Disclaimer: I do not own Anyone from Spirited Away.
Merely the sight of her drove the men in this school dumbstruck, bowing down to her as if she was a Goddess. Her silky brown hair seemed to flow in the air, as if the wind too wanted to woo her.
Sadly, that was just the poor girl's fantasy.
She felt -no, was- so small in her school, she had even gone suicidal once because of it. But no- her infatuation with the most popular guy in school just HAD to keep her alive, didn't it? She was only thirteen; WAY too young for anything useful in life yet. The most popular guy in school seemed to care less about the "losers," like she herself. The young daydreamer sighed as if entranced by some sort of beauty.
"Chihiro, your partner shall be Kohaku Nigami."
At that moment, all of the girls in the class glared at her. Ogawa Chirio could have - and probably should have - died right then and there. Could her life get any worse?
In fact, somehow, it could.
"Now, you must sit beside your partners for the rest of the schoolyear! How does that sound?"
Chihiro stared in bewilderment. Ms. Yubaba really wanted the poor Ogawa to die, didn't she? Chihiro sighed and stood up, her stack of books in hand. She walked over to her new seat, next to the most popular guy in school, and plopped down beside him. Kohaku Nigami stayed motionless; his head leaned against his propped-up hand.
He had just sighed when he heard her name and his with "partners" somewhere in-between. So, Ogawa Chihiro, the brightest-yet-geekiest girl in school, was to be his partner, eh? He noticed the rest of the class glaring at poor Chihiro. As if being his partner wasn't enough stress on her, she was forced to SIT next to him?
Hell will break loose soon, Kohaku predicted through his thoughts.
He quickly remembered forth grade for some reason. He remembered when Haruda Sanrin had asked him out that very fatal year, not knowing that Ogawa and Haruda was mortal enemies. Chihiro had cried so much the day he had told her that he was dating Sanrin, and he hadn't the slightest idea why. All he knew was that he had lost his only purpose in life that day.
Later on, during recess that same day, he heard that Chihiro had been beaten senseless by Haruda Sanrin's old boyfriend hours before. Kohaku could have died then. They had been enemies? How could he have been so blind? Looking back furthur, he had realized it had been so obvious that they were enemies. Then, in fifth grade, he realized how much Chihiro had meant to him. He vowed to never let Chihiro Ogawa cry because of him ever again. That was Kohaku's first vow of changing himself, and he did indeed change.
Now he regrets everything. He knew she liked him, but Kohaku had a reputation to keep up. He would simply ignore her and let her do the work for him. Like he usually did. Girls of all ages always offered to help him; how could Chihiro be an different?
He had no idea how wrong he was.
"Hey, Kohaku-san, could you get the notes for me?" Chihiro asked, snipping away with the scissors in her hand. She seemed to be making decorations for the project. It was History class; why the hell was she making decorations? He then looked at the rubric for said project.
...A Pangea map? What the hell was a "Pangea" in the first place?
"What the hell...?" Kohaku mumbled under his breath. Aparently Chihiro had heard him, for she looked slightly confused as she tilted her face towards him.
"You didn't pay attention? Well, I could understand why, with all your 'greatness' and 'reputation' and all that stuff..." Chihiro sighed, and continued to snip away at the paper.
"What's a... 'Pangea'?"
Chihiro smiled "Billions of year ago, all of the continents were one huge land mass. It was named 'Pangea,' which is Latin for 'all land' because it truly was all of the land in the world at the time."
"Ah..." Kohaku wondered if the girl next to him wanted to embarress him in front of the whole class with her smarts at all. She probably did hate him still, but... he still had Haruda Sanrin, and a reputation to keep up.
"Will you get the notes for me please?" Chihiro asked again, glancing at the teenage jock and/or prep. Kohaku growled at her girl.
"Get it yourself, wimp..." He regretted telling her that she was a weakling as soon as he had finished telling her. But, he had a reputation to keep up. So he didn't take it back.
Chihiro seemed stunned at what he had said to her. Was this truly the Kohaku she had grown to love and cherish forevermore? Or, to truthfully say, for as long as she could stand rejection? She tried hard not to cry.
Sadly, her ethics went in vain.
Chihiro felt the wetness trickle down her cheeks, down her neck, down, down, down... It had never semed to stop. The tears seduced her, and she cried harder, louder. Everyone stared at the partners in amazement, confusion, and some snickered at the embarressment Chihiro had caused to herself. It was only natural for Kohaku to make a woman cry; it was his nature.
