Vindicated
Chapter 9: Kyu
Author's note: wow haven't written one of these in a while. Kyu is SNG's character not mine. That's all.
Oh and frustrating side note to those of my readers who also read Three Again. Last night I finally started writing the last chapter cause there's only one more. I had the dot of inspiration! It was right there! then the fuse blew and I lost it all. BUT I still had the dot! so I started again. I was almost finished! and it happened again! SNG wouldnt stop laughing at me and I lost the dot as I went fuming down to the fuse box again. sorry guys I'll try again later
(1st period English 12-Kankurou)
Every day before school, Kankurou woke up at about five thirty AM, took a shower, ate breakfast, and got ready for school. This, of course, would seem like a good schedule, to most people. And, for most people, it was a good schedule. However, Kankurou went to bed at about three AM, got two and a half hours of sleep, and then went to school. So it wasn't a good schedule. So, no one could really blame Kankurou for wanting to catch a few winks in class, right?
Wrong.
You see, Kurenai did not know that Kankurou only got two and a half hours of sleep every day before going to school.
"Kankurou! Wake up!"
"zzzzz…"
"Right now!"
"zzzzzzzzz…"
"We have a test!"
"zzzzzzzzzzzzz…"
"If you don't take it, you'll fail!"
"zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz…"
"Kankurou, I'm handing out cookies, what kind do you want?"
"Chocolate chip," he said, lifting his head at once.
"Tough luck. Take the test." She smacked a piece of paper on his desk and walked away.
Kankurou looked down at the piece of paper with loathing. "I don't even know what the frickin' test is about," he muttered, reaching in his backpack for a pencil. "…Hell, I don't even have a pencil, so it doesn't even make a difference."
He sighed, leaning forward and tapping the girl in front of him on the shoulder. "Hey, can I borrow a pencil and any information you may have on this test?"
"Sure," she said, turning around and handing him a pencil. "It's kind of like spelling or whatever. You have to show the meaning of the words listed, and then put them in a proper sentence. It's pretty easy, but they're kind of hard words so I suggest you..."
Kankurou just starred at her as she explained the test to him in a hushed voice, so Kurenai couldn't hear her. Actually, Kankurou couldn't hear her either; he was busy in la-la land, starring at her. He'd always slept through this class, or been almost-half-awake, so he'd never really paid attention to the people around him. Now, he almost wished he had paid at least a little attention.
The girl in the seat in front of him had long, pretty black hair she pulled back out of her face with little blue clips that matched her eye-color, which was, obviously, blue. She wore a light blue, button-down shirt with the first three buttons undone, showing that she wore a white tank top underneath. She also wore a dark blue mini skirt with a flower stitched in white in the lower left-hand corner, and for shoes she wore strapped up black heels.
Now, normally, Kankurou didn't like girls who dressed "pretty-pretty", and always looked on them with slight distain, and avoided them. However, this girl's clothes didn't make him label her as one of those girls. But rather, he thought her choice of clothes just made her… well… pretty.
"…and that's how you do it, ok?" the girl finished, flashing him a quick smile.
Kankurou shook himself back into reality. "H-Huh? Um… right. Ok." He took the pencil she was still offering. He looked down at it. Pretty girl pencil… was all he could think of, looking at the little flower-shaped eraser stuck on the end, and the little, glittery stickers all over it.
"Kankurou! Are you gonna stare at that pencil, or use it?"
"Well, use it, duh," he answered, turning the test paper over so he could see the questions. Heaving a huge sigh, he poised his—er, her pencil over the first question, reading through. "…"
Ok, yeah, I wasn't paying one iota of attention to what she was saying.
After class, Kankurou turned his test paper in with the rest of the class. He'd managed to scrounge a respectable answer for each of the questions by looking off of other people's papers, but he knew he wouldn't get anything past a C, since there was stuff he figured he needed to study for to get the answer.
Damn those teachers, trying to bend students to their will.
Kankurou looked down at the pencil in his hand. He'd accidentally chewed on it sometime during the test, but he didn't think the girl would notice, as he shouldered his way through the crowd to where he saw the girl leaving with two of her friends.
"Um," he said, tapping her on the shoulder.
She turned around, face blank, until she saw it was him, then smiled. "Yes?"
