Class Of 96': 1994 (BxB Mystery)

Chapter IX - The Hermit

'You fucking listen to me.' Luka tries his best to keep his voice down while he scolds Innes in Russian. 'What did I tell you about these incidents?'

Innes throws Luka's hand off her as she scowls. 'What was that for?!?'

'What did I tell you?' He repeats, this time with more force. 'I told you to not get mixed up in the situation.'

'And I'm not!'

'You are!' He points at the Innes, his tone becoming ragged. 'You think asking Neon and Lav instead of me would spare you? I told you specifically not to interfere and here you are interviewing random people! What if you actually get mixed up in this?!? First of all, you're hanging out with one of the prime suspects. Then this! This isn't a joke, Innesa.'

She scoffs. 'Neon told me it was though. You think it's a silly little game of Guess Wh-'

'This isn't about her!' His voice starts to raise, but not quite. 'This is about you.'

Confusion darts across Innes' face. Then anger. 'That's what you always say! It's about me, it's about me. But it never is! Just leave me alone for once!'

Luka's eyes start to flicker. He takes a deep breath and continues. 'Innesa. Please just understand me. This is dangerous, okay? There are people getting attacked.'

'And I won't get attacked!'

'You don't know that.'

'What are you trying to say, huh?' Innes pushes him, setting him aback. 'That I'm gonna get attacked?'

'I care for you, Innesa. I can't risk it.' He straightens his posture, collecting his emotions.

'Can't risk what???' Innes pushes him again. This time, Lukas starting to lose his patience. 'Risk your high head boy reputation? You can't risk having a sibling you actually have to care about? Ever since you got that stupid prefect badge, all you care about is yourself!'

'Innesa.' He widens his eyes in anger, aghast and bitter. He points right between her eyes with a cloud of warning showers over him. His voice almost squeals in rage, yet he doesn't yell. 'I am your fucking brother. I care about you because I am your brother. I try and I try to care for you. To love you as you want but you're making it so hard. You complain so much that I'm not treating you right but how are you treating me?!?! How are you treating me?!?'

His voice starts to rasp. It's only then that Innes realizes how much emotion Lukas has been bottling up all these months. Maybe even years.

'You're getting so jealous because I'm treating other students well but when I try treating you the same you push me away! All I ask is for you to stop being so reckless!' He pauses, hurt. 'Please, Innesa. Let's just . . . let's just try to get along—'

"What if you just stop?" Innes claps back. Not giving a damn about Luka's feelings.

Luka stares at her. He couldn't believe her. His blood starts to boil as he clutches his fist tighter. So tight that it turns white. "What if I just stop?" He echoes in English. He takes a few steps toward Innes, making her falter back. "If I stop, then what? The loop continues?"

"What fucking loop?"

He seizes her wrist, revealing her multiple bandages and gauze. "This loop! This fucking loop!!!"

Students stop their tracks to look at them, concern in their eyes. What was going on? They probably asked.

Innes scrambles for words before she comes to what she always does. Resort to violence. She slaps him hard on the cheek, gritting her teeth. He stumbles a few steps back, his cheek stinging and red from the impact.

'Shut up!' She yells like a child. 'Shut up! You wanna talk about loops?' She throws his hand off her. "How about that stupid bottle of sleeping pills beside your bed?!?"

His eyes widen as more students stop to listen. They keep their distance and continue walking, trying to catch the news before they pass.

Luka feels his chest grow cold and tight. At first, he thought it was his heartbreaking emotions. He winces as he loosens his tie a knot, turning his head to clear his throat.

Innes continues, waving her hands in the air like a crazy person. 'I know what really happened the other time when you got sent to the hospital. You weren't sick.' She clenches her jaw as her neck pops. 'You tried to kill yourself. You took your pills and took them all in! I'm not the dumbass child you think I am. I figured it out. So next time you try telling me you care . . . maybe try not to kill yourself and leave me in the hands of your dad."

Luka's eye twitches as he drew a deep breath. He lowers his voice again, trying to catch his breath. "You fucking child. You haven't learned one bit." He hisses. "You think you know everything but do you ever consider what I know? You talk about me doing all the wrong when I could do the same to you. But I don't. Grow the fuck up and stop acting like the child you are."

"You're just like mom." Innes spits.

"And you're just like dad."

Those words. A jolt of anger sparked in Innes like a gunshot, flicked around her body.

Luka despised being compared to his mom. Sleeping pills clutched in her hands at all times. Never batting an eye.

Innesa despised being compared to her dad. Blood bruised on his hands at all times. Always resorting to violence.

She shoves him aside as she storms away. "I hope you get attacked next! Maybe then you could stop lying to yourself."

He watches her slam the door with frustration, anger, and a sense of loneliness in him. He doesn't notice his balled-up fist, which started to pale.

He rubs his neck and loosens his tie more, trying to get some air. He can't help but feel guilty. Guilty of not being there for his sister enough for her to love him.

Her words echo through his mind. 'How about that stupid bottle of sleeping pills beside your bed?!?' He remembers his mom, who needed them just like he did.

At that moment, he realizes he's not feeling like losing air, he is losing air.

Luka panics as he pats his blazer up to his pants for his inhaler, which is missing.

He holds his neck, rushing to his dorm. He can't breathe and his dorm is floors away. He feels his blood floating up to his head as the ground starts to spin.

"Woah!" Lav stops him by the shoulders, popping out from a corner. "What's up with you?"

Luka signals at his neck while Neon, who was beside Lav, understands right away.

"Oh, shit!" She crams her tote bag on Lav, who catches it by surprise.

"Hey!"

Neon scrambles through her bag to pull out an inhaler, buried in the bottom of a pocket.

Luka hastily snatches it from her hands and uses it. Holding his breath for a few seconds, then releasing it.

He squeezes Neon as he gasps for air.

Lav holds her bag tighter and stops it from sliding off his arms. "What the fuck?"

"Shut the hell up," Neon elbows him in annoyance.

"Rude." He looks inside her bag, mocking her. "Says the girl who carries an inhaler wherever she goes . . ."

He caresses Luka's hair in an effort to comfort him. "Better safe than sorry."