Post
by MrDan » Fri Oct 12, 2012 6:53 am
A new update! This chapter was one I was looking forward to, but for some reason during the whole writing process it left a bad taste in my mouth, and I had trouble getting it written. I feel my dialogue needs work, and I need to remember that just because something isn't relevant to the advancement of the plot doesn't mean it isn't useful to the feel of the story, like little random pieces of conversation. I think I'm still looking for that comfort zone, and hopefully I find it in a chapter or two, which is where even more fun lies. Read, criticize, and enjoy!
Chapter 5: BB
I think I'll go for another walk.
It's around 11 at night, and I still can't get to sleep. The whole day went better than I could have imagined, with Misha and Shizune showing me around Yamaku all day and answering my questions. I think I can safely call them friends now, which brings me some comfort. Yet despite all that, I still can't get any sleep. Something is still itching at the back of my head, just a little itch that keeps plunging me too deep into thought for my own good. I've been doing too much thinking lately, I need to do some more living. A walk will do me well.
Departing from the boy's dorms with my green school jacket to keep me warm, I start to stroll around the large campus, taking the same route I did last time I took a walk. Routines will help me settle in, I think. Routine was everything in baseball, and as long as I stuck to mine I was fine. Obviously I haven't had a real routine to stick to in almost a year, so getting into one would be a big step forward.
Looking up, I can see the whole moon peeking over the rooftop, softly illuminating the grounds in its white glow. Even at night this place is beautiful. Keeping my gaze on the moon I think about how I'll never be able to go there. Well, I never was going to be able to in the first place, and even then I didn't particularly want to, but now so many things in life might as well be like trying going to the moon.
Of course, I still haven't tried to go to the moon. Maybe I'll take a shot at it someday.
Wait, stop, was something just on the moon? Back up.
Catching my eye is a black silhouette against the moon. Is someone standing on the roof? I keep gazing at this precariously perched figure while slowly moving towards the building. Getting closer, I make out it's a female student. Her shoulder long hair is blowing gently in the breeze, the tips of her shoes hanging over the edge. She's just staring off into the night sky. Odd. And dangerous.
“Um, hello?” I shout up to her as quietly as I can, if that even makes sense.
She turns her head towards me and leans down, making me cringe at the possibility of her tumbling down on top of me.
“Hi down there! I, uh, guess you caught me. You won't tell anyone I’m up here right?” She says in a hushed tone.
“I won't tell anyone, but isn't it dangerous, standing right on the edge?”
“Nah, I’m not scared of falling,” she says proudly, putting her hands on her hips.
“But what if you do fall?”
“I dunno,” she says with a shrug. “Catch me or something.”
“I'll do my best. So what are you doing up there anyways?”
“Thinking, mostly. It's a nice view. Hey, you wanna come up here too?” She says, pointing to a far off fire escape. “Then you won’t have to yell all the way up here and all.”
Hanging out with strangers on rooftops isn't something I usually do, but I've been doing a lot of unusual things these days.
“Sure, I guess.”
I walk over to the fire escape and take a moment to observe the climb ahead of me. I’m not a fan of heights honestly. Don't look down then, I guess. When I get about halfway up, I look down anyways. Oh hell, that's a long drop. I tighten my grip on the rung as my head throbs and my face starts to burn up. I was supposed to avoid stressful situations. But a simple ladder? This is ridiculous. Taking a deep breath, I finish my ascent and let out a sigh of relief as I reach the roof.
That girl is sitting on the ledge now, still looking out at the beautiful night sky. As I approach her I get a better look at her, her hair is black and her pale face shines in what little light there is. I lean up against the ledge next to her, being careful not to lean too far.
“I can see why you come up here, it's nice,” I say, trying to start a conversation.
“It really is. I'll come here to just be alone with my thoughts, or if I just want a pretty view.” She turns and looks at me with a friendly smile. “Say, aren't you that new guy around? You seem new.”
“Yeah I am, but… how do I look new?”
“You have the look of someone who has no idea where they're going,” she says with a sympathetic smile. “Skip, right?”
“That's right,” I reply, bowing slightly.
“You can call me Reika,” she exclaims proudly. “Reika Schierholtz.”
“Sheer-what?” I've been tongue tied. She just laughs at my confusion.
