18/08/1988. Day Six Thousand Five Hundred and Eight One.
"Hey", Chase said, "What was it you wanted to tell me?"
Gregor, who looked grim, dejected, and unresponsive, took a while to reply, knowing something was wrong, Chase quickly sobered his enthusiasm and patiently waited.
"Vary's and I broke up", Gregor announced to his bewilderment.
Now the silence turned into a tug of war between the two, "Dude…", Chase said, dropping the rope, "What exactly happened? You guys seemed to be on good terms, why the sudden change?"
"I do not have the tongue to mouth it", Gregor said, "and I ask that you be hard on your teeth"
"No need for the others to find out"
"How do I interact with Vary's now?", Chase worried, "how do I talk to her without feeling awkward?"
"I don't know man, she's your friend too, you will figure it out", he said while walking away.
26/11/1988. Day Six Thousand Six Hundred and Eighty One.
Stars began to freckle Saturday's evening sky. Gregor was standing in a circle with a group of peers, they engaged in idle conversations, when heads began to turn in the direction of Chase making his presence known as he climbed up the stairway with Tatiana at his side.
"So the rumours were true", came the words of an acquaintance, "He really achieved the impossible"
"Tatiana was supposed to be out of everyone's league"
The faces of these folks are not crystal clear through the pupil of Cretone. In truth Cretone does record every deed, but it also tries to reflect his memories, as a result anyone person appearing on Cretone that was not too close to Gregor appears as a blurry face.
Himself, Chase, and Tatiana are the only crystal clear mortals in this clip.
"How many tried and failed", added another blurred out face.
"Forget that", added another, "how many ran away from trying?"
"Oh, brother don't expose yourself"
"Aren't we all?", they chuckled.
Teenage Gregor had kept his silence and watched his friend approach.
"Hey, you're looking good", Chase immediately complimented.
"You as well, love the suit", Gregor returned the compliment and acknowledged Tatiana's presence with a gentle nod which she reciprocated.
Chase looked around them, "I take it, you weren't able to mend things with Vary's", he said bitterly, "I'm sorry bro"
"Ah it's all good", he replied, "my turn to third wheel"
"Come on man, let's go celebrate it's the end of school"
"Tatiana", sounded Tretone, "If only she was mine", Gregor had thought as the three walked into the ball.
"Pause", Panteku commanded.
Homeless Gregor still had his head bowed, the smile of relief he put on when Chase vouched for him was erased in the presence of shame.
"Before I make my case and bring forth more charges", the prosecutor said, pacing in the roundabouts, "Chase"
"Now that you have heard the thoughts of your best friend, or your alleged best friend as they always are in this court"
"Do you still stand by your verdict? Do you still endorse his administration into Heaven?", Panteku asked casually.
Chase had a good look at the prosecutor. A forehead dented in the inside, it's eyes protruding from its face as if the sockets were punched out of place, making it's gaze all the more intimidating and intense. Yet, with eyebrows so thick and hairy it has strands on the loose, covering parts of the Prosecutor's eyes thus despite the big eyes, it takes a second look to tell the direction of the devil's advocate focus.
"I think…", Chase spoke reluctantly, "…I think Gregor was not the only one who had an eye for Tatiana", he said.
"That's not what I asked", Panteku expressly sighed, "but do ramble on"
"I was aware of it", Chase continued, "Of course I knew he had some interest"
"He and I use to talk about girls for hours", the mortal grew in confidence, "and before I started dating her, Tatiana always came up in our discussions"
"This is no surprise to me"
"so, I do not see the issue…I stand by my verdict"
"You stand by your verdict", repeated the prosecutor, "that's good"
Chase took another pause to look at his friend, "your honour", he said.
"I'm anything but honourable", Panteku corrected, "speak freely, refer nothing of me"
"Well…if Gregor…Homeless Gregor"
"Told me these things back then"
"I would have gotten upset, sure"
"But I wouldn't condemn him to hell for it, no"
"Like a mild headache, the ordeal would have been forgotten after a day or two"
"Sending him to hell for something like that, is in my opinion, respectfully..."
"An overreaction"
"And that my friend, is a consequence of your own personality", Panteku replied, "a decision made on the basis of your own subjective meaning of what friendship should be and how heavy an incident is"
"It has nothing, and I mean nothing to do with the justice of objectivity, not in its slightest form"
"But I cannot and will not force an answer out of you", it mended, "the twenty seven years of friendship you guys shared will shape your feelings and it will eventually put words in your mouth"
"Not me"
"You said that, the subject should make it upstairs on the basis of him being a supportive friend"
"You stand by your verdict, but after listening to the revelations of Tretone, does that argument still stand? How supportive of you was he really?"
