CHAPTER 1
Keiko's POV
Seeing you walk away was too much for me to handle; for each and every step you took, every distance you make, it was as if you were taking my breath with you. I was suffocating.
Slowly, I was losing sight of the only, most beautiful thing I've ever seen all my life.
Painfully, my soul was crushed.
The feeling was terrible. It was tearing me apart inside, little by little.
And just like that, these tears that I never knew existed, fell.
I wanted to run to you. I wanted to wrap my arms around you. I wanted to scream your name. I wanted to hold you, pull you back, pull you closer and never let go.
But no. I was standing there like a brick wall. I couldn't move, I couldn't think. I don't know what to do. I don't know what to say.
But if there's one thing I did know.. this pain was slowly killing me.
THREE YEARS LATER
It was mid-day. The sun beamed through the window. Keiko woke up at the sound of her cell phone ringing.
Someone was calling.
The name "Ayame" flashed on the screen. Keiko didn't answer the call, letting it ring until it stopped.
Then a text message popped up.
From: Ayame
Hey Keiko! Where are you? Why didn't you come to class? Are you okay? Call me.
"It's this late? I should've been at school. " She's in trouble, she thought to herself as she had never missed classes before nor had she ever skipped one.
But in a split second, that suddenly didn't matter. The memory she had from that night flashed in her mind. Again.
As the moment played back in her memory, the familiar pain burned through her chest.
The next thing she knew, the tears that had been in favor of torturing her eyes, fell again.
These tears, this pain, this pathetic situation she's in will not change anything. It's not like it's going to bring him back. So why the hell was she acting like all these sulking will do the trick?
She laid flat on her bed, with immense regret pouring down like rain. Thinking of how stupid she was for not doing something to make him change his mind.
All her life she had always found ways to get what she desired; like having good grades for example, being the best in class among all the students at her school, and getting great friends, -stuff like that. The point is, she didn't let herself down. But why couldn't she have him?
And why? Why is it that for a brief moment, she thought she'd always be happy for the rest of her life?
And now, it's kind of ironic how in every waking hour, she'd have to convince herself that he'll see the light and show up on her door, apologize, pull her close, wrap his arms around her, and tell her he'll stay, for good.
'I'm suffocating. Just thinking about that kills me.' she thought.
Finally, Keiko got up, walked to the bathroom, and stared at the mirror for what seemed like forever.
Her eyes, they're swollen. Though that's not new to her anymore.
Those eyes.. those eyes used to see him. Those eyes used to gleam, and sparkle whenever she smiled because of him. But now, they're empty and lifeless. Those eyes used to close whenever she kissed him.
Kiss. Her lips used to do that. But now, they're crusty and pale.
She sighed, taking in every bit of her image through the mirror.
'This face' she thought 'It's boring and lifeless. But that doesn't matter anymore. Because you're not here. Are you?' She asked in the air.
Once again, she sighed. It was time to clean up, she still had to go to class.
AN HOUR LATER
The school bell rang, and everybody was in their usual element, chattering the day away.
It was April, everyone seemed like they couldn't wait to play their silly April Fool's prank on people.
The atmosphere was calm, and happy, given that she's going to an all girl's school made it easy to avoid a rowdy crowd.
Though on the latter part, even if it's not April, Keiko believed she'll never get used to such a happy atmosphere.
"Keiko!" she turned to the sound of someone calling. It was Ayame, walking in her direction.
"There you are! Where have you been, crazy! What happened to you?"
'Great. I am so in the mood for answering questions!' she sarcastically thought.
"I overslept. I forgot to set my alarm." Keiko answered.
"Right. Like I'm supposed to believe that." Ayame teased.
Keiko chuckled at her response.
Ayame knows what she's been about.
Though she may not be the kind of person Keiko would share things with by choice, she still found the need to let it out.
Surely, there was Kuwabara, and Shizuru. They would understand what she's going through in a heartbeat.
But they are too focused on making a better future. How can she burden them with her troubles?
There was always Genkai.
But what could the old woman say to her to make her feel better?
Genkai was a woman of truth and practicality.
