a/n: hey guys, sorry for the late update.
The car engine made no sound as it raced on the leaves strewed road, stirring them high.
Light projected stray rays on the face of the ten year old girl leaning against the car window. Her identical twin sat on the opposite side, asleep. A man sat in the steering wheel, concentrating on the road while the curly haired woman beside him was also fast asleep.
The car rushed by the trees and shrubs beside them, making them look like a blur of green to Rin.
Today is Akito-sama's birthday. All the Jyunishis are required to gather at the Sohma Main House.
Ah? Won't that ruin our picnic plan today?
It's okay; Akito-sama is the head of the Sohma family. We must respect him. Father and I will drop you off first, then we will wander off in the meantime, untill you've finish then we'll have our picnic. Okay?
Okay.
What are we going to do in the meantime, Mother?
We'll find something, Yuri.
Akito-sama's birthday. Rin pondered on the thought that even her mother and father, who were older than Akito, were calling him –sama.
Akito must be a very important person…
"Isuzu-chan! I haven't seen you for quite some time." A young Shigure, in his teens remarked as Rin, dressed in a fancy dress with frills and all, looking petite with her long black hair was flanked in by her parents. He raised a hand to mention her over when her parents left.
"Neh, neh, Isuzu-chan, you're growing prettier every time I see you." Shigure grinning cheekily while running his hands down her smooth as silk hair. Ayame beside him laughed loudly. Hatori remained silent, staring at them.
"Shi-chan, why don't you give Isuzu-chan her present you bought her?" Ayame said.
"Present?" Rin asked, her eyes wide.
"Hai, your present." Shigure said, taking out a small box and handing it to her. It was pink, those kind of present boxes that came in two piece. Fascinated, she opened the cover and pulled out a necklace, attached to a small bell. It ringed as she held it up.
The bell was miniature and made of glass, attached to the silver string and ranged whenever she moved it.
"She's too touched, Shi-chan."
"No, no, she isn't. It's beautiful, isn't it?"
Rin nodded her head in agreement.
"Here," Shigure took the necklace from her hands and proceeded to wear it for her, with a snickering Ayame and stone-like Hatori looking on.
"Shigure, I never knew you were so romantic."
"That's because you're too full of yourself to notice anything else." Hatori state flatly.
A hurt look came over Ayame's face and his eyes went big and brimming with tears.
"Ha-chan, you're so mean! How could you say something like that!" he cried.
Hatori rolled his eyes. Rin giggled behind her hands.
"Hey, I've got an idea." Shigure suddenly said.
"What?"
"Why don't we call you Rin, Isuzu-chan? It means the sound of a ringing bell."
"Rin?"
"Not a bad name. Considering the ones you always gave to your ex-girlfriends."
"That's artistic! A writer like me should always have good imagination, don't you agree, Ha-chan?"
"Giving horrible nicknames to ex-girlfriends is not imagination, Shigure. It's call back-stabbing your enemies."
"Well, they were the ones who cheated on me first! So it's equal that we should return the favour, no?"
Rin listened attentively, her finger occasionally touching the bell on her neck.
A maid stepped forward of them and announced formally, "All Jyunishi's are now to enter the banquet hall. Please proceed." Before walking away.
"Yare, yare, I suppose we should go now." Shigure got up and started towards the banquet hall.
"Come on, Rin-chan."
Rin looked around at Ayame and Hatori, who seemed to have no objection against the name. The glass bell rang as she straightened from the floor.
Walking along with the group, she was surprised to find another boy trudging after them. She stared at the white and black hair. He was a few years younger than herself.
When he caught her gaze, the boy scowled and lowered his head. He ran with all his might and overtook Hatori in front. Rin blinked.
"…Who is that?" she asked no one in particular.
"Oh…" Shigure raked a finger over his hair. "Sohma Hatsuharu. One of us, but gets angry very easily. He goes Black when he does that."
"Black?"
"Hm. Hatsuharu is White when is normal, and turns Black when he is in a rage. Usually when he is White, his personality is very different from his Black personality."
Rin stared after the boy, thinking.
…
Rin patted her stomach, satisfied as she leaned back in her elegant chair. She felt a burp coming and covered her mouth politely, just like her mother told her to.
That was nice…we only get to eat this once in a year, so I must treasure this, she thought.
Shigure was chatting with Ayame on her left; she didn't understand why they kept giggling and laughing, so she turned to her right. Ritsu's back was facing her as he (Shigure had told her in snickers one day that Ritsu was actually a boy, but for what reason he would dress up as a girl still remained a mystery to her.) talked to Momiji excitedly. She leaned out a bit farther to hear what they were saying and caught a glimpse of white hair.
How weird; to have white hair so young. Rin's coal-black hair fell in front of her as she leaned forward to see better. She saw that while the boy named Haru's hair was largely white, but there were a few streaks of black peeking out from his neck collar.
