Hey! Surprises coming up in this chapter! What? Well, read on and you'll find out yea? And I just want to say a big thank you to all my reviewers. I will keep trying my best to give you an enjoyable read. On with the story!
Chapter 7- Developments
Lyn stirred in her sleep as she heard her watch alarm beeping. Was it time to wake up already? She didn't even remember returning to the inn, let alone falling asleep.
Lyn turned over with a groan and felt something soft and furry against her cheek. She opened her eyes and rubbed them in disbelief at what she saw. It was that dog beanie she had wanted so much the previous day.
She sat up and scratched her head, yawning tiredly. This was probably a dream. How else could the dog beanie have ended up on her bed, and how else could she have returned to the inn without realising it? Even if she had fallen asleep at the theme park, she would have woken up on the train. She was usually a light sleeper unless she was exhausted.
Maybe the fact that she had gotten up at three the previous day had something to do with it. She had woken up from another nightmare of her house burning and her parents dead.
"Lyn! You awake yet? We have to leave soon or we're going to be late for school!" Lyn looked sleepily at the door when she heard Kaede knocking on it. She stretched and stood up, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.
"Are you alright?" Kaede asked when Lyn emerged from her room, her hair ruffled. "What are you doing!" Kaede asked in shock when Lyn began poking her in the ribs.
"You're solid…that means you're real? So I'm not dreaming?" Lyn asked in surprise, still poking Kaede in the ribs.
"Of course I'm real! And why would this be a dream?" Kaede asked in astonishment. "Umm…because I don't remember returning to the inn?" Lyn replied, biting her lip sheepishly.
Realisation flooded Kaede's eyes and she giggled silently at Lyn's silliness. "Of course you wouldn't remember! You were asleep through the whole thing! We tried all ways and means to wake you up, and were about to resort to splashing cold water on you, but Ren stopped us and said that he would carry you back…"
Lyn gasped softly. That had probably meant that Ren had been the one who had left the dog beanie on her bed. He acted so tough on the outside, but deep inside, he was a really caring person. Lyn beamed to herself, causing Kaede to look at her in astonishment.
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"Oh my! Look at that cute boy!" "Check out his muscles…they look pretty solid…" "I wonder if he would agree to go out with me?"
Ren ignored the whispers of the swooning girls and walked down the hall, growling at whoever got in his way and casting the devil's glare at a group of girls who pushed one of their number into him. "Those bloody bimbos…" He muttered under his breath.
As he looked around the school for his classroom, he took in all the details of his surroundings. He had been shocked and angry when Jun had first told him that he would be attending school with Yoh and the rest, but maybe it wouldn't be so bad with Lyn around.
He had not really seen the point of joining the school when the term was going to end in a matter of weeks, but Jun had insisted that it would help him to adapt, and also help him feel less out of place as the class he was in now would be the class he was going to be in the next year. She had also added that it would put him less behind in his work.
Too bad Lyn was not going to be in his class. What were the chances of it since she was a year younger than him? Even if she was in his class this year, she would remain in year one the next year, while he advanced to year two with Kaede.
Ren slapped himself mentally and flushed slightly. What was he thinking? He could not have feelings for Lyn. Not feelings in that direction anyway. Heck, he still did not fully understand friendship, let alone love.
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"Ren!"
Ren turned around when he heard someone yell his name, and the next thing he knew, Lyn had embraced him in a bear hug. "Thank you for the dog beanie…" She said, beaming as she let go of him. Ren nodded his head, which was now bright red, in acknowledgement. He could feel everyone's eyes on him, and the cold glares that some of the girls were flashing at Lyn were pretty scary.
"Why are those girls glaring at me?" Lyn asked, her eyes filled with confusion. "Ignore them…they're probably just jealous…" Hao said, walking towards them, Kaede at his side. "Jealous of?" Lyn asked, getting more confused by the second.
Yoh, who was walking towards them, Anna's hand in his, laughed. "They think that Ren's hot, and if I know him well enough, he probably threw their advances off, and then, here comes this girl who comes and hugs him." Horo Horo told Lyn, snickering at Ren. Ren glared at him with a growl and Horo Horo grinned innocently.
"Oops…sorry…" Lyn said, shifting her feet awkwardly. "Don't worry too much about it. They reacted in pretty much the same way when they found out that Anna was my fiancée." Yoh told her, patting her shoulder comfortingly.
"But…it's different…I probably just blew Ren's chance to get a girlfriend!" Lyn cried out guiltily. Yoh and Horo Horo stared at her in astonishment for a few seconds, then burst out laughing.
"And you think Ren needs a girlfriend?" Yoh finally managed to stop laughing and speak. Ren's face was flaming red by now, and the astonished expression on his face was just so comical.
"Well, yea…that way, he will be able to care for someone, and in caring for another person, he will find he doesn't need to put on that tough exterior anymore!" Yoh and Horo Horo began laughing once more.
Lyn stared in confusion at Yoh and Horo Horo, and then saw that Hao was grinning too. Even Anna had a small smile on her lips. Just what had been so funny about what she said? She looked at Kaede questioningly, but Kaede was giggling along with the rest.