Keiko was willing to bet on the fact that all she will hear from Genkai is for her to move on with her life and stop dealing with his absence.
Also, Genkai lives in the mountains.
As a student council president, she didn't have the leisure of spending every weekend on hours of train ride just for the sake of having a shoulder to cry on.
Atsuko, on the other hand, doesn't have any clue of his reality.
Sure, she frequently visits to make sure she was okay, and that she wasn't drowning herself with alcohol every now and then.
But Keiko cannot simply tell her how she feels if she cannot be completely honest of what her son was truly up against.
So that leaves Atsuko out of the picture.
And there was Ayame, always waiting for her to open up about what has been going on in her head.
"So what happened this morning? Am I in trouble?" Keiko worried.
"No. Stop overreacting. You only missed 2 subjects and then there's everyone else who's been missing the entire term." She joked as she poked Keiko's shoulder.
But what Ayame said reminded Keiko of him. Even she couldn't keep the thought of him away.
"But hey, I've got news to change your mood." She began, as they walked down the hall.
"What?"
"First, Mr. Takanaka's looking for you. He wants the reports from last week's meeting at his table today by 5:30. He thought you weren't gonna show up today though.."
"Okay. Thanks. And?"
"And, the exchange students are here from the Academy."
"Okay. I'll just check in with Mr. Takanaka later."
"Err too late. They are already here. They started classes today. One, in particular, sat at your desk this morning by the way."
"What? Wow. Please remind me never to skip classes again." They both laughed as they entered the next class.
"He's very cute by the way! He did mention something yesterday about being single!" Ayame said, nodging Keiko.
"As if Keiko would be interested. It's like you're trying to play matchmaker with a bachelor and a brick wall, no offense" another female said, pointing to Keiko.
"Yeah what's up with that Keiko? Why are you so allergic to guys?"
"Standards are too high, I think."
"She's still waiting for prince charming to sweep her off her feet."
Her friends joked as she stayed silent throughout the conversation.
'She's still waiting for Prince Charming to sweep her off her feet." She repeated the comment in her head.
Little did they know, she really was waiting for a certain Prince, to sweep her off her feet.
'How ironic.' she thought.
6:00 PM | SAME DAY.
"Thank You, Ms Yukimura. You may go home now." Mr. Takanaka bid as she handed him some files.
She smiled at him in return and turned to the door. But before she could touch the knob, it slowly turned and the door opened.
On the other side was a boy, just around her age. She has never seen him before, he must be the new student.
He greeted her with a smile as he entered the room.
"Ahh, Miss Yukimura. Before you leave, I would like you to meet Mikuri Moto. He's one of the exchange students from Meiou Academy. He's the Academy Representative" Mr. Takanaka explained.
"Miss Yukimura, of course! You're the Student Council President, I'm pleased to meet you."
"Likewise Mr. Moto." Keiko greeted with a smile.
"Please, just call me Mikuri, Ms. Yukimura." he insisted.
"Keiko. Just Keiko. Nice to meet you Mikuri. I'm sure you'll like it here."
"For sure! With a student council president like you, I definitely will love it here!" He smirked.
Keiko smiled softly, but there was something behind his response that made her feel uncomfortable.
She shrugged and bid him goodbye, and went straight home.
It was midnight. She was too tired from doing her homework for the past couple of hours.
The silence of the room was broken by a phone call.
Only a phone number flashed on the screen.
"Who could this be?" she thought. She found it irritating for someone 'unimportant' to be calling her this late.
"Hello?" She answered.
"Hello?" she repeated. No answer came back. She hung up.
"Jerk" she murmured.
The sound of a flipped page of a notebook, the ticking of the clock, the sound of a horn of a vehicle on the nearest highway somewhere, the sound of her breathing, the sound of her heartbeat, and the funny silence of the room, were all killing her.
She sighed. Nonchalantly putting down the notebook she had been reading for the past hour.
"I'm tired. I guess that's enough for tonight" she said to herself.
She got up, crawled onto the bed, and tucked herself under the warm blanket.
After a long day, it was nice to find comfort under her sheets.
Slowly, her eyes closed. Slowly, she drifted off to sleep.
