Chapter 14 – In The Violent Beginning

"Chinatsu Yoshikawa…for as long as I've known her, she was always a troublesome girl to deal with. From what I've heard, she used to be a hopeless romantic who wouldn't shut up about finding the perfect lover to spend the rest of her life with. It really annoyed a lot of people."

"W-Wow…" I said in shock of what Sugiura-san just told us.

"Yoshikawa-san…a hopeless romantic? That is truly something I would never expect from her." Ikumi-san added.

"Yeah, totally. Which makes what suddenly happened only a month into our first year of middle school all the more perplexing."

"Perplexing?" We were both curious on what she meant by that.

"It was a new school week and a month into our first year. I was volunteering in the discipline committee as part of the student council. And one of the tasks handed off to me was to deal with an unruly student. What was shocking about it was that unruly student was Yoshikawa. About to be suspended for getting into a fight with a teacher."

"A fight?" Ikumi asked. "As in verbal?"

"Pretty much. She swore the guy off while using obscenities I didn't even know at the time. To the point where she actually made the teacher cry. It was…brutal. From what I heard."

"Y-Yeah…" I said. "…B-But to be honest, Yoshikawa-san swearing at adults isn't all that shocking to me."

"The same for me. She does it a lot." Ikumi-san added.

"Well, of course. We're used to it now. But keep in mind that this was 3 years ago. Back when she had a completely different personality."

"Right…" We both said.

"I was truly shocked to see her there. Knowing that she's usually daydreaming about love and relationships and whatnot. But when I tried asking her what happened, she wouldn't answer. She just flat out ignored me until I gave up and left her alone. And then she was suspended for two weeks."

"W-Wow. I-I never would've thought Yoshikawa-san would be that violent towards people." I said. "Especially after being someone completely different only a month before."

"What happened next, Sugiura-san?" Ikumi-san asked.

"Well…when the two weeks were up and Yoshikawa returned to school, we all noticed that she had changed. Not only personality-wise…but also physically."

"Physically?" We both asked.

"When she came back that morning, she had bruises on her arms and legs. Her messy lighter than usual hair was let down from her usual small pigtails. And she even had a huge black eye. It was a horrible sight for a lot of people."

"Sh-She came to school like that? Wh-What happened to her?" I asked.

"I had my suspicions. But more on that later. Anyway…when students and teachers would ask her what happened, Yoshikawa would either just tell them to piss off or threaten to give the same injuries to them. She had become a rather violent person and everyone feared her. Except for one girl."

"A-A girl?"

"She had transferred in a few weeks after Yoshikawa's sudden change. For some reason, even after she was told about her personality, she saw Yoshikawa as a person to be friends with. And kept trying to get closer to her."

Sugiura-san then went silent as she lowered her head down in sadness.

"Too bad…Too bad doing so was the biggest mistake of her life."

"Th-The…biggest mistake?" Ikumi-san asked. "Wh-What does that mean, Sugiura-san?"

…

…

…

"*sigh* Well…one day, that girl…I forgot her name. I think it was…Akemi. Or something like that. Anyway…she was trying to become friends with Yoshikawa once again. It was a normal thing at this point. So, no one bothered with it.

As for me, I was in a different class. So, I didn't experience the girl's attempts at a close glance.

But from what I heard…it sounded like multiple loud bangs of lightning hitting the room next door. It scared us all into shock. That's when a bunch of students from my class went over to check it out. And I was all too curious to ignore it, myself.

But what I saw was…O-Oh, God. The memories…"

Memories?

"Uh…S-Sugiura-san…" I spoke.

"I-It's okay. I'm fine." Sugiura-san then took a deep breath before continuing on. "What I saw was…truly horrifying. The girl was lying in a pool of her own blood. Completely unconscious. And Yoshikawa's hands…they were soaked in blood. To the point where it was dripping from her fingertips. And she had the face of a deranged angered soul. With no empathy whatsoever."

N-No way…

""You piece of shit! Don't fucking touch me all freely like we're buddies! I hope you fucking burn in hell with your nauseous cheerful smile! Retarded little bitch!" is what Yoshikawa said to the fallen girl. All while giving one last kick in her head and finally spat on her. With no remorse for what she did."

N-No way…

"All of us were shocked and scared at what we saw. It was that kind of pure horror that you normally see in movies. Only it was all too real."

Ch-Chinatsu-san…

"D-Did the girl…" I asked. Nearly in tears.

"She survived. Miraculously. But after she got out of the hospital, she changed schools once more. So, I have no idea where she is now. As for Yoshikawa…she was expelled from school. And the girl's parents filed attempted murder charges on her. She was almost sent off to prison for…possibly the rest of her life.

But that's when Azuma-sensei came to her rescue."

