Hey babes:p Thanks for the feedback-even if you didn't review;D

In Japan, I think the High School students don't usually change courses/classes throughout the day. The homeroom you're in is the one you stay in until the end of the day, if I remember correctly. So I'll make this an Americanized high school where everyone has different classes, schedules, etc (please correct me if I'm wrong; I read that in a Japanese Manga so I'm clueless teehee:p).

Or you can just forget anything I said and continue with the story:p

Chirashi-Zushi - a 'type of sushi', made in Japan, that consists of sushi rice(coated with vinegar), raw tuna and dried seaweed.

Disclaimer: I don't own, so bleh

Cherry Blossom, Think of Me

Chapter 2 – Smile Like You Mean It

That was then. This is now.

About two years had passed since then; life had gone on and the world had gotten a bit more bearable. There was a time where everything Nakoruru Kokiri ever stood for was turned upside down. But that raging, ongoing war inside of her petite frame was at a poignant standstill; there were more soldiers fighting to protect her walls of grace. At least, for now.

Aged with despair; she was a much wiser person now. The bright rays of the sun shone down on her as the slight, natural undertones of miniature burgundy strands that were barely visible became a bit more vivid. Dark hair shorter than before, the violet-eyed rebel was back with avengeance. Pale skin slightly tanned, she only had the anticipation of sweet, pungent victory on her mind. The sound of school bells ringing did nothing but push the loner out of her ruthless stupor and into gratifying awareness as she strode past the people whose cruel, needless torment was long ago thrust aside for more crucial and cynical things. Checking to make sure her navy blue vest and white blouse were securely buttoned, Nakoruru vowed to make them all pay dearly by coming to peace with the core of her own essence; her unsteady heart.

Those who had once highly disregarded the pitiable young woman's existence were essentially nodding their heads in approval of her stylishly modified and pressed uniform that proved she was ready for business. Watching her tread in bright red shoes with swan-like grace, the students noticed that there was an air of liveliness that encircled the enlightened outcast. Each step emitted from her elongated, poised legs that were covered in white socks decorated with a red band around the top that skimmed passed the middle of her thighs were those of confidence and recovery; hanging out with the ever cheerful Momiji Sohma had changed her.

Arriving at her condemned destination, the girl forced her head to be held high as she gazed with bitter hate at her secondary prison; the one enigma that represented her restrained feelings of numbness, hate, anguish, and, ironically, redemption. Taking a step in the direction of emancipation, she knew these walls of courage wouldn't last. Little by little, they would crumble to dust, just like everything else that was once solid in her dreary living had. There would be no one to pick up the tiny, sharp remains that had once unbound her from the transitory gates that swiftly devoured her; a place she resentfully called home. Misery desperately craved a company it would never receive.

Sitting in a room with thick, tall walls, her bleeding insides were placed on display for everyone to see.

Tying her sleek black hair into a ponytail, and wiping the front of her navy skirt while straightening her crisp red tie, the teen walked through the doors of Kaibara High that led to her escape and liberation with one goal in mind.

'I will not let you win. I hate to lose.'

"So is that a yes? Momiji will be excited to see you - ah, and you can get helpful tips from my devoted cousin Shigure; you've probably read some of his brilliant works. I'm sure he wouldn't mind taking you in as his apprentice. You are studying to become a student teacher, am I correct?" Coughing to cover the obvious lies that he was required to make concerning his lazy cousin who barely even wrote anymore, the silver-haired teen awaited an answer from the raven that seemed a bit torn in what to choose. He would not let her leave the empty halls of the building until she submitted to his will; he determined that he deserved it after being forced to spew such horrible, putrid deceit regarding that unnaturally perverse man who aggravated him to no end.

"Um…okay. I'll come over next weekend and make Chirashi-Zushi for you but I really don't want to be any trouble. Thank you for inviting me, Yuki-kun." Nakoruru politely bowed to the handsome prince as she hid her rosy cheeks from view in fear of being teased in jest. The smirk that graced the silver-haired beauty's face widened into a full-blown grin as he tried not to laugh at how adorably trusting she was. It was obvious that she would do just about anything with the simple mention of Momiji's name. From what Nakoruru had told him in complete confidence, he had saved her once. Not feeling sorry for tricking her into coming in the least with the sorry excuse of wanting to taste the sushi that he heard was her specialty, the student body president chuckled to no one in particular as everything was coming into place. Smiling, he ruffled her lustrous locks in amusement as he gave her careful directions to the Sohma residence.

Waving goodbye to the schoolgirl who sprinted at a hurried pace towards the opposite direction, he couldn't help but rub his temple at how troublesome young 'love' was.

Momiji would be pleased to hear that Nakoruru would be coming over for dinner; he was the originator of this plan to get Nakoruru and Haru together after all. Her cute, borderline fascinating crush on their bipolar cousin hadn't gone unnoticed. All the nervous glances and timid smiles thrown his way were caught by both Momiji and Yuki, who decided to take matters into their own hands after frustratingly seeing that Haru was completely oblivious to the shy girl's form of affection. Apparently, she had been harboring these feelings for quite some time. They mutually agreed that Nakoruru was a genuinely better-suited person to make Haru happy, especially after the painful incident with Rin. Haru had always put everyone before himself, so now it was time for them to return the favor.

