Halcyon Days (Reira)

[Kazuya Hikari]

Kazuya stood inside an empty classroom, as he stared out the window, rain combined with wind battered against the window, drops of water running down the glass pane. Casually shoving his hands into the pockets of his dress pants, Kazuya wanted a quiet place to muse, and since there weren't that many students around, since it was the end of the day and most had gone home or lived on campus and had gone back to their rooms, he had hung back inside the classroom his last class for the day had been in, since he had been sitting in the very back in the farthest corner desk.

As a result, no one noticed he hadn't left and was still inside the classroom. Watching the rain fall, Kazuya felt a sharp pain pierce him, as he clutched at his chest with his left hand, the burn on his chest was still healing. Kazuya let out a barely audible gasp of air from the sharp pain, a look of agony on his face, he continued to clutch at his chest, as beads of sweat ran down his face, his burn throbbed underneath the bandages wrapped around his upper body.

[Reira]

Blargh. Rainy days. Reira didn't exactly like rainy days. It was fine when it's just a drizzle and when the sun is out along with it, but this wet, windy day wasn't exactly Reira's favorite type of weather. The rain, the mud, the hassle, just made her feel irritated and angry. And that was just how she was feeling right now. Irritated! She couldn't get home cause she forgot her umbrella and she did not want to walk to the bus stop that was two blocks away in her favorite gunmental colored leather jacket. So, here she was walking around the nearly empty school hoping for the rain to pass soon. On another note... she was walking around hoping to steal someone's umbrella too...

Then again, she was just dying for someone to say something like "You may position yourself under my water protective canopy" or something cheesy and nerdy like that! It'll be hilarious but for the time being, she would be wandering. She noticed a classroom that was unlocked with it's door flung open and she entered it hoping to find an umbrella somewhere until she saw a figure in her peripherals.

omg ghost?

Reira quickly turned to face the shadowy figure. It was then she realized that it was a boy and that he was clutching his chest...she quickly walked over and glanced at him, wondering what was wrong, until she saw his expression.

"Hey...are okay...? Let's take you to the nurses' office..."

[Kazuya Hikari]

"...?" Kazuya turned to face the direction the voice came from, as he saw a girl standing near him. "... Who're you? I didn't think anyone would still be here, were you looking for something?" Kazuya asked, his back facing her slightly as he continued to clutch at his chest, trying to hide the fact he was in a bit of pain, as beads of sweat ran down his face, he saw her glance at him and ask him if he was okay. "It's nothing. Really." Kazuya replied back nervously, as he backed away and started to disappear into the shadows, gesturing with his right hand nervously, his left hand still clutching at his chest. "P-Please! I'll be alright!" A brief flash then appeared out of nowhere, followed by a loud rumble and... the lights went out.

Great. Just great. It must've been that thunder storm he heard the weather guy talk about this morning on the news. Kazuya had never been afraid of the dark or lightning and thunder, nor was he afraid of it now. The gray clouds already making the day dark as it was, the lights going out sure didn't help, as the classroom was completely cast into darkness, the only source of light the occasional flash of lightning that illuminated the room up, followed by the crash of thunder. Wind howled outside, as rain pelted the window, it sounded like the thunder storm wasn't going to stop anytime soon.

[Reira]

Reira ignored his question about why she was here or if she was looking for something. He hit it bang on but she wasn't exactly in the mood to answer him. The shitty weather just didn't sit well with her and yes, she was grumpy and she didn't like it when people didn't listen to her even if it was someone she just met, or saw for this situation. The guy was clearly in pain and he didn't want help? Reira wasn't a nice girl exactly but she also wasn't the type to just leave some poor guy there.

"P-Please! I'll be alright"

THe boy sunk into the corner of the room, hiding away in the shadows and Reira was getting more and more impatient by the minute. She went to reach out and grab the guy by his arm and the moment she suceeded the lights went out and thunder clapped outside. Reira was definitely regretting not watching the news this morning or checking out Yahoo for the weather or something. Reira wasn't exactly afraid of the dark but thunderstorms unnerved her a bit.

"Hey, you, where are you? If you don't say anything I'm going to call the ambulance. You're clearly hurt and I don't want to waste my time here babysitting you..." Reira'd say with a stern voice, the same voice you'd hear from your mother or older sister, "I don't like the dark so, you better make this easier for me."

