199 AC, June
"Masa-kun! You are so cruel!"
Amanogawa Masayuki looked up from the book he was reading. He eyed his friend Ann Marvin who was standing before his seat with an annoyed air. "Excuse me?"
"I saw you near the park yesterday but when I said 'hi' to you, you just stared at me like I was an alien and walked away!"
Masayuki blinked. He remembered being home all day the day before. "Are you sure it was me?"
"As I am sure of my femininity."
Well, judging from her short hair and awfully boyish attitude, he couldn't be too convinced.
Ann saw his look and rewarded him a slap on the head.
Yep, definitely not a girl.
"So you won't admit it?"
"Ann, I was home the whole day. Ask my mom! There's no way I could have been wandering in the streets," Masayuki said with exasperation.
Ann's eyebrow rose. "And why would that be?"
Aw shit! Shouldn't have opened his big mouth. Masayuki gulped and blushed. "That's... that's... well... it's because..."
"Uhuh?"
Ashamed, he bowed his head and answered with a timid voice. "Because I had another fever..."
Ann's eyes widened. Suddenly she burst out laughing.
Annoyed, Masayuki wailed. "Ann, that is _not_ funny!"
"Sorry! Hihihi hihi hiii! But, Masa-kun! Haahah haha hahaah! Isn't this *gasp* the THIRD one this month? And this is only the second week of the month! BWA HAHAHA AHHAHAHAHA HAHAHAHAAA!!!!"
Masayuki blushed furiously. It certainly wasn't his fault he got sick easily. He didn't want it. Now he felt like digging a hole and hiding inside or maybe shooting himself on the spot. Ann could really be a jerk sometimes.
"Alright, alright. I'll stop laughing," she said as she saw her friend almost crying. She set her face in serious mode. "If it wasn't you, then who else?"
He shrugged, clueless.
Suddenly their teacher, Mr. Sebastian Freud, came into the class. Everyone scampered to his or her respective seat. "Chill down, guys. Give me some peace here," he said.
"Damn I like this funky guy," Ann smirked.
Masayuki giggled.
"Guys, you got yourselves a new classmate today. Hold your breath!" The 'funky' teacher said. "Err... Yuy! Come on in!"
As the new student stepped into the class[room], the sounds of jaws smacking floor or table were heard all over the class.
Masayuki felt his eyes bugging out as well.
Ann rose an eyebrow and whistled. "Well, what do you know? Masa-kun, apparently we don't have to wonder anymore."
The new student was obviously confused by the others' reactions toward him. But when he finally saw Masayuki, he blinked. He turned to the teacher, sweat dropping and looking very confused.
The teacher just gave him a shrug. "Guys! Put your jaws back in place, please!" He exclaimed. After he got the attention of his students, he continued. "This is Heero Yuy, he is from L1 Colony. Be friendly with him...," he smirked, "...or else!" He grinned at the mocking expression his students made. "Okay! The only seat left is next to Amanogawa, right before the window. That's yours, Yuy. If you can't handle a lesson, you can just jump. Now shoo! Let me start the lesson."
The students' heads moved back and forth like spectators at a tennis match between Amanogawa Masayuki and Heero Yuy as the new student walked to his seat.
He stopped in front of Masayuki's seat.
Masayuki stared at the new student in front of him in disbelie[f]. Heck, if he hadn't known better, he could have sworn he had been staring into a mirror! The same face, the same dark-brown hair, the same blue eyes, the same height (he guessed), and although there was a difference, he couldn't pinpoint it yet.
The boy averted his cool gaze from him and sat down in his seat.
Ann leaned closer to Masayuki. "Ooh, he seems like a tough guy. Unlike some."
"Shut up, Ann," he mumbled, irked.
She stuck out her tongue at him.
The new student immediately disappeared as the bell rang, indicating lunchtime. Masayuki noticed it. "Where is Yuy-kun?" He asked a classmate.
"Aiyah! I thought _you_ [were] Yuy-kun!" The girl exclaimed.
He rolled his eyes. That was the eleventh time someone had mistaken him for Heero Yuy.
Where was that guy anyway? Before he had even had a chance to introduce himself after Mr. Freud walked out, everyone had surrounded him. He and Ann had exchanged a glance and decided they'd greet him later.
