Chapter Eighteen: Truth
"Did any of you guys see Hitomi today?" Merle asked the next day as they ate lunch.
" No, I thought she woke up late again or something but I haven't seen her all day." Yukari answered munching on her cookies.
"Do you guys think she's sick?" Millerna asked looking worried.
"Nah, I bet she's home catching up on some sleep. I'll call her after school and ask."
Merle remained silent as the others talked about upcoming events. Usually she looked forward to having lunch with her friends, gossiping about people and things, but today, she wasn't in the mood. In her head, she played all possible scenes that could happen if she talked to Folken in person. So far, none of them ended up nicely. In scenario number 18, he managed to kidnap her, take her to a weird shrine where he crucified her in honor of his dead girlfriend. Merle shivered at the thought and slowly ate another mouthful of spaghetti. 'If only Hitomi was here, she'd give me some good advice. Darn, this girl sure can pick the day to be absent. Maybe these two can give me some advice.'
"You guys, I wanted to ask you something." She began.
Her friends turned their heads towards her, waiting for her to continue. "Well, remember what happened yesterday?"
"Hey!" Yukari said all of a sudden, "I just got an great idea for a story!" Not waiting for the others reply she continued, "Why don't we find out once and for all what goes into that mysterious 'Tuesday Cabbage Soup'?" Yukari finished smiling proudly as if she just discovered the cure to cancer.
"Now why didn't I think of that?" Amano teased. "Sorry to burst you bubble but I don't think anyone actually wants to know what goes into that thing."
"Hey! At lest I tried! We're desperate here and who knows? Maybe if we find out what chemical they drop into it and blow their cover, they just might change the food."
"It probably will be even more disgusting." Dryden pointed out.
"Yeah, your right." Yukari sighed.
"Hello??? Am I the only one here that heard Merle's plea for help?" Millerna interrupted.
"Oh, I'm sorry Merle!" Yukari apologized, "You know how it is when I sudden get an idea."
"It's okay," she said quietly. "It's no big deal…"
"You sure about that?" Millerna pressed.
"Don't worry, I'm fine." She let out a deep sigh and went back to eating her lunch.
***
'Just a few more minutes until the end of class.' Merle thought as she watched the clock in the front of the room. 'Sitting in a humid room, listening to the teacher talk nonstop about stuff that happened centuries ago, sure is a nice way to finish a long day.' She rolled her eyes, 'Gag me!'
Despite her efforts, Merle hasn't found the courage to approach Folken all day. She passed him a few times in the hall way but every time he had a look on his face that said 'come-near-me-and-I'll-pull-your-head- off'. He didn't seem like the common sociable kind of guy. Merle tapped her fingers on her desk as she counted down the last few seconds.
*Ringing…*
'Finally!' She picked up her books and dashed out the door. The hallway was crowded with people eager to get out of school. Merle held her books up close, incase some moron bumped into her. The last thing she needed today was to have all her books and papers spilled onto the ground. As she walked down the hall, out of the corner of her eye, she caught a glimpse of some short blue hair. 'There's only one guy in the school who has hair that color,' she thought to herself. Taking a deep breath, she gathered up all her courage and walked towards his locker. 'It's now or never'
"Um, hi." She said quietly as she approached. Folken took one look at her and slammed his locker shut. He picked up his book bag and walked the other way. 'Oh no, he's not getting away that easily.'
"Wait Folken!" she yelled out, "Can't you let me apologize?"
If he heard her, he made no attempt to stop. Merle stopped for a moment, controlling her emotions. Screaming her head off at him won't help the situation. Shaking her head clear, she decides to run after him. If he was going to kidnap her, let him. It would be better than feeling guilty for the rest of her life.
"Will you wait up?" she said pulling on his arm once she was close enough.
He yanked his arm away from her touch and gave her a look of pure hatred. "What do you want from me?"
"I want to apologize."
He let out a sarcastic laugh, "for what? For not minding your own business or for being the pain in the ass you are?"
"Okay, I deserved that. I know I shouldn't have said the things I did but I couldn't help it. That's the way my mouth works. I never think before I say anything and I really really sorry."
"No your not."
"Excuse me?" Merle said not believing her ears.
"You heard me, none of you are sorry. You just feel bad for one day and everything is fine the next. None of you know how it really feels to lose a person you love." People passing stopped to listen to their argument, but frankly, Merle didn't care. She couldn't believe that he was so stubborn.
"Your right, I don't. But you're not the only one who has lost a loved one. Hundreds of people go through it everyday."
"Was that supposed to make me feel better?"
"I can't believe your such a jerk!" she almost shouted, "I come here to apologize and you bombard me with insults. What is your problem?"
"My problem is you people don't know when to leave others alone. I never asked for any of you to feel sorry for me!" he yelled back.