Kohaku Nigami soon regreted holding up to his reputation. He had forgotten how easily she breaks.
And after what he had vowed to himself 3 years ago, it was noticable to the whole class he regretted whatever he had done to the poor girl.
"You jerk!" Chihiro screamed. "I knew you were cold and heartless and all, but to say that to your former best friend... How could you? You're a downright evil man, Kohaku-san. You should know that very well now... I hate you!" Chihiro ran out of the classrom, down the hall. Everything was quiet. Too quiet.
Kohaku didn't even budge. He was too shocked to move, let alone run down the hall after the weeping girl. How he wished he didn't have the biggest reputation in the school now. But he did.
And he didn't run after her. But it was because he had a reputation to keep up.
Kohaku was the first to speak. He couldn't stand it anymore; he needed to get away from this silenced and think; he needed to be alone.
"May I excuse myself from the class, Ms. Yubaba?" Kohaku had asked quietly, yet it seemed loud in the extremly quiet room. Ms. Yubaba nodded, and everyone watched as Kohaku Nigami had excused himself from his least-favorite class because of the geekiest girl in school.
"UGH!" Kohaku screamed, banging his head against the porcelin wals of the Boy's Bathroom. Kohaku slid down the slippery wall until he had found himself in a little ball. He silently cried to himself. "What have I done...? I can't get her back now... I know I can't..."
He got out of his position and slowly walked towards the sinks. Turning on the water to one of them, he splashed the ice cold water against the skin of his face. Those last three words kept ringing in his mind.
"I hate you!"
"I hate you!"
"I hate you!"
"STOP!" He cried, splashing the water against his features yet again. "Why did I do this...? What have I become...? Chihiro, I'm sorry!" Kohaku started crying yet again.
This was the first he had cried since Chihiro had left his side in forth grade, but not this much. He had had hope of her return to him then, after he had dumped Haruda the first time; but she was still clinging to him, so she was still his. Now he was crying even more. He knew he could never get Chihiro ever again, and the great Kohaku Nigami was actually afraid.
I never imagined a life without her beside me as my own... Kohaku suddenly realized. It was true, and Kohaku knew it. He could never replace Chihiro for the love of his life. She was a diamond in the rough to him; he didn't want to let go of her, but he knew he had to.
Besides, he had a reputation to keep up.
"Screw the fucking reputation! I've had it!" Kohaku rushed out of the Boy's Bathroom and headed straight to the class Haruda Sanrin was in at the time. He had to break up with her. Now.
He banged on the door of Room 231, his homeroom and the class Sanrin was in at the moment. Ms. Zeniba quickly opened the door, and she had noticed Kohaku's face was drenched in water.
"If it's Sanrin you want, take her now." Ms. Zeniba said coldly to the boy. She was never fond of Sanrin or Kohaku; but to Chihiro, she was like a grandmother to her. "She keeps inturrupting our discussion on note-taking with obscene outbursts of how you make out with her." Ms. Zeniba spat in disgust. Kohaku closed his eyes.
"It is indeed Haruda Sanrin I need at the moment." Kohaku said quietly. Sanrin strutted to her so-claimed boyfriend. She wrapped her arms around his waist, and Kohaku had done no movement whatsoever. After a second, he grabbed Sanrin's arm and ran off with her running behind him.
She mewed sexily. "You want it that badly today, hmm?" Sanrin purred. Kohaku had surprizingly slapped her.
"No, actually, I want the complete opposite." Kohaku glowered at the preppy slut-like 13-year-old vefore him. "We're through, Sanrin."
"But, Kohaku--"
"Good bye, Sanrin. Forevermore." He calmly walked away, not looking back at her whorish body wallowing in tears.
Like she ever cared, Kohaku thought venomously. A small patter was heard, but Kohaku was more concered where Chihiro was at the time; staring at the floor tiles seemed to put him at ease somehow.
"You... broke up with Sanrin..."
Kohaku glanced in front of him, noticing long brown hair in a ponytail and big brown eyes. "Chihiro..."
"I thought she was your little sex-thing."
"She was never mine, Chihiro..." Kohaku took a step towards the girl. "What I desire is your forgiveness, nothing more. What I had said was very wrong of me; I am very much ashamed of myself..."
Chihiro smiled brightly. "Apology accepted, Haku-kun."
Kohaku smiled at the vocalization of his old nickname. He was also glad it was Chihiro's songbird voice who had called him so.