"Don't go out without telling us, we don't want you to get hurt"
I sighed out loud as I think of Izumo's warning and how I completely ignored his and my brother, Mikoto's, wish.
I look down at my black leather watch as the sun rises. 6:24 am. I should probably be heading home before anybody ends up noticing.
I take one last glance at the sunrise before carefully and quietly going down the fire escape stairs, abandoning the rooftop of the empty building I was just standing on.
Once my feet finally touch the concrete of the ground, I pull up the black hood of my jacket and fix my stockings before making my way home. After all, walking around town with my vibrant red hair showing would just be in invitation for gangs that want to stir up trouble with HOMRA to come attack me. Being the red kings younger sister wasn't always the safest
As I begin walking, I pull out my phone and earphones before plugging them into my ears and turning on my music. I've always had a love for English music, going as far as becoming fluent in the language.
I hum along to "Back to Black" by Amy Winehouse as I maneuver my way through the alley's of the urban side of Shizume City, knowing my way around very well.
It takes me about an hour to finally see the bar. I carefully go around to a back door and take out my bobbin pin from my hair and pick the lock. Once I successfully open the door, I make sure to close it quietly and tiptoed upstairs to my room.
~•~•~•~•~•~
"I found the back door unlocked this morning, do you remember if I locked it yesterday?" I freeze as I hear Izumo ask someone. Fuck, I forgot to lock it back again this morning. I mentally scold myself before I compose myself and go down the rest of stairs as normally as I can.
"I'm pretty sure you di- Ah! Naomi-chan, good morning did you sleep well?" Tatara asks as he spots me entering the bar area where he and Anna sat at while Izumo polishes a wine glass behind the bar.
"Yeah" I mumble before sitting next to him and laying my head down on the counter.
"You alright Naomi?" Izumo asks.
"Yeah, just tired" I mumble
"Then go back to sleep silly!" Tatara answers brightly
"Can't" I say before sitting back up. Despite getting home around 7:30 am, I woke up around 10 am today. I normally can't sleep for more than 5 hours which is why I always go night exploring. But of course, they don't know that.
Izumo slides a cup of water my way and I flash him a small smile before taking a sip from the polished glass.
Tatara and Izumo go back to discussing the mystery of the unlocked back door while I continue to look at my reflection in the glass: my vibrant red hair tamed into a messy side braid, my choppily cut bangs that cover my forehead, and the bags around my Amber colored eyes that match my brothers. I snap out of my reflection when I see a little girl with white hair next to me. I turn around on my bar stool and meet a pair of red eyes looking through red marbles. I stare back and let her continues observing me before she finally puts down her marble and looks me directly in the eyes.
"Hi Anna" I flash her a small grin.
"Hi Naomi. What did you do to your hair?" She asks curiously as she looks at my side braid
"I braided it"I answer simply
"Is it hard to do?" She asks genuinely curious. I barely shake my head no before she asks "can you do it to my hair?" With a hopeful look in her eyes.
"Yeah sure" I agree. I mean I can't just say no to her. She's too adorable.
I stand up and head to the couch before sitting on the edge and motioning Anna to sit between my legs on the floor. She eagerly sits down and let's me do whatever.
As I begin to weave through her fine hair, HOMRA members begin to come in. It takes me about 5 minutes to comb through and braid her long hair tightly and in those 5 minutes, Yata, Fushimi, Kamamoto, Bandou and Shouhei arrive.
"Hey Kusanagi-San, what's up?" Yata greets as he sits at the bar. They all begin to talk and greet each other while Anna goes over to Izumo to get a cup of juice. All while this happens, I quietly go over the stairs to go back into my room, it's too loud here.
When I finally reach my room, I plop down onto my bed and look at the ceiling. My room is one of my favorite places due to all the things in it. The creme colored walls are covered with posters of books, movies and bands, all equally spaced from each other. When you enter my room, you see that my dresser is right next to the door. Then you see that in the right corner of my room is my bed with a black comforter and red, gray and white pillows. The wall to the left has a door leading to my bathroom and on the exact opposite wall, near the foot of my bed is the door leading to my closet. And right next to my bed is favorite thing in my room: my bookshelf. My bookshelf is filled with many books of all lengths and widths, all of which I have read before. Not only is my bookshelf the holder of my happiness, but it was also given to me by my brother, Izumo and Tatara for my 15th birthday, making it even more special.
I remember being forced to go out with Tatara all day on my birthday and then coming home to see all the books that were previously stacked on the floor in piles, all neatly set in a black bookshelf with Izumo standing next to it and Mikoto laying on my bed smoking
I grin to myself as I remember that moment,one of the few times I genuinely smiled big. I smiled so much my face hurt. I was so happy I jumped up and gave each of them hugs which is not something I generally do.
I stand from my bed and head towards my bathroom. I go into my bathroom and wash my hands before taking out my contacts from my red and irritated eyes and switched for my black framed glasses. I take out my braid and comb through my now slightly wavy hair before stripping from my clothes and hopping into the shower.
