand what this means?” I imitated the hand gesture Farkas showed me earlier.

"Oh? Wanna brawl? Why, are you jealous of my future girlfriends?” Johann got into a boxing stance, jabbed into the empty air with both hands, ready to fight me. Due to his fist stance, the sleeves of his denim jacket were slightly folded, revealing the TickBit he was wearing in his left hand.

"That's not it, idiot! I was curious if this gesture had any meaning…”

*Smack*

“Retribution, damn it!”

..........

"W-Whoa? Did I hit your back too hard? Come on, that must have been just like being bitten by a mosquito! Don't give me that horrible face!"

***

I fumbled in front of my laptop when I got to the apartment, typing and searching like a madman. Social Psychology, Abnormal Psychology, I flipped all the thick psychology books open. Even if I make noise in the middle of the night, it's okay; Mama won't be disturbed. She must have been fast asleep.

It's about Mr Wayne; maybe more about his family.

Johann's hard slap on my back alerted me to something terrible that might happen. That questioning face when I thanked him really tickles me.

This red on my back reminds me of the scar on Mrs Sophia's back. I didn't see much at the time, nor could I reveal all her clothes just out of curiosity. But I'm sure of one thing, that was a whip-scar; it extended and spread all over her back. Not only that, but I'm also sure that lashes aren't the only type of scar.

She is a victim of domestic violence.

Have you ever heard of the Bobo Doll Experiment? In essence, the experiment concluded that children could learn social behaviour, in this case aggression, by imitating adult behaviour. I remember the stitches on Browny's back. Yes, Marie imitated that violent behaviour, which she did to Browny. This leads me to another pretty gruesome theory.

The abuser was able to do it right before Marie's eyes.

Mr Wayne not only did violence to his wife, but he wasn't hesitant to do it in front of Marie.

You might still be a little sceptical about that idea, but Farkas' hand gesture maybe can convince you of this crazy theory.

I searched the internet for the hand gesture Farkas was referring to. It's a gesture known as Signal For Help, a hand gesture you can use to alert someone if you feel threatened, especially by domestic violence. Maybe this is the information that Farkas wanted to convey earlier.

I lay down on the soft sofa in the living room with the heavy General Psychology book on my chest, echoed by Farkas' words.

Can you still care about Wayne's death?

I don't condone violent behaviour in the slightest, let alone against significant others. However, isn't he also trying to improve relations with his family, or at least make his family smile by taking them on vacation?

Did Mr Wayne really deserve to die?

My answer: I really don't know. Never have I felt this dilemma. I also don't know what to say or do when I meet Mrs Sophia and Marie.

I took a deep breath to relax from the ethical question. I wasn't in a good mood after discovering that ugly truth. That's why I'm not calling Nora tonight either. I don't want my lovely girlfriend to be the victim of my awful mood.

I glance at the TickBit and press it seven times. Only six hours before something mysterious will happen. I closed my eyes after setting the seven o'clock alarm, which was much later than usual.

I lied.

I glare at the odd timer once more, longer. I pray to God that nothing wrong happens to me, Sher, Farkas, or the other players involved. I didn't miss the safety of Marie and Mrs Sophia in my prayers; I hope they had strength during the horrible time. It feels weird; I'm not a very religious person, let alone to pray for others.

It's funny; the longer I look, I seem to be able to hear the ticking sound on this gadget that has no second hand.

Tick

Tick

Tick

Wait, since when did Johann have TickBit?