An Unexpected Life
By Sulia Serafine
Disclaimer: I do not own the Rival Schools characters (darn). I'm not making any money off them. I'm doing this for entertainment purposes only. Original characters and plots belong to me.
Author: I've decided to do some mixing and matching between different versions of Rival Schools. Expect Nagare to show up in later chapters. Also: after this one, Chapter 3 may take up to two weeks to get out because I must finish the season finale to one of my other non-RS fics. I really do apologize. With that said, enjoy the chapter, and remember to review after!
Chapter 2: Public Places
Rei Shimura sat slowly down onto her bed in the room the Kishidas had given her. They were nice folk, really, but their sugary sweet treatment for her only proved their pity. And she hated pity. Nevertheless, she had come to accept it from people. She was not long winded enough to argue and complain like she used to. It would be ill benefiting for her to lecture her hosts. Where else would she go-- an orphanage downtown… the hospital? It seemed like a good idea-- the hospital, but she'd already been down there. Not to find places to live from the social workers, but for the doctors. A respectful doctor, one of the few there who hadn't made her feel like a screw up, checked the health of the child inside her and when having asked her where the father was, she said he lived in a different city. Which was true. Then she said she would be joining him. Which was false.
The clock beeped. She looked over at the digital numbers. It was 4:00. Rei had spent the day cleaning the house for Mrs. Kishida, and then going through the newspaper Want Ads for anything… anything at all. A job, for when she was no longer pregnant, a baby sitter for the baby, someone selling used things… 'Used' and 'cheap' were all she owned and would ever own. The clothes she wore were used and cheap. Her belongings were used and cheap, and also very scarce. The young mother would have nothing more than the necessary on her dresser and in her drawers. The one drawer that she used was not even half full.
Mrs. Kishida had offered to take her shopping. It was strange how a friend of a friend had introduced them. And if they hadn't met, Rei was mostly likely still to be hanging out at public places in her old city. So, she needed to buy some clothes. Cheap, used clothing was not hard to find. She had to get to a shopping center first.
"Sun dresses," she muttered. "That's all I've been wearing ever since I couldn't fit into my pants."
There was a light rapping on the door.
"Rei? Are you awake?"
"Yes, Mrs. Kishida, I'm awake," Rei called back. She went over to the door and opened it. "Did you need something?"
The older woman chuckled. "I was about to ask the same of you."
"Oh, well… I'm fine."
Mrs. Kishida moved forward, touching Rei's sleeve. She made a clucking noise in her throat. "We really need to go shopping. Unfortunately, I cannot get a day off from my boss."
Rei shook her head. Her host was giving her that look again, that pitying look that she hated so much. They sat down on her bed about a foot apart from each other. "That's okay. I'm content with the clothing I have right now. Really."
"No, no. I'll give you some money. And then we'll have Edge come by and take you around. How does that sound?"
She froze. Edge? The guy with one foot tall blonde spiky hair and horrible attitude? Not to mention-- he loved to get into fights and use knives. Rei scratched the back of her neck uneasily. He was really disagreeable, very short tempered. All her usually clever remarks earned her squat with this guy. Her ears could remember the yelling they'd received a week before.
Rei coughed gently before answering. "I don't mean to be rude, but is there anyone else who could take me?"
"I'm sorry, my dear. My husband and I don't have that many friends who live near us. The Yamadas are great people though, and Edge is… fine. He's just fine." The drop in her cheeriness when she said Edge's name did not reassure Rei in the slightest. As she went on, she only deepened the Rei's anxiety. "The teenagers in this neighborhood from the local Gedo High School aren't the friendliest of people. I'm afraid Edge can be your only companion, with me being a aged woman."
"Oh, you're not that old," Rei laughed. "I love your company, Mrs. Kishida." A lie justly deserved from someone who continually pities me and treats me like a child.
Mrs. Kishida sighed. "Well, it's not like I can turn back the hands of time and gain my youth back. I'm happy. And I'm glad you like having me around." She patted Rei's shoulder. "But we should really get you to the shopping center. Edge should be coming home from school any moment now."
"It's really okay. I don't have to—"
"No, no. You're going. That's my final say on it." She stood up. "I'll go get my purse. And after that, I'll call and ask Mrs. Yamada for Edge. Now, you just stay put like a good little girl--"
Did she just say "good little girl?" The corner of Rei's mouth twitched.
"--I can't believe you did all those chores while I was at work! I would have you done nothing in your state, dear."