Yeah, she said it, she didn't like it, not one bit. Or perhaps it was just a ploy to get the guy up and going.

[Kazuya Hikari]

Before Kazuya could move backwards any further into the shadows, he felt his felt his right hand being grabbed, stopping him from moving back. "!" Kazuya looked down at the girl in surprise, his left hand held lightly against his chest. ? He could feel his right hand shake slightly as the girl held onto his hand. And then the lights went out. "... My name's Kazuya." Kazuya replied, his burn still throbbing slightly, the stern tone in her voice not intimidating him the slightest, since he had heard Kyoko speak to him in the same tone of voice many times before, but only because she cared about and was worried about him.

"What's wrong?" Kazuya asked, as he looked down at her, a bit of concern in his eyes. The last thing Kazuya wanted to do was make her worried, and although Kazuya's true nature was an emotionless, detached person, he couldn't help but care about this girl, even though he knew basically nothing about her, for some reason. Another loud clap of thunder boomed outside, though this one was even louder, as Kazuya felt the floor shake slightly beneath his feet. "You don't need to worry about me. Did something happen? Did someone you knew before... get injured?"

[Reira]

Kazuya, eh?

Well, Kazu had manners and was polite enough to introduce himself but Reira wasn't interested. She just wanted to get out of here, or at least to some place that had the emergency lighting created by the generators. A boy and a girl alone in the dark isn't exactly all that comforting. Reira was feeling a little wary of the whole situation, besides if he tried anything, she was confident that she could fend for herself. Or that was what she thought.

He asked what was wrong and if she knew someone that was injured. How ironic was that. It wasn't as though she knew someone that was injured before...more like they died. And Ironically, she was the one that suffered this raw injury. A wound that never healed, and only continues to be ripped open whenever she goes home, or encounters members of her family.

"I'm not worried. I just don't want my conscience weighing down on my when I find out tomorrow that a male student was found dead in an empty classroom after a storm!" she'd say angrily as her grip on his arm tightened.

Maybe he was right, she was worried, but she didn't know that, she refused to care. People don't care for one another, there were always ulterior motives that influenced their actions no matter what gender. Guys just wanted to get with her, and girls just wanted to have her looks and smarts.

It frustrated her.

[Kazuya Hikari]

Kazuya's eyes flared in mild surprise as he felt the girl's grip on his arm tighten. ... The hell? Do you have a busy social calender or something? "... If I dropped dead every time I was injured, I'd be a medical miracle. That, or a ghost." Alex replied nonchalantly, contrary to what the girl thought, getting with her was the last thing on Alex's mind. Alex possessed a high intellect, but when it came to the opposite sex, he was pretty stupid. That, and he didn't care much about romance. The pain now a dull throb, Alex shifted his gaze and looked out the window, the thunder storm had stopped. "... Do you have an umbrella?" Alex asked as he turned to look back at the girl, there weren't that many reasons as to why someone would still be in the school on a rainy day, either they had a club, or they forgot their umbrella, and was hoping the rain would stop.

And considering it was still raining pretty heavily outside, Alex doubted the latter would occur. "... If you need one, I'll share mine." Alex said, as he casually shrugged his shoulders, she could accept or refuse, he didn't care much either way. He had zero ulterior motive behind his offer, he was just going with logic. It was raining, he had an umbrella, she looked like she didn't have one or forgot hers, how more logical could he get? Shifting his arm out of the girl's grip, Alex grabbed his book bag from on top of the desk and picked up his umbrella off the floor, it was large enough to keep two people quite dry from the rain. He then headed out of the classroom, as he disappeared from view. "... You coming or not?" His voice drifted back into the classroom, as he walked towards the school entrance at a casual, almost lazy pace, giving the girl a chance to catch up if she chose to go with him.

[Reira]

Yeah, this guy has issues. One minute he was in pain and all nice and stuff, the next he was giving her attitude. Not that she was saying it wasn't fair or anything, afterall she wasn't being very nice either. Reira rolled her eyes, not caring if he saw it or not as he shook his arm loosening her grip on it. It was all good if he wanted her to let go, she was more than happy to. Wasn't as if she wanted to touch him or anything. Now that he wasn't in pain, her duty was over and she should just go home.

