Ficool

Chapter 4 - 03:00

From the ground, perhaps the soil upon which the city's foundation rests upon, those blades of silver grass reach heights so grand their tops can't be fully observable standing before them. At the very least the sky can be seen between those towers, the white sky from which the gentle snowfall descends from, snowflakes dancing in the wind as they don't fall straight like rain but rather glide on their journey down.

Following that journey, one of those silver towers directly standing ahead serves as the backdrop, its smooth exterior lacking significant decoration like windows or balconies resulting in little attention being brought to itself, for it nearly blends with the whites of the sky in a manner somewhat tranquil. The tower has a relatively generic shape, just another cylinder with no interesting curves that define it against the bunch, as not all towers could be built with extravagantly abstract curves.

The life of the building though was not in its exterior shape but those who inhabited it, for herds of adults dressed in professional attire of suits and dresses saunter down the brief walkway starting at the black streets and ending at the front entrance of the building whose wide doors are already open. Many of the adults chatter amongst themselves though quietly, difficult to interpret due to their low volume.

Their conversations are not the focus though, as the one watching them instead turns their attention towards their own blazer having a light gray shade, though even then the snowflakes that've collected on the sleeve are pronounced well enough. Upon noticing the collection, that person uses their other small fair hand with pink nails to try wiping it off, though that only results in wetting the sleeve itself as watery dark spots remain.

Tsking in annoyance to the wet spot left on her blazer, the woman has no other choice but to lower her arm, understanding as long as she stands outside she'd continue to be poured on. She grabs the lapels of her blazer and tugs it for proper readjusting, her pink eyes glancing down at the buttoned up dress shirt underneath which at first glance may seem to be white, but rather is a light pink shade, providing some extent of personality, though not nearly as strong as the pink color of her long hair tied up in a ponytail. She shivers from the cold, her teeth clattering as she takes it as a cue to advance forward in the same direction as the crowd as more adults pass her from behind, although the majority of them are decently taller than her, requiring her to raise her chin more than normal to try peeking over their shoulders.

Still she hurries down the walkway, just fast enough to pass other adults but not enough to appear as a run. There is still a sense of haste though, which is understandable as her navy blue skirt likely provides insufficient warmth, as there's only so much her white knee socks matching her shoes can provide. She carries only a small purse with her, more resembling a satchel, slung over her shoulder which she constantly makes micro adjustments to as though uncomfortable in this alien attire.

Through the open doors, the pink haired woman glances around the large lobby of the tower, a marble white floor with samely colored walls though only for the first twenty or so feet as the remainder of the wall is more of a glassy material, one that extends seemingly indefinitely up. The lobby itself has a receptionist desk on the left with a woman seated behind along with a few clusters of sofa chairs accompanied by tables scattered around, likely for visitor use. The lobby has six hallways branching off, two on each side excluding the main entrance, both sets separated decently apart but not at the very edges. Many of the adults entering the building diverge into one of these many branches, however more of them continue down the center straight for the end of the lobby where there would seem to be a row of white rounded square platforms apparently being elevation pads as some of them are already in the process of ascension and descension, some not even visible as there's just open spots. There's ten of them, each fairly wide, enough for a handful of people to stand in comfortably which they do, and when they do it projects a railing around them for safety.

The woman with the pink hair approaches one of these pads, trying to peek over to find any that are on the floor or near with minimal occupancy. Her sights fixate on a pad currently descending, with only two other adults standing in front of the landing area which has a holographic red barrier to prohibit anyone from standing in the way. She makes her way to that pair, stopping beside them and waiting patiently.

Trailing the steady drop of the pad, the woman observes its landing which seconds later deactivates a portion of the red wall as well as the railing, allowing the adults on the pad to step out, a few of them walking off towards one of the branching hallways within the lobby. As the last few adults exit the pad, it allows for onboarding as the other two adults do so quickly, leading the woman in the pink hair to do the same. As she's about to pass one of the adults who had left the elevator, walking towards the building's exit from where she entered through, the woman notices that adult oddly wiping her face constantly with soft sniffles, one of her hands gripping what resembles a leather pencil pouch. 

Concern is brought to the woman's pink eyes upon the strange and miserable sight, though her attention is swerved back ahead as she jogs up onto the pad where the other two adults interface with a holographic panel just before the railings reactivate, followed by the red wall. 

Just barely having slipped onto the pad, the woman takes a sigh of relief before scooting herself against the railing of the pad so as to not cover too much space. The man on the pad who has his hands over the panel turns to stare right at her, though her head is initially down, not paying any mind. She naturally lifts her head just to gaze around, noticing the strange stare right at her, her face at first neutral before showing concern and then a slight hint of discomfort, but after a solid several seconds her eyes light up and she blurts, "Floor forty three, so sorry!"

The man sighs before turning back to the panel and simply tapping one of the buttons before making a whooshing gesture with his hand, resulting in the panel vanishing and for the elevation pad to begin rising with a gentle hum, soon passing the red wall which is realistically only about five feet tall.

The woman frowns in embarrassment at first, her cheeks slightly red from the mindless pause, and to hide it she places both hands on her cheeks and breathes once heavily even though that attracts the attention of the other woman on the pad.

