Chapter 1
"Kaoru!"
"Kaoru-kun!"
My morning begins.
I turned my head towards the group of boys and girls headed my way as I walked through the school gate.
"Kaoru!" one of the boys exclaimed.
"I really, realllly need help with my english assignment. If I don't ace it, I'll have to stay late and I've got a really important date tonight! Did I mention it's due in an hour?"
"Kaoru-kun!"
I turned my head to one of the many squealing girls.
"We're all going to karaoke tonight, please join us pleeeeeaase!"
"No way!" two of the boys chimed in.
"We need him for basketball practice after school!"
As everyone started arguing with each other, I sighed and smiled. It's hard to believe, looking at how popular I am, but it wasn't this way from the beginning.
-Flashback-
"Everyone, we have a new student joining us today." the teacher said, gesturing towards the door.
"He's joining us all the way from New York through our exchange program. He's fluent in english as well as japanese so there should be no reason why you can't all make him feel welcome. You can come in now!"
The students turned as I came into the classroom. I stood there as they all took me in. My shirt was coming out of the top of my pants since I was tall, my tie was crooked since I'd never learned how to tie one properly, my failed attempt at styling my blonde hair stuck out around my head.
"Everyone, this is Kyle Young." the teacher introduced me.
"Now, he'll only be with us for a year, but I trust you'll all do your best to make him feel at home."
She gestured towards two empty seats. "Please take the seat by the window."
I walked towards my seat, glancing at the other students as I went. Some snickered as I passed by, others looked scared, most looked disinterested. I sat down and stared out the window, wondering what my japanese school experience would be like.
The first day came and went. No one really said a word to me. A few days went by. Next thing I knew, 2 weeks had gone by without anyone saying so much as a word to me. I attempted at a few conversations here and there but most everyone I talked to seemed hesitant to say anything. They either looked uncomfortable or scared.
I couldn't really hold it against them. My japanese came out choppy, my name was hard for some to pronounce, I came from a sketchy part of New York, and I still looked like I had rolled out of a garbage can. My seat was at the back of the class and since, for some reason, the seat next to me was always empty I was always by myself. It went on like this for a month before I decided to do something about it.
At the start of the next month, I walked in to the classroom and everyone stopped talking. They stared at me in disbelief. I felt a little shocked as well. All I had really done was ordered a better fitting shirt, learned how to tie my tie, and had my hair professionally cut and styled. I also adopted the name 'Kaoru' since I felt it was the closest sounding name to mine that I could find. Now when I walked to my seat, the girls giggled and blushed and the guys stared. I had only changed my outward appearance but that seemed to be all I needed to get accepted.
-Present Day-
It's amazing what a haircut and properly fitting clothes can do. I thought to myself as the students jabbered around me.
"Sorry, guys!" I held up my hand in apology.
"I really need to get going, but I'll get back to you. I promise!"
I ran off, listening to the disappointed sighs behind me. It's not so bad being popular but sometimes it can be a lot to handle. I used to walk these halls without so much as a sideways glance but, now, the guys all want my help and the love confessions from girls are almost daily. It's definitely better than the way it started but I still find it hard to believe at times.
I headed towards the school roof. About a week ago, I had found a path through school where not many students pass through and, in doing so, I found the exit to the roof. That's not to say there aren't other students hanging out there, but the journey went much quicker than it would have otherwise. My favorite parts of the day are when I can come up here. It's pretty crowded during lunch but, in the morning, before classes start, I'm the only one here.
I climbed up to the roof above the exit and laid down. I popped in my earbuds and stared at the sky. My music is a mixture of english, japanese, german, and korean. It's a bit cliché but one of the things that prompted me to come to japan was my love for anime and asian dramas. I set my alarm in case I fell asleep and closed my eyes.
Just as I started to drift off, I felt one of my earbuds pop out. Happens all the time but can still be irritating. I reached over to pick it up but touched something soft instead. I opened my eyes and turned my head. Laying next to me, with my earbud in his ear, was a long, muscular boy with short, spiky, jet black hair.
-Chapter 1 end
Hi everyone! This is my first attempt at an original story. I tend to dream/daydream a lot about BL and a particular scenario from this story stuck out in my head so much that it progressed into a story. I find it hard sometimes to write down the things that go on inside my head but I felt this one was worth sharing so I'm going to do my best. Comments and advice are always welcome! ~Yayoi Kei