Haru was hunched over in his chair, his plate already clean and cutlery neatly laid on the plate. Wide and beautiful eyes were staring ahead, brooding. Rin thought that only adults had that kind of posture.
When the doors opened and they were let out, Rin let herself to be swept along by the crowd and stuck closely behind Shigure. She turned and craned her neck to the impossible in order to see Haru above the sea of heads. Her efforts were futile, and she heard a tendon cracked in her neck. She stopped looking and massaged her neck while walking.
Now that the banquet was over, they could go home. Her parents and Yuri were not in sight. Only a few had came on time to pick their children up. Rin joined the others in the yard and sat under a small tree for shade. Her eyes scanned the area; the boy Haru was not here. Perhaps he had went home. Rin thought that Haru looked either cold or angry all the time; that lead her to wonder what kind of people his family were and whether they were treating him bad.
All the Jyunishi seemed to be very suffering; but I'm not the same. Mother and father are good to me, and so is Yuri. I'm lucky.
She realized that it was suddenly very noisy. She looked up and saw that a crowd was around a hopping Momiji, who had somehow acquired a skipping rope. She watched him skip and hop in time to the swings, and thought it fun. She got up from her place and squeezed in beside Ritsu. She tugged the sleeve of his kimono.
"Where did Momiji get the skipping rope?"
"Eh? Oh, in the Sohma storehouse. There." Ritsu tore his eyes away from Momiji and pointed behind Rin.
She ran and found the storehouse. It was a separate build form the house, situated in the center of the yard. She went up the steps and push against the door. She struggled with it for some time before a maid crossed by and helped her.
The door opened to a wave of musty smell of rarely aired room. Rin peeked innocently at the insides; there was light from some window above, because she could see the boxes and crates clearly. Some boxes were stacked so high they reached the ceiling. The light shone and illuminated the specks of dust hanging in the air.
She entered and walked around. She found what she wanted and rushed out again, eager to try it out.
Outside the storehouse, she knocked straight into Hatsuharu.
She gasped slightly and felt Haru hold on to her elbows so that they both would not fall. When they were steady, Rin's eyes raised timidly. She saw his soft brown eyes looking, not at her, but at the roll of skipping rope in her hands. After a while, he let go of her elbows and retreated back.
He went and sat on the steps of house, brooding again. Having no idea what to do, and not to mention that the situation was quite uncomfortable (to her at least, because Hatsuharu did not seem to notice at all), she stood rooted for a moment. Then awakwardly, she unrolled the rope and began skipping. She missed the first few times, then gradually got into the rhythm and it was all smooth.
She didn't know when did Haru suddenly appeared, standing not far from her to be hurt by the swings, his hands tucked into his pockets and brown eyes placidly studying her. Startled, she lost her rhythm and her legs caught the swinging rope. She nearly tripped but recovered and got back on her feet just on time.
Flushed and embarressed, she thought about trying again. It was summer; her back was drenched in sweat. She turned her head slightly and saw Haru still watching her.
"You're not going to play anymore?" he asked.
"Eh?" She blinked, then said softly, "In a while. I want to rest first."
"Can I play?"
Rin stared at him, realizing what the question was, then handed him the skipping ropes. Haru took it and stepped into place, and began skipping. He immediately got it right the first time. Rin watched, mermeriszed by the expert moves. Haru did not seem distracted by anything at all; he just kept staring forward of him calmly.
Finally, he handed back the skipping ropes to her, and when he walked away, Rin saw that he was sweating as well. They were not exactly playing in a shade. She got into position and skipped. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Haru studying her again. She was so flustered she tripped again.
"You are not concentrating." He remarked softly. She dared not meet his eyes, but picked herself up and tried again.
Concentrate. Don't let yourself be distracted.
The rays of sun was blocked momentarily by the first swing of the rope. First swing, second swing….she was getting better. Then in the middle of it, her feet caught the rope and her rhythm broke, like a song ended abruptly. She glanced at Haru, who was as calm as ever. Except that he was walking towards her.
He picked up the rope and his stare hinted that he wanted to say something, but was waiting for her to stand up. She quickly did so.
"Don't get distracted. Be one with your rhythm and the ropes. You try." He said simply.
It wasn't easy. She tripped a few times more before Haru's words sink in, and she found herself almost as expert as Haru. She turned and smiled at him, succeeding in doing so without tripping in. She had wanted to say thank you, but instead said what she had been thinking all along.
"I like your hair." Haru's eyes widened into sauce pans in shock. Next she saw a blush appeared faintly on his cheeks. It was so cute she laughed.
"Rin!"
At the sound of her name, she stopped skipping and turned to see her mother waving at her. Time to go home.
Rin dropped the ropes and bounded to her mother, but remembered something. Haru was staring after her, and at eye contact, she waved goodbye to him.
