Disclaimer: I do not own anything having to do with Hana Kimi except for the manga I bought honestly. I do not own the characters, the original story manga plot, or anything else there in. This is purely for entertainment value. Nothing else. This is the only time you will see this disclaimer. The disclaimer is implied in the continuing chapters.
A/N: Yay, new Akiha and Umeda story! I couldn't resist. I love this couple. This is going to begin during their high school years, go through college, through the manga, and most likely beyond that ending. I've been doing lots of research and making lots of notes from the information contained in the manga. However, I am only human. I do make mistakes. If you see something that is information-ally incorrect please let me know and I will fix it immediately. I have no idea how long this story is gonna be. It's already up to 22 pages on my computer and it's not even a 1/3 written. LOL So this is gonna be a long one, people. I have no idea when I became an exclusively Hana Kimi fan fic writer, but this series just keeps breeding new ideas in my mind all the time. I hope this will make you laugh, cry, and squee in glee. :-P
Big huge thanks to Deathnotebliss who has graciously offered to be my beta. You are awesome!
Warning: Spoilers for the entire series. For the entire story: Gay sex, high school kids and gay sex, foul language, teenagers smoking, drug use, alcohol use, and insanity. I think that covers everything...
Enjoy!
Hate to Love You
By: MyDirtyLittleSecret
Part One
High School
Chapter One
This time I wonder what it feels like
To find the one in this life
The one we all dream of
But dreams just aren't enough
So I'll be waiting for the real thing
I'll know it be the feeling
The moment when we're meeting
Will Play out like a scene
Straight off the silver screen
-Gotta Be Somebody, By: Nickelback
Akiha Hara had crush on Hokuto Umeda the second day he was at Osaka High School. If Akiha had been the one to vote who the best looking guy in that high school was it would have been Umeda. He had felt that way the instant he first laid eyes on the older boy in the cafeteria. He remembered thinking I want to talk to him. They way they met face to face was actually really stupid and somewhat embarrassing. Their first meeting seemed like a metaphor for the rest of their relationship. Wondering why?
Well, it was because Umeda slammed a door in Akiha's face.
Yeah, that's right. A damn door. Painfully blocked by Umeda that very first minute, and from then onward it seemed. How incredibly ironic. Mission failed before he'd even gotten a word in edgewise.
Akiha could remember it all perfectly. He'd been walking down the hall close to the wall with his head down. He'd been looking at the print out of his class schedule. It was only his third day at the high school. He'd been so absorbed in that stupid piece of paper that he hadn't even noticed anything else. Then WHAM! Then out of the blue the bathroom door came flying at his face. It connected with a loud smack into Akiha's forehead. One second he'd been up. The next he was sitting on his ass on the floor, clutching his head. His books were scattered around his feet and his papers in disarray in his lap.
He sat there in a dazed confusion, wondering what the hell had just happened to him. He blinked in surprise when he heard a smooth, clear voice say, "Oh…sorry." He'd looked up into a pair of amber eyes and was captured. He thought his heart might have stopped beating. He knew for sure he'd stopped breathing for half a moment. He remembered staring, blankly, at those eyes. He wondered if it was even possible for someone to have eyes that color.
"Hey, stupid! You ok or what?" that voice asked rudely.
Akiha blinked a couple times. He finally managed to focus on the rest of the boy's face. Wow. That was all he could think. The rude boy in front of him was beyond beautiful. He'd looked amazing sitting across the cafeteria. Close up the boy was gorgeous. He had the most beautiful mahogany brown hair he'd ever seen. His skin was flawless and pale. His school uniform clung to his form in a way it didn't for any of the other boys. The pants outlined the shape of his hips and the thin, long length of his legs. His sweater showed off a trim chest with somewhat broad shoulders. He was all perfect, lean lines.
A black haired handsome boy appeared over the first boy's right shoulder. "Is he ok?"
"I dunno," The amber eyed boy shrugged. "He hasn't moved. He doesn't look like he's bleeding."
"Great. Well, you take care of him. I have to get to class. I have duties to attend to," the black haired boy said airily as he waved good bye.
