The lyrics I used in the first chapter are from "Up Against a Wall" by Boys Like Girls. They are NOT mine, and neither are the characters of Fruits Basket.
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Chapter 1: Meeting Again
I laid on my bed at the Sohma onsen, staring at the ceiling. The rice screen leading outside was wide open, bringing some air into the stuffy room. What was I even doing here, anyway? Hatori was once again trying to control my life, trying to give me some sense of the freedom I obviously didn’t have. What good did he think this would do for me? Unless the crazy okami randomly blurted out the dark secret that I so desperately needed to hear, I had places to be, things to do.
“I’m worried about you’re health, Isuzu,” Hatori had said. “Ever since your….encounter with Akito, you haven’t left this house. I think it’s time you went somewhere else.”
“That’s pointless,” I had snapped. “No matter where I go, I’ll never be free of this place. So why even bother trying?”
“Isuzu,” Hatori said again, his calm demeanor never fazing, “It’s not healthy for you to stay locked up here. You need to go somewhere and relax. I’m sending you to the onsen.”
“Why do you even CARE what I do?” I had screeched. “You know, you really piss me off. Just leave me alone!”
I just wished that this whole incident had never happened. I just wished that he had never been a part of my life. That Akito had never found out. That I had never fallen for him. I wished that I could just…
Not gonna think about that.
How could I be so stupid? How could I think we’d ever be able to be happy? Not a chance in hell, not as long as Akito was around. But I let myself fall for him anyway. I let myself believe that his promises were true, that he could keep me safe. A lot of good that had done me.
I sighed and closed my eyes, tired despite the fact that I hadn’t left my room all day. Maybe if I could just get some sleep tonight, I’d be able to think clearly tomorrow. At least it’s quiet here.
And then the room began to vibrate as music blasted from the next room.
It’s over
Look out below
And I’m wasted
I still taste it
Yeah it’s so hard to let go
Breakdown, rebound
So breathe in now
And breathe it out
The forecast
A car crash
It’s looking like another…
This could be my last goodbye
You cross your heart, I hope to die
And I can’t deny your eyes
You know I try to read between the lines
I saw a warning sign
And then you threw me up against the wall
Who said that it’s better to have loved and lost?
I wish I had never loved at all
I squeezed my eyes even more tightly shut, my breath rattling between clenched teeth as I tried to shut my mind to the music. Who the hell was playing the music so damn loud? This was supposed to be a quiet, peaceful place…
No rewinds
Breakdown, rebound
No second times
And I won’t break
I won’t waste, everything you left behind
So don’t follow
Just let it go
The weather’s, been better
Don’t let it be another…
This could be my last goodbye
You cross your heart, I hope to die
And I can’t deny your eyes
You know I try to read between the lines
I saw a warning sign
And then you threw me up against the wall
Who said that it’s better to have loved and lost?
I wished that I had never loved at all
My teeth were grinding together now, and every muscle in my body was tense as I tried to hold in my anger. They had better turn that music off, I thought to myself. Or they’re going to regret it…I don’t want to listen to this…
All the nights you spent sitting nowhere out there on your own
All the nights I waited by the phone when you were going in alone
And all your different faces and all your different ways are making everything a mess
And all I’m saying is that all your different places and all the complications led to this
And I can’t deny your eyes
You know I try to read between the lines
I saw a warning sign
And then you threw me up against a wall
Who said that it’s better to have loved and lost?
I wished that I had never loved
And I can’t deny your eyes
You know I try to read between the lines
I saw a warning sign
And then you threw me up against a wall
Who said that it’s better to have loved and lost?
I wished that I had never loved at all
Never loved at all
The music faded away, leaving a smoldering silence in its wake. I opened my eyes, and was surprised to find them wet. I followed the damp trails down my face with my fingers, and my anger flared up again. I rose stiffly from the bed and stomped to the rice screen leading to the hallway, throwing it open and slamming it shut behind me. I practically ran to the next room, furious with them for shattering the peace. Who the hell did they think they were, anyway? I began pounding on the wooden frame of the rice screen, trying not to break it so that I wouldn’t have to deal with the crazy okami running the place, Ritsu’s mother. The whole family was a bunch of loons.
“Yo, bastard! Just who the hell do you think you are, blasting your damn music so loud that it nearly caused me a heart attack? Why don’t you come out here so that I can…”
The rice screen door slammed open, and I stopped dead in my tracks. I looked up into a pair of gray eyes, eyes that I could never forget. His white hair hung down in his face as he stared down at me. I had barely processed this and then his muscled arms were around me, and he was holding me to his chest.
“Rin, I’m so happy to see you. I’ve missed you.”
“Haru…”