The weather was cold. It rained in the morning.
Rushing home was the only thing she looked forward to this day.
Reaching her home, she noticed that their restaurant was not open. Her family owned a small Diner in the neighborhood.
Odd, she thought as her father didn't say anything about not opening today.
"Im home!" she greeted. But no one answered back.
"Mom? Dad?" she called, searching the house.
"Are you guys home?" Still, no answer came. Maybe they went somewhere, she thought.
"Well, they could've told me." She shrugged and went straight up to her bedroom.
She was cold, "A hot bath and a cup of hot coffee sounds good right now."
But before she could touch the doorknob in her room, a sound of a fallen object was heard behind the door.
She stopped. Could it be her Mother? or her Father perhaps?
"Mom?" she whispered, noticing that her door was slightly open.
"Mom?" she called as she entered her room. But to her surprise, the room was dark.
The only light she could see was the light outside shining through the window.
She felt scared. No one was in there.
"M-mom? Dad?" she panted.
But then, something suddenly came out of the darkness and strangled her from behind, covering her mouth with what seemed like a hand.
She struggled. But the suspect was too strong for her.
She kicked and fought, using everything humanly possible to defend herself, but she was thrown across the room.
Pulling herself together, completely dazed, she saw the tall, dark figure slowly approaching her.
It was a man. Looks like he's in his late 30's, she guessed.
Who was he? What does he want?
With nowhere to run, he picked her up and pinned her against the wall.
"What am I gonna do? What am I gonna do?" she thought to herself in panic.
He stared with those eyes, -those piercing eyes burying his look on her. It was the most frightening eyes she had ever seen.
"Yusuke.." she yelped.
The man in front grinned, hearing her call for him. It seemed to make him feel excited as this had him pinning her harder against the wall.
"Y-YUSUKE!" She cried.
Within a split second, he threw her across the room, and quickly ran in her direction, pulling out a pocket knife from his pocket.
"YUSUKE HELP!"
-She got away from the chair in adrenaline, falling to the floor.
Panting, chasing her breath, sweating.
It was a dream. It was just a dream.
With caution, she looked around the room making sure that there was no one else there, but her.
She sighed in relief, realizing she fell asleep while studying her homework.
She chuckled in disbelief. This was the first time that it happened.
She got up and fixed herself, picked up her cell phone, and laid on the bed.
Looking at the screen, it was past three in the morning.
"oh wow.." she sighed as she rolled under the blanket and tried to fall asleep.
But the dream a while ago flashed. It was a weird dream. "Stupid-weird".
Could it mean something? She paused. It was strange.
Wanting to make sense of it, she thought maybe it reflected the situation she was in: Feeling alone, and helpless in a dark room with her monster, desperately wanting to be saved by him.
Suddenly, she humphed, as she found it funny how even in dreams, -even in the weirdest dreams, she still called for him.
"I'm right," she whispered.
"I'm never gonna get used to this. Never." She sighed.
And with that, she fell fast asleep.
2 MONTHS LATER
It was a busy day at school.
Keiko was too caught up with schoolwork and council activities.
She hardly had time to hang out with her friends, as the past few weeks had been hard on her.
Though this kind of routine wasn't exactly new to her, it was just that she wasn't what she used to be, unlike when she had all the spirit to do what she does, when she had every motivation she can find, when she was once inspired.
But all that seemed to have disappeared.
She hated it. She hated how all along, she wasn't depending on herself, but on the one person she always knew she loved as much as she loved herself.
The coldness of the room touched her skin.
The light of the sun setting lit through the glass window.
She looked up at the orange sky that was slowly fading away.
Sunset. She scoffed. There was that uneasy feeling rising from her again.
She looked down, her face turned dim.
"Sunset," she thought as she found herself reminiscing about the past.
Sunset. That one sunset she'd never forget.
The scent of the ocean lingered around her nose.
The sun setting across the horizon lit the shore.
The wind caressed her long chestnut brown hair.
The sound of the waves echoing.
The breeze of the wind whistling, and the laughter of her friends as they played tag in the sand was music to her ears.
His eyes. His eyes stared into the water.
His smile, -his beautiful smile was so carefree.