I take my time as i let the warm water wash down my body and hair. I begin massaging my scalp with my coconut scented shampoo before letting it set in for a little bit and rinsing it out, then going for the conditioner of the same scent.
It takes me 1 hour to finish showering. Not because I do some special ritual but simply because I enjoy the water cascading down my body and the peace it brings me. Once I finally step out, I begin getting ready for once again, another day.
I dry my body off before changing into black jeans, a white t-shirt and a army green utility jacket. I comb through my long hair that almost reached my waist and let it air dry. I grab my eye liner and begin adding some around my eyes, slightly winging the ends before putting a light coat of mascara. I put my glasses back on, deciding that my eyes need a rest from almost 24 hours of wearing contacts. I put on black socks and shoes before rolling up the ends of my pants to look like capris before grabbing my messenger bag and heading out my room.
When I go back down stairs, I see more HOMRA members have arrived and are as rowdy as ever. I force a small grin to anybody who looks my way before heading to the door and leaving before anybody asks anything.
I walk down the street for a little bit before going to a coffee shop and buying a coffee with a muffin on the side as my breakfast. I say breakfast but as I look down my watch I notice it's noon. Oh well, never too late.
I take my things to go before taking a train to the more quieter and older side of town, taking a few sips from my coffee as I sit and wait. Once I finally arrive, I walk for about 10 minutes before arriving at my destination.
An old book store stands amongst other buildings and shops with few people walking by. I enter the bookstore and I am immediately met with the comforting smell of old books.
"Ah, hello dear. I see you came today, just go on up alright?" An elderly lady greets as she sees me. I nod and bow slightly to her before going up the stairs, down a hallway and out a door until I am finally at the rooftop.
What makes this rooftop special to me is not only the quiet area but the abundance of flowers the owner has. I walk around a bit before finding my favorite spot between a patch of sun flowers and the ledge of the roof.
I set down my coffee and muffin before pulling out my notebook and pencil from my bag. I needed to finish some work for homeschool and I wouldn't be able to finish at the bar. I begin to work on the problems, taking sips and bites of my coffee and muffin until I finish my food and work. Once I'm finished I stand up and stretch up a bit, enjoying the view of the city. I take one last look before I go back to my corner and read a few chapters of my book.
I accidentally end up finishing my book by the time the sun is setting. I stand up and go back inside and down the stairs before bidding farewell and leaving the shop for outside once again.
I lean my head on the glass walls of the train as I am slightly jostled from the movements of the train. I close my eyes for a brief moment before opening them once again. The train finally arrives at my stop and I get off. As soon as I begin walking home, I get the chilling feeling of somebody following me. Just as I was about to pick up the pace, one hand goes around my mouth while the other around my waist and altogether I am pulled into a alley and thrown onto the floor.
I look up and I am met with menacing looks and creepy grins from four burly men. They look to one another before one picks me up and holds both my arms behind my back while the other three began laughing as they try to lift up my shirt or remove my jacket.
I groan internally as they keep trying to remove my clothes. Moments like this, I wish I had Homras power and strength but I don't.
I kick at the guy behind me with as much force as I can, just so I can be released from his grasp. Once with my arms free, I get into a stance before throwing punches and kicks at each of the guys, knocking them to the floor. I pick up my bag sling it across my shoulder and begin running out of the alley before they get back up. Just as I think I am free, someone grasps my wrist and flings me back and onto the floor.
"Stupid bitch!" One of the guys before he begins kicking at my side, another kicking at my head, knocking off my glasses. Once that's over another one forcefully picks me up and pushes me to the wall and punches my stomach, making me kneel over to hold myself.
They continue hurting me until suddenly they stop. I look up from holding my stomach and see a blurry red flame scaring off all four of them. A blurry figure comes after the fire, continuing to fight off the guys until they retreat. The figure picks up what I believe to be my glasses before coming over to me and setting them onto my face so I can see.
To my surprise, Saruhiko Fushimi stands in front of me with his arms crossed and an annoyed look on his face.
"Thanks" I breath out as I try to stand up straight. Just as I was about to fall down from my failed attempt, Saruhiko grasps one of my arms and slings it across his shoulder as he helps me limp out of the alley.
"What the hell happened, why were they hitting you?" He asks
"I don't know they just grabbed me on my way home" I answer truthfully. As I see the way he is taking me, I stop walking
"What now?" He asks annoyed
"I can't go back to HOMRA, at least not right now. Please just take me anywhere else. I'll explain when we get there just please" I beg him. The last thing I want is for everyone to see me in the state I'm in right and for Mikoto to get mad at me for being out to begin with without telling anybody.
Fushimi sighs before suddenly grabbing my legs and carrying me bridal style.
"Fine. We're going to my place" he says as he changes direction and begins walking through a more quieter street surrounded by apartments. We go up the stairs to one of the buildings and finally arrive at his apartment.