You could have mentioned that earlier. It would have been so much easier being a freeloading, good-for-nothing guest. The world would be a better place, Rei thought. Even in her thoughts, sarcasm reigned supreme. She didn't mean to think it, but sometimes her head just started to hurt and the world was a little too stressful for the likes of her. Naturally, Rei was a kind hearted, generous person. But indeed, since she'd become pregnant, she'd seen sides of herself that she never knew existed.
Mrs. Kishida peered at her, concerned. Rei forced a smile. Satisfied, the older woman left. When the door closed, Rei let out a deep breath that she had been unintentionally holding.
Now she had to deal with Edge again. The first encounter was quite enough. Being pulled out of diner just when she'd finished eating had not been good on her stomach. It was a strange sensation to feel the liquids slosh around in your belly when being jounced about. Maybe it would not be like last time. After all, they would just go to the shopping center.
"In public, where people can whisper about me as I walk past. Oh, this is going to be loads of fun," she murmured. "I wonder what those people really think of me. 'Oh, that girl must have slept around. Why don't we make her feel more insecure and unwanted, that little tramp.' Yup. Something like that."
And then, she wondered what her 'companion' (only companion, most likely) would say. Oh, wait. She already knew.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Flashback:
He leaned back in his seat. "Then we have an understanding. I resent you. I hate this. I'd rather be home snacking on potato chips or something." He went on, still uncaring of her feelings. "If anyone here recognizes me, my fucking reputation will be at risk. And then I'll really be pissed."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Aww, what are the odds that anyone he knows would see him with me?" she asked herself in a confident tone. She rubbed her hands together, a habit she'd had forever. Guys were hard to deal with, most often times. They were either deceptive or bitter, in her experience. But, she understood that good men existed. Just nowhere near her. On a whole, the men in her life were awful.
They took her for advantage. They didn't think that she could match them in strength, or ability. They treated her like a weak, demure flower that needed to be protected. She didn't need to be protected. She needed someone to hold her back from unleashing her anger on the masculine sex. Her life hadn't been one of the best. She knew a lot of her mistakes were really just that—her mistakes, and no one else's. But men had not made it any easier to bare them and learn from them.
She lifted up her sleeve to look at a two-inch scar on her shoulder. It was still there. Did she actually expect it to disappear? It would always be there to serve as a reminder of her worst decisions. Those and other marks would survive to tell the tale. Rei rubbed her temples.
"Guys…"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Edge walked from his locker to the front of the school where Gan and Akira would be waiting. There was lightness to his steps. He was in a good mood, thanks to the defeat of some guy in his math class. The boy had made a dire mistake of commenting on Edge behind his back. The boy didn't know that Edge had heard all and was standing right behind him. The others listening to him knew. They watched the short-tempered blonde approach with hopeful glints in their eyes, not having seen a fight all day. And they could always count on Edge to bring them a good fight.
"Another one?" Gan instantly said when he saw his friend approaching.
"Hey, it's Friday. Thought I should get one more bit of fun in before the weekend." He broke out into a toothy grin. Gan could tell even before Edge reaffirmed his thoughts. He could always tell. But at the same time, Gan disapproved of the fight. They'd spent a lot of time with Daigo trying to calm things down in Gedo HS. And it was all for naught. Sure, Gan fought. He liked to. Often, he loved to. But sometimes, it would get him to think of what Daigo was trying to do. And that just took the joy right out of it.
"If only Big Boss were here," Gan said a little quieter, bringing a nod of Akira's helmeted head.
That caused Edge's good mood to fly out the door. The constant reminder that Daigo was still missing. The fights had only worsened since he left. The Big Boss was the one responsible for keeping the school's order, and only he seemed to possess the patience and the strength to make students follow him.
The trio walked out the doors, past the random groups of students that assembled themselves in front. Someone had a stereo on full blast. The music was so loud that Edge's head throbbed in beat with the tune.
"I found out why they were fighting on Saturday. Taiyo got attacked a while ago and sought questions from Gorin first," Akira said, breaking the silence that had formed between them. The Big Boss's younger brother did not talk much. There was always some hesitance, and something odd about his voice. It probably shamed the boy, the other two figured.
Gan scratched his chin. "Hmm… That sounds about right. If Gorin had to blame anyone for their attack, they'd accuse us first. It had to have been Taiyo to make the first move."
