The Impossibilty In Your Capabilities

Iris's head ached with sadness and a cold pain. He wanted to cry, but he couldn't—he had no eyes.

Finally standing up after who knows how long, he thought—with a sharp pain in his heart—that the painting he'd left outside, after running away so suddenly, must be ruined by now.

He knew he should go retrieve it, but what if the stranger was still outside? Waiting for him, for who knows what purpose. The thought of calling the police crossed his mind for a moment, but he had no evidence of an assault.

"Thinks should be fi-ne..." His voice broke as he choked on his own saliva, coughing violently, spitting words between frantic gasps.

Breathing in and trying to find peace again, he calmed himself. "I said 'thinks'... instead of 'things'..." Ashamed, he blushed—but fortunately, no one was around to laugh at him.

Opening the door with trembling hands, Iris tried to be cautious of his surroundings, even if he had no way to know if anyone was near—other than by sound.

But what if the man was watching him from afar, quietly and silently? That thought sent chills down his spine. Panic began to rise, and trying to move as fast as he could, he closed the door and ran downstairs. Thankfully, there was no one for him to bump into.

Rushing to the garden, he went to where the painting should be. He reached the area and began to touch the ground in search of it, but all he found was wet grass that coated his hands in mud.

"Where is it?" he muttered, searching frantically. The feeling of being watched crept over him. He wanted to go back home, but not without his painting.

He kept searching, even expanding the area, but found nothing. What if the stranger had stolen it? Even if that were the case, he had no proof—and his paintings weren't signed, something he now deeply regretted.

Defeated and covered in mud, he returned to his apartment and took a shower. It had been a very bad day.

In the gym, Lilia had to stop the beating Vael was receiving. "That's enough! Redson wins!" she shouted, stepping in and grabbing Redson's arm to pull him away. But he wanted to keep hitting Vael.

"Get off me! This is our sparring!" Redson growled, trying to land more hits on Vael, who lay on the ground, covering himself.

"If you don't stop right now, say goodbye to the gym. You said it yourself—this is a sparring match, not a street brawl. Stop acting like an animal." Redson stopped and looked at Lilia with undisguised hatred.

After a moment of silence, he muttered, "Whatever..." He spat at Vael, still curled on the floor, and left.

"God..." Lilia's gaze softened as she looked down at Vael. He would need time to recover. After her intervention, the crowd's excitement faded, and they began to leave with disinterest.

"You okay, Vael?" He sobbed softly, still lying on the ground, covering his head with his fists, not wanting her to see him like that.

"Come on, stand up... I'm going to treat your wounds in the back room." Helping him to his feet, Lilia made sure to avoid Redson. She didn't want him to see Vael's condition, if he hadn't already.

Luckily, Redson was laughing with his friends in a corner of the gym. With some fortune, they hadn't noticed Vael's state—or else they'd be laughing about it for years.

"What were you thinking, Vael?" Lilia asked, treating his wounds with the first aid kit. "You just moved here, and you're already making enemies?" Vael didn't look at her.

"Say something to me. You're not a kid." Vael grunted in pain as she applied alcohol to his wounds.

"...I had a bad day, that's all... and that jerk pushed me over the edge..." At his words, Lilia sighed, understanding, but her eyes still burned with anger.

"And just because you had a bad day, you're going to hit whoever bothers you?" Vael didn't answer. "If it worked like that, I'd have killed everyone in this gym already—but then I wouldn't have money to eat, and I'd be in jail."

"Would you kill me too, if you could?" Lilia laughed, but there was no humor in her voice.

"Sometimes I really want to kill you, believe me." A chill ran down Vael's back. Her words didn't sound like a joke.

"Look, Vael, you need to learn to behave here. I know the last gym wasn't big, and you didn't get into much trouble—probably because everyone was too busy taking selfies—but this is the city. You have to learn control, no matter how hard it is."

"What are you trying to say?" Lilia breathed heavily before answering.

"I won't let you set foot in this gym again until you learn some self-control, okay?" A pang of guilt stabbed her chest when she saw Vael's face—like a betrayed puppy. But she knew this was for the best, or she'd have to watch him get beaten again and again.

"But I need to train for—"

She stopped him by holding up a hand. Vael didn't understand the decision and felt betrayed by his coach.

"Once you feel better, I want you to leave and learn some self-control..." Lilia walked over to a box and pulled out a dusty book.

"First, I want a summary of this book—in your own words, and written." Vael looked at the cover, which read: Personal Growth and Self-Control. He gave her a weird look. Why did she even have something like that?

"Don't wonder why I have it. What matters is that you read it. Really read and understand it." He looked at her, then at the book, and reluctantly took it.

"Why do you have something like this?" he asked.

"I said don't question it!" she snapped, holding her head like it hurt.

"I really hope you can change, Vael. With that attitude, you're not going anywhere. Learn patience and control."

Vael looked down—not because he agreed, but because he didn't. He believed if he acted differently, people would just take advantage of him.

"...And if I can't change?" Lilia's gaze darkened. She looked at her right leg—a prosthetic.

"Then you'll fail, like I did." Vael looked at her sadly, but she left without another word. He didn't stop her. Instead, he looked at the book in his hands and thought... maybe he'd try to learn something.

With quiet steps, he left the gym through the back door, avoiding looks and any more problems. He thought about Lilia's words the whole way home, not even realizing when he'd arrived.

Trying to distract himself from his situation, he went outside to check if the painting was gone—maybe the boy had taken it.

Climbing upstairs, he greeted a woman coming down. "Good day." She looked at his arm briefly before responding.

"Good day..." Then she quickly walked away.

He finally reached the top and saw, with disappointment, that the painting was still there—just as he had left it.

"He hasn't come out?" Vael wondered aloud, then went back downstairs with a bitter grin. Entering his apartment, a sense of incompletion washed over him.

It had been a bad day—and maybe, just maybe, it was his fault.