Kai Suzuki

There were a couple papers still strewn along the desk that Father Udayar had just said he’d be done cleaning. Kai had been in the Reverends office many times, but today it felt smaller, more intimate. Outside of the Reverends desk, the rest of his office was squeaky clean. Recently dusted and wiped down.

In his lap he ate sambar from a white ceramic bowl from the Church’s kitchen. Kai was sitting in a small metal chair. He had been scarfing it all down. It was creamy and earthy, flavours bursting with every bite.

Little photos of Aaradhya decorated the shelves of his bookcase. There was a small framed photo of Aaradhya sitting on their father’s shoulders. The two of them were standing in the shallow waters. The sun was bright above them, so both of them were slightly squinting like neither could see where exactly the camera was. Aaradhya didn’t look so different, maybe just an inch or two taller. The picture brought a smile to Kai’s lips.

Just as they were going to leave, Father Udayar stopped in his tracks. “I forgot my bag, I’ll just be a second. You can wait outside.”

Aaradhya creaked open the door and asked, “Wanna take a lap? My appā’s going to take forever.” Stepping out into the dark night, the echoing reverberations of crickets played out into the silence. Kai and Aaradhya rounded the wall.

Kai nodded as he rubbed his stomach, “Honestly, he can take however long he wants. I got to walk off all the food I ate anyway.” He was sure he’d just eaten more sambar than his bodyweight.

Aaradhya giggled as their fingers played an invisible piano in the air, “Its so good, I swear he has to have magic in his fingertips.”

They continued walking but slowed down as both Kai and Aaradhya’s eyes fell on a large foggy form. Hunched over and kneeling into the dirt.

Upon a miraculous understanding that Kai didn’t, something flared in Aaradhya as they yelled in anger, “Robbie!”

Robbie’s eyes flew up, the outdoor lights illuminating his surprised face. His hands were filled with dirt and a small plastic bag sat beside him. Wind caught the bag and made it rustle in the silence.

He pulled himself into a sudden sprint, running faster than anyone knew he could. But beneath him a thorny vine unfurled and grabbed hold of his ankle. At the same time the snarling shadow wolf-creature Kai had seen a few weeks ago fell from the sky. Being suddenly born of the shadows above like he’d summoned it without a thought. Robbie fell forward and tried to squirm away from the clutching plant, fear seizing him as the wolf snarled above him. He ripped the vine away and Robbie’s red sneakers echoed against the crackling gravel beneath his steps.

To beckon it back a name spilled from Kai’s mouth, “Kasharit!” It looked larger than last time at second glance, its dark hair more detailed and long, cascading down its bony back. Before it had been almost unclear, an inky fog covering minute characteristics. Now it stood tall, Kai could almost see the pink of its gums. The shadow creature dissipated as Robbie ran out of Kai’s view. He made another mental note to add the name, whatever it meant, to the journal.

The vines were still there, their ends unfurled but they did not look out of place anymore. A couple thick shrubs had grown beside them.

“What the hell was that?” Kai asked, utterly confused about seeing Robbie Simmons digging holes on Church ground at 9PM on a Wednesday. Just when he thought nothing else could could happen, now he was looking down at a plastic bag of rotting food. “Does that happen often?”

When Aaradhya didn’t answer, he turned towards them. Hunched over, their knees were pressed into the dirty ground, mumbling an incoherent prayer. Hands clasped together and eyes tightly closed.

“What’s wrong? You did it!” Kai pressed a hand to their shoulder. He was never good at helping people with their emotions. The bony ends of Aaradhya’s shoulder blades were brandished as they were bent over on their knees. The Earth dipping below them.

“That's the problem! It was good, I knew what I was doing!” They were shaking their head, “What is going on?” Tears streamed harder down their face. They looked back down at the ground. Kai sat down next to them, not caring about the mud now on their pants.

“Hey..” His voice was soft, “Look up.” Aaradhya didn’t move, their gaze centered on the cold ground, “Look up, I promise it will be good.”

Flickering in and out of view was a small cat, its purring form pressing against Aaradhya’s knees. It almost felt real, an inexplicable weight pressed against their knee but when Aaradhya reached out to touch the kitten, their hand passed right through it. Like an inky fog.

“And look, I’m freaking out just as much as you. Your minds running wild with questions right? So’s mine. Why don’t we figure out the answers together?” What was happening didn’t seem scientifically explicable but nevertheless Kai was going to try. For everything there was a perfectly good explanation.

“Sorry,” They wiped their tears with the edge of their sleeve and Kai couldn’t help but notice how cute they looked, “I was never any good at keeping it together. My appā always says that if I feel like crying, then I should cry.”

“Sounds like very sage advice.” Reverend Udayar seemed exactly like the man who would say such a thing. He’d always been a good father, only making Kai know how much more out of his depths he felt in this moment.

Aaradhya looked up at him, tears still brimming their eyes. “Thank you…Thank you.” Taking a couple deep breaths Aaradhya re-centered themselves. Kai helped them up from the ground. Aaradhya dusted a bit of mud that had pressed itself onto their jeans.

They pushed the dirt back into the badly dug hole. Aaradhya grabbed the bag and threw it into the plastic garbage cans at the back of the church. “Hey, do you want to go with me to the outdoor movie next week?” Confidence almost brimmed their words, catching Kai off guard.

Immediately Kai’s cheeks flushed, “As a date? You’re asking me out near the garbage cans of our Church?”

“Is that a no?” They began to turn away.

He grabbed their elbow and pulled them back towards him, ignoring the grin on Aaradhya’s face. “I’d love to.”