Number 7

"Which is why we are pleased to invite you to this event, Mrs. Hazika. Ahaha, of course we wouldn't forget about you! You're the first person on our list of important guests to invite. Ah, of course you'll be allowed to bring bodyguards and personal servants, but please make sure to bring your own identification. Yes, I understand. I understand that we shouldn't need to run any checks on someone of your status, but please understand that everyone at this event will be important people on the same level as you, and we certainly wouldn’t want any impostors. No, I do understand. Of course, nobody could imitate your beauty - but even so, we must be absolutely certain."

A particular red haired man sat at his desk once more, talking on the phone with a grand smile as he cheerfully spoke to the older woman on the other end.

"Hahaha! Of course, I know that. It's obvious that nobody we could invite could be more important than you. But even so, I have to insist. I'm sure you understand that gathering so many of this country's leading figures in the same place is always a reason to have extreme caution. Alright. I understand. Thank you. No, really, thank you. It's always been a pleasure doing business with you, and I hope we can work together again in the future. Alright. Bye then."

Click.

As he placed the phone down, the smile that the man held immediately wrung itself about his face to become a deep seated frown.

Grabbing a pencil, the man looked down at a list below him, checking off a name.

"That makes Number 50... so that should be everyone."

With tired eyes, the man seemed to transform the moment he got off the phone, from a cheerful and enthusiastic salesman to that of a person who dreaded the very act of living.

'Why is it that now all of a sudden I've become so... tired of dealing with these people?'

Something had changed.

When he had gone out and witnessed the streets of this City, something had stirred within the heart of Bradley Vendetta.

'I thought... I thought that by sucking up to those who were important... by doing what those above me wanted... that I would somehow be able to become more and more important. But why all of a sudden... do I feel like everything I've been doing is wrong?'

Ring! Ring!

As Bradley had these thoughts, the phone rang once more.

And as soon as it did so, the smile returned to his expression.

"Bradley Vendetta, Moria Financial Regional Vice President. What can I do for you?"

"Hey... um, it's me Bradle-"

Click.

Slamming the phone down as soon as he heard the voice, the man returned to his work as he began to type up a report.

Ring! Ring!

However, the phone kept ringing once more.

"Bradley Ven-"

"That's the third time you hung up on me like that!!! I know you're busy... but... can you at least give me the time to speak with you?"

"If that was the third then it's about to be the fourth. I have no need to speak to you, Anna. You're not a client, are you?"

"I'm... I'm not, but-"

Click.

Ring! Ring!

"Bra-"

"It's Friday at 4 o'clock!!! What work do you still have to do at this time!? I waited all week to talk to you, so could you please just let me do that much?"

"Sigh... maybe giving you my business card was a mistake. You know, this office phone doesn't let me block numbers, and I can't tell who is calling until I pick up, so I have to answer it every single time in case it's a client."

"I want to go out to eat with you."

Ignoring the harsh statements of the man, the woman on the other side forced this proposal on him, to his surprise.

"Go out to eat with me? Anna... ah... ah..."

Holding his hand to his forehead in annoyance, the man let out a long winded sigh once more.

"Maybe I need something like that..."

With just this light whisper, the man spoke to himself, yet the woman on the other end didn't fail to catch this.

"Of course you need it! You work and you work endlessly all day, always dealing with so many issues. I'm sure you'd be tired. So why don't you just take a break for once?"

"You know, I never used to be this tired. For some reason, this week has been different. Everything I've done has been the same as usual... but it's all been so much more exhausting. Ah... fine. Alright. Fine. We'll go out. What type of food do you want to eat?"

"Ah... well, I was the one who invited you out, so I guess I should be paying... which means that we should keep things within my budget-"

"Absolutely not."

The woman seemed to weakly trail off, however she was immediately cut off by the man who spoke with heavy handedness.

"I will be paying, and we will go wherever you want. I never go out to eat with my coworkers, and do you know why that is?"

Lowering his tone, the man spoke with a firmness.

"It's because IF I do ever go out, then I pay. Period."

"What kind of rule is that? You force yourself to pay for others, but because of that you never go out in the first place? That's the kind of thing that will only make you more... alone."

"It's helped me get to this point so far. Why should I change anything if it's always worked?"

However, as the man asked this question - one which he normally would have asked with certainty - he felt himself waver.

'It... has always worked... hasn't it?'

"Bradley."

It was at that moment that the woman spoke, a firm determination in her voice - and his very clock seemed to stop as the man sat in that desk, alone on a Friday.