He held out the pencil.
"Oh, you can keep it," she said, her smile brightening until he felt, or rather, couldn't feel, his knees anymore. "I have others."
"Um…" He looked down at the sparkles and flowers. "N-No, I really think you should take it back…"
One of the girl's friends laughed; Kankurou saw it was a boy, with shaggy, long brown hair. "Come on, Kyu, don't embarrass the guy with all your flowery, sparkly stuff."
She rolled her eyes. "Whatever, Hyo," she said, saying the word 'whatever' with supreme emphasis on the last syllable as she took the pencil away from Kankurou. She smiled at Kankurou, backing out with her friends. "I'll see you tomorrow, ok? Bye!"
Once she was gone, Kankurou grabbed one of the kids passing him and asked, "Are they going out?"
"Huh? Who?" the kid asked, slightly terrified of this strange kid who wore chains and spikes.
"Those two." Kankurou pointed with his free hand at Kyu and Hyo's retreating backs.
"Um… no… they've known each other since grade school, though… why?"
Kankurou ignored the question and dropped the kid, heading to the second floor. He had a druggie to meet in five minutes, but he wasn't only half-thinking about the little druggie, and half-thinking about the girl named Kyu, and the feeling of relief he'd gotten when the kid had told him that she and Hyo weren't going out.
"Hey! Birthday boy's brother!"
"Oh, shut up, Ukon, you know my name," Kankurou groaned, turning in time to be enveloped in a huge, shameless bear hug from the older twin.
"Yes, but 'birthday boy's brother' makes you so much more unique!" Ukon cried, hugging him again. "It's the differences in our world that make us so much brighter!"
"…Don't smoke before going to school, ok?"
(1st period-Government-Gaara)
Gaara slumped down on his desk as Genma put the drill up, leaning on his elbow. Like her really cared about the U.S legislative branch. Why would he need to know this stuff? They didn't live in America! Not that he would ever speak these thoughts aloud, but he felt as though what ever listened to his thoughts could use this information for what ever use they had for it. He copied down the drill anyway and waited to get the answer when they went over it. Genma walked around the class as they wrote their answers, stopping at his desk and leaning down.
"That's not an answer," he said, tapping his paper.
"I'm thinking," Gaara stammered out a lie, mentally hitting himself for not making it sound more convincing.
"Alright," Genma said, with a whatever grin. "Where were you on Friday?"
"Um…I was with Neji. He—"
"Oh, alright. I was just wondering," Genma said quickly, standing.
Gaara watched him go back to his desk and pull out a large envelope of papers. He came back and put the envelope on his desk.
"Do you have a computer at home?" Genma asked.
"My sister does," Gaara replied, looking at the envelope in question.
"Could you type this stuff out for me? It's only like 3 pages worth of stuff. The things I want are hand written the other stuff you don't have to worry about," Genma told him. "Don't let anyone see it though, it's got the results in it. I need it by Thursday."
"Alright," Gaara said, putting the envelope in his backpack. He happened to glance over at Kiba as he sat up again. The brown haired boy was giving him an obsessive look of desperation. He quickly looked away, pretending nothing happened. He was going to get it in gym.
(Dreaded 4th pd-Gym-Gaara etc)
"Lemme see it!"
"No! I'm not allowed to let anyone see it," Gaara stammered, terrified with his back to the wall.
"Please Gaara?" Kiba begged coming closer.
Gaara whimpered and inched to the side until he found himself stuck in the corner between the wall and the lockers. Glancing at his open locker, he grabbed his backpack and stuffed it inside, slamming it shut. Kiba stood back and folded his arms.
"Oh that's cold," he said.
Gaara bit his lip and looked down. "Sorry…but … Genma didn't w—want anyone to—to see it yet."
"Stop stammering and open it!" Kiba said frantically pointing at the locker.
"Kiba-kun!" Haku cried coming around the lockers.
"Haku!" Kiba cried, turning to him. "Gaara has the results for the soccer tryout and he wont show me!"
Long pause.
"So?" Haku asked.
"Haku!"
"You're scaring Gaara-chan!" Haku shouted.
Kiba started and turned to Gaara, who had slumped down to the floor shaking horribly. Haku walked past him to stand next to Gaara then turn back to Kiba, arms crossed giving him a pointed look.
