Chapter 3: The 'Perfect' Boyfriend
Disclaimer: All rights reserved to KOEI TECMO, TECMO and Team NINJA. I am not Yosuke Hayashi.
A/N: This chapter is in Kasumi's POV. I don't have much to say, so...Don't forget to R&R!:)
"Do you think that school would be more interesting this year? You know, being Seniors and all..." I ask Hayabusa. We are currently walking to my French class, to which I'm actually passing with flying colours. Hayabusa had Geography, but he was just being a gentleman.
He smiles, making my heart thump, "I'm sure it'll be the same as Grade 11, but with more respect towards us. Remember how we were treated as trash last year?" He asks. I cringe, making him chuckle. Last year was a complete joke. None of the seniors liked us, even though we organised their dance. It was hell, Grade 11 was the most stressing year, and they didn't even sympathize with us. I actually pity Ayane.
I have not seen Rig all morning. Maybe he's late? I don't mention it to Hayabusa. I know he hates him with everything he has. I don't know why, and I have asked him so, but he's never answered.
I don't think I deserve Rig. What kind of girlfriend am I, having strong feelings for someone else? Yes, I have feelings for Hayabusa. But I know he doesn't want me. To him, I'm just "Hayate's twin sister". I'm dating Rig because I also like him, but my feelings aren't as strong. I stay with him because I know I'll end up falling for him.
I think I might have fallen in love with someone that is not my boyfriend.
It all started when Hayate started ignoring me. We usually did everything together while Ayane was at kindergarten, or at a friend's house. We were about seven years old, or eight. I hated Hayabusa. I hated him so much, you could imagine my face when he came at home with Hayate and Hitomi.
"But, nii-san! You promised me!" I whined. Hayate, Hitomi and a boy that I didn't know came all from Karate. Hayate had promised me to come and fetch me so we could go to the park all together. But then Hayate said that the boy's mom would bring the two boys at the cinema, only, as Hitomi had forgotten that she had dancing and singing lessons. She didn't know me, and the boy couldn't bring strangers. I glared at the boy, who didn't look at me.
"I'm sorry, Kasumi! But I promise I'll bring you next time, okay? Don't be mad." He responded, frowning. He then tried to grab my hand, but I snatched it away. He sighed exasperatedly. The boy walked next to Hayate.
"Dude, I know you're twins, but do you have to do everything together?" He asked, raising his brows. I gritted my teeth.
"Were you ever in this conversation?" I snapped. He glowered at me, his green eyes reflecting fire.
"He's also my friend, you know?" He spat. I snorted.
"He's my twin brother!" I yelled, my fingers clenching.
"I've known him since we were four!" He hollered.
"I've known him since we were born!" I screamed, spitting in his face.
"That doesn't count." He said angrily, wiping his face.
"It does!" I screamed again, "He has my blood and I have his blood!"
"Doesn't matter," he spat.
"Snothead." I glared at him. He glared back.
"Prissy." He replied, crossing his arms over his chest.
"Clown!" I yelled.
"Ugly face!" He yelled back. I gasped.
"Monster butt!" I sneered. He gasped.
"Bum head!" He glowered.
"Pooface!" I answered loudly. Our faces were inches from each other.
"Soggy bottom!" He replied as loudly.
"Fatface!" I screamed.
"I'm not the one who can't even fit in her dress! Fatty!" He replies. I gasped, horrified.
"I'm not the one who has a ponytail! Girl!" I replied, anger and loathing building in me. He gaped at me, his mouth opened in shock.
"You don't look like a girl." He said coldly.
"You don't look like a boy." I replied, as coldly.
"Stop it!" Hayate yelled, separating us, "Kasumi, you don't speak to friends like that! And Ryu, this is my sister, so you have to be friends with her!" He said.
"We are not friends!" We yelled simultaneously. We then glared at each other.
"I hate you." I said icily.
"I hate you even more." He replied as icily. Giving him one last glare, I skipped to my bedroom, taking Mr. Wiggles and hugging him to my chest. I thought I would think of him getting killed by alien. But all I could think of was,
"He has really pretty eyes. And he smells like the forest. And he's really cute. I think like him." Why was this happening to me? I was really dumb sometimes...
