A/N: Warning! OOC characters, an AU, and some violence. I'm just all giving a heads up to those who are reading this story.
Disclaimer: You cannot sue this author because SiH is definitely not mine!
Legend:
"Speech"- Ritsu's Speech
Tweet!- Sound
(XX XX, XXXX)- Date/Time
"Speech"- Flashbacks
'Speech'- Thoughts
Word- Some important words
"Speech"phone calls or text or letters
"Speech"-Normal
(-/-/-/-/-)-Line breaks
-/-/-/-
Chapter 2:
"The First Path: Meeting"
(10 years ago. July 25, 20XX)
"Why? Why would you...do this?"
'I don't t know why either.'
"S-senpai...do...you hate me?"
'I...I...'
"Do I have to answer a question when the answer is already obvious."
'I sneered and laughed at him. But my chest hurts too much.'
He just clutched the only thing that was covering his bare body, his school jacket.
"Tsk, quit acting like a girl."
...
"Sto-mphfhm!"
He suddenly chuckled without any idea why. The victim was shivering at the cold that was touching his own skin. He tried to break free, but his hands were tied. He tried to say something to his love one, but that person covered his mouth.
With his large hands held the boy's frail neck, and the other is something that glimmered in the light. Green eyes were wide as plates as tears are falling from his eyes.
'Stop...please...'
"I'm really starting to love you."
'Why are you doing this?'
"But there is something that I had grown to hate. That particular thing is so annoying and useless. But, I have found the solution for it."
'No...Oh God...Please no...'
He wished that he could hear his thoughts of pleas. He wanted to convey something to his first love. He tried to break free and remove the gag in his mouth, but he can't.
He leaned at his ear and whispered to the tied up boy, "This is gonna hurt. Please bear with it."
"AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
...
...
...
...
"S-Saga...senpai..."
-/-/-
(July 25, 20XX (Sunday), 5:30 pm)
In this month of July, 10 years had passed, is the month were he realized his very own mistake. Something that burned through his very own memory. He was once an ignorant teenager that time. But now, a 27 year old, grown up man, to be exact. But the ten year memory still haunts him so much. He couldn't blame everything on him; it was all his fault.
But as of now, he's currently working at Marukawa shouten. He's the editor-in-chief of Emerald Department for shoujo manga. Well, it took awhile, but he was able to reach this feat.
But that man had to separate both his private and work life.
But sometimes it interfered him.
Oda Ritsu.
The name that burned through the mind and heart of none other than Takano Masamune.
His first love.
And of course, the one that he had broken beyond repair.
He knows that he's a complete bastard.
But, he still broke his heart and his chastity. But by the time that he's already gone for a few weeks...
He fell even deeper and realized his mistakes.
But it was too late.
That man cheated and hurt him too much.
But he's still in love with him.
He dated a lot of girls to forget about him. He even slept it my friend. But no matter what stupid things he would do, all he could see was his heart shaped face and bright green eyes.
Takano Masamune couldn't and wouldn't forget him
'Why?'
He's currently just walking around the park, trying to clear his own thoughts. But it didn't help him at all.
'I couldn't forget all of it. It remained like a permanent paint of memories.'
"Stop...No more..."
"Why?"
"Do you hate me?"
'I'm so stupid. I don't know why I did those things to him. I broke him to the extend of I don't know what the heck can happen.
No matter how many times I forget and resent you...it still hurts me to hurt you.
I just don't know what's wrong with me when I did those things. What really triggered all of my unknown madness? I couldn't even remember.
My memory is all vague and blurry. I don't know and I couldn't picture I single detail.
Man, I hate it.'
Thanks to hell week, they just gave all of them a few days off before they're back again. At least he's able to clear his head.
'I really need a break.'
He sat on the bench while looking around. The skies are blue, the winds are soft, and the fragrance of flowers is everywhere in this park.
He found this park after a few weeks of his biggest mistake. It was the only place to clear his own head and think about other stuff. This place was my his stress reliever. This place is also filled with cherry blossoms when it's spring.
'Man, they remind me so much about him.'
The soft breeze of the summer winds and the aroma of flowers were able to soothe him.
'I just wish it was able to clear my guilt, shame, and mistakes.
I really hope I could also see you again.
To do what ever it takes to cleanse my filthy slate.
I covered my whole face with my hands as I calmed myself down.
He'll never come back.
After what I've done to him.
I'm the total jackass.'
drip, drip, drip.
"Wha-?"
He noticed that some of the tears are falling from his own amber eyes. But not just that, the sky started to darken as a few drops came down.
'Such a perfect day indeed.
Me, alone in this bench as the rain poured harder. At least my tears can never be seen.'
"Um excuse me, you'll get sick onii-san."
He opened his eyes and saw a girl around her early teens, fourteen maybe? She had chestnut back length hair and blue eyes. She was holding an umbrella at her right hand and a bag on her back.
