The Stars That Guide Us ~ A Jotakak x OC fanfiction

♥ Chapter 1 ♥

"Hurry up, Nori! Your parents will be waiting for us at the restaurant!" I yelled at the bathroom door, trying to hurry my best friend since childhood, Noriaki Kakyoin.

   Nori and I have been best friends for as long as I could remember. My parents died in a tragic car accident when I was only seven years old and Nori's parents took me under their wing, knowing that is what my parents would have wanted. Nori's mom and dad were very good friends with my mom and dad years before we were born, hence why Nori and I have known each other for so long. As we grew up, our friendship got stronger until we were close to inseparable.

   Currently, we were on a month-long vacation traveling through Egypt, stopping in Cairo for a couple of nights. Tonight, was our first night in Cairo and Nori's parents suggested going out for dinner at a restaurant we had passed on our way to the hotel.

   "I'm trying, Hiroko! But my hair is the one refusing to co-operate with me tonight." Nori's voice came from the other side of the bathroom door.

   "Do you want me to help?" I offered with a soft chuckle as I leaned against the door frame and folded my arms over my chest. Nori was like a girl doing her make up and picking out an outfit when it came to his hair.

   "No, because the last time I let you do anything to my hair, you covered my entire head with braids and butterfly clips!" He exclaimed.

   I rolled my eyes. "We were kids then, Nori. Just let me help. It will be quicker," I said persuasively. Eventually, I heard the lock click, and the bathroom door slowly creaked open to reveal a rather distressed Nori sitting on the toilet seat with a slight pout, the red hair at the back of his head stuck up in all directions. I suppressed the urge to laugh at his expression and the state his hair was in. I smiled softly at the red-haired teen in front of me and walked over to him. As I stood in front of him, I ran my fingers through his hair to try and smooth it out. As I was doing this, Nori sighed in content. He always loved having his hair stroked, it was something I used to do to him when we were kids and he was upset.

   I gave his hair a final stroke, then asked, "You got any hair gel? I think the only way this is gonna stay down is if I stick some gel in it."

   "There's some in the cabinet over there and there's a comb beside the sink that you can use too," he said as he pointed to the cabinet and then to the sink. With a nod, I walked over to the cabinet and opened it. I scanned the shelves full of toiletries until I found the hair gel. I retrieved the hair gel and closed the cabinet before walking back over to Nori, picking up the comb beside the sink on the way.

   "Any particular style or the usual?" I asked as I uncapped the hair gel and scooped some of the contents onto my fingers.

   "Just the usual, thanks." Nori smiled softly at me. His smile always warmed my heart. The way his eyes sparkled could sweep a girl off her feet in an instant. How he hasn't got a girlfriend yet is beyond me.

   I nodded and started to smooth the gel onto the back of his head to keep it in place before I combed through it to tidy it a little. "What do you want done with your noodle?" I asked as I twirled the long strand of red hair that usually hangs down the side of his face around my fingers.

   "My noodle? Is that what you call it now?" Nori chuckled at the name I had given the curly strand.

   "Yeah, why not? It's curly like a noodle." I giggled.

   Nori rolled his eyes. "I'm fine with my 'noodle' the way it is," he responded.

   I let go of the strand of hair, taking a step back to look at my work. "Okay, looks good," I said with a smile. Nori stood up and stretched. "So, who're you trying to impress?" I smirked at the redhead as I stepped over to the sink to wash off the hair gel from my hands.

   Nori turned to look at me in shock, his cheeks started to go a deep shade of pink as he stuttered, "N-no one!"

   "Oh, I see, there's a chick you've met in Egypt that you want to keep secret from me, because you know full well you would need my blessing first." I giggled, grabbing the hand towel from beside the sink and dried my hands. "At least after I've interrogated her," I added as I folded the hand towel and placed it back down beside the sink.

   "I've not met a chick!" He exclaimed.

   "So, it's a guy? Wow, I never thought you swung that way, Nori. I'm not judging or any—"

   Nori interjected, "It's not a guy either! In fact, it's no one!" His voice grew a little calmer as he added, "I just wanted to look nice, that's all."

   "But you look fine just the way you are." I walked over to him and placed my hand on his shoulder. Nori sighed, looking down at me.

   "I know, it's just—" He was interrupted by the sound of glass smashing in the other room. "What the hell was that?" He asked as he gently pushed me behind him.

   "What are we gonna do, Nori?" I whispered with urgency.

   "Just stay here, I'll go investigate." He spoke softly, taking a step forward.

   I grabbed onto his wrist to stop him from going any further. "You can't go out there on your own! What if you get attacked?" I gritted my teeth, my eyes wide with fear for the redhead.

   "I can take care of myself, Hiroko. Don't worry about me." Nori looked over his shoulder before gently taking my hand and giving it a reassuring squeeze. I nodded slowly and squeezed his hand in response. Nori released my hand and turned to face the bathroom door. His shoulders raised as he took a deep breath and slowly made his way to the bathroom door on his tiptoes. I held my breath and watched his every move. The closer he got to the door, the more scared I felt for him. As he reached the door and placed his hand lightly on the doorknob, he looked over his shoulder to me and whispered, "Should anything happen to me, call the police, and stay in here. No matter what, do not leave this room, okay?"

   I grabbed my phone from my back pocket and nodded. "Please be careful," I whispered back. After a brief nod, Nori faced the door again and slowly opened it. I watched him creep out of the bathroom and scurried after him to lock the door as soon as it was closed.

   Moments passed and not a sound was heard from the other room. I was starting to feel scared. I know he told me to stay in the bathroom, but I needed to find out what was going on. I needed to make sure Nori was safe. My hand inched slowly towards the doorknob and the only thing I could hear now was my heart hammering against my chest and the blood pounding in my ears. I gulped nervously as my other hand reached for the lock. I paused for a moment to listen for any movement coming from the other room or anything to signify that it may be safe to come out. All was silent and I wasn't sure if I should take the silence as a good thing or bad thing. No matter how much I tried to concentrate on listening for anything, I was still met with silence on the other side of this door.

   "Hiroko, you can come out now. It's all clear." I released the breath I forgot I was holding as soon as I heard Nori's voice and immediately unlocked the door and swung it open.

   "Thank God you're oka—" I broke off as soon as I saw Nori towering over me. The aura he was giving off didn't feel right. "Nori, are you okay? You don't look so good." A smirk grew on his face at my question.

   "Of course, I'm fine. Come on, there's someone I would like you to meet." His voice sent chills down my spine. The warmth that normally filled Nori's voice was replaced with something cold. I searched his eyes for a sign that he was playing around with me, but all I was met with was a glazed over look without any emotion. "What're you waiting for? Come out and say hello to our guest." He stepped to one side, revealing a small old woman that was standing behind him. She looked like one of those old hags in a horror movie. Before I could say anything to the woman, Nori took my hand, causing me to look up at him. He gave me a soft smile. I returned the smile, hoping that he was reassuring me about the woman in front of us.

   Suddenly, I felt a sharp pain in my chest, and I was coughing up blood. My vision started to get blurry, and I could feel myself beginning to lose my balance, causing me to topple over. As I started to fall, I felt someone catch me. I looked up at my saviour and could vaguely make out that it was Nori that caught me. He was the last person I saw before blacking out.