Kuroh got used to the judging gaze of his classmates, the looks which practically scream 'what the hell do you think you are doing?'. Especially when he's around his friend- no, best friend, Isana Yashiro.

Days, months and eventually a full year had passed and never had he spent a single day of school alone ever since he had met Shiro. It felt like their meeting was only yesterday. It was almost like a dream for him. Except it wasn't a dream. It was undoubtedly real. He was able to touch, see Shiro all the time. It was so amazing that he could hardly believe it himself. They would always chase each other around in the playground and Kuroh always wondered why the other kids were looking at him as if he was crazy.

No one could understand him as much as Shiro understood him. He was always with him, he told him everything. Shiro's also the one that tended to him whenever the whitenette spots even the slightest of discoloration of his skin. He wondered to himself why Shiro never told him about his family. He wanted to hear about the wonderful stories of a normal family.

Shiro seemed to be a normal typical kid. Average grades, seemingly normal attitude since there wasn't anything that stuck out, which made Shiro unique from others. That was what Kuroh always admired about Shiro. The whitenette didn't care that they were different. No matter the differences they had, they were always friends.

When both of them graduated from preschool, something happened. It wasn't anything that terrible since it was something Kuroh has wanted. His parents got divorced. His mother had left his childhood home with another man. Kuroh saw the man, he seemed really nice since that man had given him a toy car when that man came to pick up his mother.

The conversation between him and the man his mother married right after separating from his father was about his mother, of course. Kuroh wanted to make sure that man would take good care of his mother. Even if she wasn't nurturing to him at all, Kuroh cared for the woman that brought him to the world. So he wanted her to remain happy for the rest of her life in the care of this man.

"Don't worry, I will take good care of your mother. We are really in love, Kuroh..." The blonde man smiled as he ruffled the boy's hair the calloused hand rubbing through the long black hair. Kuroh smiled as he laughed a bit, allowing the man to show fatherly affection to him. The words that came next struck him.

"Would you like to go with me and your mother and start a new life?"

Those words had left him frozen, staring at the step father in shock. Go with them? Leave his father and go with them to god knows where? The man didn't look like he was Japanese at all so going with them might mean leaving Japan altogether. For some reason, something wanted him to say yes. Some gut in his core wanted Kuroh to say that he would be happy to go with them and leave his father.

But he couldn't say yes, even though he wanted to.

"I'm sorry, mister... I can't go with you and mother."

Sometime made him say no. It pushed him to refuse the offer without any hesitation at all, drawing an apologetic frown to the man's face and the man ruffled his head once more. That something was his friendship with Shiro. He couldn't bear to leave Shiro at all.

After his mother left with her new husband, the young ravenette had no idea what happened to his father but things were turning for the better. His father became nicer to him. He had no idea why but his father treated him better. He didn't see the women that his father brings home anymore. His father started to spend a lot of time with him, bringing him to places, buying him toys, clothes and anything he asked. His father became an ideal father, always attending to him.

Things were starting to change for the better for him.

The day after that rather long day, it was once again school time. He was happy. All the other students looked at him as if he grew another head. He was used to that gaze. He was excited to tell Shiro what had happened yesterday.

So he was running down the hallway with a grin on his lips. His long hair was up in a high ponytail, swishing left to right continuously as he excitedly ran to his locker to get his things. Shiro always met up with him in the classroom.

It made him wonder how Shiro always manages to get the same schedule as him. It was almost Shiro was pulling the strings, manages to stick by him. The boy even managed to get in the same club as he was, culinary club, even though the whitenette had absolutely no idea how to cook.

It also made him suspicious. Shiro was always there with him, no matter where he went. It was as if Shiro was simply a shadow, as ironic as it may seem. A shadow only existed if the light is there.

When he went to class, for the first time, Shiro was absent. Kuroh narrowed his eyes. That was strange. Shiro... Was never absent, ever. So seeing the empty seat beside him before the class started, it was such a new sight. So he sat quietly as the bell rang which sent a wave of students to clamor for seats.

"Alright, let's get started with attendance checking today... Is Chiho Hyuga-san here?"

"Present."

Kuroh pondered, intertwining his fingers together as names of his classmates were called one by one. Shiro wasn't really going to school today. Ever since the two had met, Shiro never missed a single day of school. What was up with the sudden change?

"And finally, Yatogami Kuroh?" Blue eyes widened. Wait a minute...

"Teacher, have you called for Shiro already? Isana Yashiro?"

"Mister Isana?" Kuroh watched the middle-aged man as he looked through the clipboard he held. He didn't like the confused look the man was giving him... "Who's that?"

He felt the air from his stomach being punched out as he gasped quietly. He felt like a blanket of ice covered him. He stood up, slamming his small hands on the wooden desk. His hands throbbed at impact but he wasn't aware of the pain at all.

"What are you talking about, Teacher? You know, Yashiro... Isana Yashiro! The one that sat here!" He motioned for the empty seat beside him. This couldn't be. All his classmates only stared at him in confusion and he wanted to yell at them. He could feel the bile in his stomach rising.

The teacher stared at the empty seat which Kuroh pointed at. He seemed to be very troubled.

"Kuroh, that seat has always been empty."

The one in front of him, Kukuri turned to him, tugging at his sleeve. She was a small girl with brown hair that was kept in place with a large red ribbon. She was one of the few people that treated him fairly, unlike all the other people in class.

"Yatogami-kun, we don't know any Isana Yashiro..."