That woman's attention is split though as the pad decelerates to a stop before a portion of the railings deactivate, specifically the side facing where the wall was, but is now revealed to be an opening to board one of the floors carpeted white. She steps off the elevation pad and continues her walk down the floor, which has a similar lobby walled off though with branching hallways. Little time is given to examine it before the railings fully project again, and the pad once more starts ascending.

Simply waiting against the railing as her hands have since dropped back down, the woman just pans around at the various floors being passed before facing the man still in the elevator, who seems to be in his thirties or higher, dressed in a black suit with a blue tie, his short hair black both on his head and forming a well trimmed beard.

Her gaze fixing on the man, the woman's head tilts in slight curiosity, her eyes contracting to focus. After a few seconds of analysis, the woman then asks in a gentle voice high albeit not to a squeaky extent: "Hey uhm, you're Roddy right?" 

The man's attention is successfully turned towards the woman, though his eyebrow raises, and after a second of thought he corrects in a stern voice, "Huh, no I'm Brandon, I don't believe we've met before," just as the elevation pad decelerates to a stop.

Embarrassment covers the woman's reddened face as she winces to her own shame, pulling herself off the railing and stumbling forward to transition into a hasty walk off the pad as she apologizes awkwardly, "Oh hahah I guess not, uh okay bye," before she turns away, leaving the pad to continue her walk in the carpeted lobby. She clenches her teeth to her self-inflicted humiliation as the railing of the pad she left projects once again and the pad resumes rising, carrying the man with it who just shakes his head.

Bloating her mouth and blowing out air helps to cool her face as she strides down the left side of the lobby, approaching one of those branching corridors by the corner as the lobby is rather barren itself. She reaches the entryway and passes through the corridor though it's revealed to be rather short and instead open up into another lobby, this one better populated with tables and chairs along the far end beside a stretching window screen providing a view to the snowy outdoor city, as well as additional sofas along the walls that sit between other branching corridors. 

She gazes around to find a long table in the lobby, or rather a tabletop sitting over a row of cabinets, with the table itself carrying several jars and small boxes. She does find one other man standing by the table, specifically in front of a contraption that resembles an old air fryer in that it's shaped as a black box, which a tray slides out from the bottom of, though rather than part of the shell sliding out it instead vaporizes into a cloud, revealing that the tray carries a small glassy mug with a strange black liquid inside. He picks it up by the handle before walking off down the other end of the room which has an additional two branching corridors.

After inspecting the room, the woman begins to follow the man down that end, though as she makes her way past the table her eyes light up and she clenches her teeth before spinning around, instead walking the opposite direction towards the corridor on the left side as she had forgotten her own directions..

Entering the corridor which is only wide enough for perhaps two or three people to walk side by side, for it's far narrower than the lobbies, the woman constantly swerves her head from the left and right as along both sides of the hallway are rows of small cubicles closed off by glassy walls. Each wall has a small name tag on it, and through the wall there can be seen the cubicle itself, relatively compact as there's just a tabletop that stretches from the back corner along one of the perpendicular walls through part of the glassy side, with shelves and cabinets sitting well above the table. Each cubicle also has its own hovering chair made of a mesh material, with some of them being decorated further with random posters on the walls or objects on the table whether it be figures or devices similar to the air fryer.

As the woman strolls down the hallway, she does pass a few cubicles where there is an adult inside, sitting on their chair focused on a station of holographic screens whether it be one, two, or three, hard at work whether they're silently honed in or speaking –presumably in a meeting–, as some of them have screens that show video streams of other people speaking in their own cubicles head on. There are however many, in fact a majority of the cubicles that are still empty, some of them with name tags though others which are empty. One of the cubicles she passes has one person seated on their chair but another adult who is noticeably older than them, their arms crossed in what seems to be a stern discussion, where the one seated seems almost distressed as his head is down and there's what could maybe even be tear marks on his face.

Regardless the woman continues onwards, noting that interaction though not being too particularly focused on it, as soon enough she catches a cubicle that has several posters emitting a gentle luminescence, each of them unique with one featuring a group of teenage girls dressed in the same uniform that being semi formal attire, all of whom standing in front of a building shaped somewhat like a traditional school, brown as if built by bricks. She comes to a stop at the cubicle to find that scattered over the shelves and tables are a plethora of figurines, a sight that brings a gentle smile to her face as she murmurs to herself in relief, "Right…I did leave some here…."

She steps up to the glassy wall to which like a door it vaporizes into what at first look like small glass shards though they sprinkle into nothingness, letting her step inside before the wall materializes once again to enclose her.

Through the glassy wall, the woman ambles over to the chair where she first slips her purse off her shoulder to casually toss onto the table before plopping herself down on it, causing it to slightly depress before bouncing back up after configured to her presence. She spins around before facing the part of the desk along the wall orthogonal to the hallway as her hair follows in a wave, as at the same time three holographic curved monitors appear before her, each of them with personal pink borders. The monitors follow her movement to the edge of the table where she stops before reclining back in the seat, though the monitors no longer track, letting her rest for just a moment, breathing a deep sigh now that she's reached her box.