"I'm sorry, Gaara!" he cried, kneeling down to his level. "I was just playing, I swear!"
Gaara made an unsure mumble and looked down at his knees.
"I was being an idiot! Really, I'm sorry," Kiba said. "Here, smack me. It'll make you feel better."
"W—what?" Gaara stared up at him.
"Right here," he said pointing at his cheek. "Smack me."
"I'm not gonna smack you!" Gaara stammered out.
"I'll do it!" Haku offered cheerfully.
"No," Kiba said glaring. "You're dangerous."
("Hey!")
"Come on!" Kiba encouraged. He took Gaara's hand and smacked himself with Gaara's hand harder then he intended. "Ow…"
Gaara pulled his hand away staring wide eyed at him. "I'm sorry!" he cried.
"Not your fault," Kiba groaned.
Haku threw his head back and laughed as Kiba rubbed his cheek. They helped Gaara back up to his feet and walked him out of the locker room where the squads were forming. Kiba turned to Gaara before they separated.
"But really…when is the list going to be up?" he asked.
"Thursday…or—or Friday," Gaara said.
"Ok, thanks."
Neji walked the three siblings back to their house. Temari and Kankurou walked ahead, using all their willpower to not look back at them. Neji looked at Gaara in concern and took his hand in his.
"Hey, did you get in trouble last Friday?" Neji asked, giving his hand a squeeze.
Gaara shook his head and closed his hands in Neji's as well. "No. Dad dropped us off then drove off. I was in Kankurou's room when he got home so nothing happened…"
Neji leaned over to him sideways and gave him the bored cow face. "Are you telling me the truth?" he inquired.
"Yes!" Gaara assured him.
"Alright," Neji said standing straight again. When they got to the house, Temari and Kankurou went in, but Neji held Gaara back a minute. "Hey, is your dad home?"
"Um,…no. Why?" Gaara asked, after checking the driveway.
"So I could do this," Neji said, leaning over and kissing his cheek. He smiled as Gaara's entire face erupted in blush. "Since you know, he said he's not all cool with us together."
"Um…uh…I—heh," Gaara stammered, blushing redder.
"What's wrong?" Neji asked, smiling to himself. Gaara tried to explain himself, but all that came out was more studdering. "You're not embarrassed are you?"
"Mnnnnn." Gaara smacked a hand over his face to hide his blushing.
Neji laughed and hugged him. "I'm sorry," he said, his shoulders shaking from laughing.
"It's ok," Gaara's muffled voice said.
"Are you upset?"
Gaara shook his head against him.
Neji smiled, brushing his red hair away. Gaara looked up, through his fingers, still blushing. Neji moved them away, smiling wider. They stared at each other, studying each other's faces.
"Oh, come on! Kiss each other already!"
Neji and Gaara broke away from each other, now both blushing, as Temari and Kankurou leaned out the window giggling to them selves. They pulled themselves back inside laughing. Neji turned back to Gaara, whose face matched his hair. Making sure they were gone, Neji reached out and lightly touched Gaara's cheek. Gaara looked up at him, still embarrassed. Neji grinned, his eyes laughing. The way Gaara liked it. Not like how they were last Friday. He thought they look much prettier when they were laughing.
"See ya, tomorrow," Neji said turning.
Gaara stopped him with a tiny tug of his sleeve, then stood up on his toes and kissed Neji's cheek. "Bye," he said quickly, running inside and shutting the door as quickly as he could.
Neji looked at the closed door then smiled and laughed, walking away. He touched his cheek where Gaara's lips had touched. He tried to stop smiling, but his face muscles were stuck. 'Oh, god. I feel like a preppy middle school girl…' he paused a moment, thinking about Gaara's blushing face. '….and I don't care! He was so cute!'
Neji went to school the next morning, in the happiest mood he'd been in in a long time. As he stopped at his locker to drop his stuff off, he felt someone lean against the lockers next to him. Turning, he groaned, seeing Kankurou there, and Ukon with the biggest grins on their faces. Neji swallowed hard and closed his locker, trying to walk away as fast as he could. Kankurou grabbed him and pulled him back.
"Dude, you kissed my brother," Kankurou said.
"And that of course gives him license to either a) kill you or b) mock you," Ukon said brightly.
