Kyle, the Loner

Section 1: An Unexpected Encounter

The next morning, Dinello decided to pay Kyle a short visit at the hospital.

He still felt a little bad about the day before. What started as another stupid prank had ended with Kyle unconscious upside down in a garbage can.

After breakfast, Dinello left home and headed for the hospital, racing through the streets at his usual speed of nearly eighty kilometers per hour.

As he passed Kissena Park, an ugly but familiar face suddenly caught his eye.

A man in a polo shirt was sitting alone on a bench.

Joey.

Dinello squeezed both feet against the pavement and skidded into a sudden stop.

SCREEECH—!

But his momentum carried him straight past the bench.

“Hey, Joey! Long time no see!” Dinello called as he went sliding by.

He finally stopped about ten meters away, turned around, and casually walked back.

Joey looked at him.

“Oh. It’s you, Canelo.”

Dinello glanced at the bubble tea in Joey’s hand. “I’m heading to the hospital to see Kyle. He got admitted yesterday. What are you doing here?”

“Oh, nothing.” Joey leaned back comfortably on the bench and took another sip. “I’m off today. Got nothing to do, so I’m just chilling here by myself. Enjoying some peace and quiet.”

“Oh.” Dinello nodded. “Then why don’t you come with me? We can visit Kyle together.”

Joey stopped drinking.

He leaned back slightly, a clear reluctance showing in his eyes. After a few seconds of silence, he seemed to suddenly remember something.

“Oh, right. I actually have something I need to do today.”

Dinello looked at him.

“So I probably can’t make it,” Joey added.

“Okay.”

Dinello gave him a casual wave. “See you around.”

“Later.”

Dinello turned and took off down the street again.

Before long, he arrived at the hospital. Just as he reached the entrance, he spotted another familiar figure walking along the sidewalk.

Jessica.

Dinello slowed down and approached her. “What are you doing here?”

“Just taking a walk. I happened to pass by.”

Without much thought, Jessica reached into the pocket of his Zhongshan suit and pulled out his phone.

“My phone’s dead,” she said, tapping the screen. “Let me use yours for a minute. I need to check my email.”

Dinello didn’t seem to care.

Jessica glanced toward the hospital entrance. “What about you? What are you doing here?”

“I’m visiting a friend. Kyle. He got admitted yesterday.”

“Oh.” Jessica looked through the glass doors. “I’ll come with you.”

Dinello hesitated. “I don’t know about that.”

“Why?”

Dinello rubbed the back of his neck. “It’s just… probably not the best time. Kyle’s been having a rough time lately, especially with girls. I don’t know how he’d feel if I suddenly walked in with a hot girl.”

Jessica looked at him for a moment.

“Fine. I won’t go inside the room.” She slipped his phone into her pocket. “I’ll just walk with you to his room.”

Dinello thought about it, then nodded. “Okay.”

Jessica smiled and immediately wrapped both hands around his arm, pressing herself close against him. The two entered the hospital that way, walking shoulder to shoulder as they headed upstairs toward Kyle’s room.

A few minutes later, they arrived outside Kyle’s room.

Dinello stopped by the door, leaned closer to Jessica, and whispered into her ear so Kyle wouldn’t hear him from inside.

“Alright. I’ll come find you later.”

Jessica smiled. Without saying a word, she leaned in and gave Dinello a quick kiss on the cheek.

Then she released his arm, turned around, and quietly walked away down the hallway.

Dinello watched her disappear around the corner before turning back toward Kyle’s door.

Section 2: Hospital Visit

Dinello quietly opened the door and stepped into the room.

Kyle was already awake, sitting upright in the hospital bed with a bandage wrapped around his head. An overbed table had been pulled across the bed in front of him. An open notebook rested on it, with a pen still in Kyle’s hand.

Kyle looked up from the notebook when he heard the door.

“Oh. Canelo.”

“Hey.”

Dinello walked inside carrying a bouquet of white chrysanthemums. He had spotted them outside a flower shop on his way to the hospital and casually grabbed them as he passed.

Kyle stared at the flowers, his brows drawing together slightly.

“You brought those for me?”

“Yeah.” Dinello held them up. “Do you like them?”

Kyle looked at the white chrysanthemums for another moment.

“Aren’t these the kind of flowers people bring to funerals?”

Dinello glanced down at the bouquet.

“Oh, come on. What are you, like, 102 years old? Young people don’t care about that stuff. Flowers are flowers.”

He found an empty vase beside the bed, stuck the chrysanthemums into it, and adjusted them until they stood upright.

Then his attention shifted to the open notebook on the overbed table. The pages were covered with lines of handwritten text, repeated over and over.

Dinello leaned over for a closer look.

“What are you writing? A novel or something? Some kind of absurd kung fu world in Flushing City?”

Kyle rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

“Oh, well. If I were to write this novel, I’d put it like this: despite being two of the top kung fu masters in the world, we’d still be complete losers in romance—doomed and destined to be single forever.”

