By〜 HannieNannie

Imaginary Friend

Chapter One

〜Ogino (Elementary School)〜

To have a guardian angel: someone who'll always be your friend whether to love or hate; a companion by your side that only you see. Even though you're alone, you'll never be lonely. That's what it felt like having an imaginary friend. It was crazy for a while; it's not something you just get used to. He suddenly appeared… Now always with me – is someone I know from another world.

Rated T

Author's Note: Updates may come frequently or late, but all of my stories will be finished. (Check the bottom of my profile for story progress updates) This one, in particular, I already have it all mostly planned out. So read and enjoy this bittersweet romance story~

It was a hot summer's day the first time he appeared. At first, Chihiro had no clue he was different among the other passersby. However, he'd been staring at her with an unchanged gaze for quite some time now – without a doubt catching her attention. A face pale and expressionless stood out against a dark bobbed haircut; the clothes on his body weren't even from the same era! If she had more time to look Chihiro could have sworn it was a ghost. The boy wasn't seen again for another week or so.

After reappearing over and over and over, Chihiro was on the brink of telling her parents. It was then, the very night she lost her patience; that something new arose. Waking up in the morning, Chihiro noticed a bracelet on her wrist. But it wasn't a bracelet among closer inspection, it was a hairband. Where did it come from and why? It was tucked away in one of her drawers later that morning.

Already it'd been two months with this reoccurring event. But instead of cowering away, Chihiro sort of got used to it. The boy wasn't scary with gauged out eyes bleeding all over the place, he was just a child around her age. There was also the weird feeling of déjà vu whenever she looked at him that perplexed her. Then one day she couldn't help but wonder if he wasn't really a ghost...?

Today was different than usual. Instead of disappearing in a moment's notice, the two stared each other down from opposite sides of the road. It was intimidating - Chihiro had no clue what to do! When he suddenly blinked it sent her jolting from surprise – like a flinch. Then he spoke, but being too far to hear Chihiro shook her head to show her misunderstanding. Instead she stared at his moving lips vocalizing vividly. Though still nothing could be made out. Abruptly, a car broke her concentration as it drove between them; he was gone thereafter.

Was he trying to talk to her now?

Is that something ghosts do?

That winter, the boy didn't appear so much anymore. For a brief moment Chihiro even imagined herself a normal person. "Hahahaha, no way," giggled out one of her friends. Chatting away with one another, a group of girl's headed to their club activities with Chihiro lost in their conversation. The school was small enough so that everyone knew each other, but in a way it was kind of annoying. For Chihiro, she turned into the silent type but usually had a lot of friends around. She's an approachable person, but always absent… even though she was present. Chihiro's unreachable. Some called her weird, always being lost in her own reverie, but someone so friendly wasn't easily hated. Especially when her moments were so short, like she was seeing something no one else could that would temporarily drift her mind away. Only a few people have actually witnessed it.

Often joining in on the world around her, club activities kept her busy. During these time she felt the most normal, but a simple walk home would drag her back into insanity. It wasn't until this particular afternoon, that she no longer believed a "ghost" was haunting her, but something far beyond her comprehension.

Exhausted from running all afternoon Chihiro slumped over with her bag resting against her back. She was on her way home, the sun already setting in the background. All she wanted was to take a long soothing shower and wash off her sweaty skin, but the night ahead would be a long one…

BOoink! BOOoink!

The shrill shriek of a car horn erupted from somewhere up the hill behind Chihiro who was snapped back to reality. Jolting upright and staring at the air before her, the life was nearly sucked out of her when her eyes met with another pair. Pure shock left her speechless, just a couple feet away nearly touchable was the ghost boy! His reaction was rather placid unlike Chihiro who was about to freak out. The anxiety of being so close to the one thing that had been tormenting her for so long overflowed. Much longer and her legs would move on their own and run away.

Just as she inhaled a steady breath, the boy's mouth opened to speak. Chihiro's eyes widened from disbelief. In that moment watching his lips part, Chihiro felt that strange twinge of déjà vu return. As if mesmerized by the revelation about to happen, they were about to converse for the first time! Any trace of fear momentarily left her consciousness as all her muscles started to relax. A great sense of ease washed over her, as if the boy himself was trying to tell her to stop being afraid.