Azuma-sensei? Oh, yeah. She did say that she was an art teacher at Chinatsu-san's middle school. So, that's how they met, huh?

"Wh-What did she do?" I asked.

"I really don't know how, but she managed to have the attempted murder charges dropped and Yoshikawa was allowed to come back to school. But it didn't come without consequences, though. Everyone feared and hated her for what she did to that girl. And that's how her reputation began."

"W-Woah…" Was all I could say.

"Why would she do such a thing? Do you know?" Ikumi-san asked.

"Unfortunately, I don't. In fact…to this day, no one really does. If you really want to know, you'll have to ask Yoshikawa. But good luck getting her to talk about it, though. Even if you two are her friends, I highly doubt you'll escape the same fate that girl ended up in. That's just how she is now."

"Oh. I see."

The three of us were then dead silent for a good while. Hearing such a story about the first friend I've made since I begun to start over…it was truly scary to hear that Chinatsu-san has such a dark side to her.

…

But…I think…I-I think I get it now.

"Well…that's all I know. Hope you girls can at least talk to her to find out the truth. I'll see you two around."

"O-Oh. O-Okay, Sugiura-san." I said.

"Goodbye, for now, Sugiura-san." Ikumi-san added as we both watched the purple-haired volleyball player walk away from the café we were eating at.

"Wow. That was such a story, was it not?" Ikumi-san asked me.

"Y-Yeah, it was." I went silent for a bit. "I-I'm gonna head home now."

"Oh, okay. See you tomorrow, Kyouko-chan."

Ikumi-san and I went our separate ways and I made my own way back home. Still lost in thought on that event I learned about Chinatsu-san. And my messed-up mind trying to think of what to do.

I finally understand what Azuma-sensei meant when she said that Chinatsu-san and I having a lot more in common. The cause of her sudden change in personality…it has something to do with that day. The day she showed up to school with those bruises.

And if I had to guess, basing on similar experiences, it just has to be…

"Kyouko."

"H-Huh?" I reacted to my name being called out. And when I saw who it was standing in front of me, I was kinda shocked.

"Ch-Chinatsu-san? I-I thought you went home."

"Well, I did. But then I…felt kinda bad to ditching you two like that. So, I was on my back to apologize to you. But then…" Chinatsu-san went silent as she looked away from me. Trying to hide a faint blush that had appeared on her face.

And again, if I had to guess…

"Y-You heard us talking earlier…d-didn't you?"

"Tch. Stupid Sugiura. Why the hell did she bring that up all of a sudden? I'm over here trying to forget that damn memory."

"Memory?" I then started thinking to myself.

"…you know how you both said that you can never escape your nightmare-ish past no matter how hard you try? How it forever haunts you traumatized mind?"

"Well…you can say that it explains my current personality. How I'm a total bitch to pretty much everyone around me. And how I'm hated all across this goddamn school. *sigh* Fucking sucks…"

Yeah…I definitely understand now. No doubt about it. Chinatsu-san…she's hurting. Just like me.

"Wh-Whatever. Just forget you heard any of that, okay? I really don't want to talk about…"

"Ch-Chinatsu-san." I interrupted her. "C-Can I…C-Can I…c-come over to your house? L-Like right now?"

"H-Huh? Y-You want to come over?" Chinatsu-san gained a small blush from the sudden question I asked.

And I replied with a simple nod.

"Wh-What are you doing all of a sudden? Coming over to my house…won't your cousin be all worried and crap?"

"I-I'll tell her that I'm studying with Ikumi-san. Sh-She doesn't have to know."

"Okay, but still…"

"Pl-Please? Ch-Chinatsu-san…"

…

…

…

"*sigh* F-Fine. But only for an hour, okay? I don't want anyone coming at me for you being gone for so long."

"O-Okay. Th-Thank you, Chinatsu-san." I said with a smile.

So, the rest of the day was set for me. I was going to Chinatsu-san's house for the first time since we became friends. And, unknown to her, get a full understanding of her past. Whether she'll let me or not.

Though…I really do hope she lets me help her…

Author's Note: After learning of Chinatsu's sudden start into violence from Ayano, Kyouko runs into the main girl herself. And somehow convinces her to let her inside her own home. What deep secrets will Kyouko learn about her first friend ever? Find out in the next chapter.

So, I have a little announcement of sorts. I want to start a new Yuru Yuri story. But this one's going to be a little different. Instead of the usual Romance/Hurt & Comfort/mostly Humor stuff that I usually write, this one's going to be more of a Fantasy/Adventure type of story. It's something I want to try out.

I'm going to start working on it tomorrow. So, the first few chapters may be up by this weekend. Probably. But don't worry. This story isn't going anywhere.

Thanks for reading. Later.