BEFORE READING: Please take note that from the prologue until the second latest chapter, there may be some changes to be made. I've committed a mistake of not portraying the educational system in a university correctly, but nonetheless, the changes will not be major as it does not affect the plot greatly. Thank you.

FULL SUMMARY:

In this universe, everyone was born into the world with a mark of a single flower bud imprinted on their body. It was foretold that by the time a person meets their soulmate, the bud would then begin to bloom and then, from that moment onward, every single interaction of theirs would make an impact on the bud.

Hinata Shoyo was born into the world with not one but two flower buds of different colors, blue and orange, on his collarbone.

"Who?"

"That guy over there, standing under the tree! Do you know him?"

"Hinata."

"What?"

"No one is standing there."

"Mom, what is this mark?"

One day, a child directed his mother's hand to the enigma placed on his collar, brushing it softly against the skin where the mark was implanted. His eyes, a remarkable shade of amber, had lightened up due to sheer excitement, and the smile worn matched with the nest of his vibrant colored hair. It was natural, for him being a child and one so young, his curiosity would always be at the peak. Each day, he'd load numerous sets of questions at his mother and some sounded even ridiculous. This was one of those days.

Yet, his mother was kind enough to be patient, satisfying the little one by giving him her answers in a calming tone. "Oh, this mark?" She smiled, a finger gently tracing about the imprinted buds, and Shoyo could merely breathe out a laughter in response. He nods, nonetheless, his chin by then tilting up further as he continued to grin from ear to ear.

"This is a soulmate mark, Shoyo."

He perked up, curiosity now highlighting his features as he watched his mother moved about without much effort. Soulmate? That was a word he never once heard, and so, he asked for one more time. "What's a soulmate?"

"A soulmate..." Shoyo could tell, his mother was fumbling around in search for proper words to give an easily understandable explanation for a child. In exchange for dealing with his countless questions, he waited for her answer which was quite hard for him, a bit jarring, but that was due to the fact that Shoyo was not one of the most patient children.

"They're— they're someone who you can spend your whole life with." She finally said, easing him with his little to none patience. "They're someone who you will love with forever." Then that clicked a familiar image in his head.

"Oh! Like you and dad? Does that mean you both also have a mark?" His mother nodded at the question with another one of her warm smiles. "We do. But you," She proceeded to say, caressing a thumb against his cheeks, "You have a very special mark."

"I do?"

"You do."

Hinata Shoyo, a child of naivety and figurative sunshine, didn't hesitate in believing what his mother has said. He was special, he believed that he was.

For how long he could remember, Shoyo had a mark imprinted on the patch of his collarbone since birth. As made ascertained by his mother, his mark definitely was unique for every time someone managed a glimpse of his mark, they'd surely tell him that it was beautiful without missing a beat— and he wouldn't agree more. Said mark consisted of not only one but two flower buds with their veins interlaced on his skin. They varied from each other vastly in terms of colors; one being a brilliant color of an oceanic hue and the other being a lovely shade of an apricot. By special, he supposed that it was a form of a blessing.

They may have yet to grow, but it was a clear indication that his encounter with his supposedly soulmate continued to remain at the ticking hands of the clock away. Shoyo couldn't wait to see them grow, but at the meantime, he was scared. How was his soulmate like, he wondered? Would they be kind? How would they look like?

However, that wasn't what mostly bothered him. What bothered him the most was how so often he had to hear the hushed words of amazement and envy along with judging glances being thrown at his way.

He never expected that this blessing soon became a curse.

Out of spite, few rumors had ignited about him and the consequences he was left to deal with the whispers made behind his back. Shoyo remained to have faithful friends, albeit lacking in numbers, they were the ones who would help standing up for him and honestly, he could never thank them enough.

"I don't get why do they have to start rumors about me..."

"You know what they say about haters. They're just jealous of you."

Shoyo immediately nodded with them in agreement.

It was during the prime time in his elementary school when Shoyo found a resolution by covering the mark. Scarves did a plentiful job, despite it arousing suspicions from both his household and his teachers. If questioned, he would only brush them off by saying that he felt cold even under the scorching hot weather. So long as he doesn't have to encounter the unpleasant experience of being stared at again, he was fine with this.