But where on Earth was he?
Masayuki sighed as he walked up the stairs bringing his lunchbox with him. The roof was a good place in which to spend lunchtime. There, the others, and especially Ann, wouldn't be able to disturb him. She was way toooooo difficult to ignore when it came to stealing his lunch.
As he opened the door to the roof, he blinked.
Heero Yuy was sitting against the fence having his own lunch. The boy looked up as he noticed his presence. Their eyes met.
Masayuki blushed. "Oh hi, Yuy-kun!" He stammered.
The boy nodded and resumed his lunch.
Masayuki closed the door behind him and inched closer to the other boy. "Uh... may I have lunch here with you?"
Yuy looked up at him. He seemed to be thinking, before he finally shrugged.
Masayuki smiled. "Thank you!" He said as he sat down next to him.
They ate their lunch in silence. Finally, Masayuki decided to try starting a conversation. "Uh... you know, I was really surprised when I saw you the first time, Yuy-kun. I almost couldn't believe my eyes. Even Ann said we looked almost identical... sort of..."
He only received a grunt as a reply. He sweat-dropped.
"Oh yeah! I haven't introduced myself. My name is Amanogawa Masayuki. It's nice to meet you." He extended a hand but it was totally ignored.
Now that was frustrating.
"You saw the girl next to me? That's Ann, Ann Marvin."
"....."
"She's a nice girl, you know, although you might want to avoid her during lunchtime since she tends to snack on other people's lunches."
"....."
It's getting very frustrating.
"You don't speak a lot, do you?"
"....."
Way too frustrating.
"Hallo? Anybody home?"
"....."
Now he was ready to scream.
Suddenly Yuy stood up. Without any words, he walked to the door and left him on the roof alone. Apparently he had finished his lunch.
Masayuki blinked.
There was a long silence before he wailed, "That was so cruel!" With an annoyed expression, he put down his lunchbox and decided that he had lost his appetite.
Heero walked out the schoolyard feeling relieved.
Today had been a full day. First, he was still a bit astonished by his new homeroom teacher, Mr. Freud, who was, compared to normal teachers, psychotic. Second, he had been crowded by a lot of people trying to make friends with him. Usually he'd have ignored them or given them his glare, but that would have negated his whole reason for being here in the first place. Normal student did _not_ glare at new friends.
And to top it all, Amanogawa Masayuki.
Oh why had he chosen this school in the first place?
Maybe he had been wrong to leave this boy on the roof without saying a word to him. He just couldn't stand it. The boy had created an uncomfortable feeling inside his gut.
On the other hand, surprisingly, there was something about this boy that aroused his curiosity. He didn't know what it was, but he needed to know. He wanted to find out more about him.
He decided that he would hack into the school's computer as soon as he had a chance. This boy looked too much like him.
But of course, the boy had never needed to ride a Gundam and jump into battle.
Oh... interesting. Amanogawa was tailing him. He could easily tell. The boy wasn't good at hiding his presence.
Amateur. At this rate, his curiosity could kill him.
Yuy-kun is fast! I almost lose him at practically every corner. I have not yet fully recovered, but still I hope I can catch up with him.
Yeah, I know it's not smart to tail somebody like this, but I'm so curious about him. Yuy-kun looks so much like me. If I didn't know better, I'd think that he's my long-dead brother Hiroyuki.
Aw shit, he's turning left at that corner! I have to run if I don't wanna lose him.
Eh?
Aiyah?!
Okay, the boy was no longer following him. Heero felt relieved. He didn't like that boy's persistence. It annoyed him and put him on edge. Duo had been right. Maybe he did have the power to attract people and make them stick with him. Damn it!
Somehow, he didn't feel well. In fact, something was nagging at him. Judging from his past experience with Relena, when she had been like a tracking dog with him as her target, the boy wouldn't give up so easily. Would he? Heero hadn't even tried one of his usual tricks. That wasn't normal.
Well, the boy could have been bored and decided to stop. He didn't seem to be as persistent as the Queen of the World was....
"Oh, Hell!"
Cursing, Heero turned back to the corner where he had felt the boy's presence last.
Just as he suspected. In a small alley, Amanogawa was backed up against a wall looking terrified. He was trapped between two mean looking mobsters.
