The Portrait I Paint
A/N Sorry for the long wait but I've finally managed to get this one out. I've redone a lot of the last chapter but the baseline of the story is the same. I've only added some more detail and changed a few of the characters' names to either match canon or just because I didn't like them.
Hope you enjoy ^^/
Chapter Two
Life at the Usami Estate
Usami Akihiko
The Usami residence is much larger than his grandfather's townhouse. That at least, is something Hibiki is glad for as it means there is more room to avoid his dear mother.
Hibiki's dislike for the woman is clear to all, so much so that even Tanaka makes sure to inform him whenever she's near. He held a tolerable relationship with her husband though as he found the man was a fan of the arts. He marveled at the wooden bear sculptures the man had in his office and was in the midst of carving an enlarged replica when his youngest brother, Akihiko approached him.
From Ren's memories, Hibiki remembers Akihiko was molested by his tutor. He remembers the messed-up adult the tiny boy in front of him will become and can't help but see Ren's shadow in the boy's blurred eyes.
The 10-year-old watched him curiously as he carved away at the large wooden block, marveling as he saw the block transform into a miniature bear sculpture.
"Do you like bears?" At Hibiki's question Akihiko nodded cautiously before showing his older brother the stuffed teddy bear, he had in his hands.
Hibiki couldn't help but feel amused at what Ren remembered as Akihiko's long-time obsession. He ruffled Akihiko's ash blonde locks and let a gentle chuckle emit from his throat. "You're kinda cute you know that."
A wide smile appeared on Akihiko's face at this and he grinned up at Hibiki. Hibiki smiled back at Akihiko and ruffled his hair once more before picking up a new block of wood. Two hours later Akihiko would be bouncing out of Fuyuhiko's office with a wooden teddy bear sculpture in the stead of his stuffed one.
Usami Haruhiko
The first time Hibiki interacted with Haruhiko was when he found the younger boy carrying the bear sculpture, he had given Akihiko.
Haruhiko would always try to take Akihiko's things away from him and Akihiko would never try to stop him.
"Haruhiko why do you have the sculpture I gave Akihiko?" The younger boy seemed to frown at Hibiki's question. He tried to ignore the older boy and walk away but Hibiki blocked his path and repeated his question.
"Akihiko gave it to me. You can ask him yourself." A frown marred Hibiki's pale features as Haruhiko lied to him. Ren had always hated liars and Hibiki was the same.
"Akihiko would never give away something he got as a gift. I've also noticed that many of Akihiko's other things always end up in your room. Can you care to tell me why that is?" Hibiki eyed Haruhiko as he paused for a moment and sighed as he saw the younger boy's clenched fists.
He softened his tone slightly before continuing, "If you want something you should just ask father or Tanaka. And you can just ask me if you want me to make you something."
Haruhiko was the son of Fuyuhiko's mistress while Akihiko was the son of Fuyuhiko's wife, a wealthy heiress. Though he is his father's firstborn as the illegitimate son Akihiko is seen as the next heir to the Usami 'Clan' while Haruhiko was seen as a backup plan who will be later married into the clan. His behavior is both out of the bitterness of having being seen as lower than his younger brother and envy of the freedom that younger brother gets.
He ruffled Haruhiko's hair comfortingly, causing the brunette to flinch in surprise. Hibiki doesn't stay to see Haruhiko's reaction and just tells the boy to return the sculpture before walking away.
Kamijou Hiroki
"Natsu nii." Hibiki turned his head at the familiar call of his youngest brother and is mildly surprised when he sees an unfamiliar boy standing beside Akihiko.
"Did you bring home a friend Akihiko?" Akihiko nodded while the boy bows and introduces himself as Kamijou Hiroko. Hibiki takes Hiroki's hand and shakes it. "Usami Natsuhiko. Akihiko's eldest brother."
Kamijou Hiroki, Akihiko's childhood friend, who would later fall in love with Akihiko and suffer a devastating heartbreak after sleeping with him in the stead of Takahiro. However, because of that, he meets Kusama Nowaki a man who loves him and in return, he falls in love with.
Hibiki is snapped out of his daze by Akihiko who is staring intensely at the canvas he was working on. "What are you painting this time Natsu nii?"
"The clouds." was Hibiki's simple answer as he pointed to the cloudless sky above them.
