For character bios go here: www. angelfire .com / goth / inkpoisoning / ffhsbios. html
(Take the spaces out of the URL first. I had to write it like that otherwise the...bloody thing kept eating the link XP)
Tidus stared up at the ceiling and listened to the rain. He hadn't slept one wink all night. Today was the first day of school in a new city. They had moved three times this year already. Auron promised this was the last move, but Tidus didn't really believe him. The teen looked over at his older brother's bed. Shuyin was fast asleep on his stomach, tangled up in his sheets, and snoring softly. Tidus sighed and looked over at the clock. It was 6am.
Might as well get up. He thought.
Tidus sat up and swung his legs over the side of the bed. He rummaged through his box of packed clothes and pulled out some jeans and a yellow T-shirt. He dressed and made his way to the kitchen. The teen wasn't surprised to see Rin already sitting at the table. A pot of coffee was starting to perk nearby. Rin looked up from his newspaper and smiled.
"Good morning honey. You're up early."
Rin was Auron's fiance. They had agreed to get married when Auron finally stopped getting transferred from city to city. Henceforth they've been engaged for five years. In fact, Auron had proposed to Rin the night before Jecht and Maya were in the accident...
"Tidus?"
Tidus blinked, snapping himself out of his thoughts.
"Yeah, I just couldn't sleep anymore." He finally lied.
"Want some breakfast?" Rin asked.
"Nah. I think I'm going to go shower."
"Are you ok?"
"Yeah. Just nervous."
Rin smiled. "You'll be fine and I promise you this was the last move. I can just feel it."
Tidus forced a weak smile and headed to the bathroom. He was extremely grateful towards Auron and Rin for taking he and his brother in. However he was tired of moving so much, trying to hold onto his old friends, and trying to makes new ones. Tidus really, really hoped this was the last move. The blonde entered the bathroom and closed the door. He stripped down and got into the shower. The door opened and Auron walked in.
"Morning Tidus."
"Morning." Tidus replied, lathering some shampoo in his hair.
This is why they purchased a dark blue shower curtain. There was only one washroom in their new, small house. Not exactly convenient for four people who got up at roughly the same time. Auron had left the bathroom by the time Tidus was done his shower. He locked the door so he could dry himself off and dress. As Tidus was leaving the washroom Shuyin stumbled passed him.
"Morning Shu." He grinned.
"Mmnf." Shuyin mumbled, closing the bathroom door.
Tidus chuckled. Shuyin wasn't a morning person at all. The blonde made his way back to the kitchen where Rin and Auron were now having breakfast.
"I made you a waffle." Rin said.
Tidus laughed softly and sat at the table. "Thanks Rin."
Tidus poured a bit of syrup on his waffle and started to eat. Auron drank down his last bit of coffee and stood.
"I'm off. You and Shuyin have fun at your new school."
Auron bent down and kissed Rin on the lips. "See you after work."
"Bye baby." Rin replied with a smile.
Auron smirked and left the house. The sound of his car driving off sounded minutes later.
"Shuyin!" Rin yelled. "Hurry up or you won't have time to eat!"
"Yeah, yeah." Shuyin mumbled, entering the kitchen.
"I made waffles." Rin said, pushing a plate towards Shuyin.
"Mmmn. Waffles." The blonde smirked.
"Just eat." The man laughed.
Tidus was already done his waffles. He gulped down the remainder of his juice and headed to the front porch. He went through his backpack and made sure he had everything. Shuyin emerged from the kitchen a few minutes later. He scooped his backpack up and turned to Tidus.
"Ready to go little bro?" He asked.
Tidus nodded uncertainly. "I guess so."
Shuyin smiled and clapped Tidus on the back. "Don't be nervous, T. You'll be fine and if anyone bugs you they'll have to answer to me."
"Okay." Tidus sighed.
"Now c'mon. Don't want to be late on the first day."
Tidus nodded and put his shoes on.
"Bye Rin!" He called.
"Bye Tidus! Bye Shuyin!" Rin called back.
"See yah after school, Rin!" Shuyin said.
