Gantz: The beginning

Life before Gantz.

A/N: Apologies in advance if Nishi is OOC, but I fricking love this kid, I want him to have a background! Haha.

Ps: There are recognizable scenes from the manga to which I do not own, they belong to Hiroya Oku, as do Gantz and it's characters.

There was a gap in the drapes, and Nishi turned in the bedcovers to block out the light with his arm. A hand found its way out of the duvet to turn off the alarm before it even went off; Nishi hated the sound because he didn't see it as an alarm to wake him up, but rather a warning that he had to attend school. Nishi didn't dislike school; he wanted to learn, his grades were proof of that. It was the individuals within the school he hated, every one of them. Yeah, that included the teachers. Turned out that those who were failing and never bothered studying or even cared if their grades were slipping due to their own negligence, were the ones who received the attention. 'It's not your fault,' or, 'I'm sure you did your best, it's okay.' It didn't matter if they did something wrong; the teachers would simply give them extra time because they were only 'acting out.' At the same time, they would turn a blind eye to the victims of bullying due to them being smarter, as long as they were receiving good marks, who cared, right?

This was how Nishi came to view his peers and those above them too. Respect your seniors, respect your elders, as if many of those people deserved it! Even though Nishi thought this way, it didn't stop him from continuing his education; he would not let his grades slip simply to get some kind of recognition. The day would come, he would grow up and take pleasure in watching those fail because of their own stupidity; it wasn't arrogance, it was just a fact.

Nishi swung his legs over the bed, scratching his head while trying to hand-comb his messy hair. He checked the school-bag next to his desk, making sure his books were appropriate for the lessons he had today and that his homework was ready. His school uniform hung on the closet door, so Nishi took it with him and headed to the bathroom, opening the door slowly. Nishi rolled his eyes as he stepped out of his room and shut the door; he wasn't surprised to see his dad sitting in the armchair, a glass of whiskey already in his hand.

Hearing the door behind him, Nishi's dad slightly turned his head to show some form of attention to his son. "Don't you have school?"

Nishi raised an eyebrow and suspected his dad didn't even know what time it was, but he wasn't in the mood to make a quip about his father's drinking; coming home from school with a black eye was one thing, but he would rather not go to school with one. His father hadn't hit him before, but Nishi suspected it would happen eventually because his dad had a short temper when it came to dealing with him. "Don't you have work?" Nishi snapped back before heading to the bathroom.

"I still got some leave left, so get off my case brat." Nishi glared at the back of his dad's head but kept quiet. "When you get a job and pay the bills, you can make snarky comments, until then, shut the hell up and act grateful."

Nishi stilled his hand on the doorknob and tried his best to keep the anger from his voice. "Mum pays the bills, you buy alcohol, so yes, I am grateful, but it's definitely not for you." Nishi didn't give his dad a chance to reply, and half-slammed the door shut.

Nishi shouldered his rucksack and headed for the porch to slip his shoes on.

"Get me a bottle on your way home, will ya?"

Nishi turned around with a frown on his face, glancing down at the money his dad was giving him. What made his dad think anyone would even serve him? "How about using that money for more important things, you know, like food. Or perhaps the electric bill that's two weeks overdue, the one thing she asked you to pay and you still haven't done it."