It took one week for Ran to enter the school again. He had attended practice, as well as the match. However, he had not been allowed to play as Philippe said 'he doesn't look well'. As easy as that, no further arguing.
Ran had accepted it, had been fine with it.
But entering school had been a different kind of hard. Kanta, of all people, had been the most surprised to see him.
"Wow, look who is here! Ran, where were you? You didn't play on Saturday, and didn't text or call me back. Are you okay?" He just nodded. Kanto couldn't know.
Simply suspecting something was enough danger. "I am fine. I left my phone at a friends house. But I got it back. What's up?" Flabbergasted, Kanta shook his head. "Really? Ran, you dipped for a week and then ask me to act normal? Why didn't you-" "I am fine, but if you don't trust me, then so be it. I am gonna head to class now, your decision whether you follow or not." Ran slammed his locker shut, walking away with his pencil case and book for Japanese in hand.
-
Japanese lessons had to be some of the most boring ones out there. He wasn't good at it, therefore not the biggest fan anyway. But Kanta had decided to not even sit next to him. That made it just so much worse. Now, he was bored and hurt.
Throughout the entire day, Ran got ignored by his best friend. He didn't understand why Kanta looked away whenever he tried to make eye contact, walked the opposite direction as soon as he saw Ran standing by his locker.
It did not even take 8 school lessons for him to officially loose his mind. Nearing a breakdown, Ran escaped to the toilet stalls. And patiently waited for the last lesson to end so he could finally go home.
-
"Ran! Ran! Please, wait." Someone shouted from behind. He had just left the school, passed its gates, and now someone was chasing after him. Ran knew that voice. "What, Kanta?" "You didn't attend the last three lessons. Mrs. Heta was unamused when she noticed you skipping again. Really, Ran?" "Could you shut up for a single second? Just one? Leave me alone Kanta. You ignored me for a full day without a good reason. And now, now you approach me because of something so insignificant. Did you suddenly feel bad?" He shook his head. "Why the hell would I feel bad? 'No lies or secrets' had been our motto ever since kindergarten. But suddenly, you decide to ditch it all. Besides, you were the one who ignored me first. If you want me to talk to you again, tell me the truth. Why did you ignore me? What did I do wrong?"
Ran kept silent. His eyes were filled with tears. The truth was about to explode out of him, but he was so ashamed, so scared that he simply couldn't talk about it. What would Kanta think? "Nothing." He pressed out. Because this had not been his best friends fault.
He forced a nod. "Fine. Text me when you are willing to talk. Behave like an adult, this is stupid." "But you are the one acting like a child!" Ran shouted back at him. But Kanta didn't listen. He just turned, got in his car and drove off. Neither Ran or Kanta saw the tears leaking from the others eyes.
"Fuck!" Ran screamed. He kicked the nearest stone far away from himself. Ran was furious. But above all sad. He couldn't stop the tears from flowing, couldn't control the sobs. Literally feeling his strength fading, he sat down on the concrete.
He felt someone tap his shoulder.
Ran would have expected a random person that had passed by to stand there, maybe even Kanta who had returned to talk it out. But not him. Not Haruto.
As soon as Ran realised, he scurried backwards. He didn't care less about his blazer ripping, or his jeans getting dirty. All he wanted was run as soon as he managed to get on his feet. But Haruto wouldn't let him. With his hand still on the others shoulder, he had enough strength to keep Ran seated on the ground.
"Rannie, why are you crying? Missed me so much?" This earned more whimpers, but no real answer. Haruto was all smiles when he noticed Ran giving up the squirming. He leaned over the younger, then checked his surroundings. No one near, his car close by.
All of a sudden, Ran felt something metal press against his throat. His blood ran cold. Even though it was just a simple key, he knew that it cut harm him badly. Especially at such a vulnerable spot.
"Come, Rannie. We are gonna go to my car. And you are gonna follow me. Let's have some fun, shall we?"
-
This was worse than he remembered. Because this time, Ran was awake. He was fully aware of what was happening, couldn't do anything about it though. Haruto had restrained his hands with a scarf, one that he had found on his backseat just then.
There he was, naked, crying and shaking, being raped by his class mate. It felt like being torn apart from the inside. It hurt, and he could feel the blood tickle down his leg. But Ran didn't give up the begging, so he would finally stop. Because it hurt. And the only answer he got were slaps to the cheek.
"You are so tight. Fuck, Rannie. Ahh~" Something hot spread through his entire body. Haruto pulled out of him with a satisfied grin. "Remember, Rannie. Not a word."
-
There was a knock on his door. Yuki sighed. He checked the clock. It was 8pm. Practice had ended one hour ago. He was exhausted, and busy cooking dinner. Therefore, Yuki wanted to ignore it.
However, when it didn't stop, he decided to go and open the door.
As soon as he had opened it, Yuki noticed that something was terribly wrong. Ran stood in front. That was weird itself, because the younger had not attended practice today. Secondly, he was sweating. The younger had seemingly cried for quite a while based on his eye color.
There was immediate relief on his face when Yuki opened the door. Usually, he would have scolded him. The words 'why didn't you come to practice' already on his tongue. But, he suppressed it. Because Ran suddenly started crying.
Ran was limping and Still dressed in his school uniform.
Immediately, he moved to support him, leading him to the couch so he could sit down. Ran was panicking now, barely breathing anymore. And Yuki- Yuki was overwhelmed. He didnt know how to properly handle a panic attack, and pulling out his phone would probably not be the right thing to do.
Instead, he just started counting. From one upwards, highlighting his breathing rhythm by ex- and inhaling extra loud.