"What wrong with you? Why do you try to act all tough, as if you're so strong" she asked, "you don't fool me Folken. I know that inside, you're like a weak little boy who can't accept the facts of life." She continued not caring if he replied. "Your only miserable because you want to be."
"How would you know anything about me?" he asked defensively.
"I don't, but I can see it in your eyes. You're scared. Your scared to move on, scared to wake up one day and finally realize that Sora isn't coming back. Your scared to be yourself again, scared to be happy because if you did, you'd feel like you were betraying her."
"Bullshit!"
"No it's not, you and I both no I am right. You just don't want to believe it. I used to feel sorry for you because of what happened to your girlfriend. Now, I just think you're pathetic." Merles shook her head in disgust and slowly walked away.
***
"Darling are you really sure you want to go?" Mrs. Kanzaki asked her daughter as they got into the family car. "You just the stage manager, I think they can do without you for one day."
"I'm fine mom, I'm feeling much better."
"Okay if you say so, but if you run into anything that makes u feel uncomfortable, give me a call and I'll be right over."
"Stop worrying mom," Hitomi smiled gratefully, "I'm not a kid anymore. I kinda overreacted yesterday but everything is fine."
"I'm glad to hear it." Her mom reached over and gave her a gentle hug.
***
Hitomi waved goodbye to her mom as opened the door to the school auditorium. She could feel the wave of energy coming from inside. Surprisingly, the loud noises made her feel a lot better. During the whole day, the only sound she heard was the ticking of clocks. If she stayed at her home a minute longer, she would have gone crazy (that is if she hasn't already).
As she approached the closet where most of the costumes were kept, she could hear a series of loud giggles and moans (A/N: yuck _). 'I see some people managed to keep busy while I was away. I guess I should leave them alone.'
"Oh Allen…"
Hitomi was completely shocked as she heard the name. It couldn't be her Allen. No, her Allen was 100% devoted to her, it couldn't be. As much as she wanted to believe herself, she keep on hearing Millerna's voice in her mind, "Allen's a player, he's not worth it."
'There are more Allens in the school, it's a very popular name, it could be someone else.' No matter how hard she tried to reason with herself, Hitomi found it very hard to believe. Finally, unable to take it anymore, she reached for the doorknob.
***AAHHH!!! What's going to happen??? Who is she going to find??? Wanna know? Hafta wait! *evil smile* tell me what you guys think. The more reviews, the faster I update! ^_^ Later! Bishouji88***
"Did any of you guys see Hitomi today?" Merle asked the next day as they ate lunch.
" No, I thought she woke up late again or something but I haven't seen her all day." Yukari answered munching on her cookies.
"Do you guys think she's sick?" Millerna asked looking worried.
"Nah, I bet she's home catching up on some sleep. I'll call her after school and ask."
Merle remained silent as the others talked about upcoming events. Usually she looked forward to having lunch with her friends, gossiping about people and things, but today, she wasn't in the mood. In her head, she played all possible scenes that could happen if she talked to Folken in person. So far, none of them ended up nicely. In scenario number 18, he managed to kidnap her, take her to a weird shrine where he crucified her in honor of his dead girlfriend. Merle shivered at the thought and slowly ate another mouthful of spaghetti. 'If only Hitomi was here, she'd give me some good advice. Darn, this girl sure can pick the day to be absent. Maybe these two can give me some advice.'
"You guys, I wanted to ask you something." She began.
Her friends turned their heads towards her, waiting for her to continue. "Well, remember what happened yesterday?"
"Hey!" Yukari said all of a sudden, "I just got an great idea for a story!" Not waiting for the others reply she continued, "Why don't we find out once and for all what goes into that mysterious 'Tuesday Cabbage Soup'?" Yukari finished smiling proudly as if she just discovered the cure to cancer.
"Now why didn't I think of that?" Amano teased. "Sorry to burst you bubble but I don't think anyone actually wants to know what goes into that thing."
"Hey! At lest I tried! We're desperate here and who knows? Maybe if we find out what chemical they drop into it and blow their cover, they just might change the food."
"It probably will be even more disgusting." Dryden pointed out.
"Yeah, your right." Yukari sighed.
"Hello??? Am I the only one here that heard Merle's plea for help?" Millerna interrupted.
"Oh, I'm sorry Merle!" Yukari apologized, "You know how it is when I sudden get an idea."
"It's okay," she said quietly. "It's no big deal…"
"You sure about that?" Millerna pressed.
"Don't worry, I'm fine." She let out a deep sigh and went back to eating her lunch.
***
'Just a few more minutes until the end of class.' Merle thought as she watched the clock in the front of the room. 'Sitting in a humid room, listening to the teacher talk nonstop about stuff that happened centuries ago, sure is a nice way to finish a long day.' She rolled her eyes, 'Gag me!'