"If you still stand by your argument, of him being supportive that is. Do Cretone and this court the favour of pointing out times in your own life in which your dear best friend was supportive of you"
"And I will reveal if it truly was the case"
Chase swallowed, his words scattered in the gulp of it, "I…uh…", he stammered, "didn't use to keep diaries"
"I ask nothing of that"
"Your kind usually remember things in events, not specific dates, you mention these events and incidences and the Eye and Ears of this court will do the hard labour of your speech"
"You have all the time in the world, literally"
"Recall"
Chase appeared more worried for the Homeless man, than he did for himself.
"When I prepare for a trial", Panteku continued, "I only study the lives of a mortal using Cretone, for challenging purposes I do not make use of Tretone. Thus, I do not know how this will play out"
"We both will be gambling"
"Take a bet. Just like old times"
"You managed to defeat him in a bet, now's your chance to defeat me too"
"Objection. Your honour", Ansi finally interrupted from the other side of the court, "This approach is a blatant attempt to manipulate the emotions of the witnesses"
"Denied", handler casually said.
"These witnesses are unable to influence judgement, but they serve as visual aid to enhance the prosecutor's arguments"
"Like the fox and puppy from before, I take it they are merely sounding boards to reason along with"
Panteku had ignored them both, its gaze remained focused on Chase the hesitator.
"Hesitation won't work, you know that"
"So come on then, be more confident of your 'supportive' friend", it mocked.
"He was supportive of my relationships", Chase finally said, "and also there was a time when I lost my job too and had to travel between cities, he supported me during those periods…and…and more"
"Thank you", acknowledged Panteku, "Cretone, Tretone, take use through"
30/03/1996. Day Nine Thousand Three Hundred and Sixty Two.
"Suits are becoming more and more remarkable over the years", Gregor commented while working on his cufflinks, "a few years back, suits were basically tailored potato sacs"
"Hahaha, true", Chase laughed, he too stood before a vertical mirror on the opposite end of the room, "the evolution of suits basically left fat people behind"
"It's not like they were ever going to keep up", Gregor added to their chuckles.
Chase had readied his tie, while Gregor was still messing with his cufflinks, he looked at his best friend through his reflection on the mirror from the opposite corner of the room.
Suspiciously, he kept stealing a look whenever Gregor's blind eye allowed him to, he gestured to speak but seemed too indecisive to.
This back and forth continued until his shirt was tucked, and was putting on a blazer, "Are you going to say what's bothering you?", Gregor finally inquired, "either you're nervous or you have something to say to me", he turned around, "What is it brother? Can't be getting cold feet when you're in this deep", he pointed out.
"I'm not getting cold feet", Chase replied and turned around, "but there's something I wanted to ask you"
"Go on then", young adult Gregor encouraged.
"Hmm. Have you ever asked Tatiana out?"
"Oh"
"That's so random", Gregor said mildly, before sitting on the edge of the bed, "pardon me, I should have told you sooner"
"But it was long before you guys were ever a thing", he confessed.
"I know", said Chase, "she told me everything, and since we are close friends, she assumed I knew, that you asked her out"
"Or I don't know tried to ask her out, in ninth study"
"I knew you were fond of her looks"
"But I had no idea, you were interested in her in that way"
"If I recall correctly you never really admitted ever having a crush on her"
"So, it was very surprising to me that you once asked her out and never told me about it"
Gregor stared at him conspicuously, "what's going on here, am I really getting scolded?", he thought, "Hey, relax bud, we shouldn't be talking about this on your wedding day", he said, "His so full of himself, What a way to rub it in", spoke Tretone, "it's all in the past now", he reassured.
"It is, it is", Chase assured his friend and himself.
"But I still wish you were up front about it, for a moment, I thought that you made the bet that started all of this as a test, to see if I could get the girl that rejected you"
"Well, ouch", young adult Gregor laughed it off, "is what I would have said if I was still interested in her", he defended, "for some people a high school crush is just a fling, for others it's love. And there's only one of us getting married today", he said, "this shouldn't even be a topic"
"My watch says we are a few minutes away from crunch time, let's go focus on the future", he said, "You're going to get divorced in no time", spoke Tretone, "and maybe then you'll stop acting like you are better than me"