ACT I:
Her frail hand, dressed in bandages wavered; box cutter in palm.
Her blue eyes, fixated on the sharpened blade hovering over her wrist.
She sat still on the cold floor of her dark bathroom, the only light rayed through the periwinkle curtain draped over a single window across from her. In all other sense, all was dark.
Click.
She lengthened the blade.
Click, click, click.
It was the length she was comfortable with. Her exposed arms told her story and displayed her experience with sharp objects. She had done this before, so many times that old and fresh lines decorated from the top of her arm to the bottom of her wrist.
Cutting wasn't anything new, but this morning was different…
She was going to make a permanent decision.
She stared blankly at her artery. Pressing the blade forcefully to her wrist-
Knock knock.
The girl gasped, reality filling the air around her. Her mother's voice called out behind the white wooden door.
"Iki? Are you in there? Why is the light off?"
Her breathing stopped and she rose to her feet, sloppily hiding the box cutter in her drawer and rolling her black uniform sleeves down. "I'm getting ready, I have the window open."
"Oh… I see." The mother bought it. "I made breakfast for you, so when you're ready, come down and eat."
"Okay, mom." She heard the woman walk down the small staircase. When she heard the fifth step, the girl released a small sigh, placing her palms on the counter. She stared at her dreadful face, the one she hated so much that had been beaten so many times. It had cleared up over the summer, but she knew it wouldn't be for too long…
Someone always found a reason to kick her around.
She flicked the bathroom lights on, picking up her brush and working out all of the knots in her long dark brown locks. She fixed the bangs across her forehead, then brushed the rest of her hair behind her ears, pinning it back with black bobby pins.
Her eyes glanced over at the bowtie resting next to her school bag. She always hated that part about her high school uniform - the bowtie always choked her.
If it was going to choke her it may as well went all the way instead of making her uncomfortable for several hours.
She popped her collar and tied it on despite her feelings towards it. Folding over the white edges and brushing down her pink uniform skirt. The girl re-opened the drawer she tossed the box cutter in and pulled it out, giving a long stare at her reflection in it and retracting the blade. She placed it in her skirt pocket.
"It can wait…"
With that, she shut off the light and made her way downstairs.
There in front of the school was a crowd of students mingling. They separated into their own little groups, some recognizing one another, others, new freshmen who didn't know anyone. They all seemed to walk, to talk.
To fit in.
Ikinoe Yamiji, sixteen years old, second year at Senbonzakura-Koukou was standing in front of the open entrance, students floating past her. She didn't want to go in - no; she really didn't want to go in.
But Iki had to. She had to suck it all up and face the territory which wanted her to die so much. Senbonzakura-Koukou was Hell, and its students were the demons ruling its land.
Surely, there were no such things as angels at this school, and if there were, well, they'd never bother with someone as wretched as herself.
A huff escaped her lips. Iki took a step forward, the feeling of another student's shoulder running into her. She stopped, startled, holding her bag close to her chest and tucking her head in.
"Ah, sorry." The boy waved to her and kept walking with his friends, continuing their conversation, the very one which caused him to be unaware of her presence to begin with. Iki bit her lip and ran around the corner, leaning on the side of the grey brick wall. Students only glanced at her as they walked through the gate.
She inhaled, and exhaled, an anxiety attack coming on full force. Her hands turned cold, her knees shook, and her mind swirled with terror. Why? Why did she have to go through this?
What had she done to deserve this everyday struggle? She traced her footsteps back, walking back around the stone of the front gates and then hit her back against it, letting her hair hide her face as many other students passed by, walking in the school.
She wanted to weep. Iki wanted to scream and cry, but nothing released. Only the quiver in her lip and the squeeze of her bad gave her comfort.
A boy standing about five seven with tan skin, light brown hair and auburn eyes walked down the sidewalk to his school, shoulders down and unconcerned about the first day. He was dressed in a tannish uniform sweater, and wore his white dress shirt with the first couple of buttons undone. A pair of footsteps could be heard darting towards him. A body rammed itself into him and wrapped its arm around the boy's neck.
The boy gasped, but instantly knew who had tried to tackle him.
"Morning, Kazuki!" Said the bottle blonde hanging on him. The boy turned to look at him.
"Hey, Ryu." He simply replied; hand in black uniform pocket, free hand on school bag slung over his shoulder.
"... Aren't you ever excited?" The blonde pouted, getting off of Kazuki and walking beside him. He had very short hair and matching crystal stud piercings on each ear. He wore a black sweater vest and white collar shirt sleeves rolled up to his elbows. He had matching black pants, and didn't bother wearing his black tie either.
Kazuki looked him up and down. "Thought you were going to drop the delinquent look when school started."
Ryunosuke laced his fingers behind his head, laughing through his nose with a wide grin. "I was. It was gonna' make my mom happy. But this is who I am, y'know?"
"Right."
