*smack!*
"Ouch! What the hell is this?!"
As usual a couple of books fell off from the top of the bookcase. Those people who places the books as they please. Sometimes, I become the victim of those slackers. Just like now, smacked by falling books…
Some people barely knew that I often sleep here. Well, maybe because each bookcase has pretty wide shelves, wide enough to place a lot of thick dictionaries, they probably didn't realize that there was someone napping beside it.
By the way, let me introduce myself, I'm Mizuhara Shin. Only a few people know me. Because usually, I'm in the far corner of this huge and maze-like, Shogakun library. I often take my regular nap nearby the shelves of ancient history books, under the uncurtained window. When the sun shines brightly, this spot is always showered by the warm sunlight. The girl who often sit in the corner is my twin sister, Shinki. She usually woke me up when the bell rang, which indicates the break time has ended. Furthermore, anyone hardly ever come here unless they were told so by the school anyway.
I'm probably not really well known because of my hair and fringe was long and covering my eyes; kind of like a ghost… No! not that, my appearance gave the feeling that I was more suitable to be called a 'Hobo'. This was why, when people learned that I'm her twin, they would immediately think or say something like,
"Huh?! I had no idea that Mizuhara Shin is Shinki's twin brother! They don't look alike!"
I heard comments like that way too often , so I'm used to it.
"Shin! Shin! Shin! Wake up!" I heard a Shinki's voice calling out to me.
"What is it?" I grumpily asked her with closed eyes.
"Wake up! The bell just rang."
"Yes yes, you go ahead first.." I murmured while looking at her with half opened eyes.
"You'll get detention. Come on… wake up…" Shinki pulled me with all her might. In the end I woke up and went to class. Lucky I wasn't late.
In English class, I just shut my eyes close. I didn't get enough sleep last night, as the result of helping my mom finishing her housework. Moreover, I didn't really sleep well in break time too. My eye bags were swollen.
"Mizuhara-san… " Saya-sensei awoken me. I ignored her, because I thought she was calling Shinki.
"Oh, Im sorry… Mizuhara Shin?" My eyes jerked open. Am I going to be punished for sleeping in class? How annoying…
"Stand up, please. Could you please read page 76?" Saya-sensei ordered me
I read it right away. Lucky I was still conscious enough to read the passage, after that I just shut my eyes again. After school, I immediately jerked my way to the school's music room. I was thinking, I should at least master a few songs before dad's concert in three months. I tried to look for songs that were stored in this music bookcase. I think it's here. Ah, I was right. Since I've got most of the songs I wanted, I took out my violin from its case and played it in this soundproof room. The song's tone seemed a bit slow, but then it turned dynamic. The tone changed occasionally.
"Whatever it is, I'll just play it. I would realize the purpose of the song after I finish playing" I thought to myself.
I continued playing my violin, from the notes it seemed like it was a tone from someone who was alone in his own world which was full of darkness and somehow he was able to find a beaming light that guided him out of that dark world…
*creak…*
Someone entered the music room. I stopped halfway through the song.
"Why are you playing alone?" asked the voice from behind me.
"Why don't you play with the others?" The voice asked me again.
I turned around, and I noticed that the voice came from Reikazawa-san, my mathematics teacher.
"Mizuhara, it seems to me that you like being alone, hmm? You always take naps in the library too. Why not try to blend in with the others?" Asked Reikazawa-san.
That question made me think hard.
"About that… I don't really know why. I don't really know why I don't like crowded places. That's all." I answered her question with an expressionless face.
"But Mizuhara, I think you would be pretty popular if you tidy yourself up." Reikazawa-san giggled playfully.
"I don't care…" I answered once again with no less expressions than earlier.
"Yes… I know. But Mizuhara, I think you're a good guy. It's just hard for you to get along with others. Try talking to people every once in a while, other than your twin sister, how about that?"
"Is that so? I don't really think that's how it is. Well, this world is a bit confusing though, that's how I feel about it. There are lots of different people in this world, but only a few understands me."
"I don't know…"
"Hmm? What do you mean by that?" Reikazawa-san asked me again.
"About what you said earlier, it confuses me…"
"Oh, that. I think it's because you hardly ever confess to others about how you really feel. I mean, to me, you look very quiet, you barely talk in class. Even for me, I've only heard your voice a few times…" explained her.
