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Shion’s POV (3rd person)
“Stop! Give it back!” The girl’s voice was shrill and she sounded very, very young. Both Safu and Shion were in their senior year so Shion guessed that this girl had probably just came to high school. Moving their way into the crowd Shion finally saw the owners of the voices. Sure enough the girl looked young, and small too. She was a good head shorter than all of the other girls, and that didn’t even include the guys who obviously towered over her. Two boys were around her, one had her backpack, and the other one had a black case that looked to hold a clarinet. The fatter guy, who was holding the clarinet, popped open the case, revealing a silver and black instrument that looked worn and rusty. The girl shrieked louder.
“Stop it! You’re gonna break it!”
“And then what? It’s ‘bout to break anyways.” The guy holding the clarinet said.
“I said give it back!” The girl grabbed the case and shoved hard into the guy’s chest. Not letting her case go, the bully shoved her back so hard she fell on her butt.
“Stop it!” Shion had stepped in front of the girl. “Leave her alone, and give her back her stuff.”
There was a snort from the second guy who still had the girl’s backpack. He was taller than fatty, with a wide nose and flat hair. Shion recognized him as one of the kids who were in the alternative program, which was for kids one step from getting sent to juvie. He let out a laugh that made his tiny eyes crinkle. “Look who’s trying to be the white knight. Shion, isn’t it?”
“Yeah. And I’m not trying to be anything. I just don’t like it when other people think it’s fun to harass or hurt others.”
Now both boys laughed. “Are you serious? Geez, what a looser.”
Safu came over to the girl. “It’s okay. We’re just going to get the teachers involved.”
The guy with the clarinet dropped the case and rounded on Safu.
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you bitch.”
“No!” The girl raced for her clarinet to sounds of laughter from the boys.
Shion put himself between the guy heading for Safu.
“Don’t you dare come near Safu.”
“Oh?” His crooked grin lit up in triumph. “Don’t want me to hurt your girlfriend.”
Shion didn’t warrant that with an answer. Instead he scoffed. “Bunch of cowards.” His tone was soft at first but then it gained momentum. “Ganging up on a girl. You make me sick.”
“What was that?” clarinet guy growled. “Say that to my face, you little pansy boy.”
“Shion! Don’t!” Safu said from her place beside the other girl. “We’ll just get the teachers, okay? Shion don’t fight.”
“Safu,” Shion looked like he was going to take her advice.
“Gonna listen to your little woman.” Fatty said.
“As if we’ll let her do that.” Alternative class kid said. And going over he shoved Shion.
“Stay back, Safu.” Shion hadn’t ever been in a fight before, but he knew that this was the start of one, and he didn’t want Safu to get hurt.
“Shion?!” Safu didn’t sound like she liked the plan, but nothing either of them did could stop this now. And Shion wasn’t going to back down. These two were the lowest of low, using their combined strength to terrorize someone weaker and smaller. Disgusting. He wasn’t going to lose to them. Although…there were two of them. But right now it looked like only alternative school kid was planning on fighting.
Shion had two seconds to respond to the fist that flew towards his face, and put his arms up to block it instinctively. The impact hurt, but now adrenaline surged through his veins, numbing him to the pain. Without another thought, and definitely not to the amount of trouble this might put him into, Shion attacked punching the guy in the face. Surprisingly he actually hit his target; the guy not blocking like Shion had done. But that wasn’t the last of it. The two of them continued to fight, Shion taking his fair share of hits, but for the pansy little privileged boy he wasn’t losing the fight as most would have thought since he was going up against one of the rougher kids in school. That was when the other kid got involved.
Lunging at Shion he grabbed him from behind and held tightly. This gave Shion’s opponent an opening and he took it, slamming his fist straight into Shion’s stomach. Shion coughed, losing his breath entirely.
Alternative guy smiled. “Not so tough are you now? Huh?”
He sent another fist, this time into Shion’s cheek, before he slammed his other fist again into Shion’s stomach.
“Stop it!” Safu flew at them.