Everyone had likely left work early at this point, prepared for the weekend, yet he alone remained in the office.

For he was in charge, and if anything went wrong, it was his responsibility.

"You... you need someone."

Pausing for a moment, the woman spoke with confidence.

"Let's have Koravich food this evening. Can I count on you to pick me up from my apartment?"

"I'll be there at 5 exactly. If you aren't ready at that time I WILL leave without you, and I WILL eat without you."

"Alright! See you then!"

Click.

The line was cut off.

The man sat there in his desk, the phone to his ear as he stared off blankly, unsure what had just happened.

Nothing remained now but the buzzing of an empty call, and as the man stared forward, he didn't bother to remove the phone from his ear.

Instead, he merely listened.

'Am I truly... living the right way?'

----

"Well aren't you all dressed up? What's the occasion?"

"What do you mean by that!? We're going out to dinner, so of course I would dress up a bit."

"Well, you were out on time, so I suppose it will be the two of us."

Bradley waited outside the apartment in his sports car as a gorgeous blonde woman approached, wearing a dress that made her appear as if she was an elite - despite the shoddy apartments she was living in.

"Very well. But you know, you really seem to like Koravich food. You served me pasta when I visited here, and now you want to go out to eat it? Are you from there or something?"

"I'm not from there, but my father is Koravich, so I'm half Koravich."

"Hmm... I see. And your mother?"

"Stronvardian, of course."

"I see."

As the two drove off the man seemed to be thinking in silence as the woman watched him intently.

However not a word more was said between the two during that drive.

----

"I'll have water to start. As for her... what do you want?"

"If... if you're ok with it, I'll have wine."

"Very well. One water and one wine for the Lady. I'll have those right out."

The two found themselves at a high class restaurant.

The tables were not filled, despite the fact that it was a Friday night. For the most part, this place was empty.

However this was solely because of how expensive this place was.

"Bradley... I want to talk with you."

"You've had plenty of time to talk to me, and yet you decide to wait until we're sitting down to talk?"

"You... you're completely alone, aren't you?"

Hitting the man with these words, Bradley straightened himself up as he faced the woman with a serious expression.

"I can tell. By the way you pushed me away, even after doing something so kind... by the way that you seemed to reject me, and by the way that you're always working... you don't have anybody, do you?"

"Why would I need anybody?"

The man posed this question in response, placing his hands on the table as he closed his eyes with a sigh.

"I used to fight a lot. I caused a lot of trouble, and angered a lot of people. I fought to be on top, and eventually I was left with nobody on the same level as myself. And when I realized that... I realized that I was doing everything wrong."

Shaking his head, the man seemed to caress his fist with a bitter consideration.

"I realized that in this world, fighting can only get you so far. So I decided to fight in a different way. I became good at talking. I no longer spoke with my fists, but with my words. I talked to a lot of people, laughed alongside them, and I eventually figured out how to rise in the real world - the world beyond that of mere children. It was completely different from what I had thought when I was young, but I adapted. I became calmer, I became more social, I became more genuine. I learned how to put on a smile and speak with a gentle tone to those important people above me. And now... here I am. So tell me. What's wrong with doing things that way?"

"Bradley. You say that you've improved, but even if your method has improved, have you actually improved?"

At that moment, glaring into his eyes, the woman spoke with a sharp tongue.

"Have you ever actually tried to be on the same level as others?"

"Why would I want to be on the same level as someone else when I could be above them?"

Yet the man responded as such.

Thinning his eyes with suspicion, he merely grinned with a sarcastic tone as he spoke.

"Making friends... having a relationship... forming a family... these are all things that reduce a person. They prevent a person from moving upwards. They halt people in place, because they begin to fear. They fear losing those people. They fear going ahead of those people. And so they become complacent.”

Thinning his eyes, the man spoke with a serious tone as he opened up to the woman.

“I have never allowed myself to become stuck where I am."

"So you've moved up without any concern for who... or what you become?"

As the woman stated this - the eye of the man seemed to twitch.

"What... I've become?"

As if the very term offended him, he froze in place, his hands twitching as he was unable to say anything in response.

And then, he laughed.

"Hah... haha.... hahaha... you’re a funny one."

Closing his eyes, the man opened them to see that the waiter was approaching with their drinks.

"Ah, thank you."

The man received his water before the two placed their orders, and the waiter quickly rushed off to inform the chefs.

"Where were we?"

As he grabbed his water to take a sip, the woman spoke with sincerity as she gazed directly upon him with concern.

"Why do you seem to be so against forming a relationship with anyone?"

