Today would be my first day attending Domino High. We moved to Domino city after my father died. My mother didn't want to stay in England anymore because of the constant memories of him. I begged her to let us stay, but she wouldn't listen.
No one knew what was wrong with him. He grew very sick and began to wither away. Mom put her heart and soul to heal him, but nothing changed. If anything he grew sicker and eventually stopped breathing one night.
So here we are unpacking some more items from our boxes. We arrived here three nights ago. Our house was smaller than I was used to, but I think I could manage. The town was pretty quiet, something that wasn't the same as our old town. People would always be on the road; going to work, driving their families to school-everything you could possibly think of. All of the houses seemed to look the same as our new one. I hope I wouldn't get lost.
School started a little more than an hour. I wasn't looking forward to it. The problem was that I was shy and had a hard time starting up a conversation. It took me years to make the friends that I now left behind in our old town. I couldn't imagine going through a second year of high school without friends.
I grew accustomed to having at least one friend there by me. My old friends knew me and took the time to get to know me, to have patience to get me to open up to them. I don't know what the people here are going to be like, and I think that's what scares me the most.
Mom was too tired to drive me to school so she decided to go lie down on the couch while I found something to eat. This wasn't like my mother. When dad was alive she would always have a hot meal on the table for us and her smile and laughter would light up a room in an instant. Now it seems like her spirit has faded and I don't know that stranger that is lying in the living room.
I settled on a bowl of ramen. Not that great for breakfast, but I didn't feel like searching the other boxes for a quick snack.
After eating I went up to the bathroom and searched in a box for my brush, toothpaste, and toothbrush. I quickly ran the brush through my long snow hair and put the coated toothbrush in my mouth. I didn't understand why I was rushing, but I felt like I would be late.
Not wearing a uniform to school was weird to me. I personally thought it was easier to wear a uniform than to search through your closet for something to wear. I decided to wear faded jeans that fitted nicely and a blue and white stripped shirt.
"Bye mom," I whispered, covering her with her favorite fleece horse blanket. I slipped on my shoes, put on my sweatshirt and headed out the door. It wasn't that cold, but just chilly enough that you'd want to wear some long sleeve. I wrapped my arms tightly against my chest and started walking toward the school.
When my mom and I went to Domino High to get me registered they didn't bother showing me around. They said they'd give me a map and one of the students would guide me around for the day. I was nervous, wondering if the person would like me or not, what he looks like, what if-
I looked up from the ground as I heard a door slam. Stopping in my tracks I saw a figure walking down his drive way, lighting up a cigarette. He had long snow white hair like mine and was also pale as I was. The smoker wore skinny black jeans and a leather jacket. I just stared, trying to mesmerize everything I could see. That's when I noticed him starring back at me. I stood a few feet from his driveway where he was previously standing at.
I heard a "hmph" and watched him move toward a red convertible. Hearing the keys enter the lock I realized it was his car. Before I knew it he was racing off.
Slowly making my way across the parking lot, I noticed many stares. I could feel others talking about me. I kept my arms tightly against my chest, hoping that would hide me from their curious eyes.
Before I knew it I was at the office. I'm glad my mom and I were here before.
"You must be Ryou!" was the first thing I heard when I entered the room. I looked over to a tan boy sitting up in his seat. His smile was bright and contagious.
"Yes, I am." I smiled back. I looked right into his lavender eyes. This person seemed friendly enough.
"Yay! Well let's talk to Ms. Mika and I'll show you around!" He jumped up and practically dragged me to the desk. I met Ms. Mika the other day. She was friendly enough. "My name is Malik by the way," he said while the secretary rummaged through a few papers. I nodded and smiled. After handing Malik my map, schedule, and attendance sheet we headed to my locker.
"-they tell you to write your locker number in your homework book, but I would just write it on a paper and shove it in your pocket." Malik kept talking. I wondered how he had enough breath to keep speaking the way he did.
Opening my locker wasn't hard at all since I had experience with it in my old school. Malik gave me one of his notebooks and a pen since my mom and I didn't get to the store for school supplies.
"So where are you from?" He asked as we made our way to our history class."
"England," I stated. Malik stopped and turned to face with me a shock expression. I became confused as to why he was giving me such a face.
"You speak Japanese very well, like you lived here your whole life." I couldn't help but giggle. It was true. My dad had me learn Japanese since I was little. He believed once you started speaking you should grow up with two languages. My dad decided on Japanese for me, and it definitely paid off.
I told Malik this; he thought it was the coolest thing in the world. "I only know Japanese. Well…a little English since I started that class last year-"
I was having fun talking to Malik until we reached our destination. All eyes were on me as I walked into the classroom. Malik could tell that I felt uncomfortable so he shouted at everyone, saying there was nothing to see. I laughed at that.
We walked to the back of the room to meet two other people.
"Ryou, these are my friends Yuugi and Jounouchi." One of the boys was pretty short and had tri-colored spiky hair. The other one was tall and slender, blonde messy hair. "Guys, this is Ryou. He's from England, and guess what, he can speak Japanese!" I chuckled, seems like the littlest things can surprise Malik.