"Hey…" Ryu grinned, looking at Kazuki's showing collarbone. "Your tie isn't there. Don't think you're any better than me!" He poked Kazuki's collarbone and started tickling him.
The brunette's face deadpanned, then instantly broke into laughter. Ryu only kept tickling him even more, the two causing a bit of a scene. The perks of having a friend from elementary school-
"Who is that girl…?" A girl whispered. "And why is she just standing there?"
"Those blue eyes with that hair… Kind of creepy, right? Since they still look Japanese, it's like she's wearing contacts…"
"They're like ice." Another mumbled.
"Hey, I recognize her." Said a male student. "That's Yamiji Ikinoe-san… She's the only one who has blue eyes and goes to our school."
"Know her that well?" His friend replied.
"Nah. We were in the same class in middle school. She never really talked much. Poor girl still doesn't have any friends I guess."
"Why don't you go and talk to her?" The boy gave him a nudge.
"No way. It'll be like talking to a brick wall. Already tried that in middle school."
"Wow!" The other laughed.
Ryunosuke and Kazuki's eyes lifted, looking over at Iki with confused stares. Ryu released Kazuki, scratching his head and clicking his tongue. "Jerks. She can hear you, y'know." He peered in closer, sizing her up. "She does look a lil' creepy though… Like a doll. But when you look closely, she's kind of cute, ain't she?"
Kazuki didn't hear a word. He only straightened himself up, staring intently at her with a blank expression. His eyes only widened a bit when he noticed her shoulders shaking and how tightly she was holding her bag. Her knuckles started to turn white from the grip.
"... She looks kind of pale, don't you think?" The words slipped from his lips.
Ryu stopped, then looked over at his friend. A smirk formed on his face and he shuffled in closer. "Don't tell me you like her?" He winked and then nudged him hard in the side.
Kazuki gasped, and then let his eyebrow twitch. "No, man. Let's just go." He started walking ahead.
Ryunosuke looked disappointed, following behind. "And here I thought you were actually interested in someone for a change..."
A loud slam echoed in the bathroom. Iki's head smacked against the stall door. She lost her footing, gravity taking its toll and leading to her tumbling onto the cold floor tiles. A sound escaped her throat upon contact, and she made an attempt to sit herself up.
A foot pressed down on the center of her chest. She craned her blue eyes to the witch casting a shadow over her.
"I didn't expect to see you so soon." Her lips curled into a menacing smile. Surely, this was the daughter of the principal, and Iki was simply her favorite toy there. She took pleasure in ripping her soul out, tearing her heart into shreds, then disposing of all of the pieces - then throughout the week, wash, rinse, repeat.
Iki narrowed an eye at her, not showing the slightest hint of fear. She was simply tired at this point. Iki had given up on trying to fight she, who was the demon princess; ruler of every evildoer lurking in those halls.
Why she targeted Iki? Simple - they had known each other since kindergarten. It was Ikinoe who dragged the most attention towards her with her charismatic personality and vibrant eyes. Mikuni, the girl with a grudge against Iki, felt as if Iki had continuously stolen her prized friends from her from kindergarten to the beginning of middle school.
However, that first year is when it all went downhill.
Mikuni pushed her foot down, a wicked smile spreading on her face. Her straight black hair dangled in front of her eyes. "Why don't we play a bit?"
Iki narrowed her eyes. She knew exactly what that term meant, and she was sick of being pushed around. People's words, the atmosphere this morning tugged at her heart. What would Mikuni do? She would just mess her up. Pull her hair, kick her face in, take pictures of her…
She watched the girl lift her foot towards her feet. A sudden power overflowed in Iki's veins, and she snapped.
Click.
Mikuni and the girl's stopped, looking at the phone down in Iki's hand. She had just taken a picture up her skirt, clearly unphased. The girl looked up at them through her brown bangs. "Nice underwear… Quite lacey. Going to see your boyfriend this evening?"
Mikuni's face contorted into that of someone who was embarrassed and enraged. She grit her white teeth, raising a fist to her with a blush stretching across her face to her ears.
"YOU B****!"
"-So, we're going to karaoke tonight! What do you say, Kazuki?" Ryu grinned up at his friend. He and Kazuki Haruhide walked through the halls, lunch letting the classes out and giving them free time. Kazuki spaced out as he looked his eyes to his front.
"Probably."
"C'mon, there will be lots of cute girls, and we all know you need one in your life." He joked, elbowing his friend in the side. Suddenly, a commotion filled their ears, and they turned their heads around the corner. There across from them were piles of students standing in front of the girl's bathroom, all appearing to be concerned.
"Someone get a teacher!" A girl screamed.
A male student nodded, but just as he was about to run off, Kazuki jogged up to him and grabbed his shoulder, turning him around.
"What's going on here?" Kazeki stared down at him.
"Some girls are fighting in the bathroom!"
The brunette looked over through the crowd, hearing the commotion. Why in the world wasn't anyone going in and stopping them? And what if an innocent person in the fight got expelled on their first day because of this guy calling a teacher? It was a stupid decision, but Kazuki turned the student around. Speaking from personal experience, some teachers couldn't be trusted.
