界王和 - Kicking Bad Habits

Mission:

It was a cool evening, the night sky with a hint of blue served as a delicious backdrop to the rising orange lights below. In a small stand near the outskirts was a single depressed man nursing sake, an anesthetic to an internal plague. He set his cup down and the contact of ceramic with wood seemed to trigger his pain again, and his hand almost slapped his mouth in response. All this pain, all because of something that was supposed to give him levity, an ultimate vice that looked more and more likely by the day the shape of his end. How did it come to this?

”Excuse me,” came a voice, and to his right he saw a gaunt smiling man standing over him. ”my name is Kai and I've been asked by some individuals to check the welfare of a Kotomone Akira, do you know him?” he spoke softly with a crooked grin, as if the word welfare was code for wallet.

”Heh, I'm Akira.” he replied, something some anger or annoyance was seeping out through his throat and all over himself. ”And what individuals exactly are concerned about my welfare?” he demanded.

“Your brother, for one.” Kai replied simply. Akira hit the table with a closed fist in frustration, that nosy little runt never knew when to stay in his lane. “He tells me you've been giving into a rather bad habit and has hired me to help you out.”

“Goddammit. I almost wish you were just here to collect.” Akira gulped the rest of his sake before cradling the side of his face. It was going to happen sooner or later, the consequences of his actions were just too persistent. This wasn’t the first time his brother tried to get someone to talk to him about the importance of self care, to not develop the chip in your neck that grows into your own decapitation the second you turn your head to check. ”Listen, I know what you’re here for, and I’m sure my brother paid you a good and fair amount for your time and effort, but I just can’t do it.”

”You don’t have to do it alone. You’ll get the support and help you need once you come around and accept it.” Kai retorted, offering a hand out of this dimly lit part of the market. Akira’s eyes landed on his hand and he contemplated, entertained the idea of not having to endure the pain he had been suffering. His brain felt a shimmering sensation at the thought of going through his trials and coming out the other side a changed man, freed from his pain.

The pain. The pain which kept him from his ambitions could be gone forever. Or, more likely, it would be amplified by the process. The fear that took hold of him was that any steps forward to fixing his problem or letting it be known would actually make his problem worse. It happened with so many other things in the past, with lovers, with job opportunities, and now his health is threatening to crumble before him unless he could swallow his pride and go.

”I’m sorry, friend, I’m afraid I just can’t go to the dentist.” As he said it, his tooth panged him again with another wave of pain as if to shame him for saying the word dentist.

”Wha- the dentist?! I thought you were drinking yourself to death!” said Kai, now with a look of fury upon his face. With looks and wordless sputtering of exasperation, Kai took the man by the scruff of his robe and dragged him out, getting no resistance back, as Akira was wracked with his own pain.

Some time passed and both Akira and Kai were at the dentist office, both feeling the shame and defeat of having to give into self care, which surprisingly stung. Some time had passed and Akira was called to the office. No use to getting out of it now, the music had to be faced.

Claiming! [TWC: 695]
500 for Tau Threaded Arts [1,000/2,000]
195 for Black Hand: Mystery [350/350]
+1,000 Ryo
+5 AP

Kaiowa wrote:

Mission:

Claiming! [TWC: 695]
500 for Tau Threaded Arts [1,000/2,000]
195 for Black Hand: Mystery [350/350]
+1,000 Ryo
+5 AP

Approved