For a few seconds she just sits there against her seat in front of her three screens, though she eventually musters the strength to straighten herself with a huff, fixing herself upright. The rightmost screen shows what appears to be a chat log given the string of messages beside a list of recipients, and on the left side has a similar list though for a mail service given the longer singular texts that are displayed, whereas in the center is a generic search engine given the central bar to fill with a query. She first focuses on the left screen, first reading the top mail post on the right side of the monitor, scanning it briefly before focusing on the left list where she scrolls to the next, resulting in a new mail message appearing on the right. She reads it for a couple seconds, bobbing her head before glancing back at the list, checking the next mail, glancing at it, then glancing back at the list to check the next mail, glancing at it, then again, then again, then she begins just reading the log of senders that slowly scrolls the deeper she gets all until she eventually comes to a stop after having caught up completely despite barely reading. Content, she then switches focus to the right screen where she checks the logs of chat messages she could have received, though just at a glance she notes there to be nothing new for her to digest. She sighs somewhat in disappointment, though is fully aware that the only coworkers who'd message her would use personal messaging anyways, leaving her work log empty. She hums to herself in slight boredom, as if not entirely sure what work to do, and so naturally she spins around once in her chair before coming to a stop in front of the many figurines on the desk beside her.

Scooting forward slightly closer to the figurines as the holograms maintain their position, the woman warmly smiles as she inspects the collection. Figurines either depicting what appear to be scholars in uniforms or medieval gladiators, all of them are bunched together, completely intact. She extends her hand to pick up one of the schoolgirl figurines which has long blue hair, bringing it closer to her eyes.

As she twirls the figure in her hands, she mentally blocks out any other observations, her sight focused on her collection, her hearing fogged, not even noticing the sound of a dematerializing whoosh. She marvels at the intricate detailing of the uniform, made of a real cloth that gave the uniform an authentic appearance, appreciating the minor details with the lapels that can be pushed around and the fact there is a buttoned shirt underneath, designed as if there was a full shirt under the blazer, perhaps there was, but it'd only be greater attention to detail; detail she was entranced in enough so that she doesn't hear the voice echoing in the distance repeatedly, as she only interprets her environment when a hand is placed on her shoulder.

Immediately the woman shrieks and spins around towards the hand as the chair thrusts backwards into the desk, her eyes wide in terror as they set upon another woman standing over her, dressed in a brown blazer, the same color as her eyes and long hair. The woman tilts her head in confusion before delicately greeting, "Are you okay Kokei? I didn't mean to scare you."

Suddenly that terror reshapes into shock as the woman in pink, Kokei, places the figurine back down on the desk behind her with wide eyes before exclaiming, "Alina?!?!"

Before the woman who had intruded in the room, Alina, could speak another word, Kokei thrusts herself off the chair and into an embrace, wrapping her arms tightly around Alina which causes her to stumble back with a surprised, "Woah woah!"

After recovering from the push, Alina slowly wraps her own arms back around Kokei, patting her twice as she murmurs, "There there," Kokei's head deeply nestled against her, as the difference in height between the two almost could confuse the image as a mother and daughter embracing.

In the extended hug, Alina gazes around the room curiously, first noticing the three monitors, then the cluster of figures on the desk to which she smirks, "I see you've made yourself at home."

Immediately Kokei's eyes open wide again, and she slips out of the embrace to defensively assure, "I was working just now I swear! You just, uh, caught me on a break~!"

On reflection Alina bursts into a giggle, nodding her head exaggeratedly and sarcastically acknowledging, "Sure sure, I know, you're in the clear. It's good to see you again, like actually see you."

Letting out a sigh of air, Kokei smiles back and reflects, "It's good to see you too, it's been…some time."

Alina giggles again and scratches the back of her head as she inquires, "Ahah yeah so about that, where have you been for the past…however long now? I mean I get not needing to log little weekend escapes but that was uh a little longer than a weekend."

Kokei giggles back although noticeably more nervously as she also scratches the back of her head, though she lowers her gaze before more timidly admitting, "I uh…I don't want to lie to you so…it's kind of complicated. Maybe we can talk about it some other time but…I…well you know-."

"Don't worry Kokei, I understand," gently assures Alina with a smile, noticing her friend's sudden drop in mood. She playfully taps Kokei's shoulder to uplift, "We can talk all about it somewhere nicer, actually they opened a new bakery down the street while you were away and we were specifically waiting for you so we could-…," though her own uplift wavers away, as she lowers her head with a frown.

Quick to pick up on the drop in mood too, Kokei frowns and turns her head to the side, understanding the point that had her stump. She sighs softly before murmuring, "Yeah…Casey was probably super excited to go too, and if they have decent tea then Ember would probably be interested herself…."

The two drift to an awkward silence, both standing inside the cubicle but neither blurting a word, as it was clear the news had been passed around yet it hadn't properly processed for either of them. For the two who stand here are what remains of the group, and that emptiness is suffocating.

Abruptly Alina raises her head and recalls, "Oh yeah that's right, I came here to talk to you about something, I'm not sure when you got here but are you free?"

Reawakened by that invitation, Kokei raises her head too and giggles nervously before admitting, "I uh-...may or may not have just gotten here actually…."

Strangely Alina winces at that answer with a "Ah….," which Kokei interprets with a defensive: "Wait I swear I didn't mean to get here late it was just traffic was really bad and stuff!"

Though Alina shakes her head and assures, "No no it's fine, it's uh…yep it's fine," before pivoting around and calling, "Here, let's go to our office actually, better than just cramming up in here. We can walk and talk."