It didn't stop the rumors though, but of course, as this was Hinata Shoyo and being Hinata Shoyo, he wasn't one to back down so easily. There were no smart comebacks made along the way but the redhead would more often than not make up for it by trying to defend himself at the very least.

And so, years flew by and Shoyo grew up to become fascinated with sculpture.

The fascination started with a project conducted during arts class. Throughout the whole procedure, Shoyo found that, although complicated, the process of sculpting various objects were fun. With these dainty hands, small might they be, he discovered that his talents lied in having a few tools wedged in their grip and carving materials such as wood. He had a vague idea of what he'd like his career choice to be since then.

It took time, but after several considerations and matters needed to be handled, it was only recently when a university, which offered him a Sculpture Course that he was extensively interested in, sent him a letter of acceptance. The decision was made by then. He was going to move away from his home— away and far from his family and childhood friends.

Who would have known that the airport could be this cold? Certainly not him; after all, this was his first time being in one which in return concluded that this was his first departure flight. It was early in the morning, and therefore, it'd be understandable why he was wearing a coat and a scarf, an arm hooked around himself in attempt of warming himself up. He stands nearby a vending machine, perching against one of the railings with a hot cup of chocolate stirring in his hold as he took a few sips.

"He's nervous." A familiar voice disrupted his train of thoughts and instantly, Shoyo turned only to smile at the sight of his two childhood friends.

"Don't tell me that you're planning to back out when you've gone through all the hard work to get here." Izumi teased.

"I'm— I'm not!" He tried to defend himself. Keyword being tried. It was an automatic response, purely out of instincts like how he often did when it calmed down to objecting rumors except that this time, it wasn't a lie. His cheeks felt on fire, it must be red, but if Shoyo had any statement in this, it'd be due to the cold and definitely not because of is embarrassment.

"He definitely is." Koji retaliated, earning a groan from the ginger-head.

"I told you, I'm not." He was whining right now, pouting slightly at both his friends as they grinned at him. But they're not wrong; Shoyo is nervous.In fact, he had spent the last few days being all fidgety and anxious in thinking about the day which was today. His stomach boiled with the familiar sensation of flutters, and he was visibly trembling even in his thick layers of clothes that ought to keep him warm. This is probably going to sound cheesy, but he eventually find that there was nothing more that could keep him warm than the thought of being at home.

Home, his heart ached, a place where his heart lies within the arms of his family and friends. He's going to have to leave them behind for a while.

"— I'm going to miss you all." He suddenly spoke up, capturing his friends' attention. They stared at one another, letting their emotions to speak through their heated gazes under the silence filled of whirred air conditioners. Then they broke into a smile.

As peaceful as the tranquility is, it didn't last for long when another familiar voice— a child— shrieked and running towards him. "Brother!"

Arms pried open, Shoyo found himself in an undeniably tight grip as he effortlessly picked up the said child. Yet he filed no complaints, simply flashed a smile as his arms glided around his younger sibling to return the embrace.

"Natsu." He grinned, looking down at her. On the other hand, Natsu was busy trying to settle herself in for a comfortable position while she was held up by her brother. She stopped squirming at some point, glancing upwards to meet the gaze of her brother's before hastily burying her face against his shoulder. Shoyo frowned at seeing this.

"... How long will you be there?" He heard her muffling into his shoulder, the little hands at the back of his neck squeezing only bit more. It hurts, but he was willing to feign that he was okay because he doesn't want to make Natsu more sad than she already was.

"Only for a while." He answered, a bit reluctant in his answers. "I'm going there to continue my studies."

"Will you come back?" It was an innocent question, he knew but it still took him by surprise. His eyes trailed downward, uncertain of what to expect but the sight of his sister with tears pooled at the corner of her eyes shattered a bit more of his aching here. It'd be a valid statement to say that Shoyo had not known what to do nor speak what kind of words in order to comfort his sister. After all this was different than the times he ever comforted her. This was different compared to the times where he comforted her at night after she experienced a nightmare or whenever she fell ill and was forced to stay in bed. He almost feels guilty somehow for putting her into this situation.