"So they were attacked, too?" Edge's eyes widened. "Damn! What the hell is going on?!" A growl escaped his throat. "We're probably next…" Here he clenched his fists. "If it really happens, trust me, I'll be the first to do something about it! The sorry losers are going to wish they'd never been born!"
"Calm down, Edge. I don't think they'd attack a tough school like this. Nearly everyone here can hold their own."
"Not against us," the blonde said devilishly.
Akira turned toward the line of bikes at the side of the building. There was his bike in the second row. No one dared touch it. Word had spread around fast after his arrival, about his supposed relation with Big Boss. Though Daigo was missing, his name continued to instill some sort of awe or fear in them. "I might go down to listen in on the Taiyo students and the Gorin students. They meet to discuss their attacks. Coming?"
"Aww… Need an escort, Small Fry?" Edge laughed. He'd never really called Akira Small Fry, but the more he did it, the more it seemed to fit. What else was he supposed to call him? Little Boss?
Akira looked ready to defend his pride. But Gan spoke. "I'll go. Edge, what do you say?"
"Nah, going to grab some food at home first. If I feel like it, I'll show up. Where are they meeting?"
"The shopping center," Akira supplied.
"It's amazing what one can learn while eavesdropping," Gan commented.
Edge snorted. "Girls' idea, isn't it? Shopping? Feh. Girls…" He tugged at his jacket collar. "Good for nothing but some fun in your spare time. And even then, not much more then to breed men, eh?"
Akira bristled for some reason, his fingers twitching at his sides. Gan's eyes widened imperceptibly. What was this?
Then the offending boy yawned. "Yeah, well, see you guys around. Have fun spying, Small Fry. Big Fry."
"Very funny," Gan rolled his eyes, pretending he hadn't noticed the youngest boy's reaction to Edge's earlier words.
They separated again. The knife collector was vexed that Gan had joined Akira again instead of his best friend. Gan had become increasingly concerned with Daigo's whereabouts, and Edge supposed that was okay. But he wanted to go out and fight, and bring Gan along with him like he always did. The guy was good for fights, either support or double team.
It didn't take long for him to get home. A dog barked from an open apartment window somewhere above. There was a fire escape and a main hall on the other side that everyone used. As the sound of the animal got closer, he realized that it was in fact going down the fire escape toward him. The shadow of the little dog came around the corner of the building. Edge went inside and slammed the door before it could get any closer.
"Security mutt. What a riot," he said to himself and shuffled over to the kitchen. His backpack remained discarded in the corner where it had been all week. Some teachers still tried to teach things to the students of Gedo High School. Some students were still willing to learn. And they did. But not Edge. He had all the common knowledge he'd need. Fighting was his life. And that was that.
The phone rang. He ignored it and opened the fridge to grab something to drink. No more soda. He settled for a sports drink. The phone continued to ring. He yelled for someone else to answer it. The phone continued on ringing. No one was home but him. With a growl of irritation, he angrily picked up the phone. "Yeah, what?"
"Edge! Just the boy I need to speak to," Mrs. Kishida's voice floated over the receiver. "Could you please take Rei to the shopping center? She needs clothes. The poor thing doesn't own much. I already called your parents at work. Your father is going to compensate you for the time that you would have been spending doing homework."
Homework? He laughed mentally. The woman continued.
"So that's settled then. Thank you so much, dear boy."
I don't recall being asked, he thought. Without responding, he hung up. What a nut case! I wonder if she'll crack one day from all her perkiness. I could see it happening. Someone will burst her little bubble of happiness and it'll be a nervous breakdown. The thought appealed to him very much. Anyone who calls me 'dear boy' deserves it.
He finished his drink and threw the bottle in the trash. A little voice in his head that was long neglected told him to put it in recycling. He didn't. Edge then went upstairs to his room. It was the epitome of messy rooms. Wrinkled clothes were strewn about the floor, except for an area in front of his closet where he sometimes practiced moves. There was a pull-up bar in the closet doorway, and posters of action movies he'd collected when he was about 12. In one corner in three, stacked milk crates were things he'd confiscated from underclassmen (or things they'd thrown at him while fleeing for their pathetic lives). Thinking of them put a smirk on his face. No matter what Daigo did, he couldn't help Edge to a point where he stopped fighting completely.
Without shifting his attention to it, he slipped off his shoes by stepping on the back of one shoe heel with the other's toe. Next, he kicked them into the corner and lied down on his bed. As an afterthought, he took of his jacket, complete with most of his knives.