"Kasumi? Can you hear me?"
I shake my head, trying to clear my it. Hayabusa's emerald eyes fill with concern and curiosity. I blush at the closeness of our faces.
"Y-yeah...I just... I had another vision." I lie. Although, it is partially true. According to my mother it runs in Tenshin girls. Except maybe Ayane. She doesn't believe that it does, that it's just maybe a made up story by our great grandmother. I do it all the time, though.
"What was it about?" Hayabusa asks curiously. I'm about to answer, but the bell rings, signalling that he's late. We're already by my class.
"You have to go, Hayabusa. I'll tell you at lunch, okay?" I say. He sighs, but nods.
"Alright. See you then." In seconds, he's gone. I go in the classroom, smile at Monsieur Michel, and sit next to Hitomi. She's so into her schedule that she doesn't hear me.
"Hey, Hitomi. Hitomi! Yoohoo! Hitomi!" I say, poking her. She turns to me, scowling.
"Stop that! I'm trying to calculate hours here!" But I poke her once more, giggling a bit. Hitomi glares at me.
"I have a long day, Kasumi. I don't think poking me is going to change anything. Especially when I feel dead. Why must I be a busy child?" She rubs her hands over her face and shakes her head.
"What do you have?" I ask, taking her timetable from her.
"After school, I have violin, then dancing and singing lessons. Then I have to run to soccer. Then I have Karate, then I have ballet with you. Then singing lessons again." She moans and hits her head on the desk. I chuckle. "And as if it's not over, I have a date later on." She says, a blush covering her cheeks.
"A date?" I ask, "with who?"
"J-Jann Lee..." Hitomi mumbles. I frown.
"You know about Leifang's feelings for him, I'm sure?" I whisper. She nods.
"I know, and I promised myself that I would never do that to Leifang. But she pushed me so hard...she even threatened me. And you know Leifang's traits are scary." She says. I gape at her.
"Leifang pushed you to go with him? But she's basically head over heels in love with him!" I exclaim quietly. Hitomi nods, tears filling her eyes.
"I know, and that's why I feel like a traitor...Leifang's basically my sister. My Chinese sister," she smiles slightly, sniffing, "and I didn't want to hurt him, so I said I'd think about it. Then I told Leifang, and I knew she was upset, but she told me to go for it anyway." She finishes, rubbing her eyes with the back of her hands. I smile softly. Hitomi is so compassionate. I understand why many boys like her, and why she always has many Valentine's presents for Valentine's Day.
Speaking of which.
"Hey, you know Valentine's Day is soon. That means that the Valentine's Ball is approaching!" I squeal. She grins widely, her eyes sparkling with excitement.
"It's not that exciting," Mila Diaz says, snorting. I roll my eyes playfully. Of course, Mila Diaz could be the only girl not excited for a ball. She is the rebel of the school, with her red dyed hair with a black strand, and a tattoo that says, "Stings Like A Bee" on her stomach, that she barely covers.
"But Mila," Hitomi protests, "it's masquerade themed this year. Our year! Come on. Is this how you will act when our Matric Dance is coming?" She asks loudly. Mila scowls.
"Of course not. But this is just a ball. We're sharing it with the Grade Eleven's anyway." She says, crossing her arms over her chest.
"Are we really?" Hitomi asks curiously.
"Yes, they're planning our Matric Dance, remember?" I ask her. She nods in understanding. Mila walks away. Just as Helena comes in with her minions. She's wearing her usual cheer-leading outfit, which is yellow and awful. The top doesn't cover her stomach, and has "SPHS" written on her chest, and the skirt is short enough for me to see her butt as she passes by. Her posse are wearing the same thing, but in blue. Since Helena is the captain and yellow is the closest to gold, well, what Helena wants, Helena gets.
Except maybe my brother.
I think that's why she hates me and Hitomi so much; she thinks we're keeping her and my brother apart. I always warn my brother to choose his girlfriends carefully, but he never listens. Talk about being twins.
"Bonjour, mes chers enfants!" Monsieur Michel greets us happily.
"Bonjour, Monsieur Michel." We respond simultaneously. He grins widely. I like Monsieur Michel. Unlike our other teachers, he radiates positiveness. He's quite old, but he just reminds me of my grandfather. A French-speaking grandfather.
