“This is going to be another late night”
I was working on the VR Game Programming, while all the VR Game Testers where in the next room, I had been given the task to fix up some coding by myself as punishment for messing with the AI information early this morning, but considering of how bad I could have been punished, I just accepted this punishment without any hassle. I was almost finished with the coding when the Boss, Mr. Saku, came bursting into the room, his face as red as it was when I saw him at lunch, he had taken off his black jacket and was in a sweaty white button up shirt with his sleeves slid up past his elbows, is he looking to fight me?
“Udon! You worthless, fat, good for nothing waste of space!”
Mr. Saku yelled at me, by now I had got used to his cruel name calling, but he never used three insults in one sentence, what did I do to deserve this out of ordinary insult, what a jackass.
“Do you have any idea what you have done to the AI? I asked you to put the information back on it only to find out you didn’t do it and more than that, the stupid thing won’t turn on now!”
Damn it! I lied on the floor for so long, that I fell asleep and forgot to put the information back on it and just came right down to the VR Game Programming room. Wait? It won’t turn on? I did leave it on for a while, maybe it over heated, I certainly wasn’t going to explain that I messed it up this morning and that was the most likely reason.
“Huh!?”
I shouted as Mr. Saku grabbed my collar and pushed me against the wall, I could smell his coffee breath and sweet, it seemed worse than my own BO, he must have had to deal with a lot of shit today because I messed that AI up…… Ha, good, serves him right, his lucky I didn’t tell it to burn the whole damn building down.
“Listen here you overweight fat piece of shit!”
Again with the name calling, and does he not know that overweight and fat have the same meaning.
“I have been in meetings all day because of your screw up! Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t fire you right here and now!”
Damn it! I knew getting away with my screw up was to much to ask for, but how did they know I screwed it up? He just seemed angry at lunch and didn’t know what I did, did someone turn me in? Did they check the security tapes?
“I-I u-uhh I-I’m the o-only one t-that can work t-the VR g-gaming coding as w-well as the AI c-coding Sir.”
Damn it! Why do I have to keep stuttering my words, why can’t I for once, just once, be as cool headed on the outside as I was on the inside.
*CRASH
“What the”
Mr. Saku turned around to see a piece of the building on the ground covered in fire. The buildings on fire, is this that damn AI? I only wished to set the whole place on fire, I didn’t actually do it!
“The building is on fire, we need to get out!”
I yelled at Mr. Saku who let go of me, I ran around him and ran for the stairs, we are currently on the Lower floor and need to go up the ground floor, I made my way out the room and ran past the room filled with all the VR Game Testers, they didn’t seem to hear or know what was happening. I ran over to Roma and tapped on his shoulder to get his attention, I should have just left them to die but something in me just instantly wanted to save them.
“Huh? What is it……”
Roma took of his head set helmet and saw the smoke filling the lower floors and started to panic.
“FIRE! FIRE! EVERYONE FIRE!”
Roma screamed at the top of his lungs, he sounded like a little girl who had just came across a spider. Everyone hearing his high pitched scream inside their headsets, took them off and started to follow the same reaction Roma had. I on the other hand, had done my job of alerting them and was already back in the hallway running when.
“Get out of the way! Move your fat ass or you’ll hold the rest of us up!”
Mr. Saku had regained his composure and pushed me out of the way and ran off up the stairs, I was slammed into the wall and the back of my head, where Leo and Roma had been kicking it violently earlier in the day, slammed smack in the middle of the wall. I could feel my heavy head moving side to side, my vision was fading in and out, I was on the brink of losing consciousness, I saw all the VR Game Testers just run by me without looking back, its not like they didn’t see me, I was indeed, a fat little man, but they just kept running.
“Udon, get up!”
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Roma screamed at me slowing down a little, huh? Maybe he thinks he owes me for alerting him.
“Roma, leave him! You won’t be able to pick him up anyways!”
Leo screamed as he pushed Roma to keep running, I knew that rich kid didn’t have a descent bone in his body! They left me, all of them just left me! Damn it! I can feel myself losing consciousness.
“Come on Udon! Get up!”
I yelled at myself to try and keep awake but it was no use, I felt my head hit the floor as I blacked out.
“Uhhhhh I-I’m still alive?”
I woke up in nothing but smoke, I rubbed the back of my head to feel blood was still dripping out of the wound.
“I need to get out of here, but I still can’t see properly and now with the smoke. I’ll just have to go by feel”
Lucky enough I spent enough time in this shit hole of a company building to know my way around through mere touch, I managed to crawl to the stairs leading up the ground floor.
“Yes, the stairs are still in one piece, once I get to the top, the Fire department should be right at the front and can assess me, they’ll have the eyes of all the major news companies so they can’t just ignore me or turn me away, ha, they’ll be forced to help me.”