With his hands folded behind his head, he fell asleep. Dreams of sharp blades filled his blonde head. Outrageous fights in the most ridiculous of places also found their way into his subconscious. Fifteen minutes later, Rei entered the room. She immediately saw his sleeping form on the bed.
Looks a whole lot more peaceful than when he is awake. And definitely not as dangerous, she thought. But she figured he had to wake up eventually. After all, Mrs. Kishida expected her to come home with more to fill that single large drawer that she occupied. So, Rei tiptoed forward and touched his arm.
His hand darted out from behind his head and clamped down around her wrist. She let out a little cry of surprise and tried to jerk away, but he held fast. Edge opened his eyes lazily still, and looked at her questioningly. "How did you get in here?"
She gulped a little. "You left the door unlocked."
He searched his memory. Finding that he did, Edge let go of her and sat up, ruffling his own hair. Rei tenderly felt her wrist. He had a strong grip, but not like others who'd gripped her harder and more painfully. She cleared her throat to catch his attention.
"Yeah, what?" he asked gruffly while picking up his jacket off the floor and shrugging it on.
"It's almost 5:00. You slept a long time."
"And I suppose you've been hanging out here a long time before deciding to wake me up, huh?" he said.
"I figured Sleeping Beauty needed his beauty sleep," she retorted. They glared at each other a little before Rei lost interest and pretended like the words were never said. He put his shoes on, still muttering to himself. She wondered what kept him from yelling at her like he did last time. They left his house and called a taxi. There was no way that Edge was going to walk all the way to the shopping center. And that went double for Rei.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Rei examined the clothes on the rack before her, all the while aware of the eyes of other customers set on her age and physical state.
"I just love it when people stare, don't you?" she said in a dull tone. She picked an airy yellow blouse and showed it to her companion. He snorted and tried to make himself as inconspicuous as possible. It had been horrible enough when they went into the maternity department an hour before. Already, he had three shopping bags to carry. There was a big urge to hurl them down the escalator nearby the store window.
It wasn't that his charge with being unpleasant. Rei had made many efforts to befriend him. Well, aside from her witty remarks that tended to put him in his place. How did a girl like her get a tongue like that? She hung the blouse back up and evaluated the rest of her possible choices. Finding nothing to her true liking, she resigned herself and turned to Edge.
"I've gotten everything practical I need. Let's go to the food court. I'm hungry."
"I'm not your servant. Don't order me around," he barked, following her out and bowing his head. He was conscious of all the stares that they received. People could tell that they were teenagers. And one with a baby and the other carrying groceries was all too good an indication that-- Aww, this sucks. This really, really sucks. People mistake me for the father and actually come up to me asking that, I'll punch their lights out.
Rei smiled at his discomfort. "Welcome to my world."
"Don't you ever just want to curse people out for staring?" he asked with hints of hostility in his voice.
She nodded. "Yeah. I got used to it. It was worse when I was alone." She paused and started laughing. "Now that I have you here with me, it's not so bad. Now you can share in on the shame."
"That's not funny," he grated.
Her expression softened. "Really. It is better that I'm not alone because they assume early marriage. Not that I'd marry anyone, but if everyone else thinks that, then it's kind of easier to accept than pregnancy out of wedlock. You do know that kids leave school early to marry, right? People actually do this."
"They're moronic shit-heads then."
Didn't know he knew the word 'moronic', she thought. They arrived at the food court. "I'll pay then, to make up for your hurt feelings."
"Stop with the sarcasm," he practically hissed. "And I can pay, thank you very much."
"Ah, so he actually pays for his food. I keep thinking we're going to flee the food court like we did the diner," she said, chuckling. He glared at her.
"Just sit down and shut up, okay?" he paused and glanced around him at the different food franchises with their neon signs and crowds of people. "What do you want?"
One hand unconsciously strayed to her stomach. She bit her lip. "Hmm… You choose for me."
"Fine." He got up to go stand in line.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Natsu Ayuhara noticed that Hinata wasn't paying attention to what Batsu and Kyosuke were talking about. She followed her gaze and still couldn't figure out what she was looking at. Finally she tapped her shoulder and made a small coughing sound.
"Oh! Sorry," Hinata whispered. She blushed and turned back in her chair. "There's this pretty girl over there, but she's…"
"What about a pretty girl?" Shoma Sawamura joined in on the whisperings.
"Forget it," she shook her head. "So, when are we going over to check out the other schools?"