Curious with the tilt of her head, Kokei smiles softly before gleefully accepting, "Sure! Lead the way boss!"

One nervous giggle past, Alina nods and takes off to the glassy divider which vaporizes for their exit, both hers and Kokei's, the three holographic screens fizzling out naturally with the figurines left on the desk.

Out in the hallway, Alina strolls with a frown as Kokei chases after her, exiting the cubicle which automatically shuts again with the rematerialization of the wall. Swiftly Kokei reaches Alina's side, placing both of her hands behind her back and leaning forward to cheerfully ask, "So uh, how've you been with everything and…stuff?"

To that somewhat ambiguous question, Alina pushes through the frown with a smile to turn towards Kokei and respond with an equal: "Stuff's been good and stuff, what about your stuff?"

To that ambiguous response, Kokei returns by following the rules of the chain with a smirkish: "Stuff's been stuff and stuff, all good stuff you know."

The two continue walking in silence with stern faces, though they only hold it for a few seconds before both accidentally let a giggle blurt through simultaneously.

Side by side the two walk during which Kokei gazes around at both sides of the corridor, noting curiously: "Huh, guess not many people are in right now. Maybe everyone's gotten stuck with traffic," to which Alina's frown returns with a subtle downward tilt as she awkwardly retorts, "Yeah…maybe."

Kokei continues to scan around, humming to herself as intermission between conversations, though that only lasts for a few seconds before she wonders, "Oh yeah so uh, I don't actually know what I'm supposed to be doing right now, or like after we talk. Since like…you know…our main project just finished so I assume we're not really working on it anymore. Is there something we already have that I need to check out or-?"

Alina glances over to Kokei before shaking her head and somberly assuring, "No you don't, don't worry, there's nothing you need to worry about."

Kokei shrugs her shoulders and mentions, "Well okay then, I just don't want to look like I'm not doing any work is all, but then again I'm sure you already have the next client on a list so I should probably be enjoying this free time a bit more."

"Yeah heh…I guess so," Alina dimly responds though in a dwindling tone, frowning more with her head hung low.

Both still walking onwards, Kokei stretches her arms before reminiscing, "But it is good to be back, it is. I mean it's nice in some ways working in the comfort of your own home, but there's things you miss: being actually around your friends and coworkers, having a space to actually walk around in, the atmosphere sometimes when events are happening, the food down the street…also maybe the free Royx machines are a plus heh. I guess now you're going to have to deal with me even more though but hah deal with it!"

Yet to that anticipatory thought, Alina doesn't answer back in words, but rather her eyes begin to suddenly tear up. They widen upon self awareness and she's quick to start rubbing her eyes to dry them back out, clenching her jaw tight as she starts to sniffle between rubs. 

Slowly less and less discrete Alina becomes until Kokei notices the distress, her eyes wide in shock as she jumps to Alina with the concern: "Oh my god Alina, are you okay?"

It's then that Alina comes to a stop, no longer able to contain herself as she wipes more rapidly, her sniffling louder, worrying Kokei further who asks gently, "Wait what's wrong, talk to me. Come on Alina, I'm here."

Managing to wipe enough tears that she can move her hands, she speaks albeit through sniffles, "I-I-I'm so sorry Kokei…I don't want to lie to you so I'll just say it now because I can't keep this up…I-I needed to talk to you…I needed to tell you that you're- that you're being let go."

Instantly Kokei freezes up with a dropped jaw, appalled in horror, stun locked for several moments. It's enough moments at least for Alina to resume walking again, albeit still needing to occasionally wipe her eyes. Eventually Kokei breaks from her hold though, turning to Alina before dashing after her with movements far more frantic, shouting: "Wait!"

"Wait wait wait, what's going on?" Kokei questions hastily as she follows Alina's side, "Being let go? You mean fired? What for- wait, is this because I vanished days before the release and wasn't there for the big meeting? I'm so sorry Alina please I don't know how to explain it but I really really wanted to be there but I couldn't I didn't have a choice I wanted to be there so badly I'm sorry that I let you down I'm sorry I let everyone down but please can we talk about this I-," before freezing up upon Alina gloomy interjection, "It's not about that, Kokei, you're fine. It was a bit hectic to deal with it but…ultimately the clients aren't even…around anymore…so it's fine. It's not that, I promise."

"Then what is it?" Kokei begs as she launches off to tag alongside Alina. Before an answer can be given, she begins listing possibilities off the top of her head, "Is it because of the extended remote stay? Again I'm sorry about that I will clear it up it's just a lot's been going on and I know a lot's been going on with you too so it doesn't mean much but I'll explain everything I can and it'll make sense I'll make sure it makes sense things were complicated and I didn't mean to sideline everyone and-," though yet again Alina interrupts with a: "It's not that, Kokei. Really, it's nothing you did. This isn't your fault. It has nothing to do with anything you did."

