Chapter 93: Changing tides
Wes Oakley stood with his hands in his pockets, his white hair streaked with black tips slightly ruffled. Dressed in a simple green shirt and shorts, he exhaled before speaking.
"Alright, most of you know me already, but I’ll say it again. Wes Oakley. Twenty-two years old. Before this whole mess kicked off, I was a track star. One of the fastest sprinters in the country. Was even on my way to competing on the world’s biggest stage."
Junjio, ever curious, raised his hand. "How did you even have time for personal goals with everything going on? The alien attacks, the chaos...?"
Wes raised an eyebrow, caught off guard by the question. He scratched the back of his head. "Why would I let an event that never affected me slow me down? And even if it had, I’d have pushed through it. The world doesn’t just stop because we’ve been attacked twice in three years. That’s two bad days out of, what, over seven hundred?" He shrugged. "Unless you were in one of those places that got nearly wiped off the map, most people just kept going. New leaders stepped in, things adjusted, and life moved on."
Junjio’s shoulders tensed, his eyes lowering as he rubbed at his arm. "Oh... I see. Sorry, I didn’t mean—"
Wes noticed the sudden shift in Junjio’s demeanor and immediately put two and two together. His chest tightened as he realized what he’d just said.
"Damn, kid... you were there, weren’t you?"
Junjio gave a slow nod, eyes still downcast.
Wes let out a breath and ran a hand through his hair. "Look, I didn’t mean to be insensitive. I just... I don’t always think before I talk, alright? We can touch base later if you want."
Junjio nodded slightly but stayed quiet.
Wes sighed and quickly moved on. "Anyway, let me show you what I can do."