Whole Again

I cowered in fear as I felt another blow. My hand flew to my cheek, where most of the pain was. "Come back when you gain some dignity!" my father yelled at me as he literally kicked me out of the house. I rolled on the cold pathway, stopping when I hit the mail box. There was a sharp pain on my hip as I tried to move. The door closed with a slam. I tried to stand up, clinging to the fence. I surveyed myself carefully to see the extent of the damage my father caused. There was sharp pain in my hip, my stomach and my arms. I touched my cheek, and flinched. There was blood on my hand.  First one in the face, I thought. I looked at my stomach, and at the healing wound which I got last month. He stabbed me with a pocket knife because I didn't pass the basketball try-outs. My head hurt again, maybe because I haven't eaten a morsel of food for a solid week. I tried to stand up, but my foot hurt. I sprained it at the soccer practice today. My father saw me practicing at the fields, and that was why he beat me tonight. He didn't like the sport at all, for a reason he never told me. Unluckily, that was the only sport that I could play without humiliating myself. I suddenly started falling down, again. My legs were too weak to support me. "Suzuki-san!" I felt a pair of arms support me. I looked up to see the face of Aki, my neighbour and classmate. "Suzuki-san, daijobu desu ka?" she asked me frantically. I groaned in pain. She hooked my arm over her shoulder and dragged me across the road. She took me to her house. She nursed the wound on my cheek carefully, giving me an ice pack for all the bruises. She watched me as I held the ice pack over my cheek, which wasn't bleeding anymore. Somehow, I didn't understand. Aki and I weren't really close. We're neighbours and classmates, but I've rarely spoken to her. Her dark eyes watched me carefully; a look of pity crossed her face. The silence was too uncomfortable and the tension in the air was heavy. "Why are you helping me?" I asked. She flinched at my question, and blushed a bit. To admit, that was sort of cute. "I-I... heard your father..." she stuttered. Wow. She's so cute when she stutters. "Sorry you had to hear that," I apologized. "It must be painful." She whispered. I bit my lip. Her eyes were worried. "It's nothing." I said, looking away. Man, she read me so easily. My face must be giving it all away, up for grabs. "I want to know." She insisted. I clenched my fist as all the memories flashed in my mind. "Suzuki-san, don't you notice it? You're always sent to the nurse every day. The teachers are disappointed in your grades. You skip lunch... for soccer practices. There's a new bruise every day. There must be something." She explained. I sucked in a deep breath. That's a very observant comment to make. "You see... me and my brother are adopted. My mom sold us to a friend... and I never found her." I said. She nodded, signalling me to continue. "We sort of got passed around... and he took us in. It was the worst. He beat me every day... and I haven't eaten for a week... and he's fucked my brother..." the words spilled out like a waterfall. I never had the chance to explain what I was going through, not even to my best friend, Uruha. After sharing my story, I had the courage to look into her eyes again. Her eyes were cast down on the floor. "What's your story?" I asked. "H-huh?" I rolled my eyes. "You're not the only one with the info." I said. She looked troubled. "Blank record papers, reply slip with no parent's signatures... what's on?" I said. She sighed. "I... don't have parents." She blurted. My eyes widened in disbelief. "What?" was all I could say. "You heard me... I ran away from home. I kept on running away until I reached Tokyo." She explained. Wow, that must be really hard for her. "I work as a homemaker in a hotel... it's not much, but it's enough." She added. She looked really sad; it's a miracle that she held her tears back. She bit her lips hard and I pitied her. She's been through worse than I, and here I was-running away from the problem. She suddenly stood up. "I-I'll prepare your bed..." she said. "Whoa, hold up-" I said and caught her wrist. She blushed a soft pink at the contact. "You're letting me stay here?" I inquired. "Would you rather go back?" she asked. I melted. I pulled my hand back and she went away. Why was she so nice to me? I don't remember doing anything for her... moreover, being close to her. Now, she's letting me sleep at her house? For real? I must be dreaming. 

