The Girl in the Corner

A/N: Yeah-yeah, I know what you may be thinking: "Where the hell have you been?" Would you folks believe me when I say I have to balance a job, college applications, my manga series, fan art and fanfics all at the same time?

In truth I have MANY Kid/Chrona fanfics in my Document Folder. Will I ever get them done? In truth in order to write a fanfic properly I have to be in the right mood for it, which is why I often switch between stories.

Anyway, this is a small Alternate Universe multi-chapter that I've been thinking of, and since I recently drew a picture of Kid and Chrona in school uniforms, I figured "What the heck?" and started typing.

I hope you enjoy!

Pairings to be expected are Kid/Chrona, Soul/Maka, and a few surprise ones.

Disclaimer: This is merely a fanfic meant for entertainment and none of the characters present belong to me unless I say otherwise.

Note: The entire chapter is in Kid's point of view.

For some time now, something about her just caught my interest.

She was just so different from the other girls. She never put on makeup, she wasn't talkative, and she wasn't the type who listened to those ridiculous J-Pop or J-Rock bands on a daily basis. Her hair was always a mess and asymmetrical, and she always looked depressed. Her choice of clothing always involved covering as much skin as possible (Even during summer time). Even her school skirt was long in length, reaching down to her ankles. She did nothing in class but stare out the window worriedly and she had a tendency to space out.

Chrona Gorgon was indeed a strange, unsymmetrical girl.

But that's why I liked her.

My name is Death the Kid, but I'm merely Kid to my friends and family. I am 16 years old and I am a part of class 2-A of Shibusen High. My family happens to be the founders of Death City and my father is the current 'ruler' you can say. So you can say that I am a rather highly respected student, along with my step-sisters. I'm treated a bit more professionally than them though, mainly because I am the next heir, as shown by the three stripes on the left side of my head (which shall never be mentioned again).

So why is it that someone like me, a guy who could have anyone he wanted, is interested in the strange girl who always wanted to sit in the back corner of the room? Well let's start from the beginning.

We met just a year ago. Chrona was the new girl who transferred from some country in Europe, and like always she was treated just like any new student was: rudely. No one really talked to her, and some even thought she was a male cross-dresser because she had such a flat chest and her voice was so deep.

Honestly, I didn't even think there was a reason to really approach her despite how much she intrigued me, not until my friend Maka Albarn decided to take the first step and become her first (and best) friend.

I owe a lot to Maka, for if it wasn't for her I wouldn't have met Chrona (Which is why I'm helping her get a date with Soul Eater Evans, who is one of my best friends).

Chrona soon became a part of our little gang, though she tended to shy away and hide behind Maka. There were also times when we would have a group get together and she didn't show up at all, her excuse always being "my family needs me". She confused me at first, and as with all things that confused me, I was hell-bent on figuring her out.

Which is why you will often find me sitting in a desk that was next to her own- preferably the desk that was right to her side- in every class. I would observe her habits- the way she would constantly rub her right arm in a nervous manner, the way she would often doodle or write something in her notebook that had nothing to do with what Sid was teaching, the way her eyes seemed to have that depressing glow to them whenever she stared out the window.

I am no stalker; I'm merely an analyst. I am an analyst who desperately wanted to get to know Chrona Gorgon, the girl who always sat in the corner of the room

She was also the girl who I really liked.

"Hey Chrona,"

I looked up from the book I was reading to find Maka and our friend, Tsubaki Nakatsukasa who is a 4th year student, walking over to Chrona's desk. The pinkette made an adorable squeaky toy sound as she jumped at the sound of her friend's voice. "M-Maka," Chrona breathed in. The way she looked at Maka, that small, shy smile she had on her face- how I wished she would look at me like that too.

"I-I'm sorry that this may be sudden Chrona, but you see," Maka was fidgeting now, wringing her hands, which were behind her back, together, "I-I can't join you in cleaning duty after school." The look in her green eyes was enough to tell me how guilty she felt.

Chrona tilted her head to the side slightly, her already depressed-looking eyes becoming sadder. "Oh?" Was all she let out.

"Y-yeah, you see my papa just called me and practically begged me to spend the rest of the day with him." Maka did an apologetic bow, "Chrona I am so sorry, if I knew earlier I would have said something to Sid and not put us on cleaning duty- but one of us has to stay because no one else volunteered and if I turned down my papa now he'll be crying all night, again."