"Hey." He started with a soft voice, crouching down slowly to put her on the ground. No words were exchanged them for a while, but that was only because Shoyo busied himself in wiping away the tears his sister wept. He tried to consult her, he really did but even he was on the edge of being emotional. He wasn't going to see Natsu for a long while. "You shouldn't cry. When I come back, we can play together for as much as you want then. I promise."

This seemed to have stopped her sobs, and that should be more than enough. He waited, getting a little bit impatient when Natsu didn't reply but his eyes grew soft when he sees Natsu peeking behind from the small fists she raised. "Promise?" Shoyo couldn't resist. He pulled her in, hugging more tightly with the words of "I promise." flowing out of his mouth. He's going to miss this, he thinks, he's going to miss spending time together with his little sister.

'Attention to all passengers of flight 10 with the destination heading towards Kyoto, Japan.' The announcement rang throughout the airport. 'The departure gate is now open for boarding, please proceed to the gate now.'

"Shoyo. That's your flight."

He turned, coming face to face with his parents who wore a proud smile laced with a tinge of sadness. He supposed that it was normal, they won't be seeing his son for about four years if not more. Shoyo opted to remain optimistic, nonetheless. He's going to be gone for only four years anyway, he's sure that it'll seem like everything had passed by in a blink of an eye.

"I'll come back to visit you all for Christmas, kay?" He gives his parents a tight hug before taking a couple of steps back.

Then he takes in a deep breath, thrusting the warm cup of chocolate lightly to Koji before one of his hands find its way to take hold of his light luggage, the wheels waiting to be rolled away. He hasn't even made a step yet but already, he was bombarded by farewell wishes and waving gestures.

"Be safe, Shoyo."

"Make sure come back in one piece!"

"Have fun!"

Shoyo didn't hesitate to take the warmhearted sight in for as much as he liked.

Soon, he was off, his feet taking the lead of where he was going as he waved goodbye to his significant others. His heart was thrumming heavily against his chest in anticipation, and he was feeling so many things at once; excitement, a sense of freedom, and sadness. In that single moment, he briefly wondered about what the future hold in store for him.

Travelling alone, so far, hadn't been relatively easy. Not when you don't look like your age. Literally.

Shoyo, obviously, was no longer a child, he long ventured further into the mid stages of puberty as he's nearly twenty of age. Even so, his childish features were still retained, and the fact that his height is short and he hit a growth spurt didn't help much. The truth is, he could easily be mistaken as a child no older than twelve and he could be treated as one.

He's mumbling, but he knows how to restrain himself as he lent the cab driver the exact amount of money that he needed to pay from the pocket after driving him to the university where he applied for. The cab drives away, the earlier incidents leaving a bit of scorching taste in his mouth as he recalled how many people mistaken him for a lost child. But that's in the past now, even so, he's bound to be mistaken as one again if it's like this.

Now, the next problem comes the luggage. They were huge and heavy, to be exact but only because his mother insisted him in bringing more clothes so he didn't have to go through the trouble in buying new ones. Either way, his main concern was more of how is he going to carry all of them at the same time? He can't make two trips, he's afraid that someone will take away one of the baggage he left behind if he was to return to take it.

In the end, Shoyo somehow managed to carry them all at once. He was within his university campus, and from the looks of it, there were barely anyone there to question his odd method of carrying bags. It didn't take long until he reached the administration office— or so did the bolded letters above the doors said— and thinking that it was now safe to leave his baggage alone at the meantime he's gone, he slides past through the door.

And he's glad that he did, because he was was completely entranced by the structure and architecture of the indoors could be comparable to a museum. When his eyes laid upon a skillfully crafted sculpture sitting on its throne and showcased as a prized trophy, he had to gape, mesmerized and in awe. He's itching to feel the texture of the sculpture under the tip of his skin, but the sign 'DO NOT TOUCH' was there to prevent him from doing anything. Suddenly, like an engine whirred to life, he feels determined— a smile coming to spread on his face when he remembers that he has been given the opportunity to further enhance his abilities as a sculptor.

Without a delay, he strode away to the counter, a question on the tip of his tongue when the woman at the desk interrupted him before he could even ask.

"Here to take your schedule for the upcoming week?" His words died down, surprised that the woman knew what he was about to say, but he doesn't say anything, only nodding at her question.