Despite her efforts, Merle hasn't found the courage to approach Folken all day. She passed him a few times in the hall way but every time he had a look on his face that said 'come-near-me-and-I'll-pull-your-head- off'. He didn't seem like the common sociable kind of guy. Merle tapped her fingers on her desk as she counted down the last few seconds.
*Ringing…*
'Finally!' She picked up her books and dashed out the door. The hallway was crowded with people eager to get out of school. Merle held her books up close, incase some moron bumped into her. The last thing she needed today was to have all her books and papers spilled onto the ground. As she walked down the hall, out of the corner of her eye, she caught a glimpse of some short blue hair. 'There's only one guy in the school who has hair that color,' she thought to herself. Taking a deep breath, she gathered up all her courage and walked towards his locker. 'It's now or never'
"Um, hi." She said quietly as she approached. Folken took one look at her and slammed his locker shut. He picked up his book bag and walked the other way. 'Oh no, he's not getting away that easily.'
"Wait Folken!" she yelled out, "Can't you let me apologize?"
If he heard her, he made no attempt to stop. Merle stopped for a moment, controlling her emotions. Screaming her head off at him won't help the situation. Shaking her head clear, she decides to run after him. If he was going to kidnap her, let him. It would be better than feeling guilty for the rest of her life.
"Will you wait up?" she said pulling on his arm once she was close enough.
He yanked his arm away from her touch and gave her a look of pure hatred. "What do you want from me?"
"I want to apologize."
He let out a sarcastic laugh, "for what? For not minding your own business or for being the pain in the ass you are?"
"Okay, I deserved that. I know I shouldn't have said the things I did but I couldn't help it. That's the way my mouth works. I never think before I say anything and I really really sorry."
"No your not."
"Excuse me?" Merle said not believing her ears.
"You heard me, none of you are sorry. You just feel bad for one day and everything is fine the next. None of you know how it really feels to lose a person you love." People passing stopped to listen to their argument, but frankly, Merle didn't care. She couldn't believe that he was so stubborn.
"Your right, I don't. But you're not the only one who has lost a loved one. Hundreds of people go through it everyday."
"Was that supposed to make me feel better?"
"I can't believe your such a jerk!" she almost shouted, "I come here to apologize and you bombard me with insults. What is your problem?"
"My problem is you people don't know when to leave others alone. I never asked for any of you to feel sorry for me!" he yelled back.
"What wrong with you? Why do you try to act all tough, as if you're so strong" she asked, "you don't fool me Folken. I know that inside, you're like a weak little boy who can't accept the facts of life." She continued not caring if he replied. "Your only miserable because you want to be."
"How would you know anything about me?" he asked defensively.
"I don't, but I can see it in your eyes. You're scared. Your scared to move on, scared to wake up one day and finally realize that Sora isn't coming back. Your scared to be yourself again, scared to be happy because if you did, you'd feel like you were betraying her."
"Bullshit!"
"No it's not, you and I both no I am right. You just don't want to believe it. I used to feel sorry for you because of what happened to your girlfriend. Now, I just think you're pathetic." Merles shook her head in disgust and slowly walked away.
***
"Darling are you really sure you want to go?" Mrs. Kanzaki asked her daughter as they got into the family car. "You just the stage manager, I think they can do without you for one day."
"I'm fine mom, I'm feeling much better."
"Okay if you say so, but if you run into anything that makes u feel uncomfortable, give me a call and I'll be right over."
"Stop worrying mom," Hitomi smiled gratefully, "I'm not a kid anymore. I kinda overreacted yesterday but everything is fine."
"I'm glad to hear it." Her mom reached over and gave her a gentle hug.
***
Hitomi waved goodbye to her mom as opened the door to the school auditorium. She could feel the wave of energy coming from inside. Surprisingly, the loud noises made her feel a lot better. During the whole day, the only sound she heard was the ticking of clocks. If she stayed at her home a minute longer, she would have gone crazy (that is if she hasn't already).
As she approached the closet where most of the costumes were kept, she could hear a series of loud giggles and moans (A/N: yuck _). 'I see some people managed to keep busy while I was away. I guess I should leave them alone.'
"Oh Allen…"
Hitomi was completely shocked as she heard the name. It couldn't be her Allen. No, her Allen was 100% devoted to her, it couldn't be. As much as she wanted to believe herself, she keep on hearing Millerna's voice in her mind, "Allen's a player, he's not worth it."
'There are more Allens in the school, it's a very popular name, it could be someone else.' No matter how hard she tried to reason with herself, Hitomi found it very hard to believe. Finally, unable to take it anymore, she reached for the doorknob.
***AAHHH!!! What's going to happen??? Who is she going to find??? Wanna know? Hafta wait! *evil smile* tell me what you guys think. The more reviews, the faster I update! ^_^ Later! Bishouji88***