Nightmare Melodies

by: Zemia

Disclaimer: Nobody in the Gravitation universe belongs to me. I claim no kinship whatsoever and sing Maki Murakami's praises. The only thing I'm getting out of writing these is sick sadistic pleasure out of making the character's lives even more difficult.

Chapter Three – Song of Pain

The car pulled up to the curb in front of the school. Suguru's father, having been forced to 'make sure he goes' by his wife, turned to his son with a sigh. "Suguru, I know that she's being hard on you, but she really is just looking out or your well—"

"NO SHE DOESN"T! SHE'S LOOKING OUT FOR HER FUTURE MONEYMAKER! SO SHE CAN SIT ON HER ASS AND---"
Mr. Fujisaki frowned, raising his voice just a bit. "Suguru!"

Suguru calmed down immediately. It wasn't often that his father was the one to raise his voice. "Sorry." It was another thing that stood his parents apart. He could actually speak with his father, without having to call him 'father' all of the time.

"I know. But you have to go to school. They wouldn't hold your mother responsible. They'd hold ME responsible as I'm … well… legally… the head of household." His tone held a great deal of humor over the fact that his wife ruled the house with an iron fist.

Suguru, however, was no where near happy, let alone amused, by the fact that his father let his mother walk all over him. He turned away to stare at the school. Sighing, his father continued, "You don't want to see me taken away and go to jail because of your defiance, do you?"

"No, dad." Suguru pulled his backpack to him and opened the door. "See you at two…"

"I love you, Suguru. Always remember that. Okay?" his father tried, though he didn't expect much of a response to his quiet son.

Biting his lip, Suguru muttered, "Love you too, dad." Closing the door, shutting that part of his life out, he turned and disappeared into the building.

With another sigh, Mr. Fujisaki drove home to have another talk with his wife. As usual, it probably wouldn't do much good, but he had to try. Or they were going to lose their son.

------

"I bet he dyes it. That is just not a normal hair color…"

"What eleven year old dyes their hair green!? Do you think he does down there too?'

"Hnn good idea, let's find out." One of the boys called out to Suguru, "HEY WEEDHEAD! We wanna ask you something!!!"

Suguru ignored them as he stalked towards the cafeteria. He was used to the kids picking on his hair, or his eyes, or both. He'd been accused of being conceived on Christmas a couple of times when his parents had had a weeee bit too much candy cane eggnog.

"HEY! I'm talking to you! How dare you ignore me!?" The kid ran up to Suguru and pushed his shoulder roughly to get him to turn around.

That was all it took. Suguru whirled around and swung his pack towards the older boy. Connecting, he watched in horror as the kid stumbled back, holding an eye that was already bruising. Stepping back a pace, he turned and ran as everyone laughed at the older kid for being clocked by the little freak.

Running into one of the bathrooms on the higher floors, where the younger grades couldn't go, Suguru leaned against the wall to catch his breath. When he did, his temper exploded and only the sound of glass hitting the tiles of the floor made him aware that he'd broken one of the mirrors. Great. Add damage to school property to the list of crimes, as well as aggravated assault.

Staring at the glass, he slowly bent down and picked up a large piece with a sharp jagged tip. Moving to one of the intact mirrors as if in a daze, Suguru pulled his shirt away from his shoulder. Wine-colored eyes focused on the pale skin just before the tip bit into his flesh, immediately staining both crimson, and dragged down towards the main part of his chest.

Seeing, and not seeing, his own handiwork, Suguru immediately brought the glass to his left arm, slashing the back of it. If he'd done the other side, he could've bled to death. Dropping the glass shard, his fingers worked into the wounds before coming up to rest their bloody tips on the mirror.

He started drawing neat little note symbols, complete with their tails. These notes would eventually become part of the bridge that connected two segments of one of the Nightmare Melodies. The one that scared him the most. The one that called strongest to him. Pain.

TBC