School Girls' Stories

Chapter 37 – New Years Day – Part 3

Yuki was walking casually down the street when someone’s arms suddenly surrounded her waist and pulled her off her feet into a large bear hug. Strong arms surrounded her, arms she did not recognize the feel of but felt more comforted in all of the same.

“Happy New Years,” Shinwa’s voice whispered in her ear.

Yuki’s spine rang with the chills that flowed upwards. “Happy New Years,” she said in return. Shinwa placed her down on the ground, her feet flat. She turned towards him and smiled grandly at him. “How has your New Years been, Shinwa?” she asked pleasantly.

“Full of surprises,” he admitted. He pulled a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and fumbled on into his mouth.

“That’s a nasty habit,” Yuki told him, forgetting about the day she had sat there yearning for one.

Shinwa lit one end of it and took a deep inhalation of tar and smoke, then blew it up into a smoke ring. He then bent down and whispered in the same sensual whisper he had used to wish her a happy new year, “Want to know some of my other nasty habits?”

Yuki felt things low in her body begin to stir, and she was instantly angry at herself for allowing herself to feel that way. She had a boyfriend, she had the man she had dreamed of every day for years finally dating her, even if he was rough in sex he was good at so many other things, even though when he was being tender with her he usually called her Fuji, and never seemed to catch his mistake.

“Shinwa, stop playing around,” Yuki laughed, pushing him away with a little more force than she intended. She was not angry with him but with herself. She wanted Shinwa, she wanted to kiss Shinwa and spend a night cradled in his arms because he would be careful with her, but that did not mean he would love her. Kago loved her… most of the time.

“Sorry,” Shinwa laughed, his usual casual smile gracing his lips. “I just can not help myself when around you. You are just so pretty, and I love to be with you, and see your blush when you are teased.”

No one had ever called her pretty before. She had never felt particularly pretty, and compared to the women she spent her time around she was definitely a Plain Jane, yet here Shinwa was, a famous idol who should have been gracing magazine covers instead of going to school, telling her she was pretty. Yuki’s brain began to melt under the pressure of overanalyzing and for a moment she wondered if this was how Fuji felt every day of her life.

“You are teasing me,” Yuki said, brushing off the title of pretty like a fuzzy caterpillar. “You aren’t very nice, Shinwa,” she was joking, but she was also trying to cover her own feelings, wrapping them in the blanket of nonchalance.

“Always,” he said, and gently laid his lips upon hers in a chaste kiss. “I was just hoping to run into you this morning. I’ve been running into everyone else, and it was you I was looking for.”

“Oh!” Yuki exclaimed. “Who else have you run into today?”

“I ran into Shai,” Shinwa explained casually. “She looked exhausted, and very happy to be rid of me. I also ran into Kago, who was… never mind.” Shinwa began shaking his head, ready to change the subject, but Yuki intervened.

“He was what?” she asked casually. According to Kago he was going out with some of his friends to celebrate New Years in a more manly style. She hoped that was how Shinwa had found him, and at the same time her heart was hoping for scandal.

Shinwa shifted, looking like he was almost uncomfortable to be mentioning it. “It’s not a big deal,” he said. “I just saw him going into a hotel with a bunch of guys. Your sister, however, followed with Makenke later.” Shinwa looked like he regretted every moment of telling Yuki this. He sighed and reached out to hug Yuki. Yuki pulled back, not upset with Shinwa, but he had been the bearer of bad news. It hurt, somewhere inside of Yuki, it hurt, and she knew her sister enough to know that she would not just be walking into a hotel casually.

“I have to go, Shinwa,” Yuki explained, taking a few steps back. “I suddenly don’t feel so well.”

“Yuki, he would never hurt you like that,” Shinwa began, but he knew what he was saying was a lie. Kago was nothing but a manipulator who seemed to be using Yuki to his every ability.

Yuki shook her head. “I don’t know about that,” she said. She stopped stepping back, suddenly looking up at Kago with crystal clear eyes. The grey was no longer the grey of a gloomy grey, but the grey when the clouds began to disperse and make room for the sun.

“Do you want me to walk you home?” Shinwa offered, watching Yuki turn on her heels and begin to walk away.

“Not today, Shinwa,” Yuki said, hurrying along the sidewalk. Shinwa was surprised to see a little skip in her step as she ran down the streets. She turned back towards him, a smile on her face as she did. “Shinwa, if it turns out to be true, about my sister and Kago, will you be my Valentine?”

“Yuki, Valentine’s day is over a month away,” Shinwa called with a laughter that was pleasant.

“I know!” Yuki called back, stepping further and further away. “But it will take me a couple of weeks to get up the nerve to break up with my current boyfriend.”