"It's okay; we just need to find someone else, right?" Tsubaki rubbed Maka's back in a sisterly manner, trying to lighten up the mood.

"But Black*Star and Soul have soccer practice, Patty has to attend a club meeting, and I can't ask you or Liz, Tsubaki, because you two are upperclassman and you shouldn't be taking care of our class-"

"Then I'll take over," I said coolly, interrupting Maka's rambling. I saw this as a good opportunity to be alone with Chrona, really. Maybe she would open up to me a bit.

"Kid?" Maka looked at me strangely, like she didn't expect me to volunteer. She really didn't think to highly of me, did she?

I shut my book and stood up from my seat. "Is there something wrong with that? I always wondered what cleaning the classroom would be like, really."

"B-but you're Shinigami-sama's son, you shouldn't have to do this." Tsubaki nervously pointed out. She was probably thinking that making me have to clean was horrible. If only she knew how much I actually clean back at home (Liz and Patty have no sense of symmetry. I'm always the one making sure everything is perfect and precise).

"It's nothing, really. I'll happily volunteer; besides, it would give me a chance to arrange the desks symmetrically. Is that okay with you, Chrona?" I looked down at Chrona, who quickly looked down, avoiding my gaze. She was clenching her long, black school skirt tightly and I could see she was slightly shivering. Did I really make her that nervous?

"I don't think Chrona is really up to it-"

"I-I-it's okay," Maka's protest was interrupted when Chrona's nervous voice broke through. "I-I don't mind if Shinigami-kun w-wants to…."

There we go with that formal name, again. Chrona's the only one I know personally who calls me "Shinigami-kun". I really wish she would call me "Kid" instead, but she never even tried. Just to have her say my given name would be an amazing thing in my book, as it would be a sign that she sees me as a friend, not Shinigami-sama's son.

"Are you sure Chrona?" Maka was in "overprotective-best friend-almost-sister" mode again. She always got so irritating whenever she was like that.

Chrona didn't respond, and instead looked up shyly at Maka and nodded. "W-well, if you're sure…I'll go tell Sid that Kid is taking my place than…"

Maka gave Chrona a quick hug before walking over to the front of the classroom with Tsubaki so that she could talk to our teacher. I looked at Chrona, waiting for her to say something to me, anything.

All she really did shiver more. I guess she felt uncomfortable under my gaze, which is something I didn't really want.

Hopefully some alone time would make her a bit more comfortable. I cannot put enough emphasis on hopefully.

Later That Day

"Must-make-it-clean-"

I was practically pushing and shoving the soaking mop onto the floor. I was just so intent on making sure the tiles were sparkling, that not a stain was present. I just cannot stand anything messy.

'I didn't realize how dirty the school floors are. Are they all like this?' I thought to myself, dreading the idea.

"Ah-"

A small yelp brought me back to reality, reminding me of the reason why I volunteered to be on cleaning duty in the first place. It wasn't only for the symmetry and neatness, it was also for Chrona.

I turned around and saw her struggling with sweeping the floor. She was holding the broom awkwardly, like she was scared, as she attempted to sweep up as much dirt as possible without getting any dust in her eyes. I could only sigh at the pathetic sight. I quickly set the mop against one of the desks that we moved to the side of the classroom (in a precise fashion of course) and reached for the dust pan that lay on another desk.

I walked to the front of her, trying to avoid the dust that she was just sweeping up into the air, and kneeled down, placing the dust pan in front of her broom so that all the dirt would go into it and not cause any trouble. My actions caught her off guard, as expected.

"Shi-Shinigami-kun," She gasped, stopping in mid-sweep. I looked up at her and smiled, "You can't get anywhere with all this dirt if all you're going to do is use the broom."

"O-oh, s-sorry, I-I forgot." Chrona stuttered her apology, doing a bow, though the way she did it was a bit clumsier than Maka's or Tsubaki's. My smile only grew wider. I stood up carefully so that I could throw away what was in the dust pan, the dirty sight giving me a headache.

