Disclaimer: I disclaim. Fair enough?
Summary:
AU. Konan is shy and unsure. Hidan is overconfident and struggles with anger issues. Sannin Academy is full of stories just like theirs, of people reaching out and finding, to their surprise, that there's another hand waiting for someone to take theirs. It'll take a leap of faith, but the reward will be worth the fall. Het , yaoi, yuri. Hidakona with other side pairings.
First days are always the worst, Konan Ame reminded herself, lugging her name-brand suitcase up the stairs of the oh-so-creatively named Northside Dorm Building. Still, what were the odds of being one of two girls on the entire second floor? It wasn't like she was deathly afraid of boys, like some girls were. But it would be nice to have some female companionship readily available. Notice how she didn't say friends. Friends weren't something Konan Ame had. Money, yes, a strange taste in music, yes, friends no. It was enough just to be among people for her, though, to know that she wasn't really alone. And she wasn't. People thronged around her, talking, shoving, laughing, breathing, being. Move-in day was a chaotic orchestra of cars parked bumper-to-bumper, parents and kids and loud, excited voices. It was packing tape and the last notes of summer in the sweet smelling breeze.
The thing that she was really nervous about was that everyone at this school already knew each other from the previous year. That was how Sannin Fine Arts Academy's program worked. The first two years, students were encouraged to spend experimenting with different art forms, mixing between the theatre, art and music programs. The last two years of school, students would stick with a single track, specializing in one of the three. She felt like an intruder, watching old friends meet up after a summer apart.
As if to prove her outsider status, a girl flew down the stairs past her- "Hinata? Omigawd, it's been ages-" She could definitely mark this as the loneliest first day, which in Konan Ame's List of First Days was still not strictly a bad Day, compared to the Stickiest First Day, (spilled yogurt), or Most Awkward First Day (accidentally enrolled in a boy's school). First Days were kind of her specialty. Her father had a nasty habit of dragging his family to whatever country he was currently working in. This year had landed Konan in America, and for once she could appreciate this arrangement, which left her within a few hour's drive (or train ride) of Sannin Academy. Not only would she be able to escape the madness of the Ame household in the relative comfort of the dorms, but she would be able to study with the next generation of greats. It was the opportunity of a lifetime, and she was excited-scared-honored.
Auditions had been nerve wracking, sitting in front of the school board with her performance tapes and portfolio, shaking knees on full display. They had let her in though; the schedule and room key clamped between her teeth was proof of that.
The hallway felt claustrophobic with people- other parents had deigned to help their kids move in. Even a little old granny was pushing a cardboard box through the crowd. Konan counted the number plates to the side of each door- 202, 204, and 206. Ahh, home sweet home. Fumbling with the keys, she managed to open the door before the precariously stacked boxes in her arms spilled their contents all over the floor. Half of the room had already been taken, and sprawled on the cherry-red bedspread was a girl with pink cotton candy hair and a pair of headphones blasting, of all things, orchestra music, at top volume. Her head snapped up as Konan entered. Jumping off the bed, the girl sprang to Konan's side.
"Sorry, I didn't hear you come in! Here, do you need help with these?" A few of the boxes were forcibly taken from her, and set on the unclaimed bed. The pink haired girl chattered as Konan set the rest of her load down.
"So, you must be Konan, right?"
"That's me. It's nice to meet you, uh…" Konan's already overloaded brain floundered to remember the name printed on her schedule sheet under "Roommate," but the other teen filled her in before the pause became awkward.
"Sakura. Sakura Haruno. I'm so excited to meet you! I got here two days early, and there's been no one to talk to! Can you believe we get the bathroom all to ourselves? Last year I had to share with seven others. Seven! Man, what a hassle!" Sakura Haruno seemed to have an excess of words, unlike Konan, who often struggled to find the right one to use. It didn't bother the somewhat taciturn teen, though. It filled up the quiet spaces of her mind, pushing at the dark corners of her thoughts.
"-do you need help getting the rest of your stuff? It's no bother, really. I've just been so bored!" viridian eyes looked to her in question. Konan nodded, if a bit hesitantly.
The trip back to the car was enjoyable, Sakura listing off a long list of names and the dirty secrets attached to them. "—totally has a long time crush on his best friend-ooh! Nice car!"
In the absence of both an American driver's license, or a willing set of parentals, Konan had gone to a car rental place a few blocks from the hotel her parents were staying at and rented a Audi R8 Spyder convertible, (silver) and one of the workers there to do the driving (blonde, and good looking for an over- 30). What it lacked in packing space, it made up for in rental fees (spiteful purchases on the card her parents had given her. Not that they would care. Her mom made more of a dent in the bank when she went clothes shopping, but it was the thought that counted, right?)
She grabbed a cardboard box and a duffelbag, and Sakura hooked a bulky floorlamp in one arm and a stack of textbooks in the other. Which left them with the bulky black twins-her electric keyboard and her cello, respectively.
"well, I guess we can take another trip…" Sakura mused.
"You girls need some help?" The grandmother she'd seen earlier tapped her on the shoulder, and without waiting for an answer, called (in a surprisingly strong voice) for someone named "Sasori Ayatsuri Akasuna" to make himself available immediately or face severe punishment. Konan giggled a little. Granny was fierce!
The redhead that raced over took one look at the two heavy instruments and called for backup, which arrived in the form of a guy with more piercings than Konan had fingers to count them on-ironically enough named Pein. He lifted both the keyboard and the cello with ease, rendering Sasori useless, and by comparison, less masculine. The shorter teen scowled and asked if there was anything else, probably in an effort to soothe his ego. That was the last of her belongings, and she told him so.
She then dismissed the driver, who had been rather useless besides getting her to the school in the first place, and led the way to her room, which was kittycorner to Pein, Sasori, and someone named Hidan's room.
"Hey, we're practically neighbors! You should come hang out with us after things calm down a little. Pein smuggled in some vodka, too. We should make a party of it, kick off the school year." Sasori gave the pair a conspiratorial glance.
"Just tell us when! We'll be there." Sakura winked at Konan, who was wrestling with her box, and nearly dropped it when the pink haired girl answered for her. Nonono. Parties no. people no. Noooo! She whimpered to herself.
…
"So, I noticed you looked a little freaked when I told Sasori we were down with his little shindig." Those eyes that had seemed like spring green leaves, naive and young, seemed like ancient cracked jade now, full of wisdom and perception.
"I'm…just not that good at making friends…I guess. I've never stayed anywhere long enough to set down roots, you know?" Konan looked down at the clothes she was folding, feeling the heat of Sakura's scrutiny.
"You an army brat, or what?"
"No, my father's… business takes him all over the world. As a result, I have lived a great many places. I don't think we've ever stayed anywhere longer than a year. But it is hard to keep making connections when I know they will soon be broken. "
Konan nearly jumped when Sakura's hand came down on her shoulder.
"That's no good." She had a hell of a 'tough guy' voice. "Even if it's only for a year, you should still try your hardest to make friends. It's important. Being alone is no good. Not reaching out is no good." She gave the girl a warm smile. "I'll help you though, so don't worry."
And just like that, Konan Ame had a friend.
I started this fic simply as an exercise to get back into writing. I've been doing a lot of research and world building for my own stuff, and got out of habit. But it started getting a bit bigger, and I could really use the con-crit, so I figured I'd make it into fanfiction. Please tell me what you think.