“No, wait, Safu.” Shion stuttered.
Alternative guy grabbed her arm and started twisting.
“Let her go, bastard!” Shion grunted through his teeth. “Safu!”
Balling her fist, Safu slugged the guy. Taking it in the cheek, his puzzled face would have been comical had the situation not been so serious. It was clear he had not expected a fight from her. But this was Safu; Shion joked that she belonged more in a boxing rink rather than a biology lab. She didn't wait for alternative kid to recover, this time kicking him hard in the shin.
Alternative school guy stumbled, and his grip slacked on her arm. But he recovered quickly, shoving Safu backward hard, he back-handed her across the face. The force sent her to the floor, and there were blue-purple marks on her arm from where he had grabbed her.
“Bastard! Leave her alone!” Shion shoved against his captor, but the other boy had gotten him into a good hold. Another punch socked him in the gut.
“So you don’t want me to hurt your little girlfriend.” Alternative kid grabbed Safu up by her hair, immediately Safu clawed at his hand, but the blow to the face had clearly disoriented her.
"Goddamn bitch!!" Alternative kid yanked her hair harder before he shoved her again to the floor.
“I’m gonna kill you!” Shion kicked hard against the guy holding him. Coming over alternative guy punched him in the face again.
“Oyi, oyi, I was wondering who was making all of that noise.” Nezumi’s voice came from the crowd.
“Ne-zumi.” Shion got out, he couldn’t see Nezumi because he had come from behind.
Nezumi’s smirk was in his voice. “Figured it had to be a coward like you, Jiin. Seriously, picking on girls now, are we?” Nezumi laughed. “And pansy boys.” Nezumi’s voice was right behind Shion. It sounded like he was whispering into his ear.
Suddenly Shion was free. The guy holding him down had found himself in the reversed position. Nezumi had pinned the guy’s arm back at an angle that showed Nezumi held the power to break it. Shion stood there shocked for a moment, just looking at Nezumi and the guy who he was restraining. Was Nezumi really helping him out?
“Well, Shion,” Nezumi said, that mocking smile on his face. “Aren’t you going to finish it?”
“Finish it?”
Nezumi shook his head. “Airhead, you wanted him to fight fairly, so fight him. Go.”
“Right,” Shion said, the word slipping out like he only meant to think it, before Shion turned to Jiin (he honestly hadn’t known the guy’s name before until Nezumi had used it). Jiin looked pissed.
“Fucking Rat, mind your own business.” But he didn’t have any more time to be worried about Nezumi because Shion attacked him, tackling him straight to the ground. He saw Safu, the bruises on her arm, the asshole striking her, unshed tears in her eyes. Shion allowed indignation to swell inside of him, give him fuel that he badly needed if he wanted to win this especially with his current injuries. They rustled on the ground, throwing punches, sometimes Shion getting a hit, other times Jiin. But Shion had taken quite a pounding before when he was restrained and Jiin hadn’t, so Jiin had the advantage, and slowly the battle turned in Jiin’s favor. He had Shion pinned and he rained punches down onto his face with Shion arms up over his head blocking.
“Get off him!” It was Safu’s voice and he saw her grab Jiin’s shoulder, her other hand yanking his hair.
“Safu no!” Shion barely had time to say those words before Jiin had elbowed Safu in the chest and knocked her down. Shion’s distracted look at Safu cost him an opening though, and Jiin’s slug to the stomach had Shion gasping. Getting up on his feet, a triumphant grin on his face, Jiin sent a kick down against Shion’s ribs. Shion had curled up into a ball to block the attack.
“See, you’re just a pansy, little shit,” Jiin said, kicking Shion again. “And now, I’m gonna have your girlfriend.”
Shion coughed; it was hard to breathe. Jiin turned to Safu. Shion reached over and grabbed Jiin’s ankle, and sank his teeth down, biting like he was hell-bent on taking Jiin’s ankle straight off.
“Ahh! Shit!!” Jiin screamed out in pain, and tried to kick Shion, but the motion just gave Shion the force he needed to send Jiin flying backward to the floor. Shion wasted no time and was on top of Jiin raining punches down upon him. He didn’t let up.
