DISCLAIMER: Not mine.
Ah, but not yours, either. Nyeh,
nyeh, nyeh.
*NOTES: [1]
Reincarnation fic - real world. [2] Main characters are Nuriko and Hotohori,
and this will most likely eventually be shounen ai. If this offends you...well, then you're probably on your way to
hitting the back button right now, so never mind. Hrmph. [3] The title, in
case you're wondering, translates to mean, "It's still the same."
"Onaji Desu"
by Ryuen
~*~*~*~
Chou Ryuen, he scrawled. Chou Ryuen. Chou Ryuen. Chou
Ryuuuuuuuuen. He sighed. Chou Ryuen is damned bored.
"Chou!"
The deep, authoritative bass
snapped him from his daydreams, sent his head flying up from the pillow of his
arm, his pencil slamming back onto its side on the desktop. He blinked, suddenly realized that nearly
every eye in the classroom was fixed on him...great. Just what this day needed.
Notoriety. He sighed. "Hai?"
Sensei glared down at him, tapped
a pen irritably against the stubble of his chin. "I believe I asked you a question," he grunted,
clearing his throat as if the sound would somehow jar his memory. "Well, Chou? Do you have an answer for us...or, shall I call on someone else...again?"
He debated for a moment.
If he deferred, again, to someone else, it would be the sixth time he'd
done so in the last two days...and, gah, Sensei didn't look happy as it was... Hoping for some inspiration, he glanced up
at the board, spent a few tense seconds squinting at the sharp, angry scratches
of yellow chalk--something about ancient world religions, worship of the
heavens, worship of the stars...gods, how was he supposed to know what answer
Sensei wanted?? He was just opening his
mouth, preparing to tell the impatient-looking man that--once again--he was
going to have to call on someone else...but, just then, a soft tapping sound
caught his attention. The moment he
shifted his gaze, the sound ceased...but, he knew where it had come from. That boy...the new transfer student...he was
sitting in the chair just in front and to the left of his, had been tapping his
pen lightly against the desk to catch his attention. And, now that it was caught...Ryuen strained his eyes, tried to
look as if he was merely deep in thought for Sensei's benefit. He squinted...and watched, startled, as the
boy shifted his paper a bit, tapped the pen lightly against the table...and
that was when he saw it. There,
scrawled in the bottom margin in clear, legible handwriting, were the words, Ancient
China. He'd only just managed to
read the cryptic message when, just as abruptly as they'd appeared, the words
were covered by a slim, tanned hand.
Startled but thankful, Ryuen turned back
to the figure eying him darkly, smiled.
"Ancient China," he said softly. "The answer is Ancient China."
Sensei, who had been staring
vaguely at the back wall trying not to yawn, abruptly shifted his attention,
stared down at him in some strange hybrid of shock and fear. "W-What did you say, Chou?"
He hesitated for a moment,
wondering if perhaps the new boy had purposely given him a wrong answer...but,
why go to all this trouble, when he was already this far on the road to
humiliation? No...no, it was right...he
knew it. "Ancient China," he
repeated in a stronger voice.
Sensei let out a startled breath of air,
straightened and began to walk back towards his desk. "Good God," he murmured. "I think we have a first.
Chou...Ancient China is, indeed, correct. Well done."
~*~*~*~
His feet thudded against the cool
marble, echoed loudly through the mostly-empty corridors. "Hey!" he called. "Hey, wait up!"
Long chestnut hair hanging down
his back in a simple ponytail, the eighteen-year-old came to a slow halt in the
middle of the hallway, turned towards the approaching footsteps. Clad in the typical white dress shirt and
dark slacks of his school uniform, the boy still somehow managed to look almost
exotic, and now that Ryuen drew close enough to see his face...he skidded to a stop,
felt the blood rushing to his cheeks.
Mattaku, he was...he was...gorgeous!
The boy was staring at him now, those soft, liquid amber eyes blinking
at him questioningly, those thin pink lips turned slightly upwards in
wondering... For a long moment, he felt
all reason and intelligence flee from his lips, had the sudden impulse to say
nothing at all, to merely stand there and stare...but then, rather quickly, he
regained control of himself, cleared his throat as if to signal his return to
sanity and sense.
"K...Konnichiwa," he
managed. "I, uh...I just wanted to
ask you..." He cleared his throat
again, struggled for the words...gah, he'd had them just a few moments
ago...ah, right! Of course... "I just wanted to ask you," he
repeated quickly, "why you gave me that answer today...I mean, I
appreciate it, of course...but...well, why?"
The boy shrugged, slipped his
hands into the pockets of his pants and began to walk. "I don't know," he answered
simply. "It seemed like you needed
it."
Taking a few hurried steps to keep up with
the boy, Ryuen readjusted his grip on the shoulder strap of his bookbag, smiled
slightly. "Well...hai, I did need
it...but...why'd you do it? I
mean...why me?"
The question seemed to take the boy by
surprise. He came to a halt in the
center of the hallway, frowned. The
expression formed a thin crease in the smooth skin of his forehead, made his
lips bend very gently downwards.
"I don't know," he murmured, sounding vaguely confused. "I don't...I don't even know
you..."
For a long moment, he stared up into
those soft amber eyes, let that warm, exotic beauty sweep him up into its
embrace...and then, he offered a wide, genuine smile, lifted a slim hand. "I'm Chou Ryuen," he said. He let his small, slim-fingered hand be
wrapped up in the blanketing warmth of the other boy's hand, felt a tingle of
familiarity rush up his spine, tingle at the back of his mind. He frowned.