"Are you a first year for this year's batch?"

"Y-yes."

Few papers stapled in a set were presented to him, and he took it, slowly, but not without confusion settling in as he watched the woman immediately rushing off to another place without having to hear a word from him. It's weird, he thinks but he decided to disregard the thought as he skimmed through the papers in check for his schedule. But what was the content surprised him. He frowned upon knowing that this was not his personal timetable ( that must have explained how quick it had taken ) but rather, the required credentials for new registries and the schedule for first few days.

"Orientation? For three days?" He squinted his eyes at the word, failing to notice someone had approached him from behind.

"Orientation—" Shoyo yelped, twirling around just in time to see a stranger. "— is the time when you'll be introduced to your tutor group and have few activities together led by the seniors. The purpose for this to get you all warmed up before the early semester begins."

Said stranger was no more than a young man whom appeared to be older than him, his hair being color of thin silver, and the smile etched on his countenance was undeniably both blinding and angelic. "Hello." He greeted, and Shoyo just had to gulp upon hearing the lace of sweetness in his tone. "Are you new around here?"

"Y-yes! M-my name is Hinata Shoyo, and I-I plan to become one of the greatest sculptors! I mean, eek!" And he may have replied a tad bit louder than he should have because the man is staring at him confusedly. Oh god, never before he embarrassed himself like this in front of a person he never met, and for what seemed like a thousandth time, he felt like digging himself a grave.

"Sculpture, hm? That's an interesting goal you have there. Well, I wish you luck!" Yet heard no judgement from his part, all that was present in his tone was the man's sincerity. He's relieved, but he's curious now, to know more about who could this man be; given that he was in the university campus, he could only assume that they might be seeing each other more often.

"Ah, thank you— um— and you are?"

"Sugawara Koushi." The latter quickly draws out a paper from a folder on the desk. "I'm in the final year of university." He flashed a grin at him, but Shoyo was too busy comprehending the fact this person was his senior. Looks like they'll definitely see each other around for sometime.

"Well then, I have to go now. I look forward to see you during the orientation days."

"W-wait!" Shoyo blurted out before even realizing it. When the other's gaze landed on him, that was then he did, and he wanted to hit himself for the second time. Why had he asked him to wait— that was an enigma and an oddity in its purest form. He tried to rack over his brain to say something— anything— that could save him from his embarrassment.

"Do you—" Oh, come on. "Do you mind if I asked you a question?"

"Sure, what is it?"

No. Truth be told, Shoyo didn't have any question in mind. Again, it was only to save himself from his skin, but when a particular thought struck him, he suddenly found himself that yes, he does have a question that he'd like to ask. One that was important, and since Sugawara seemed to be quite a reliable source to derive an information from, he decided to ask. "Do you know if there is any place that I could stay?" He furrowed his eyebrows, the initial shock on his face replaced by a puzzling look, "I came here in Kyoto only today. But since I'll be staying here for quite while, I'm looking for a long term temporary residence."

"Well, there's a dorm here around the university campus." Sugawara answered without missing a beat. "I'm sure that you could request for one from the counter there."

"Really? Th-thank you!"

"But—" He paused when hearing the other's voice. But what? He whipped his head to the side to see a warm smile plastered on Sugawara's face. "What if I offer you to come and live with us instead?" He froze. And blinked. Then blinked for a couple of more times later because he still could not manage to comprehend the words.

"Off— live—- w-wait, us?" He muttered in disbelief. There was a possibility that he might have misheard. In fact, he must have misheard because Sugawara ( Was he an acquaintance now? Or was he still a stranger? He's still not sure. ) invited him to live together? For a short moment, he briefly wondered who else did Sugawara refer to by the term of 'them'.

"Yes. I live in a house along with few others. Our seniors graduated and returned to their hometown, so, we now got some vacant rooms."

Oh. So, he did not misheard him at all. "B-but— we just met? Are you sure? How do I know if you're not lying?"

"You're right." Sugawara immediately deadpanned afterwards. "I was actually planning to kidnap you then sell you off to the black market."

Shoyo's face nearly paled after hearing the blunt confession by the man he once thought was an angel.

