Author's Note: I. . .have gone and ruined the "No females in Sukisyo EVAR" thing. Oh well. I honestly saw a little girl in this story more than a little boy. Whatever. Yeah. Possibly some OOC-ness on Nao's part, for I have no clue if he'd really do anything of the sort. But, for the sake of the story, let's say he would. :D
Disclaimer: I do not own Sukisyo. Okay? Okay.
My Life
Hashiba Sora's life was made up of only a few things: Toshizou, food, sleep, random stupid jobs, and Fujimori. He rose that morning hugging his stuffed pink elephant while wondering what Nanami would make for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. In the back of his head, he could barely remember Matsuri telling him he had something to do in the morning. He felt it would better to ignore that fact.
His thoughts were disrupted by the realization that something was missing.
"Oi, Fujimori?"
He glanced at the bed across from his. The covers were placed awkwardly, as if someone threw them on in a rush before leaving. The pillows were at the wrong side of the bed, the sheet was on the floor, and, placed neatly on the pile of mess, were a series of notes.
Sora took in the scene with – amusement, was it? Curiosity? Maybe a large amount of worry? At this point, he couldn't tell. It was too early, and his brain still wasn't fully capable of coherent thought. The most he could convince himself to do was to stop being lazy, get out of bed, and read the notes.
He picked up the first one, recognized the handwriting, slapped himself a few times as a reminder that he was awake, and started to read.
-----
There were so many things I neglected to tell you, Hashiba. I felt it was better if I let them unsaid. I had found you after so many years . . . and you didn't even remember me. Sure, the memory issue is taken care of, but I never fully explained my life there.
I was always the one depending on you. As long as you were there, I could handle whatever they threw at me – even if it brought me within an inch of death.
I never thought I'd be the one who had to help another through that . . . that hell.
Not long after you left, they gave me a new roommate.
-----
"No, you can't! Lemme go!"
The child had learned to ignore the screams of new test subjects. They were coming and leaving constantly. It seemed like every day there was a new one to replace whoever they got bored with or killed "accidentally." It didn't matter much to him anymore. It had been a week since his Kuu-Chan had abandoned him. Since then, he felt he had little, if anything, to live for.
"I'm going to hurt you, I swear, I will!"
The sounds were close. More so than usual.
"Shut up," he found himself saying, as quietly as he could. "Please, just shut up."
"I want my mommy! Where is she!" came the screams from outside the metal walls.
"She's nowhere. It'll stay that way. You can't have her," he continued. "You'll never have her. You're –"
His subconscious rambling came to an end as someone threw open the door. He prepared himself to handle whatever experiments were thrown at him.
The door slammed shut. For what seemed like the first time in forever, he saw another test subject – no, a person who wasn't out to mentally tear him to shreds.
-----
She was five, I think – just four years younger than me. I figured they were running low on children to test on if they were taking in ones too young to comprehend what was going to happen to them.
She reminded me a bit of you, if only in appearance. Blue hair that reached her shoulders with wide, fearful eyes to match. I thought that maybe, just maybe, I had someone to depend on again.
Once we started talking, I knew that would never be the case.
-----
"Excuse me," she said. It took Sunao a few moments to realize that she was talking to him. It took even longer for her words to sink in. He rarely talked. Those who worked in the lab rarely talked to him. Voice was a sound that became almost completely foreign.
"Where am I?"
He could only assume by her aggravation that she had repeated the question several times. Speaking was more complicated than listening. Sunao found he was completely incapable of answering her question.
"I'm Kyori. Who are you?"
Lifeless pink eyes met blue as Sunao willed himself to at least make eye contact.
"I'm Fujimori Sunao," he whispered once, then repeated a bit louder. His scratchy voice cracked too many times for the second time to be made out; he was almost embarrassed to let her hear that much. His embarrassment turned to a spark of joy. Was that a smile on her face? Was it even possible to smile in a research lab as morbid as the one they lived in?
"Where am I?" she repeated once more.
-----
I almost didn't have the heart to tell her, but she pressured me into doing so. It came to the point where I exploded.
I told her where she was, what she was in there for, what happened to me, what happened to you, what would probably happen to her, and that the only way she was likely to escape that place was suicide – and, if they liked you, that wasn't an easy option.
Before she could even think of responding, I told her about you.
To my surprise, she listened. Once I was finished, she nervously trudged to the corner I was sitting in, sat next to me, hugged me, and said "don't you leave, too."
If I had the opportunity, those words alone would have been enough for me to murder Aizawa for all that he did.
-----
It was Kyori's first experiment. Sunao hid under the covers of his bed as an escape – he couldn't bear to think of what they'd do to her. His first time was a simple beating, but that was long ago. They could have changed things. . .
Too absorbed in his own thoughts, he barely heard the door open. He chanced a look at the damage.
Her arms were covered in bandages that were already soaked in blood. Deep gashes covered the rest of her body. Her hair and clothes were wet as well – did they do more than beat her?
She leaned against the wall for support and stumbled to her bed where she collapsed, deep asleep – or maybe unconscious, he didn't know.
Sunao moved to her bed and hesitantly leaned in to whisper "Be strong, like Kuu-Chan. You have to be."
-----
Years passed like this. Kyori would come in after her experiments and I would comfort her. I would come in after mine, and I was expected to act as if I was fine so she wouldn't panic.
One day, a little over a year ago, things changed. Aizawa called me to tell me that my experimenting was almost complete – all I would have to do is find you, and . . . well, you know how that goes.
I was so overjoyed, I almost didn't think of what this would mean for Kyori.
-----
"What about the girl?" Sunao quickly added. He couldn't believe that he almost forgot about her, and at the same time, he wanted to forget. He hated lying. No matter how hard he tried to ignore it that was all he had been doing the past few years. Lying. Kyori believed that he really did care about her – he didn't. Sunao wasn't even sure he wanted to. To him, she was nothing more than a replacement for Sora. Someone to keep him sane.
And yet . . .
"What girl? There are too many," Aizawa nonchalantly replied.
"Kyori."
"What makes you think I really pay attention to these names, number 011? You all mean nothing to me."
Sunao forced back his rage at hearing the vocal confession. They meant nothing. All of the test experiments. They were nothing but toys. It didn't matter if they were hurt or broken. Aizawa could easily find new ones.
He wondered if he was one Aizawa cared about. He was being freed of the torture. . .
"Fine. Number 057. Kyori. Do you remember now?"
"Ah, yes, her. She has yet to show any signs of the personality management tests working. If she does not do so soon, we will have to get rid of her."
Sunao knew those words to only mean one thing.
He didn't care.
-----
When Aizawa asked why I was wondering, I couldn't reply. I was too absorbed in the thought that I would finally get my revenge on you to worry about someone else.
As I was leaving to find you, I could hear Ran repeat words that I had forgotten.
"Don't you leave, too."
It was at that moment that I realized I had become what I thought you were. I was abandoning someone who needed me to live.
Last night Aizawa called.
The experiments still aren't working on her.
I can't stay. I have to help her, even if she hates me for what I did.
-----
In that moment, Sora's life (or maybe just his day) changed. They no longer consisted of Toshizou, food, sleep, and Fujimori.
Instead, now, they were just Sunao.
With a muttered "Screw breakfast," Sora rushed to the research lab.
He wouldn't let Sunao return alone.