Remember Me – Chapter One
Disclaimer: The standard
Genre: Supernatural/Romance (Yaoi)
Synopsis: Coming back from the dead, he went back to his homeland intending to live a new life but was instead plunged back into those haunting memories when he met a certain pale, raven haired boy……
Dedicated to all those in AK ML and also to those who had taken part in the poll!!
***********************
The night was still and silent.
Standing on the hilltop overlooking the little town from amidst the woods, he had a bird's eye view of the town. Even from the distance and in the darkness where the little town was barely lit up by the street lamps, he could see as well as someone with the use of binoculars in broad daylight. Roaming his cobalt blue eyes across the entire town, he decided that this was a good place for him. Small, peaceful, quiet and normal…….just what he was looking for.
After spending years in Italy and certain parts of America, he decided to come back to his native land, Japan. But the changes that greeted him were a tad unexpected. Sure, he had read from the papers and the news during his years abroad that Japan had undergone numerous changes, but he was unprepared for the onslaught of transformation when he first arrived in the late afternoon. Everything here was high-tech and skyscrapers towered above him, it was a far cry from what he remembered many many years ago…..
But he would learn to adapt quickly. He had to…..being what he was……there would always be new countries, new changes, new centuries….it would always be a never ending cycle.
He smiled bitterly at the irony. People everywhere were complaining about time shortage and here he was, bitter and unhappy because he had all the time in the world…….
A wind howled, cutting through the silence in the woods. Slipping his hands deeper into the pockets of his black Armani trench coat, he signed inwardly.
He was tired….tired of living in the shadows, he was tired of the darkness and the activities going on in there. He wanted to learn to live in the light and that was why he came back to his native land. This was the place in which he had lived the brightest, happiest and most innocent days of his life and hence coming back here in trying to seek a life in the light somehow seemed justified and appropriate.
The early years in Italy were the darkest period of his life. He was furious and enraged at being taken, ripped away from his perfect life and thrust into a life that was forced to feed on blood. His Creator had brought him back to his own hometown in Italy where he tried to groom him. Consumed with rage and hatred, he went all out to do what was taught to him. He constantly prowled the streets at night for victims, feeding on them till they shriveled up like prunes without an ounce of guilt. Each day with every drop of human blood he consumed, he became stronger, more powerful and soon among his own species, his name spread far and wide.
But he ceased being a ruthless predator the day he met her, everything changed for him since then. He was drawn to her the moment he set his eyes on her in the crowded room that day. Maybe it was the fact that she was also Japanese which was something rare yet oddly comforting in the sea of Europeans that drew him to her or her entrancing eyes, he didn't know. All he knew was that he wanted her. Amidst the darkness and chaos, she was his only sanity. Many times when he was with her, he found himself fighting hard not to give in to his desires, not to make her one of them. Thinking back now, he wished his will-power was not that strong…..if only he had given in to his own desires, she might still be around…..
"Ayumi" He whispered.
A familiar jolt of pain pierced through him, the mere mention of her name on his lips each time was enough to trigger all the sad and painful memories.
Wanting to disperse his thoughts, he turned his attention back to observing the little town named Kanagawa, his new home for the time being. In the distance, his sharp eyes caught sight of a black cat pouncing successfully on its prey, a small rodent, most probably a mouse.
He broke into a smile, appreciating the fuss-free kill. /Nice work./
Seeing the successful hunt by the cat made himself acutely aware of his own hunger. There was a tingling feeling in his teeth and his jaws were aching for a bite. He knew he was hungry and it was time for him to hunt…….
********************
"Rukawa Kaede!" The sharp no-nonsense voice of his Mathematics sensei sent the pale, raven-haired boy spinning back to reality. He was about to doze off into dreamland when he heard the shrill command of his name.
"Remember your pact with the principal. I wouldn't hesitate to suspend you from any basketball matches."
The young man gave the sensei one of his infamous glares. Even with a slight frown marring his flawless face right now, there was no hiding the beauty of this young man. He had features so fine they seemed unreal. His small nose was long and straight, raised to an ideal height. His small lips that were cherry-red in colour graced his smooth porcelain complexion in a childlike manner. But what stood out from among the beautiful face was pair of fox-like blue eyes lined with thick black lashes, so blue and cold were his eyes that they seemed to be carved straight out from sapphire.
His features were so beautiful and fine they seemed feminine, but yet at the same time there was nothing unmasculine about the rest of this young man. Standing at 187cm, he was considered extremely tall and he had the lean body of an able athlete. His cool demeanor bordering on insolence, together with his physique allowed him to appear manly despite his pretty face. It was a potent combination.
It was no wonder that he was the heartthrob of Kanagawa University.