“Don’t you fucking dare touch her!” Shion wasn’t even able to see anymore, he was just slamming his fists into Jiin’s face. He wanted to kill this asshole. How dare he touch Safu?!
Jiin’s body stilled underneath him, but Shion didn’t stop. “You asshole! I’ll kill you!”
Suddenly arms grabbed him underneath the shoulders and pulled him off. Shion struggled, still fueled on by adrenaline and anger.
“Hey, Shion, Shion!” It was Nezumi’s voice. “You did good. You kicked his ass. Anymore and you’re gonna kill him.”
“Let me go!” Shion struggled before he recognized Nezumi’s voice. Then he started to calm down. Breathing harshly, Shion stilled. “Nezumi?”
“Yeah.” Nezumi said letting go of Shion now that Shion seemed to have come back to himself. “You surprised me at the end there, I thought you were a goner. But, damn, don’t underestimate you.”
Shion snarled. “So you were right there, you let him hurt Safu, and you did nothing!”
“I was holding back fatty over there. Didn’t you want a fair fight?”
“Fair fight?” Shion seethed. “Fuck that, they were hurting Safu!”
“It’s not my business to help out anyone.”
“Bullshit!” Shion was right up in Nezumi’s face. “You helped me.”
“I made it fair, that was all. It’s not my job to fight your fights.” Nezumi grabbed Shion up by the shirt causing Shion to fall forward; his hand resting on Nezumi’s chest; their height difference now apparent because of their close contact. “Don’t be a such a fucking coward.”
Shion deflated and looked away, his tone hushed. “I’m not a coward.”
“No, you’re not,” Nezumi’s tone was soft, not a hint of mockery. “You did good.” He tipped Shion’s chin so that Shion was back looking at him, and wiped the blood from Shion’s lip off with the back of his thumb.
Gazing into Nezumi’s eyes, Shion found himself powerless to look away. There was a soft, gentleness in Nezumi’s gray that Shion had never seen before. Nezumi gave him another smile.
“Course, the fiasco looks to be just beginning.”
Shion was confused at the mockery that resurfaced in Nezumi’s tone, until he followed the line of Nezumi’s gaze, and saw three teachers and two police officers heading their way. “That’d be my cue to get out of here. Until then, milord.” Giving Shion a mock, two finger solute, Nezumi slipped into the crowd, leaving Shion there to handle the fallout alone.
##
Nezumi’s POV during the fight. (1st person)
I wasn’t trailing behind Shion and his girlfriend, I just walked that direction to get to my class. Though, I know Safu isn’t Shion’s official girlfriend, sometimes it is hard to tell because of their closeness and the fact that she obviously likes him, too bad he’s such an airhead and doesn’t even notice.
I heard a girl’s cry. It peeked my interest, but it’s not my concern who fights in this world and who doesn’t. One should only be concerned with his own ass, not attempt to save every single fool around him. But tell that to that airhead in front of me. Of course, Shion has to get involved. I knew from the moment I heard the girl’s yell that Shion would come right over. I didn’t pause because I cared what that airhead did, nor was the reason I drew closer anything to do with the fact that Shion was about to get into a fight.
Still, the idea of seeing that little mama’s boy fighting was intriguing, I couldn’t lie. So I crept closer and watched from a distance. Shion didn’t disappoint. He got right into the thick of it, standing in front of the poor girl who was being bullied. You have to admire the idiot at least on some level, for a pansy little rich kid he sure puts himself out there. Too out there in my opinion. He’s just going to get hurt, and for what? Some person whose name he doesn’t even know.
“Stop it! Leave her alone and give her back her things!” I had to admire how determined Shion sounded. Especially because I had noticed who had started this fight: Uyemura Jiin. That asshole had been in the system for about as long as I had. I have seen him in some of the programs we both were sent to in the government’s plan to keep us from becoming society’s undesirable criminals. But I never thought much of Jiin honestly. He was just a fearful little boy who wanted a mommy and daddy so he became an asshole. Couldn’t stand on his own two feet. Which is why he no doubt had fatty over there to help in the bullying. Looser.