A boisterous laughter was released later on, and it startled him. Eventually though, given the current situation as it is and how he actually reacted, it didn't take long for him to put two and two together; realization dawned upon him that wow, he can't believe that he actually fell for Sugawara's joke. "I'm kidding! Did you really think that I'd do that?" Sugawara snorted, making Shoyo shrink a little more by every passing second.

"Come, follow me. We don't live far away, so we can get there by walking in just a matter of few minutes."

"Wait? Really?! You'll let me live with you?"

"Why wouldn't I?"

"B-but... my luggage."

"Bring them!"

"I can't! There's too many, see?" Shoyo exclaimed as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. He even attempted to make his point by directing a hand to his bags just outside the building. Even from this distance and through the looking glass, there were lots of them and a handful of them being huge.

"Well... that's a lot to carry." Sugawara commented to which Shoyo nodded instantly in agreement.

"I'll help." Shoyo gave another nod— wait, what?

"Eh? But they're heavy!"

Sugawara quirked an eyebrow. "Are you doubting your senior?"

"N-no." Shoyo squeaked lightly.

"All right, let's get going then. No more dawdling around."

He tried to dissuade his upperclassman from helping him, but his senior was too wise and kept coming up with good comebacks. Defeated, he eventually gave up, allowing Sugawara to assist him. The pair ended up trudging throughout the whole way, Sugawara leading the path to his new temporary home whilst they passed time by engaging in a conversation consisted of countless topics. And Shoyo learned that the more he knew about his upperclassman, the more he looked up to him. He seemed respectable, in both literal and figurative sense.

( There was also that one time when he asked Shoyo why he was wearing a scarf in the middle of the day, but like always, he told him that his usual reason: that he felt cold. It sounded unreasonable, but he was rather relieved that the other didn't push him into answering it. )

Later on, he found that Sugawara was taking three courses: Ceramics, Textile, and Product Communication, which by the way had he found it inspiring since that meant the older male had to deal with constant stress.

True to his words, Sugawara did not lie about their location. It wasn't far from where the university campus was, thus surpassing his expectations which was a good thing because he thought that he might have to walk for a couple of more metres. He paused for a while, eyes glazing over to scrutinize the structure of his now temporary new home. The house was quaint, and for a house, it was no less than an average looking one with the paint on walls fading. All in all, he found the house and the neighborhood itself quite decent.

"I know it may not look much." Shoyo threw a questioning glance at the silver-haired man at this, "- but it's actually spacious inside. I hope you won't mind the mess though. I'll clean them up soon enough."

He certainly didn't mind it by the time he entered and besides, if this was called a mess, then it's definitely recommendable that they shouldn't see his room back at home.

"Sugawara! Is that you? Do you know where my project files are?" Too busy admiring the beauty of the mess, he failed to notice that there was another person in front of him, and the accidental collision made him nearly stagger backwards, bristling noticeably upon taking note that he had bumped into a person. A very intimidating looking person with a shaved head, that is.

"Hey, who's this kid?" The male propped his chin up. "What are you doing here, huh? Here to look for something, hm?"

"Tanaka, quit making that face. Didn't I give the files to you earlier?" Sugawara scolded lightly before moving forward to place his hands on Shoyo's shoulders, and the bags set aside for a bit.

"And this, right here." He grinned, "- is our new housemate. He'll be a first year in our university. So, don't go scaring him off." As if he could read his thoughts, Sugawara patted him reassuringly as if it'd help to ease his discomfort. It did, it helped him tremendously.

"A first year?!" Tanaka gaped. "I don't remember being this short. He'll be living with us, huh? So, what's your name, kid? Which courses do you take?" Well... This was a bit unexpected coming from him. Aside from the 'short' comment.

"M-my name is Hinata Shoyo." Shoyo stuttered over his introduction, only bowing his head a bit since he felt— and still is- intimidated by the former.

"Aaaand?"

Shoyo quirked a brow before realizing what he meant. "A-and I take Sculpture!"

"Ooh, Sculpture." The man mused, shortly turning to Sugawara." Hey, doesn't Tsukishima take that course as well?"

"Ah. Now that you mention about it, he does."