Ignoring the swooning and giggles from his female classmates, he propped his chin on the table using his elbow in an attempt to stay awake. Because of his failing grades and serious lack of attention in classes, the principle made it clear that he could forget about first team basketball unless he improved his grades and kicked his narcoleptic sleeping habit. He decided not to risk it with this particular sensei, there was no way he would risk missing a single match just because of sleep. He figured out he could always sleep during the next class……
********************
"My name is Sendoh Akira." A deep smooth voice came from a spiky-haired boy who had an easy smile on his half-hidden face. He was wearing Armani sunglasses. But even though his face was half-concealed by the sunglasses, it was obvious that this young man was a stunner.
"Oh…..so you are the new transfer student from America?" The old admin clerk from behind the desk remarked, not at all noticing the appearance of the young man before her. Searching through a stack of files, she pulled out a file and pushed it across her table to the young man.
"Ok, sign this. And here are your class list and timetable for the remaining semester. You only have to report for class tomorrow."
"Hai, Arigatou." Sendoh signed the documents placed before him and with a bow as a form of courtesy, he turned and strolled out of the office with his class list in his hands.
Stepping out into the hallway, Sendoh immediately stood out from the crowd of students. Standing at 190 cm with the body of a male model, coupled with an unusual gravity-defying spiky hairdo, it was hardly a surprise. Gorgeously dressed in a pair of casual blue jeans and a black cashmere sweater which accentuated his pale, translucent skin, Sendoh sauntered down the hallway with his hands casually tucked in his pockets.
Girls were practically falling over each other as they tried to get a glimpse of the new hunk in the school.
Amidst the blushing girls, Sendoh did what he does best……he flashed them one of his trademark smiles, sending the girls into further frenzy.
His smiles had always served as a facade, a mask to conceal his real inner feelings and thoughts. Few people were able too see through this facade of his, most of the time, they were just contented and comfortable enough with his smiling face to probe further and discover what was really lying beneath.
How ironical……a smile was supposed to represent happiness and yet to Sendoh, a smile was just a veneer of sorrow, sadness and frustration.
Leaving the crowd behind him, Sendoh turned into an empty hallway. He decided to take a walk around the campus to acquaint himself with the surroundings before he called it a day.
But before he could venture further, his sharp sense of hearing picked up the sound of a basketball thumping in the distance, it was coming from the other side of the building. He had learned to play basketball during his stay in America and it had been one of his favourite sports. Hearing the thumping of basketball now mysteriously made him yearn for some exercise and before he knew it, he was heading towards the gym.
*******************
Tossing his duffel bag onto the sidelines, Rukawa took out his leather basketball and proceeded to the basketball court. The court was empty because it was lunchtime now. Not feeling hungry at all and feeling the sudden urge to play, he had decided to make use of the lunch break to shoot a few hoops.
Dribbling the ball low, Rukawa imagined an opponent in front of him. With a sudden burst of energy, he rushed towards the imaginary opponent in full speed and did a 360 degree turn before he jumped high into the air and did a magnificent one-handed dunk. The reverberating rim sent echoes through the silence of the gym.
Collecting his ball, Rukawa dribbled to the 3-point line and shot a perfect 3-pointer into the air and watched it land silently into the net.
/Perfect./
The swooshing sound made by the contact of the ball against the net when it cut through sent waves of satisfaction through the pale boy. He felt a sudden rush of adrenaline and began playing harder, practicing and perfecting every single move he knew, blocking out all other thoughts in his mind he did so.
But his concentration is his own game was broken when he felt a strong presence in the gym which he just could not ignore. He gets unwanted spectators all the time, most of the time they were either his irritating female fans or just someone who happened to pass by and decided to stop to take a look at the skills of the current ace of the basketball team.
But his gut feeling and the way his hair stood at the nape of his neck told him otherwise and that this 'presence' was not someone ordinary. With his back facing the entrance of the gym, Rukawa could feel a pair of eyes boring into the back of his head, as if willing him to turn around. The intensity of the stare increased and every nerve in his body screamed for him to run but yet, an unknown force and his own pride was holding him back.
Slowly, he turned around, half expecting some hideous creature to jump up at him. But all he saw was a smiling spiky-haired boy clad with a pair of black sunglasses on his face.
But the smile on the face of the spiky-haired stranger soon disappeared, instead it was replaced by a look of shock, bewilderment and lastly to one of pure disbelief.
What took place next happened so fast that Rukawa could not follow and the next thing he knew, the stranger was standing right before him.
"Ayumi….." The stranger murmured as he lifted his hands to cradle Rukawa's face. His voice was thick with emotions.
Rukawa felt a tremor of shivers run through his entire body when the cool hands made contact with the skin on his face but yet it felt strangely comforting. Even with the opaque black sunglasses, Rukawa could feel the intensity of his gaze from beneath it and for some reasons, he just could not tear himself away from his gaze and his touch. He wanted that moment to last……..
Time seemed to come to a standstill as the two boys stayed locked in each other's gazes.
In the distance, students could be heard laughing as they made their way back to their respective classes and the interruption seemed to jolt both of the boys out of their trance.
"Gomenasai" The stranger choked out an apology as he pulled his hands away from Rukawa's face.
And without another word, he turned and left the gym as fast as he came……
********************
TBC