I look around the class and frown. Rig isn't here. Again, maybe he's having a talk with Headmaster Donovan, his father. The way that man looks at me scares the living Asian out of me. It's as if I was a lab rat and he was a mad scientist. You never know with Petersoners...
"Ouvrez vos livres à la page-..." He is interrupted by the burst of the door. It's Rig, he's panting heavily. My heart flutters in my chest. Even if my love for Hayabusa is undeniable, Rig makes me feel like one of those cliche American high school girls.
Tina Armstrong would be offended, but she's just like Helena. I don't like her either.
"Mister Rig Donovan! Do you realise how late you are?" Monsieur Michel yells, his sentence coated in a thick, French accent. Rig grins sheepishly.
"Coach Bayman let us out a little later than usual. It won't happen again, je promet." He replies. Monsieur Michel is still not pleased.
"Like the other thirty-seven times you promised, right? This is a new year!" He asks, glaring at him. Wait. He counted too?
"I've counted forty." I blurt out, then clap my hand over my mouth, a blush tainting my cheeks as the class falls into heaps of laughter. Rig looks amused, not angry, and thank Kami, he's not mad at me. Monsieur Michel smiles at my embarrassment.
"Well forty, then. Aller vous asseoir, Monsieur Donovan. Nous allons commencer." Rig is still staring at me as he takes his seat behind me, his look of amusement not fading.
I don't turn around to face him, not until when the bell rings.
I'm throwing stuff in my locker, lock it and turn around to walk away, but a body stops me from going any further. My eyes widen, then I relax as I see the short hair.
"Rig!" I gasp, "you scared the living Asian out of me!" I say. He chuckles lightly before pulling me close to him. He smells like expensive cologne. It irritates my nostrils and makes my throat constrict, but I don't mention it.
"Kas," He says. I love his nickname for me. I don't mind Kasumi, but Kas is just so endearing, "you know it's you and Hayate's birthday soon right?" I almost forgot.
"Yes...?" I drag. He smiles slightly, squeezing my hand.
"That means we'll both be eighteen, right?" He continues. I frown at him, confused, but nod anyway.
"So...you know what you promised me, right? What you promised us?" He smiles innocently. I'm still confused, for just a while, before the reality hits me like a door shut in front of my face. Suddenly, I can't breathe. I need to get away from him, from his intoxicating cologne.
"Rig, I-I almost forgot, I have to talk to L-Leifang about something." I half-whisper, half-stutter.
"Kas-" He continues, but I turn around and run. He continues to call my name, but I don't answer. I keep running until I reach a corner and turn it. With no one in sights, I slide down the wall and start to weep. Me. My virginity. That's what I had promised him, but I wasn't serious! I was just joking since he kept nagging me, and I was busy with practicing pirouettes.
I cry and cry, until I feel a pair of arms around me. For a moment, I think it's Hayate. The long hair tickling my hair is as silky as his, but then the forest, the delicious forest smell infiltering my nostrils. For a moment, I don't believe he's here, until I hear his voice.
"You should have told me," He mumbles. I sniff and look up to meet his emerald green eyes.
"I wasn't ready to tell anyone." I whisper back. Hayabusa tightens his hold on me, slowly rocking me as silent tears slide down my cheeks. His arms are warm and safe. Always safe. All through this sadness, there is the rapid beating of my heart that tells me to go for the latter and kiss him, but I can't. I can't kiss someone who's not my boyfriend. My boyfriend who wants to have sex with me. I can't kiss my guardian. My protector. Because to me he is. He always keeps me safe.
The man that is not my boyfriend keeps me safer than the man that is my boyfriend.
A/N: Kasumi...Kasumi...Kasumi... tsk tsk, having a crush on your brother's best friend? Tsk, Tsk, Tsk...
The children argument was so funny to write!:D Ha...memories...
There would be a bit of Hitomi/Jann Lee in the next chapter. Remember the holy two!
Don't forget to R&R!:)
Random question: it's getting old but...Team Rig or Team Ryu? Team Jann Lee or Team Hayate? Team Ayane or Team Kokoro?
Repeated...don't forget to R&R!:P