"Uh-" Chrona reached out a shy hand and touched the handle of the dust pan, "I-I'll throw it away, Shinigami-kun." I was about to reject her offer, but the pleading look she gave me made me loosen up my grip, allowing her to take it from my hand.

Chrona quickly walked to the other side of the room where the garbage bag was, right across the floor that was still wet due to my constant mopping. I had to remind her that it was slippery, seeing as the last thing I wanted was for her to get hurt on my watch.

As she was throwing away the dirt, I realized that there was a folded piece of paper on the floor where Chrona once stood. Strange, how did we miss that? I picked it up, out of curiosity, and looked at the small folded square. By how it felt, I assumed it was a photograph from some time ago.

"Chrona, did you drop this?" I asked her, slowly waving my finding in the air so that she could see it. She turned slowly- like she was scared to face me- but quickly her usually depressed eyes became wide with fearful astonishment.

"Ah! D-don't look at that-!" That was a first. She actually raised her voice. Whatever this piece of paper was, it had to be important for Chrona started running in my direction as fast as she could. Shit.

"Wait- Chrona, the floor's still wet-" I was too late to stop her. She had already stepped on the slippery floor, causing her to lose her balance and slide back, falling hard on her head and rear end. I could practically hear the "thud" from where I stood.

"Chrona!" Shoving the thing in my pocket, I quickly ran over to her side, almost forgetting for a moment that if I wasn't careful I would have ended up like her. "Ow," She squeaked, sitting up slowly, rubbing the back of her head where a bump was probably developing. The look in her eyes clearly showed she was dazed, like she was seeing stars or something.

"Are you okay?" I asked out of pure concern, looking over her body, in search of any wounds or blood marks. I was reacting to her falling the way that most people would react to someone who got hit by a car.

"I-I'm fine-" She sniffed. Using my hand as support, Chrona attempted to pull herself back onto her feet. But as quickly as she slipped, Chrona came close to falling back down on the floor. I quickly caught her though.

"Does your leg hurt?" I asked, placing her down carefully on the floor. She looked at me fearfully and started shaking her head. "N-n-n-no- I- I just-I-just-" She's not giving me a clear answer. Chrona was the type who would deny pain so she could avoid becoming someone else's "burden", so I figured she was just trying to not cause me trouble.

"Tell me where it hurts. If you're injured I'll take you to Nurse Nygus." I reached down and grabbed the hem of her skirt, ready to lift it up to her knees so that I could check on her lower legs.

"N-no!" Both of Chrona's hands reached out and touched mine, physically telling me to stop. Her hands- I didn't realize how strangely rough they were until I felt them. "Chrona, I need to check on your leg. I would never be able to forgive myself if you were hurt and I did nothing of it!" I sternly told her, staring at her frightened blue eyes. I probably sounded a bit harsh, but that was how I felt. Honestly.

I slowly lifted up Chrona's skirt, being careful not to fully startle her. I didn't want a panty shot or anything like that; I just wanted to make sure she was okay. Clearly she was hurting in her legs and couldn't stand up properly.

And what I saw made me realize why.

I only pulled the skirt about a few inches away from her ankles, and I already could see the scars and bruises that stood out due to her pale complexion.

Obviously these small wounds were from some time ago by the way they were colored, though some seemed to have been inflicted as recently as yesterday. You don't get this many by merely slipping on a wet floor.

All of these scars and bruises. They instantly screamed "abuse" at me. And they were only on her lower legs. Than what did that mean for the rest of her body that she desperately tried to cover?

"C-Chrona, where did you-?"

I couldn't finish my question, for Chrona had shoved me away in an instant, causing me to topple down onto the floor. She stood up despite her sore legs, and was clenching her skirt tightly.

Chrona looked down at me with tears in her eyes, her lips quivering as if she was trying to say something.

"I-I-I-" Before I could say anything to her first, Chrona quickly ran out of the classroom, despite her legs, in tears, shouting "I have to go to the restroom!" Leaving me where I sat on the floor, too much in shock to really do anything.

Those scars- Those bruises-

"Chrona, what are you hiding?"

A/N: So what do you guys think of the first chapter? I hope it's even a bit interesting. I do a lot of studies on Child Abuse, since it's a topic that interests me greatly. So I decided to incorporate it in this fanfic.

If you can and you guys think I should continue, leave a review.

Thanks for reading!