"As soon as this weekend. It depends on who's free to go," Batsu replied. His mother was missing. Who knew how she fared? He knew he was going. Whether or not anyone went with him didn't matter. He'd do this all alone if he had to. But these new acquaintances of his seemed dedicated. Kyosuke didn't display too many of his emotions, but he had good intentions. After all, the guy was on the Morals Committee, wasn't he? Hinata was angry about what happened to the students of Taiyo HS who couldn't protect themselves against the attackers. Shoma wanted to avenge his brother and Natsu her juniors. And as far as Batsu knew, Roberto was adamant on helping his friends.
"Should we split up? I mean, the schools are far apart, and we'd probably only reach one in one day," Shoma suggested.
"Yeah. Sounds good."
Hinata eyes lit up. "Who wants to go to Tamagawa- Minami High School? Maybe they know something."
"Isn't that a bit far?" Natsu frowned.
The shorter girl shrugged. "Then we'll go next Friday. I can call Sakura in the mean time. What other High Schools are closer?"
Kyosuke pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "I've been meaning to check out Gedo High School. And it is closer by than Tamagawa-Minami."
Roberto flinched. He touched the brim of his visor and tugged it a little farther down to hide his eyes. It was a rare that he spoke in such moved terms. "No way. You Taiyo students can check that place, but I'm afraid the rest of us wouldn't be able to talk with Gedo before we let our fists do the talking for us."
"What is it between Gedo and Gorin?" Hinata pouted
"Don't know," Shoma answered. "It's just always been that way. Right, Roberto?"
"Right."
"Right, Natsu?"
"Right, Shorty."
"Hey--"
The soccer goalie stopped Shoma before he could go on. He glared at both of his friends, and then nodded for Shoma to continue on topic. The baseball player folded his arms across his chest. "But it wouldn't surprise me if they were behind this. A bunch of trouble makers always are… and will always be."
From behind the divider of the food court, separating sections of tables, Akira and Gan listened in on the conversation. Akira was plenty peeved, but Gan wouldn't know since he could not see past the motorcycle helmet. Akira started to slink away from the table, keeping his head low as he passed the potted plants that topped the section divider, but Gan grabbed his arm and bade him with a look to stay.
"The school won't be open this weekend. No one's going to be there. Why don't we just wait until Monday?" Hinata asked.
Batsu narrowed his eyes. "We can go around the local neighborhoods. Time is not to be wasted." He stood up. "I can assure you, I'm not going to wait around."
"Calm down, Batsu! Ease up a bit. Okay, so I'll go with you. Kyosuke?" she looked hopefully at the red haired boy.
"I shall go."
"Great! Then we'll visit the school on Monday. Umm… What about the rest of you?"
"We'll be researching the other schools and keeping in touch," Natsu said, representing herself and her companions. The group started to break off into random groups, chattering amongst themselves and deciding to take the rest of the day off. Natsu and Hinata headed for a department store. Just as Batsu was going to exit the shopping center altogether, Roberto and Shoma caught sight of him and dragged him along with them to the sports stores. Kyosuke disappeared before the guys could find him and bring him along as well.
When they were completely out of range, Akira stood up and removed Gan's hand from his arm. "So, we'll get Edge and stake out the neighborhood tomorrow?"
"Sounds fine to me. When should we confront them?"
"What exactly do we have to confront them about? They obviously don't know anything more than we do about the attackers. All we can do is watch them and hope they lead us to my bro-- hey!"
The bigger teenager frowned. "What?"
Akira parted the leaves of the plants and squinted. "Is that Edge?"
"He did say he might show up."
"Yeah, but I didn't know he had a girlfriend."
Gan looked over Akira's shoulder. "He doesn't have one. What are you talking about?"
"Over there."
The larger teen saw Edge sitting down at a small table. He sat with one arm casually draped over the back of the chair and his legs spread straight out. The knife wielder yawned, and picked at some junk food on his tray. The girl across from him had beautiful dark hair. It looked like silk as it cascaded around her shoulders. There was a combination of innocence and intelligence in her that was obvious to Akira. It was also clear that she was with child.
Gan withdrew from the plants. The two sat down again. Neither glanced at each other. The same unbelieving thoughts ran through their minds.
"So Mr. I-Don't-Have-Time-For-Girls has a girl," Gan stated.
"And he's knocked her up."
"You know, she looks pretty big. He must've met her last year…"
Akira nodded.
"So, you spy on your own, too."
The two Gedo HS students froze. They turned around. Kyosuke stood in front of them, his eyes narrowed into slits as he looked from one to the other. Akira jumped to his feet, clenching a fist in preparation for battle.