Kyle looked at him. “What do you think about that setting?”

Dinello didn’t answer. His eyes remained fixed on the notebook.

“Seriously, what the fuck are you writing?”

“Oh, this?” Kyle glanced down at the pages. “It’s just a punishment. Pastor Simon told me to copy this stuff.”

Section 3: Silent Brainwash

Dinello looked at him with mock seriousness.

“Oh, what have you done, you pig? Did you rape someone?”

“No, no, no.” Kyle kept his head down, adjusting the notebook on the overbed table as his pen continued moving across the page. “About a week ago, I masturbated. I felt guilty about it, so I told Pastor Simon myself. He assigned me to copy this passage five thousand times.”

He moved on to the next line without looking up. “I’m almost there.”

Dinello stared at the pages packed with the same passage over and over.

“This is beyond ridiculous. Pastor Semen has crossed the line. He’s got you wrapped around his finger.”

Kyle kept writing.

“I’m gonna find that motherfucker and have a good talk with him.” Dinello paused. “I might even break his kneecaps.”

Kyle immediately put his pen down. A trace of anger entered his voice.

“Oh no, you won’t.”

Dinello looked at him.

“Oh yes, I will.”

“Okay, listen, Canelo.” Kyle stared at him seriously. “If you really, really do break Pastor Simon’s kneecaps, maybe one day you’ll be walking down the street, and a car will come out of nowhere, run you over, and you’ll die on the spot.”

Dinello stared into Kyle’s deeply convinced eyes for a moment.

“Oh shit. You’re deeply poisoned.”

“You know nothing about fate.” Kyle’s expression hardened. “If you keep saying stupid bullshit like this, we won’t be friends anymore.”

Both of them fell silent.

An awkward tension settled over the hospital room. For several long seconds, neither of them spoke or moved.

Then—

Creak…

The door slowly opened.

A tall, stunningly beautiful young woman stepped into the room. Her fitted Zhongshan suit was neatly buttoned from top to bottom, outlining her graceful figure. Her hair was tied back in a long ponytail, and a sword rested across her back.

For a brief moment, it almost felt as though a goddess had descended into the dull hospital room, her presence instantly brightening the entire space.

It was Jessica.

Section 4: An Unexpected Girlfriend

Kyle’s eyes instantly lit up.

The pen slipped from between his fingers and dropped onto the overbed table. His mouth opened slightly as if he wanted to say something, but no words came out. For a moment, he could only stare at the stunning young woman standing in the doorway, caught by a strange rush of excitement he couldn’t quite describe.

Dinello was just as stunned. He had never expected Jessica to come back, much less walk straight into Kyle’s room.

Jessica seemed a little awkward herself. She stood by the doorway with Dinello’s phone in her hand, knowing full well that she had just promised not to come inside.

“Hey, Canelo…” she said. “You forgot your phone. I just came back to give it to you.”

She held the phone out toward him.

Dinello took it from her, scratched the back of his head, and gave an awkward smile.

“Oh… how clumsy of me. Heh heh…”

Jessica looked at him.

Dinello looked at Jessica.

Then both of them looked at Kyle.

Kyle suddenly smiled.

“Oh, Canelo, who is this? Your cousin? Your classmate?”

There’s no way she’s Canelo’s girlfriend, he thought. Not in a million years.

“Ah, this is…” Dinello glanced at Jessica. “She’s…”

He paused for a second.

Then another.

Jessica apparently decided she had waited long enough.

“Oh, actually, I’m Canelo’s girlfriend.” She smiled at Kyle. “Nice to meet you.”

Kyle’s face twitched.

But almost immediately, a huge smile spread across it.

“Oh, Canelo! You lucky dog!” Kyle laughed. “Why didn’t you tell me earlier? I’m so happy for you!”

Dinello and Jessica exchanged a quick glance.

Then they both finally relaxed.

Maybe they really had worried too much. Kyle didn’t seem bothered at all. If anything, he appeared genuinely happy for them.

Dinello smiled.

“Haha, yeah. We just happened to be in the same class, and then we just happened to get together later.”

The awkwardness quickly faded. Before long, the three of them were chatting and laughing as if nothing unusual had happened.

Nearly twenty minutes passed.

Eventually, Dinello and Jessica decided it was time to leave. Jessica wrapped both hands around Dinello’s arm again as they reached the doorway.

Dinello opened the door, and the two of them turned back together.

“Get well soon, Kyle!”

Kyle gave them a bright smile and waved from his hospital bed.

“Thanks for visiting me!”

Dinello and Jessica waved one last time before disappearing into the hallway.

The door closed behind them.

In the end, it had turned into a surprisingly warm conversation between the three of them.

Section 5: Should I Save Him?

After leaving the hospital, Jessica headed home while Dinello wandered alone through the streets.