Both younger boys frowned at this and Hiroki bluntly said, "But there aren't even any clouds to paint! And also, you're using all the wrong colours as well!" He pointed accusingly to the red, green, violet, and golden tinted wisps painted onto the clear blue background. Hibiki chuckled at this while Akihiko nodded in agreement.
Still chuckling Hibiki placed down his paintbrush and asked the two boys, "Well gakis could Sandro Botticelli paint The Birth of Venus because he saw the actual birth of Venus? Did Picasso paint his portraits because he actually saw people like that?" when they didn't answer him Hibiki took this as a no and continued, "No, they used their imagination and creativity while looking at a simple base like I'm doing with this sky. The sky is a simple base while the clouds are my imagination and the extra colours are my extra piece of creativity."
A nostalgic smile appeared on Hibiki's lips as he was reminded of a similar conversation Ren had shared with the elderly painter and with that smile still on his face, Hibiki hung his arms around the two younger boys and pulled them down to the grass. "Imagine a huge field of clouds floating up in that sky, with the sunshine causing them to change into all sorts of different colours. Maybe there could even be a vending machine or a bicycle or a giant moldy shoe up on those clouds as well it doesn't matter! It's all up to your imagination and the endless thoughts of what-ifs that are floating around in your head."
"Then it's like writing a story…. right?" Akihiko asked.
"Yes exactly. Writing is just another way of expressing your imagination. Painters are just using paints and brushes to express themselves on canvases while authors are using their words and pens to express themselves on pieces of paper. Every canvas has a story painted onto it as does any book you find in your libraries."
Akihiko and Hiroki couldn't help but take the older boy's words into heart as they silently continued to listen to the excited rambling of the said male that lasted until Tanaka came out to collect them, scolding the eldest Usami for keeping the younger boys out so late.
Isaka Ryuuichiro & Asahina Kaoru
Hibiki met Isaka Ryuuichiro and Asahina Kaoru when the two younger boys were visiting Haruhiko a few months after his arrival at the Usami estate. It was an awkward meeting as Hibiki had tripped over his inkstone and was in the middle of changing clothes when the two walked into his studio. Well in a sense it was only awkward for them as Hibiki couldn't understand why people of the same sex were so embarrassed about showing their bodies to each other.
"You must be Haruhiko's friends. If you're looking for Haruhiko, he should be in the library studying."
Ryuuichiro seemed dumbstruck at Hibiki's capability to continue changing clothes in the current situation while Kaoru just looked impassively over at his 'master's' face. Ryuuichiro stayed frozen for about 3 minutes before snapping back into reality.
"Oi shouldn't you be all like get out or embarrassed or something?!" He shouted.
Isaka Ryuuichiro future director or Marukawa Publishing and the person who scouts Akihiko after coming across his talent as an author. Falls in love with his childhood friend Asahina Kaoru and later they become lovers.
Asahina Kaoru, a survivor of a family suicide, who was taken in by the Isaka family. He falls in love with Ryuuichiro shortly after and eventually becomes his lover and assistant.
Hibiki tilted his head in confusion. "Why? We're both guys so what's there to be angry or embarrassed about." He stated bluntly before turning back to the calligraphy he'd been working on, ignoring all of the rants the young master shouted at him. He didn't even notice when Haruhiko appeared and took the two away until he turned back and saw they were gone.
Ijuuin Kyo
Hibiki transferred schools just a few days after he moved up to his senior year. He first met the budding mangaka on the school roof. He looked as disheveled as a person his age could and was sprawled face-first onto the hard cement-based flooring.
Hibiki was about to leave when he hears a growling noise coming from the half-dead teen's stomach. Curiously, he opened the bento Tanaka had thrust into his hands in the morning and, shoved a chopstick full of rice into the near corpse's mouth. He watched half in aware as a pair of strong whites devoured the rice in seconds. Hibiki continued to shove more food into his mouth until finally opened his eyes.
The man seemed half dazed but soon recovered enough to give his thanks to the red-headed teen. It was only when they introduced themselves that Hibiki realized he had just met the author of Za Kan.
Ijuuin Kyo, future mangaka of the successful manga ZA KAN. Falls in love with Misaki after the boy helps him during his slumps. Confesses many times and gets interrupted by Akihiko each time but in the end, is properly turned down by Misaki and partly gives up.
While they are both in different classes Hibiki meets up with Kyo regularly and they go into a sort of routine during their last year of high school. Hibiki contemplates on whether to introduce Kyo to Akihiko but decides against it as he doesn't want to answer any questions Kyo has after learning just which Usami family he is from.