'So familiar...? Her features...'
"What do you want, kid?" he asked, slightly annoyed.
"Onii-san, it's not good to stay at the rain for so long. You might get sick." the girl said.
He sighed, "Where's your parents, kid?"
"I live with my onii-chan." the girl answered.
"Then where's your 'onii-chan'?" he asked.
"Well, I just went for a stroll when he entered a grocery store. Then it suddenly rained and I found you. Onii-chan knows this place for sure." she giggled.
"Didn't your brother teach you not to talk to strangers?" he asked, Again.
"Yes, but I can trust you. By the looks of it, you can't harm me."
'Damn, you're good.'
Masamune sighed and just accept defeat. This kid is good, he have to admit.
"Takano."
"Eh?"
"Takano Masamune is my name." he said as he reach out his hand.
She gladly accepted it, "Onodera Rika. Nice to meet you Taka-nii~ I'm fifteen years old too."
"Well, I'm twenty-seven, Rika-chan."
"You're not that old. My big brother is 25 years old."
This girl is pretty feisty. But by the looks of it, she looks like a smart one too. He was about to ask what her big brother's name is, but he saw someone running from afar.
"Nii-chan!"
The man was startled, but the teen smiled sweetly and ran towards the man that call her. He's extremely wet (that's because he ran all the way here from the rain) and shivering. But he can see the resemblance of her brother. Chestnut brown hair, fair skin, but the girl has blue eyes...same resemblance indeed, slight.
"Rika, where were you? When I was done, you weren't waiting at the store." The man asked but he just lip singed his words. But by the looks of it, he was panicking when he found out that his sister stroll off.
"I got bored, nii-chan. So I went here and found Taka-nii."
He raised an eyebrow, and looked at me.
The little girl pointed her index finger towards a man with black hair and amber eyes. He was also wet and shivering by the rain. But the brunette was captivated by his beautiful black hair, stunning looks and captivating amber eyes.
But towards the raven haired was no different. He was captivated by the brunette man's beautiful smile and shinning eyes, plus his chestnut yet soft hair and fair skin.
The brunette blushed a bit as he type something in his phone, but he was able to replace it with a smile. "Thank you for taking care of my sister. She's a bit adventurous and a feisty one."
He just shrugged it all off and chuckled, "Yeah, I notices it. But she didn't give me any trouble. She quite accompanied me and made my time so good."
"Well that's a relief. I'm Onodera Ritsu by the way. Nice to meet you." he said/typed as he bowed.
"My beloved onii-chan~" Rika said cheerfully as she squished her brother with all her might (even though her height is only below Ritsu's shoulders).
"Well, I'm Takano Masamune. Nice to meet you too, Onodera."
He nods and quickly types, "Likewise too, Takano-san."
Rika then coughed, which caught the attention of the two adults.
"As much as I love the introduction...Onii-chan and Taka-nii are both soaking wet."
The two of them looked at their clothes and exclaimed at their sudden realization. The young Onodera sighed and grabbed two umbrellas for them from her bag.
"Let's go home." Onodera lip singed as the three of them walk together.
-/-/-/-/-
"Why didn't I just noticed it sooner?"
"I didn't quite noticed it too, Takano-san."
"I'm really flattered that you both don't know, Taka-nii and Onii-chan."
The three of them were all riding at the elevator together. The two men were both soaking but the young girl was dry and fresh. They were just waiting for their destination; then the elevator dinged, signalizing that they've arrived at their floor. They all got out and walked towards their door. But...
"So...we're neighbors?" Ritsu typed.
"It seems that it is, Onodera."
On the other hand, Rika had a hard time to stiffle her laugh at their ignorance. She always saw the said man to leave his apartment for work. But her brother is always busy in his work, so she can't really blame them. But she can't really help it. It was quite an entertaining sight for the ten year old girl.
"Ne...Taka-nii, would you like to have dinner with us?" Rika asked as she held his arms.
"Um, Rika...Takano-san might be..." he didn't continue the sentence as he saw the warm smile of Masamune. Ritsu blushed pink in his cheeks by the sight of the raven haired's smile.
"I would love to. I couldn't say no to a generous offer. That would be so rude of me." Masamune said which earned a happy yip from Rika.
"Yay! Meet us at 7:30 pm, Taka-nii."
Rika entered the apartment first leaving the two men in an awkward atmosphere. But Masamune's thoughts were snapped when he heard typing sounds.
"Are you sure that you're coming?"
"I'm positively sure that I am." He said as he crossed his arms in his chest.
Ritsu typed again, "Okay then. I should prepare dinner. You should get changed, Takano-san."
"You too, Onodera. You might get sick."
Ritsu smiled and nodded. He bowed out of respect and entered his apartment.
Masamune entered his apartment and for the first time...he smiled.
RING! RING! RING!
His smile faded when his phone just rang out of nowhere. With an annoyed look, he answered the phone.
"Hello?"
