There were times she wished she had never left.
Wished she had not so forcefully ended the ties that she called meaningful or important to simply move out of the slump she had found herself in. It was cowardly, a last ditch effort to run away from the person she had so helplessly become over the years. Maybe there was another way, she kept telling herself, someway to have stayed on that island and still move forward in life. To be with them and be happy. Every time she told herself that, a part of her wanted to laugh because she knew the truth.
There was no happy ending for her there.
The tea kettle whistled violently, demanding to be spared the agonizing pain of having to hear this dull narrative again. Naomi simply scoffed and removed the ungrateful hunk of metal from the old gas stove, before pouring herself a cup of tea. The light of dawn peaked in from the cute kitchen window, silently lighting up the small personal kitchen. It was as beautiful as it was depressing.
She sat down on a beaten stool near the counter, placing her cup down on some papers that her brother had left on the counter this morning. The brunette sighed as her fingers circled the rim of the cheap Chinese cup. Were detectives always so messy? Her eyes danced around the kitchen. What was probably once joyful bright orange paint was now dull and faded, peeling as if the walls themselves rejected their shameful coat. The cupboards were loose, or more appropriately loosening. Papers! She slumped over on the counter. Don't get her started about the papers! There were papers everywhere. All over the floor, under the sink, tacked onto walls... Once she had so uncharacteristically made the attempt to clean them up and he walked in, oh boy did he lose it. Point given...
Not lifting her head, she looked solemnly out the window at the wispy clouds that now covered the sun.
...the whole place screamed neglect.
Naomi took a deep breath.
...and neglect smelled lonely.
The red framed clock that hung over head mocked her, each second repeating the same sad note of the statement she had just made in her head.
What else did neglect smell like? Happiness?
Turning the other cheek, the Japanese girl closed her eyes. She tried so hard to wake up early in order to catch him before he left. She wanted to have meat tonight. Beef, chicken, lamb...anything really. She remembered the sizzling sound of three 12 ounce pieces of beef tenderloins, the beautiful antique china, and their three combined laughter under an expensive chandelier.
It had been a eleven months since she left and three days since she's talked to either of them...
…when her consciousness began to drift, the brunette helplessly struggled against her heavy eyelids. They were calling to her; fond memories and sweet dreams. Temptation wrestled her into submission, and with that her mind and heart drifted away from the small messy kitchen.
The clock struck six; its gentle tones echoed through the empty house on that fine brisk fall morning.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
“
Hey, you wouldn't have any idea why this was in the mail would you?”
Replacing the deep, slow voice was the sound of a plastic rustling against paper. A container of some sort. Slowly opening one eye wondering if this was some sort of bait, Naomi found herself staring at some machine dragon barring its fang against some sort of knight. Opening both eyes, she slowly reached for the box that was placed in front of her. The English characters came slowly as the girl attempted to read the pop out text that she assumed was the title.
“T-Thresholud of Kaako...phonea.” The box was quickly and smoothly taken from her fingers. The tall figure set down a box of take out in front of her before leaning against the counter and casting her a tired smile.
“Threshold of Kakophonia, it's the new virtual reality game. People were raving, so I decided to hop on the bandwagon as well. Didn't know I would have a copy delivered to the house.” Holding up the foreign copy, the man examined them closely, but seemed to have absolutely no interest. “Apparently time goes by five times faster in the game, but it still feels like real time of course. I thought it could help me catch up on sleep or think over my cases.”Naomi opened the plastic foam box to find a somewhat wet cheese burger surrounded by a mix of french fries, tots, and onion rings. Popping a handful of tots in her mouth, she wiped her fingers on her jeans before taking the game from her brothers hand.
"So any idea?" he asked again.
“Do we even have this MAELSTROM console?” she muttered, walking out of the small kitchen.
“Living room, all plugged in and ready to go,” he answered, hanging up his coat as he yawned,
“Planning on taking it for a spin?” “Don't want you wasting money.” “Then eat the burger.”Lying down, she reached for the headset-visor before carefully sliding it on.
“You have it. Take this too.” With a swift gesture, she slid the unopened copy of the game to where he stood before giving him a playful grin.
“See you on the other side?” She heard him sigh.
Then for a single second, reality crumbled and peace swept over the girl. There was pure brightness that seemed to illuminate the dark corridors of her uncharted soul. There was a pause in life. A beautiful silence and tranquil stillness which, as fast as it had come, silently and quickly slipped away.
<<WELCOME TO THE THRESHOLD OF KAKOPHONIA>>
<<STATE YOUR USERNAME AND RACE>> She
paused for a second.
“Username: K-A-N-A-M-I.” <<PLEASE SELECT RACE>>
A mirror appeared before her.
<<VENI YAN>> Amazement swept her. Standing there, she watched the tattooed figure stare back with bewilderment. It took a few moments for her to recognize that the wild eyed, spirited girl before her was none other than herself. Very...rustic. Giving herself a quick spin, she struck a pose before smiling daringly at the mirror. It was too lively. What was she in natural terms? A nymph?
“I'll pass.”<<HUMAN>> A reasonable choice. She stretched side to side, watching the dynamics of her human counterpart. Her skin tone was slightly darker in the reflection, not to mention she felt somewhat older. She had a hard time telling whether she liked it or hated it. Giving the reflection an annoyed look, she struck an aggressive pose before dishing herself a high kick.
“What else?”<<NOBELLE>> She felt her heart skip a beat. Starring at her was a beautiful figure with the fairest complexion she had ever seen. There was a softness that was unattainable by normal means. A purity that escaped the tragedies of reality. For a second she felt her entire body quiver in anticipation. The figure stared at her with pure admiration, the eyes lacked detail and life but they were hauntingly vivid. Naomi closed her eyes and took in a deep breath of air.
The figure smiled and her eyes lit up as if there was not a thing wrong with this world.
Naomi spied the small comb at the corner of her vision. The game, as if understanding her desire, presented her with a sea of cosmetics dyes and packages. Her hands silently went to work. Shorter hair, a lavender dye, cyan blue eyes, more detail on the eyes, more, more...
Everything was perfect. If the original Nobelle representation was a childish, pure version of herself then...
The figure's cold emotionless glare frightened her. There before her stood Kanami, who's cold eyes and locked heart seemed to give no opening, no weakness, and no sign of regret or anticipation. She was the knight, the dragon, the beast that guarded the innocent girl who locked deep within the confines of her own heart.
“...CLASS: Nobelle” __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
The smell of grass was strange. The air was anything but clean, instead it was rather congested with the smell of...life? Nature? Loss for words to describe the scent, Kanami opened her eyes for the first time. Interest seized her as she began to move slowly, each step into a world that seemed to be tethered down by a single string. There was no fear or confusion in her step, just a type of confidence that could be defined as rash stupidity or courageous disregard. Pacing slowly, but surely forward, Kanami outstretched her arms letting both her hands brush against the wheat the danced on either side of her. It was magnificent. Beautiful. Striking. Bold. Lovely...
There was no sense of gaming. The feelings she felt, the air she breathed, the thoughts she thought were all real for the first time. For a brief moment in time as the girl unknowingly and silently danced towards town, Threshold of Kakophonia had become reality.