I crawled up a couple stairs when I heard a noise coming from the room just beyond the stairs.
“Help us! My Sister has broken her leg!”
The soft but squeaky voice of what sounded like a little boy caught my attention, it must be that little brat that ate my lunch, I wish I could say this is what you get for stealing my lunch but maybe that’s a little to harsh.
“Help us!”
The girl screamed, you could hear the fear and pain travelling through the scream. Damn it! Why do I have to save them, I’m pretty banged up myself, but how long has it been since the fire started? Why hasn’t someone came looking for two kids, I would understand me, I wouldn’t be surprised if they told the fire fighters that I was already out, but two little kids, come on guys.
“I’m coming!”
I managed to shout out with the little strength and air I had left. I crawled my way to the back room to see the same little boy that ate my lunch sitting next to his sister, basically putting his entire body over her protecting her. Damn it, I wanted to hate this boy, but his putting his own body on the line for his sister and his head looks like its has a large open gash. The little girl was huddled up into her brothers body, she wore a worn and battened pink goth like dress, it was pretty black from the smoke and torn to almost shreds, maybe they fell from the ground floor? There is, a big hole right above them.
“Are you two ok? Did you fall down the hole?”
I asked as I managed to crawl my way to them.
*cough
“Yeah, w-we fell d-down with t-that hole, and m-my my my sister broke her l-leg”
The boy told me, he was shaking with shock. Just as I thought, he fell when the floor gave way, that must be how the little girl broke her leg too.
“Can you crawl?”
I asked the boy, while grabbing the little girl off of him.
“I-I think I-I can”
The boy told me hesitantly, not wanting to move from his spot.
“Good, now listen, hold onto my foot and keep your head low, you can’t breath any more of this smoke in or you’ll go to sleep, put your shirt over your mouth and nose as well. I’m going to keep your sister safe ok.”
“O-ok, t-thank you”
The little boy thanked me seeming to gain some of his composure back.
“Don’t thank me yet, we need to get out of here first, now what’s your name little girl?”
“L-lolita”
The girl said weakly, the smoke must have got her pretty bad. Wait…. Did she just say her name was Lolita and she wore a Lolita style Gothic Dress, seriously, what parents must they belong to.
“Uhhh o..k Lolita, can you please grab my shoulders with your hands and stay under me and put your face into my shirt to stop the smoke from getting into you?”
I explained to her, I might have smelt pretty bad, but it’s better than dying.
“Y-yes, please help us”
Lolita replied grabbing my shoulders and putting her face into my chest.
We managed to crawl out of the room and up the stairs, the sound of the collapsing building surrounded us giving Lolita and the little boy jump scares every now and then, I even have to admit, I was pretty scared myself, I was just waiting for the building to collapse on us any second now but we managed to make it to the ground floor, I saw all the lights out the front of the building. The Fire department, the ambulance, the police and the news stations along with a whole heap of bystanders, I could also make out my co-workers looking at the burning building and others getting treated in a near by ambulance.
“All right crew, everyone but three people have been accounted for, an employing Kubo Udon and two little children…”
The Fire Chief yelled out to his crew but was interrupted by what seems to look like Mr. Suka.
“My kids are still in there! Worry about them! Not that fat waste of space! No one cares about him!”
Mr. Suka commanded the Fire Chief, huh? So these were his kids then, maybe I should chuck them back in the hole, might prove that piece of shit boss a lesson. Hmm, that would make me no better then him though, these kids haven’t done anything to me, well, the girl hasn’t, the little brat boy ate my damn Pork Cutlet Curry, jerk.
“Sir, please stand back, we need to save everyone, not just certain people. Now, Crew, Kubo Udon was last seen on the lower floor and the kids where seen on the ground floor, so I think….”
The Chief was telling his crew the instructions when one of his crew called out.
“Chief, is that them!”
The fire fighter called out pointing to me and the two kids as we made our way out the front door which was now just a pile of rubble and smashed glass.
“Quick grab them!”
The Chief shouted, I was still crawling when Lolita let go of me and moved to my side, the little boy let go of my leg and came up on the other side of me. They were safe, phew, I didn’t let two kids die on my watch, but damn it! I’m in a lot of pain right now, I can barely get a breath in.
“Lolita, Jack!”
Mr. Saku shouted out as he came running over and grabbed his two kids and pushed me over in the process. What the hell! I just saved your kids you selfish piece of shit! You ran right past them! Even if they were on the ground floor you could have grabbed them, but you just ran past them, they should be taken away from you! As I was cursing Mr. Saku under my breath I could feel myself drifting off, damn it! I’ve lost a fair amount of blood. And just like I thought, I lost consciousness and was out cold, what I didn’t realise was that would be the last time I was awake on this earth.