The roots of his behavior went way back, all the way to his school days. Back to the day when he was mocked and shunned by his classmates for his biggest passion: hobby horsing. From then on, Jochen withdrew from social life entirely, practically isolated himself.
That day marked the start of a slow process. He talked less to people, rather observed them from distance instead.
He loved watching them.
When you could quietly get an overview of individuals, it was easy to read them. To discover their weaknesses. To study their relationships.
That was information.
Information he could use to categorize people. Information he could exploit for his own purposes.
Later, once he entered the world of employment, he hated his job as an IT guy. He would've much rather become a hobbyhorsing influencer, now that it was suddenly booming. He'd already loved it back then. Back when everyone laughed at him. But now, out of nowhere, people acted as if they liked it.
It was so unfair. It made no sense. He couldn't understand it, and he hated people for it.
But life went on.
One day, when he tried to pirate "The Sims" from some shady website, he stumbled upon the online forum "Osaka Simps." That's how he found Rudi's Bunnyclub.
He immediately fell in love with that filthy little abyss. There were so many people. Nothing but simple-minded puppets. An invitation to play. So he played.
Like with that naive handyman he manipulated into hating his job, quitting, and becoming a streamer instead, only to end up unemployed when the success never came. Absolutely pathetic, but hilarious as hell.
At least to Jochen.
There were plenty more people at the club he could push into existential crises. Nobody ever noticed. He was always just the guy who gave advice. Maybe he phrased something "accidentally" wrong sometimes. If other people beat each other's heads in because of it, that wasn't his problem. Just his entertainment, under neon lights, surrounded by pretty women who made him feel desired. He only ever went for the cheapest ones.
Whether it was Mio or Riri didn't matter. As long as he got a bit of fake attention and enough sex.
The real fun was playing with people.
One day he wondered if he could combine the two. Women and manipulation. He'd been watching two of the sluts. The white-haired one and the other with the big bust.
Thanks to his superior gift for reading interpersonal relationships, he noticed it immediately, of course.
Something was going on between them. Those fleeting, vernom-filled glances. The little jabs after the show. Eyes full of hate. Mischievous grins. Jochen swept up all those clues like some inconspicuous janitor. And they all pointed to one thing.
War.
Of course he already had the perfect idea for how to squeeze the most fun out of the two of them. In his opinion, it was a masterpiece. Simple yet complex. A perfect hit with a multilayered impact on the viewer.
Or at least on Jochen.
And he wasn't about to let this work of art pass him by.
And so he went to Rudi to book a session.
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07:43 P.M.
Phone in hand, Lyra walked down a narrow street framed by gray concrete walls and barriers that had definitely seen better days. Above her, tangled bundles of power lines crossed the sky like wild vines, drooping from pole to pole. The AC units bolted to the building walls hummed together in a quiet orchestra that accompanied the sinking sun.
Then she arrived. Hana wasn't there yet.
Lyra took her headphones out, rolled up the cable, and stuffed it away. The heavy bass still buzzed in her ears.
She sighed, annoyed. Typical Hana. If she set an alarm at all, it was probably for 7:45 PM. And only when that thing rang did she start getting ready.
Hana's apartment building was half walled, half fenced in. Typical Japanese layout: two floors, outside walkways, front doors lined up neatly like obedient soldiers.
Instead of doorbells, the front gate had a small silver keypad. Lyra had no idea how to ring.
Whatever.
She switched from the navigation app to her chat with Hana and started typing.
Lyra:"I'm here. Where are u at?"
Please, Hana. Just show up on time for once. And sober.
She lowered the phone and turned away from the building, looking around a bit. The street stretched past a few parked bikes, up a small set of stairs, then split into different paths. Green vines crawled up the gray walls, giving the dull buildings at least a hint of personality.
"Heeey, broomstick! ~"
Lyra turned back and saw Hana stepping out through the gate, wearing that cheeky smile from her profile picture, one hand raised in greeting. Lyra looked her up and down. Did she dress differently today? Different makeup?
Probably just her imagination.
Lyra raised her own hand in greeting, the corners of her mouth even twitching up a little. She's sober. A weight slipped off her chest. Her eyes flicked to her phone again.
"7:45… who are you and what have you done with Hana?" Lyra swallowed a giggle. Hana didn't.
