ACT V
AN ACHING DILEMMA
There were whispers of a rebellion.
But had the whispers reached the General? Does he know that there were people in the city, the Rebels, who were working against him? Does he know the Underworlders were thirsty for his blood and would do anything to kill him?
Jiro does not know. Or care. He had been in pain ever since his last meeting with Yen. He had gone back to their place so many times after that, but Yen never came back.
‘Is that what love is? Abandonment?’ Jiro thought, laying on his bed, staring at the ceiling above. He had trashed the room and had not allowed the maids to come in and clean. He had allowed no one inside. He was mourning. And he was angry at Yen for leaving him.
“Is that how much you loved me?”
The very thought made him tear up. But he would not cry. Not anymore. He would forget all about Yen. If only the ache in his chest would go away.
A knock on the door raised him from the delirium like state.
“Jiro?”
It was his father. He had said nothing to him about his meeting with Yen yet. Acting like everything was alright. Or that he had not threatened Yen and his family with their life. Jiro gave no reply. He knew if his father wanted to talk, a closed-door is not enough to stop him. True to his belief, his father entered inside, taking in his appearance.
“You have eaten nothing the whole day. Come down to dinner.”
“I am not hungry,” Jiro replied, sulking.
“I will see you down in 5 minutes.” It was an order.
Jiro knew he had no way out of this. It was best to get with it over. When he arrived at the dining room, he saw that the table was laden with food. For a moment, Jiro thought more people were coming in to join them for dinner. It wouldn’t be surprising. But it was just them. He took his place at the table and his father immediately started serving pasta and bread on his plate. Jiro picked up a fork and asked his father to stop piling up the food. His father gave an indulging smile, and that irked him further.
“How’s school?”
“As usual.” He took a stab at the chicken and put it in his mouth, chewing.
“Well, I was planning to send you to the boarding school for your final semester. I am not home enough to watch over you. The boarding will be an excellent influence.”
Jiro didn’t look up from his plate, stabbing at another piece of meat.
His father sighed, “I don’t want you roaming around in the forest unprotected. He is not coming back.”
“And whose fault is that?” Jiro couldn’t contain his anger anymore.
“You were meeting an Underworlder.”
“How is that wrong? I could do whatever I want, meet whoever I want.”
“Stop acting like a child and finish your dinner. I will not discuss what you did, or I did. It was in your best interest. You don’t know these savages.”
There was that authoritative tone again. Jiro fumed. He looked at the dinner table and his mind went on to the days with Yen when Jiro would bring food for them to share. But Yen would save most of it for his brothers back at home.
“Food is scarce, Jiro.” Yen had told him. “And these treats that you bring, they are impossible to get, even in the black market. I cannot eat it alone.” Jiro would look at him, flabbergasted.
The sight of bread on his plate reminded him of the rough grain bread Yen would sometimes bring from the slums. Often that would be his only meal of the day. Still, he would share it, and Jiro would collect the berries to eat it with. Yen’s face was still fresh in his mind, and the stories he had told about the Underworld. The truth they lived. No matter how much Yen deflected, but the stories of the slum always horrified him.
He lost his appetite. Without explaining, he got up from the table.
“Jiro, finish your food.”
He ignored his father and left for his room. Flopping down on his bed, he went back to what he was doing before. Staring at the ceiling. And his mind went back to thinking about Yen. And of the Underworld.
Yen had shown him a different world. One full of misery and death. And he would be stupid to think that Pangon had nothing to do with it, that his father was innocent. But it was all too complicated. And he knew things will be even more so now that there was an uprising brewing. He was worried about the future.
Some days, he was frustrated with Yen. They could have run away by now. From this world, from the coming war. But could he blame Yen? He had lived in poverty his entire life had seen the forces of Pangon destroy his home time and time again. Could he blame Yen as to play hero amongst the people who never knew why they fought against the Elites? Their only crime was being born on the wrong side.
Other days, Jiro wanted to close his eyes and pretend otherwise. That he never met Yen or fell in love with him. This war would have never bothered him otherwise. But such fantasies would not fill the chasm in his heart. Such a selfish creature he was. Will the world right itself from evil?
The weeks passed in a haze of anxiety. Everyone left Jiro alone. He ignored the others, too. After some time, he started roaming the house, wondering how long would it all last. When would he hear the first whisper of Pangon crumbling from inside? He kept his ears peeled for the first tremor.
And then he started hearing the talks that spoke misery, whispered down the halls of his house. The General was making plans of purifying Pangon. With no conscious thought, Jiro lurked more and more in and around his father’s office. He discovered that his father was mobilizing the military to get rid of the slums and the ‘animals’ that inhabit them. His father would kill them all.
He realised that he could not play ignorant anymore. It’s no more about fighting for keeping his love. In hindsight, it never had been. He had been blind to the cruelty of Pangon before. But now he knew the truth. He felt an urgency to redeem his sins, and of his father’s.
He needed redemption.
Act 6 Coming Next Week… Stay Tuned