I talked to the three like it was something I did everyday. I wasn't in school for 10-15 minutes and I already had three people I felt comfortable talking to.
Yuugi wanted to see my schedule, but before I could hand it to him the teacher came in. He shouted at everyone to be quiet and to get in their own seats. "We have a new student today." My stomach became raw. Why? Why did teachers have to do this and make me the center of attention?
Everyone turned to face me. "Because of our short schedule we won't have time for Ryou to talk, so let's open our books and get started." I took a sigh of relief. I always hated standing up in the middle of class for whatever reason. My old teachers knew this, but thought it would be good for my self-esteem if I did it anyway.
I ended up sharing a book with Jounouchi since I sat right next to him. He slid his desk against mine for the day. Malik and Yuugi sat behind us, sometimes whispering about things that weren't related to class.
"You have B lunch, so that's 12:30," Malik said taking my schedule after the lesson was over. We walked to our biology class together. After this class I wouldn't see Malik until lunch. I was dreading to go to my next class by myself. "We can ask sensei if it's alright to leave a little earlier so I can show you where the cafeteria is." I nodded, hopefully.
I wasn't as nervous in this class. Being too caught up talking to Malik seems to do that. We were interrupted by a rather good looking guy. He was tall and skinny, and his long black hair in a ponytail.
"Hi, I'm Otogi," He greeted me, extended his hand.
"Ryou." I shook his hand. The people in this school seemed to be very nice. I was glad and no longer worried.
"Otogi has B lunch with us too, so does Yuugi and Jounouchi. Honda too, you'll like him when you meet him."
I didn't get to talk to Otogi that much since the teacher came in and started the lesson right away. I was full of joy when he treated me like I was a regular student there and didn't make me the center of attention.
Biology class was a lot of fun. I couldn't wait to do an experiment. Class ended too soon when Malik asked if he and I could leave early. It was a little disappointing, but I'd rather know where the cafeteria was than be lost later.
There wasn't really anything amazing about the place, just a regular lunch room with a lot of tables and chairs, a few vending machines, and a door probably leading outside.
"So I'll walk you to your class now." I could tell Malik was a little bummed for having to leave. I nodded and followed him to my creative writing class. "Just wait out here until the bell rings, okay?" I nodded, growing more nervous by each passing second.
After saying good-bye he walked off, leaving me alone like a defenseless rabbit in a room full of hungry cats.
As I waited for everyone to leave the classroom my eyes landed on the stranger from this morning. His face was expressionless as he turned his gaze toward me. I stared at him as he made his way down the hall. My face became red with embarrassment when I noticed that I have been staring at him the whole time. I looked down at the floor as I made my way into class.
The class was faster than I expected it would be. I actually had fun writing in a journal and making up characters for a story. I didn't make any friends in this class, but that was fine with me. All I needed was a pen and paper and I was set.
I quickly made my way to the lunchroom, wanting to be with people I knew as soon as possible. There were still people sending curious glances my way which made me feel awkward.
After getting to the now filled room, I scanned for Yuugi, Jounouchi, and Malik, but failed. My heart pounded as I scanned again. People were impatiently pushing me aside so I decided to get in line for food. After in line I scanned the room again. Where were they? I became frustrated and let out a moan.
"Aw, 'Kura, look at this one." I looked up to see a rather tall tan guy with messy spiky hair. He wore dark blue skinny jeans, a white shirt, and an unbuttoned jacket. I got a weird feeling by the way he was looking at me. "Hey, you wanna come over tonight? I could sho-OW!"
"Leave Ryou alone, you bastard!" I bit my lip as Malik screamed at him.
"Why would I listen to you when you just stomped my foot, baka!" They glared at each other as if they were two lions ready to pounce. I swear I could see foam coming out of Malik's mouth.
"Leave them alone, Marik. You'll just get us into trouble again." I looked over to notice the mysterious white haired guy from earlier. I couldn't read any emotions, but I thought I saw sadness in his brown eyes.
"Aw, 'Kura, don't worry. I wasn't neglecting you." The Marik guy wrapped his arms around- I guess his name was-'Kura's waist as he sighed with annoyance.
"Come on Ryou; let's just share lunch with Honda and Yuugi. I don't want to be behind these creeps." Before I could say anything Malik grabbed my arm and dragged me to the table.
"Found him!" Everyone looked up after Jounouchi spoke. "This is Honda." He pointed to a guy with brown hair and wore a tan trench coat.
I watched fascinated as Jou and Honda inhaled their food. I have never seen anyone eat the way they did. I took a bite of a carrot that Yuugi handed to me and looked around. I noticed that Marik guy and 'Kura sitting next to each other. They were wearing the same jacket. There was also another person there too- a girl. She had brown hair and the same jacket as the other two.
"That's Bakura, Marik, and Anzu," Honda stated. I looked back to all of them to find them staring at me. I took another bite of my carrot and waited for Honda to continue. Instead Malik did.
