Author's Note: Hello, friends. I am back with a new chapter. Enjoy!
Chapter Five
It was another sleepless night for Gaara. This time, he had trouble falling asleep. He distracted himself by reading a novel until he got bored and surfing the internet until the bright screen tired his eyes. It was a good thing that it was four a.m. on a Saturday. His father, his brother and him had plans for dinner along with their sister. His older sister, Temari, planned to come to Tokyo for a day only to have dinner with them. It was odd for her to do so since he was aware that she despised being near their father. He remembered how glad and relieved she was when she was accepted at a nice private university in Osaka. She was relieved, because she could finally be away from them. She rarely came to visit—not even for holidays.
Gaara walked out of his room and down to the front door. He put on his shoes and decided to walk around the neighborhood to clear his mind.
There was something about the world when it is close to dawn; the stars seemed to be bolder, because almost everyone was asleep, the wind whispered on his ears secrets in its own language ever so softly, and the sound of crickets filled the air.
Walking alone during dusk always made him reflect on his past behavior. He got into a lot of fights—almost killing twelve people—before he even graduated junior high school. He was out of control, everyone feared him. He used to enjoy seeing the fear vividly written on everybody's faces whenever he was around. He liked the feeling of him being more powerful and fearful than they all were.
He fixed his behavior after he graduated junior high school. One day, he woke up and wanted to change. He didn't like the idea of being feared and avoided anymore. He stayed away from trouble and managed to calm his anger towards the world. So far, he'd done a pretty good job.
He tried to open up to people, but he didn't talk much to others. He found it rather difficult, because he had built a wall around him ever since he was young, never letting anyone in. Neither did he love anyone nor believed in anyone but himself. He never let his guard down, and was always angry and full of hatred. He hated his family, he hated everyone around him, and he hated the fact that he killed his mother. Until today, he still believed that he killed her, but his hatred for everyone had lessened.
He looked up into the sky, and stopped walking. The stars were scattered across the dark blue sky, shining so bright above him. For the first time in his life, he felt so peaceful and his chest didn't ache as much as it usually does. His mind lingered to Hinata, the sweet girl who had become his very first friend. He tried hard not to think about her, but the bright stars reminded him so much of her eyes that he couldn't help but to do so.
When he first talked to Hinata, he thought she was afraid of him. She seemed startled and nervous, but then she smiled. Her smile was so sweet and it reached her gentle eyes. He had always thought that that kind of smile and those pair of eyes never really existed until he saw her possess them. Later he learned that she was painfully shy towards people and was scared of them, but she told him she wasn't afraid of him. She stayed, wanting to be his friend.
He smiled to himself.
She was his first friend.
Gaara didn't complain about dressing up for dinner, because his sister had come all the way from Osaka just to meet them and have dinner together as a family. She looked pretty in her navy blue dress with a lovely necklace adorning her neck. Her blonde hair was tied neatly in a bun, and her face was covered with light make up to compliment the look. He did his best to smile at her. That was the least thing he could do to her since she arrived a few hours ago. She was taken aback and amused when he smiled at her.
"I'm surprised to see you smile, Gaara," she said with a smirk. "You've changed quite a lot, I see. Are you keeping yourself out of trouble?"
He replied with a flat yes, looking straight at her in the eyes with his cold ones.
"Do you have a girlfriend?" she asked all of a sudden with full interest.
His face remained straight. He knew that she was doing that just to tease him. She wanted to see how he would react.
"What?"
She chuckled heartily and turned to Kankuro. "Hey, Kankuro, does Gaara have a girlfriend?" she asked.
Kankuro seemed surprised. "I didn't know!" He turned to his younger brother and laughed. "No wonder he's been good lately!"
"She asked you a question, Kankuro. It wasn't a statement." Gaara said monotonously, still not showing any expressions on his face. He shifted his gaze on his sister. "And no, I don't have a girlfriend."
"Relax, I was just teasing you." She said.
He didn't say anything as he silently munched on his food. He didn't mind her being annoying. At least it was better than how she would act when their father was around. She became bitter and would usually start an argument with their father.
Temari's expressions immediately changed when their father returned from the restroom.
"How's university, Temari?"
"Fine." She answered.
"Classes?"
"Fine."
"Professors?"
"Boring."
Their father's expression turned sour and he pursed his lips tightly together. "Must you always answer your father like that, Temari?"
Gaara wished he could get out of there. He was mad at Temari for being so bitter and he was mad at his father for getting annoyed so quickly. He needed to get out of there.
Gaara was with his siblings in the living room after dinner. It was past midnight, and they felt tired, but they still wanted to talk. Temari would go back to Osaka first thing in the morning.
Kankuro miserably searched through channels for something to watch on the television—a late night horror movie was something he was hoping for.
Temari looked at her youngest brother as she sipped on her wine. He was silent as ever, but his eyes no longer showed his fearsome nature and dangerous personality. Yet, they were still cold and piercing.
She hated to admit it, but she missed both him and Kankuro. Sure, they were somewhat distant from one another, but she enjoyed their company. She enjoyed their company more than she enjoyed the company of her friends.
"What are you thinking about?" she asked Gaara.
"Nothing important," he answered without looking at her.
"Is it a girl?"
He didn't say anything.
"So it is a gi—"
"Shut up." He said. "It's not a girl."
She scoffed a laugh before sipping her wine. "Isn't there at least a girl you talk to in class? Do you even have friends?"
He didn't say anything for a moment. The corners of her lips widened into a smug smile.
He looked up and fixed his sharp gaze on hers. "I don't have friends."
"You poor thing." She laughed. "I doubt there is a single person there who's brave enough to come and talk to you."
She felt his anger and annoyance. She was slightly afraid that he would jump on her and strangle her until she turns pale, but that was impossible since he had become soft.
She put her glass on the coffee table and stood up from the sofa, carrying her purse.
"I'm going to rest for a bit now, Gaara, Kankuro." She said, looking at both of her younger brothers. "I have a train to catch in the morning."