His arms wrapped around her as they sat on the shore.
He always made her feel so secure.
Her head laid across his chest as she listened to the rhythm of his heartbeat.
She decided it was her favorite sound in the world.
His warm breath touched her cheeks, and she slowly turned to face him, giving him a warm smile.
As he returned the gesture, he moved closer to her face and kissed her passionately.
Right there, she decided that this was the best sunset she ever had.
And she was right. So far, it was the best sunset she has ever had, doubting it'll happen again.
She was lost for a moment, quickly brushing the thoughts away.
Neatly, she piled the papers in order and left the room.
It was almost dark outside. She should be getting home.
She turned the lock and wore her bag over her shoulder.
"Hi!" A male voice greeted.
Looking up, she saw a familiar face smiling at her.
"Hi. Mikuri it's you." she turned.
He chuckled. "Yes, I'm sorry to startle you."
"No problem. It's late, why are you still here?" she asked.
"I knew you were still here so I figured I'd wait and walk you home. It's dangerous for a woman like you to be going home this late."
He said. This caught her off guard, she wasn't exactly comfortable about it but she found him nice enough to do that for her.
"Oh. T-thank you, Mikuri. That's really nice of you." She smiled back.
The two walked out of the school and down the streets of the highway.
"This is really awkward." She thought.
Keiko was not the type of girl who likes hanging around with guys she doesn't like.
She keeps a few good friends and she's perfectly happy with them, but being stuck with someone she barely knew gave her the creeps.
"So, Keiko. You always come home this late?" He began, wanting to break the silence.
"Uhh, most times, yes. I'm used to it though." she smiled.
"Well if you want I could always walk you home, you know. I wouldn't mind." he proposed.
"Thank you, that's really nice of you to offer Mikuri, but I'm fine." she rejected.
"No really, I'm okay with that, I can wait and walk you home every day. I really wouldn't mind." he offered still.
This is one of the many things that get to her nerves easily. She has zero patience and tolerance for pushy guys such as this one.
'Man, take a hint!' she thought.
"Seriously, I'm fine. You don't have to do that for me. I sense that you just want to earn my friendship but, hey, you can do that in many different ways." she said, hoping she didn't offend him.
He chuckled. 'what's so funny?' she thought.
"You read people good enough Keiko. I'm impressed."
Crossing her eyebrows, she thought 'Huh? Where did that come from? This guy is weird'
She smiled at him in return for the statement.
"But on a serious note," He paused and stopped her from walking, taking his hand out of his pocket and inviting Keiko to an open handshake.
"I'd really like to be your friend." he continued.
Keiko stopped in all confusion. Mikuri seemed nice, and he seemed like a gentleman.
'It's not so bad, Keiko' She reminded herself.
It wasn't because she didn't want to make friends.
Why wouldn't she?
But it was because every time she was about to make friends with the opposite sex, it always felt like she was betraying him.
The feeling doesn't make any sense.
But it always managed to stop her, successfully.
She sighed and carefully reached for his hand.
"Why not?" she smiled.
"Well, this is me," she said as they reached her front door.
"Your family owns a restaurant? Wow."
"It's a diner. You wanna come in?" She offered. But deep down, she wanted him to leave.
"Hey, Keiko, who's your new friend here?" A voice from behind the door asked. 'Oh thank goodness!' she whispered in relief.
"Oh, Hi Dad, this is Makuri, he's a new student at school. He was just walking me home" she said.
"A new male student? How did that happen? No offense" Slyly directing to the young boy.
"I'm only an exchange student, sir." Mikuri responded with a smile.
"I see. Oh, well that's nice of you young man, Thank you for walking my sweetheart home." Her father regarded.
"No problem sir." he smiled back.
This time, Keiko was giving her Dad the "please make him leave" look.
"Honey, you look tired. Why don't you go in and rest? You don't have to help out at the kitchen. We can handle ourselves." Mr. Yukimura insisted.
"Okay. Thanks, Dad, I needed that." Keiko smiled.
"What about you, young man? Would you like to come in?" Mr. Yukimura asked.
"Oh no thank you, Sir. I should be heading home." Mikuri returned.
