Rebel And His Cause
Shige lived life the way he wanted.
(Disclaimer: Whistle! (c) Daisuke Higuchi)
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Appearance was important to his parents; it was necessary for them to look constantly respectable and neat.
Shige bleached his hair, dyed it bright blonde, grew it out, and made sure it was constantly messy. He untucked his shirts and rolled up his sleeves and never did up his collar properly. Respectable be damned, he would bust through doors and be loud about it!
His parents disapproved of the young punk guys nowadays who got all sorts of earrings and miscellaneous piercings and tattoos. If life wanted you to have tiny holes all over your body, it'd give them to you at birth, they said. Otherwise, life would make you a girl; girls were the ones who got their ears pierced.
Shige pierced his ears five times. He would defy the norm, and he wouldn't listen to any one else; just to himself, and he would look damn good doing so.
Humble, subdued colours were in his parents' good books; bringing attention to yourself with bright colours was simply arrogant and immature.
Shige wore bright, colourful shirts, collected funky bandanas, and wore flashy jewellery. To hell with being humble and subdued; life was too short to wear boring clothes. He wasn't going to fade into the wallpaper; he was going to stand in the middle of the room with all eyes on him.
Respectable people were modest and humble about their abilities, said his mother. They didn't brag.
He was good at a lot of things - there was no denying it, so why not let the world know, too? What was wrong with being honest about how good he was? Why waste his time denying things? What was the point, if you could back up your bluff? He wasn't going to keep quiet about his talents; everyone would know that he was the Shige Satou, and he wasn't ashamed of it.
Good children studied hard and got the best results that they could get in school.
Shige sneaked out of the house as often as he could to play with his friends, kick a soccer ball, and get into the occasional punch-on. He was a growing boy, after all, and he was tall, so he needed to stretch his legs and get fresh air and exercise! Being cramped at his desk just wasn't comfortable, not to mention incredibly boring and tedious.
Most of all, he hated being confined to his room; sometimes, it was almost like a jail. Shige wanted to breathe.
Good people spoke graciously and didn't act like clowns. They were civil and rational and kept in line, and didn't do stupid, daring things.
Someday, Shige was going to make a legend for himself; he would turn the world upside-down, and people would whisper his name behind their hands in wonder. And he would do it with his wild hair, numerous piercings, bright clothing and accessories, loud voice, and even louder attitude.
Shige lived life the way he wanted.
He ran down the streets, arms spread out on either side of his body, wind rushing through his wild hair, backpack swinging from his hand, and a wide smile on his face.
He was free.
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