Ren felt as if his whole face was on fire. Well, that was the bad part of Lyn not knowing his feelings for her. He didn't blame her for it. She was ignorant of his feelings, and it would remain so until he himself was sure of it. But did Yoh and the rest have to make it worse?
At that time, my heart was pounding
So hard I was sure it was going to burst out my chest
My feelings confused even me
But to hear you say that you wanted me to care for another
I felt my heart break
"Whatever…anyway, which class are you all in?" Lyn asked, sighing in exasperation. "We all are in the same class…2-B…" Yoh said, speaking for Anna, Hao, Horo Horo and himself. "I'm in class 1-A…" Kaede said, her face straight.
"I'm in class 1-A too…" Ren and Lyn added at the same time. Lyn looked at Ren and grinned. Ren felt elation rising within him, but kept his face straight. However, his eyes betrayed his excitement without his realisation.
Just then, the bell rang and they said their goodbyes. "I'm sure that these three years in high school are going to be fun for you…" Horo Horo whispered, scampering away before Ren could hit him. "I should have brought my Kwan Dao…" Ren growled.
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"Class, today, we have three new students joining us." Their form teacher, Inoue Hiroshi pushed Ren forward. Lyn grinned at the dreamy expressions of the female students who were staring at Ren, giving him their full attention.
Ren stood in front of the class, looking around nervously, not knowing what was expected of him. "Introduce yourself to the class…" Ren stared at Hiroshi in a stunned silence, then began speaking.
"I am Tao Ren, from the Tao family in China." Ren finished and looked at Hiroshi. Hiroshi sighed and smiled, nodding and telling Ren to stand at the side.
Lyn overheard some of the girls swooning over Ren, saying that his voice was sexy, and had to stifle a peal of laughter. She quickly calmed herself down as Hiroshi nudged Kaede forward, and looked proudly at her friend.
Kaede was the very picture of calmness as she stepped forward, and that added to her beauty. A silence fell over the class, and some of the male students gasped at her beauty, whilst the female students stared at her in awe.
"I am Katsumoto Kaede, and it's really nice to meet you all…" Kaede said, smiling as she looked around the class. After she had finished speaking, Kaede stepped backwards and gave Lyn an encouraging smile.
Lyn gulped and felt a lump forming in her throat. She was never good at speaking in front of a large group of strangers, which was ironic considering how outgoing she usually was. Kaede was the exact opposite, usually quiet and shy, but charismatic and eloquent once she was speaking in front of others.
"Hi…I'm Aizawa Lyn, and I hope that the next few weeks we spend together will be filled with fun and laughter! Let's get to know each other better!" Lyn scampered back to where Kaede and Ren were standing as soon as she finished.
"Oh and one thing. Lyn is one year younger than all of you, so make sure you take good care of her!" Hiroshi added, ruffling Lyn's head. Lyn grinned and bowed to the class.
As the three of them walked to the three empty seats near the back at the left of the class, they felt the eyes of their new classmates on them. "I'm taking the window seat right at the back!" Lyn cried and quickly ran to her chosen seat. Kaede stood at the seat to the right of Lyn's and looked at Ren questioningly. Ren shook his head and flashed her a grateful smile, taking the seat in front of Lyn's.
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Ren was listening to the science teacher's explanation on the concept of light when he felt something hit his tongari from behind. He ignored it, thinking that it was the wind, and continued listening to the teacher and taking down notes.
Ren felt something hit his tongari again, followed by another. He whipped his head behind and saw Lyn preparing to throw another eraser bit at him.
When Lyn saw Ren staring at her, she grinned at him before narrowing her eyes. "Argh…your stupid tongari is blocking my view of the board." Ren stared at her in surprise for awhile, then shook his head. "I'm sorry…Do you want to switch? You are shorter than me after all…"
Lyn glared at Ren when she heard him call her short, but shook her head. "Nah…it's fine…just keep your head down…" She replied, sticking her tongue out at him cheekily.
"Whatever…" Ren growled, turning back to the front, although he did lower his head and tilt in towards the window. Lyn was definitely weird. She had just been asleep during the previous lesson, which had been math.
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As Hao was walking back to the En Inn from school, he noticed a small boy who seemed to be struggling in a river. Hao stared at the boy for awhile, then realised that he was drowning. Hao quickly threw his bag down on the ground and ran towards the pond, but someone streaked past him and dived into the river.
Hao stared at the water next to the boy for awhile, wondering who had gone to save the boy. After a few seconds, a sputtering head emerged and Hao realised that it was Kaede. After watching her for a second, Hao realised that she too was drowning.
Hao dashed towards the river and dived in, emerging next to the boy and Kaede. "Save the boy first!" Kaede gasped, before disappearing into the water again. Hao put an arm around the boy's waist and swam towards the river bank with powerful strokes. He placed the boy on the river bank before swimming back towards Kaede.
