The One Who Saved Me

Chapter 1: Ryu

Ugh, I hate Monday mornings, I think to myself as I walk through the crowded hallway. Nothing ever happens here, day after day it's the same old boring thing. I shove past people as I try to make my way toward my locker

My best friend, Satoshi, appears beside me the moment I get my locker open. "Hey Ryu, how's it going? How was your weekend? Anything interesting happen to you? And if so, why didn't you tell me?" he asks in a rapid succession.

"Calm down, Satoshi! You need to learn how to speak slower and ask only one question at a time. Especially on a Monday morning. Everything's good, I guess. You know, same old same old. My weekend was pretty good. No, nothing interesting happened. How 'bout you?"

A huge grin breaks across his face. "Sooo awesome! The party on Friday was killer! You should have come with me man, it would have been better with you there."

I sigh, "you always say that when I skip a party." I close my locker and swing my bag over my shoulder.

"Which is happening more and more lately," Satoshi gives me a worried look. "What's going on with you Ryu? Honestly, I feel like you've been pretty distant lately."

I glance at the ground, "I know. I don't mean to be. I'm sorry, Satoshi. It's just that I'm so tired of the same old thing; day after day, week after week. It's getting boring and annoying."

"Dude, I know what you need!" Satoshi says, looking at me with a hopeful expression.

"Uh-oh."

"A girlfriend!"

I stop suddenly in the middle of the hall and stare at him. The guy who's been my best friend since elementary school. I burst out laughing - the kind of laugh that makes me double over. Then the laughing fit stops as quickly as it started and I look at Satoshi again, "oh. You're serious?"

The look he gives me tells me he thinks I'm insane. "Of course I'm serious," he says as we start walking again. "Think about it, you having a girlfriend would be new. You know, something that would get you excited to get up in the morning and do things again."

So I did think about it. All day actually. I haven't had a girlfriend for almost two years. I should probably just start by making a few friends who are girls first - I don't have many. After lunch I have art class, and I am determined not to leave without having talked to at least one girl.

We are doing painting projects and as I am painting I realize that the easel beside me is empty. The strange thing is, I don't think it normally is.

About five minutes into class, a girl rushes into the classroom. She has light brown hair and a backpack slung over one shoulder. She takes the seat with the easel that's empty beside me.

"Miss Kotogami, you are late," says our teacher.

The girl who sat down beside me sniffles quietly before responding. "Gomen'nasia, Higashi sensei, it won't happen again."

"It better not," he says as he adjusts his glasses and sits back down. "Back to work everyone."

I try to focus back on my painting, but I can't stop thinking about that sniffle I heard out of... Kotogami?

I lean towards her, "hi, uh, Kotogami was it?"

She looks at me a little startled and nods, "Kari Kotogami, actually. You can call me Kari." Now that she's looking at me I can see the faintest bit of redness under her eyes.

I give her a friendly smile, "okay, Kari." Then my smile falls and I feel worry fill my eyes. "I was just wondering, are you okay?"

She looks surprised again, then she gives me a big, adorable smile. I can tell she's forcing it though. "Me? I'm fine, great actually. Art class is my favorite time of day." She studies me for a moment looking serious, "thank you for asking though, ugh..."

"Ryu Isana, my friends call me Ryu. That means you can call me Ryu now too," I say, grinning at her.

It works, she giggles. "Okay, thank you Ryu. It's nice to know there are people who care." She turns to her work and starts painting, a small smile on her face.

I turn back to my work, but am not actually painting. I can't stop trying to glance over at Kari. She's been here all semester but I'm only noticing at this moment that she's beside me. Now that I've gotten a good look at her and have actually spoken to her, I notice that she's pretty cute too. With clear green eyes and freckles that run across her nose. I feel a blush start to appear across my nose. Kari Kotogami, huh?