9.4 Feelings

One is never more shocked by the realisation of one's own closed-mindedness than by the freedom that those who are deprived of their fundamental right on a daily basis in the greatest of silences arrogate to themselves. If all of the world's freaks, those abnormal people who were not deigned to be seen and whose sight oppressed the dominant majority of right-thinking people, could live like everyone else, the world would stop turning. This was well known, and it was for this reason that they were deprived of the fundamental right to a life free of all prejudice. A life like any other. A life as we want it to be.

But that day was not today. And for now, the two students would have to face life and its dictates. All these concerns were far from Yomo who was on a small cloud. A confused little cloud, but a little cloud nonetheless. He was still following Rau, who was leading him to a nearby park. The light was beginning to fade and to tint the orange-red trees with a golden finery that made nature more magnificent than a golden pagoda.

Yomo was being dragged along at a good pace by his sidekick who seemed to be in the grip of uncontrollable excitement.

"Rau..." Yomo tried to stop him.

"I know a great place, we're almost there!

The latter did not protest, still unable to realize the chain of events he had just experienced. It was then that he noticed some unusual passers-by. Not far from them, three men in leather jackets and caps were following them at a good distance. Too used to this situation, Yomo immediately analysed what was going on. Quickly he caught up with Rau, who was walking along with a smile on his face.

"Rau, we've got to get out of here," he urged with a worried look on his face.

"We're almost there! Don't worry..."

"No, we have to go now. Hurry!" Yomo cut him off and began to pick up the pace, taking a side path.

He pulled behind him a confused Rau who tried to protest, but to no avail. Yomo turned his head and saw the three suspicious men turning behind them and speeding up. He swore inwardly. He hadn't been mistaken. These men were following them. And from the way they were dressed, they were probably from the Mafia. Yomo had learned to identify members of the Gyriad in a year of constant chasing.

"We're being followed," he told Rau, who still didn't understand his comrade's sudden stress.

He quickly turned his head in the direction Yomo was pointing and saw the three men running behind them. Yomo swore and started to run too, with Rau right behind him, still confused by the situation. Running at full speed now, they ran into the park, which was very large. Leaving the paths, Yomo slalomed between the trees, hoping that his pursuers would be deterred by the thick brush that cluttered the path. Fortunately, Yomo was familiar with the woods, which he used to explore as a teenager for all sorts of activities he wasn't necessarily proud of. If he had known that one day this dark side of his life would help him get out of a tail that might go wrong!

"Quick, this way!"

He trailed behind him a Rau still confused by what was going on. Quickly locating the place he had in mind, he finally saw what he was looking for appear in his field of vision. "There!" he thought with relief. They reached a garden shed provided by the town hall for the park maintenance workers. He yanked the door open and hurried Rau inside, following right behind and closing the door with a sturdy piece of wood to act as a barrier.

He knew that the door of this shelter was never locked properly because he had hung around there countless times when he was young and could not get a grip on himself. But he had no time to dwell on these thoughts. A far more dangerous situation awaited him if he was not careful. He had checked that the three men hadn't seen them enter the hut, but there was a good chance that he would find it anyway if they headed in their direction.

Quickly, he blocked the door with a heavy piece of wood that was lying next to it. Standing behind the door, he pressed Rau against the wall and placed his arms on either side of him. They were so close to each other that they could feel each other's breath on their skin.

"What's going on? Why did you bring me here?" Rau asked under his breath, completely lost by the crazy scene he had just experienced.

"We're being followed," Yomo repeated, also trying to regain his breath and his composure. "I think I know who they are and they're dangerous."

He paused to catch his breath, still short from their run a few moments earlier.

"We'll have to hide here for a while until we're sure they've gone.

A little confused, Rau finally nodded. He was about to reply when Yomo suddenly put his hand over his mouth to stop him from speaking. He stopped instantly, his eye on the ground. Then they heard footsteps on the other side of the door. Their pursuers had found them.

"Have you seen them?" a voice said.

"No, I lost them here," said another.

"The dumbass who was with him spotted us, damn it! We can't go back without him, the boss will kill us!

"Let's inspect the place one last time and then we'll tell the boss that he got into his car and that we couldn't follow him," suggested the second. "She won't be able to tell us anything, we're in the middle of town and we don't have a car! And they were in the crowd all afternoon, so it's impossible to kidnap him in this situation!"

The other two seemed to ponder his suggestion before responding.

"Okay, let's do this. You go that way, you go that way and I'll check this area. We'll meet back here in fifteen minutes."

They nodded and dispersed. The two students, who could not hear what they were saying to each other, heard the footsteps of the one who had given the orders to the others going around the shelter. With his hand still over Rau's mouth, Yomo tensed as he heard their pursuer circling around them like this. They were like mice lurking in the shadow of the cat that was looking around to find them. Their hearts pounding, they held their breath as hard as they could in the hope of not being discovered.

The footsteps moved away for a moment, then finally came back towards them from the opposite side. They tensed again. Then they stopped at the door. Suspended from the sounds of the outside world, Yomo could feel the blood pounding in his temples with adrenaline. The footsteps approached the door, and they heard the man trying to open it and shaking the handle. He did not succeed. He shook harder, then kicked the bottom of the metal door. The noise startled Rau. Yomo signalled him to remain silent by placing a finger on his lips.

The latter nodded slowly to indicate that he understood. At the second kick, he instinctively grabbed onto Yomo's jacket. The door had wobbled and they had seen it crumple under its force. The wedge Yomo had placed there would not hold for long.

Slowly, the student bent down and grabbed a metal bar that was lying in the debris on the floor. Closing both hands on it, he positioned himself, ready to strike the intruder. He could take care of one of them without problems, but not all three at once. Praying that the door would resist and that he would let go, he tightened his grip while Rau had closed his hands into trembling fists of terror against Yomo's chest.

The third blow finally came, and the door miraculously held. The wedge that had been on the verge of falling wobbled but finally decided to stay in place, protecting the two fugitives from the angry man who was after them. Silently sighing in relief, Yomo tightened his grip in case their pursuer decided to give the door one last blow but he was called back by the other two who were returning from their search.

"They must have got away," said one of them.

"Come on, let's go home, there's no point in going around in circles if they've already left."

The third nodded, a little reluctantly, but eventually followed them. The two students stood there quietly for a moment before releasing the pressure. Yomo put the metal bar back on the floor while Rau dropped to his feet, shaking.

"Rau, it's all right, they're gone," Yomo tried to reassure him, rubbing his arms vigorously. "You're safe now.

A little bewildered by the young man's panic, he tried to help him regain his composure when he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. It was Nils calling him. Still in a maze of emotions due to what happened, he picked up.