Shizuka-naTenchi: all your questioned will be answered in the futre chaps. I really want to answer them but it would spoil everything :)
ice73: thanx for pointing out that mistake. I'll have to go fix it soon and perhaps re-read wheat I write before I update, lol!
Chapter Three: So LongThe rest of the weekend passed slowly. Hikari had lost all phone and computer privileges for not just the weekend, but also the entire week to come. She was relieved when Monday morning rolled around. Even though it meant she had to suffer through seven hours of teachers from hell, it also meant contact with the outside world.
She arrived early for school, half an hour to be exact. Her early arrival surprised her homeroom teacher, who nearly jumped out of her skin when she entered the classroom. "This is certainly a surprise." Miss Watase said, holding a hand over her racing heart. "Or perhaps I am just dreaming…" she added quietly.
"Nope. I remembered to set my clock last night." Hikari answered as she flipped through the magazine she was reading. It wasn't long until other students began to arrive. Like their teacher, most students arriving were surprised to see Hikari early. She had gained a reputation for being late for class or showing up just seconds before the bell.
Anzu blinked a few times. Was she seeing things? "Has hell frozen over?" she looked at the clock and scratched her head, still confused. She made her way over to her friend, questioning her sanity. She poked Hikari in the arm a few times. She had to make sure her friend was really there.
"What the hell Anzu?" Hikari asked, raising a bow.
"Wow…you're actually here! Weird…" Anzu sat down in her seat, eyes wide in shock and amazement. "So-why-how-?" she struggled to speak, her thoughts jumbled.
"I'm grounded." Hikari answered, still flipping through her magazine. "I left early to avoid getting stuck with the kids and to avoid my mom."
"Ah….I see…" Anzu replied, still in a bit of shock.
When the last bell of the day rang, crowds of students eagerly made their way out of the their classrooms. Hikari wasn't one of them. What did she have to look forward to? A night of me in my room…alone… she answered herself.
"Hikari!" Aki's voice rang out over the sounds of conversing students. Both Hikari and Anzu looked over their shoulders to see Aki run up to them. He wrapped his arm playfully around Hikari's shoulders, causing her to blush slightly. "So what's the damage?" he asked.
"No phone, no computer, and no hanging out for a week."
"Wow, that's a little harsh…especially for not calling home." Hikari suppressed a laugh and tried to hide the grin tugging at her lips.
"Well, it's mostly because of how I acted yesterday. I said some things I shouldn't have said." She added, twiddling her thumbs.
"Like what?" Anzu inquired.
"Well I told Seiya he could go to hell and kiss my…fucking ass."
"Wow…" was all Aki could manage. "Isn't he your dad?"
"Step-father." Hikari corrected.
The moment Hikari arrived home, she went straight upstairs to her bedroom. She kicked a pile of clothes towards her closed door as she made her way over to the stereo on top of her dresser. She turned the volume up loud enough to drown out everything but her thoughts.
She collapsed onto her half made bed. She closed her eyes and let her body relax. The angry music coming from the radio seemed to ease her raging mind. It didn't take long for the music to ease her into a peaceful, deep sleep.
About two hours later, the blissful sleep came to a screeching halt. Her mother pounded her fist on Hikari's bedroom door. "Hikari!" she yelled. Her eyes shot open and her body jolted upright. She wiped her head around and looked at her clock. She bit her lip and groaned. Shit…
The door opened only half way; the piles of dirty clothes prevent Hitomi from opening it fully. "Hikari!" she yelled, fire burning in her eyes. "Downstairs now!" she ordered and pointed with her index finger to the stairs. Hikari stood up sluggishly and hung her head low. She had a relatively good idea of what she was about to hear.
She descended the stairs slowly. She wasn't exactly in a rush to be scolded and yelled at. She lifted her head as she reached the main floor. Great, she thought, he's here too. She shot Seiya a sour look and walked passed him to the living room. Hitomi inhaled deeply to calm herself before she would begin her talk with her daughter. Seiya placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. She looked up at him before entering the small living room.
