The sun shone brightly through the space between the two curtains that Rei had not fully closed the night before. He looked over to the bedside table beside his bed and stared deeply at the clock. It was 8:30am. He continued glaring at the clock not fully comprehending the situation. About 3 minutes had passed since he first looked at the clock and it finally hit him.

"I'm late! I'm totally late!" He shouted jumping out of bed. "Did I forget to set my alarm last night? Mom, why didn't you wake me up?!" There was no response. He let out an agitated sigh and pulled on his high school uniform with lightning speed. He swiftly took the watch from his bedside table and slid it into his pant pocket. He swung his backpack on and shot down the stares. He crept into the kitchen to tell his mom that he was leaving. Looking into the kitchen, it was empty. His mom was no where in sight. He walked to the front door and pulled on his shoes. He noticed that his mother's shoes were not there, so he assumed that she had already gone out. He marched out the door, closing and locking the door behind him. Looking at the driveway, her car was gone too. She really must have gone out now, huh? He thought to himself. He was now on his way to school.

He took the watch that he had previously put in his pocket out and strapped it onto his wrist. He was worried about the time so he checked his watch. 8:37am. "Wah?!" He exclaimed tiredly. "I'm early now!" With time to spare, he started to slow down his pace. His neighbourhood was very quiet and gave off a homey feeling. He knew his neighbours well and was glad to live in such a nice community. He stared up at the sky. It was a beautiful day. Only the big puffy white clouds and the sun filled the sky. He basked in its sunshine. "I have a feeling today will be a wonderful day." He continued down his normal route which was only about 10 blocks long. He was almost half way there when he heard his name being called out behind him. He looked back. "Oh hey, Tala!"

"Hey!" The red haired boy ran quickly to catch up to him. As he slowed to a stop in front of Rei he gave him a slap on the head. "Didn't you hear me calling your name the last 2 blocks you walked?" He seemed annoyed but was happy that Rei had finally reacted to his calls. The two continued walking. They knew each other since kindergarten, and were very close still. They knew everything there was to know about each other, confiding in each other for all the bad things, and praising each other for all the good. They were inseparable. After walking a few more blocks, they finally reached the front gates.

"We made it!" Rei said happily. Looking at his watch again, it was only 8:50am. "We're still early too. Isn't that great?" He smiled widely, walking towards the front doors. Halfway to the doors, he heard a car streak to a stop in front of the school. He turned around and saw a bunch of students huddled up together. Huh? What's going on? "I'll see you at lunch, okay Tala?" He waved his friend good bye and started heading back to the gates. He slid his way through to the front of the crowd. All the students were looking at the expensive looking black car that stopped at the gates. The back door facing them was opened by a man in uniform. He seemed to be the driver. Out stepped a blue, gray haired boy. He had a pale complexion and a set of very deep dull blue eyes.

"Thanks." The strange boy said. He crept closer to the crowd. "What's everyone doing here? Welcoming committee? Thank you." As he stepped closer to the crowd, the people separated forming a path for this new face. Although he had come in such a strange matter, he was walking casually towards the building. The crowd seemed as though they were slowly following behind him. It was creepy with all the girls murmuring about how handsome and cool he looked and the boys whispering about new rivalry. Rei didn't see anything special about him though. So what? He owned a nice car, seemingly branded clothing, had great hair… Okay. So maybe he was a little "special." But Rei could not feel the difference, he only saw it. To him, the boy was still just a boy, no matter how rich or different he may seem on the outside. The first bell rang. He sprinted into the school.

Rei opened the door to his classroom and took his regular seat in the third row out of the five near the window. He liked his seat. It was not to far, not too close and he had a pleasant view right beside him. The student that sat beside him for the first half of the semester had transferred schools, so now it was a little lonesome, but he liked where he was none the less. All the students had raced in and taken their seat. The second bell rung soon after. At the bell's sound, one more person had stepped into the room. One could hear intense whispering going on around the class. Not loud enough to be comprehendible but loud enough to be audible. It was him. The "strange and rich blue, gray haired prince" as the girl's called him. That was the only thing that Rei heard in the waves of speech. Oh really now? A prince? Just because he's rich and good looking? He thought giving out a big sigh. He rested his head on his arms that were crossed on his desk. He buried his face into them. Still, it must be nice to be labelled so kindly considering it's his first day of school. When he looked up, the boy had positioned himself in the centre of the front of the class.