Heero sighed exasperatedly. He recognized the two mobsters. They were the ones who had tried to rob him the day before. Apparently they were out for revenge for the hard lesson he had given them then. They didn't realize that they were facing the wrong person.
He heard them laughing. Then one blow from the taller mobster sent Amanogawa flying to the opposite wall. The poor boy passed out instantly.
Heero groaned. Shouldn't have gone through the slum. He reminded himself to find another way home, as he approached the two dolts.
Where am I...? Why am I seeing stars? My head hurts so much it's spinning.
Oh yeah, I remember. Those two guys grabbed me in an alley and hit me... but I don't remember the rest....
I open my eyes and find myself staring at a white ceiling. I adjust my focus to get my eyes used to the bright lighting. Feeling better, I look around.
I'm in a bedroom, a small 3x3 one. The walls are painted green, while most of the furniture is white. The room is tidy; everything is in perfect order, even the picture on the wall to my right. I bet whoever put it up on the wall must have used a ruler to make a perfect ninety degrees to horizontal line.
Speaking about this picture... I don't remember having one shot with any guy with a braid _that_ long. Or any guy with a weird bang in front of his face and another with his hair pulled back _that_ tight go with that too.
Well, one of them looks familiar.... Now where did I see him before...? Oh yeah, isn't he that Arabian businessman... Winner? Yeah, Quatre Winner! And the girl right next to that 'me' on the picture... I know her.... Oh... I remember.... Queen Relena.... Oh....
Oh....
OH?!
I sit bolt upright. I blink and blink; I pinch myself to make sure I'm not dreaming.
Just then, Yuy-kun comes in.
That 'me' in the picture must be Yuy-kun! Whoever he is, I believe I'm facing a person with very _very_ strong AND important allies at his back.
He frowns as he catches me staring at the picture. He comes closer and snatches it off the wall. I gulp nervously at the way he shoves it into a shelf.
He comes back to me and gives the mug he is holding. "Drink!" He orders like a commander would to a soldier.
Frightened, I obey. I drink the warm milk slowly.
"You shouldn't have followed me," I hear Yuy-kun saying. I feel heat creeping up my cheeks. Was I that easy for him to notice?
As if reading my mind, he says, "You were careless. You couldn't even handle a guy who intended to hurt you."
"I don't know how to fight," I try to defend myself.
He just snorts. "It's nine already. I'll walk you home."
"Yuy-kun, it's alright. I can go home by myself."
"And risk yourself getting attacked again," he mocks me. I am about to protest again when he says, "I'm walking you home. Period." With that, he walks out of the room without another word.
I pout. Yuy-kun is such a hard person, isn't he?
I sit on the bed for a few more minutes before trying to get up. My head spins as I try, so I have to stay still for a while before I can try to move again.
Maybe Yuy-kun does have a point....
I walk across the room to the mirror and look into it. A bruise can be seen clearly on my left cheek. Oh great... Kaasan won't be very happy about this.
A motorcycle ran through the night among the streets of Marine Hills, one of the elite neighborhoods of the Sank Kingdom capital. The area was quiet, and only a few expensive cars passed by.
The white and blue-striped motorcycle, which appeared to be a recycled model of what used to be called Yamaha NSR, stopped in front of a big Japanese-style house with a large garden.
Masayuki climbed down from the back seat. He returned the white helmet to Heero and bowed. "Thank you for your help, Yuy-kun. I don't know how I can repay you for your kindness."
Heero just snorted. He was about to leave, when suddenly a low chuckle was heard from the gate.
They both turned to see a young woman standing between the opened gate doors. The woman looked about twenty-four years old. She was beautiful; her light brown hair was loose and fell past her shoulders, making a very good-looking wave. However, her eyes were staring at them with a look that could send a chill into a person, even Heero. They were sharp and dilated, but at the same time they were blank.
She smiled slightly and said, "Masayuki, welcome home. Kaasan has been so worried."
"Gomen, Miyuki-neechan," he apologized. "I had a little problem."
"I can see that," the woman giggled as she saw the bruise on his cheek. "Come on in, Masayuki." She beckoned to him.
Heero was about to leave when Amanogawa Miyuki suddenly called. "Hiroyuki, where are you going? Come in! Kaasan and Tousan are waiting for you."
~tbc~
Hime D.