The two boys made their way outside and got into Shuyin's truck. They buckled up and Shuyin started the truck. Tidus tried to control his nervous breathing as they backed out of the driveway and headed towards the school.
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Tidus looked around the packed gymnasium with wide eyes and he resisted the urge to hold Shuyin's hand.
"We have to sit with our specific grade." Shuyin said. "You gonna be ok?"
"Uh...yeah." Tidus replied.
Shuyin nodded. He gave his brother a reassuring smile and jogged off to sit with the Gr. 12s. Tidus looked at the Gr. 11s and swallowed hard. He walked up onto the bleachers and sat beside a girl wearing a black sundress. He briefly thought about introducing himself, but she didn't look that friendly.
"All right. Quiet down." A haughty female voice echoed over a microphone.
Tidus looked to the center of the gym to see a blonde woman in a pink business suit standing in front of a microphone.
"My name is Leblanc Viera. I'm the vice principal here."
A few wolf whistles then some snickers rippled through the crowd.
"For those of you who are new or need their memory refreshed listen up! I give this speech once and only once."
The vice principal then went into a big speech about the dress code, discipline, and many other "exciting" things. Tidus tried to listen but his mind started to wander. He went over his class schedule in his head and looked at the school map on the back of the binder the school provided. He really hoped he wouldn't get lost. His old school was only one story high. This school was three stories high.
"They didn't renovate the school during the summer break y'know. It's still the same." A female voice said.
Tidus looked up to see that the girl in the black sundress was talking to him.
"Well...uh...I'm new." Tidus stammered.
"I noticed." The girl replied. "I was just messing with you before."
"Uhm...okay?"
She laughed. "My name is Lulu. What's yours?"
"Tidus."
"Cool name."
"Thanks. It means 'sun'."
Lulu nodded, interested. "I think my name means 'rabbit' or something."
"There's a book in the library that tells you."
"I avoid the library." Lulu replied. "They don't have any good books. They banned them all."
Tidus laughed softly. "There's always the public library."
"True." The girl nodded. "So? See anyone interesting yet?"
"Besides you, no."
"Well if you see anyone point 'em out. I'll see if I know anything about them."
"Okay. Thank-you."
"No problem." Lulu smiled.
"Okay that's all!" Leblanc announced. "Enjoy your new school year and get to class!"
Groans echoed through the crowd and everyone started to disperse. Tidus smiled. Luckily for him his first class was gym. He didn't have to go anywhere. Lulu didn't get up either and Tidus looked at her.
"Do you have gym too?" He asked.
"Yup." She grimaced.
"That bad, huh?"
"Yeup."
"Are the girls and boys in the same class?"
"No, but we might as well be. We gotta share everything anyway. Come on, I'll show you the change rooms."
Lulu stood and Tidus saw that she had "Hello Kitty" brooches pinned to the straps of her dress.
"Those are..." Tidus almost said 'cute', but he didn't think Lulu would appreciate it. "...cool."
"Thanks." She smiled.
"Hey Lu. What's new?" A redheaded teen asked as he approached.
"Chappu, how many times have I told you not to greet me like that?"
"Forty times last year and once this year." Chappu grinned then nodded at Tidus. "Who's the new kid?"
His name is Tidus." Lulu turned to the blonde. "Ignore Chappu. He likes to think he's witty."
Tidus laughed softly and Chappu grimaced.
"Don't hang around Lu or the popular crowd will hate you!" Chappu sang loudly.
"See?" Lulu sighed, leading Tidus off.
"I think he likes you." Tidus smirked.
"I think he likes to annoy me." Lulu replied.
The girl showed Tidus to the change rooms then nodded at a glassed-in office. Two teachers were chatting inside.
"Be changed and ready before those two leave their office or you'll get hell."
Tidus nodded his understanding and he and Lulu went to the separate change rooms. Chappu was busy entertaining the guys with lewd jokes so Tidus changed quickly and walked out into the gym. Lulu and a few other girls were already changed and waiting.
"Chappu's telling his 'Rosie's legs' joke again, huh?" Lulu said.
