Alternative Title Name: Reason for Existence

Just like my first fanfic, this story contains no Vongola and Nagi will not have the name 'Chrome Dokuro'. Please enjoy and review! :)

"Do you think I'm stupid? Do I look stupid to you?"

"N-No…. Well, yeah, I mean… Hahaha!"

Click.

"Do you think I'm stupid? Do I look stupid to you?"

"Pff… Kuahahaha!"

Click.

"Do you think I'm stupid?"

"YES! WAHAHAHAHA!"

"Sigh…. This is the 15th time I'm doing this and it's still not successful… I'm going home!"

The frustrated man flung his jacket over his shoulder and stormed out of the room, the sound of the door slamming shut and almost cracking the wall beside it was nothing compared to the woman who howled in laughter till her sides ached with the rest of the people in the studio.

"Mou, okasan, what are you doing?" I face palmed, folding my arms as I watched her employers and fellow colleagues pat her back and give her thumbs-up signs which in my opinion she did not deserve. She just repeatedly screwed up a scene of a movie they were producing, yet her managers did not reprimand her and instead laughed with her which would no doubt encourage her. I also found it unfair to the man who just left and were not called back for apologies.

The managers were clearly biased on my mother, seeing how she was not given any punishments or even warnings when her acting was not up to standards, unlike the other actors and actresses who worked so hard to please them. Only those colleagues who were close friends with my mother never showed any green envy.

My mother was quite gorgeous, that I could not deny. Her long hair draped down her shoulders to her chest in smooth waves and her violet eyes decorated with curved eyelashes sparkled as beautifully as diamond crystals. She was usually seen wearing fanciful jewelry that was obviously crazily expensive and she had branded handbags and shoes to match with her charming clothes. She was a woman who attracted many admiring men with the power of her beauty.

However, I had never thought she was beautiful on the inside.

"There you go, Amechi. Go home and memorise your script. We look forward to seeing you in action tomorrow!"

"Arigato, Manager!" Okasan shook hands with the older woman and put on her red jacket before calling out to me, "c'mon, Nagi. Let's go home!"

I tiredly heaved myself off the cozy sofa and waved goodbye to the adults half-heartedly and strolled out of the studio into the chilly Tuesday night.

"Nagi?" my mother impatiently knocked thrice on my bedroom door, "what are you doing in there?"

"Doing my homework," I replied, swallowing the urge to add on a 'what else?' to my statement. I reluctantly placed my pen down and shuffled my feet to the door, opening it before my mother had a chance to blabber out what I expected her to say.

"Haven't I always told you not to lock your door?" she hissed with her hand on her hip in annoyance.

See? I knew it. But was it wrong for me to want my own needed privacy? I was sure she would not like it too if someone just barged into her room without permission.

"Sorry," I resorted to that pathetic reply. Even if I voiced out my thoughts, she would scold me for being disobedient and thinking I had the right to defy against her wishes.

Okasan smirked in satisfaction in my apology and her mood swung almost instantly, "you know what, Nagi? I'm going to earn more money to close to a million dollars if my managers find my acting good and allow me to continue appearing in the rest of the movie! Isn't that wonderful?"

"Oh. Yes it is," I said monotonously, causing Okasan to pout.

"Don't be such a killjoy, Nagi! You ought to support me! I'm your mum," she shook my shoulders lightly yet excitedly, "when I get rich, I can get whatever I want!"

"….. Yes, Okasan. Will you let me finish my homework now?" I murmured, gently shaking her disgusting hands off me.

Okasan grinned sweetly, "sure, Nagi. Remember you must study real hard so that you can also be a successful actress in the future and defeat your rivals without a single sweat! Get extremely good grades and earn huge amounts of money!"

I inwardly heaved a sigh of relief when the telephone rang loudly, saving me from the torture of listening to my mother's chanting. She darted off downstairs to answer it but took a few seconds to shout over her shoulder, "and don't forget to not lock your door!"

I refrained from slamming the door shut and merely closed it quietly. Scooting back to my desk, I continued scribbling on my essay, but half of my mind was clouded with the unhappy thoughts of my mother. I was grateful to her for providing me with an abundant supply of good food, a comfortable roof over my head and giving me the opportunity to attend a proper school instead of being educated at home by tutors she hired from nowhere. However her greedy behaviour of taking things she fortunately owned for granted irritated me to no end.

She dreamt of living in a majestic mansion one day when she was finally pleased with her wealth status. I was screaming 'what on earth?' in my mind. We already had the lovely gift of living in a nice, clean environment of a bungalow. She was considered one of the richest people in the town, yet she yearned for more? Had she not spared a thought for those who were less well off than she was?

That was not all. Unlike typical parents who wished for their children to excel in their studies for the sake of a brighter future, my mother used my excellent academic grades to show off to her friends and gained popularity and respect. She somehow managed to make them believe that she was responsible for my great performance thus her oblivious friends admired her for her so-called ability to teach her child well. She bragged about me even to her bosses and colleagues at work.

"This is so unfair…" I bit my bottom lip grimly, tapping the tip of my pen on the paper, "I want to study for my own interests, not to be used for her benefit".

I completed my homework and glumly crawled into bed, hoping tomorrow would fly here soon so that I could relax from my inner frustrations in school.