xXx---[♥]---xXx 

After that incident, Aki and I got incredibly close. She let me stay at her house when father kicked me out, we would go home from school together and I would occasionally fetch her from work. It took a lot of time, but I had developed strong feelings for her. And I hated it when Aoi would accompany her to the soccer field to fetch me. This pang of jealousy faded when Aoi told me he liked a senior. I sighed in relief at his confession and went on with my life. It drove me insane. I would hold her hand on the way home, she would occasionally lean her head on my shoulder, and I would get shivers down my spine whenever she treated my wounds. What's more insane is that I haven't found a way to confess my feelings to her. Uruha had told me different ways to tell her, but it didn't seem right. She wasn't that kind of girl that would swoon over a guy's muscles. She wasn't the type that would melt when I winked or smiled at her. She wasn't like most of the girls in school. I had to tell her directly. Sincerely. 

xXx---[♥]---xXx

It was a pretty normal day. I was being scolded by father for practicing "a rubbish sport" again. I yelled back at him, hoping to make him angry enough to kick me out. I cursed his name to the fiery pits of Hades, and prayed that he would punch me. I walked away furiously to my room when I felt something really hard hit my back. I fell to my knees in pain, and my father grabbed the hood of my jacket and dragged me out of the house. He threw me to the cold pavement and scolded me for a solid minute before disappearing into the house. Perfect, I thought. I surveyed myself, making sure that I wasn't dying. My back hurt a lot, and the bruises on my arms and stomach were throbbing. I dragged myself to the house across mine, where she would most probably be. I knocked on the door weakly. One, two three. The door opened, and a pair of worried eyes met mine. I smiled weakly and she sighed in irritation. She sat me on the floor of the small living room and pulled out a medicine kit. "What did you do this time?" she asked, handing me an ice pack. I forgot that I hit the kitchen counter with my face when father pushed me this morning. I pressed it on my cheek hard, feeling the numbness that it brought. "Soccer." I said. "Again?" she asked. She treated my bruises, her skin leaving burning trails on mine. I shrugged off my black jacket, and turned around to grab my phone out of my back pocket. I heard her gasp. "Suzuki-san..." I looked at her in confusion, and I suddenly noticed the back of my white shirt. Blood. There were blood stains all over it. "It's nothing." I defended. Man, what did my father hit me with this time? "Suzuki-san..." she whispered, tugging at my sleeve. Her pleading eyes made it hard for me to resist her unspoken request. I pulled my shirt over my head and placed it on my lap. I could feel her dainty fingers dancing near the wound. "We'd better take this to the bath room." She said. She sounded like a doctor diagnosing a patient. Anyways, we went to the bath room and she made me sit on a stool. I bent forward with my elbows on my knees, giving her a better view of my back. She gently washed it first before stitching it shut. There was a small, sharp pain every time I felt the needle jab into my skin, but I didn't care. What's important to me is that I was alone... with her. "Where did you learn all of this?" I asked, opening the conversation. "Self-learned." She answered. I bit my lip. This was the moment. "I heard Ryou had a crush on you." I said. "I heard too." She answered. My internal self was kicking my organs. "Do you like him back?" "No. I like... someone else." "Oh." Fuck. Now this was the problem. "Tell me. About... this guy you like." I said. She stayed silent for a moment before speaking again. "Well... he's in the soccer team." She answered. Oh, come on. There are, like, thirty guys in the soccer team. "Goalkeeper?" I asked. "Midfielder." She answered. That narrows it down. There are only seven in the midfielder position... including me and Uruha. "Uruha, then?" I asked. I called all the possible saints and angels to make her say... "No." she answered. Hallelujah! She chuckled a bit at my guess, and I felt her hand rub medicine on the wound. "Uruha is not my type at all... This guy... He's a really nice guy... and I've known him for some time." She explained. I fell silent. I didn't know how to respond to that. "Don't put a shirt on until morning... or it'll get infected." She reminded. I heard her close the medicine kit and walk out of the door. I followed her and we sat at the low kitchen table. "Your turn." She said. "Huh?" "Your turn. I'm sure you like someone." She explained. "O-oh... yeah..." I said, and I felt my cheeks burn under my noseband. "Well... it's kinda hard to describe her... she changed my life." I started to say. She nodded, signalling me to continue. "It's... uh... really hard to explain. I'm not good with words." I said. She laughed softly. Somehow, I liked that. "Who?" she asked. I was stunned. "What?" "Who is she? I'm dying to know." She insisted. I breathed deeply. Well, here goes nothing... 

"You."