"Alright! Go home safely!" Mr. Yukimura bid.
"I'll see you tomorrow then." Mukuri said, turning to Keiko.
"Sure!" Keiko replied.
After Mikuri left, Keiko looked at her Dad and thanked him for saving her.
Mr. Yukimura felt a strange feeling in his gut as he watched the young boy walk away.
At one point, he was surprised that Keiko had finally made friends with someone new, referring to Keiko's old friends such as Kuwabara, and Yusuke.
He was aware that Yusuke had to leave, but Keiko didn't want to talk about him, later realizing his absence had caused a great deal of depression to fall on his daughter when he left.
He wasn't happy about it, but it did seem like the only thing that can make her feel better at the same time.
He knew the boy, ever since him and Keiko were four years old.
He knew all too well how their relationship progressed over the years.
Was he angry that he caused his daughter such pain?
Yes. But what could he do? His own daughter didn't want to move on, let alone hang out with anyone else.
Keiko was smart, he was sure of that.
He is just hoping that she is smart enough to pick herself up from this mess.
"Keiko, honey. Are you alright?" Asked Mr. Yukimura
"Yes Dad, I am." Knowing what her father had truly meant by the question, she only smiled.
"Keiko, I know, this isn't a good time, but, I am happy you're finally hanging out with someone." Mr. Yukimura nervously commented, knowing this might give the wrong impression to his daughter.
Keiko was silent. She didn't know what to say.
Although she wanted to tell him it wasn't going to be permanent, and that he shouldn't keep his hopes up, but she also didn't want to break his heart, after hearing him say that 'he was happy'.
How could she take that away from him?
Sure, her father just wanted whatever is best for her, and that includes her happiness, wherever, and whomever it may come from.
She knew he was hurting too, he was there, as he watched her smile fade, and life slowly disappeared in her eyes, ever since that day.
She felt guilty.
But she wouldn't dare have it any other way.
Nothing in the world made sense anymore. So why would she bother?
10:00 PM | SAME NIGHT
"a-n-x-i-e-t-y anxiety, Japanese word, shinpai."
"p-a-t-i-e-n-c-e patience, Japanese word, tamerai"
"h-e-s-i-t-a-t-i-o-n hesitation, Japanese.. gaman"
Sitting at her desk reviewing her studies, she sighed.
She picked up her cellphone and stared at the dial pad, for what seemed like minutes.
She had tried calling the same number too many times before, to no avail.
It came to a point where she pretended to be talking to someone on the other line when she felt lonely, and when she felt the need to talk to someone who mattered.
But it's been quite some time since it happened. Would she try again?
'It's no use.' she thought as she gently put her phone down.
It was pathetic. She was aware of that. But so what?
She stood up and walked across the room when something outside caught her attention.
Peeking through the window, she noticed that a street light was going on and off.
'How bizarre. What's with that light?' she shrugged.
And just when she was about to close the curtain, her eyes caught a figure standing outside of her house, facing her window.
Her eyebrows furrowed.
It was a familiar figure.
Perhaps, too familiar.
Just then, her heart skipped a beat.
'No' .. 'it cant be' she thought. Time seemed to have stopped so suddenly. Everything was a blur.
Her eyes widened. Her breath trailed. Her knees weakened as if she was going to fall on the carpeted floor.
'No.. No.. No..' her mind kept saying, though her mouth was left hung open.
She was dumbfounded, suddenly not knowing what to do.
A cold shiver ran down her spine. She couldn't believe her eyes!
Tears started racing down her cheeks.
She was suffocating.
Her chest tightened and her stomach felt like she was going to throw up.
"Yu-..Yu.." She wanted to scream his name. But no words were coming out of her mouth.
All she knew, was that her eyes were locked onto him, just as his eyes were locked onto hers.
But then, slowly he turned and slowly walked away.
"No. No! Don't go" was all that her mind could say.
She quickly ran out of her room, out of her house, attempting to come after him.
But when she got out, he was gone.
She was panting, turning in every direction.
'where did he go?' she wondered, catching her breath.
"Yusuke!" she cried.