"I don't want to fight you. Not here," the boy wearing the white jacket said. He spotted Edge again from far away. "I can understand why you spy on us. You're either behind all of it, or it's happened to you as well. But spying on your 'friend'…"
"How do you know he's our friend?" Gan challenged.
"I saw you on Saturday."
Akira relaxed. There was no use trying to hide it. "It's not like that. We're just trying to get to the bottom of these attacks, okay? Whoever attacked your school may be responsible for my older brother's disappearance."
"How do I know that?" Kyosuke asked. "It could just be a ruse to trick me into trusting you." He caught a glimpse of the food court's clock. "I suppose I should be on my way."
"Yeah, why don't you get out of here," Gan said with malice in his voice.
Kyosuke gave a slight bow. "I will. But not before I bid goodbye to your accomplice and his lady friend."
Before they could stop them, he marched around the divider and to the table where Edge and Rei sat. Akira and Gan followed close behind, watching words being exchanged between them. Edge leapt to his feet, a snarl on his face. Rei gasped and said something to calm him down to no avail. It was when the blonde had Kyosuke by the collar that the undisturbed Taiyo student coolly gestured to Gan and Akira over his shoulder.
"Damn it! So you guys were spying on me? What the fuck is this about?!" Edge roared.
"Not so loud! Are you crazy?" Rei scolded. "Sit down, for goodness' sake." She apologized to Kyosuke, who was brushing himself off. "I'm so sorry, uh…"
"Kyosuke. Kyosuke Kagami."
"Well, I'm Rei Shimura. I hope you forgive Edge--"
"Like I need his stupid forgiveness!" Gan and Akira now held him back. But then Edge realized it was his comrades who he was angry about and shook free of them. "Wait a second, you two were spying on me!"
The two other boys winced. They had been spying on them. Gan shrugged his shoulders in a helpless way. "We had just finished watching the others--"
"That reminds me. I guess I should be expecting you to join us tomorrow, yes?" Kyosuke said as he walked away. His exit was ignored by only Edge, whose face was turning red with fury. Rei leaned her chin on her palm, calmly watching the spectacle before her. For once, it was the guys whom everyone in the place was staring at and not she.
"Hey, dude, you never told us you had a girlfriend," Gan inserted.
Edge's mouth dropped open. "Her! She's not my girlfriend! She's my next door neighbor!"
"Oh, like you expect us to believe that."
"For someone who hates nearly everyone, it seems odd that you've accompanied her to the mall," Akira added.
"Oh, shut up, Small Fry, don't make me hurt you!" He cracked his knuckles.
Gan came in between them. "Hey, stop this. Okay, Edge, we misunderstood. Fine. She's not your girlfriend, but man, you've got some explaining."
"Why do I have to explain myself to anyone? I'm my own man and I'll do whatever I want whenever I want."
Rei coughed. "Excuse me, boys?"
"Stay out of this," Edge hissed.
"Sorry, but I'm pretty sure fighting will get you banned from the shopping center, and I'd actually like to come back in the future." Seeing that none of the three boys were budging, she got up and placed a hand on Gan and Edge's shoulders. "You can talk about this later. Honestly! Edge, please take me home." She turned and gestured for him to follow with the shopping bags.
"You say that girls aren't worth your attention, and here you are taking one around," Akira muttered as they departed.
She threw a look over her shoulder and said, "Well, at least it proves he has some social life, as opposed to spending his afternoons spying on people and getting shown up by a," she paused for melodramatic effect, " a girl."
A rare, genuine smile crossed Edge's features as he looked back on his dumbfounded friends. She had wit, and knew how to use it like a polished sword. Maybe hanging out with her wouldn't be so bad after all. It would never be boring, he was sure. Now if only he could learn to be that sharp with words, he might get more underclassmen to fear him…
In the taxi on the way home, he reflected on the afternoon's events. Edge said aloud, "I hate public places."
Rei watched him from the corner of her eye. "Well, then we finally agree on something, Knife-Boy."
"Don't push it."
"Just watch me."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Author: I've decided to do some mixing and matching between different versions of Rival Schools. Expect Nagare to show up in later chapters. Also: after this one, Chapter 3 may take up to two weeks to get out because I must finish the season finale to one of my other non-RS fics. I really do apologize. With that said, enjoy the chapter, and remember to review after! Reviews are cherished, and they are the sole reason I keep writing. So review!
