High School Crushes are for Wimps
Aoshi stepped off the bus and slowly made his way towards the school. His stomach hurt, actually his entire body ached and not just the beating he received from his father, but also the position he had fallen asleep in. His head hurt and a strong breeze had picked as it blew is black hair around, showing every student he walked passed the large black eye he had received. His face was slightly drawn, a troubled sleep was what he had every night…and yet now that he was back at school it seemed even worse. Not only did he have to work part time at a mini mart store, he had school to attend to, the wrath of his drunken father and his new after school activity, which had actually been approved by his father and that was something that took Aoshi by surprise.
"Ohayoo Shinomori-kun." Aoshi lifted his head when he heard that female voice and returned the greeting to Megumi who was now walking beside him.
"Ohayoo… Um, thanks for the notes by the way." Megumi let off her laugh and then smacked him playfully in the stomach, which Aoshi cringed at since it still throbbed from the last nights ordeal. Megumi noticed the change in Aoshi's facial expression and gasped lightly before apologising.
"Gomen ne Shinomori-kun, are you alright? Did I hurt you or something?" She had stopped walking to check on Aoshi who was now rubbing his stomach and trying to think up an excuse at the same time.
"Iie Takani, I'm okay. Perhaps I feel a little queasy since I forgot to eat breakfast this morning." Aoshi observed as Megumi rummaged through her bag and brought out a green apple placing it in his hand.
"You really should eat Shinomori-kun, my father says breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Well I have to get going, I must catch up with Yume-chan and Tomoe-chan before they head into class, ja ne!" She waved and ran off, not before smacking her bag over Sano's head whom was busy talking to a girl that was blushing profusely at whatever it was that he was saying to her.
Aoshi looked down at the apple and then promptly threw it in the trash bin he walked passed. Its not that he didn't like apples or the sweet gesture Megumi did for him, it was the fact that he had already eaten…but the churning in his stomach needed to settle lest he bring his food back up. He thought it was subsiding but Megumi's playful punch had started it up again. Aoshi stopped near a drinking machine and bought himself a bottle of water and took two of the tablets Nurse Okon ordered him to take each morning and night.
As Aoshi headed into the building he never did sense a pair of curious eyes watching him that morning. Keen violet eyes had noticed that Aoshi absently rubbed his stomach region every now and then and it seemed that the black eye he received from Misao had been irritated and blown up. Kenshin had become the new teacher at the high school just after Aoshi had dropped out. Even the teachers had spread rumours around amongst themselves not sure what was up with the Shinomori boy. There had been rumours about him living on the streets, to him trying to commit suicide, to ones about his mother and her "mysterious" death as they put it. Kenshin sighed trying to shake worried thoughts from his mind. He glanced down at a slip of paper as it was his new list of members into his martial arts classes and noticed that Aoshi had enrolled. Perhaps this was his chance to get to know the teenager a little better. He knew it wasn't his "duty" to involve himself in the lives of his students, but Kenshin felt it right within himself to look out for the troubled teenagers, for he himself had been a troubled teenager as well.
"Ohayoo Himura-sensei!" Kenshin snapped out of his thoughts when he noticed four girls waving good morning to him. He voiced his own greeting back to them and waved back. He let off a nervous laugh when they turned red and hurriedly walked off while giggling to themselves. Kenshin really didn't understand high school students these days at all.
* * * *
(History Class)
Kenshin sat quietly up the front of the classroom and marked papers from another one of the subjects he taught. His students were relatively quiet, but there were always a couple of voices floating around here and there. He glanced up everytime he heard them, his eyes blatantly staring at the "guilty" student who quietened down and never spoke for the rest of the lesson. Again the students were taking notes from a chapter that had been read to them and answering some questions, which will be read aloud in a group discussion before the lesson ended.
Kenshin's violet eyes moved to the back of the class, the student known as Kamatari who sat in front of Aoshi was absent today and so he silently observed Aoshi for several moments. His face had scrunched up every now and then, Kenshin not too sure whether it was a "thinking" face or a "pained" face. He also took notice that Misao too was gazing at Aoshi, an almost unreadable expression on her face…almost, but not quite. Curiosity showed up by the way that she bit her bottom lip unconsciously. So the Shinomori boy had sparked some small interest inside of Misao after all. This was most intriguing for Kenshin to discover. Both teacher and student thoughts were lost when a loud screeching was heard. Students turned around, Kenshin watching as Aoshi abruptly stood up, his face contorted in a discomforting manner.
"Su-Sumimasen…" He muttered and raced for the door ripping it open and running down the hallway. Students stood up to crowd near the windows to peer down the hallway watching Aoshi's retreating back disappear. The only two that were actually left sitting down was Kenshin and Misao. Their eyes met for a mere second, but a small smile was placed on Kenshin's lips as Misao diverted her eyes away and proceeded to gaze boredly out the window as though she didn't have a care in the world.
"Sagara, please go check on Shinomori and come straight back if there are any problems." Sano nodded his head and took off. He was ecstatic that he was getting out of class and yet a small amount of worry began to brew in his stomach.
* * * *
(Male Bathroom)
Sano creaked the door open and peered inside not seeing his friend around. Just when he was ready to leave and head for another male bathroom he heard some coughing from one of the toilet stalls. He proceeded to head in the direction of where the coughing…or should it be regurgitating now was coming from. He noticed that the door was slightly ajar, obviously Aoshi having forgotten to lock it and he pushed it open to see his new found friend slumped on the floor, one hand resting on the bowl while the other brushed some sweat from his forehead. Sano's brown eyes widened as he noticed a trickle of blood coming from the corner of Aoshi's mouth.