"Ja ne, Hatsuharu-kun!" She beamed. Whether from shock or surprise he didn't wave, but the blush got deeper on his face. She laughed and waved for the last time.
…
Rin bounded down the stairs at the sound of the front door being opened, her heart pounding.
Yuri will be alright. Akito is a nice person. He will not hurt her, ne?
The atmosphere in the living room contrasted sharply against her self-assuring thoughts. Her mother was helping Yuri through the front door while her father opened it for them. Yuri's hair was covering her face. Rin froze on the stairs, suddenly feeling sick in the stomach.
This is a dream. It's not happening, is it? Even from the distance, Yuri's shoulders was shaking. At that moment, her mother noticed her presence and raised her head. Rin saw an unfamiliar expression on her face.
"You lying bitch." Her mother snarled.
…
The blow came unexpectedly. It made her ears ring as she fell to the floor, dully recognizing the aching pain on her left cheek. Her hair came loose from behind her and draped around her face.
"BITCH! YOU FUCKING LITTLE BITCH!" She heard her mother scream. A hard kick struck home at her left side and she cried out.
It seems that her cry had triggered something in her mother, because next attack came from all directions. It was as if her mother was possessed by a demon, she wasn't aiming for a particular spot, just kicking everywhere and cussing as she did. Rin covered her head with her arms and silently accepted. No tears stung her eyes this time. Maybe she was used to it. Used to all the beatings.
A pause. Relief surged in her. Finally.
Unsatisfied by the silent acceptance, her mother grabbed Rin's head with a savage cry and rammed it into the wall. Once, twice.
There was pain. Then dizziness overcame her with the pain. Darkness blotted out her vision of her mother panting after the show of her strength, and the sight of her father leaning against the frame of her bedroom door, his face an expressionless mask.
It wasn't like this before. Before that…it wasn't like this before…
The memory of the incident played once again in her mind.
We are a happy family. We are happy.
Rin, what kind of dressing do you want to go with your salad?
Those were happy times. Mother and father and Yuri and me, living together, laughing…
Of course we love you, Rin. We love you so much.
It was just a show. You were all pretending.
Mummy, why are we so happy? Don't we get sad at all?
The bowl of salad dropped from mother's hands. Father stopped reading his newspaper. The show ended.
What…Happy? You call this happy? We were all working so hard…Fuck off!
Darkness blotted out everything.
…
The car skidded to a stop outside their house. Yuri was oblivious to it all. She only registered it when her mother gently mumbled something incomprehensible and led her out of the car. Her legs swung over the car into the ground, but she was so weak she could hardly stand. She raised her head and saw her father rushing up the steps to open the front door made of solid wood. Her mother had got out of the car and seeing her hobbling unsteadily on her feet, at once came to her side.
When she entered the house, she felt an immense relief. Relief that she was at last home.
Far away from him. But not far enough. She was still in the Sohma Main House.
Then she heard a snarl that reminded her of an animal. Her eyes lifted to her mother, then to who her mother was looking at. Rin stood with a mixture of expression on her face: shock, guilt and hurt. She saw all of the emotions flew across Rin's face the moment their eyes locked. As much as Rin was her twin sister, she felt inclined to point a finger at her.
It was you. You lied. You're the one who caused me this.
But her current state prevented her from doing so. Her head dropped and caused her raven black hair to fall around her. Memory of the previous encounter with Akito flashed into her mind again.
You'll be a good girl for once, won't you? You'll be a good girl and stop meddling in my business, won't you?
Stay away from Rin. Whatever you do, just stay away from her, and then things will be okay. That's what Akito said.
Yuri was led into a room to have her wounds tended. Under the soft touches of her mother, she was lulled into sleep on the warm and soft pillows of her bed.
…
Rin woke up groggily. Her eyes fluttered and closed, and she thought she was going to sleep again, but she couldn't. Her eyes fluttered once more, and they opened an inch.
Her head felt like a hammer was hammering into it.
She slowly moved in her position on the floor. She tried to hear for any noise in the room to signal another presence. Nothing. Her legs moved and her shoulders flexed, sitting up. Her head pounded loudly because of the blood flowing down and she only heard the sound of her heart beating inside.
She felt something trickle on her forehead and touched it. Crimson liquid coated her fingers. Her mother had indeed literally rammed her into the wall. Trickles of blood was now flowing down the side of her head, some coming close to her vision. She wiped it off.
What kind of mother would do this to her own child? Rin wondered not for the last time. Unless she was not her child, of course. What happened to that warm and caring mother she had known?
It was an act. They were all acting around you.
I know. I know it was an act. Can't we all go back to that act? Can't we all go back?
Rin heard a sound behind her. She wheeled around and came face to face with her father.
…
Ja ne: Bye/see you later