"... Do you have an umbrella?"

Reira crossed her arms over her chest and looked out the window. It was still dreary and the rain was still heavy. She shook her head signalling that she did not have one. Why did he ask anyway...?

"... If you need one, I'll share mine."

Oh.

What a 'nice' guy. She wasn't sure she wanted to be under the same umbrella as him. Reira was grumpy and giving people attitude, and she didn't feel guilty about it at all! At least, she wasn't planning on letting him know. Things were weird with her, you'd never know if she means it or if she's faking it, unless you know her well.

"... You coming or not?"

"No, because if we go out now we might get hit by lightning...." she'd say as she'd sit on top of a desk. "Besides, aren't you injured, you shouldn't be trapezing around school like that."

[Kazuya Hikari]

Kazuya ignored the girl as she rolled her eyes, it honestly didn't bother him what she thought of him, she could think of him as a jerk and rude as much as she wanted. That, and he didn't care all that much about what other people's opinions of him were. His arm now free of her grip, he proceeded to place his hands in his pockets, as he saw her shake her head, at least she answered his question. And to be honest, he wasn't exactly thrilled with sharing his umbrella with a girl that had attitude, and was grumpy on top of that. That really made his day. Not. He proceeded to head out of the classroom, but not before calling back behind him. "... Tch. Did you forgot that the school is locked at 4:30pm, and look at the time, it's nearly 4:30. Besides, the thunder storm stopped, I don't hear any more rumbling, though I do hear a lot of rain."

Kazuya continued down the hallway, towards the door. "... Is that inconvenient for you? My injury is still healing, that's all." Once he reached the door, he pushed it open, and proceeded to open his umbrella. He wasn't going to wait around until it was most convenient for her to go, he didn't have all the time in world, and he was no one's slave. "... Unless you're planning to stay overnight in the school, you might want to get a move on." He was only suggesting, whether she actually decided to take his suggestion or not, was completely up to her. But it was a little wake-up call telling her that he was going home either way... and taking the only umbrella in the entire school, his umbrella, with him. The door closed with a clack behind Kazuya, as he started to walk into the heavy rain, his umbrella keeping him dry.

[Reira]

School? Locked by 4:30? What kind of school is this? What the hell, that's an early time to be locked up at. That was retarded, back in Boston, it was open until 9pm at the earliest! Or maybe it was because she just had so much to do afterschool and all the clubs she was involved in took place in the late evenings. Either way, Reira was not too happy with the whole situation but she begrudingly followed after Kazuya, out of the classroom and out of the school.

She watched as he walked out with his umbrella. He was probably mocking her now, all dry and snug under that stupid canopy of water-resistant material! Reira stood under the protective shelter that protruded from the main entrance of the school while she just crossed her arms there and sulked at the thought, until of course she saw a car pull up near the entrance. It was familiar, and she wasn't going to be happy anytime soon after this. If only school was opened later, she'd stay here until night. Reira didn't want to go home.

She really didn't want to go home.

A man in a black business suit walked out of the car with a large umbrella. He had a furious look on his face and he was making his way across the schoolyard. By the time he passed Kazu, Reira began to step out in the rain and ran in the opposite direction, as a look of pure terror replaced her arrogant and prissy expression. By this time, Reira didn't care about her jacket getting ruined, it was either bruises in the morning, or a wet jacket. She'd rather have a wet jacket.

"Get back here." he snarled as he reached out and grabbed her wrist and pulled her violently into his grasp. "It's time for you to go home, don't you think? Your mom is worried sick, young lady."

This boyfriend of her mom sounded nice, but he was a mean. Big and mean! Everyone has heard of those scary step mothers but here's a scary stepfather for you.

"Let me go!" Reira said her eyes wide with fear, she didn't want to go back with him.