"Hello. My name is Kai Hiwatari. I had just transferred here after moving into the area. Please treat me kindly." He flashed a shy smile as he finished his introduction. Okay… so he's rich, good looking, has branded clothes, nice hair and has a nice voice. Big whoop. Rei continued thinking about what other things that he had that were so irresistible to all the students.

"Kai, your seat will be next to Rei over there." The teacher said kindly, guiding Kai to his seat with her hand. "I hope that you two will become good friends." What's the teacher thinking saying things like that? Does she want me to gather attention? Rei thought frustrated. As the boy sat down in his desk, Rei felt the urge to straighten his back and introduce himself formally. What's up with me? Like I said, he's just another boy. There's nothing special about him.

"H-Hi!" Rei said quietly as their teacher started writing out their lesson for the day on the board. "My name is Rei, pleased to meet you." Unconsciously, he stuck his hand out in front of Kai. He felt somewhat dizzy and annoyed. Just looking at him, I feel like I should be paying for it. Staring at his beauty, his deep eyes that I could drown in… Why am I thinking all cliché like?! And plus, he's a guy!

Kai took his hand shaking it up and down gently. "I'm very pleased to meet you too, Rei." With that said, Rei's cheeks started burning up. Ugh, I can't stand it. Why do I feel this way? It's strange. Have I ever felt this way before? His thoughts were slowly being consumed by visions of Kai. I hate this. I hate this. He slid down into his seat. He could barely focus on what the teacher was saying. Everything seemed blurry; voices became nothing but mere sounds. He buried his face in his hands.

"Perhaps you could tell me what 245661 plus 314148 divided by 2 is, Rei?" His teacher, Ms. Tanaka asked raising an eyebrow. She was tapping her foot on the ground waiting for an answer. Rei was frozen in fear. He frantically searched for his calculator from his bag. Ms. Tanaka let out a big sigh. "We're working on history right now. You'd know that if you were paying attention. Now stop day dreaming and start listening. Okay?" Rei was so embarrassed he could die right there. He sat back up and at least pretended that he was paying attention. It was too hard. He couldn't get pictures of Kai out of his mind. Without realizing it, he took out his notebook and a pencil and started copying the notes on the board. He didn't even really know what he was writing. He was too deep into his thoughts. When he had finally zoned back into reality, it was already 11:40am. It was five minutes until lunch. How could I space out for so long? It felt like, at the most, 20 minutes but it's been two hours.

"That ends the morning lesson for today. You may start getting ready for lunch now." Ms. Tanaka said gathering her books together. The bell rang. She and more than half the students left the room. A familiar red haired boy came into the classroom.

"Hey Rei!" Tala yelled, waving. He took the seat in front of Rei, and pulled out his lunch placing it on Rei's desk. "How were your morning classes?"

"They were alright I guess." Rei said. The truth was he didn't know how to answer that question accurately. He was too out of it to even remember what he had learned that day. "How were yours?" A chair pulled up to the empty side of the table, Kai took his seat in it once again.

"Who's this guy?" Tala asked staring curiously at the boy. "How old is he anyways? He looks pretty old."

"I'm 17. I think that's pretty normal for a third year don't you think?" Kai replied. "And you two?"

"I'm still 16." Rei said looking down. "Tala's 17 too. I feel like a kid compared to you two."

The three giggled. "Oh yeah, looking at you closely. Somehow I believe that you are the person responsible for the school gathering this morning at the front gates." Tala said.

"Am I?" Kai questioned. "I don't think I specifically draw in any attention." In the corner of the class was a dark aura. A group of girls were eating lunch together. However, it wasn't their lunches that they wanted to devour. They stared at Kai, licking their lips. "Although I do feel as though I'm being watched." He just laughed as Rei let out a sigh.

"You did come to school a lot differently than most people you know? You show up in this expensive car, and you had someone drive you and then open your door too?" Rei explained. "That would draw a lot of attention here." Rei and Tala chuckled but Kai still looked confused.