Akiha really didn't take much notice of the conversation or when the black haired boy left. He just kept right on staring at those amber eyes, which had narrowed in annoyance.
"How many fingers am I holding up?" The boy asked.
"What fingers?" Akiha asked dumbly, to intent on the boy's face to notice anything else.
The boy rolled his eyes. "Christ, I must have knocked you stupid. C'mon." He leaned over to help Akiha to his feet before slinging one of the blond's arms around his neck. He slipped his other arm around Akiha's waist to support him. "I'll take you to the doctor's office. What the hell were you doing walking that close to the wall? Who are you anyways?"
Akiha swallowed hard and forced his mouth to work. It was a little hard to concentrate while being half carried by this amazingly attractive boy. Every place their bodies touched seemed to tingle. "I'm Akiha Hara. First year. I was looking at my class schedule."
"Newbie, huh? Hell of a way to start the school year," the boy remarked with an amused smirk.
"Uh, yeah. Who are you?" Akiha asked. He had to know this boy's name.
"Umeda Hokuto, second year." The boy answered.
Second year. So Umeda was his sempai. "Thank you for helping me, sempai."
"Well, I couldn't just leave you there after slamming a door in your face. Even I'm not that cruel." Umeda muttered in annoyance.
A few moments later they arrived at the clinic door. Umeda pushed open the door and walked in. "Hey, Sensei! This kid needs to get looked at."
The doctor, an older man in his mid-30s, got to his feet and walked around his desk. "What happened to him?"
"I smacked him in the face with the bathroom door on accident." He helped Hara sit on the edge of the clinic bed. He glared when the doctor gave him a scolding look. "It wasn't my fault! He was walking to close to the wall." Umeda explained defensively.
"What's your name?" The doctor asked Hara.
"Akiha Hara, sir," the boy replied.
"How many fingers am I holding up?"
Umeda snorted. "I already asked him that question."
"You are not a professional licensed doctor," the man replied off handedly as he held up four fingers in front of Hara's face.
"Four," the boy answered confidently.
"You couldn't even answer that question when I asked you?" Umeda looked annoyed.
"So Mr. Hara, how are you feeling?" the doctor ignored Umeda.
Akiha forced himself to smile cheerfully. He had to pull the mask back together that Umeda had briefly broken down between the bathroom door and the clinic. "I'm fine. It was nothing really."
"Nothing?" Umeda's eyebrows went up. The kid had seemed pretty dazed before. He began to frown. Something wasn't right.
Akiha laughed casually. "I was little stunned, but I'm alright now. Please, don't worry about me."
"You sure, Mr. Hara. It sounds like you got smacked pretty hard. You might have gotten a concussion. Do you feel dizzy, nauseas, blurry vision, or lightheaded?" the doctor asked him seriously.
"No, nothing. I'd just like to go to my class," Akiha answered, smile kept firmly in place. He didn't want the doctor touching him. He wasn't worth being fussed over. He was just lucky to be in this high school. He didn't deserve it. He had to get better at acting happy. He had to be grateful. He couldn't cause trouble.
He didn't notice Umeda's face take on a suspicious expression. The boy wasn't fooled by Akiha's act. He'd seen the blond honest reactions only moments before. What he was seeing now was completely fake. There was something wrong with this kid. And it wasn't physical.
"Well, Mr. Hara, if you do have any of those symptoms please come straight back here. I will want to keep an eye on you if you do have a concussion. They can be serious so don't act like there's nothing wrong if you aren't feeling well. Got it?" the doctor quirked an eyebrow up at the kid. Even he knew there was something off, but he wasn't about to force the boy to talk.
"Yes, sir. I understand." Hara replied seriously.
"Good. Now the both of you get the class. Here are some late passes," the doctor handed them slips of paper then directed them out the door.
Umeda stood next to Akiha for a moment, eyeing the other boy up and down. Really, the boy was pretty damn cute. He was tall and willowy with ginger colored eyes and flaxen hair. He was a little to thin though. That blond hair was definitely real. It was to perfectly highlighted to be dyed. He had a nice smile too.
Akiha shifted uncomfortably under that scrutinizing gaze. His heart sped up the longer to other boy stared. "What?" He asked self consciously.