"I shall now announce the top student for the mid-year examination of our cohort: Nagi Himekawa!"

The entire class of students clapped as I walked over to Reiko-sensei to receive my examination script. The teacher beamed at me proudly and praised me, causing me to blush shyly. Even until today, I was still not used to compliments.

As sweet as the applause from my classmates seemed, I could see through their delighted façade. Whispers of jealousy traveled to my ears as they got back their papers one by one.

"I knew it's Himekawa again! She's always the one who gets the best grades! There's no need to be surprised!"

"Yeah! Did she purposely bribe the teachers? Is that why she's always the apple of their eyes?"

"This is so unfair! She stole my chance to be the first! I wish she never transferred to this school!"

"She's a jerk all right".

I sighed deeply. If they hated me so much, what was the point of clapping for me?

I transferred to Namimori Middle School during the second week of February this year from Kokuyo Middle School, since my mother disapproved of its education system and the gangster-like students who dominated it. I did not mind initially, as I could then take lesser time in travelling from home to school and ease the exhaustion due to the shorter distance. But when I started to beat the students in the academic aspect, my presence became less desired. I felt less welcomed. I earned the most loathness from the previous top student of the cohort, Julia Misagochi. She sent me shuddering death glares whenever I intruded her vision.

"Sugoi, Himekawa! You're number one again!" Sawada Tsunayoshi's voice broke my train of thoughts. He was probably one of the only pupils in school who treated me kindly.

I smiled in appreciation, "arigato, Sawada-san".

"So desu ne! You're so smart, Himekawa-chan!" Sasagawa Kyoko popped into view. I grinned at her as well, and giggled at the sight of Sawada blushing at his crush. Blood rose up to my cheeks as more praises surrounded me from Yamamoto Takeshi and Gokudera Hayato.

"You're a genius, Himekawa! You can be my tutor! I'm sure I'll be able to improve under your guidance," Yamamoto chuckled as cheerfully as always, in contrast to the girls who were stabbing my back with bitter arrows for gaining the attention of the popular baseball player.

"Hmph. You're more impressive than I thought," Gokudera said, tugging his hands into his pockets. A shiver crawled down my spine as I felt the glares intensified. I guessed I should not have talked to another famous boy.

I humbly thanked the group of students who were the only ones that cordially accepted me into their class 2-A family. A noisy third-year boy suddenly came dashing into the classroom as though he was chased by a wild dog, yelling at the top of his lungs, "OHAYO TO THE EXTREEEEEEEEME!"

"Mou, onichan, no need to shout," Kyoko pouted, playfully slapping her brother's arm.

"Ohayo gozaimasu, Kyoko!" Sasagawa Ryohei ruffled his sister's hair affectionately, "let's go down to the canteen now to the extreme!" He literally dragged Sawada and his friends away in what he claimed as an 'EXTREME RUSH TO GET FOOD' dash, with his amused adorable sister trailing behind on their heels.

Sighing, I ransacked through my bag filled with books to grab my bento that I solely made myself. I never had true friends, not even them. I always spent my break times alone, strolling aimlessly along the corridors after I finished my meal. Despite being left out and bullied by my classmates, I still enjoyed going to school. I liked being involved in engaging lessons set up by the teachers and learning new interesting things, unlike typical students.

All in all, I liked Namimori Chuu. It was a clean, pretty place for the students' holistic education to nurture learning and develop character. I always wondered who had been the one responsible for the maintenance and order of the school, although I had been here for five months already.

"He's coming!"

"Quick! Get into class, idiots!"

A small question mark of confusion formed above my head when I overheard the anxious mumbles and urges among the students. I turned around and spotted the source of their fear, Hibari Kyoya, head of the Disciplinary Committee, walking with his cool black jacket that clutched onto his shoulders and a red armband pinned on its left sleeve down the corridor. He was rumored to be the most dangerous person in Namimori, disciplining 'herbivores' by harsh methods and well known for his cold demeanour.

Still, I admired him. He looked strong, just like a solitary cloud that drifted along its own independent path without ever being bound. I respected a man like that.

As he stepped closer, I did what I always do.

"Ohayo gozaimasu shita, Fuki inchou," I bowed and greeted him politely. Apparently I was the only person who believed it was important to do that. He was the school's highest ranked student leader, after all.

Usually Hibari would simply take a glance at me or "hn" before continuing on his patrol, but today he responded differently, much to my surprise.

"What's your name?" Hibari asked, staring at me with his steel grey eyes. I blushed slightly under his gaze. Now that I thought about it, he was very handsome. If he could only be gentler and smile more, I guaranteed many girls would swoon over him.

"Nagi… Nagi Himekawa," I replied without hesitation.

"Himekawa…?" Hibari mused, as if trying to recall where he had heard the name before. I noticed a few braver students peeking out of their classroom doors at our direction, probably gaping at my courage to speak to someone as scary as Hibari Kyoya.

"Get back to class," Hibari said, his feet moving away again. I nodded obediently, "hai, Fuki inchou".

"My name is Hibari Kyoya. Use it," he corrected, "Nagi Himekawa".

Strange…. Why did my heart skip a beat when he said my name?

"Hai, Hibari-san," I dismissed the thought and slid open my classroom door, sitting down silently at my desk just as the bell rang, signaling the end of recess and the continuation of a normal day in school.

Fuki: Discipline