BOOOooinnk!

Swiveling her head in the opposite direction, her life actually flashed before her eyes this time. A car sliding on the icy road of winter lost control! He was sliding down the hill right for Chihiro honking his horn endlessly. Frozen like a doe in headlights, her body wouldn't respond to the urgent message running through her head. MOOOOVE!

On cue her body was thrown aside between two homes. Catching her breath and grabbing her elbow, it felt like her arm was almost torn off! It was sore with the snow underneath slowly numbing the pain away… Someone had pulled her aside—

"Hey are you alright?" a man called out from the street. "I saw the car coming from over there then your body went flying! I thought you got hit," he exclaimed with wild arm gestures.

Nodding her head in silence she didn't want the man to come over so she made it more convincing. "Yea I'm fine; I jumped out of the way on time!" she lied.

"Are you sure?" the man asked walking closer.

Hurriedly, Chihiro gathered her bag and sputtered, "Y-yea. My mom is actually waiting for me so I have to go!" All the words jumbled together with the rush she was in to say them. When it came to strangers, Chihiro was somewhat on the shy side. Only a few girls in her class knew her personally, it was comfortable that way. She was rather content in her shell, allowing only a select few to peek inside.

"Oh… okay, well I think you should tell your mom what just happened."

With her bag pressed against her chest, Chihiro nodded and relaxed her tensed muscles. While her back was easing into a slouch, something she forgot to look for bumped against her—

Rolling her eyes to look over her left shoulder, Chihiro's breath hitched in her lungs. A beat of her heart faltered and left her recuperating composure. She was even falling forward from such shock, or maybe she was trying to get away from him. Directly behind her, even touching her, was the boy who felt too real to be a phantom. The warm breath huffing out from between his sickly pale lips was even white from the cold. Chihiro blinked when the cloud got close to her face. When reopening them only to stare into cold jade eyes, a chill washed all the color from her cheeks.

It all felt so real.

So why…?

"Oooi~!" The man completely forgotten from before carefully padded down the icy splotched road to the crashed car. His arms flailed every-which-way trying to keep balance. "Are you alright," the faint voice could be made out.

"How's the girl?" another man asked shakily.

Without hesitation Chihiro picked up her belongings and got out of the snow. When she looked back to the spot she collapsed in, there was no one there. Proof she wasn't going insane lied in the snow – there were two different imprints. The déjà vu lingered in her core, fluttering around in her stomach, it was unshakable. They hadn't spoken to each other but they touched! That was a revelation right? This was an actual person after all.

"Oh there she is," someone declared.

Gasping, Chihiro stared at all the chaos before her: the crashed car, the growing crowd of people, and all the eyes on her. Instantly she ran between the houses slipping a couple times on the ice. "Hey," someone yelled after her in vain.

With a few months remaining of the school year, Chihiro would soon be in middle school for the next 3 years. Trying to imagine what it would be like, something told her it wasn't going to be breezy. With the break between schools years starting, the life changing revelation finally occurred. The hairband made sense, the town made sense, and the hauntings from the boy… sort of made sense. At first she was slowly starting to put the pieces together: the déjà vu, the forest along with the tunnel, then all the lost time her family experienced when they first moved here. They were all related to the spirit world! When the weather brightened into spring, Chihiro set out to look for the tunnel herself.

It remained the same since the last time she saw it, corroded and covered in weeds. Now it was a road to nowhere, as if she never actually went anywhere. If it weren't for all the hauntings happening lately, Chihiro probably would've doubted herself if she ever remembered on her own. The memories of that place were strongest near the hairband. Twirling it in her fingers idly was the time she recollected everything. Using it as a hair tie had the same effect; but she couldn't stand the constant flashbacks while trying to concentrate in class and stopped wearing it. It returned back to her drawer thereafter.

It was almost as if an invisible mark was left on Chihiro when she left the spirit world – one that would curse her from normality forever.

Now middle school had started, but why hadn't he shown up since she remembered him. It was almost as if he knew and was hiding from her. But why would Haku spend so much time and effort practically haunting her just to disappear when things were getting good?