"Hmm…" I turned my face away, as if I don't give a crap about it. Although, it made me ask myself the reason why.
The next day there was a sudden math test. I saw the shines faded away from the student's faces. But I just sat still watching them from the back row. The test has started, everyone was doing it seriously.
"This question… wasn't it the one explained yesterday? Even the numbers are the same, the only difference were only the last two digits. This is not that difficult for me. Lucky I was paying attention yesterday."
The given test time was over. The students gave their papers away.
"Daammnn! It was so hard!"
"Oh my god… I'm so dead…"
"What the hell?! I didn't do most of it! What mark would I get?!"
"Let it be, dude. Don't even think about it. Getting 30% is good enough…"
Those were some complains that got into my ear. After a little bit of free period, where most of the students commented about how they did in the test, all the tests were finally marked. When I got my paper back, I folded it without even looking at my mark. I didn't even need to see it. Whether it's good or bad, it doesn't really matter to me anyway..
At the time when I strolled down the hall going to the music room to take a copy of a song, suddenly a couple of female students stood before me.
"Umm… Mizuhara-kun, would you be able to tutor us for math? We didn't understand a couple of questions." One of them asked me with glittery puppy-dog eyes.
I just stood there staring at them in an odd way.
"..Why me?" I asked them looking confused.
"Reikazawa-san said your result for the test was the highest among us all. So we would like you to tutor us a little, do you mind?" She asked again.
That time I remembered Reikazawa-san's piece of advice for me:
"Try talking to people every once in a while, other than your twin sister, how about that?"
"Okay, fine I'll tutor you guys… let's go to the library, the class is pretty far from here…" I answered them whilst turning and walking away. I won't even ask anything as a payback. I was thinking, maybe because I rarely show off anything that I have to anyone else, which is why they never knew I was good at math.
"…so… 3x must be moved to the other side so that you will be able to solve it. After you move it, 3x will become negative because you moved it to the other side. Now, solve it using algebra like normally. Anything you want to ask?"
"woah, thank you Shin-kun…" One of them thanked me.
"Umm… please don't call me using my first name. I'm not really used to that." I said it with a bit of a crusty tone.
I looked at them feeling a little guilty after saying that.
"Sorry about my tone just now. I was just a bit shocked. Because usually, only Shinki calls me that way…" I sincerely apologized to them.
"Ah, no, it's fine. We understand. How about Mizu-kun? Would that be okay?" she asked me calmly.
"Hmm… Yeah that's fine…" I mumbled as I turned my head facing the window.
I saw a baseball ball that was flying towards where I was. I was thinking in split-second. If she got cut by the glass pieces, that would be bad! She might get hurt real bad!
*Clang!*
I immediately pushed her away, even though she was still sitting on the chair. I don't know what happened afterwards, all I thought was that I won't die from this. Blood rolled down my cheek, I could feel it…
"Ah! Mizu-kun! Are you okay?!" Asked that girl panicking.
She then sat up and starred at me horrified. Her face was really confused and shocked. I wondered what was wrong. Probably because I looked like a hobo at the moment since my fringe was covering my face. Oh, and plus my clothes' sleeve is ripped off, which made me look even more like a hobo..
"What's going on?!" Suddenly Reikazawa-san and my classmates rushed into the library. they were asking about each of their friend's condition, but not me. I don't really need to be sympathized anyway. I straggle my way out from the library before they see me.
"I knew it, you'd get hurt, Shin…" Said Shinki who was standing in the hallway, the only one who didn't enter the library.
"You knew..?" I asked her with a confused face as she helped me to get to the infirmary.
A couple of days later when I enter the classroom, I suddenly became everyone's attention point. It's true that my wounds were not completely healed, but I didn't understand why they were looking at me that way. Their eyes changed, it wasn't like how it used to be. Not the eyes that were looking at me with ignorance. They all looked shocked, confused and many other…
…Ah, is it because I cut my hair?
-END-
Written by Chii-chan
storybychiichan (wordpress)
Translated by RiZ
kuronekoshi (wordpress)
nb: I'm sorry for any grammar mistakes. English isn't my first language, so pardon the flaws and mistakes that I made. ^^ I'm not sure why the author ended the story like that, but when i asked her she said that it was meant to be like that. I think there's a continuation of this story, so just wait. :3