"How'd he find out?" Neji asked.
"Um….yeah, he's been buying from me for a while, you know? We just sorta became friends," Kankurou said, shrugging.
"Is that what's always wrong with him?"
("Hey!")
"So anyways," Kankurou said. "We need to go over some ground rules."
"Rules?"
"Duh, rules to date my brother," Kankurou said, with a very fake grin.
"Uh, I'm suppose to meet Gaara near the art wing soon so—" Kankurou and Ukon picked Neji up and carried him away. "Oh shit…"
Gaara looked up when Neji sat down next to him later, looking very harassed.
"What's wrong?" Gaara asked.
"Nothing," Neji said, in a very false voice.
"Are you telling me the truth?" Gaara asked, grinning.
"Um….no. I just got away from your brother and Ukon," Neji said.
"Huh?"
"Nothing, it's ok, they just wanted to talk," Neji said putting his arm around Gaara.
"O…k…"
(1st period English 12-Kankurou)
Kankurou couldn't shake Ukon off after they 'talked' to Neji. Ukon had been very helpful in coming up with additives to the enormous list of rules Kankurou had made up the previous night and on the spot then. He almost felt sorry for the Hyuga. Ukon accompanied him inside his homeroom class, as well, talking his head off the entire time.
"…Ukon, what are you doing here?" Kurenai asked suspiciously.
"Why, hello, sensei, how are you on this fine day?" Ukon cried, hailing her.
"…I was fine."
"Good, good, very good! Keep up the good work!" Ukon gave her a double thumbs-up before turning back to Kankurou, who was about to pass out on his desk.
"Oh—my—god! Ukon-chan!"
Ukon whipped around, eyes sparkling. "Kyu-chan!"
Kankurou's head popped up at once as Kyu, clad in purple-colored clothes today, swept over to Ukon, and the two glomped each other.
"Oh my god, Kyu-chan," Ukon said, upon seeing the lolli-pop in Kyu's mouth. "How much do you love me?"
"Like a fat kid loves cake," she said with a bright smile, taking the candy out of her mouth and holding it out to him.
Kankurou grimaced slightly as Ukon took a lick. Seeing the look, Kyu held it out to him, as well. "Want some?"
"I'd rather chew my leg off then share saliva with that nutcase."
"I heart you, too, honey," Ukon said with a bright smile, taking another lick at the lolli pop, then Kyu popped the candy right back in her mouth.
Kyu's eyes widened. "Oh, my god," she said around the lolli pop. "Are you two…?"
"NO!" Kankurou said at once, his face draining of color.
"No, it's his brother who's gay," Ukon said, resting his elbow on Kyu's shoulder. Catching the look Kankurou shot him, he added quickly, "But that's ok!"
(5th period-Biology-Gaara)
Ibiki-sensei separated all the students into groups of two and sent them to their stations. They were dissecting frogs today. Gaara thought that was pretty disgusting. Why would anyone want to know what was inside a frog? He looked at his partner, as his partner glanced over at him. Well, Gaara couldn't quite tell if he really looked at him or not, since the boy was wearing sunglasses.
"Shino," the boy said.
"…Gaara," he replied.
"I know," Shino said shortly. There was a long, uncomfortable pause between them. Shino watched him from behind his glasses. "Why are you fidgeting like that?"
Gaara blushed and automatically brought his hands to his mouth where he chewed on his finger. In response to Shino's question, he simply gave a tiny shrug. "I—I don't…really k—know you…"
Shino nodded, then frowned as he looked down at their frog. He took the knife thing they were going to use and stabbed the frog through the neck.
Gaara jumped at this sudden motion and stared. The frog had been treated so no blood ran, but Shino continued grinding the knife in the creature's throat with malice. "You…don't like frogs?" Gaara ventured quietly.
"They all should die." (SNG: Bug-eaters, you know?)
"Shino-kun, you're suppose to dissect it, not kill it," Ibiki said, sweat dropping.
Grind-grind.
"Shino-kun if you don't stop, I'm not going to allow you to do the cutting part of this assignment," Ibiki said.
Grind-grind.
"Shino-kun stop now."
Shino stopped and gave the knife to Gaara. Ibiki, satisfied, turned and walked over to a group that needed help. Gaara looked down at the knife in his hand, eyes wide. The last time he held a knife….