[Kazuya Hikari]

I know, it sounds ridiculous, a school locking up at 4:30pm, even Kazuya thought it was retarded, but he was only a student, not part of the school board, he didn't make the rules. As soon as he walked out of the school, he opened his umbrella up and walked into the rain, and even though he had been curt towards her, he had no intention of mocking her. With the rain falling heavily, Kazuya didn't hear the sound of a car pulling up beside him, but he sure did see it, as a furious looking man with a large umbrella climbed out of the car and stomped past Kazuya, who turned his head to look behind him, cocking an eyebrow at the man's back, somebody woke up on the wrong side of the bed. He then turned back and was about to continue on his way, when a familiar and not to mention LOUD female voice was heard behind him, across the courtyard. Kazuya turned around, as his brows furrowed in confusion. What the hell? The man in the business suit that had stomped past Kazuya in a furious rage was with the girl with attitude he had met just now, and was taking her back to the car, out of the rain, which was all well and good... except for the fact that the girl was completely frightened.

Kazuya debated whether to mind his own business, or be a hero and save her. "..." Making sure the man was distracted and he was out of his line of vision, Kazuya ran right for the man, once he was close enough, he launched a powerful roundhouse kick at the man's side, as the man howled in pain from the kick, letting go of the girl's wrist in the process. "Don't just stand there, run!" Kazuya shouted as he took hold of the girl's wrist, and pulled her along behind him, as he ran across the courtyard and through the school entrance as he heard the man shout and a door slam, followed by the roar of an engine and squealing tires. He headed towards Marina Station, he rode the monorail from his apartment to get to school, and got off there. Not caring that he was getting wet from the rain, Kazuya ran through the station entrance and up the stairs to the platform just as the monorail pulled in, and ran into the car just as the doors closed shut behind the girl. He heard dull thumps as he saw the man pound his fists furiously against the door, but it was a waste of effort, as the monorail pulled out of the station, heading towards Oceanside Station, located near his apartment. Collapsing into a seat, Kazuya could finally catch his breath... after running a 100-metre dash! "Next... time... call... a taxi..."

[Reira]

Reira felt her arm tear off by the time they reached the school entrance. All the resisting was making her arm sore. But it was not exactly Reira's main concern, after all she was more focused on the fact that she was being dragged off by the man that's going to hurt her when they get home. The whole process was full of 'let me go' and cuss words, but lets not get into the nitty gritty details, because what came next was a shock to both Reira and her possible future step dad.

Bam.

A roundhouse kick to the side.

Reira felt herself jerk to the side until the man let go of her wrist. Her eyes widened as a soft thud and a splash of water and mud came flying up. Reira stared, everything happened so fast she didn't know what went on until she heard Kazu's voice call out to her. By that time, the man was already recuperating from the hit and was getting up!

"Don't just stand there, run!"

Right. Evil man. Man down. Gotta run.

Reira nodded and before she knew it her wrist was taken a hold of again, but thankfully this time not by the man but Kazu. Just because she didn't have a good impression of him didn't mean she was hating on him now, he just did her a big favor. They ran and ran, and Reira was dragged along, as she stumbled behind him. She wasn't as fast and his grip on her was strong. Kazu didn't leave room for them to catch a breath. Reira's vision was blurred by the intense running and the wind and rain that pounded her face.

They made it to the station and they quickly made their steps into the train, and with one last step the doors closed just behind them leaving the man pounding on the doors. Reira turned around and gave him a triumphant smile before she too collapsed on the seat next to Kazu.

"Next... time... call... a taxi..."

Reira's looked up at the train's ceiling, people were staring at them, she could feel their stares but she wasn't going to let that stop her from laughing. A few giggles escaped her lips before she wiped a tear from her eyes. It was an emotional experience. She drew in ragged breaths as she tried to catch her breath in the midst of giggles.

"Now that, was intense..." Reira would say as she'd turn to look at Kazu. "Thank you...really."

This time she actually meant it, and she was being nice about it.

[Kazuya Hikari]

"Don't... mention it... Let's never do it again..." Kazuya managed to say in between breaths, as water dripped off his front hair, he was completely soaked, and it was probably more trouble than it was worth, but he didn't regret what he did. A pool of water accumulated beneath Kazuya's shoes from all the water that dripped off his clothes, as he ignored the people that stared at them, it was like they had never seen a guy and a girl completely soaked, it was raining outside after all. Running a hand through his completely wet hair, Kazuya let out a barely audible sigh. "Attention passengers, we sincerely apologize for any inconvenience caused by the delay. Next stop is ..." As the monorail continued to head towards the station, it steadily grew darker and darker outside. "... Sorry if I... gripped your wrist too tightly during our sprint..." Kazuya said simply, as he casually shrugged his shoulders.