Noting the expression, the other boy
matched the frown, nodded slightly. He
did not take his hand away.
"Seishuku Saihitei," he replied softly. "Demo...it feels as if...as if..."
"As if we've met before,"
Ryuen finished quietly. "Hai. I...I get that feeling, too."
Saihitei shook his head slightly,
finally withdrew his hand and slid it back into the safety of his pocket. "Strange," he murmured. Then, he shrugged his broad shoulders,
started, again, to walk down the hallway.
Not quite sure of what else to do, Ryuen followed, feeling rather like a
puppy nipping at its master's heels.
For a long time, they walked in a
strange, companionable silence...and then, Saihitei turned slightly, glanced
down at him with a slim smile.
"You know," he said slowly, "you should've been paying
attention in class today. It was really
pretty interesting. All about ancient
religions, worship of gods, stars...very interesting."
Ryuen scrunched up his nose. "I couldn't've paid attention even if
I'd wanted to. It's been too long, listening
to him..." He smirked. "Don't worry, you'll get sick of him soon
enough. That voice...ugh. It's like listening to heavy machinery teaching
sociology."
The taller boy raised an eyebrow,
smiled slightly. "Heavy machinery?"
he echoed carefully. "I didn't
think it was that bad..."
The words trailed off...and then, he shrugged, smiled again. "What do your friends call you?"
Startled by the sudden subject
change, Ryuen blinked, spent a long moment sputtering for words. "Uhh..most people just call me 'Ryuen,'
but my little sister calls m--" He
broke off very suddenly, felt a deep blush creeping into his cheeks. "G-Gomen. What I meant was...just call me 'Ryuen.'"
Saihitei blinked. "Hm?
What does your little sister call you?"
Ryuen let out a low, tortured
groan. "Iie, onegai. Don't ask..."
The boy smiled. "Now, you've got me curious. Come on...I won't laugh. I promise."
Peeking out from beneath the hand hiding
his face, Ryuen let out a heavy breath of air, slumped slightly as he
walked. "She...she calls
me..."
"She calls you..."
He winced. "Nuri-chan."
"Nuri...chan?" Saihitei shook his head slightly, offered a
small, confused smile. "Why on
earth does she call you that?"
Another groan fled his lips. "It's a long...long story..."
"Oh? How long?"
"Long. Very, very long. So long...you'd forget what I was talking about by the time I
finished it."
Saihitei smiled. "Where do you live?"
"Uhh...a-a few blocks away...on
Sakura Street..."
"Ah, honto ni? Do you
know the brick house at the end of Sakura?"
"Hai, of course--the one that was just sold. It's right--" He broke off, felt his eyes widen. "Right next to mine...gaaah!
W-W-We're...we're..."
Again, that soft, gentle smile twisted onto the taller boy's
lips. "Next door neighbors,"
he murmured. "How...strange."
Ryuen let out an exasperated sigh, pressed a slim hand against his
forehead. "Mattaku," he
breathed. "This is very...very...weird."
"Hai. Demo...since we are neighbors..." He trailed off, offered a thin smile. "Perhaps you could help me find my way
back home? I wouldn't ask,
except...well, there's something about getting lost in Tokyo that doesn't
appeal to me all that much..."
Ryuen smiled. The tension melted from his muscles, left
him warm and contented in the soft wash of this new, strange friendship. Okay, so it was weird. Okay...so, he was more attracted to this
beautiful transfer student than he'd ever been to any girl in his entire life. So what?
Whatever the why, he and Saihitei had been brought together for a reason,
right?? It...it couldn't all be
chance, could it? Iie, of course
not. So...why not go with it? "Hai," he agreed softly. "I'd be glad to...walk home with you,
Saihitei. I--" He stopped, frowned. "Saihitei," he repeated, testing
the word. "Sai...hitei..."
The taller boy frowned. "N...Nani?"
"Saihitei," he said
again. "Too long...does anyone
ever call you 'Sai?'"
The chestnut-haired student
blinked in surprise.
"Not...really..."
Ryuen grinned, stretched forward a
slim hand and shoved open the school's front door, letting in a warm wash of
spring sunshine. "Great," he
said, genuine pleasure touching at his words.
"Let's go...Sai. And,
ne...if you really wanna know...I'll tell you the story about my nickname while
we're walking. If you really wanna
know, of course."
"Hai, I'd like to know."
"Okay. Don't blame me if I bore you to death, though." He pushed the door the rest of the way open,
walked out onto the grey concrete and waited.
After only a slight, searching pause, Saihitei drew in a soft breath and
also stepped out into the sunlight.
"This really is strange," the
dark-haired boy murmured after a moment, staring down at him with such an
intense look of puzzlement that he felt his cheeks warming again. Seemingly noticing the sudden rush of color,
the taller boy looked away, started off down the sidewalk without so much as
another word. After a few moments of
kicking himself mentally and wondering--absently, of course--if Saihitei might also
be slightly less than straight, Ryuen let out a soft sigh and followed.
No.
Saihitei was too gorgeous to be okama.
He smiled wistfully, admiring the soft, silken chestnut hair, the broad,
muscled shoulders...the graceful, princely walk. Too bad.
Definitely...definitely too bad.
~*~*~*~
*AN: Not sure if I like this fic yet or not...so,
let me know what you think. Is it worth
continuing? Inquiring minds want to
know. Arrigato. ^_^.
-Ryuen