"I think so. I wasn't paying much attention." Tidus answered.
"You must be the only guy to ever not listen to that joke."
Tidus nearly said that women didn't interest him that way, but kept his mouth shut. Shuyin got in enough fights at their old school defending his brother. More people started filing out of the change rooms. Lulu pulled a baggy green hoodie on and sighed.
"Are you athletic?" She asked.
"I could be, but sports don't really interest me."
"Me either. You can stand on the sidelines with me."
"Sounds good." Tidus grinned.
It was still raining when Lucil and Maroda ushered everyone outside to play soccer. Lulu, Tidus, and a few other kids stood on the sidelines and watched the athletic kids play.
"You don't smoke, do you?" Lulu asked.
"No." Tidus shook his head.
"Good. Don't start." The girl replied, pulling a pack of smokes from the pocket of her shorts.
She pulled a lighter out of the other pocket and lit a smoke.
"I ran track through all of Junior High." She said. "Now I can't even run down the hall to class."
"Maybe you should try to quit." Tidus suggested.
"Easier said than done my friend."
The soccer ball rolled to a stop at Lulu's feet. She kicked it back into play and flicked the ashes from her cigarette.
"Good kick, Lulu!" Lucil called.
Lulu gave her teacher a "thumbs up" then turned to Tidus.
"And that is how you earn a grade in gym. You get the next ball."
Tidus nodded and smiled. He couldn't believe he had a friend already. Well, at least someone who was nice to him. Tidus always seemed to have trouble making friends.
"Hey Lu. What's new?" Chappu smirked as he ran up.
"How about go away Chappu?" Lulu grimaced, taking another drag.
"Smoking is bad for you, Lu." Chappu's smirk grew.
"I'm going to kill you, Chappu. Ah! Now you've got me doing it!" Lulu exclaimed.
"I knew you'd catch on eventually." The redhead smirked.
"Go away you aggravating monkey!" The girl yelled.
Tidus laughed and Chappu made monkey noises as he ran off.
"Yup. He definitely likes you." Tidus remarked.
"He definitely likes to annoy me." Lulu replied.
The blonde laughed again and shook his head. The soccer ball rolled to a stop between him and Lulu. She moved aside and Tidus kicked the ball back onto the field.
"Nice one!" Maroda smiled.
"Uh...thanks?" Tidus replied.
--------------------
By the time lunch rolled around Tidus was actually feeling pretty good about his new school. Lulu was only in his gym class and he hadn't made any other new friends, but all his teachers seemed to be really nice. The blonde's stomach growled, reminding him that it was lunch time. He entered the cafeteria and wasn't surprised to see Shuyin chatting up a table full of people. His brother never had trouble making friends.
"Ah! Here's my baby bro! Tidus, come say hi."
Tidus rolled his eyes but walked over to Shuyin anyway. The blonde introduced everyone at the table. They all said hi and Tidus returned the greeting.
"So? how do you like it here so far?" Shuyin asked. "No one's given you any trouble?"
"No. No trouble and I like it here." Tidus replied.
"Good. You have lunch money, right?"
"Yup." The younger blonde nodded.
"Enjoy your lunch then."
Tidus nodded and walked off. He was almost to the lunch line when he was intercepted by Lulu.
"That your brother?"
"Yeah."
"Older?"
"M-hm." Tidus nodded.
"Are yah hungry?"
The blonde nodded.
"Well you don't want to eat here. Come on."
Lulu took a hold of Tidus' hand and led him outside. The girl pointed to the strip mall that was just up the hill from the school.
"There's a place up there with the best pizza, fries, and other junk."
Tidus nodded and the two teens walked up the hill.
"Do you have any siblings Lulu?" Tidus asked.
"Nope. It's just me, my mom, and her boyfriend."
The girl led Tidus to the place she had been talking about and went inside. It was packed with teenagers.
"Hey Lulu." One of the cook's grinned.
"Hey Tony." Lulu replied. "Give me a large slice of double cheese and pepperoni. What do you want, Tidus?"