His cousin deserved that much, if not more. They both did.

But as they parted ways, and distance had passed between them, the feeling of grief reluctantly washed over him. It'd be a pain if she were to find out about their curse. Haru would be heartbroken again while Yuki was the one left to pick up the pieces.

But if it meant that Haru would finally be in high spirits, wasn't it worth the risk even if it was only for a split second?

Besides, he felt particularly close to the kind outsider, for reasons unknown to himself. Deep down, he knew that she was trustworthy; she was too similar to Honda-san to not be. But he'd hate himself more if something were to happen to her on his egotistical behalf.

Maybe it was solely based on the fact that she was alone, like him?

Tucking his dainty, seemingly polluted hands into navy pockets, he walked to his student council meeting in overall mourning that the sweet, untainted girl was unfortunate enough to meet them.

Little did he know, a related distressing thought ran through Nakoruru's barren veins at that exact moment.

"I've had enough, Kuragi-san! At first I tried to tolerate your aggressive behavior, but this is too much! After you clean this mess up, I'll see you in detention," Lowering her head, the coffee-haired teen crushed the presently emptied box of chalk as tiny pieces of white fell to the ground. She tucked the bangs out of her eyes as she bowed in admission of guilt, not wanting to go through the trouble of explaining her dilemma to the teacher. Wiping the trace of powder from her petite hands, she came to the distressing conclusion that no one ever understood her anyway.

"Wait, it's not her fault!" Snapping her head up, Machi watched the mysterious girl who abruptly stood from her seat and promptly ran towards the teacher, reflexively knocking her chair to the floor. Not being able to grasp the absolute eeriness of the situation, she covered her mouth in awe as the foreigner slid her arm across their sensei's desk, who, at the moment, was too stunned to speak. Trying to form words, the flabbergasted professor did nothing but stare in hysteria as stacks of papers were feebly thrown to the ground for no reason whatsoever. To add insult to injury, the deranged student stomped heavily on the No.2 pencils that lay on the ground, turning them into fractured bits of wood. Fuming with astonishment at the unruly audacity of children, the instructor came to the conclusion that she would not stand for this.

"H-how dare you! That's it! Kuragi-san, Kokiri-san, detention now."

"Ready, Chi-chan?" Locking arms with her, Nakoruru genuinely smiled at the blushing brunette whose dark eyes continued to deceive her as the puzzling girl practically skipped out of the classroom and into their debatable imprisonment, but not before bowing respectfully to their bewildered educator. Ignoring the looks of disgust sent their way as Nakoruru uncharacteristically giggled in delight; she continued to lead them towards their path to destruction. Shaking her head, the teacher marveled at the contradictive actions of wearisome students.

'Teenagers these days.'

Sitting on the windowsill of the classroom, Nakoruru despairingly eyed Machi for the fifth time, who seemed at a bit of a crossroad as to where she should take a seat. Nodding her head in the direction of the desk to the right, Machi tried to organize her reserved, frantic thoughts into a sentence as she sat down obediently. Nakoruru patiently waited for the withdrawn girl to voice her reasonable questions.

"Why-"

"I know what you're going through, only it's opposite for me I guess. My…my father…Because he thinks I'm useless, I have this uncontrollable urge to prove him wrong by being the best in everything I do." Crossing her arms, Nakoruru leaned against the window as she tried to gather the courage to speak.

"I just have to…It's never good enough for him but still, hiding deep down in the bottom of my hollow heart is that…" Finding it difficult to speak with the large lump in the back of her throat, she let her sentence fade into a whisper as she wiped her purple eyes that were on the brim of tears. Being careful not to fall as she slid forward a bit, she leaned her forehead on the cool glass of the window, thus signaling that any type of dialogue on her part was over. Not expecting the aloof girl to say anything, she closed her drained eyes in defeat; another person she needed to add to the list of people she had failed.

"…That thing in the back of your mind that tells you to try even harder to please them even when the only thing you'll be able to look forward to in the end is shattered, unrequited love? Yes, I know that feeling very well." Pale lids snapped open as Nakoruru looked incredulously at the girl whose clenched fists were held at her sides as she hung her head in shame. Tears began to fall as Machi's body gave in to her fear of rejection. Jumping from her current position on the windowpane, Nakoruru ran towards the brunette and pulled her into a tight embrace.

"G-get off of me! I did just fine without them, so I'll do just fine without you! You're one of them I swear you are…" The only thing running through Machi's mind was sheer humiliation as she defensively fought the warm, inviting arms that made her tremble. Knocking desks over, Machi kept fighting the outcast who was desperately trying to console her.

No, she didn't want Nakoruru's empty, artificial comfort. Tightening her hold, Nakoruru forced the broken child's head onto her shoulder as she tip-toed to keep the taller woman from falling over. She continued to hold her even as the struggling lessened; she knew how it felt to be alone. It was encoded into her blood.