"You're really ok? You're not just lying so the doctor would leave you alone, are you?" Umeda asked shrewdly.
"I'm alright." Akiha replied, trying to sound sincere. Honestly, his face hurt. His forehead throbbed from where the door had connected against his head. He probably was going to bruise. That'd look great, he sighed. The first week of high school and he'd be walking around with a big huge bruise on his forehead.
"Right, well, I gotta get to class. Don't walk so close to the wall anymore. See yah around." Umeda turned and walked away. He needed to get to class. Ryoichi would give him shit about smacking that poor kid in the face, but he didn't care. As long as he got to sit next to the darkly handsome boy he liked he was happy.
Akiha watched him hurry off with a sigh. He wished he could have gotten to be around the other boy longer. Sure, Umeda was a little blunt and rude, but he was kind too. He didn't have to take Akiha to the clinic. He could have just left him there. Umeda really was gorgeous. He hoped he would see more of him. He turned in the direction of his class, but couldn't help looking back one more time to watch Umeda as he disappeared around the corner.
/
Umeda hadn't really meant to take such an interest in the new freshman, Hara. He was trying to figure out whether the blond was a great actor with his disgusting cheerful, social act or if that was indeed his real personality. Thing was, when Umeda hit him with the door, Hara had acted like someone else. He'd been quiet and dazed. He had been kinda cute with that confused, stunned look on his face. His face had been the most honest in those few minutes. So Umeda was bemused and suspicious. This was usually a cause for concern for whoever it was he had his attention set on. He was determined to find out about Hara.
Umeda started to keep an eye out for the blond. For a private school and a small student body, he didn't see Hara all that much. However, they were in different dorms; Umeda in Dorm 2 and Hara in Dorn 3. Go figure that Hara was in the drama dorm, thought Umeda. They were also in different grades so their classes were on opposite ends of the school campus. It was not like Umeda was getting obsessed about the blond. There was just something off about Akiha's behavior and he wanted to know what was up with that. The curiosity was killing him.
He did see the blond at the cafeteria and wandering through the school halls. Within a about a month of being at the high school the blond had become very popular in his class. His unusual hair color and cheerful personality drew people to him like a magnet. He was always with a group of people whenever Umeda saw him. It irritated Umeda even more. He couldn't understand how they could be so taken in by such a fake persona. Didn't any of them see the lie in that smile? Or was it just Umeda that could see the truth since he'd witnessed the blond's true self first hand. He'd liked the boy then. The vulnerable side he'd seen had been attractive to him for some reason. That always smiling, happy crap that Hara pretended to be was annoying since it was false. It was when Umeda decided to not bother about figuring out Hara that he ran into the other boy for the first time since the door incident. This time Umeda bumped into Hara in the gardens…literally.
Umeda had been reading his book as he walked down the path between the flower beds to his favorite place to sit and chill out. At this hour, the gardens were usually deserted. Most of the other students were inside their rooms rushing to finish their homework before curfew and lights out. So Umeda wasn't exactly paying attention to his surroundings as he walked. He certainly didn't see the blond until he tripped over him. He went down in a heap—book flying out of his hands. He heard someone else yelp and a clatter of plastic on the ground. He rolled over and sat up, pushing his glasses back up his nose—which had nearly been dislodged when he fell. Sitting across from him, clutching his head was Akiha Hara.
"Shit! Sorry! Are you alright?" Umeda scooted over to the boy's side.
"The corner of your book hit my head." Akiha gasped in a pained voice. He cracked an eye open, scanning the ground in concern. "Where's my camera?"
"Camera?" Umeda looked around and spotted a plain black camera lying in the dirt next to a rose bush. He reached over and snatched it up. He brushed off the dirt before examining it more closely for damage. It didn't look any worse for the wear despite its trip to the ground. "Here it is. It looks fine. I'm sorry. I'll pay for it if it's broken."
"No. That's alright. It's not that great anyways. I'm gonna get a new one soon as I save up enough money," Hara replied taking the camera. He checked it over himself before handing Umeda back his book.
They sat there in awkward silence for a minute.
