To Susumu Yukiko, daily life was a bore.
The radio played the same songs over and over again, erasing a song that might've once held meaning into a mindless combination of strategically placed rhythm and notes. The TV relayed the same kind of dramas and shows over and over again, only under a slightly different name and perhaps a slightly more generic main character. The magazines featured the same models who had the same body type and whose only purpose was to either sell more of a product or send girls into a frenzy of self-hatred.
And Susumu Yukiko, was entirely, utterly, devastatingly bored.
As she walked to the familiar gates of Rakuzan High, her mind focused instead on the concept of reincarnation, spending endless time and energy deciphering different ways a person was able to reincarnate. Her steps were quick but a little bit mindless, as she sometimes would stop her rhythm before starting again, but to a much different tempo.
She paid no attention to the girls in the hallway gossiping over their hair and makeup nor did she pay any attention to the ones talking about their grades. Slipping into her seat, she makes no attempt to extract her materials out of her schoolbag. Her mind is still on the idea of Buddha's interpretation of hell-on-earth when her teacher calls the attention to the class.
"I'm passing out Calling Cards," The teacher announces as he walks to the front row of students and hands them each a stack of cards before urging them to pass them back. "Now, it is very important that you fill these out. Please bring them to me personally after you are done. You have ten minutes."
Susumu makes no attempt to take out her pencil, but she does have enough decency to pass cards behind her. Instead, she places her head on her hands and continues to stare out the window.
Calling Cards were Japan's way of dealing with useless (a better term, the Japanese government decided, was "unmotivated") members of society. Every year, before the end of their first year in high school, students across the nation were asked to fill out their Calling Cards with their intended career or passion. This, however, is set in stone and is unable to change. Therefore, a student who may have put "science" will have to study science regardless if he loses passion for the subject later. Each year, a list of "accepted" Callings are published, unknown to the public, as a way to fill jobs in particular fields and discard unnecessary work. Therefore, if a calling that someone wrote down wasn't on the list, then they get put in the "Nameless" category. Those who refuse their Calling or want to change it after they wrote it down will also be transferred to the "Nameless" category.
No one really knows what happens in the "Nameless," except that its somewhere in an island off the coast of Japan. The Japanese public has no idea what a "Nameless" person does or where they are, except that they usually have limited contact with relatives. Not that any of their families actually wants to contact a "Nameless" relative - that was shameful just by being associated.
Susumu sighed again as she surveyed the room. It was unbelievable the amount of people that was literally sweating over this ten-minute one-question test that determined their fates for the rest of their lives. She reaches into her schoolbag which caught the attention of her teacher who snapped, "No contacting anyone during this!"
She holds up her pencil and the teacher nods in understanding as she slowly shakes her head. How ridiculous was this. She writes her name carefully, wondering how exactly does her pencil glide so easily over this type of card, before contemplating what she was going to put as her intended Calling.
After writing it down, she looked somewhat content with her answer. Time was called quickly after and the class shuffled to the front of the room, each dropping the folded card into a yellow manila envelope before quickly sliding back into their seats. The teacher closed it quickly before sliding open the door and handing it to a rather official-looking man.
"Okay, class, we are going to be going over trig functions in class today. Take out your notes please!"
Susumu looks out the window again. The clouds seem much brighter all of a sudden.
(Nameless)
The amount of sadness on her mother's face when their house received an official document from the Government of Japan with the results of the Calling Card was enough to almost break her heart.
She had been assigned to Nameless and the look of sheer disbelief crossed her doctor father's face. With a hand on her back, he simply said, "I'm sorry" before retreating to his office.
Reading over the letter which also enclosed a bus ticket, Susumu realized that she will be transported early morning at 3:00 am to Nameless. Her parents have a final goodbye before sending her off at the bus station; but somehow, Susumu highly doubted that they would be there biding her farewell.
"I guess I'll go pack." Susumu quickly gets up from the dinner table before heading to her room and locking the door with a click.
To be honest, it would be a lie if she said that she was upset over the decision. She grabbed all the clothes from her closet, which wasn't a lot, before pushing them into a rather large red duffel bag.
When 2:30 hit, her mother wordlessly knocked on her door before revealing her rather tired face. "Yukiko, we'll drive you to the bus station."
"Thanks," She responded back.
The two got in the car and before Susumu can make an effort to ask where her father was, her mother answered, "Your father's sleeping since he has an early shift tomorrow."
She nodded wordlessly as her hands tightened around her duffel bag, thinking the least her old man could do in the 15 years they've known each other was to say a proper goodbye without his work interfering but she guessed that old habits do die hard.