Five minutes of exaggerated breathing later, Ran was breathing normally again and the crying had stopped. Sure, there still were some sniffs here and there, but long not as bad.
"Thank you, Yuki." His voice was barely above a whisper. Yuki noticed him rubbing his wrists. They were red.
He shook his head. "Always. I am here for you. I am cooking dinner, you want some?" Ran smiled. A small nod.
"Great. I will set the table then."
-
While eating dinner, the two decided it would be best for Ran to stay at the older's house. Yuki lend him some pyjamas, toiletries, turned the couch into a real bed. Ran had not slept as good in quiet a while.
-
"Morning, Yuki." He said when he heard him enter. The older smiled. "It's almost two pm, so 'good morning, Ran'. How did you sleep?" "Good. 2pm? Oh fuck, I missed my classes again. Mrs Heta is gonna actually kill mr, and my parents-" "Would you have been able to attend without wanting to quit?" This got Ran thinking.
Because the real answer would be 'no'. Instead, he just shrugged. Ran pushed himself off the couch. His head was still hurting slightly, not to mention his legs.
A wince as soon as he stood up and Yuki was already over there, ready to catch him if he fell. "It's fine." Contrary to his words, Ran sat down again.
Yuki sighed. He looked concerned and his voice displayed said concern even better. "Are you sure you don't want to talk about it?" "I had a huge fight with Kanta. I got so angry at him that I tried to run after his car, but I slipped because of the rain earlier. Landed straight on my butt. I know that I shouldn't have done that. But there is already a bruise forming and it fucking hurts." It wasn't like Yuki didn't understand the pain, therefore he got what Ran meant. However, he also noticed how suspiciously ready he had that answer.
"Practice starts at 5. You wanna go or not? I can tell Philippe that you aren't feeling well." "I am sorry." The convincing that he shouldn't be sorry were there, but all in vain.
-
Philippe looked around the gymnasium. "Where is Ran?" His eyes met Yukis. The latter looked to the ground. "Yuki? Can we talk for a second outside?" He said. The coach didn't even wait for an answer, he just walked straight out the room. Yuki caught sight of Tatsunori and Tomohiro whispering. But he ignored them, and followed the older.
There he was, standing with his arms crossed, glasses on and serious expression on his face. "Did he talk to you?" "What?" Yuki asked half confused. "Do you know why he is constantly not attending practice- If something happened?" "He wasnt feeling well, as he slipped due to the rain and landed quiet unfortunate." Philippe furrowed his brows. Still, he just nodded.
"Okay. Thank you." It was obvious that the coach distrusted him.
-
The doorbell rang once more, Ran decided to ignore it once more. Because there was no way he would open up. To no one.
A familiar voice rang through the apartment, which meant the person was aware of him being inside. "Ran! I know you are home! We share our location with each other, don't you remember?" Oh, how he had forgotten to calculate that aspect in. Tatsunori was standing there, not going anywhere close to the next minutes.
And Ran slowly started to realise that there was no way out of this. He sighed, then pushed himself off his bed. Walking had never hurt more, and had probably never been as difficult. Hell, he had to use the wall to support and guide himself to the door.
A fake cough as soon as he arrived. "What do you want?" "Aren't you gonna open up?" Tatsunori asked, a hint of offence creeping through. "No. What do you want?" "You didn't attend again today. What is up with you? Do you want Philippe to kick you out?" Unknown To the other, Ran shook his head.
"No." "Then stop skipping practice and start being reliable!" Silence. There were quiet tears leaking from the younger's eyes. "I know." Another pause. "You are crying. Open up, please. I am sorry. Ran. I am sorry." "No." His voice was weak and didn't hold any sort of authority.
Therefore, Tatsunori kept knocking and pressing him to unlock the door. But Ran remained firm. "Please, Tatsu. I can't." "Why?" "I-I lost my key." He stuttered out. Unconvinced, the older continued asking. "Ran! I am gonna seriously call the police! Are you being held hostage? Is there someone inside I am not supposed to know about?" "No-" "Then open up!"
Ran started getting tired from this. He quickly checked the mirror next to the door. There were only some marks on his collarbone, but he quickly covered those with a jacket. And as long as he wouldn't have to move-
Tatsunori let out a huff of air when he finally made eye contact with his friend. There was definitely something wrong, he decided within milliseconds. A jacket? Ran usually wore sweaters whenever he was cold. And he certainly wasn't as pale usually.
"A-Are you okay?" Unsure of what to say, Ran simply nodded. His mouth suddenly felt so dry. Tatsunori didn't believe him. It was so obvious that it almost hurt. Because Ran did not have the energy or patience to deal with this right now.
So he continued standing there, staring at his friend. Grey sweatpants and a white T-shirt, covered by a black jacket.
And Tatsunori just continued staring him down. "What happened?" "Nothing. Can you leave?" "No, no. Ran-" He took a step forward. With that, he invaded his house.
His home. His safe space. That immediately scared Ran. He knew he could trust Tatsunori, but he couldn't help but feel trapped. Therefore, he backed off. It hurt to walk and the little wince he let out as soon as he took a step didn't go unnoticed by the older.
"Are you hurt? Can I help? Ran, talk to me." Once more, Tatsunori took a step into Ran's direction. "Don't. Move. Don't come closer. I am telling you to go home, Tatsunori. Do what I am asking. Please." "But why-" "There is no why! Just get the fuck out of my apartment!"
The hurt in the others eyes was immense. But all he did was nod. No other word. He just nodded, then left. Just like Ran had wished. Then why did it hurt so much?