"I don't get it. That's what all the kids did at my last school. I thought I was lying low by coming in a car rather than a limo." Kai said completely seriously. "How do you get to school then?"

"You can't be serious." Rei said. "Most of the students here live in the area, so we walk to school."

"Walk? Isn't that a lot of unnecessary labour when you could just as easily get someone to drive you?" Kai was completely genuine with his questions. Though he did seem like a completely rude snob. "This community fascinates me."

Rei and Tala continued laughing at the completely oblivious rich boy. "You're kind of cute." Rei blurted out. "Uh, I mean, it's sort of cute in a way how you don't understand how we go to school. Like… you think so too, right Tala? It's uh… hmm… Does that sound… weird?" Rei went full on tomato mode. His face shone a deep red.

"Is it?" Kai said laughing. "Thank you. You're rather cute yourself." The last sentence sent Rei's hairs standing up.

"U-Uh… thanks." Rei murmured embarrassed. He grabbed his lunch from his bag and started eating.

"Will Rei Kon, I repeat Rei Kon, come to the office please?" Echoed the speakers. "Again, that is Rei Kon, please come to the office."

"Huh?" Rei got up. "I guess I'll talk to you guys later." He shoved all his belongings into his bag and walked to the office. He opened the door and was greeted by his teacher and principal.

"Please, shut the door behind you." Ms. Tanaka said. Her expression was strange. It was as if she was forcing a smile. "There is some news we need to inform you about. Please take a seat."

Rei sat in the seat in the corner of the room. He was anxious and worried. He didn't understand what was happening but he felt a piercing pain through his heart. He focused his complete attention to his principal. Ms. Tanaka slowly made her way out of the office, her steps were heavy. The door was shut tightly behind her.

"Rei. Did you realize this morning that your mother wasn't home?" The principal started worriedly. He pulled up a chair in front of Rei and sat down. Rei just nodded shocked. His heart grew heavier with every second. He didn't want to hear the news that he was going to say. Somehow he knew what was coming.

"She… She left this morning… Didn't she? To work? To the market? Somewhere…? She's coming back though. After school… I'll see her. Right?" His voice cracked as he stuttered while trying to talk. His eyes filled with tears after looking at the expression in the principal's eyes. Sadness, regret, hurt. All those feelings were conveyed in his eyes.

"This morning the police found your mother dead in a car wreck in a ditch beside the highway." The principal started. He cleared his throat. "They said it happened sometime late last night. We had to tell you this as soon as we heard of it. It took a while for them to identify the body… I'm very sorry, Rei."

"No… That's not possible!" Rei broke down in tears. He buried his face in his hands. "No. She's still alive! She has to be… She's the only family I have left. I won't let her be taken away from me!" The tears continuously streamed down his cheeks like rivers. This type of sadness… I've never felt it before. It hurts. It's an indescribable pain. I don't want to feel this way. I want her to hold me and tell me it's ok.

"I understand if you'd like to take some time off school. I'll sign you out right now." He said getting up and walking behind the counter. "Rei Kon, right?"

Rei nodded. He was no longer crying. He stared at the wall with an empty expression. "There's nowhere for me to go… If I did sign out, I don't have anywhere to go. So I'll stay at school." He got up and walked into the hallway while staring at the floor beneath him. The tears poured down again. He looked up into a pair of deep dull blue eyes. His mind went blank as he felt warmth surround his body. His headed tilted up and his lips met another. His eyes were fully open and he could the see the sadness in the eyes staring at him. He only cried harder. As their lips parted, he buried his face into the other boy's chest.

"You do have somewhere to go. You have me." With those words he cried both tears of joy and sorrow for he immediately got the comfort that he needed. A person to turn to and a place to go.

----END----

I am fully aware that I have on-going stor(y/ies) but this idea sort of just popped into my head. I hope my writing's gotten better. I didn't want it to sound to formal so I put in the contractions but somehow now it seems too casual. As if there's no atmosphere to the story. xD I hope you enjoy it however. And I hope to stick with this idea to its end. R&R please.~ :D