Lost Past

before "Bad Luck" and NG (inc.)

Chapter 2: 8 - 10: A New " コイゴコロ " (koigokoro)

Ever since he went to live with Summer, Shuichi Shindou has been happier than ever. He finally goes to school now. He's never been to school because his mother, Hanajima, barred him from the world. His grade school teacher likes him and that makes him feel special. As for Summer, she gave birth to a baby girl 4 years ago, who has a very strange tale behind her name: Crimson Shindou Watermark.

Flashback

It was the dead of winter and Summer was sitting on the couch in the front room. Shuichi was 5 years old at this time, and slept in the guest bedroom. At about a quarter to 10, one of Summer's friends, Anki, came over to check on her. They sat down and started to talk. Shuichi was watching, so he knew what they said. "What?" He couldn't believe that they were talking about someone. And that someone happened to be him! Summer said that Shuichi was like a son to her and that she knew he didn't deserve to be kept with someone like Hanajima. Anki said nothing. She just stared in awe that Summer would actually be taking care of two kids, when she was just a kid herself! Summer was just smiling away at Anki. Then Anki said, "Damn girl, you sure have a lot of responsibilities for only 16 years old..." Anki was 20, and she was curious about Summer's life in perspective. Summer just kept smiling. Shuichi had never seen anybody smile like that. He was peeking out from the guest bedroom door. The coldness in the house kept him awake. He didn't understand what the two older women were talking about, but he guessed by how much they were laughing that it was funny.

A couple nights later, it was time for Summer to have her baby. Even though he was excited, Shuichi decided that two o'clock in the morning wasn't a good time to go to the hospital. He called Anki to come pick her up. "Can I go, too?" Shuichi asked as Anki helped Summer to her 2006 Scion xB.

"No, you're too young!" Anki glared at Shuichi.

"Where'd you get that car? It doesn't come out until 2006!" Shuichi asked, off topic.

"I got it at a dealer in America. Isn't it SOOOO cute? It was half price because it's a new model, coming out in 4 years!"

"Can we go to the hospital now?!" Summer broke the conversation. They all got in the car, despite Anki's rejection to Shuichi. The drive took long, but they got there just before a crowd formed.

Hours later, they were able to visit Summer in her room. It was on the top floor, and Anki waited out in the car since she didn't like hospitals that much. So, Shuichi was on his own. It took time, but he found his way. 'I wonder if she's feeling okay," Shuichi thought to himself, almost pasing Summer's room. 'She might be sleeping...' Shuichi stopped dead in his tracks, as the door was already cracked slightly open. Someone beat him there!

"Why'd you come back." Shuichi heard Summer talking to someone. "I... came to see you..." A guy's voice was heard from the room. Shuichi glanced in and paused. The man was tall; his back was facing the door. His hair was semi-long and was bleached a peculiar blondish color. He wore skinny jeans, faded along the back of the legs with chains hanging from either side. The tank top he wore was black to match the jeans and had a rip along the back, right in the middle. "No one knows about you, Summer. They hadn't even asked. They don't care. Jay and H think you're dead, and Siam and Courtney still hate you the way they did in middle school. Please don't come back!" Summer got teary, "Anki is still my friend, and she used to hate me also! Please, Paxton, don't leave again..."

"I said DON'T COME BACK!" The man, Shuichi heard the name Paxton, stood up and smacked the table beside Summer's bed over. Summer's eyes widened in fear as Paxton turned around and headed for the door. Shuichi hesitated in backing up and got him in the face as Paxton opened the door. "Hey, kidfuck, get outta my way." Summer stood up, even though the doctor said to stay in bed, "Stop talking to Shu-chan that way, Paxton! Be nice to him." Paxton scoffed at Shuichi and walked away furiously. Summer smiled as she helped Shuichi off the ground, "I'm so sorry, Shu-chan. It'll never happen again..."

End Flashback

That night, 9 year old Shuichi Shindou sat up in his bed, wondering why Summer did what she did:

"Because... you're the best friend I could ever have. I remember, I was like you; I didn't get along with other people very well. I know how you feel. and that's why you're here now. You wanted to get away from everything. From what you've told me, your mother is a very painful person, and by painful I mean cautious. Cautious of you. She was watching out for you, and..."