"Marik is a slut. He fucks everyone he possibly can, than goes back to Bakura." Malik's fists were clench together, his knuckles became white.
"That, and you're just mad because he cheated on you-"My eyes widened.
"Bakura and Marik aren't even dating," Jou added.
"They're really just fuck buddies," Otogi sated.
"I used to think Bakura didn't even want to be with those two, but when I asked him about it he said he wouldn't want to be anywhere else." I stared at Honda, wondering why he would ask Bakura this.
"I used to be apart of their gang, if you can even call it that. It's more of a clique. Anzu is a bitch, Marik is a slut, and Bakura…well no one knows anything about him but Marik."
"I heard a few people asked Bakura out, but he either walked away without saying a word, or just ditched them when they had a date." Yuugi handed me another carrot as he said this. "No one gives Bakura the time of day, many people are afraid of Anzu, and a lot of people throw themselves at Marik, knowing they'll get hurt in the end." I looked at Malik at the last part.
"Hey! I didn't know, he said that he liked me, so I thought 'hey, why not!?'" Malik looked down at the table.
"Yeah, so he took Malik's virginity and left him to go after the next guy or girl," Jounouchi added.
I looked back over to the three. Bakura looked up, probably feeling someone's eyes on him. After glancing around the room his eyes landed on me. I quickly looked down, heat rushing to my pale face.
"But what do you guys mean Marik keeps coming back to Bakura, just for sex or what?" None of this made sense to me.
"Yeah. Well that's what we hear anyways. If Marik isn't all over Bakura, than he's fucking someone else-"
"But I don't get it," I cut Otogi off, "why does Bakura let him?!" I was getting very frustrated without an answer. Everyone looked at me at first. Everyone shrugged.
"We don't know," Honda answered.
The rest of the lunch period we ate in silence. I felt bad for Bakura and I didn't even know why. Does it hurt Bakura that he and Marik aren't ever together, or that he goes and sleeps with girls and guys than goes to Bakura for more sex?
My thoughts were interrupted as the bell rang. I didn't have to worry about how to get to my other class since Malik, Otogi, and I had Physical Education together. We agreed that Otogi and I would walk to our Health class together and Malik would meet me 5 minutes before the end of class to show me how to get to my Music class.
PE and Health class went pretty fast since I got to spend it with my friends. I wasn't really interested in Music class, but I didn't want to take another language. Malik said he'd meet me at my locker and we could go get pizza with Jou, Honda, Otogi, and Yuugi. Of course I'd have to call my mom first, but I told him that'd be okay.
I waited outside of the classroom for the others to finish up. When I went to look down the hall, my head snapped back to the wall in front of me. Bakura was standing next to me. I don't think I ever felt this awkward in my life. My throat became dry and my stomach had a weird feeling. My breathing became uneven. I just couldn't stand this awkward silence.
"Are you having a panic attack?" I bit my lip and looked at him. He acted like he asked that question every day.
I couldn't find my voice so I shook my head no. I don't understand why I was acting like this.
"Oh, okay." We stood in silence until more people came to stand outside of the classroom, chattering away. A teacher had to come out in the hall to tell the students to keep it down. I guess music class usually runs late.
When we finally got into the classroom the teacher told me take a seat next to Bakura. I didn't want to, but said 'okay' and made my way toward him. I couldn't sit still and I think I was annoying him, but I couldn't control myself.
Class seemed like it went on forever and I can't remember one word the teacher said. I don't even know what we learned about. I was happy when I heard the bell ring and rushed out of the classroom toward my locker.
I opened it up and got out my sweatshirt and began waiting for Malik. That's when I noticed Bakura's locker three lockers down from mine. Before I could think about anything else Malik was in my face.
"So how did you like your first day of school?!" He asked excitedly. I looked over at Bakura's locker to see that he was already gone.
"Huh? Oh, um…it was pretty fantastic." And that was the truth. The first day of school here and I already made a few friends.
I told Malik that I had to call my mom and tell her about going to get pizza with everyone. We stopped by the office and walked toward pizza palace to meet the others.
I guess it was natural for Jou and Honda to eat the way they did. Yuugi and Otogi were playing Pac man, and Malik and I were finishing up the last bit of our pizza. I think I could get used to doing this after school.
Malik offered to walk me home, but I told him I was fine. We all said our goodbyes and went our separate ways. As I walked into the part of town I moved to I heard music. I stopped in front of Bakura's house to see him sitting on his porch listening to a radio. He was listening to a rock band. The music seemed pretty sad. I was lost in the beat and didn't notice Bakura staring at me.
He made a quiet cough and waved me over. I told myself that I should get home, but my legs had a mind of their own. Before I knew it was standing in front of Bakura. We looked at each other as the music played.
"What kind of music do you like?" He asked me. He seemed like a quiet, laid back kind of guy.
"I-I don't know…"
Bakura raised an eyebrow, "You don't know?" I bit my lip and looked away. I felt as if I said something wrong.
"Sorry, I should really be getting home." I turned away and walked toward my house, not looking back once.