Shion though actually held his ground, much to my surprise, and next thing I knew he was fighting Jiin. And even more surprisingly he wasn’t loosing. Maybe I misjudged him. With Shion it was hard to tell anything, hard to read him properly. He was always confusing me. Just when I thought I figured him out, he goes and does this. Yeah, I knew he would get involved, but I honestly didn’t think he would get this far. I had no intension of helping him out. Really that was not the reason I had inched closer to the fight. Helping others like that, fighting for others, it was a fool’s idea of getting himself killed. And I am not a fool. But I was close enough to see fatty pin Shion. Of course Jiin and his stooge could not fight fair.
Shion was taking quite the pounding now. And honestly my heart went out to the guy. Yeah, he was little mama’s boy, but try telling that to him. Right now he was taking a beating like a man. And there was just no limit to how far he would go for someone else. Scares the hell out of me, honestly. Though I won’t tell him, ever, but Shion scares the hell out of me. Either way though, I wasn’t about to just let someone kill the airhead right in front of me. Also, Jiin crossed a line when he attacked Safu. Son of a bitch actually struck her. Yeah, I was getting involved, be damned the airhead thinking that I was doing it for him, which I wasn’t. But, fuck it.
“Oyi, oyi, I was wondering who was making all of that noise.” I was right behind fatty who still held Shion.
“Ne-zumi.” I heard Shion say. For some reason that triggered my defensive instinct, I directed it into mockery and disdain. It wasn’t hard, Jiin was pathetic.
“Figured it had to be a coward like you, Jiin. Seriously, picking on girls now, are we?” Surprisingly fatty let me get right up behind him, though in fairness I tend to just jump in and not give an opponent the chance to do anything. I did something similar here, but still I couldn’t resist teasing Shion a little. It’s so easy to do, he always leaves himself wide open. “And pansy boys.”
No sooner had the words left my lips than I dislodged the grip fatty had on Shion, and pulled him into a hold. It was an easy move, nothing that took much effort. That was why I did it. I wasn’t fighting for Shion, this wasn’t fighting. This was just making things fair.
Of course Shion has to go all flowery whenever he is around me, pisses me off. Like he gets all the more airheaded.
“Nezumi?” this time there is a mixture of shock in his gratitude.
“Well, Shion,” Mocking him was so much fun. Though, right now I was really curious what he would do. Would he go and call the teachers, would he whine to me to help him fight, would he actually go and punch the guy? Seriously just what was he planning to do? I love testing him. I figure more out about him. Makes me less afraid. Though not like I am afraid. Because I am not. “Aren’t you going to finish it?”
“Finish it?” Shion’s confusion makes me want to laugh.
“Airhead, you wanted him to fight fairly, so fight him. Go.”
“Right.” He probably didn’t even mean to speak his thoughts. Geez, this guy leaves openings every chance he gets.
Finally Shion attacks. I can immediately see that Shion is at a disadvantage from the earlier injuries. A voice in my head is nagging that this isn’t going to end well, and for some really strange reason I want to get involved. Fuck. Shion isn’t my problem. He really isn’t. But now he is on the ground, and that asshole is kicking him, and fuck it, that guy’s going for Safu again. Jesus, is there a limit to Jiin’s cowardice? Just as I was about to say ‘fuck it’ and go over and help the airhead, Shion does the unexpected.
He actually grabs Jiin’s ankle and bites down like he’s sinking into an apple. It was quite the sight to see. Jiin’s ankle is all bloody, Shion is hanging on him like a Pitbull, even Jiin’s kick doesn’t deter Shion, and instead the airhead actually uses it to his advantage and has Jiin on his back quicker than a whore in a brothel.