The blonde quickly scanned the menu. "Medium fries and gravy please."
"Lunch is on me today." Lulu said.
"Thank-you, Lulu."
"No problem."
Tony made up their orders and Lulu paid for their lunch.
"See you around kiddo." Tony said.
"Bye Tony."
Lulu handed Tidus' styrofoam carton of fries to him and left the store. They walked back to the school and sat on the hill to eat.
"Rin would freak if hew knew I was eating this for lunch. He's a total health nut."
"Who's Rin?" Lulu asked, munching on her pizza.
"He's uh..." One of my dads? "...one of my legal guardians."
"Cool." The girl nodded. "Do you mind if I ask what happened to your parents?"
"They died in a car crash when I was 12." Tidus replied.
"That sucks."
The blonde smiled. No insincere "I'm sorry" or "how awful"s. A sincere "that sucks". That had to be the most sincere and honest answer he'd ever heard.
"Do you still remember them?" Lulu asked.
"Sort of. I remember what they look like. Shuyin and I have a picture of them in our room. But...I don't really remember them. I remember little things like my mother's perfume smelled like lilacs." The blonde's tone turned sour. "And that my father's drink of choice was rum."
Tidus trailed off, but Lulu could tell that he had more to say. She silently and patiently waited for him to continue.
"It was New Year's Eve. Dad and mom went to a party. Dad drank all night. Mom didn't. I'm not surprised that she let him drive. She knew he'd just deck her if she asked for the keys. They were driving home when my dad ran a red light. He swerved to avoid a collision with another car and wrapped the car around a lightpole instead. He died instantly. Mother was in a coma for a week before she died."
Lulu shook her head sadly. "I lost my father when I was three. He was a cop. He got shot in the head during a sting gone wrong. My father survived but he was braindead. He wasn't going to wake up so my mother consented to having them take him off life support."
Tidus nodded sadly in return. Lulu smiled softly and elbowed the blonde gently in the ribs.
"Lookit us. We're bonding. How darling."
Tidus chuckled and returned to eating his fries.
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After lunch was over the rest of the day seemed to fly by. It only seemed like minutes had gone by the time the dismissal bell rang. Tidus made his way to his assigned locker and shoved everything into it. He hadn't any homework to do anyway. The blonde then went out to the parking lot to wait for Shuyin.
"Hey bro!"
"Hey Shu." Tidus replied.
"No homework?"
"Nope."
"Lucky. I've got some."
Shuyin unlocked his truck and put his knapsack in the back.
"Did you meet anyone today?" The blonde asked, getting into his truck.
"Yes." Tidus nodded, getting in as well. "I met a nice girl named Lulu."
"Cool. Buckle up."
The blondes put their seatbelts on and Shuyin started the truck. He waited for a school bus to pass before pulling out of his parking space and driving off.
"I suppose you met tons of people."
"Yeah." Shuyin grinned. "Some."
Tidus smiled and leaned back in his seat.
"Y'know I was afraid I would forget the way home this morning. I haven't though." Shuyin chuckled.
"That's good." Tidus giggled.
After ten more minutes Shuyin pulled into the driveway of their new home. He looked over his shoulder at the beach and smiled.
"We should go surfin'."
Tidus nodded. "Cool, but first..."
"We have to fill Rin in." Shuyin nodded.
The blondes gathered their stuff from the truck and went inside. Rin was unpacking the boxes that were piled in the living room.
"Hi boys! Did you have fun at school?"
"Yeup." Tidus nodded. "I actually made a friend."
"That's good news!" Rin smiled. "And you, Shuyin?"
"Made some friends and got some homework." The older blonde replied.
"Make sure that homework gets done."
"I will...but until then..."
Rin smiled. "You want to go surfing, right?"
"Yup!"
"Good thing I unpacked your stuff. It's in the garage."
"Thanks Rin." Tidus smiled.
"Be back in time for supper."
"We will!" The boys answered, heading into the garage.
Blonde? Tan? Whoever would have ever pegged Shuyin and Tidus as surfers? lol XD R&R Please .