Aoshi on the other hand hadn't even heard the intrusion into his little "vomiting" episode as he blocked out all noise when he had moments like this…not too mention he was feeling a little hazy and weak from not eating anything truly health since lunch yesterday. His breakfast only contained a chocolate bar as he left the house before his father decided to wake up.
* * * *
(Back in the classroom)
Kenshin had finally gotten his class back into order, but his head snapped up, as did his students when pounding footsteps and a loud voice broke the silence through the corridor.
"HIMURA-SENSEI COME QUICK!" Sano yelled in a not so discreet tone of voice. He skidded to a halt outside his classroom and beckoned his teacher to follow him. As Kenshin stood so did many of his overly curious students.
"If I see any of you out of this classroom you'll all have detention and an essay to write." Kenshin spoke in a firm voice, his students groaning as they sat back in their seats. He jogged down the corridor with Sano, he speaking as they did so.
"Shinomori's spewing up blood!" Kenshin nearly cringed at Sano's blunt and quite descriptive words. Nothing was spoken as Kenshin entered the bathroom while Sano remained outside, just in case any younger…or older students for that matter wished to come in. He'd soon tell them were to go if they dared try to enter.
* * * *
"Shinomori, is everything alright?" Kenshin spoke in a soft gentle voice, trying not to scare his student into hiding from him. That was not possible in Aoshi's case as he had no where to hide in the first place. Kenshin slowly pushed the door open to see a crumbled Aoshi with his head resting on the toilet bowl and his eyes closed. He was…he was sleeping! Kenshin was about to shake Aoshi awake, ready to reprimand him for making him worry and that's when he too noticed the bloody near his mouth…not to mention what was floating inside the bowl! His eyebrows scrunched up as he flushed the toilet and pulled Aoshi…a now slightly heavier Aoshi out of the toilet stall and leaned him against a changing bench. He brought over some paper towels having placed them under the water to drench them and decided to clean Aoshi's face. Although he was maturer then any of the students in the high school he looked like an innocent young boy, but a slightly broken one at that right at this very moment.
"Sagara, you may come inside." Kenshin spoke and Sano did exactly that.
"Help me take him to Nurse Okon." Kenshin spoke and lifted Aoshi up placing one arm over his shoulder while Sano took Aoshi's right side.
"Himura-sensei, what do you think is wrong with him?" Sano spoke softly, not really sure what to say or do at a time like this.
"I don't know, but I will find out one way or another." Kenshin replied to Sano as his eyes narrowed and began to flash an unusual amber-gold colour. Oh, he would definitely find out, no matter how much prying it would take him.
* * * *
To be continued…
* * * *
Authors Notes: Well, that took longer then I expected for sure. Sorry for the delay (in all of my stories in fact) but hey not like this pays the bills or anything… I wish! Work has been a pain in the ass…more then that actually but I won't open up that huge big crevice. Now whom have I used so far? Hmm, let's see:
Misao, Aoshi, Kenshin, Megumi, Sano, Tomoe, Yume, Soujiro, Enishi, Tsubame and Kamatari (but not much) and not to forget Okina (Misao's absent grandfather, so he's never in it).
Who is to come you ask? Well let's see… There's Hiko-sama, Yahiko and Kaoru (She's got one controversial role in this!) left and maybe something from Genzai-sensei and of course Ayame and Suzume-chan, guess who they are?
Ho hum, what to do…what to do…oh reply to some comments yes! Well yes it is yet another AU, since I pretty much stink at RK Universe stories so I'll let the pro's stick to them and maybe take notes on how Aoshi and Misao "really" act in those ones. I can't help writing AU it's the best! Well to some extent… Anywho right at this moment I sort of know what's coming and stuff, but in my head its coming way too fast for the plot of the story, but I might pan it out or just go for it…I haven't fully decided yet. Oh and yes it may seem OOC from every character but it's a total turn around ne? I mean I like having it this way, it gives me new material to write about. Especially having Misao the ice queen, Aoshi the troubled young adult with the abusive father, Sano who will become Aoshi's most trusted and quite protective friend and Kenshin the very nosy, but worried teacher of theirs. You'll soon find out just why he's taking care of Misao so much.
Truthfully I don't know if I'll actually have Misao and Aoshi "end up together" in the end, but we'll see. Right now in my brain it doesn't add up that way which is a damned shock! My favourite coupling not together, oh the horror of it all! Well be sure to see a little "tag along" for Misao as Tsubame wants to befriend her and yes she'll call her 'Makimachi-sempai' while Tsubame has a follower of her own in Yahiko…even though she's too dumb to realise.
Confrontations are coming…and I think I might have Misao and Aoshi develop one of those relationships were you can sit together in a library and talk about books or work or study, but that's it, so its like friends…but no were close to being friends. Err, that made no sense…oh well. Oh as for longer chapters…no way. When I think I might be able to "torture" my readers with a little 'to be continued' I think why the hell not since its done to me by other authors. *Glares at the authors of the stories she is reading*
On another note, none of my stories are ever forgotten…okay maybe 'Belonging to Sesshomaru' but other then that they are always on my mind, but never enough ideas to go on. Stop asking about Car Trouble! It isn't happening okay? No thoughts, no spark, so stop before Noa goes insane over pleading messages were she starts feeling guilty about keeping you waiting, but…but there is only one me…and well this isn't full time, just my hobby…along with my anime collecting and I can't keep up with all my stories at once. This brain has a mind of its own! HA! I do thank everyone for the wonderful reviews of course, but if there isn't a spark in my mind on that story it will stay 'to be continued' for sometime…but never fear it'll come to me one day, I just don't want to produce a really shitty chapter. Minna, you understand right?
Till next time… *kills over*