Everything had seemed fine back there. The conversation had been warm. Kyle had laughed with them, congratulated him, and even seemed genuinely happy that he had found a girlfriend.

And yet, for some reason, Dinello still couldn’t stop thinking about him.

He walked with his head slightly lowered, his eyes unfocused as the hospital conversation replayed over and over in his mind.

Maybe I really am worrying too much…

Without noticing, Dinello stepped off the curb while the traffic light was still red.

WHOOSH—!

A car shot past directly in front of him, missing him by inches. The driver slammed on the horn.

BEEEEEEP—!

Dinello kept walking.

He didn’t even look up.

Still lost in thought, he crossed the street and wandered into Kissena Park.

Not far ahead, several gangsters had surrounded a man in a polo shirt. The man was down on his knees, his face swollen from a beating and his clothes stained with urine.

It was Joey.

Standing directly in front of him was the real Canelo.

Canelo calmly pulled up his zipper.

ZZZIP.

Then—

SLAP!

His palm cracked across Joey’s face.

“How dare you? I’ve been out here taking people’s money for this long, and you’re the first motherfucker who ever fought back!”

SLAP!

He struck Joey across the other cheek.

“You gonna fight back again?”

“No! No!” Joey covered his face. “I’m sorry! I’m so sorry!”

Then, through the legs of the gangsters surrounding him, Joey suddenly spotted a familiar figure walking past in the distance.

His eyes widened.

“Canelo! Help me!”

Dinello continued walking with his head down.

“Hey, Canelo! Help me! Please help me!”

The real Canelo stopped.

Joey desperately stretched one hand toward Dinello’s disappearing figure.

“Canelo! Canelo! Help me!”

The real Canelo stared down at him in disbelief.

“Hey, I’m the one beating you up, and you’re calling my name asking me to help you?”

He looked at the other gangsters.

“This guy must’ve gone insane already.”

The gangsters immediately descended on Joey again.

“Wait! No! I wasn’t talking to—AHHH!”

Fists and shoes rained down on him.

Meanwhile, Dinello continued deeper into the park without ever looking back, still completely absorbed in his thoughts about Kyle.

By the time he returned home, the question was still circling in his head.

Should he interfere? Should he leave Kyle alone? Was Kyle really okay?

Dinello dropped onto the couch and turned on the television, but barely registered what was playing. After sitting there for a while, he picked up his phone and called Jessica.

“Hey,” he said when she answered. “Wanna come over tonight?”

He paused, staring blankly at the television.

“I really want someone to talk to.”

Hours later, around midnight, Jessica lay naked against Dinello’s bare chest, her body curled comfortably around him beneath the sheets.

She lifted her head slightly and looked at him.

“Hey, Canelo. I can tell you’re still thinking about Kyle.”

Dinello remained quiet.

Jessica rested her head against his chest again.

“Kyle has his own life. You don’t need to worry about him so much. If he’s happy following that Pastor Semen guy and doing those assignments, maybe you should just let him live the way he wants.”

Dinello stared quietly at the ceiling.

Maybe she was right.

Section 6: The Big Red Exclamation Mark

The noon sun spilled into the apartment, flooding the bedroom with a harsh, honest brightness.

Dinello slowly opened his eyes.

Jessica was still asleep beside him, resting peacefully against his bare chest. He stared at the ceiling for a few seconds before carefully reaching for his phone on the nightstand.

The first person that came to mind was Kyle.

Despite everything Jessica had told him the night before, Dinello still wanted to know how his friend was doing.

He opened their conversation and typed:

“You feeling better today? Hope you’re doing okay.”

He hit send.

A big red exclamation mark immediately appeared beside the message.

Dinello’s expression froze.

Jessica stirred against his chest and slowly opened her eyes. When she noticed him staring at his phone, she smiled sleepily.

“Oh, so what did he say?”

Dinello didn’t answer.

Curious, Jessica lifted her head and looked at the screen.

“Message failed to send. You’ve been blocked by the recipient.”

Jessica’s smile slowly faded.

Dinello continued staring at the screen.

Neither of them said a word.

On the other side of the city, Kyle sat alone in his bedroom.

The blinds were closed, leaving the room dim except for a few thin strips of daylight slipping through the gaps. There was no music, no television, no sound at all.

Kyle sat hunched on the edge of his bed with his arms resting loosely on his knees.

“Looks like I’m the last one…” he whispered.

He stared at the floor.

“The only loser left in the whole damn world.”

A short, bitter laugh escaped him.

“I’m all alone again.”

Silence.

After a while, Kyle slowly raised his head.

“Only Pastor Simon understands me. Only he sees me.”

His voice was quiet but certain.

“From now on, I’ll follow him. I’ll give everything to him.”

Kyle stood and walked over to the nightstand. He picked up a bottle of antidepressants, took his usual dose, then climbed back into bed.

He lay flat on his back, his eyes wide open and unmoving.

For a long time, Kyle simply stared at the ceiling.