Bloody Lips

Jealousy

"Eto... Aki-chan... I don't understand this one..." 

I leaned across the table as he explained to me what he was having difficulty with. It was a bit complicated, and I couldn't blame him. I took my pencil and explained the process to Mao carefully. He nodded at some points, and would ask questions when he didn't understand. "Can I try?"  he asked. "Sure." I said, and handed him the text book. Our hands touched briefly when I handed him the pencil, and I felt myself blush. "Eto... Aki-chan, you're pretty good at this!~" he said. "Ah? Eh..." I was too embarassed to say anything sensible. He laughed softly and started writing. "Mao-kun," I called out softly. There was something I wanted to ask him for some time now. I was dead curious. "Mao-kun, I noticed that you were the only one of the ShiFu to interact with other students." I said. He nodded, signalling me to continue, though his hand was still busy in writing. "So... why is that?" I asked. His blue eyes looked like they were deep in thought. He scribbled a bit before speaking. "I want to belong." he answered promptly. I wasn't satisfied. "What do you mean?" I pressed as he handed me his work. "Has Kai ever told you how I became a vampire?" he asked me as I went over his work. He did it perfectly this time. "No." I answered as I handed it back to him. He sighed in relief. "You see, my... previous life wasn't happy at all." he said. I nodded, and he continued. "I was born Dhampir." he said. My head cocked to the side. "Dhampir?" I asked. "Half-human, half-vampire." he explained. I felt a small 'oh' form at my lips. "It wasn't easy, because all of the Dhampir were considered outcasts. We are product of a mortal sin that a vampire commited." he said. I could hear pain in his voice, and it reflected in his deep eyes. "So... they kind of hated me for that. They called me names. They told me that my blood was dirty and all." he continued. It must have been hard for him. He took a shaky breath before continuing his story. "It was pretty hard, growing up like that. When I had a cut, my blood would be dark red. Not black. My father was disppointed, but I never failed him in studies. I studied hard, you see. There was a lot to learn. And then, my father had trouble with finding a successor. He ran a business in the vampire world, you see. He was in charge of hunting humans, or the vampires would shrivel up and die of thirst." His eyes were far away now, and his lips curved to a bitter smile. "They didn't want me. Because of my 'dirty blood'. So I ran away from home, because of depression. My father tried to help me in the best way he can, but it all came crashing down at the word 'Dhampir'. I was 27, but I looked like 17." "Wait." I cut him. His eyes flashed to mine. "What do you mean you were 27 but you looked like 17?" I asked. He smiled. "Dhampir age, but at a very slow pace. I was late in aging by ten years." he explained. "Oh, I see... go on, then." I urged him. "So... another vampire found me. He thought I was human, and I guess he was thirsty... so he bit me, turning me to full-fledged vampire. It was incredibly painful." He flinched at the memory, and his hand ran over his scar on his neck. "I didn't want to go back. Miyavi found me, and took me to Kai. So... there. That's why I'm here." he ended, with a relieved sigh. But I wasn't going to let him stop there. There's a lot I wanted to know. "So... what can you do?" I asked. He cocked an eyebrow. "Is this an interview?" he laughed. I rolled my eyes playfully. "I tutored you in a goddamn difficult subject... at least give something back." I said. We both laughed. "Okay, okay." I heard him say between laughs. "Kai-niichan said that each one of you has a unique ability... what's yours?" I asked again. He looked out the window. My head cocked to the side. Wasn't he going to tell me? Should that be a secret?

Then, I felt it.

My heart suddenly beating so hard against my chest, my palms sweating, and my breathing starting to pick up. It was as if I was about to perform onstage with millions of people watching. As if I'm about to go bungee jumping. The same way felt when that mugger almost had me. When Miyavi tackled me down. My head kept burning with those feelings, and I couldn't understand it at first. Then, I saw Mao's eyes. They changed into a fascinating blood red, almost like Reita's. I realized that it was him who made me feel this sudden anxiety. "I control you emotions." he murmured as I felt myself slowly calm down. He smiled. "You okay?" he asked. I sighed sharply. "You..." I broke into laughter. "How can you ask that while smiling?" I asked, and he eyed me as if I were insane. Then, he joined me as we laughed softly. "Don't you know? Each member of the ShiFu stand for each original Shichi Fukujin?" he asked me. I shook my head. "Watashi wa Hotei, desu." he tried to say with a deep voice. I cracked a smile. Then he started posing like a god, which made me laugh harder. The day continued with us walking around the mansion's gardens, talking and laughing about silly things. I can't honestly remember the last time I laughed this hard. We lay down on the cool grass and watched the fluffy clouds. When night time came, we caught fireflies and lay down under the moon light. Mao was easy to be with, and that's that. "Don't trip, okay? Good night." he called to me after dinner. I laughed for what seemed like the millionth time before climbing up the stairs. I sat on my desk and started organizing my stuff for school. That's when I heard a sudden movement, and I immediately knew it was Reita. "How was your day?" he asked me. "Great." I answered, then smiled to myself. "Mao... you don't have... feelings... for him... right?" he asked with reluctance in his voice. I tried hard not to smile. He was jealous, I can see that. "Right?" he urged, his voice a bit anxious now. "No." I answered as I struggled to keep on a straight face. I heard him sigh. "Okay, then." he said, and he was gone. I smiled to myself as I lay down on my bed. Impossible. Reita was jealous... of Mao? He was kidding, right?

Right?