It's a plain apartment with nothing special about it. He sets me down on the brown couch as he leaves to go get something. He immediately comes back with a first aid kit in his hands and sets it on the coffee table beside him as he gets on his knees to be leveled with me.
As he silently cleans up the cuts on my face, I absentmindedly look around his plain apartment. As I stare at a picture frame on his coffee table of Yata and him, his hand abruptly grabs my chin forcing me to look at his dark blue eyes.
"Tsk stop moving so much"
"Sorry" I mumble. He works in silence for a few moments before finally asking "why didn't you want to go home?" He sets down the cotton ball with now blood on it motions me to lay down so he can look at my stomach as he waits for my answer
"I don't want them to know what happened." I briefly state. He looks away from my bloody and bruised stomach to give me an annoyed look.
"Okay fine. It's just the last thing I want is for Mikoto to get mad at me for not telling anyone where I was going and not being able to take care of myself " I explain into more detail
"So why did you just let them hurt you? Don't you also have power from HOMRA?" He asks, still focused on cleaning up my wounds and bandaging them
"No, I don't. I wasn't born with power and when Mikoto became a king, he said he didn't want me to become one of his clansmen as he thought it would be weird to have your little sister serve you. He also didn't want me to get involved with the things HOMRA does. So I am not a member at all." I explain, feeling out of breath from all the talking. Fushimi finishes my stomach and stands up to grab us both cups of water.
"Tsk, so that's why you got hurt? Don't you know how to fight?" He asks after taking a A gulp of water
"I sort of do but I guess it wasn't enough." I say tiredly.
"Guess not. Take off your jacket, I need to see your arms for any bruises or cuts"
I was too tired to think so I did what he demanded and took off my jacket, immediately regretting it when he grabs my arms and inspects all the scars that go up and down my arms
"What the hell..."
"Shit, sorry. Don't worry about anything anymore Fushimi, I'll leave now. Just please promise to not say anything to anybody?" I plead as I quickly shrug back my jacket on. He looks at me for a moment and I swear for a second I see a bit of confusion in his eyes before he stands up, towering over me.
"And why should I?" He asks
"Because, the last thing I want is a baby sitter every time I go out. Please Fushimi" I look into his eyes and stare until he looks away and 'tsks'
"Thank you for everything Fushimi I am very grateful. I'll see you around" I say before grabbing my bag again and leaving before he asks anymore questions.
Stupid. That's what I am. I should of thought a little bit before I let him take off my jacket and see my scars from my own self-destruction. I sigh as I scratch at my scars, remembering the low points in my life, where I felt so lonely and sad that the only way I felt okay was from hurting myself.
By the time I'm finished self pitying, I arrive at the bar. I step through and see a few members of the clan tending to some customers while Izumo serves them drinks. I slip away before they notice me and go to my room before anybody sees me. I'm pretty sure you can see bruises on my face.
Just as I walk passed Mikotos room, a hand snakes around my wrist and pulls me into his room, making me yelp.
I look up and see Mikoto with a cigarette in his mouth and Anna next to him, clinging onto his jacket.
"Where have you been?" He asks in his deep voice
"Out" I answer
He looks at me annoyedly before answering back "I'm not playing games where the hell have you been and what happened to you" he demands
"I was just walking around and I fell. Don't worry, I'm just gonna go sleep now goodnigh-"
"you need to eat" he says as he drags me back down stairs with Anna trailing behind us. I wince as his grip on my wrist tightens when we get to the bar area. He sets me down at an empty table before going over to Izumo and talking briefly. Izumo glances at me, worry showing in his eyes that hide behind his glasses before nodding at Mikoto and asking Tatara something. Mikoto comes back and sits across from me with Anna next to him and in a matter of seconds, Tatara brings me a plate with a rice omelette.
"Hey Naomi, what happened? Are you alright" he asks as he sets the plate in front of me and sits next to me
"Nothing happened, I just fell. And thanks for the food" I give him a small smile before looking down at my food and eating.
"You're lying" Anna's soft voice calls me out. I look up from my plate of food and look at her before looking at Mikoto and then at Tatara. All three of their faces show that they want the truth now. I stay quiet and drink water
"Whether you tell me now or not, I'm still going to make someone be with you every time you leave the bar if that's why you're not telling us" Mikoto says. I roll my eyes at him and continue to eat.
In the middle of me finishing my food, Mikoto stands up from the table and looks down at me
"Starting tomorrow someone's gonna be with you every time you leave" he stated before walking off
"Asshole" I mutter as I glare at him from behind before finishing my food
"Aw Naomi no need to be so upset with the king, he's just worried you know? You're his only sister, seeing you with cuts and bruises on your face and probably on other parts of your body is not something easy to see. It's even worrying me and Izumo. Whatever happened to you, please promise you'll try to stay safe okay?" Tatara asks. I sigh before nodding at his promise. He grins before he's called over by Izumo, leaving me alone.