Chapter 13: Kathy
After showering, Gray stood motionless in front of the mirror.
Like always, his eyes were marked by deep eye-bags.
He just never could escape this zombie-like complexion, couldn't he?
Gray held his toothbrush with his right hand, while the new tub of toothpaste was in the other.
He poured all of his remaining and dwindling strength to squeeze the toothpaste, almost making a mess.
He brushed his teeth with his eyes closed, wishing he could sleep for over ten hours straight.
If sleeping were a sport, he would be the world champion!
If Gray didn't know what to do, his answer was sleeping!
If he was bored, his answer was sleeping!
If he was mad, his answer was sleeping!
The events happening in these past days troubled him deeply, causing him to be afraid of losing his precious hours of sleep, especially due to his special need for a good night's rest.
He was particularly worried that one day—once he was strong enough—Genesis would activate inside every dream, bringing a countless amount of revelations with it.
Regardless, he felt as if it was a worthy sacrifice for his sister's sake.
Gray washed his hands with warm water, letting it flow on his fingers as he swayed half-asleep, fighting the urge to take a nap.
His state of pleasant relief was broken once he heard a knock on the door.
Knock! Knock! Knock!
"…One moment please. I'll go out in like 2 minutes…" he said.
His word were slurred, resembling those of a drunken man.
A cold silence permeated the house for some moments, but then, Kathy finally spoke.
"Alright."
Gray quickly noticed—she was still hurt.
Yet he couldn't help but think that her voice sounded less pained.
Naturally, since Kathy had nurtured him for his whole childhood, she grew extremely attached to him.
For example, if he didn't respond to her texts, she would grow increasingly worried.
Most of the times she was only overly concerned, of course, afraid of her little brother being in any kind of danger.
And because of this simple fact, Gray was sure that—if Kathy were to be in his position—she would do the same by doing whatever she could to protect him.
Even though he never had much in life—be it money or clothes, he felt lucky to have a sister who cared for him like this.
He really had never seen someone care for the other like how Kathy did with him.
The only one who could compare was his mother, of course.
Gray couldn't help but feel down.
'Kathy is making you extremely happy, I'm sure of it.'
'But is it the same for me?'
'Is my intent of protecting her from all harm enough?'
'Is there something else I have to do?"
…
After wiping his face with the bathroom's towel, Gray tidied the bathroom, putting the items he had used in order.
Then, he went outside.
Soon, his sister entered the bathroom.
While she was inside it, Gray checked his notebook to see the subjects of the day.
1st hour: Greek.
2nd hour: Greek.
3rd hour: Science.
4th hour: History.
5th hour: English.
6th hour: Maths.
Gray cursed silently—annoyed of how he had to deal with two whole hours of greek.
Ancient greek was one of the subjects he hated the most.
He couldn't help but loathe of how every word had strange accents and diacritic signs that morphed the pronunciation of the words.
His teacher was also especially strict on them—calling out every mistake the students did when reading, made Gray hate it even more.
And since his brain had completely wiped these unimportant memories, his situation became even worse.
Gray quickly grabbed the books he needed from his messy library and began to put them inside the school-bag, pondering of how he was going to point a plucked, bloodied eye at Nekare without getting caught by anyone else at school.
"I can't do it in the middle of class, I would get caught instantly. If i were to be caught, I would get suspended…"
He sighed.
"…Nevermind. It would be worse. Who the hell brings an human eye at school?"
"I must find a place where it's just me and her."
"Since classes make it so we, the students, get cluttered together, break should be the only time where everyone is spread around the school, making it a fitting time for me to be alone with her."
"Casanova said he would watch over me, but…"
"Is being alone with her the only option?"
Was there a way to use Dusk Catcher while nobody could see him?
Gray didn't lack faith in Casanova's protection, it was just that the uncertainty of her abilities that made him fear for his life.
The young man shivered as he recalled his past encounter with her.
"And that malevolent feeling I perceived…"
"…"
Gray brought his trembling hands to his face.
"It's painfully obvious"
"I'm still afraid,"
Gray let out a weary breath.
"I…I don't want to leave Kathy alone."
I'm afraid of what would happen if I were to be in danger because of Nekare."
"But…"
He went towards his bed, sitting on its edge.
"In this situation, what do I have left?"
He tapped his right leg on the floor anxiously, and after he took a deep breath, he started on preparing himself mentally.
"…"
"I have to stop being like this. There's no time to grumble."
"I have to think about this plan."
"I can't follow Nekare too closely—it would be akin to walking inside a lion's den."
He shook his head.
"Regardless, I must to tail her in some way."
"In theory, as long as I find her rough location, I should be able to point Dusk Catcher at her, maybe blending amidst the people who are close?"
"But…I might get caught. The risk is too high, I can't let anyone to see the eye."
He continued to tap his leg on the floor.
"Let's think of two possibilities:"
"If she's inside the school's building during break, it means I have to tail her until we are in a place devoid of any people. Only then I can use Dusk Catcher."
"…I have to take in mind the startup process too."
"Now, time for the second option."
"If she's outside with everyone, I must find an empty class facing the schoolyard, allowing me to stay hidden from both Nekare, and the other people."
"I must watch her at all times, though."
"If I lose her, my plan will fail."
Gray stood up, facing the light that shot and reflected through his windows.
The golden sunlight caressed his face, exorcising his gloomy air.
