Game Over

Chapter 1 - The Past

          When Aoi was just 6 years old...

          The sun shone brightly upon the playground, the air full of the wondrous laughter of kids as Aoi sat on the bench beside the building in the perfect shade as he waited for his parents to pick him up, swinging his feet under the bench as he watched his classmates play happily.

          His eyes wandered through the playground, a soft breeze hitting his face as leaves made their way to the ground from the trees they once hung on. Sighing to himself, he knew his parents would be pretty late as usual. Their job always keeps them busy, sometimes even too busy for Aoi. But they loved him nevertheless, and they wanted to make sure he knew that.

          It still hurt to know they wouldn't sacrifice a little bit of time for their only son. The only exceptions were, of course, picking him up and dropping him off to school every weekday. Everything they did was completely related to their job, but Aoi understood how important their work was. Making the world a better place was always the explanation his parents would give him, and the thought of that brings a smile to his face, his young heart believing his parents were some kind of heroes. 

          I want to be a hero one day...

          It wasn't long until Aoi saw an all too familiar car in the distance, driving his way. A small smile appeared on his face as the car drew closer, coming to a complete stop right outside the fence in which the playground was protected in.

          Running up to the fence and grasping at the wire, Aoi happily greeted his parents.

          "Hey, honey," his mother said, coming out of the car and opening the gates to let her son welcome her with an embrace. 

          "Hi mom," Aoi greeted back.

          "How was your day?" she asked, tousling his hair with her thin fingers. She smiled that bright smile of hers that Aoi always loved to look at. Knowing his mother was happy was very important to him, and seeing her smile made him feel safe, almost.

          But as soon as the first word escaped Aoi's lips, his mom was already caught off guard. Behind him in the distance of the playground was a kid, a kid that sparked something in her with a sense of familiarity. Furrowing her eyebrows, her stare intensified as her mind spun, trying to figure out if her eyes her deceiving her, or if what she saw was real.

          Slowly, she whispered to her husband beside her all while never taking her eyes off the kid, whispering low enough so Aoi couldn't hear.

          Whispering to her husband, he lightly nodded, and with an unspoken communication consisting of simply eye gestures, they decided to let their son in on something.

          She knelt back down to become eye level with her son, her eyes full of mischievous intent. "Honey, who's that kid over there?" she asked.

          Turning around to get a good look at the kid she was referring to, a smile appeared on his face. "Oh, that's Uruha. He's new here," he explained, his mind creating a movie of all the times he's seen Uruha around the school.

          "He's new, huh?" she asked to nobody in particular, her internal dialogue spilling from her lips. Her eyes flashed as an idea popped in her head, and with a slight nod to her husband, she knew exactly what her next few words should be, a plan falling perfectly into place. "You should try being friends with him. I bet he's really special," she suggested. Aoi, being the naive child he was, didn't think much about her suggestion and happily obliged, always eager to make new friends.

          "He's special?" he asked, eyes full of curiosity. "How can you tell?"

          But his mother knew better than to start spilling secrets about what she really knows. She knew her little boy wouldn't be ready for that kind of information. For now, she'll keep her lips sealed, but she doesn't plan on sealing it forever. Soon, once her baby boy is old enough, she'll be able to tell him everything. She'll be able to finally tell him all the little things she knows and he'll finally be able to join them with it. She's always dreamed of having her son work after her in this field, and she wanted nothing else for him. She knew Aoi would always want to please her, so she knew he'd come join her without a second thought.

          "A mother knows best," she smiled kindly at him, though her eyes were anything but kind.

Authors Note: im really excited to start this story.. tell me what you guys think ^.^