“…E-Eh?” The fact that she’d spoken her name, then immediately left on her merry way left him frozen for a second. How could someone brush off conversation that nonchalantly? It almost hurt his feelings. It almost hurt him.
“…Rei. Please stop.” He turned back to the other. Something about how bluntly he was immediately ignored stunned him. His face no longer held the waning smile he forced onto his lips, a waxing melancholy soon acting as replacement.
“…Is that it?” was all he could ask. He had attempted to express his gratitude, and she’d expressed nothing in return. He didn’t know if it was apathy or inexperience, but that didn’t diminish how careless he thought it was.
“I’m sorry if this comes out of left field, but… have you no sympathy? Are you afraid of being hurt? What if you hurt someone else?” Strange, unnecessary questions that he had taken completely serious. What caused his entire demeanor to change from a simple sidestep? Was it because it reminded him of the year he’d spent remorseless over everything he’d done to others?
“I’m grateful for your help. It made me happy you went out of your way. That kindness you expressed just then… had uplifted my spirits infinitely. But when you callously shrugged me off like that… it stung a bit, even if you’re a complete stranger. I don’t know anything about you, but your actions have consequences. The evidence of every person’s importance in the world is their cause and effect.” He continued into his pointless lecture, his face entirely blank.
“But I’m still grateful, Rei. At least let me try to return the favor. My name is Mercutio Elias. Please consider your actions and those around you. The weight of your worth could even change the world.”
Rei had heard this line one too many times in the span of her existence. A word she, admittedly, never understood completely. Sympathy?
“ noun: understanding between people; common feeling. ”
Understanding feeling. Not understanding feeling. That is what sets Rei apart from others, or so she’s been told. Although she has made attempts at trying to sympathize with people, the closest beings to her own life are the pilots, who were, in fact, very different. It was this apparent inability to sympathize easily that isolated Rei from the others.
Or so she’s been told. Repeatedly.
Slowing down to a halt as Elias launched into a discourse, Rei remained looking ahead. Even after he concluded, Rei remained unmoving.
“ Importance? Worth? I only live for a single person. He doesn’t need me anymore. “