Hikari sat slouched back on the black leather loveseat. Her eyes remained low as she waited for the yell-fest to begin. "Hikari, why didn't you pick up Taiki and Ayumi?" Her mother began, trying to remain calm. Hikari shrugged, avoiding eye contact. "Do you have any idea how worried I was? I come home from work and the house is empty!"
"Why can't your wonderful husband pick up HIS kids, huh!" Hikari retaliated. "They're not mine! They're his! Why do I have to be responsible for them all the time? I'm sixteen years old!" She jumped to her feet, raging pulsing through her veins. "I can't hang out with my friends whenever I want cause I have to watch my siblings! I'm missing out on so much! You guys never consider how I feel!" She glared in Seiya's direction. "Especially you." She added.
"Hikari-" Her mother began but was cut off abruptly.
"I don't care what you have to say! I'm outta here!" With that said, Hikari stormed out of the house. From there she ran, not thinking about where she was going. She had to get away from it all. She did regret not grabbing a change of clothes as she was still dressed in her school uniform.
She ran for a good ten minutes. It shocked her that she was able to go for so long. Her legs finally gave way as she reached a small park. She fell to her knees and gasped for air. A sharp pain ran up her back and through her shoulders. She bit her lips to stop herself from crying out in pain.
"Hikari?" a familiar voice spoke. She turned her head and wiped her cheeks with the back of her hand, just in case a few tears had managed to fall from her eyes. "What happened?" Anzu asked and rushed to her friend's side. She placed a gentle hand on Hikari's back for comfort.
Hikari took a deep breath and sat down on the lush green grass. "I had a fight with my parents again." She answered, staring at the ground before her. "I couldn't take it…I just…I…" she let out a frustrated sigh and pulled at her hair.
"It's okay," Anzu assured. "But shouldn't you be home?"
"I'm not going back!" Hikari snapped back quickly. "Not until they realizes that I have a life too! My schedule doesn't revolve around taking care their kids." She squinted her eyes as the pain in her back returned.
"Hikari…" Anzu began, unsure of what to say. She couldn't relate to her friend as much as she wished she could. She grew up with an older brother who she rarely saw. But times have changed, she told herself. "Maybe you should try talking to your parents rationally."
"No." Hikari said quickly. "I've had enough of Seiya. I hated it when he started to date my mom. I wish she never met him! Things were fine. Life was great." She leaned back and stared up at the sky. The sun shone through the cluster of clouds as it slowly moved across the sky. Hikari sighed and laid back completely. "All I really want is to know who my dad is…my real dad. My mom never talks about him. She never even told me his name. I only know he had black hair."
Anzu raised a brow. "How do you know that? You just said your mom never talked about him." Hikari let out a small chuckle.
"My mom have brownish hair and I have black. It's not rocket science." She found herself still giggling at her friend's comment. "But I want to know more. I want to actually meet him so I can ask why he didn't stick around when my mom was pregnant. I mean the nerve! She was only sixteen years old! She was our age." She rose to her feet, anger and rage beginning to surge through her veins yet again. "If he was as great as my mom said he was, then why did he leave her?" She clenched his fists into balls in an attempt to calm her rage.
Anzu stood up with a worried look on her face. She wanted to help her friend more than anything. "Hikari, I wish I had the answers, I really do. You're my best friend…you-" she stopped speaking as a faint pink glow began to emit from her friend's necklace. "Umm…. Hikari…. your necklace…." She said pointing at the pink pendant.
Hikari looked down and held the gem in her fingertips. "What the…" moments later a bright column of light surrounded her. She squinted her eyes and tried to move but as she soon realized, her body became paralyzed.
"Hikari!" her friend yelled. She shielded her eyes from the intense light. When it had faded she looked to where her friend once stood. Nothing was left. Her friend was gone. "Hikari…" her voice managed to utter.
A/N: Sorry it took long. I was having a bit of a writer's block. Well, I knew what I wanted; I just couldn't get it into words! lol! Well, hope you're enjoying this fic so far. I'm really excited about writing the next few chapters.
Reviews are always welcome :D