Please let me get there in time
If I don't, I don't know what I would do
I promised to help her move on
And I have yet to hold true to my word
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Hao gasped as he lifted Kaede up on dry land. The moment Kaede was out of the water, she scrambled towards the small boy and checked if he was alright. "I'm fine. Thank you, sister. Thank you too brother…" The boy said gratefully before running off to a house in the distance.
"You moron…you could have killed yourself like that…jumping in when you can't swim!" Hao growled harshly. He regretted it almost immediately when he saw tears welling up in Kaede's eyes, and he softened his tone.
"Why'd you go and do something so risky? Think about how upset I…no…we all will be if you had drowned?" Kaede stared at the concerned look on Hao's face and bit her lip. "I'm sorry…it's just that…whenever I see a child in danger, the only thing that seems to exist is that child, and I just have to help him or her." By this time, tears were slowly trickling down her cheek.
Hao stared at Kaede in surprise as she began crying. He felt a dull ache in his heart and he reached for her face and wiped her tears away tenderly with his second finger. She looked up at him, and began crying even more.
Hao pulled Kaede to his chest and caressed her hair, comforting her. "I…will teach you…to swim, ok? So stop crying…" Hao was surprised at how tender his voice sounded.
Don't cry anymore
I will always protect you
Don't cry anymore
I will keep you safe from harm
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"Why are you two so wet?" Lyn asked worriedly as Hao and Kaede walked into the dining room. "It was…nothing…" Kaede replied quietly, going up to her room to change out of her wet clothes.
Lyn looked at Hao questioningly, and he shrugged. If she had chosen not to tell Lyn, then who was he to announce it just like that?
Just then, there was a knock on the door. Yoh got up and answered the door, and gave a small shout of surprise to see his father at the door. "What's up?" Yoh asked worriedly.
"Nothing bad." Mikihisa replied, striding into the dining room and nodding at Anna, who nodded in acknowledgement. "Hao…we thought that it was about time we picked you a fiancée too, so your grandmother and your mother picked one they thought to be suitable. Here's her address. Go find her this weekend." Mikihasa handed Hao a slip of paper, then strode out the door.
"Who was that?" Lyn asked Ren, who was sitting next to her, under her breath. "That was Asakura Mikihisa, Yoh and Hao's father…" Ren replied, flashing her a smile. "Why does he wear a mask?" Lyn asked, a little louder this time. Hao overheard her and Ren looked at him in concern.
"When I was first born, I burnt my father's face badly when the Spirit of Fire came to take me away." Hao replied quietly, his face grim. Lyn nodded thoughtfully, but didn't ask any other questions, simply giving Hao a encouraging smile.
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"Umm…this weekend, I need to fly over to Kyoto to get some of my stuff from my parents…so I'll be gone for the weekend…" Lyn told the rest at the end of dinner. Ren, who had been invited to stay for dinner, looked at her in surprise. "Are you going alone?"
Lyn nodded, a determined look in her eyes. "I won't allow that…that's too dangerous…I'll go with you…we'll fly by one of the Tao family's private jets." Ren told Lyn in a no-nonsense voice. Lyn stared at him defiantly for awhile, then nodded.
"Well, can I go with you guys then?" Kaede spoke up suddenly. "I want to check on how Father's doing…" She added. Lyn turned to Ren, who agreed with a small smile. "I'm going too…" Hao added, causing Ren to stare at him in surprise. "The fiancée arranged for me stays in the Kyoto region too, and I have no choice but to listen to my parents wishes, right? After all I've done to them, it's the least I can do to make them happy."
"Alright then…can I use the phone? I'll call my father and arrange accommodation at my house for us…" Kaede said, standing up. "Is it really ok?" Hao asked with concern. "Yea…my house is so big and there are so many empty rooms anyway. It'll be good to actually have people living in it from time to time." Kaede replied bitterly before turning and walking out the dining room and to the phone.
"What about you? Aren't you going to call your parents? To tell them you're going home?" Ren asked Lyn curiously. Lyn shook her head with a mischievous grin. "I want to give them a surprise!" She said chirpily.
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"Well, this is it…our home for the next two days…" Kaede said as she led Lyn, Hao and Ren down the path of her house. "This place hasn't changed a bit!" Lyn said as she looked at the wide expanse of gardens with fountains. "The architecture of this place is interesting…" Ren added in approval.
Lyn wondered why it seemed exceptionally quiet, and she turned around to find Hao missing. She looked around for him and found him still standing at the front gate. She ran towards him and saw him gaping at the sign on the gate, his mouth open.
"Hey…What's up?" Lyn asked, looking at Hao curiously. Hao gave a start, then lifted up the slip of paper with his fiancée's address written on it.
"The address on the paper…is the same as the address on the sign…"
I never expected the fiancée my parents arranged
To be you
I am not even sure of my feelings for you,
So how can I agree to this marriage!
Ahh! Sorry for the long chapter. Like snow-angel-anna, the next chapter is the long awaited one. For the two of us anyway. Haha well, you'll have to wait till next Tuesday to see it…(I'm brain dead now…)
