Atsuhiro Family Issues

The Walk

Denji was silent as he walked to school on his own. The streets were quiet, as usual for him, and he was glad.

He preferred the silence over yelling.

The thought ran through his head for a moment before he shook his head. "It's fine at home.." he hummed to himself calmly.

He let out a breath, looking up at the calm sky, clearing his mind as he focused on the gentle blue.

Thunk!

Denji flinched as he felt something hard hit his head and heard snickering from behind him. Frowning, he looked back to see who had thrown the hard object at his head.

Behind him stood two kids around his age with the same uniform he wore. One of the kids was male and seemed to create a stone in his hand.

"What are you doing in that uniform, Atsuhiro?" the boy called out, his voice mocking.

A sigh escaped Denji's lips and he shook his head, "I got into Yuuei, Suzuki."

His words fell on deaf ears, the boy just throwing another rock at Denji. This time, he saw it coming and dodged it, sighing.

"Aw, you missed," whined the other boy, and Suzuki just huffed.

"Please, leave me alone. I just want to get to school," Denji spoke before Suzuki could speak. He didn't wait for a response though and turned back around, continuing to walk but picking up his pace.

He heard the footsteps behind him speed up as well, and that made him uneasy. "Don't run! C'mon, face me like the villain you are!" Suzuki shouted, the other with him snickering and egging him on.

Denji shook his head, used to the insults from the other boy. "I'm not a villain," he said calmly, though it was more to himself than anything. The response he got was a laugh and he hated that.

"Not a villain? Ha! Your last name says otherwise!" mocked Suzuki, smirking as he came up next to Denji. "Honestly, how do you expect to be a hero with the identity of a villain?"

Denji frowned a bit and shook his head. He sped into a light jog, doing his best to ignore the other boy as he was followed. "Even your eyes make you look like a villain. Are those scars or birthmarks?" A laugh assaulted his ears and he shook his head more.

"Back off, Suzuki!" Denji's voice was hesitant, his anger making a small trace of electricity crackle around his finger tips. He was laughed at again as he tightened his hold on his school bag, knuckles turning white.

Suzuki wasn't done yet and kept pace with Denji. A wall of a building came up as he kept pace with Denji, and before the other could comprehend what was going on, he grabbed Denji by the collar and shoved him against the wall.

The boy gasped when his back hit the wall, Suzuki pulling him back just to slam him against the wall once more. "You really should just turn back, Atsuhiro. You could never be a hero, you're nothing but a villain!" The words were hissed to Denji, the harsh coldness in Suzuki's tone made the boy apprehensive.

Before he even had a chance to respond, a fist met his gut and he doubled over as he was let go. The crack of his knees hitting the pavement made him cringe, but he still caught the next words that were spoken. "Stay at the bottom where you belong, villain."

Denji kept his eyes focused on the ground and listened to the other walk away before picking himself up off the ground. He held his stomach and took a breath. His back and shoulder blades ached, as did his stomach but he shook it off and continued forward.

"That's an amazing way to start the day."

He hated the sarcasm in his voice, but he couldn't help it. Denji shook his head and ran a hand through his hair and continued forward, only having to walk a little ways more.

The morning was starting up for the city and he could see other kids his age and older walking to school as well. Denji was careful to avoid those on the streets, walking the rest of the way to his school silently. The words from the already long morning ran through his head and he had a hard time ignoring them, but he shook his head more as he walked on.

Within a few more minutes, Denji was at the Yuuei entrance and he had to pause a moment. His brown eyes glanced around the the entrance, watching as other students walked onto the school grounds. "I'm really here," he breathed out, amazement filling his being. Despite the hard morning, he felt a new surge of energy as he took a step forward and entered the Yuuei school grounds.

He walked carefully, glancing around and watching as other kids met up with friends and chatted amongst others. Denji felt a little estranged around the kids, but was excited nonetheless. Smiling to himself, he let his gaze fall to his feet as he walked, paying careful attention to what was around him as he did so.

Without any more complications, the boy looked up and faced the school once more. A silent smile tugged at his lips as he stepped into Yuuei Academy.