This bewildering paradox only further perplexes Kokei who chases after Alina, her voice growing louder as despair consumes her, her speech quickening as if feeling like she only has a brief window of time to say everything she needs to say: "Then what happened? Was it upper management? But you can talk to them right? Whatever happened, I'm sure you can do something, right? I'm so sorry for trying to use you as a crutch it looks like that I know, I'm sorry I just like I can't lose this Alina really I'll do anything please just tell me what I need to do who I need to talk to what I need to say I'll do it all I just need to find a way to do something about this-," as Alina reaches the end of the hallway which has a turn to the left for a continuation, though instead she continues on to one of the cubicles at the corner albeit one more than double the size. Upon stopping in front of the glassy wall, it vaporizes, allowing her to enter through same as Kokei who continues rambling, "-please there has to be something you can do there's always something you can do you're basically a god you always make things work out in the end just tell me what I need to do please-," before Alina interjects one more time: "Kokei."

Immediately Kokei silences again, bewildered by the vague answer, though the sudden pause leaves her room to gaze around at her new surroundings, that being what in truth better resembles an office given that the desk further down is significantly longer but beyond that there's another smaller table in front of the main desk with its own two chairs, presumably for other meeting employees. Though strangely enough other than those two chairs, its small table, the main desk, and the one chair behind it, the room itself is rather barren. Especially relative to the colorful landscape of Kokei's room, there's no personal decoration in the entire office, there's nothing except a small brown leather pencil pouch-like object sitting on the main desk.

Stunned yet again, Kokei just slowly steps deeper in the office as Alina walks around her desk, and after panning around the barebones furniture Kokei observes, "Wait…where's all your…stuff? I mean you didn't decorate as much as me but…I remember there being a lot here…at least something."

"Kokei…," Alina sighs with a heavy breath before revealing, "I can't help you because…they're letting me go too. It's nothing you did, they're just…doing some restructuring is what I heard…I was pissed off too but I mean even the people I heard it from weren't making the calls so there's nothing I was able to do about it. I guess we got unlucky since…well our team's kind of just stayed the same for years, I mean you were the last new addition, so when we lost the other two well I guess the easy thing to do is just clear us out too ...."

Her pink eyes beginning to tear, Kokei takes a step forward before profusely apologizing, "Wait Alina, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to-."

"It's fine Kokei, it's not like this makes your situation any better," admits Alina with a frown, both of her hands on the desk that she slowly slides, gazing around her empty office as even she seems to struggle processing its current state.

"It's all really stupid, they lost executives and the managers below them and the managers below them and because of that they have to get rid of everyone at the bottom even if there's a lot left, the whole system is just…stupid," Alina bitterly complains, continuing: "I mean really we don't even need help from anyone to do what we do, we practically operate independently, I mean I have to put in the work of finding us clients and then we're the ones doing all the development, getting all the assets, doing all the testing, all the shipping, everything, there's hardly any involvement from anyone else. It's one thing I always hated about being a manager, I get to see how utterly bullshit the upper management is, my boss doesn't do anything for us and his boss doesn't do anything for him."

She takes in a deep breath before muttering, "And of course they give us twenty four hours to clear out, to drop everything, get here, pack up, and leave. I honestly wasn't even sure if you were coming in today so I was planning on just packing your cubicle for you since they would've probably trashed everything if nobody collected it. But…I guess saying this all on Connect would probably be a lot shittier, easier on me but…well yeah. I'm sorry you came all the way here just for me to basically tell you to leave. They didn't even…give me a chance. I tried to ask them to at least transfer you to another team but they just wouldn't budge. I'm so sorry Kokei…."

"No, don't apologize," pleads Kokei in a dreary cry as she leaps before the table to bend forward and wrap her arms around Alina, embracing her despite needing to stand on her toes in order to reach far enough.

Holding her tightly, gripping her in fact just to keep herself stable in this somewhat awkwardly extended pose, Kokei shuts her eyes as she sympathizes, "They laid you off too, you have no reason to apologize to me when you're in the same position. I'm glad I did come into office today so I could see it one more time, even if I haven't been around for a while ...."

She opens her eyes and slips out of the embrace, reeling herself back to the other side of the table where she can plant her feet flat once again. At first she keeps eye contact with Alina, though that breaks as she lowers her head with a side tilt, frowning as she considers gloomily, "I just…wish I was around more…I mean I felt pretty bad knowing I wasn't helping like I should've been but I…I wish I spent more time with all of you."

"Kokei ... .-," starts Alina in a wavery whisper, beginning to extend her arm forward as if to comfort from the clear sign of guilt within her friend.

Yet Kokei closes her eyes to expel a sigh, opening her eyes once again to then return her gaze back to Alina who drops her arm to which Kokei asks softly, "Oh yeah so…well I'm guessing there's no like work tasks I need to do now, but uh I'm guessing there's probably some kinda forms they need me to fill out, or at least something I need to do."

Alina shakes her head before explaining as she places both of her hands back on the desk's edge to lean on it, "Don't worry, I already handled all of that for you, it's technically the manager's job for that, which is funny since they have it that way because they typically assume the manager's sticking around. Your work accounts will just be shut off by tomorrow morning but other than that there's nothing you really need to return, I guess it's just packing your box and…heading back. Waste of time, I know."

A mixture of relief yet disappointment flashes over Kokei's face with a sighed relief passed out of a frown. Her head lingers low for a few moments in contemplation before nodding, facing Alina to acknowledge, "I guess that makes sense, well thanks. I guess I'll…go clear out my closet now. Fun …." She then turns around to face the exit of the office cubicle that she steps towards, but stops upon Alina's abrupt offer: "Oh uh- well I mean like I said I was kind of done with everything else on my end and like you see I already packed so…want some help?"

