"Well we have the results" Dr. Takabayashi said. In front of him he held up an envelope.
Genichirou glanced at Genjirou who seemed entirely unaffected by the events taking face. He hadn't spoken a word when his saliva was being taken for testing nor had he bothered even looking at Genichirou's father and mother. When Dr. Takabayashi opened the envelope, Genjirou sat up.
"I would like to say something"
"What is it?" Sanada-san asked, glanced over at his supposed son.
"When these results prove that I am your son, I would like you to apologise to my mother. She came all this way to introduce me to my father. I would like to assure you that I will in no way try and force my way into the family. I have no intention to be close to you at all. I will not tarnish your reputation in any way. I give you my word" Genjirou said.
"How do I know that I can trust you?" Sanada-san asked.
"I never break my word. Never" Genjirou glared at his father with determination in his eyes.
"Shall I read these out?" Dr. Takabayashi asked.
"Go ahead" Genjirou replied.
"Sanada-san, Genjirou is your son" Dr. Takabayashi said.
Sanada's mother couldn't stop her tears this time. Sanada's father sighed. Genichirou's snapped towards Genjirou as he stood up and dusted off his pants as if nothing shocking had happened. He turned and bowed in front of his father and stepmother.
"I'll keep my word if you keep yours" Genjirou said.
He walked out of the room. Genichirou walked right after him and grabbed his arm.
"What?" Genjirou turned around.
"Why are you acting so arrogant? You act as if this is no big issue to you. You just came in and destroyed my mother's trust in my father" Genichirou said, angered.
"It wasn't me who destroyed that trust. It was your father who did that. Don't blame me for being the result of that mistake" Genjirou pointed out.
"You could at least try to be sensitive and respectful!"
"I don't care anymore. After what you showed to my mother when she came to your home was something that made me lose respect for all of you. I'll keep my word and you stay out of my life. Understand?"
Genjirou turned and walked away, Genichirou's hand turned into a fist and he ached to punch that arrogant ass right in the face. He felt a hand on his shoulder and glanced up into his father's warm brown eyes. His mother was already seated in the car, wiping her tears away.
"Even if he doesn't want anything to do with us, I want to know him. He's my son and your brother, Genichirou. Try and look out for him, will you?" Sanada-san requested.
"Yes, father"
"Hey, freak"
Izumi's buddies began laughing as Genjirou fell flat on the floor. He cursed when he felt his hands begin to bleed. Izumi crouched down and ran a hand through Genjirou's blond hair. Genjirou moved away immediately. Izumi wasn't doing to do anything to his precious hair. Izumi grinned and then one of his buddies kicked a mud caked shoe at Genjirou's hair.
Genjirou saw stars and he closed his eyes to block the pain.
"Let's leave the freak here" Izumi cackled and then left the scene.
Genjirou opened his eyes and then sat up gingerly. There was a horrible bump at the back of his head and his hair was caked with mud. He could hear voices around the corner and his eyes rolled back into his dead. He slumped against the floor in a dead faint.
"Who would do this to him?" Yukimura's eyes were wide with worry.
"I didn't know he was being bullied" Genichirou replied.
He hadn't really paid attention to Genjirou and now because of his carelessness, Genjirou had gotten hurt. Yanagi made a face as he used his hands to remove the mud from Genjirou's hair. His blond hair looked rather strange mixed up with the brown colour of mud.
"Bring me a bucket of water and shampoo. I'll wash his hair" Yukimura said.
Genichirou complied and brought a bucket of water. Yukimura soaked his hair to get the excess mud out and then lathered the shampoo on. Yanagi began looking for a spare uniform and then handed Genichirou a first aid kit for Genjirou's scrapped up hands that were bleeding rather badly.
So soft...so comforting.
Genjirou unconsciously leaned towards the hands that were running themselves over his hair. They were so soft and they really knew what spots were really relaxing. Then water was poured over his hair that made him immediately recoil.
"He's awake" An unfamiliar voice said.
"Genjirou-kun, don't open your eyes. The shampoo might get in" An angelic voice instructed and Genjirou complied.
After a few minutes, Genjirou's hair was sparkling and entirely clean. Yukimura towel dried his hair briskly while Sanada applied antiseptic to his half brother's hands. Genjirou stayed quiet throughout this entire treatment while Yanagi scribbled in his book, noting down reactions that Genjirou displayed.
"All done. Now you look like a prince" Yukimura announced.
"I appreciate this but you didn't need to do all this" Genjirou said.
