Hello ladies and gentlemen.
I know what you're thinking, this is the second time I said I'd stop writing...and yet here I am...again. To be honest, I had no intentions of posting this story until my good friend Sarah Kay persuaded me to do it. So if you end up liking this story, you can thank her and if you hate it...you can yell at her after it's done.
Now there are a few things I should mention about the story before we get started. First, there are no Pokemon, it's strictly just the usual characters. I know that's nothing new to Fanfic but I've always tried to make an effort to put them in and they're not. Second, some of this story definitely comes from a personal place for me. It's definitely a lot darker than my usual stories and the characters/themes really represent that and finally, I am trying out a new writing style for this story that's a bit different from my usual one and you'll see what I mean when you start reading.
That being said, sit back, relax and I hope you guys enjoy the first chapter.
Chapter 1: A Knave and a Haircut
Darkness…..darkness as far as the eye can see.
"Sir?"
Embracing the silence of my own personal space away from the rest of the world.
"Sir?"
Who keeps…..calling to me? Mmm….can't anybody just let me escape reality for a few more minutes?
"SIR!"
"Wha…..what?"
My eyes slowly open revealing the interior of a local barbershop and an elderly lady standing in front of me. She had long hair, which had mostly turned silver with age, wrapped up in a bun, and she wore a long white shirt.
"It's your turn," she spoke in a very soothing voice as I rubbed my eyes awake.
"My….turn?"
"For your haircut," the lady clarified, only resulting in a puzzled look dawning my face.
"Huh…" it took a second for her words to click before I finally snapped to full attention and sprung to my feet, "Oh….right!"
Realizing that I was now fully awake, the lady kindly gestured over to her barber's chair. "Come on over and have a seat," she greeted before beginning to apologize profusely, "Sorry for the wait, my last customer took a while more than I thought."
Sheepishly walking over, I took a seat in the massive recliner, watching as she wrapped a cloth around my neck to cover any loose hairs as they fell.
I then turned my attention to the mirror in front of me. There I was, donning my usual red vest and black shirt combo. My dark hair was super wild. Normally, it would be contained by my signature hat, but without it, my hair was sticking out every which way.
"So? What am I doing today?" the elderly lady asked as she ran her fingers through my messy hair.
"Umm…." needless to say, I wasn't very up on my hair styling lingo, "I guess just a trim, clean it up."
"No problem."
With that, the hairdresser took out her spray bottle and sprayed a generous amount of water to moisten my hair for the cut.
"Soooo….." she asked nonchalantly as she paused and looked down at my face, "Why so glum?"
"What's it to you?"
"Sweetie, I'm a hairdresser," she jokingly retorted, "I'm just making small talk."
I roll my eyes. There was so much going on in my head right now and all I wanted was to be left alone. "Look lady if you want to hear the daily gossip, I'm not the best person to be asking," I sternly stated, causing the hairdresser to subtlety back off her questioning.
"Okay! Okay! If you don't want to talk that's your choice but it would definitely make the time go by a lot faster," she noted before rolling her eyes skyward, "…..and make it a lot…..less…awkward….."
I sigh deeply. She definitely had a point, being silent wasn't going to make this haircut go by any faster, and more than anything, I just wanted to get it over with.
"What's your name?" the woman asked, opting for a less invasive question.
"It's….Red…."
"Okay and are you a college student, Red?"
"University…."
"I see….." the hairdresser paused, stroking her chin with intrigue, "So what's a level-headed, academic fella such as yourself doing looking so down?"
"You would 't understand if I told you…."
A slight chuckle escaped her lips. "Ohhhh I wouldn't be so sure about that," she mused to herself, "Let me guess…."
I was caught off guard as she suddenly leaned down to my ear and whispered. "It's about a woman isn't it?"
My eyes widened as I exhaled deeply, marveling at her keen intuition. Though to be fair, this kind of problem would no doubt be pretty common for most guys my age.
The only response I gave was a small nod.
Excited at her correct guess, the hairdresser clapped her hands together. "Ahhh young love!" she happily stated, "How romantic!"
"It….really isn't," I immediately retorted while shaking my head, "It's stupid, that's what it is!"
"Why? What happened?"
"It's not important…."
"Clearly it is!" The lady noted, catching me off guard once again as she suddenly spun my chair around. "Look Red, I may not be a psychiatrist, but whatever the problem is you shouldn't keep it all bottled up inside," she exclaimed while staring me in the eyes, "Right now, it's just you and me in here and I promise I'm not going to tell anyone."