Flashback
Gaara leaned against the sink, biting his lip as the sharp quick pain flashed, then it stopped. He let the knife drop to his right on bathroom floor while his bleeding arm fell to his left. He stared across the room at the bathroom wall. His right chest still hurt from where his father had smeared a thick lit candle there, letting the burning wax sit before ripping it, dry, off. What had he done again? ……dropped something…
His head tilted slowly to the side to stare at his arm, stained red with blood. Why did everything hurt so bad?
"Promise me you wont do anything like that again," Neji said, during a conversation before school. "I don't want you to go."
"No. I'm not mad …. just …. disappointed. Don't you ever do it again," Kankurou said.
End flashback
Gaara shook his head, absentmindedly reaching up with his left hand to touch his chest where the red scar was still visible from the hot wax. Then he looked down at his wrist. He wouldn't do it again, ever.
Shino read the directions aloud to him and Gaara cut open the frog like he told him, still thoroughly grossed out. Shino took notes on both their papers. Neither spoke, unless it was about the work, but neither minded, as neither were much talkers. The class was running smoothly, nothing bad happened. At least nothing bad happened until some of the other boys in class began chasing the girls around the room with frog eyes they'd cut out. One of them ran past Shino and Gaara table, bumping into the redhead as he was cutting out the heart to make Shino happy. His hand holding the knife slipped.
"Oh, my god, you're bleeding!" one of the girls cried.
"Ibiki-sensei!"
Gaara stared down at his wrist. The warm blood flowed out of the large cut quietly and deliberately down his arm and hand, dripping on the floor and table. He ignored the screaming people around him, snapping out of his trance as Ibiki ran over, wrapping a cloth around the cut quickly, tying it tight.
"Everyone calm down!" Ibiki roared, silencing them. "Stay put, I'll be back. Gaara come with me to the nurse."
Ibiki led Gaara downstairs, holding the cloth firmly on the cut. The nurse took him in and sat him down in a chair, making him hold his arm up in the air to limit the flow up blood going to his wrist. She cleaned around the cut then put antibiotics on it that made it hurt worse then it already did, but she pointed out that the knife had been used to cut a preserved frog and he'd get very sick if she didn't. She put gauze over the cut and wrapped it up tightly with white bandages. The nurse told Ibiki that Gaara was fine with her and that he should go back to his class. Ibiki nodded then turned, leaving Gaara alone with the nurse.
"Hi, it's Gaara, right?" the nurse said to him, smiling. "Well, Gaara-kun, you've never been down to see me, I'd like to make out a card for you to keep in my records ok?"
Gaara watched her warily, his arm still in the air where she told him to keep it. She smiled at him, then tilted her head slightly to the side and got up again, moving over to him.
"What's this?" she asked taking his arm he was still holding up and pulling it where she could see it better.
Gaara's eyes widened when he thought she had seen his cuts, but as he glanced at his arm he saw old bruises littering his arm, showing now that his sleeve was rolled up. Gaara tried to stammer out an explanation, but nothing but incoherent gibberish came out.
"Gaara-kun, is something wrong?" the nurse asked as he tried to tug his arm away from her.
"N—no."
"Where'd did you get these?" she listened for a moment as Gaara stammered again then asked another question. "Do you have more?"
"No!" Gaara cried, his brain jumping into gear as her hand moved near the hem of his shirt. "My-brother-and-I-were-wrestling-and-we-bumped-into-his-desk-and-his-books-fell-on-my-arm."
The nurse raised an eyebrow then forced her smile back on her face.
"Alright then," she said, turning back to her desk. "You and your brother should be more careful."
She rummaged in a drawer and pulled out a blank index card about the size of a normal piece of paper. She wrote down his name and why he was there in her office before turning to him for the rest.
"Ok then," she said smiling. "Birthday?"
Gaara answered all her questions with as short answers as he could. He hated doctors and hospitals always freaked him out, but the nurse seemed nice and he couldn't see any needles present in the room. When she asked him his height and weight he wasn't sure so she took him over to her scale and measurer. As she weighted him, she frowned.
"Gaara-kun," she said looking at him in concerned. "Do you have any eating problems that you know of?"
