Love, Hate, and The Bridges Between

Chapter 3

"Shirai Rin?" the boy half questioned, as he began to walk toward the four gathered at the table.

"Y-yea..." she stuttered, "My name is Rin..."

Rin took note of his height—he was slightly taller than Toru. His shoulders seemed broader, too. His hair was longer than most, though instead of growing down to his nape, his grew around, making his hair a bit puffy. It was long enough to cover just below the bags of his eyes but out of the way so she could see both his eyes. A jaded green could be seen in his eyes, filled with boredom and blasé. The longer you looked, the more intimidating his glare began to be.

Quickly fixing her gaze down to avoid staring too long, she glanced at his uniform, which matched hers and Toru's. A simple brown blazer accompanied by a white-collar shirt, with a red tie that tucked in nicely under the blazer. The red tie around his neck made Rin realize he was a second year, too.

"What's yours?" she asked shakily, still focused down to the ground.

"Kaede Haru," he replied, his deep voice bellowing in his throat.

Rin felt her toes curl inside her shoes. His voice entranced her in a maze of emotion. It was almost melodic in a way. The way it filled the room with a warmth that calmed the heart and the way it spoke of a story through only the mention of his name. Rin couldn't help but feel intrigued. However, the way he spoke gave off a scent of loneliness, too. 

"I think I might have something you're looking for," he reached into his pocket, interrupting Rin's train of thought. He pulled out a hard plastic card that sat perfectly between his middle and index finger, in perfect condition.

"You can't mean-" Rin's eyes returned to their glorious glow as she clasped the boy's hand in delight. "Where did you find it?"

"H-hey don't don't do that..." Haru said, flustered, as he jolted back. "It's yours isn't it? I was going to drop it off at the faculty room but I was worried about some creep coming in trying to grab it. You dropped it back when you ran into me this morning."

"This morning?" Rin inquired to herself, before realizing her little encounter with who she hadn't acknowledged was Haru earlier in the day. "I-I'm so sorry about that!" She blurted, her cheeks turning a bright red.

"It seems our little escapade ends early," Hishiro remarked, still sitting at the table. "I'm glad this didn't turn out to be too big of a deal."

"Right," Toru nodded in agreement.

"Speaking of which," the lady paused, her chin hoisted in her hand, putting an elbow onto the table. "You're early, Haru. No clubs today?"

"No," Haru answered, still preoccupied with the embarrassed girl that was conjoined to his hand. "Didn't have anything to do, so I went straight to the shop."

"Do you two know each other?" Hishiro asked, "I'm a little curious why you two seem so familiar."

"Oh, pardon me," the lady replied as she cleared her throat. "I am Kaede Yuno. This is my son, as you all have just met."

Everyone's eyes widened in disbelief, though in hindsight it seemed quite obvious. Both shared very distinct facial structures and sported nearly the same set of eyes. Haru's seemed more jaded and dark because of his intimidating nature, though. The only major difference between the two was the stark contrast of their hair. Haru had ash-like black hair while his mother's was a gentle snow white.

"What's up with the hair then? Father side?" Hishiro asked again as he read the room for the question on everyone's mind.

"Yea. My dad's hair was exactly like mine," Haru answered solemnly, "even the way it grew out was like mine." He winced as he spoke, visually uncomfortable, at the mention of his father.