Kokei turns around to face Alina before assuring, "Huh no it's fine I can do it-," yet Alina persists interruptingly, "No wait please, come on, let me help."

"I'm-," Kokei begins to insist back, though she freezes on a latent thought, pausing before lowering her head with a nod to accept mellowly, "I guess it'll make it a bit easier."

In movements like prancing, Alina dashes around her desk to Kokei's side, grabbing the pouch before then guiding her by continuing on to the opening door, leading her back into the corridor as the two exit the empty manager office.

Side by side the two coworkers walk down the hallway, Alina's pace sobering back up to a stroll with her hands behind her back as Kokei keeps her head low. During their brief saunter, Alina comments in a cheery tone, "Oh I forgot, it's nice to see you dressed up all nice again, I see you found your own suit this time instead of needing to borrow one from whoever!"

Kokei's eyes widen before she turns her head away as if in concealment, laughing nervously to then brush off, "Heh yeah I uh yeah it was lying around somewhere in my apartment."

To Kokei's relief, they soon reach her cubicle which they enter through the whooshing door, again inside the vastly more decorated space embellished with the figurines and posters. 

Kokei instinctively approaches the figurines on her desk beside the chair first as Alina steps up to the poster before asking, "Oh yeah, do you need a Pouch?"

Kokei reaches for the purse sitting on the table, dragging it towards her with her finger as she attests, "I brought one for lunch and there's enough space anyways, but thanks." She picks up the purse to which a small holographic screen projects off it which she interfaces with using her free hand which seconds later closes out that screen, allowing her to then use that same free hand to begin picking up each individual figurine, holding it up in front of the purse which causes a blue light to flash from said purse where the zipper would be, enveloping the figurine in a blue glow that intensifies until only the shape is discernible. Once the flash reaches its climax, in a flicker the entire figurine vanishes out of her hands, letting her pick up the next figurine to hold it over the purse for it to be swarmed by another flash of blue light to then be stored, then the next, then the next.

Concurrently Alina reaches for the top center of the poster, hovering her fingers along the rim which causes the entire poster to dim or rather reduce its own opacity, becoming translucent enough that there can be seen a small device attached to the wall where her fingers linger, a small flat magnet of one of the girls on the poster though in a chibi style. Alina grabs the magnet, causing the entire poster to vanish right before the magnet is plucked off the wall. She places the magnet down on the desk beside Kokei which she picks up after storing the figurine that was in her hand, holding the magnet over the purse and letting that be consumed too. At the same time, Alina wanders around the cubicle to the next poster, reaching for the top center again which similarly results in the translucent dimming to reveal its magnetic projector, letting her peel it off the wall simply, leaving no residue behind as it was attached magnetically.

In silence, the two women steadily clean through the cubicle, Kokei eventually grabbing the figures off the shelves for storage, able to more easily slot them in at least faster than Alina who has to carefully allow each poster to shut off before plucking its projector off, or at the very least she's exercising additional caution at the cost of speed. They do make quick work though in their combined efforts, not getting in each other's way too frequently with the only few exceptions being for the posters above the table which Alina has to reach over, nearly cornering Kokei who dashes out of the way. But with the lack of any significantly heavy or adhered decor, especially given the simplicity of taking off the posters, it doesn't take very long for the former extravagantly ornamented cubicle to be cleaned to better resemble the ones that had been passed earlier, the whites of the walls and tables clear.

As Alina pulls off the last poster projector and hands it to Kokei just as she's packing the last figurine, she takes that projector and lets the blue light wrap around the small magnet before whisking it away. With that, Kokei hovers her empty hand over the purse, which again projects a screen before her fingers, letting her make a few taps before the screen vanishes.

Just like that, Kokei slings the purse around her shoulder, sighing in fatigued relief before slowly panning around the office, finding it completely barren all but for the standard company chair. That relieved smile drops back to a frown as she fully observes the cubicle that by the end of the day would no longer be hers, though it already had lost her flair, rendered sterile. Alina frowns upon noticing her somber gaze, surveying it as well, as while the cubicle wasn't particularly large but instead arguably cramped, it sure managed to pack its own vibrant personality.

After one more glance around the full cubicle, Kokei nods to herself before reporting, "I have everything, I guess uh…I guess we leave now?"

Alina faces Kokei, noting that even still her voice wavers as though not entirely acclimated to her situation, as though part of her believes there's a chance she's mistaken, perhaps the part of her she hopes is correct. Though it'd only be a lie to say anything else, so Alina nods to confirm, "If you have everything on you, then I guess there's nothing else left. Come, we'll walk out together."

She then turns around and exits the cubicle through the opening door, Kokei following behind. 

Upon exit, they continue down the corridor, reaching the end where they return to the small lobby with the air fryer-like machine. They take a turn through the short hall out of that lobby and into the larger square balcony, where there's luckily one person boarding an elevation pad on their level whom the two chase, entering just in time before the railings close it off.