"Hm. Anyway. Nice to meet you, Hinata!" The shaved haired man, otherwise now known as Tanaka, grinned with a hand extended out to Shoyo. Pushing his reluctance asides, he took it, an excited look taking over his face because— well, hey, maybe Tanaka isn't so intimidating as he looked in the first place.

"Sorry about that just now, by the way." Tanaka pulled back his hand. "To make up for it though, feel free to come to me anytime if you need help! Just so you know, I'm the best senpai and—" He didn't get to listen to the rest of whatever he had to say however, not when Sugawara was urging him to move forward and flee out of Tanaka's sight.

"Let me show you your room. It's upstairs." Sugawara flashed him an apologetic smile, and Shoyo returned him one. Before their trip upstairs, the redhead took this as an opportunity to study the decors indoor. The walls were plain of color, and he noted on how there was a lack of furnitures along the hallway, asides from few chips of papers and other stuffs loitering on the ground but Shoyo had seen worse.

"I'm sorry about him." Shoyo perked at Sugawara's voice piping up. "That was Tanaka earlier, and he's in the third year of taking Graphic Designs. He can be unceremoniously loud and irritating at times, but trust me when I say that he's actually a nice person once you get to know him." Shoyo nodded in response. He could already see that Tanaka was kind at heart despite the impression he gave himself earlier. Now, that made him wonder. Were there more people living here other than Tanaka? If so, how were they like? He was curious to know about the people that he was going to live with, and there was a faint hope glimmering within him that they all would get along.

"How many of you live here?"

"Oh, not much. There's about five of us. Tanaka. Nishinoya, Tsukishima, myself and now, including you." Sugawara smiled once more but for some reason, this one felt a bit... off. Regardless, Shoyo made no remark.

"Nishinoya and Tanaka are the only noisy bunch around here, if you're worried. As for Tsukishima—" Shoyo couldn't help but tilt his head at the name that was brought up again, "He's— well, reserved in a way. He's also a first year like you. You two take the same course, so it's very likely that he'll be in your class."

So, this Tsukishima that they spoke of was also a first year like him? And they're both taking the same course? Now, that was interesting. Shoyo would love to question some more but he figured that they had to work on getting to their destination first. Whichever the words he wanted to say were, they got caught up in his throat and died out by the time they reached the room he was reassigned to.

"Here you go. I hope this room is to your liking."

And he did; he liked the room. With the shades of the walls and ceilings were matched, the furnitures used were decently polished. The study desk at the far end corner of his room, the bed being next to it, and the closet at the opposite end. Sure, even though the room could need some of the spaces filled up and almost obviously lacking color just like the rest of the house ( probably ) Shoyo still liked the room.

"Yeah." He breathed out, nodding once more. "I like it!" He firmly said, moving to bow to the other as a token of gratitude.

"Thank you. For helping and letting me stay."

"No worries." Sugawara chuckled.

"It's better than staying alone, right?" Right. Shoyo forgot to consider that factor, so, he simply rubbed at the back of his head and sheepishly nodded in agreement at the other who went to reel the baggage into the room.

"By the way," Sugawara began once more, frowning a bit this time. "I might have to inform you in advance that everyone living here has to pay part of the rent. The electricity doesn't come free, if you get what I mean. So... I'm really sorry if this caused you any inconvenience."

"Oh. It's fine, I understand." Shoyo rubbed at the back of his head. "Thank you... again!"

A small smile danced across the taller male's lips. "Well then, better pack out your things now, Hinata. You've got a long road ahead of you." With the final pat set on his back, the silver-haired man promptly left the room, leaving Shoyo to deal with the taking out his things.

A long road ahead... Shoyo vaguely wondered what that meant. Four years couldn't be that long, right? Reminded of his conversation with his younger sibling prior to event made him think twice. No, he shook his head, it couldn't be that long. He's certain that in four years time, he'll look back and he'll be able to say that time passed by so fast, it only felt like it happened in a blink of an eye. All he had to do was to look forward to the future. Or at least, that's what he told himself.

aaa, i kinda rushed the ending so i'm terribly sorry. this is just a prologue, so? i'm kind of working on the first chapter (and chapters for my other stories) therefore it may take a while for the story to be updated

next chapter onward will be more lengthy!