I stared back in disbelief. "Why do you want to help me so bad?" I finally asked, causing her to glance away.
"Because….I know what it's like to be all alone and not have anyone to talk to."
I paused as a sad expression formed on her face. Why this hairdresser, of all people, wanted to go out of her way to help me, baffled me to no end. However, I could definitely see that her intentions were pure and…as weird as it may sound…..maybe this was exactly what I needed. Talking to a complete stranger would definitely be easier than talking to say, my parents, about what happened.
"…alright…...fine…." I reluctantly agreed, causing her to look over at me. She seemed shocked that I had actually given in so easily.
"It all started around a year ago….not too long after I had just started my first year of university….."
Now….truth be told…..I'm not a very sociable person and considering that I was a freshman, I didn't have any friends…..save one.
Her name was Leaf and she had been my neighbor and friend for…..as long as I could remember, really. All throughout elementary and high school, I'd always had a crush on her. Weird thing is, it was never her looks that attracted me to her. Don't get me wrong, she was beautiful; probably one of the most beautiful girls at school; but….I'd say it was her personality that really attracted me. She was just….fun to be around. Not only was she funny, but also free-spirited. She made me feel like I could say or do anything, no matter how dumb it was, and we could still laugh about it.
I won't deny that my choice in university was somewhat inspired by her…..so I could still be with her. Well….that and because it was close to my house, so I got to live cheaply with my parents; but that's beside the point. The fact is, those first few months of university were some of the happiest times of my life. Times I…..really felt like I was important to someone.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"….wanted leaders and had been of late much accustomed to usurpation and conquest." The gravelly voice of Red's history professor droned on as hundreds of students crammed the lecture hall, frivolously writing away at their papers, attempting to match his words to their study notes.
Well….all students that were actually paying attention that is, and Red was clearly not one of them as his true reason for even wanting to take this course in the first place slowly came into view as he tilted his head a few inches sideways.
There she was with her teal coloured shirt and her long brown hair draped to one side as she assumed the same bored pose as he did, however instead of looking towards him, she was just looking straight ahead, whether she was actually paying attention or not, Red didn't know.
Without thinking, his eyes slowly began to wander, quickly noticing that her usual red skirt was hiked up a lot more than usual.
"Now….is that happening because of the chair…." Red quietly pondered to himself, "…..or is she just trying to give me a show-"
No sooner did he think that and Red immediately looked away. He had clearly been staring far too long and didn't want to draw attention to it. Unfortunately for him, he was suddenly met with a paper being slid under his face.
"What are you looking at ;)" The paper read out and Red quickly glanced over to see Leaf looking over at him with that teasing grin on her face.
Not wanting to be outdone. He quickly grabbed another piece of paper from his notebook and upon scribbling a reply back, passed it over to the brunette-haired girl.
"If it's you….clearly not much at all!"
Quietly giggling in response, she quickly replied back with. "Uh-huh! Sure thing, liar!" while also noting, "So….I'm bored, how about you?"
"Dying." Red promptly wrote back, only to receive, "Please don't do that! I need you!" as an immediate reply.
The two continued passing notes back and forth between each other before Red suddenly received a note that, instead of words, featured a crude drawing of a horse with the title "HORSEY" underneath.
Quickly deciding that the drawing needed more of a "manly touch", Red added a little stick figure of himself with his name written above and a little arrow pointing down, indicating that it was him.
Upon receiving the updated drawing, Leaf grinned as she quickly scribbled some additions to the picture and shoved it back in Red's hand.
He then opened it up to see that his stick figure was now wearing a flower crown and under his name was the word "Loser".
Red dully raised his eyebrows at these "additions" and watched as Leaf desperately tried to hold in her laughter at his response.
Slightly chuckling as he shook his head, Red decided to add one last addition to the picture as he gave his flower-crowned stick figure a sword and wrote "Manly" above "Loser"
However, as he was in the process of passing the picture back to Leaf, Red quickly realized his fault. "No! Wait! Wait!" he quietly hissed as he tried in vain to get the picture back but Leaf was too fast.
"Sorry but you brought this on yourself," she sassed before teasingly adding, "Mr. Manly Loser."