And as the woman stated this, the man caught himself before dropping the very glass he drank from.

"So that's what you want to know."

Slowly, the man's hand lowered as he placed the drink down on the table once more.

"Fine then. I'll tell you."

Leaning back in his seat, the man spread his arms as he gazed upon the woman with a bitter smile.

"The reason why I refuse to befriend anyone... no... even further... the reason why I won't get into a relationship with any woman is simple."

Leaning forward, the man folded his hands as he whispered to the woman with eyes filled with hatred for the very world around him - including himself.

"I am the Vice President of Moria Financial. I've built myself up. I've been successful in everything I've ever done. And if I were to ever find a woman who claimed to love me... then I would always be plagued with one simple question."

Raising a finger, the man leaned in closer as he whispered into the ear of the woman.

"Is the person she loves Bradley Vendetta... or is it the man in the suit?"

As he pulled his head back, the man sat in his chair, a stern expression on his face, and the woman seemed to come upon a realization at that moment.

However as she was overcome with surprise, that surprise quickly shifted as her expression became sincere.

"I don't know that man."

Speaking in a firm tone, she made her declaration before Bradley as she spoke without hesitation.

"I don't know this man in the suit that you're talking about."

It was then that the woman grabbed the arms of Bradley, holding them as she stared into his eyes with force.

"You may be wearing a suit right now... but that man is not you."

And then, with a crisp smile, the woman spoke with gentleness.

"You are Bradley Vendetta. And I don't know anyone else within that mind of yours."

And as the woman made this statement, something overcame Bradley.

Everything seemed to cave in on him, and his mind went blank.

He felt his eyes become teary, yet he did not cry.

He merely sat there, unmoving - for any movement would reveal the trembling in his very being.

"Is... that so?"

With a gulp, the man nodded.

"Then... will you accompany me a little further?"

"I will."

The woman's response was without hesitation.

He did not know or understand why a person could look at him with such eyes.

He could not comprehend why someone would have such gentleness in their expression, or why they would put forth so much effort in order to ease another.

And this broke him.

"Thank you."

Holding one arm to his eyes as he covered them, the man choked up as he spoke with remorse.

"I... want to change."

Taking a deep breath, he looked up to the woman.

"Will you help me so that I no longer have to fear the man in the suit anymore?"

"I will."

Gripping the hands of the man tightly, the woman responded with kindness in her tone.

And there were only two words which could possibly express the feelings of Bradley Vendetta at that time.

"Thank you."

----

"Bradley Vendetta speaking. Oh, Mr. Trapson! How have you been recently? Wonderful! So, what have you called me for today? Oh? Oh, is that so? Alright, I'll look into that for you. Alright. Thank you. I'll email you once I find out. Alright. Thank you. Bye then."

Bradley had returned to work the following week, however the light had changed in his eyes.

He had spent the weekend with Anna.

On that Friday night, he had driven her home, and she had invited him inside - which he obliged to.

They had relaxed with some tea in the late hours of the night. The woman hadn't drank much wine, so she was almost completely sober, and they were able to converse without restraint.

And they talked.

And they talked.

And they talked.

Of course, the reason why Bradley had not drank any wine himself was because he had to drive. He would never risk such a scandal as drunk driving, given his position.

The two had stayed up until 4 AM that night, telling each other stories about their lives.

Bradley had told the stories about how he was the leader of a gang of delinquents in his young years.

"I fought tooth and nail, formed allies, made enemies, experienced betrayals, but eventually I made it to the top of my school - even going as far as to fight the gangs from the schools around the area."

As he recanted his life story, Anna had listened quietly as the two had sat on the couch that night.

"Yet after defeating all of them and standing atop them all, I felt so empty - as if I had accomplished nothing."

The ruckus of those who were partying outside had gone on throughout the night, but at some point it had quieted down, leaving the two to chat in silence.

"My father wasn't around - I didn't know where he was, and I never particularly cared. But at the time, my mother fell ill and was hospitalized. It was at that time that I decided to give up on that lifestyle, and instead shifted my focus to more realistic things."

Pouring out his heart to the girl, Bradley had perhaps found a trust in her that he had been unable to place in any other human.

"I made a number of promises to her. That I would go on and be successful, that I would do everything properly, that I would give up the fighting and become a decent member of society, and that I would make enough money to pay for her hospital bills."

Furrowing his eyebrows as the red haired man was forced to recall his dark past, he spoke with a pained expression as he uttered his next words.

"However, I was too late."

"What... what happened?", Anna asked as she looked at the man with concern.

