Uprising Of The Cannon Fodders

Chapter Ten

"You tell me this now!?" Ryden could no longer process the things Daisuke told him.

"Host, I think the pressure is getting to you. What you just asked doesn't even make sense,” Daisuke answered.

"What are you saying? That I'm unhinged?" Ryden growled at Daisuke.

"No, Host. I'm not stupid enough to tell a crazy person they have a problem."

"Why did I suddenly go from not making sense to being unhinged?" Ryden asked. 

"Host, I'm not claiming you're unhinged. I was simply making a statement. Your first question made little sense to me."

"I was asking, why did you tell me all that nonsense about sleeping with him? I could have pretended I have become dense over the years. And did you really have to tell me their s*x positions?"

"Of course, Host, you need to know since he is going to live with you and try to get you to bed him. And to do that you, of course, you needed to come into the whole situation with open eyes."

Ryden was speechless. He closed his eyes for a few seconds. He couldn't find any fault in that claim but there was too much info, and he felt like he was just sold off to Damon. 

The thing is, Akira inside Ryden’s body is new to the concept of s*x. 

Though he had learned these things as they were taught at school in Science and Health classes, and even if he knows how it's done, he had no s*x in his past life. Every time he tried, it repulsed him. For God's sake, he was still a kiss virgin, but that doesn't mean he is dense, neither is he innocent just because he has done nothing s****l.

While still thinking, Ryden opened the door on autopilot, resulting in Damon knocking on his chest, to the left of his heart with his fist.

Ryden looked at where Damon’s fist was on his chest and felt as if he was suffering from a long-gone pain and could just feel the echo of it when he was touched by Damon, giving him a sense of loss but happiness, like finding something that has long been lost to him.

Ryden snapped out of the emotional roller coaster he was monetarily trapped in. Looking up at the frowning Damon.

“Hey Ryden, all right buddy?'' asked Damon when he faced his childhood friend's face, which was constantly changing expressions of pain, loss, happiness, and confusion. 

He has known Ryden since they were five and he helped him by beating up his bullies. Damon knew better than anyone what was underneath the tough and expressionless face. When he saw Ryden's clueless face, he couldn't help but smile, dismissing whatever he witnessed, since Ryden himself was not aware of it.

Damon looked at the clueless expression that was still present on his friend's face and started laughing.

Ryden wordlessly opened the door wider and stepped to the side.

Damon, getting the invite, smiled happily and carried all his luggage into the apartment, while humming a little tone, looking like a kid whose Christmas arrived early.

Ryden closed the door behind Damon. "I hope you had dinner because I have already eaten,'' he told Damon while leading him to the living room.

Damon smiled at the back of his childhood friend. "You're in luck today. I have just had dinner on my way here. But can you please show me where I will sleep because I'm suffering from jet lag?" said Damon while trying and failing to hide a big yawn.

Ryden turned around to look at his friend and clearly saw the dark circles, exhaustion, lack of sleep, all over his face. He voluntarily took all the luggage from him and directly headed for the stairs, climbing them up to the second-floor landing. 

He went to the room in between the study and his bedroom, opening the door and placing the luggage in front of the closet. He then turned to speak to Damon only to find him not there. Looking around, Ryden found Damon passed out on the bed.

He walked over to his friend and started removing his clothes, leaving him in only his boxers and moving him underneath the bedspread. He tucked him in, only to notice a tattoo design on his neck. It was like his own, only it said, not all those who wander are lost. He tried to recall when they got the tattoos, but he couldn't find even a hint of one. Ryden looked down at the man on the bed for a while, before finishing tucking him in and left the room, closing the door behind him.

Ryden headed to his room and forgone a shower. He simply went to bed while trying to not be unsettled by the tattoos and Damon, and the emotions he brought forth in him. While thinking about the tattoos, he fell asleep, unaware of the figure across the room watching him.

***

Akira was once again walking down a hallway in what looked like a palace. As he walked farther down the hallway, he heard laughter ringing through the whole place and couldn't help but follow it in hopes to see who was making such clear happy sounds. Reaching the end of the hallway, he found himself in front of an open doorway just in time to see flying white hair and to hear the laughter from before echoed through the room before everything went dark.

 ***

Ryden woke once again in the middle of the night only to feel a sense of loss and wetness on his face, realizing he was crying in his sleep.