"Well, if I feel like it, I can be different! I just usually put more effort into not turning into a punctual bore like you," she said with a flirty wink.
Lyra shook her head.
"Try putting more effort into other things instead."
The comment hit way harder than she meant it to. But that was also the damn pill she'd taken hours ago, way too early, when the memories of Rudi had hit too much.
aiwubdawdj. Fucking mouth… fucking pill.
Hana dropped her gaze.
"Sorry… I didn't mean it like that," Lyra muttered, suddenly small.
Hana looked up again. "It's fine."
"Come on, let's go," Lyra said, turning back the way she'd come. Hana walked beside her.
They made it a few feet, the awkward silence tagging along.
"So…" Lyra cleared her throat. "Like I said, Rudi's probably trying to play us against each other. But he also knows I'm not buying his bullshit story about you snitching on me."
Her grip tightened on her bag's strap.
"Oh? Why's that?" Hana tilted her head slighty.
They walked a few steps without speaking, then turned left.
"Because… I confronted him directly," Lyra said, her gaze sinking even lower.
"Seriously?" Hana's eyebrows pinched together.
"You shouldn't have told him that. Now he knows we talked about it."
"Yeah, no shit…" Lyra snapped, unable to come up with anything better.
"What did he say?"
Instantly, the memory shot up, the moment Rudi rummaged in his pocket and pulled out the phone with the pictures. Thanks to the pill, she managed to drown the flashback before it grew teeth. Her words, though, not so much.
"None of your fucking business," she spat way too sharply and froze in place.
Two breaths to steady herself.
"Fuck, I… I didn't mean that," she apologized immediately, turning away slightly.
"Mhm…" Hana's voice was thin, like she'd cut herself on Lyra's words.
They kept walking, a dry silence hanging between them. Hana's eyes stayed glued to the ground. Then she felt a sharp poke in her side. She looked up.
Lyra had jabbed her, but not playfully. Differently. There was guilt in her eyes, and a bit of embarrassment. "Sorry… really. You didn't say anything wrong. It's just… my shitty mouth."
Hana saw it. Her expression loosened and bent into a crooked grin. "It's fine. That's your trademark, after all."
A hint of red crept into Lyra's cheeks.
"What's that supposed to mean??"
With a teasing but warm laugh, Hana walked on. Lyra followed, annoyed and red as a tomato.
The narrow path led them into a covered shopping street. Some of the tiny shops had already closed, while others were just rolling their shutters up, getting ready for the nightlife.
Hana's gaze lingered for a moment on a familiar bar, 'Heaven's Gate', but Lyra caught it with a sharp gesture and a tilted head. Both of them had to smirk, even if it came with a bitter aftertaste.
The traditional lantern lights here glowed warm and soft. But the farther they walked, the more the alleys morphed into a clash of harsh red and cold neon.
When they passed a cigarette vending machine, Lyra picked up the topic again. "Anyways… I think tonight's customer will probably try to pit us against each other too."
She folded her arms. "Could be that he worked out a deal with Rudi that only one of us gets the money, but it's doubled. Something like that."
Hana's mouth twisted, but she nodded.
"Wouldn't put it past him. Rudi just wants his fucking cash."
Lyra laced her hands behind her head and looked up at the tangled power lines above them, like the answer might be hanging up there.
"Exactly… so we shouldn't fall for it. Just play along. I mean, putting on a believable show of a nasty rivalry shouldn't be too hard for us, right?" She chuckled softly.
Hana did too.
"Hehe. Yeah, nobody plays that act better than us."
Lyra dropped her arms and kept going.
"Alright. Then we'll pull it off and split the money after. I'll just let you win. So you can get back the Rudi karma you burned yesterday."
"Oh? And what about your Rudi karma?" Hana tilted her head to the side. "You saved my ass yesterday. You're the one who should win."
Lyra pressed her lips together. "You already took all the blame…"
Then her lips curled into a confident smirk. "But sure, whatever. I would've won anyway."
"Only if the guy's into anorexic girls," Hana shot back, sticking out her tongue.
Lyra rolled her eyes. "You're not funny."
Hana nearly doubled over from laughing.
The plan was set.
Slowly but surely, they slipped into the shady, neon-drenched backstreets.