"So, uh, you like to take pictures?" Umeda asked.
It was a stupidly obvious question.
Hara smiled; a true happy smile. Umeda blinked in amazement. The boy was really cute like that. He was holding the camera reverently as he began to talk with that smile on his face. "Yeah I do. Pictures help me capture good memories. It makes me see the world in a different way."
"Different how?"
"Beautiful."
As opposed to it looking like what? Umeda wondered. "Are you part of the photography club?"
"Oh no. It's to late to get involved. I didn't sign up at the beginning of the year like you're supposed to," Hara replied a touch sadly.
"They won't mind if you join late. People do that all the time. You should join the club if you have such a passion for photography. Otherwise who's gonna see your pictures besides you? You're not gonna keep them to yourself are you? That'd be a little selfish," Umeda remarked offhandedly.
Akiha stared at him in bemusement. "I'll think about it then."
"You do that."
"Thanks, Sempai!" Hara grinned cheerfully.
Umeda shrugged. "You're welcome." It was then he realized Hara's cheerful mask was back in place. He frowned. It'd only taken a few seconds for Hara to pull it back together. Was physically hurting the boy the only way to get him to act like his real self?
"Ne, Sempai, I didn't know you wore glasses," Hara sat forward with a teasing smile.
"I wear them when I read, because I have astigmatism," Umeda replied loftily.
"I think they make you look older," Hara remarked.
The way he said it had Umeda looking over suspiciously. The kid didn't know he was gay, right? Was the blond? He hummed in thought as he fished around in his pocket for his pack of smokes. That had been his real purpose in coming out here anyways; to read and to smoke. He didn't like smoking in the dorms, because he had to run the fan in the bathroom and a fan in the room to make sure no one smelled it. Then there was always the possibility that the RA would smell it if he was doing a walk around outside to make sure all the students were in for the night. Smoking in the garden was the only place he could do it and feel completely worry free about it. He ignored Hara's big eyed stare as he flicked open the pack, shook out a cigarette, and fished out his lighter.
"You're a smoker, Sempai? Aren't you worried about getting caught? Don't you know how bad those are for you? You could get cancer!" Hara babbled in shock.
"And I could get hit by a truck and die tomorrow," Umeda replied sarcastically as he lighted his cigarette before taking a deep drag. "I won't get caught if you don't say anything."
Hara sat back. "I won't say anything."
"Good." Umeda flicked the ash into the flower bed.
"Don't do that! It's bad for the plants!" Hara gasped, swiping the ash away from the rose bush.
The other boy rolled his eyes. "What do you care? It's a damn flower bush."
"But it's beautiful. It should be taken care of properly," the blond replied passionately.
Umeda's eyebrows went up in disbelief. "Um, oook. That's a little weird."
"Things that are beautiful in the world disappear. That's why I take pictures of them. I want to remember them the way looked at their best." Hara twiddled his fingers as he tried to explain himself. He knew it didn't make sense to anyone else. There were other reasons why he took pictures, but those reasons were ones he never talked about. Not to anyone.
Umeda just shrugged it off. "Whatever."
"You're really weird to, Sempai," Hara pointed out defensively.
"Yeah so," Umeda smirked knowingly.
Akiha couldn't tell him that he liked him, because of that. At first, it had just been attraction to the other boy's gorgeous looks. Akiha liked Umeda more now, because of his personality. He was rude and uncouth. He didn't try to fit into a mold like almost everyone else did in the school. He was everything Akiha wasn't strong enough to be. This boy didn't hide behind smiles and pretend merriment. He looked people in the eye and said what he thought out right. Akiha wanted to be closer to the boy. He wanted to know everything about him so that maybe he could learn to be himself like Umeda.
This moment here, as Umeda sat smoking while Akiha began to take pictures again, was probably the true beginning of it all. Both eyed each other when the other wasn't looking. Each wanted to know more about the other—wanted to figure each other out. It would be the nature of their weird association for years to come. They could already feel, even vaguely, that this was the start of something even if they couldn't understand what that something was just yet.
/
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I'm really looking forward to hearing from all of you and getting your opinion. See you all next chapter!
