Chen was a man who lived in poverty on the edge of the sea in a lighthouse. His parents were your average people being two marine biologists that met each other when they were set off to help clean the ocean. They never made much progress but they always tried their best, it wasn’t their dream in marine biology to clean the seas while they both wanted to help it just wasn't something they were interested in. But they were sure to do their part though it was behind closed doors. The parents had two children, their eldest being Chen, a weak child who was never able to grow stronger due to extreme malnourishment. They lived a poor life but a life nonetheless having to do most of everything themselves. They made their own bread, they had chickens for eggs, and even grew their own grapes. The one thing that they grew that wasn’t meant to be eaten were two koi fishes who swam in harmony. They seemed to be so playful and their amazing purple and orange shades gave a great contrast to the cloudy sky that perpetually was covered in clouds giving a monotonous blue shade that touched it. All aside from the .
Eight years later to Chen’s surprise he was told that they were going to have another child. He was ecstatic to hear this at first. Finally a break from the hopeless monotony of the island. Where he used to spend his days talking to the now he could finally have a response from a human being. His parents not only weren’t there often but when they were they didn’t see him as a person, but as a child that had to be pampered to, lied to, and looked down on. Could this be an escape of the accursed shade of ocean that plagued his life.
Another eight years later his little sister Chiyu was born, her blond hair and hazel eyes glistened despite the clouds that constantly hovered over their island. At first things were wonderful, the parents were home more often, he had someone to talk to, they even made sure to cook from time to time. But there was one issue, where were we getting the money to take care of another child? Not only is another child a money sink he was well aware of due to him being in his fathers study trying to become more educated for his sibling. And the labor, with them being around more often that means they had to be making less due to them putting less effort into their studies. He would have to study more to figure out what just may be happening.
Chen figured out what was happening, for the past while he had realized that his parents have been less aware of when the mail had been coming in so he realized that this was an opportunity to get information on the subject so he for the past month has been checking the mail and putting it back in. HE FOUND IT. He saw a bank statement that read.
“Your account has gone past a negative balance by about $1500. If you would like to talk with a financial advisor please call ***-****-***”
They had been going into debt for a while now. They didn’t even bother to tell him of the tragedy that has befallen them. The disrespect, the disregard, and most of all the ignorance. His parents had been too loving, too caring, and too ignorant for the head of such a terrible situation. He would now be the one to take control. Heavy matters must be handled with an even heavier hand.
“Hey Chiyu! Come outside to the koi pond!”
He screamed this out with no intent in his voice, no more malice than a child wanting to play a game. She came quickly jumping off of her stool with an apron still on almost tripping over herself but was able to recover without losing speed making it to the koi pond that used to be their two’s salvation.
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“Hey big bro, what do you need?”
“Nothing Chiyu, just wanted to tell you about your name. Come kneel by this koi pond with me.”
Chiyu did it without thinking as if it was another day looking at the orange and purple koi fishes.
“I actually named you off of that koi fish, did you know that?”
She looked at the koi fish, focusing on it entirely, forgetting all of her other surroundings; even the wind halted its advancements for the respect of the slim amount of peace she would have left.
“You named me?”
Chen spoke in a sorrowful voice.
“Yes, yes I did. I loved you with all my heart, did you know that? You were the perfect little sister I could ask for. Disciplined, beautiful, excited, clumsy, and above all else naive.”
The second he spoke these words he put his hand behind her head slamming her down into the koi pond causing her to start flailing around hopelessly. The koi fish for as long as he had known them had ceased their synchronized swimming, opting to sporadically swing away fighting for their survival. The stones that cracked her nose open flew across the koi pond making a dirt bottom in the koi pond. She kept struggling until her body went limp. Blood flowed through the koi pond trying to emulate the warm colors of the koi fish that swam in it previously. Though all they could do was blend with the blues to make an ominous pink wish, the koi fish was still swimming, drinking the blood of his now departed sister.
A month passed like nothing had happened. His parents fell into despair, distracting themselves with the studies that used to comfort their souls. Chen wasn’t happy with what happened but it served its purpose so he didn’t feel bad about it. Progress was simply too detailed to allow it to go any further, he was the only person who had the ability to see things without morals, to see what must be done. He thought he wouldn’t want to go back to the koi pond since the incident but it was quite the opposite. His sister's blood tint did not fade even through the weeks. She did her job even when she was dead, giving a rest to his retinas from the cool colors that polluted all around. Though everything around the koi pond seemed to get colder, the clouds seemed to get thicker. Not even blinks of the sun's rays were allowed to hit the grass that he assumed was a lush green but with the blue hue all around he could not tell. Also the have yet to revert back into their synchronicity this saddened him but he reassured himself, he did what had to be done.
Today something changed in Chen’s life, when he was watching the koi pond, same as he did every other day one of the began to bump into the other. He thought nothing of it so he went inside to attend to his chores. After he was done with those he went back to the koi pond seeing one of his friends on the side of the koi pond completely dried out. He stayed staring at it devastated, looking up slowly at the middle of the small koi pond to see the other swimming in the middle tranquility. Due to just how many times he had seen the koi pond he could tell, he was swimming in sync with the other dead koi fish. He was so entranced he couldn’t feel the hand brushing the back of his hair. Just as he was going to jolt back to look at the person touching him he noticed his sister's face at the bottom of the koi pond just where the rocks parted to reveal the dirt. It was staring at him, her nose was gone leaving a gaping hole where it should have been spreading throughout the koi pond into pink and yellow colors. Seeing the rainbow of colors that was in the watch mesmerized him as he kept watching his sister. Her skin began to peel off putting a new tan color into the koi pond. Before he knew it he saw two arms burst out of the koi pond without a shred of skin on their withering bones. For the final time he was put inside his sister's embrace. Despite being under the water losing air quickly he sighed creating his final air bubbles that quickly surfaced. That was all that surfaced from the humble koi pond.