"Heyah, Takano~"
"What do you want, Isaka?"
"Aww, that's too mean of you ~ Just to remind you that you're gonna have a new mangaka artist at your hands. For further information, attend the meeting at 10:30 am sharp. Bye-bye~"
He closed his phone and threw it at a heard sofa. He sighed and pinch his nose to lessen the headache. Today was really unusual for the raven haired demon...I mean... man (-cough-).
'I looked like an idiot for sulking at the par. Then, just my damn luck that rain suddenly poured...but...meeting those siblings...'
He felt something that he had already long forgotten. Something that he already threw away because of his own selfishness.
He removed his wet clothes and took a shower. It only took him a few minutes, then he came out with a towel in his waist.
He then wore his underwear, jeans, and another black shirt. He dried and fix his hair until he's ready to go.
-/-/-/-/-
"Come oooonnnnnnn, Onii-chan! Come and get, Taka-nii~"
"I'm really embarrassed about this, Rika..."
"Start acting like a man and go talk to him! Speak your words!"
"Wow, the irony of the situation."
"Urusai, baka-nii!"
The fifteen year old teen then shove his twenty-five year old brother out of their apartment door. Ritsu rubbed his sore butt and it was the result of the dragging and shoving.
'Man, that girl surely got her strength at a high level. Not to mention her bubbly and creepy personality.' Ritsu groaned in his thoughts.
Rika gave her a thumbs up and Ritsu sweat dropped.
"Good luck, Onii-chan~" she cheerfully said as she slammed the door.
'Ugh!' Ritsu just face palmed.
He stood up and knock at his neighbor's door. It only took a few second when Takano answered and opened the door.
"Ah, Onodera. I was expecting you."
Ritsu nodded as he typed something in his phone. "We'll have curry today. It's Rika's favorite food. I hope you don't mind."
"Why of course not."
Ritsu smiled and nodded.
Takano securely locked the door as the two of them went inside the Onodera apartment. After they remove their shoes, they saw Rika waiting for the two of them.
"Onii-chan! Taka-nii! Welcome~"
The three of them sat at the table and said their thanks. Rika then quickly got a handful of curry and stuffed all of it in her mouth.
Takano did the same (gently) and took a spoonful of curry. He ate some and his eyes were wide.
"It's delicious...I like it." Takano said as he continued eating.
"I know right? Onii-chan's cooking is the best!"
But they didn't notice the pink hue on the older brunette's face.
"Is something wrong, Onodera?"
Ritsu then waved his hand and lip singed some words.
Rika translated, "Onii-chan said that he's perfectly fine."
"I see..."
They continued eating in peace.
-/-/-/-
"Wow."
Ritsu heard Takano's amazed voice. He kept the dishes and went to see what Takano just saw. He tucked Takano's shoulder and cocked his head.
"You read Mashiro Sakura's works?"
Ritsu smiled and nodded.
"She's an author, you know."
Ritsu then typed, "Yeah, and some of her works have turned into a manga. Her popularity and talent can rival Usami Akihiko, Yoshikawa Chiharu, and Ijuin Kyo."
"Yeah. But it is also said that she works at Marukawa."
"Really?"
"Yeah. But I think, only Isaka knows her identity."
"I see..."
Takano neatly placed the book back to its place. As he looked onto some of his book collection, he heard a pencil sketch in sound coming from the brunette himself.
"What are you doing?"
Ritsu then stopped his drawing as he looked at Takano's eyes. Takano was confused for he was intensely looking at his eyes. Ritsu the returned his gaze towards his paper and continued sketching.
Takano went towards him and saw a perfect sketch of himself at the bookshelf and his face looking directly towards the brunette's place.
"Wow, you got some skills. It's beautiful."
Ritsu blushed a bit as he typed, "Thanks for the compliment, but I had a hard time you know? Your eyes are hard to draw."
"'Cause I'm fabulous."
"Don't push your luck."
The two of them chuckled at their weird antics. It's the first time they met and yet they seem so close.
"By the way, what happened to your voice?"
Ritsu looked at him for a moment until he raised his neck. Takano saw a long scar from his neck.
"I'm sorry..."
Ritsu gave him a light punch in his arm as he shook his head.
Then he typed something, "And sadly, I don't remember any of it."
-/-/-/-
Two sets of eyes were wide at the sudden realization of things. Neither the two of then knew all of it until their boss called for a meeting. Isaka chuckled at it and decided to introduce them.
"Takano, meet Mashiro Sakura...or Onodera Ritsu."
"..."
"Ritsu, meet Takano Masamune...your editor."
-/-/-/-/-
A/N: Boom! Okay, since this is an AU, some JR characters will be here and some of the SiH and JR characters will know and be close to Onodera Ritsu. Don't blame me! I have a weir mind! xD.
Should update my other stories. Gosh, I'm sooooooo lazy xD.
-Kuromitsu Kagemine
