A Harsh Reality for a Junpei Iori

A fanfic By Troy Hedding

Junpei sighed as he opened the door to her hospital room. He was wearing his favorite blue baseball cap. He wore it because he always had a dream of becoming a professional baseball player, but his father had lost all of the family's saving when he was little so he never had the money to join any baseball teams. He had dark eyes that stared at the form on the hospital bed. He had an goatee, but the rest of his face was clean shaved.

He was wearing a dress shirt that wasn't tucked in his pants. He wore the Gekkoukan High dress coat and pant's as he just finished his school day earlier. His dark eyes stared at her form from the doorway. She had long red hair that flowed all the way down her back and then some. She was wearing a white Goth Lolita dress. It was a contrast to her personality because in the inside she was dark as dark as there could. Everyone thought she was a hateful person, but Junpei knew that she was afraid of something, but what?

She was drawing in her notebook as was usual when it came to Chidori Yoshino. She was beautiful to Junpei Iori, a little bit harsh at times, but Junpei Iori was in love with her. That was sure. They weren't that different when he thought about it. Junpei was picked on his whole life, even from his so called friend Yukari Takeba. He expected that Chidori had some kind of similar experience or living with Strega could have done that to her.

He finally noticed that she was staring at him from the door. A kind of blank stare, that any other person except Junpei would have thought rude, but since he had been around her for such a long time he figured that she was a bit curious as to what the heck was he doing just standing in the doorway like that. He shook his thoughts from the head and walked in taking his usual seat next to the window on the right side of her bed.

"Sup, Chidori?" He asked and as he expected she didn't answer, but just stared at him for a couple of seconds then went back to her notebook.

He dropped his backpack from his back and pulled out a pencil from his pocket and placed it on her bed knowing that she would need a new pencil ether tonight or tomorrow during the day.

"Just don't use it to hurt yourself." Junpei said and she gave him an angry glare. He pretended like he didn't notice.

He pulled out his math book and a sheet of paper to do his homework. He usually did his homework around her. Not that she could help him with his homework it was more like that he just felt at ease around her. It would be a good time as anytime to start his normal rambling. That's what he did. He would just talk and talk. She would draw and draw and that's how their days went by.

"I was actually able to get some sleep last night." Junpei said as he turned the pages of his math book to where his assigned work was at.

"That means I didn't have to try and force myself to stay awake on the subway." Junpei said chuckling to himself. She looked at him from the corner of her eye. It meant to Junpei that she was listening at least he hoped.

"So school was…" He paused. Just exactly how was school today?

School wasn't good today, no not at all. The exams were posted today and Junpei Iori just like all the times before failed. He had found out just exactly as a couple of kids, popular kids walked by. There were a couple of girls there too. One of the popular boys had teased him and since he was popular all the rest of the boys there started to make fun of him. Junpei had been laughed at before. Junpei usually didn't mind that kind of stuff, but there is only a certain amount of this garbage one man can take and so today it broke Junpei. Though he planned to not let it get a hold of him, he was better than that and he knew it.

Junpei forgot the lunch that he had packed for the two of them at home. So instead of going straight to the hospital like he would have wanted to, he instead had to go home and grabbed the food that she so liked. She really didn't eat hospital food, but whatever Junpei brought she would eat. He wished that he didn't go home. His drunken father, who became alcoholic due to losing all his money, had received a phone call from the school saying that Junpei failed his exam again. Junpei father was outraged. Screaming and yelling throwing things at Junpei, how he got to the dorm was a surprise to Junpei, bigger surprise was when he started to chase Junpei in the dorm. He was barely able to get his food out without being assaulted by his father.

Normally Junpei would have just laughed it off, but today Junpei emotional shell was broken and so he had no strength to fight off the reminder of what a harsh reality he lived in and how there was nothing he could do about it. Junpei hid the pain under a smile as he stepped onto the subway to take him to the hospital. The only seat opened was next to a couple of female students from his school. He smiled at them as he sat downed. They giggled and pointed at him. He could over hear the whispering at him. They were calling him stupid, ugly, and a loser, but he shrugged it off he had forgotten about it until now.

He looked up from his paper to stare at Chidori who had stopped drawing (a rare event when he was around) and stared back at him. In that instant Junpei realized that what he was doing was stupid. He came here every day just to ramble on and be in her mere presence hoping that one day she would open up and confessed that she loved him just like he loved her, but that was impossible what girl would love him? He was angry or was he sad? He couldn't tell there was just a storm of emotions flowing though his body at the moment. He wanted to cry. He wanted to scream. He wanted to die, but instead he killed his pencil. He broke it in two in his right hand. Chidori stared at him confused.

"What are you doing?" Chidori asked.

"Homework." Junpei answered and Chidori went back to her drawing.

Junpei sighed and dig for a pencil in his pocket. He looked back at Chidori and in the light from the window her hair gave off a pink hue. She bit her lip as the pencil danced on her notebook. Her eyes followed the pencil every moment. She was beautiful, the most beautiful girl he had ever seen, yet her heart didn't belong to him. It would never belong to him and that realization brought that feeling back again. Was it anger or was it sadness, maybe a mixture of both of them. He couldn't possibly tell. All he could figure out was that he wanted to scream and cry then die. Fist clenched at his side he looked away hoping that she wouldn't see the tears that was building up in his eyes.

"Junpei?" Chidori asked and immediately he went down to his pack knowing that the only time that she called his name was when she was hungry.

"Junpei have you ever kissed a girl?" Chidori asked and the question. Junpei was stunned as he looked up at Chidori. If this was any other girl he would have said yes, but this was Chidori so he shook his head.

"I never kissed a boy before ether." Chidori said as Junpei sat back up.

"Can you do me a favor?" Chidori asked and Junpei nodded his head.

"Could you fluff my pillow?" Chidori asked and Junpei nodded his head.

He stood up and bended down to grabbed her pillow from her back, but before he could do anything she shoot up and kissed him softly on the lips. It was over as soon as it happened. He stood there surprise half bent staring at the red Chidori. Her face was fully red and it was a perfect color to go with her red hair.

"What are you looking at?" Chidori said in an agitated tone.

"You kissed me…" Junpei said barley able to get the words out.

"And?" Chidori asked looking away her face still red.

"I liked it…I liked it a lot." Junpei said and Chidori looked back at him.

"Did you?" She asked and he nodded his head.

"Well you better…" Chidori said and Junpei laughed, but was caught off as Chidori kissed him again bringing him closer to him as the kiss was longer and more passionate.

"Don't laugh love…or I'll punish you." Chidori said and before Junpei could say anything in response she kissed him again.

The harsh reality for Junpei Iori was that Chidori Yoshino was in love with him and that wasn't too harsh at all.

Fin