But he wasn't anywhere anymore, not even a trail of his shadow.
"No. I'm not gonna lose you again!" she cried as she ran in search of him.
It was almost midnight. The wind was cold, the streets were dark and empty.
She kept running. "Yusuke!" she yelled.
"Where are you?"
Tears were still forming in her eyes.
But in a moment she stopped, not knowing where to go anymore.
Catching her breath, she realized she doesn't know exactly where she was.
Her feet seemed to have taken her far, but that didn't matter at the moment.
All that mattered is for her to find him. She had to find him!
"Come on, you couldn't be that far!" She said to herself.
"Where are you?!" she kept looking around. But darkness was all that there was.
She panted. After a long time, she saw him again.
Even if this was another dream, another cruel dream, the only thing she wanted to do, was to find him.
But being alone on an empty street wasn't a good thing.
Instead of running, she started walking.
Carefully realizing she might've just brought herself into danger.
'Stupid Keiko.' she told herself.
Should she turn back now and go home? Or should she continue finding him?
At war with her own thoughts, weighing what was more important. Him? or her safety? She couldn't decide.
How could she be careless!
Suddenly, a sound was heard from a corner.
It was pitch black, she couldn't actually tell what it was, or what caused it.
This made her shiver in fear.
Knowing it could be something that would harm her, she began to walk away, fast.
But where was she supposed to head?
She had already lost track of where she had been, or what turns of the street she took.
"Oh my.. I really am lost," she said, speeding up her footsteps, as she crossed her arms across her chest due to the cold atmosphere.
For a moment, it seemed like a good idea if she had brought her phone with her, or at least a jacket.
The dress that she had worn all afternoon and her flats weren't really a fashion choice for the cool air.
The soft, thin blue cloth hung just above her knees, her bare skin creating goosebumps due to the cold.
But she was in such a hurry, she didn't know what she was doing at the time.
Suddenly, another sound came from behind.
And when she turned to look, her eyes widened, and her heart began beating hard against her chest.
Three tall, grown men were walking in her direction, with malice spread across their faces.
"Come here, sweetheart! Don't run!" one of them called out.
She heard but she didn't listen, instead, she ran as fast as she could.
But little did she know, the corner she had turned to was indeed a dead end.
'figures!' she thought.
"Didn't your mom ever tell you not to wander at night?"
Keiko looked around in panic, trying to find an escape route, but to no avail, realizing she was surrounded by walls.
The floor was wet, and there seemed to be shards of broken glass all over.
'What am I gonna do?' her mind filled with these kinds of questions.
Pleading for her life wasn't exactly in her vocabulary, but that seemed to be the last option to survive.
"What do you want?!" she asked in an angry tone.
One of the men laughed and teased. "That's a secret"
"Help! Help!" She cried.
"Shut her up!" and with that, two of them came at her; one held her arms and the other hit her in the head, making her fall to her knees, causing shards of glass to slice into her hands, thighs and legs.
She cried in pain but was almost dazed by the pain in her head.
"Hold her up!" One of them demanded.
Keiko's vision began to blur, not to mention it was hard to see in the dark, all she knew was that she was tightly held up by her arms.
The pain in her head became more intense.
What did they hit her with? She didn't know.
But whatever it was, it was hard enough to make her start to feel like she was going to pass out.
There was something wet and thick dripping down her forehead but she couldn't come to what it was, was it blood?
"D-d.. don't," she said under her breath.
She could hear their laughter, and at the same time, she was losing consciousness.
"We got a pretty one this time, eh?" One of the men said.
"Yeah, looks like I'm going to really enjoy this one!" The other one laughed.
As she felt the cuts and wounds sting on some parts of her body, suddenly, she fell hard on the concrete floor.
The last thing she heard was frantic screams, footsteps running, and someone pleading for his life.
Author's Notes: Hello Guys! I hope you enjoyed my story! Obvs, I'm a huge fan of YYH, more of Yusuke and Keiko. I felt like there should be more of their relationship than what was portrayed in the anime and manga series, so I created a story of my own. And yes, my story is focused on YxK 99%.
Chapters 3 and 4 will be coming soon! Thank you for reading!