"I'll protect you, Chi-chan. I promise you I will," Gently sliding to the floor, Nakoruru rubbed her back in small, reassuring circles. She buried her face in brown hair as she ensued in soothing the lost stranger.

Sitting on the cool tiles in the middle of the classroom, Nakoruru didn't mind as Machi desperately clung to her shirt and wrinkled her uniform in the process. What she needed right now was for someone to recognize her, and that was something Nakoruru was willing to do. They savored this aching but consoling lapse of judgment as the light from the window illuminated their strengthened silhouettes. The sound of feet shuffling didn't startle the two as they stayed in that position. This tender hurt was only for their private eyes to see.

Listening intently behind the door with a grateful smile on his face, Yuki began to walk off as he decided to leave them alone with their thoughts. He couldn't help but beam at how much more beautiful they had both become to him. He breathed a sigh of relief as his wavering confidence in Nakoruru was regained. No longer hesitant; he knew that he made the right choice. Stopping short of a classroom, there was one more stop he had to make.

Their teacher never did make it to the classroom.

Taking her shoes off, Nakoruru merrily closed the paper door behind her as she arrived at her 'safe haven'. After peeking around the corner to see if anyone was home, she gleefully trotted to the bathroom and locked the door behind her. Washing her face in cold water, she resisted the urge to grin at the happier-than-usual expression that was resting on her face.

For once, the reflection in the mirror was smiling back at her. There was someone else in the world who shared her feelings of being trapped in misery. And to make things better, this friendship of hers was hers alone. Because of Machi, she would try her best to break down the walls of hurt.that enclosed her once cold heart. Slowly, but surely, she would make it her purpose to help that vulnerable woman find harmony within herself. She wouldn't let anything get in her way. Her demons were finally being freed. A loner, and an outcast; these words held no meaning to her now.

Oh yes, they understood each other perfectly.

Instinctively glancing at the alarm clock, she was pushed out of her blissful trance when the realization of how late she had been from school hit her. Nakoruru turned off the water in a hurry as she ran in the direction of the kitchen, set on getting dinner ready before her heartless father came home. Straining her neck to keep an eye on the time, she pointlessly threw pots and pans onto the stove as she searched in vain for the cooking oil. She'd be in even more of a dilemma if he was in his usual bad mood.

"Where is it?" Fisting her hair in frustration, Nakoruru bitterly slammed the refrigerator door open as she skimmed the contents for her second option. Out of habit, she apologized for being rude as she spotted the tube of butter.

"Yes!" After doing a ridiculous victory dance that originated from her overly jolly friend Momiji, she placed the butter on the counter and closed the fridge door.

Bam!

Nakoruru fell to her knees as she lost her breath from an unexpected blow. Startled, she spit out the bitter taste that coated her tongue as she strived to stand. Her face made contact with a booted foot as she went crashing into the stove, the boiling contents falling over and landing onto her head. Shaking uncontrollably, she clawed at the monstrous hands that were now encased around her neck.

"Where have you been? Do you know how long I had to wait for you, you little wrench!" Towering over her, he dragged her by her throat and forced her to her feet as he slammed her into the counter. Literally fighting for her life, Nakoruru tried in vain to free herself from his hold. Blood rushing to her head, the only thoughts forming were those of gratitude at having her once long hair cut shorter. His vicious conduct would've been even more horrendous.

He punched her in the stomach again as she gasped from the pain. Smirking, he continued on his merciless course of demolition as he slapped her red-tinged face. He hungrily watched the vessels in her wine eyes tick from the lack of air.

And just like that, the thrill was gone.

Unexpectedly losing interest, he let go of her as he spit on her in spite.

"You're just like your worthless, overbearing mother. What a senseless waste of life. Clean this mess up, now."

He turned his back on her as she dropped her head to the floor in an almost sardonic tone. Hiding her face from view, she waited for him to leave the room as she tamed the agonizing urge to laugh at his sick, pathetic form. She knew better than to tempt him.

Grinning sadistically, Nakoruru wiped the corner of her swollen, pink lips as she grabbed hold of the counter to keep from falling down. After a few failed tries of her knees buckling under the pressure, she finally stood and dusted herself off mechanically.

Such was a day in the life of a teenage failure, after all.

Not bothering to check if he left any bruises, considering the fact that he always did, she limped towards the stove to resume dinner preparations. She wiped the floor and picked up the pots that had fallen over during her dire moment of need as she mockingly patted her own shoulder for not yelling back this time. Fate would reap his rotting heart.

Cursing her luck for finding the cooking oil too late, she called out to her father in a sing-song voice. The situation was long forgotten as Nakoruru smiled sincerely at the thought of her faultless pleasure.

"Dinner will be ready in a minute, Kidemore-sama."

'Miji-kun, Yuki-kun, Chi-chan...I will not let you down.'

She would not let anyone ruin her day.

So what do you think? Sorry if it was boring, I wanted to get introductions ready. The next chappy will be much more action-filled, I promise. Haru, Hiro and Kisa make their debut, so you know what that means:p

Random thought, but Haru is simply…marvelous, don't you think? The next ch. is 11 pages long! Read and review, babes:p.