"How was she watching out for me by HITTING me?! I love my mom, but I don't love her. She's just... weird. Ever since Daddy died..."

"I don't know why I named her that. I just did. And I'm glad I did!"

"Friend..." Shuichi said to himself as he watched Crimson sleep. She looked nothing like Summer. She was blonde. "Paxton," Shuichi whispered as he remembered that guy. That guy. Shuichi was smarter than everybody thought. He knew who Crimson's dad was, but was unsure. I mean, come on! The boy is in the 3rd grade. He isn't a detective, or Maury. "Maury," Shuichi assured himself, "he would know..." "Daddy?"

Little 4 year old Crimson looked up at Shuichi with cute hazel eyes. 'Still nothing like Summer...' Shuichi thought as he smirked at the small child. "No, I'm not your daddy, Crimson." Before he knew it, Crimson hopped on Shuichi with her tiny 4 year old powers and gave him a big, wet kiss on the cheek. Shuichi looked with disgust and wiped a gob of spit off the side of his face, but smiled at the same time. He never did things like that when he was little. He thought it was cute. "It's time for you to go to bed. I don't know why you woke up, but it's sleepy time again." "Nooooooooo..." Crimson droned in an unenthusiastic voice as Shuichi tucked her in bed and kissed her on the forehead.

Shuichi stepped out of the room. He had grown since the years had passed. His hair was already to his shoulders, and there was a more visible color of pink to it. His purple eyes glowed more than usual since he arrived at Summer's house and began living there. He saw Summer in her room, sitting on her bed and reading a book. He glanced at the book's cover. Shuichi was familiar with the cover of the book from seeing it so many times at school. It was a novel by the famous romance novelist, Eiri Yuki. He walked in to her room and sat down beside her. "I know him," Shuichi said looking at the cover again, "he's that romance novelist that all the girls in my school love. They even have his books at my school library! Since all the girls freak out over him every single day, the books are clear off the shelves by the end of the week!" Summer laughed a little, and then said, "I just love his novels. Sometimes I want to laugh, sometimes I want to cry. It depends on what type of book he writes."

"Suuuure." Shuichi let out a big yawn and fell onto the bed gently. Summer laughed louder, and she didn't mind him lying down beside her. He closed his eyes and yawned again, except it was followed by a loud groan as if he were bored. "Y'know," Shuichi gestured at the outside room, "Crimson looks nothing like you. Why?" Summer glanced at her Eiri Yuki novel once more and then sat it down on the table beside her, "Well, she looks most like her father, but I don't know where he is now..." Shuichi could tell that she was lying. Her face had that look that he's known for 4 years. 'She isn't that good at lying anyway,' Shuichi thought as he got up from his resting place and said "goodnight" to Summer before leaving the room.

Shuichi went back into his room and saw Crimson fake-sleeping. He climbed in and scared her by shaking her body with exerting force. "OWWWOWOWowowowwww!" Crimson jumped up and slid off the bed, landed on the floor, and ripped her shirt on the edge of the bed frame. Shuichi went to go help her up, but instead, he got a light push to the other side of the room. "Hey, Swishy, you puwshed mwe!" Crimson seemed mad, so Shuichi stayed clear for a while.

He sat at the other end of the room, watching Crimson eat a granola bar and read a book. Shuichi taught her how to read a couple of weeks a go, so he sat there, proud of himself. As soon as Crimson calmed down, Shuichi leisurely walked over to her bed and sat down, listening to every word she read. She stopped for a minute to look up at Shuichi, who had beckoned for her to keep reading. Like he instructed her to do , Crimson finished reading. "Heh... you're pretty good." The words that came out of Shuichi's mouth made Crimson's face flourish bright red and smile. " Thank youw!" She flopped down on her bed, and Shuichi flopped down right beside her.

"Swishy?" Crimson said Shuichi's name questioningly. "Huh?" "I wuv youw, Swishy..." Crimson closed her eyes and trailed into a deep sleep. Shuichi could feel his body quiver with embarassment. One reason of which was being called "Swishy" all day long. The other one was having a girl (even if it was a 4-year old) say "I love you," or some distorted version of it.

He let it pass with the thought in his head all night long and into the morning...
From a mouth... To a boy... To a boy... To a boy...