"Don't call them. I'm going in there."
Ryu's eyes bugged out. "Are you serious!?"
"If you're not coming with me, hold this." Kazuki peeled off his sweater and tossed it at Ryu. The blonde caught it, watching his friend push through the crowd of people in bewilderment.
He shook his head, handing the sweater to the male student before pushing as well. "Wait, Kazuki! Excuse me, sorry!"
He ran into the bathroom. There was Mikuni, pulling Iki by the hair and throwing her face into the sink. Iki threw an elbow and knocked Mikuni back a few steps. Mikuni charged at her, but before she could scraped Iki's face with her polished nails, Kazuki grabbed her wrist, pulling her back.
"Enough, both of you!" He stood between the two. Iki panted in shock, looking up at Kazuki's back. Why was a student intervening and not a teacher? Especially at this academy? Blood dripped down from her lip, and she rolled up her sleeve, rubbing it away with her skin.
Mikuni started yanking her wrist, twisting it, and pulling it to try and release it from Kazuki's grip. "Let me go! Let me go right now!" She hissed at him. He only kept his grip firm.
"Calm down!"
"You b******! I said let me go!" She swung her free hand at him, smacking him across the face and pushing him back into Iki. Iki pressed her hands to his back, closing her eyes and readying herself for impact. However, Kazuki placed a foot back and caught his own weight, his shoulder blade only tapping her temple.
"That's enough!" Ryu threw his arms under Mikuni, lifting her up and dragging her back. He wrapped a steady arm around her waist, and another one under her right arm. She thrashed about, trying to get him to unhand her.
"Stop! Get off of me!" She howled. Ryu only held her still.
"Chill!"
Mikuni's friend's crowded around her and started to hold her arms down. "Calm down, Risa!" They chided, worried for their friend and her behavior.
"What if a teacher sees you? You're the principal's granddaughter, aren't you?" Another pitched in. It was then Mikuni started to slow down and panted.
"I'm…" She breathed in. "Not done…" Her head whipped back up, facing Kazuki. "Get out of the way! This is none of your business!"
Kazuki stretched an arm out to guard Iki. He said nothing, sending a glare into her dark orbs.
"You done? What are you even so worked up about anyway?" Ryu contributed to de-escalating the situation. Mikuni turned her head around to look up at the bottle blonde, who was obviously not as firm about the whole thing as Kazuki was.
"What's up!? That b**** took a picture of my underwear!"
Iki pulled out her phone, sliding her arm under Kazuki's and showing them a black and blue screen which said 'image deleted' on it in cyan text. Mikuni blinked in surprise.
"I deleted it. Don't worry." She poked her head out from behind Kazuki.
"I'm not as low as you to actually use it."
Mikuni gnashed her teeth together. Ryu let her go, and she lightly smacked his arms off of her. The girl stomped out, turning back and glaring at Iki. "Watch your back." She hissed through gritted teeth. "Let's go!" Her friends scurried around her, following the girl out. Students made way and let her leave.
And then there were three. Two of which who weren't women in the women's bathroom.
Iki placed her phone back in her skirt. "... Can you move please…?"
"Oh - right." Kazuki stepped out of the way. It was unnoticable, but his eyes widened only slightly when he saw her face. The corner of her lip was bleeding, she had open scratch marks on her cheek, and a small bruise next to her left eye. Her white shirt and black sweater were disheveled, and there next to her foot was her pink uniform bowtie.
Kazuki recognized this girl. She was the girl from that morning - the one people were talking trash about. Ryu seemed to recognize her.
"Hey, you're that girl who was standing at the front gate, right?"
No response. Iki only balled up her fists, clenching her teeth so hard behind pursed lips she could feel her jaw starting to lock. Kazuki knelt down, picking up her bowtie. He held it out for her and her lips parted. She stared down at the bowtie, then up at him.
"Let's go to the nurse's office together. Okay?"
Iki dragged her pupils to the red mark on the side of his face. Risa Mikuni had got him good as well… And for what? Why did he protect her? Him and his friend. There was no way anyone from this school would stick their neck out for her. So why?
She wasn't ready to find out. Sure, she owed them, so Iki would go to the nurse with them. After that, there would be no contact after all. Every single student at Senbonzakura needed to stay out of her life.
After all, what was the meaning to making friends when she would soon end it?
Iki hesitantly took the bowtie, draping her hands at her sides. She placed them in her sweater pockets, not making any eye contact. "... Okay." She turned on her heel, head down as she approached the crowd.
Ryu and Kazuki followed, but something caught the brunette's eye.
On the arm with the rolled up sleeve, there were scars.
A/N: Heeeeey! So I have literally always wanted to do this. I had this idea for a fanfiction based off of the Vocaloid song "Rolling Girl", and here it is! Hope you guys enjoy it ; u ;!