"Then we would have left you unconscious outside the school?" Yanagi asked.
"Who did this to you, Genjirou?" Genichirou asked.
"Why do you want to know?" Genjirou glared up at his half brother.
"Because I want to get them away from you. You don't deserve this treatment from your peers"
"You don't have to protect me. There's no need. I can take care of myself" Genjirou stood up and swayed, dizzy.
"Sit down" Genichirou took his brother's shoulders and sat him down.
"Get your hands off me!"
"GENJIROU!"
"GENICHIROU!"
The two brothers glared at each other and Yanagi sighed. Yukimura glanced between them as if torn and then sat down beside Genjirou. Genjirou glanced at the lilac haired captain. Yukimura leaned in and kissed Genjirou right on his pale cheek, shocking everyone in the room.
"Even if you don't want it, Sanada will protect you. You are family to him. So tell us who did this" Yukimura said softly.
Genjirou glanced away from the hypnotising lilac eyes and then looked down at his shoes.
"It was Izumi and his buddies" he admitted.
"I should have known. Kirihara was saying something about them bullying the first years" Genichirou said.
"Just leave them alone. I don't need any more attention than I already get" Genjirou said.
"I won't leave it alone. You are my brother and it is my duty to protect you" Genichirou said.
"Before this escalates into yet another argument, I would like to go after Izumi right now. He's usually in the soccer field after school" Yanagi interjected.
"School's out?! I'm late for music club!" Genjirou exclaimed.
"You can't go in this state. Come, we'll take you home" Yukimura said.
Genjirou was unwillingly taken out of the tennis club locker rooms and marched out of school. Yukimura wouldn't let go of his hand as he led him down the streets. Sanada and Yanagi walked behind them watching the pair amusedly. It was obvious to everyone why Yukimura was paying special attention to Genjirou.
When they reached Genjirou's home, they were shocked to find out he lived in a small apartment. Genjirou said his goodbyes and headed up the stairs to the first floor. He unlocked the first door and shut it. That apartment barely hard three rooms and it had a communal shower out back. Genichirou was now guilty that his brother lived in such horrible and poverty filled conditions.
"Now I'm even more worried about him" Yukimura admitted.
"You might want to hide your feelings just a bit. You're scaring him" Yanagi commented.
"I'll have to talk to my father about this" Sanada muttered.
"I found a nice apartment we can move into. It's rather far and you'll have to take the bus but it's bigger than this place" Genjirou's mother said.
"I don't mind, mom. As long as it's not near here and near that Sanada" Genjirou replied.
"Why don't you go out to the park? It's such a nice day. I'm leaving for my work anyway so you'd rather go out and distract yourself" His mother said.
Genjirou left the little apartment and then down to the park. It wasn't a big park but it was big enough for a few play slides and swings. Kids ran around screaming and having fun. A few couples milled around, enjoying the weather. Genjirou sat down on a bench by himself and then heard the click of a camera.
He glanced around wildly and then spotted a guy with a camera. He lowered the camera and waved, his eyes tightly closed. Genjirou furrowed his eyebrows and the guy came closer to him. What made Genjirou surprised was that the guy was walking just fine with his eyes shut. Was he blind?
"I'm sorry I took your picture. You looked so natural so I just thought I should take a picture of that moment" the guy smiled.
"It's alright. It's just a bit of a surprise" Genjirou said.
"I'm Fuji Syusuke. What's your name?"
"Steel Genjirou. Just call me Genjirou" Genjirou replied.
"Half Japanese?"
"Yeah"
"You speak Japanese really well. I don't detect an accent"
"If you don't mind me asking, how do you see with your eyes shut?"
Fuji laughed. "It started as an instinct when I was younger and I've grown into it. It doesn't surprise many but one you've come out to openly ask"
"I find it weird but you're not the only weird one here" Genjirou commented.
"Weird? What's weird about you?"
"My hair, my skin tone and my piercings" Genjirou replied pointing to each in turn.
"I don't find you weird. I find you rather beautiful" Fuji said.
Genjirou flushed. "Um, thanks, I guess".
Fuji lifted up his camera and took another shot of Genjirou. Before he could take another one, Genjirou held up a hand against the camera just as Fuji clicked, effectively ruining the shot. Fuji pouted but set his camera down nonetheless. Genjirou nodded and then a small dog came running up to them.
"Hi boy. You're so cute" Genjirou cooed in English.
The dog barked loudly, wagging his tail wildly. Genjirou petted and scratched him in all the right places. Soon enough, the dog had seated himself obediently right at Genjirou's feet.