"Yeah….yeah….laugh it up," he retorted, turning his attention back to the lecture. Not that it mattered if he took notes or not since the professor would always post the notes after the lecture was finished, but Red felt it necessary to make an effort.
However, just before he could resume taking his notes, Red once again felt that piece of paper slide underneath his hand and what he saw caused a faint blush to form on his cheeks. There was the same picture as before but with the addition of another stick figure sitting on the horse behind his with its arms around his waist and the name "Leaf" above it.
A slight smirk formed on Red's lips as he quietly glanced over to see that the girl in question had resumed focusing on the lecture as well and decided it would be best not to bother her.
"Leaf…." he sighed with contentment before taking the picture they'd drawn and placing it in his binder.
An additional hour passed of the boring lecture before Red finally heard the words he had been anticipating since class began.
"Okay, that's all for today," the professor announced, making sure to add, "Remember to read pages 260-300 in preparation for the upcoming midterms!"
With that, everyone happily sprung from their seats as Red watched Leaf rise from her chair and stretch out. "MMMMM! Thank goodness that's over!" she declared as she grabbed her books and turned towards her red-capped companion, "Come on Red! Let's go!"
Still scrambling to write down a few last-minute notes, Red quickened his pace. "Hold on! Hold on! I'm coming!" he exclaimed, slamming his binder shut and rising to meet Leaf face to face, "Well, what do you wanna do now? We got a couple hours before next class."
"Wanna go for lunch?" The brunette-haired girl immediately suggested, earning her a reluctant look from Red in response.
"Honestly….I'm not that hungry right now, Leaf," he dully revealed while scratching the back of his head, "….and since it's so nice outside….I was kinda hoping to go for a walk on the trail just outside of campus."
"But REEEEDDDD! I'm hungrrryyyy!" she pleaded before suddenly grabbing both of his hands, "We'll go walking right after I get something to eat, I promise!"
Despite his best attempts to stand his ground, Leaf had a secret weapon up her sleeve that was always a sure way to make him cave instantly, and just as Red was beginning to enjoy the feeling of his hands against hers, she started to stare at him with those big puppy dog eyes.
"W-weeelllll….." he stammered, trying to avoid eye contact.
"Come on! Pleeeeaassseeee!" she continued to plead as she proceeded to wrap her arms around his, "And I'll even let you pay!"
"W-well okay if you insis- " Red paused not realizing what he had just agreed to, "Wait! WHAT?!"
Suckered into it or not, Red was true to his word and before Leaf knew it, she was presented with the biggest stir fry she'd ever seen.
"Wow! This looks yummy!"
"I hope you enjoy it," Red happily replied before taking a seat on the opposite end of the table.
"Red! You know I was just joking when I said you could pay for me," Leaf stated as she marveled at the amount of food in front of her, "…..and you really didn't have to go all out on me like this!"
"Y-yeah….well….I…..wanted….to," he stammered in response, nervously glancing away to hide his blush.
It didn't matter if it cost him a little more to go the extra mile. As long as it resulted in seeing that beautiful smile again, Red would spend as much as necessary.
"You know, you keep spoiling me like this, and I might get used to it," Leaf teasingly noted with a wink, causing Red to raise his eyebrows in response.
"Yeah…well, the one good thing about being the one who bought you this food…" he suddenly took his fork and grabbed a piece of chicken from the stir fry, "I get to pick away at this as much as I please!"
The two laughed as they began digging into the giant meal in front of them.
After a few minutes had passed, Red leaned back in defeat. He wasn't even hungry to begin with and had eaten far more than he'd ever intended. On the other hand, Leaf was continuing to wolf down everything in front of her, a sight that Red couldn't help but smile at.
Truth be told, Leaf's family wasn't very wealthy, so getting to eat a huge meal like this was a real treat for her and Red rested his head atop his hand in contentment as he watched her enjoy.
He was just having such a great time and secretly wished every day could be this fun. Unfortunately, it seemed that with every day that passed, it just got harder and harder for Red to keep his feelings in check and he had to wonder; with as many times as he'd let his guard down over the past while, did she know that he was in love with her?
"I always knew you know," Leaf's voice suddenly rang out, snapping Red out of his thoughts.
"Huh?" he stammered, not knowing what she was talking about, "Knew what?"
"That you had a crush on me back in high school," Leaf suddenly revealed, teasingly leaning forward as she did, "You used to watch me with your dad's binoculars."
