Chapter Two.
The next day after school I decide not to go home. I do not have money, so I cannot buy food or rent a room elsewhere. I want to go somewhere quiet and secluded, but I am in a city, and unfortunately there are fucking people everywhere. I settle with a place that is quiet, and I walk to the library.
A beautiful silence lingers when I enter. Barely anyone is there. I dart to the farthest table in the back of the library and drop my briefcase beside it. I sit, and then bury my face into my arms, ready to drift into nothingness.
I am successful for about three minutes. I suddenly hear a loud drumming on my table that seemed to be attempting to catch my attention and look up with a cantankerous glare. I see the carefree smiling face of a boy with mud-brown hair pulled back by orange headphones. Orange Headphones Boy's easygoing smile almost made me release all my worries and pains. Almost.
"Hi," he says with a lazy, cheery voice.
I shoot him a threatening glare. "Fuck off," I snarl quietly.
"Aw, don't be that way," he protests playfully. He is unaffected with my angry tone of voice.
That's a first.
"I saw you all alone here, and with your head in your arms like that, I almost thought you were crying," Orange Headphones Boy says. He brings his hand to his chin and closes his eyes as if he was in deep thought.
His voice held concern? Concern for me? That was quite a laugh. He must be trying to play some sort of prank. "But it seems you are not," he finishes.
"Go and die. I do not like company," I murmur.
Orange Headphones Boy pouts and takes a seat close to me anyway.
"You shouldn't be that way. You should be happy!"
I burst into a what-the-hell type laughter. He knows this is not a happy-ha-ha laughter and frowns in bemusement.
"What's so funny?"
My laughter abruptly stops and I glower at him. He blinks. "I do not know the meaning of the word happy," I snap sharply. "I have never been 'happy.' Now go away before I dismember you."
"Everyone deserves to be happy..." the boy responds with a sad smile. Irritated, I ball my hand into a fist and throw it towards his face. To my astonishment, he dodges it as he turns his head. "Must we involve violence?" Orange Headphones Boy continues in his leisurely voice with that fucking stupid smile still pasted to his face. Fuck. I wish he would die in the most slow and painful way possible right now.
I try to hit a second time, with my other fist.
I miss.
Damn. He is pissing me off.
I would love to knock the teeth out of his million-dollar smile, but chances are he would dodge again, and I am not one to waste time.
I stand up, aggravated, and pick up my briefcase, ready to stomp off.
Orange Headphones Boy shocks me for the third time in eleven minutes.
"Wait," he says as he gently grabs my thin wrist.
What the hell?
Why was he so persistent to be with me?
"Please tell me what's wrong. I want to help you. Do you want to talk?"
I do not look at him. I did not want to talk about anything. I wanted to keep everything to myself, and I wanted him to die. I wanted to die.
"I might be wrong, but you strike me as a sad and angry person... I want to understand," Orange Headphones Boy says softly and affably. "Happiness is a necessity of life. It will make you feel better. I want to help you feel better."
This boy... He was different.
"Just go away," I grumble halfheartedly, still avoiding eye contact. Truthfully, I wanted more than anything to tell someone about all my troubles, to complain about everything, to put the weight of it all on them instead of me. Apparently this was leaking into my voice. However, I had my pride, and I was not admitting defeat to his pleading so easily.
...Yet my eyes meekly wander to his face.
Orange Headphones Boy smiles brightly, and lets go of my wrist.
"My name is Yoh. Asakura Yoh."
"That's a stupid name. Who would name their kid 'leaf?'"
Orange Hea- Yoh- laughs.
His laugh is so easygoing and joyful that I was close to feeling relaxed.
But I refused too. Or at least, my pride did.
"What is your name?" Yoh inquires.
I look down again. I do not answer.
A long, awkward silence passes, the seconds slowly dripping off the minutes.
"Well, whatever-your-name, something tells me you don't want to go home."
I remain silent.
"You can stay over at my house, if you like."
This time, my eyes automatically shoot towards him.
"Have you no decency?" I snap.
Truthfully, I would have loved to stay at some place other than my own home. Nevertheless, I was not so stupid as to sleep over at the house of a stranger who could dodge my punches.
Yoh laughs again.
"There are a lot of people there," he assures with a warm smile. "Three girls, four boys, my grandpa and grandma..."
"I hate loud crowded places."
"My house used to be an inn. It's enormous! There's probably a corner of the house that is so far from the other parts of the house that it is absolutely silent."
"I hate people." I remember my abhorrence and glare at him. "I hate you."
He smiles.
He knows I did not mean it.
He knows I did not hate him.
How the hell did he know?
"Listen..." Yoh says tentatively. "A sorrow shared is a sorrow halved. I think you're holding a lot of hurt in you, miss, and I'll be happy to talk to you about it at any time." Confidence is stirring into his voice. "You may not think I'll be able to understand, but I'm sure I will. Trust me." Yoh smiles again.
I feel tears burning at the back of my eyes. I try unsuccessfully to blink them away, and one forces its way out of my right eye and rolls down my cheek.
I was supposed to feel humiliated.
I was supposed to feel hatred.
I was supposed to feel violence.
But with Yoh there... I did not.
A/N: I love you people, you wonderful reviewers. You are all simply radtastic.
Anyhow, it's another somewhat long chapter (compared to other fanfics). I also just realized Anna barely uses contractions in the fic so far. I wonder if anyone I know can go twenty-four hours without using contractions in any way. Huh. I should try.
...Once more, thank you muchly, please review for my fanfic and Forgotten Child; all that and things. Suggestions, critique, comments, etc. all welcome and greatly appreciated.