The drive to the bus station was rather silent, not that Susumu would have it any other way. She enjoyed the silence much more than she enjoyed mindless gibberish or forced company. It's not like she had a lot to say anyways.
"Well," Her mother pulled up to the bus station, "I guess this is it."
"Yeah," She answered in monotone as she opened the lock on her side of the car. "Thanks mom."
"Honey – I feel very tired and overwhelmed. Perhaps it's best that I don't see you off. The shock may get to me."
Bullshit. Complete bullshit. And Susumu knew. She knew her mother wasn't actually going to see her off and the ride to the bus station was out of obligation.
It was because she was ashamed.
Her own mother had been too ashamed to say a final goodbye in the last moments due to Susumu's current status (or lack thereof) in society.
Her mother leaned over to give her a hug or a kiss, Susumu didn't really know since she quickly ducked out of the way, "Thanks. Don't stress yourself too much. Tell Father I said bye."
"Goodbye Yukiko."
Susumu quickly exited the car, clutching her red duffle bag as she made her way inside the bus station. She didn't know why she was expecting something to be honest. Half the affection in her family was done out of obligation, the other half was out of appearances. There was never really a time when her family cared for one another out of pure love.
She walks through the glass doors before making her way to the only gate that was lit. The station was eerily quiet and rather dark. She does see someone else waiting in queue though, so she walks up slowly until she's right behind him.
There's this sense of familiarity that washes over her as she stays behind him and she wonders if she's ever met this guy before. She doesn't recognize his face (though his red hair should've been a dead giveaway if she had already known him). Though, there was something about him that just oozed superiority and leadership – enough for her to feel entirely normal standing behind him, staying subordinate.
He turns and introduces himself, "Nice to meet you. I'm Akashi Seijuro."
"Susumu Yukiko," She mumbles, holding out her hand which he doesn't shake. She can't bring herself to even look him in the eye after he so easily rejected her request of acknowledgement – because that was the terrifying power of Akashi Seijuro.
Akashi Seijuro was by no means an ordinary man.
Born into rather high social standing, his everyday life constituted of what others mainly dream of. He woke up to multiple maids and a butler, all of whom listened and obeyed his every whim. His usual routine consisted of dismissing whichever maid had the unfortunate task of preparing breakfast before quickly grabbing his schoolbag from his butler and sliding into the back of a black Mercedes Benz.
But today was rather different. His father, who very rarely showed himself to Akashi outside of dining, walked into his room early morning when Akashi was in the midst of washing his face.
"Seijuro," His father called as he handed Akashi a yellow envelope.
Akashi gave his father a confused look before slipping his face towel around his shoulders. He accepted the envelope without question, though. Slipping his hand inside, he extracted a piece of paper with a list of professions on it.
"I got this year's Callings list." His father responded. "I have circled the one that you will select on today's ceremony."
And something as simple as that made Akashi snap.
Perhaps it was the constant lack of independence thrust upon an already very independent person. Or maybe he finally realized how little control he had over anything – including his life. The Calling Card was supposed to be the only thing that his father couldn't execute his influence over.
Maybe that's why, when Akashi stared at his Calling Card, pen in hand ready to determine the rest of his life, he simply folded it and turned it in, with nothing on it except his name.
"There's something wrong," Akashi mumbles as the two of them sat directly across from one another on the bus in the last row. They were the only ones, save the bus driver, that was on the bus.
Susumu makes no attempt to respond.
Akashi glances out the window on his side, "Weren't their rumors that Nameless is supposed to be on an island? Have you wondered why we didn't take a boat or a plane there?"
Susumu shrugged, "Maybe we're going to a boat now."
"Unlikely," Akashi noted, "We're heading closer inland."
"Hmm," Susumu nodded, suddenly feeling the strangest urge to close her eyes. The heaviness of her lids persuaded her to take a short nap. A couple of minutes wouldn't hurt, right? Plus, it was still dark outside.
"Hey, you okay?" She suddenly felt Akashi's hand on her shoulder shaking her awake. She shrugged him off, before leaning her head against the window, because the feeling of dozing off stared to feel infinitely better than before.
Akashi looks out of the window on Susumu's side of the bus before realizing that his hunch was right. They had traveled further inland, as referenced by the mountains that were easy to spot in the distance. What was old, was the increase in vehicles along the side of the road. Men and women in army uniform quickly plagued his vision. Adrenaline rushed through his veins when he understood what exactly was going on. But that sweet sweet heaviness on his eyelids were so much quicker and he succumbed to the pleasant darkness with his hands still on her shoulder.
A/N This is a Dystopia!AU. This is my first time writing something like this so please tell me if I'm doing something wrong or if I could do something better.
Please review so I know what I can work on!