Shinwa smiled as Yuki slowed down, waiting for his answer. “I would love to be your Valentine,” he called, causing a few awkward stares from on the streets at the two smiling goofs in high school.

“Great!” she called back. She spun on her heel and hurried home, hurting, and happy, and completely confused.


~*~


“That’s low, Mother,” snapped Fuji to the room full of staring faces. Fuji was already backing up towards the door. She did not long for a father she had never had, and in no way did Mr. Taiikuka look like Fuji. He was… Shai’s father. He was a sweet man, a man who had always looked to all of the girls like his own children, but he had never shown a particular interest in any of the girls. He never looked to have cared more for Fuji than Yuki. “How much did you pay him for this trickery?”

Mrs. Chenbaro crossed her arms over her chest and huffed. It was not an attractive feature on such a prim woman. “Fuji, this is not some lie, and I do not appreciate being accused of blackmailing someone.”

“Why not?” Fuji cried out, her arms against her chest. Mother and daughter claimed the same stance and glared at each other from across the room. “It’s true, isn’t it?”

“Fuji,” Mrs. Chenbaro nearly growled, “you are making things worse than they have to be. Shinji is your father, would you like proof? Do you want me to get your birth certificate out, the photo of him at the hospital room with you?”

“If he is,” Fuji said, her heart stammering over itself, “then why did you tell me my father is dead, and why haven’t I recognized him all of this time?” The answer was obvious to her, she understood it already, but she wanted her mom to say it. When her mother remained silent Fuji let this be known. “Say it!”

Mrs. Chenbaro’s stand began to falter. She looked to Shinji, but he offered her no hand to help. “Fuji, I forced him to leave, before you were even born. The person who was your father, who spent three years of your life with you, was another man. He was Tsukasa Chenbaro, the man who’s name you took. Shinji was the one who impregnated me with you, while he was married to helpless little Kari, who is Shai’s mother. Shows you how well they were doing, since he was -”

“I don’t want to hear about your sex life,” Fuji snapped at her mother. She was disgusted and ready to lose the contents of her stomach. “This is ridiculous.” Fuji turned to the door, her hand reached out for the handle.

“Fuji, you will not walk away from this,” snapped Mrs. Chenbaro.

“Fuji, don’t leave,” came Mr. Taiikuka’s sweet voice, the calm voice of a man the girls had always turned to when in need. “Fuji, let’s at least talk about this.”

“You’ve known,” Fuji muttered unhappily. “You’ve known all this time and didn’t say anything about it. I don’t need you in my life any more than I need that woman who claims to be my mother.” Fuji flung the door open and then walked out of the house. This was not a happy moment. This actually did nothing more than irritate her.

Fuji was halfway down the street before she heard soft running paces behind her. She slowed down, allowing those small feet to catch up with her. “I’m sorry, Fuji,” Shai apologized breathlessly, catching up to walk beside her best friend. “I didn’t know.”

Fuji sighed and stopped walking. She glared at her friend, but not with hatred or anger at the young girl, but with distaste for the situation that had been leveled in front of her. “I’m not mad at you,” she said. “I just never would have suspected we were… half-sisters. We have no alike traits; we look nothing like one another.”

“We are both great students,” Shai pointed out.

“While you play tennis, and I play a cello,” Fuji countered. “While you have hair the color of pitch and mine is a vibrant auburn. Your eyes are blue, mine are aquamarine, my nose is sharp in features, yours is soft.”

“We both have big boobs,” Shai said bluntly.

Fuji nearly tipped over. She could not believe she just heard her friend… sister, say such a thing. “I have to go, Shai,” she said, starting to walk once more. “I need to clear my mind. I am going to Amatsu’s, I will contact you as soon as I can.” Fuji ran, leaving Shai behind. Shai could have caught up to her if she tried, Fuji was right, the two had nothing in common. Fuji had all of the feminine grace of businesswoman, while Shai was the athlete who looked better in a short skirt that flowed as she ran across a tennis court. It was possible, after all not all siblings looked alike, though the Oshidori three looked very much alike, but they had the same mother and father. Shai and Fuji only shared the same father, and both girls were identical to their mothers, except that Fuji did not have Mrs. Chenbaro’s awful grimace.

Shai watched Fuji run down the street and wondered what she had done. It was her fault her father had suddenly come out and admitted his other offspring, the daughter that he had bore out of wedlock. Why had Mr. Taiikuka allowed the lie for so long, when he had seen how miserable Fuji was? Or had he seen it? Fuji was quite good at putting on a smile and just showing her good graces, did he notice her suffering, quietly?

Shai waited at the gates of the large house for her father to emerge, regretting that she had been so terribly honest.

Author Babble: You know, if anyone here does fanart, I would love to see your interrupretations of your favorite characters! I love art, and I\'m terribly bad at it, so fanart is loved!!