Red's eyes widened as far as they could go. "W-what?!" he exclaimed before beginning to frantically wave his hands in the air, "Thatwouldnever!Iwouldnever!"
Leaf couldn't help but laugh at the garbled mess of words that just escaped Red's mouth. If he really was innocent, he was doing a poor job showing it.
"Hee! Hee! Hey, it's okay!" she teasingly noted before giving him a wink and revealing, "Didn't you ever wonder why I always left the blinds open just a little bit more at night?"
Red was at a loss for words. Was she a fucking mind reader?
"I-I….." he continued to trip over his words before finally stating, "I….thought I was lucky."
With that, silence fell over the two as Leaf resumed eating her meal and Red just sat there, dumbfounded over the events that had just occurred.
"Stupid question," Leaf suddenly spoke up again, "How come you never asked me out?"
Red froze as his heart started beating a mile a minute. "I uhh…." he paused, this whole thing had just caught him totally off guard and more than anything, he had to make sure to not screw up what he was about to say, "I just….never thought you'd ever say ye-"
"There you are!"
That voice…
It was the voice that Red dreaded hearing all day long. A voice that, once it reached Leaf's ears, caused her to immediately perk up as her face beamed with joy.
"Blue!"
The two turned around to see the guy that was truly Leaf's boyfriend standing there. He had long spikey hair and this tacky-looking leather jacket.
He and Leaf had started dating not long after she and Red had started university and to say she was enamored by him, would be an understatement.
No sooner than she'd heard his voice behind her had she sprung from her chair and began embracing him tightly.
"Hey, baby!"
"I thought you still had class for another hour," Leaf stated in shock, only receiving a roll of the eyes from Blue in return.
"Screw class, I couldn't wait."
Without warning, he suddenly pinned her against the wall, crushing his lips against hers and sliding his hand up her shirt right in front of everyone in the cafeteria.
"Blue!" Leaf gasped, giggling as she did, "C-come on! Not here!"
Her words fell on deaf ears as in a low tone she was met with Blue stating in a low growl. "Yes….here…." before slamming his lips against hers once again.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
….and just like that, my role in Leaf's day was over. That promise she made to go trail walking with me…..it didn't happen and now I had to endure watching the girl I loved get shamelessly groped right in front of me.
How the hell Leaf even met this guy, I had no idea. For the most part, we shared the same classes, so it must have happened in the odd one I wasn't in. All I remember is that a few days into university, Leaf came up to me with some guy, told me he was her new boyfriend, he….didn't say anything to me and then proceeded to make out with her in front of me.
Following that, every day played out the same: when Leaf and I were alone, things were amazing. She would always laugh and joke with me - it was a great time. But when Blue showed up…..it was like I didn't exist anymore.
"That must have hurt…."
"You think," I dully replied to the hairdresser as she proceeded to snip a few hairs off, "….I figured that I would just wait it out, maybe in time Leaf would see just how bad news this guy was."
All of a sudden, I lunged forward in my chair, grasping my head as the thought bubbled in my mind more and more.
"God, anybody with two eyes and a shred of common sense could tell that guy was bad news," I frustratingly yelled into my hands, "He didn't care about her. He didn't care what songs she loved or what foods she hated. No….this guy was out for one thing and one thing only and it was on full display in front of me every single da-"
"Red."
My rant was cut off as the hairdresser suddenly grabbed the side of my face and tilted it up, "Head straight please."
"Sorry…" I apologized, taking a deep breath to gather my thoughts, "I just prayed that within a few weeks tops that she would see just what kind of guy she was with and leave him."
Another long sigh followed as I thought about the events that happened next.
"…..little did I know how wrong I was….."
...and there you have it, first chapter done. I hope you guys see what I mean about the writing style; switching between first person in the present and 3rd person in the past, I know it's a bit of an adjustment. Pretty much whenever there's a transition to the past/present it will be noted with the "XXXXXX"
Now in terms of story length, I pretty much have it set for 6 chapters probably going to be around 3 weeks apart. Not a very long story, but it'll definitely be a ride, I guarantee that.
Also, just forewarning, the story rating might have to change as we go on. It should be good at T, but we'll see.
I just want to thank Sarah Kay for inspiring me to try out another story again and if you guys are interested, you can check out her story Repackaged that she's got going on.
With that, thank you all so much and I'll see you next time.
Ciao!