"He seems to listen to you quite well" Fuji commented.
"Before I moved here, my mother and I used to have three dogs. They were well trained and I was experienced in taking care of them. It broke my heart when we had to give them away" Genjirou replied.
"I've never had any pets before but my friend Kikumaru has a rather playful cat" Fuji said.
"Cats and I don't really get along. It's the dogs that love me" Genjirou patted the dog.
The dog stood and then began walking away. A small Japanese girl laughed as he bowled her over and began licking at her cheeks. Genjirou chuckled and heard yet another click.
"If that was your camera, I swear I'm going to break it" Genjirou threatened playfully.
"Oh no!" Fuji said dramatically.
"I'm bored of sitting here. Do you want to walk around?"
Fuji agreed and they began their merry stroll around the park. Fuji began walking towards a flight of stairs and Genjirou followed him. They descended right into the public tennis courts. There were many players and all the courts were occupied. Most of them were dressed in Rikkai tennis club jerseys.
"Rikkai practice on weekends too?" Fuji asked.
"Apparently. I'm not a member of the tennis club" Genjirou shrugged.
"I am a member but of Seishun Gakuen" Fuji said.
"Isn't that school like a train ride away? Do you live in Tokyo?"
"Yes"
"You took a half hour train all the way here?"
"I wanted to complete my photography project and I used that excuse to meet an old friend from middle school who moved here" Fuji replied.
"There's a match starting up there. Let's watch" Genjirou suggested.
They sat down on a bench and the match began. It wasn't really that entertaining but it gave them both a chance to examine all the other players. Fuji frequently lifted up his camera to take more pictures of different players. Genjirou froze when he noticed who was playing on the court at the far end.
"Genichirou, look who's here" Yanagi said quietly.
Genichirou glanced around and then spotted the platinum blond hair easily. His brother was seated on the bench with a very familiar tennis player.
"What is he doing with Fuji Syusuke?" Yukimura asked through gritted teeth.
Genichirou watched as Fuji lifted up his camera to eye level and took a photo of his half brother. Genjirou grinned and attempted to grab the camera but Fuji held it out of reach. Genichirou felt something impact his heart as he realised that this was probably one of the first times he had seen Genjirou smiled freely.
"Leave him alone" Genichirou said.
"What?" Yukimura turned to him in surprise.
"There's no need to spoil his day. Leave him be" Genichirou turned and grabbed a tennis ball so he could serve.
Yukimura glanced back at Genjirou and then returned to his side of the court. Yanagi turned around and watched Genjirou and Fuji walk back up the steps to the kids part of the park. Yukimura sent a lingering glance at Genjirou and then continued his game with Sanada.
"I saw a cafe just around the corner. Let's go eat. My treat" Fuji said.
"Okay"
Genjirou followed Fuji and then spotted the cafe. It certainly looked rather fancy and they sat down outside instead of going outside. Fuji ordered cake for himself with a side of wasabi. The waiter sent Fuji a weird look but Fuji ignored him. Genjirou picked out green tea cake and a cup of coffee.
"So what do you study at Rikkai?" Fuji asked.
"The usual subjects but I've added Chinese, Korean and English. I study Music too" Genjirou replied.
"I don't think Seishun offers a music program but Hyoutei definitely does. I used to know a boy named Ootori. He was an impressive pianist and under Hyoutei's music program, he's manage to secure an apprenticeship with a very impressive musician" Fuji said.
"I don't exactly have the money to afford Hyoutei. Scholarships are hard to come by since all Asians as smart as hell. No offense"
"None taken. If you did attend Hyoutei, you would have to take the train everyday and that adds up in expenses. If you don't want to take that in then you can always stay at my home" Fuji said.
"Why dream of things that will never happen?" Genjirou seemed to frown as he said this.
"I want to major in photography and there's a college that I'm extremely interested in" Fuji said.
"I just want to leave this country and go back home. I had a great life there and my mother just had to uproot me from there"
"Was there a reason that your mother came here?"
"To find my father" Genjirou replied.
Fuji looked confused for a moment.
"Why now?" He asked cautiously.
"That's what I asked her. Why did she want to find him now? If he wasn't there for the first sixteen years of my life then why should he be here now? She isn't happy here and neither am I" Genjirou replied.
"That's an answer only your mother would know" Fuji said.
I am overwhelmed by the response this story got. Thank you so much! Here is an update that I hope satisfied you all. I love you all!
Onyxinlife