It doesn’t end there, for a moment I think Shion might actually kill this poor fucker. He doesn’t look like he has any intension of stopping. Maybe he can’t. I know the rush of adrenaline well. How in intense situations it can put you into a state of trance. And Shion was in pretty deep. I release fatty’s arm and kick his knees out so he’s down before I head over to pull Shion off of Jiin’s useless, bloody body.
Shion fights me at first, confirming my first thoughts of him being in way over his head.
“Hey, Shion, Shion!” I can’t reach him at first, but I know he’ll come down. Already I can feel that effect I have on him stirring its head. Normally I hate his love-smitten, wide-eyed attitude, but now if it helps me bring Shion back to the land of the living, I’ll take it. “You did well. You kicked his ass. Anymore and you’re gonna kill him.”
“Lemme go!” It takes him longer to come back, even for the airhead that he is but he does. “Nezumi?”
“Yeah. You surprised me at the end there, I thought you were a goner. But, damn, don’t underestimate you.”
I didn’t expect him to round on me like he did.
“So you were right there, you let him hurt Safu, and you did nothing!”
I wanted to do something. That was the first thing I thought to say to that, but thankfully I held back. I didn’t want to do anything. I didn’t want to interfere, he was just putting crazy ideas into my head.
“I was holding back fatty over there. Didn’t you want a fair fight?”
“Fair fight?” Shion seethed. “Fuck that, they were hurting Safu!”
The guilt I felt over actually letting a guy hurt someone weaker pisses me off more than Shion words, but my tone is flat and cold, thankfully. “It’s not my business to help out anyone.”
“Bullshit!” Shion gets right up in my face. “You helped me.” I’m pleasantly shocked. Shion has some balls on him. Really, I could pound him down to the floor, and step on his insides, but right now the fire that burnt in his eyes actually stills me. I kinda liked this guy. He’s interesting. And shocking. And never fails to catch me off guard. I dare say he might actually be a worthy opponent.
“I made it fair that was all. It’s not my job to fight your fights.” He’s too close though so I instinctively take the upper hand. Even grabbing him up by his collar does little to deter him, even though he looks so physically drained he can barely stand. But my hold manages to dislodge him and he falls against my chest catching himself with a palm pressed over my shirt. My voice seethes with anger.
“Don’t be a such a fucking coward.”
Shion deflates in my arms and he drops eye contact. “I’m not a coward.”
“No, you’re not.” Those words come out of my mouth without a second thought. No, Shion is not a coward. Today made that clear enough. “You did good.” I made him look at me. I also take in the damage he has to his face. It’s strangely beautiful. He is beautiful. Bruised, and bloody, but standing there with still fight left in him. I admire him, right now; he is so dear to me. Using the hand tipping his chin in my direction, I wipe the blood from Shion’s lip off with the back of my thumb.
We’re making eye contact now. Shion has very interesting eyes, black, like a lake at night, and depending on how the light catches I swear there's a tinge of purple in them. I can see adoration reflecting back from them, and for some reason that doesn’t piss me off as much as it normally does. Well, sometimes it doesn’t piss me off at all. Makes me want to protect him. Confuses the hell out of me actually. But right now, he’s earned a little moment where he can go all doe-eyed. He’s tired and worn out, and I just want to stable him and let him lean on me. I wonder if my feelings come through in my smile, for his eyes soften.
But it’s time to get out of here. Already I can see the fallout coming this way, teachers, principle, and was that the police? “Course, the fiasco looks to be just beginning.”
I see the confusion flash in those beautiful eyes, and it makes me want to mock him, tease him, push his buttons. He’s way too fun. I give him one last salute. “That’d be my cue to get out of here. Until then, milord.” I leave him there, the voices of the teachers and police catching up with him. He’ll be okay. He’s got all of the teachers eating out of his hand—even though like pretty much everything around him, Shion is clueless to this too.
I see Safu on the ground getting up, her wide brown eyes watching me. There is jealousy and admiration and sadness all coming from those eyes. Jealousy? Well, that’s a new one. It surprises me. I can’t help wondering what she feels she needs to be jealous over. Shion? Me and Shion? Hmm, that’s an interesting thought…