Slowly the elevation pad descends down the many floors, passing each uniform square balcony, one after the other at accelerating speeds, like the cars of a train passing into a station. It slows down upon passing beneath the final balcony, entering the main lobby as told by the significantly taller level. Steadily it glides to the floor, coming at a clean halt surrounded by the red holographic walls that then vanish, same as the railings. The three step off the platform, the first to enter diverging off to one of the other hallways to the right, but the remaining continue forwards, walking against the scattered crowd still entering the building. Now it's those two who amble out with Pouches in hand, somber expressions on lowly hanging heads, passing other employees who glance at them curiously, unaware of their circumstances. Down the lobby past the receptionist desk and complementary sofas, the two reach the open door where the wind whistles.

Both of their steps simultaneously pass the frame, for seconds later the snowfall grazes them, planting small flakes on their shoulders and hair though much of it seemingly vanishes. Kokei shivers with chattering teeth, shaking both arms to allow her hands to slip inside her sleeves, using the cuffs as gloves to warm herself. Alina beside her strides forward, not as outwardly bothered by the cold, though she does squint to reduce the wind striking her eyes. Down the walkway leading up to the office building, the two make it to the edge where lies the perpendicular road that the moderately busy street roams about, where they come to a stop together.

Coworkers, friends, the two women stand side by side, just facing the street in silence, the weight of their position sinking in deeper now that they've left when they should've just began their workday. For moments they exchange no words but their presences, nearly shoulder to shoulder albeit differing in heights, the long brown and pink hair drifting in the same direction, about equal length and decently combed although the brown hair is perhaps slightly straighter with fewer waves. Regardless, the two former employees still in their formal suits just stand in the wind, frozen in a moving world.

That is until Alina lets out a sigh, her breath casting a small cloud, before then turning to Kokei and asking, "Did you drive here?"

Kokei then lifts her head to face Alina back to answer with a shake, "Oh I didn't drive myself here today."

"Ah I see, sorry I should've offered a ride then," realizes Alina with a lower head, though uplifted to offer, "Do you want one back to your apartment? I'll let you put on something besides piano music this time, I promise."

Giggling at the remark, Kokei sobers up to softly decline, "Thanks Alina, but I already have a ride coming."

"Wait what?!" exclaims Alina before protesting, "Why did you order one? I could've saved you some credits!"

"Heh, it's alright," assures Kokei with a head shake, "But either way yeah they're supposed to pick me up here so I'll just stay behind."

"Oh…okay," comprehends Alina before she slowly turns to face forward again, same as Kokei. The two return to silence for a few moments before Alina turns back to Kokei to timidly ask, "Hey uh…do you want me to stay with you until your ride gets here?"

Kokei once again faces her to delicately smile, but again with a shake to respectfully concern, "Out here in the cold? It's fine Alina, you can go on ahead. Thanks though, really."

"You sure?" protests Alina with a hint of desperation, only for Kokei to nod and affirm, "Really Alina, I'm fine."

In defeat Alina sulks low, but in acceptance she nods. Lifting her head back up, she glances around herself for a moment before focusing back on Kokei to suddenly assert, "Okay, when I get back home I'm going to try figuring out some options for where we can go, you and me. I'll pull some strings, I have contacts scattered everywhere so I'm sure at least one of them will have something for us."

Shocked with a backwards stumble from the abrupt planning, Kokei blinks twice before asking, "Wait, and me? But like how would that work, I mean you don't even need to really, I can find a way, I mean this is basically the bakery thing all over again, which I mean isn't fun but I'm used to it."

"I have your resume," explains Alina factually, "And as your former manager my referrals have weight, if anything I'm probably the best and easiest way to verify your capability. They'll listen to a good word, I'm sure I can find us somewhere decent, who knows maybe if I'm lucky I'll even find us somewhere better heh."

"But you don't need to," Kokei calms only for Alina to protest, "I do Kokei, as your manager I shouldn't have let them do this to you," before she turns her head away to more gloomily murmur, "And…I can't just leave you."

Kokei immediately frowns with a low head upon the explicitly vulnerable show of guilt, for it's clear she feels a responsibility for an action she was even aware of was beyond their control. Thus rather than contending with it more and only applying greater resistance, Kokei sighs in defeat to accept, "Okay…I guess it's not like I'd reject an offer. But not today, you should rest, take some breaths."

Alina scoffs albeit gently as she acknowledges to herself, "Fair…okay, but I'll find us something and get back to you, I promise." She then turns her head away with a frown before timidly diverging, "But uh-...so to be honest I kind of always knew you were closer to Ember and Casey, I mean like I know we're friends but like you know what I mean, but uh…would you like to hang out maybe sometime? I'm fine with anywhere, and like it doesn't need to be today but some time would you be interested?"

Kokei's eyes begin to subtly water as she earnestly accepts, "Of course, I'd like that a lot."

Alina smiles softly to herself in relief, turning back to Kokei to nod in affirmation. She turns the other way presumably in the direction of where her pod may be, though she swivels her head back to her friend before awkwardly confessing, "Oh wait one last thing before I go, uh so this might come out really bad and is probably way too soon but I just wanted to say this now: So for a while there was kinda this inside thing between the three of us that we all were sort of betting on you being an Exhuman," to which Kokei's eyes widen in sudden shock, taken aback from the unwarranted scare. However Alina streams, "Before you ask why, I don't even know, they just claimed it was 'Exhuman things,' like they just knew, mannerisms and stuff, I never really got it but they seemed kind of sure. But anyways I think Ember was pretty certain, Casey was a bit on the fence, but I always betted against it, but honestly it wasn't because of some logical conclusion out of observations or anything, I just…didn't want to feel like the only one left out. I know that's probably not a right thing to say especially now but I really was hoping you were just a regular…human…you know."

