Chapter One
He crunched down as he watched the other children runaround outside. Like always he was left alone in the empty house.
"Kou-Chan, why don't you go play with the other kiddies?"
Kouji turned over to the only one who still treated him normally. Chikako Sato. For some reason the small child couldn't explain he was the only one able to see Chia. It caused everyone to label him a freak.
"They don't like me."
Chia hummed and looked out towards the other neighborhood children. The elder kneeled beside him, "How about we go to that church you always go to? The one with the big playground? Where the old lady always gives you chocolate bars? Yes?"
The six year old bit his lip before nodding and grabbing his coat following Chia to the front door. She waited silently for him to put on his shoes before following him out and into the streets.
Like Chia had said the old lady did indeed give him chocolates making him feel just a little better about not having friends.
He sat in the back of the many rolls of seats watching as the choir practiced their music as he silently ate on his candy while Chia watched the new pastor being told what they did by the elder pastor.
"Kou-Chan, you stay here am going to go and see if your dad's back home, okay?" Kouji nodded not really caring.
He could see as Nobunari Kisaku a boy just a few years older than him leave the room for a break with his sisters Nobunari Kana and Nana.
"Boy-San are you okay?"
Kouji jumped in fright when he took notice that the new pastor he and Chia had watched had come over to sit next to him.
"Um…"
The blonde smiled at him and put his hand out in greeting, "Well am Brown John, how about you?"
Kouji looked at him nervously but shook it nether less, "Minamoto Kouji."
That was the first friend Kouji had made aside from Chia.
The second time Kouji had seen John was a month later when Kouji had gotten into another a fight with his dad about his stepmother.
Kouji wasn't stupid he knew that his father didn't really love him for his stepmother. All he really cared for was his image.
It looked nice to the public if they saw a perfect family. A husband with a wife and one child, it was the picture perfect image for him and his work. It was never about whether or not he loved them just that it looked nice and got him more money.
And beer.
Always beer.
Kouji hated the smell. He hated living with his father and now stepmother. After all she never really cared for him too much. She hadn't even known he existed till after the wedding.
He hadn't even known about the wedding till his father brought her home.
And that sent him back to his safe heaven. A church that prayed to a god he didn't even believe in. How could he believe in such a thing when he never knew what real love felt like? This apparent 'god' gave him a neglectful father, a dead mom, and someone who he knew nothing about as a replacement.
"Kouji-Kun?"
Kouji looked up to see John staring at him with a concerned look.
"Brown-San, hi," he whispered softly.
John gave him the same small smile when the first met, "What's wrong? I noticed that you come here alone all the time? Why's that?" he questioned.
Kouji shrugged, "No reason, just like it here it feels safe."
John sat beside and handed him a small snack, "here you look far to skinny."
Maybe, Kouji thought, if I had real family I might have believed in this god if only for that and John.
He moved after that. His father went wherever the money took him after all. He didn't know why he was sad. It happened all the time. Every time they settled into a place it was never for long.
He didn't see John for a long time. Chia became his only friend from then on.
That was till he was ten. He got a call about destiny and out of boredom decided to do as it said. After all why not? It was either stay at home or go out.
He met some people. One even became his best friend. He found that his birth mother wasn't dead. That he had an older brother. He finally found people he could trust. He almost forgot about the moving and John.
But then he had to leave.
Again.
And again.
He still kept in touch with the others as much as he could. He visited them whenever possible. But he never mentioned Chia. And Chia never complained about it. She knew it was because they couldn't see her. That and they probably wouldn't believe him either way.
Then he turned thirteen. He went to same school as his brother and friends and as November came rolling around he saw John again.