Just because he didn't have a good impression of the girl either, didn't mean he was going to be a complete jerk towards her. The monorail then pulled into the station, the platform completely empty, as the doors opened. "Oceanside. Oceanside. This is the final train out for Marina Station. Please make sure you board in time for departure." Kazuya grabbed the girl's wrist once more, but this time, with surprising gentleness, as he walked out of the train. As the doors closed behind him, Kazuya gently pulled the girl beside him, instead of dragging her along behind him. He then headed out of the station, and onto the sidewalk, as he released the girl's wrist and opened his umbrella up, making sure the both of them were covered from the rain, he began to walk to his apartment.

[Reira]

Yep.

They were soaked. Reira just took off her leather jacket and shook off as much water as she could before slipping the jacket back on. Her long brown locks ruined the effort though since they were soaked through and now dripping onto her supposedly medium washed jeans that were now super dark and sticking to her legs. Ew- not very comfortable. But all was good because she was away from the evil man!

"... Sorry if I... gripped your wrist too tightly during our sprint..."

Reira looked down towards her wrist. It was then that she realized that there was a dull throbbing pain. She ignored it earlier, as it was the least of her concerns the time. But now looking at it, it was slightly bruised and it looked as though there were invisible fingers still holding her wrist tightly. It was guna hurt, but she didn't complain.

"No worries, you were just trying to save me, s'all good."

It was then that they arrived at the terminal station at Oceanside. Reira never been here before but it seemed as though Kazuya knew where they were going. As long as he knew and was still willing to help her out here she wasn't going to complain or give him attitude. He pretty much just saved her ass, so she wasn't going to be a complete jerk-stuck-up-evil-girl- or whatever you'd like to call her- to him. Kazuya returned his grip on her wrist, but this time the other one and it was different from before as it was extremely gentle. Perhaps he had noticed the bruising on the other one.

Once they got to the sidewalk he'd release his grip and open his umbrella to shield them from the rain, even though they were already soaked. Reira raised her hand and gave his shoulder a light squeeze to get his attention and to show him her gratitude.

"Hey, I'm sorry for being so...ugh.. unreasonable, I just... wasn't having a good day dealing with that guy you saw and all...just- ah- I'm really sorry...and you know, um, thanks. A lot. I mean it." she'd say as she'd release her hand from his shoulder. "I don't think I introduced myself either...I'm Reira, and I'm extremely grateful for what you did Kazuya."

[Kazuya Hikari]

At this point, Kazuya didn't care as some of the water the girl shook off her jacket landed on him, he was completely soaked, what were a few friggin' drops of water anyways? "..." At least she wasn't mad that he accidentally bruised her wrist, not like he did it on purpose. They then arrived at the terminal station, as Kazuya walked out of the train gently holding the girl's other wrist in his free hand, making sure that she, more than anything, wasn't separated from him and got lost, especially in an area of the city that she had never been to before. Once they got out of the station, he released her and opened his umbrella, even though they were already soaked, but honestly, he wasn't keen on getting a cold. As he headed down the sidewalk, he felt his shoulder being squeezed lightly, catching his attention, as he turned his head and looked down over at the girl. "..." As he felt her release his shoulder, his eyes flared briefly in surprise.

She had the same name as his other best friend from St. Paragon's, she even resembled Reira a bit, both of them had brown hair, though her eye color was different, the Reira he knew had cerulean colored eyes, while this Reira had honey brown eyes. "... It's fine, besides, I didn't like that guy, he deserved a swift kick to his ass, he should be thankful I only kicked his side." Kazuya said simply, as he stopped at the curb, waiting for the light to turn green, once it did, he stepped off the curb and crossed the road, continuing to head down the sidewalk. A few minutes later, he reached the dorm, as he unlocked the door and pulled it open, letting Reira go in first, as he shook the water off his umbrella and closed his umbrella before following in after her, and closed the door behind him. "... The bathroom is down the hall, to your left. My room is the last room on the right, if you need anything, just let me know." Heading down through the hall, Kazuya went into his room, as he deposited his bag on the floor, before pulling off his wet clothes, leaving him in just a pair of boxer shorts.