"N—no…why?"
"Because you're almost twenty pounds under weight," she replied, in a concern voice as she took that number down. "That's very unhealthy and it concerns me." She moved him over to the measurer on the wall and measured his height. She wrote that number down then brought him back to her office. "Everything else is normal…although you're a bit under height as well, but that doesn't concern me much. You being so under weight is a thing to be examined."
"Examined?" Gaara said, worried now.
"What lunch do you have?" she asked, folding her arms in front of her as she sat down behind her desk.
"D lunch."
"Did you eat anything?"
"My sister packed my lunch," Gaara said.
"What was in it?" she asked kindly.
Gaara thought for a moment. "A lunch meat sandwich with stuff on it, carrots, um…a bag of chips and cookies and we got drinks at the 7/11 on our way to school," he said.
"Did you eat it all?"
"Most of it," Gaara said. "I wasn't really hungry today though."
"I see," she said nodding, writing stuff down. "What about breakfast?"
"We don't eat breakfast," Gaara muttered. "We try to get out of the house as soon as poss—" Gaara cut himself off before he said to much.
"I see….what about dinner? Do you eat a lot at dinner or only a little?"
"Um…I eat dinner," Gaara said. Dinner at their house was a nervous thing though. At least, when they ate together as a family it was. Any other time, Temari would cook, or Kankurou would order out. But he always ate, even at least what he was allowed.
The nurse stood and walked over to him, taking his chin and examining him. He bit his lip and continued to watch her nervously, he hands shaking slightly. She reached up and touched the dark circles around his eyes. Not expecting the physical contact near his eyes, Gaara jumped back.
"Sorry," she apologized. "That isn't make-up, is it? Do you have sleeping problems?"
"Why are you being so nosy?" Gaara demanded, mimicking the tone Kankurou used a lot.
"I'm sorry, I'm just concerned," she said. "You're condition could be very serious, you know. I'm just trying to help."
"Well, don't. I'm fine," Gaara said, angrily. "Can I please go back to class now?"
"The bell already rang," she said. "One of your classmates dropped your things off while we were talking. I'll write you a pass to your next class."
Gaara went out and picked up his bag and waited for her to bring him the pass. She came out a few minutes later and handed him the blue pass.
"Listen," she said, placing a hand on his shoulder. "If you need to talk about anything, feel free to talk to me, or one of your teachers, alright? We're here to help."
Gaara nodded then left, closing the door gently behind him and went to his next class.
When he left the nurse went back to her desk and picked up his card, scanning it. After thinking a bit more, she picked up her phone and dialed.
Dragon man: (fotfl) funny mental picture! Side story for D-man:
Gaara glanced back at the limo for the 17th time, then back up at Neji.
"Um…is he gonna follow us the whole time?" Gaara asked quietly.
Neji sighed. "Unfortunately," he said as he glanced back at the long car driving slowly behind them. "Hiashi-ojisan wanted me to ride home, so I have to get in the car after I drop you off."
"Oh," Gaara replied.
They walked in semi silence until they reached Gaara's house. Neji smiled and hugged Gaara goodbye then watched as he started walking across the street, but stopped as his father came out. he tried to turn and walk quickly back to Neji, but to late as his father already spotted him.
"Gaara!" he shouted. "You're late! Get in the house!" He started walking out in the street to where Gaara was standing.
Neji grabbed Gaara and pulled him off the road, just as his father reached him. Unfortunately, George had forgotten to check the brakes on the limo before he left and couldn't stop in time as the Kazekage ran out in front of him.
Hanabi stuck her head out of the limo window and stared. "WHOA! Road pizza!"
Neji and Gaara turned towards the audience and smiled.
"And that children is why you must look both ways before crossing the road," Neji said, gesturing towards the car. "You never know when a car wont be able to stop."
The end.
Chronic-fever: I got that peace sign from this wannabe gangster freshman kid in my old gov't class. Its kind of a 'yo yo what's up' kind of peace sign. It's really sad. People tell me 'oh I love this chapter so and so was awesome' and then I'm like "….what happened in this chapter again….?" lol
KaibasShadowGirl: girl, the dots of inspiration are returning! I might do that, but I don't know when or if it's gonna be added onto the chapters I'm reposting. But I'm thinking about it