"What?" she talks to the wind.
"Aigh boss, what's wrong?" one of his men reach out to him.
Everyone starts to gather around him. But confusion hits Luya even more when all of them start to cough, except her.
Their bodies meet the floor, gasping, eyes rolling up and twisted in pain. The sound of suffering makes Luya's head cloudy. Her breaths become shallower, mind forcing her to run away. But her legs don't move.
She shakes in fright as someone grabs her hand from behind and makes her turn around. She can't make out his face in the darkness but what she can definitely see are his silvery eyes, shining like the moon. They both stare at each other for a while before the blue winged arthropod emerges from the space behind his back and flies to a pile that seems like a collection of old clothes. It halts on it.
Luya looks at the person again, his eyes not silvery anymore. The guys around them have stopped moving, making her unsure if they're just passed out or dead.
"We need to go." says the person holding her wrist.
She just looks at him and then at the butterfly. She sighs and slowly takes her hand out of his grip and goes to that pile.
But as she reaches, the butterfly drowns itself in that pile. Lost in thoughts, she manages to pull off the thick covering of clothes until a beeping sound could be heard and a series of lights are seen glowing in red. Her eyes go wide in shock as she looks at the guy. He quickly turns on his phone's flashlight, approaching her. He bends down and upon understanding what the thing is, quickly takes her hand again, pulling her away.
"Get away from it!" he shouts.
"Wait!" Luya responds back.
Despite being in a dangerous situation, Luya's mind clings to the glowing wings resting on the beeping thing.....on the bomb.
"No time!" he starts to pull her away.
"Hey! Stop pulling me away!" she protests.
"Are you crazy?!" he thunders at her.
"Get your hands off of me!" she barks back.
Luya breaks free from his grip and starts to walk towards it. But the walk is cut short.
It's lights go off, beeping turns into silence. Luya keeps looking at it, dazed. Then the butterfly flies off to the sky, passing through the thick metal roof, as if the work is done.
"Have you lost it?" the person asks, voice dipped in scorn. "Does that look like a thing to play with?" he adds more.
"Can you stop talking?" Luya snaps, turning back to face him.
"You sure have a big tongue despite being stupid and impulsive at a place like this. Seriously? Going after a freaking bomb?" he throws the words at her like a sharp knife.
Luya scoffs and tries to reply but the guy cuts her off, waving his hand in the air.
"I don't want to ask you anything and this is the last time I'm saying. We need to leave." he speaks, tone composed.
Luya sighs and looks away.
"Or you're most welcome to stay here, I don't mind." he turns back, leaving her in the dark.
Eventually she also follows behind.
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The wheels blaze as the bike tears through the narrow path, racing onto the main road. The person has put on his helmet and Luya grips on the rear grab bar. They keep silence.
Luya appears as if she has tons of questions, clouding her mind.
Why did his eyes glow like that?
How did he get there and why?
What happened those men?
Why did the bomb turn off on it's own?
But she supressed them all, for the person in front of her asked none. He didn't, but not for long.
"I'm going to drop you off in a crowded area. Hope you can get to your place from there, or do I need to babysit you to your patio?" he asks, sarcasm pooling in his voice.
Luya's head threatens to burst with the sudden manifestation of rage, but she keeps her cool, knowing fire isn't used to tame fire. For this little while spent, she got hints of agony and stubbornness in his mind and his body language seemed no different. So, she quietly made amends with herself that it was better not to respond to his remarks.
"Stop by the nearby night market zone." she replies, voice straight.
He doesn't say anything back, just keeps a steady pace.
Some time later, they reach the market zone. The bike goes dead as Luya gets down. It starts to rain slowly. The guy looks up to the sky. Luya notices how he is wearing all black from head to toe and has a white small scar on the top of his right eyebrow. It's too small to notice but also kind of as a highlight as she can only see his eyes and brows through the helmet.
He starts his engine.
"Go home without getting into trouble." he said without looking at her. "One thing that lunatic said was true. Nobody escapes death, you were really lucky today. " he continues.
"Wha-" Luya couldn't complete her words.
He vanishes into the night's darkness as it starts to a downpour. Luya stands there, getting soaked, eyes down. Her fists clench.
"Lucky?" she whispers to herself, bitterness sketching her face.
------------------------------------------------
(2029/10/21)
(Zhangzhou No.1 High School)
(Canteen)
Luya sits with some of her classmates on a table during the lunch break. She talks and eats lunch like any other student, occasionally laughing at bits of gossip.
"Luya! Will you be free this evening? We can go play arcade or eat something together." one girl beams.
"Yes, it will be fun having a girls' night out!" another one laughs.
"Yeah, maybe no. My nainai worries a lot." Luya replies, smiling as she puts a spoonful of rice in her mouth.
*Footsteps*
"Have you thrown your phone away?"