Taking in and releasing a deep breath, Alina more steadily explains, "I just…I just said all that because…well…as selfish as it sounds I'm really happy that I was right." She then frowns with a low head before murmuring, "Because I…don't know what I would've done if I also lost you."

From nearly horrified to perplexed, Kokei's expression changes to a solemn one as she simply utters, "Alina…I…," though Alina cuts her off with a sudden embrace, hugging her tightly which stunts her response. After releasing the hug, she takes a step back followed by another before wishing, "I'll find something for us, and if you think of a place you want to go to just Connect me. Stay safe."

Slowly and timidly Kokei raises her hand forward though without a straight arm, weakly reaching out but giving up with the drop of her arm to instead just wish back delicately, "I will…. You too. See you around, boss."

Alina subtly smiles before pivoting to face away, walking down the street, gradually distancing from Kokei who watches in place. It doesn't take long after entering the street for Alina to blend into the crowd, as in moments she vanishes altogether.

Longingly staring forth with watery eyes, Kokei wipes her face with her blazer's sleeve before returning her arms to the side, then pivoting back to face forward straight at the road where she continues to wait in silence, left alone to her own thoughts.

That's until suddenly an unfamiliar adult woman's voice from beside her innocently asks, "Was that your friend?" Bemused, Kokei turns to her right to find a woman similarly dressed to her in terms of formality although visibly older, more in her forties.

Initially taken aback and still noticeably apprehensive, Kokei hesitantly answers, "Yes…uhm…hello-?"

The woman frowns at that answer before piecing together, "I see, so I guess you were let go of today too."

While the identity of this woman is still largely unknown, the context to the curiosity comes to Kokei as she nods her head, her anxiety alleviated somewhat as she confirms, "Yeah…at first I thought it's because of something I did, which to be fair I wouldn't be too surprised about if that was the reason why."

"I feel the same," sympathizes the older woman before dryly jesting, "I've probably come in late enough times that they just assume I work half days." Kokei smiles slightly at the joke, though the woman faces forward to the road before mentioning, "Yeah…it really is crazy how suddenly this all happened. It's not really the best timing either: my son, Gregary, his school's been temporarily put on close since they're having administrative issues. But I've been talking to the other parents and we're not really sure if they're actually going to open back up, so I was starting to think of maybe moving him to another school, maybe even moving somewhere different entirely. But now…well I'm not really sure if I'm in a position to do that."

Frowning at that unfortunate recollection, Kokei lowers her head and apologizes, "I'm…so sorry…."

Tilting her head from side to side, the woman assures calmly, "No no it's fine, I mean I think it's probably good for him to take a break, I do wish the school counselors were still available but I guess they're not really equipped for something like this anyways. I've been here for…well I think nearly two decades now, so it's a little unfortunate but I'll find a way, and if worst comes to worst I can always fall back on my brother in law, he's a gent."

She then turns to face Kokei before condoling, "But a young girl like you…you shouldn't be experiencing something like this. I remember when I was your age I was always worrying over food and clothes and everything, I can't imagine having to deal with something like this."

Bewildered with a raised eyebrow, Kokei nearly protests before holding herself back, just simply stunned, but ultimately she sighs otherwise in silence, letting the woman continue, "I hope at the very least you have family you can contact, these are the times to turn to them."

Kokei frowns with a low head in contemplation to the somewhat ironic advice, though she can't simply explain her situation. Her focus however is raised upon the sudden declaration from the woman: "Oh right, I should start heading home, I just saw you on the way out and your hair was very eye-catching."

A subtle smirk creeps on Kokei's face as she chuckles off, "Heh, I hear that," followed by the woman then asking, "So you're waiting for a ride?"

Normalizing her expression, Kokei faces back at the woman before sighing to herself before sheepishly admitting, "Oh uh…actually I was just going to roam around here for a while, I didn't want to go home just yet. I'd rather just…be here I guess."

Strangely the initially kind woman scoffs before lecturing, "You shouldn't lie to your friends like that, miss. Especially when they're offering to help you, just tell them the truth."

Shocked in surprised guilt from the callout, Kokei stumbles back before apologizing, "I-uh, I'm sorry, I didn't know you caught that, I just-...she has a lot going on so I didn't want to put more on her, I'll be fine on my own anyways."

Clicking her tongue judgmentally, the woman scolds almost maternally, "Still, it's wrong to lie to your friends, especially when they're caring like that. Sometimes even if they don't realize it, they'll rest more at ease when you're truthful to them." She then abruptly wishes, "But still, take care, miss, don't linger outside too much," before then strolling off to the right, departing Kokei's side, who's left dumbfounded by the unexpected counseling.

Her mouth still open as though ready to contend, she just watches the former employee vanish into the crowd, leaving her to just shut her mouth with a pensive frown. She lowers her head, her pink hairs touched with white sparkles of snow, before raising it back up to face the silver city from the ground, her day's plan collapsed, leaving her to stall for the remainder.

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