“It's German, from my father's side,” she explains. “So Skip, if you don't mind me asking, why are you here anyways?”
I don't quite understand. “Didn't you invite me up here?”
“No, I mean why are you here?” She asks, holding her arms out wide.
“Oh, why am I at Yamaku?”
“Yeah, what are you in for?” She says, like Yamaku is some sort of prison.
I guess it's not obvious why I’m here, since my problems are only inside my head. Thinking about it, I can't tell why she's here either. I ponder for a moment whether or not to tell her, ultimately deciding to let her know. She seems trustworthy.
“I have some problems with my head, you could say. I got bonked a couple times and it gives me trouble now and then,” I say, trying to downplay my problems a bit. Trouble now and then is putting it very lightly.
She looks like she's thinking for a moment. “What kind of troubles? Will you get better?” She asks in a flurry, sounding a little concerned.
“Bad headaches mostly, sometimes some other stuff. I don't know if it will get better, but I think I already went through the worst of it all. I haven't been able to really get my life back yet,” I say, wincing at the last part of my answer.
She looks a little bummed out, then perks up. “If it's any consolation to your heads insides, your outsides look fine and dandy,” she cheerily says, giving me a big grin. I chuckle at the compliment. "It's the nature of any relationship here, ya know? If someone is deaf or blind, if affects how you communicate with them. Or maybe they're not as mobile as you, or can't do as many things as you. There always seems to be some limitation here or there, and when I'm trying to be a good friend, I want to ignore it, but I can't. So my view now is, it's good to know. Unless of course someone is here for no reason, then they're just weird."
I laugh. "But then they're just as weird as everyone else here."
"Yeah, I guess so," She says with a giggle.
Now I’m curious about her. “Is it all right if I ask you the same question then? Why are you here?”
She looks down at her feet, still dangling over the edge of the roof. She looks sad, and I’m afraid I might have struck a nerve. Looking back up at the night sky, she smiles softly, her eyes still filled with sadness.
“I’m sick. I only have a few months to live.”
I freeze up. I don't know what to say. I try and wrap my head around the idea that the person sitting next to me won't be here in a few months, that she'll be dead. I can't imagine it at all. And here I was, thinking lost limbs or being deaf was the worst thing that could happen to someone.
A thought does come to me though.
“Well what are you doing here at school then? Why aren't you out in the world, living life?” I ask, almost crying the questions out.
“Because I am living life,” She replies, her voice soft. “This is the life I want, one where I go to school like any other girl, where I do all the things I want to do with my friends and family. I understand that my time left is precious, and I live it all just the way I want to. And when it's my time, I'll be ready.”
I’m in awe. How someone that's in a situation like hers doesn't completely lose it is beyond me, and for her to go about her days like she does is amazing. I look up at the night sky, and I realize something. This night sky is worth the time of someone who doesn't have much left. There's something special enough about just looking at it all night. Now I can comprehend how this girl isn't going to be here in a few months. I wish I didn't.
She taps me on the shoulder. “Hey, I didn't mean to get you so down.”
“No, it's OK, I was just thinking. Maybe… maybe I should try to be like you a little.”
She looks at me, perplexed. “What do you mean?”
“I mean, I should be trying to live my life again, not hanging around thinking about how I can't. You're not moping around, thinking about what-ifs or anything like that, you're just living.”
“Hmm…” She puts a hand to her chin and looks pensive for a moment, then snaps her fingers and looks at me confidently. “I know! It's settled then.”
“Wait, what's settled?” I ask.
“You want to live your life again? Well then, I'll teach you! I know a thing or two about living, I'll have you know,” she says proudly, taking on the tone of a teacher.
“Are we going to have classes or something?” I ask, chuckling.
“No, nothing like that silly!” She says, giving me a nudge. “I'll just give you a shove in the right direction, the rest is up to you. Are you in Skip?” She holds out her hand, smiling.
This has been an odd night. Reika is a little funny, but she's also one of the bravest people I've ever met. She's pretty, too. But more importantly, I could use a little help getting my life in order. I might even make a good friend while I do it. I give her a firm handshake and smile.
“I’m in.”
---
There's a couple references/easter eggs/foreshadowings/whatevers in here, one of which is Schierholtz, which you'd need to dig a little deep to figure out. Plenty of things like this will be dropped throughout future chapters, mostly for my fun.