"The treatment she needed was expensive, and I hadn't even finished high school. Even while working a part time job outside of school, I wasn't able to come close to being able to pay for it."

Choking up, the man forced out his next sentence.

"And so my mother died."

The woman who sat across from him placed her hand to her mouth in shock, unable to come up with any words to comfort the man, however he continued.

"Left alone in the world, I was stuck - wondering to myself if everything I had ever done was wrong. I cried, I shouted, I raged - but nothing changed the fact that my mother couldn't be brought back."

With a deep breath, the man regained his composure as he continued.

"So I considered what I needed to do - and I came to a conclusion."

With a firm tone, the man spoke in a straightforward manner - dedication burning in his voice.

"For the sake of my mother... even if I couldn't provide her treatment anymore... I would become an upstanding member of society... even if it killed me."

This was his resolve - and this was the reason why Bradley had changed his ways so drastically.

"I applied myself. I went from a failure to a star student. I went to college and received some government grants in order to pay for it. And finally, I joined a company.", Bradley explained.

"I worked my way up by pleasing clients, taking everything on myself and more - and my skills as a leader that I had gained from leading all of those gangs seemed to poke through in the workforce."

As someone who had once taken over numerous gangs, taking control of a large team or even an entire company was no issue. He was able to use his charisma and people skills to distribute tasks according to skill, and the teams that he managed began to excel at everything.

This led to numerous contracts and clients, and Bradley was able to rise through the rankings without resistance.

"However, looking back on everything, I came to understand one thing."

"What was that?"

Without a single objection, Anna had continued listening to the man, only speaking to probe him forward.

"The comrades that I fought alongside during my gang life were nothing more than subordinates who lost their respect for me the moment I left that world.", Bradley admitted with a sour expression.

"They were impressed with my leadership, but that was only during the times I led. As soon as I left, I found myself unable to so much as meet up with any of the people that I once considered my allies."

"So they... abandoned you?"

"Well, not exactly. Many went on to join actual criminal gangs. Others, like me, decided to give up and live decent lives. Others still would go on to die as a result of these activities. Yet... I could never bring myself to feel sorry for them - for they had chosen that path on their own."

With a grim tone, the man whispered to himself.

"Perhaps my bond with them was simply that shallow."

As Bradley opened up to Anna like this, a question posed itself within his mind while he was forced to recall his past.

Was he any different than before?

His activities now were legal, but had he changed at all?

He was a leader. He was loved, and charismatic.

But if he left this world, would anyone actually miss him?

Certainly, his presence as a worker would be missed.

His presence as a leader would be missed.

The things he could have accomplished would be missed.

But would HE be missed?

And as Bradley thought these things by the side of the woman - he came to an answer.

No.

He would not be missed.

He would be replaced, and eventually everything would normalize.

Just as it had before in the delinquent world.

'But...'

As he looked up to the woman, Bradley was surprised to notice that she was no longer in front of him - but now right by his side.

And she hugged him.

"It'll be alright."

As she held him, she whispered these words into his ears as she reassured the man.

"Everything... is going to be alright."

And those words were enough to make this fully grown man want to cry.

"Even if nobody else in this world is here for you... even if nobody else in the world cares for you... I'll be right here."

----

Work continued.

Progress continued.

Yet even though the cheerfulness with which Bradley treated his clients did not change, his demeanor outside of his calls seemed to have changed - for he became more cheerful overall.

"Thank you! Thank you so much! Alright, bye then."

Click.

As he hung up the phone, the man's expression did not return to a dreary one - but instead the smile remained.

"Now then... I suppose I should check my portfolio, shouldn't I? Haven't done that in a while..."

As the man started opening up some tabs, a knock was heard at the door.

"Come in!"

A young black male walked in the door, dressed up in a business suit as he bowed lightly to his boss.

"Vice President Sir, all the preparations have finished for the event this Wednesday. Everything has been set up, the only things left to do are the final preparations the morning of."

"Oh, wonderful news Robin! Tell everyone thanks for their hard work, and I think that once this is all over I'll consider giving everyone a bonus. Ah, but don't tell them that part just yet."

"Thank you Sir! I'll do that!"

With an energetic bow, the boy smiled as he left, leaving the man alone in his office.

'I suppose the day is coming... haha... well, I suppose once this is over I'll try to spend a bit more time with Anna.'

These were the thoughts that the man had as the day of the event approached.

However, no amount of mental preparation, strategic planning, or charisma could possibly prepare him for the tragedy that was about to occur.