After seeing the light at the end of the tunnel, he stared at the gleaming sun before smiling.
The plan was ready.
Basking in its light for some moments, he took Casanova's communication device and Dusk Catcher from under his pile of clothes.
Gray took his bag and made his way towards the living room, noticing that his sister Kathy was sitting on the table and using her phone.
Since he felt it wasn't the right moment to talk, he avoided speaking entirely.
Gray moved the chair in front of her and left his school-bag on it before going inside the kitchen.
He swiftly opened the fridge and grabbed the milk before opening the cupboard and taking a cup. Then, he took a spoon and grabbed a pack of cookies.
Satisfied, he returned to the living room, moved his school bag and sat on the chair.
Gray ate his cookies silently, glancing upwards a couple of times.
His sister's face didn't seem neither too hostile or too melancholic.
Regardless, she seemed a little down, like a student after seeing a bad grade.
From his discovery, Gray could predict that his sister would return in her peak condition in no less than two days.
While reading Lord of The Mysteries 2: Circle of Inevitability on his phone, he savored the chocolate cookies he dipped inside the milk, letting the chocolate chips melt in his mouth before chewing on the soft biscuit.
Gray had been eating many cookies when suddenly, Kathy slammed her phone on the table.
"I'm sorry…" she quietly muttered.
She seemed embarrassed.
"What do you mean?"
Since his sister stayed in silence for some moments, Gray started pondering on what she had done.
'Why is she apologizing?'
Kathy then slammed both of her hands on the table.
"Fuck! I'll just say it!"
"…"
"I'm sorry for yesterday!" she bowed her head.
"Eh?"
Gray looked at her, dumbfounded.
'She didn't do anything wrong though!'
Kathy then started rambling, looking around the room. Sometimes she looked at the table, while on the others, she looked at the floor, the kitchen, and so on.
"Yester—No, I mean tod—Yes, this morning! I was too angry!"
Kathy gestured with her hands as she continued.
"My behavior was too exaggerated… You are a teenager, so it's normal for you to come home that late!
…I think."
She scratched her nose.
"I'm not too sure about it, I never had the chance to do those things..."
'Kathy…'
"I was just worried—I just was too worried. I'm still the coolest sister you could ever have!"
"…"
Gray stayed in silence for some seconds before chuckling lightly, amused from the bizarre situation.
He pointed at her and half-jokingly asked.
"Is that how you say sorry to someone?"
"Hey!" Kathy yelled, surprised at how the tables had turned.
The mocked became the mocker!
Gray shook his head.
"Kathy, you don't have anything to apologize for, I'm serious.
I did the mistake of not answering your calls. For that, I have to bear the consequences. You did the right thing, believe me."
He scratched his hair and continued talking, unsure of how to put his thoughts into words.
"Also, would it be alright for you if I started working part-time? I'll keep going to school, of course—I just want to help you."
He smiled.
"You know, I really want you to enroll back into school. You had to give up on your dreams for me, so it seems fair that I should help you in turning them into a reality."
"…Also, I think that Casanova would accept if I were to ask of working with him for some hours."
Deep down, Gray almost felt guilty.
'I feel bad for him. He's going to have to deal with me so much…'
Kathy looked down in embarrassment as she smiled.
She then looked at Gray.
As her eyes glimmered from the morning sun, she spoke.
"You grew up so much, you know?
I can still remember the days where you cried on the way to school, hoping that I could follow you inside class."
Kathy chuckled lightly—not mockingly.
"…"
Hearing her words, Gray almost choked on his food.
"…U-Unfortunately, yes, I do remember that."
Coughing dryly, he asked.
"So… Can I start working part-time?"
Kathy gave a firm nod.
"…But only if Casanova accepts your offer."
"Thank you!"
After resolving their conflict, he felt even more compelled to unravel the mysteries that surrounded Nekare.
There was no room for failure—he had to return home.
Kathy watched her brother as he devoured his food, a dumb-looking smile plastered on her face.
Once Gray was done eating, Kathy rolled up the sleeves of her black shirt and checked her watch, making a "tsk" sound with her mouth.
"It's late, I have to leave for work…"
Kathy worked as a waitress for one of the most cherished restaurants by the Rosano's inhabitants, its name was "Rose Rosse."
While it was still extremely far from the most renowned restaurants, it was considered as one of the places with the best food in the city.
But unfortunately, due to Rosano's lack of tourism, the owners found great difficulty in popularizing it outside the borders.
Thanks to Kathy's excellent experience in the working field, however, she was able to land the position rather quickly, bringing home a stable income that ranged from 1100 euros to 1350 euros if she decided to work overtime.
Normally, she would work full time—8 hours on average. But when the staff was short handed, she had to work overtime—sometimes reaching over 11 hours.
Working overtime made her gain more money, all thanks to the tips gained from the sympathy of the customers who saw her hard work and from the increase in that day's salary from the owners.
Kathy had to pay for the groceries, taxes, various bills like the wifi, cellular service et cetera, which in total amounted to quite a bit, not allowing them to have a really comfortable budget for their necessities.
Thankfully, because of their past, they didn't spend much money in trivial matters.
They preferred saving up, preferring to be prepared for every situation.
"I guess I'll go too then."
Gray grabbed his bag, attempting to keep his anxiety in check.
The two went outside together—Kathy took her bike while Gray started walking.
Subconsciously, he touched Dusk Catcher.
"There is no going back."