This is brought to you by Sieka, in cooperation with LeNosferatu, we bring you this fic. I hope you enjoy this since I enjoyed collaborating with her in making this prologue. It's my very first collaboration too, so I really liked working with her. Thanks Eru-san for helping me out with this wonderful prologue. ^ ^
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Prologue
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Cold and crisp, the air blew unceremoniously at that early morning; the breeze touched and tickled the young girl’s skin, eliciting a shiver from the girl who drew her arms around herself and embraced her body, trying to keep face from the cold. She won’t go back, not now at the very least. The sun is about to rise soon anyways. Besides, she reasoned out to herself, she had to practice, and knowing that the sun’s rays would soon warm her cold body, she wouldn’t go back. She’ll wait; for now, she’ll just make do with what little clothes she had on and the music blaring to keep herself in check.
She puffed out a breath, the warmth tickling her nose, and faintly, she let a small smile drew on her lips before she closed her eyes and furrowed her brows together, waiting and anticipating as she listened to the beat of the music’s rhythm. She threw hands up in the air all of a sudden and danced to the beat in fluid motion, her movements coming in sequence like a professional dancer, neither missing a step nor making a mistake as each step she made came in perfect timing.
She swung her hand to her side and tapped her feet, before she changed her position, a hand on her hips as she turned to her side and moved fluidly up and down in an “S” motion with her other free hand caressing her face down to her jaw and collarbone before she swung it away and changed into another dance step. Call it teasingly or mockingly, her steps came in seductively, yet albeit too short and sweet as it ended all too soon, almost agonizingly.
No one however was there to see because there wasn’t even an audience. It was only her alone at that time of the day in that empty place; dancing intensely like no other person could as she poured her heart into it as if it was the only thing she had. Oddly enough though, the young girl would furrow her brows together in irritation and stop, as if lost in deep thoughts before dancing back again, all the same throwing every bit of the strength she had without a care.
Minutes passed. The more moves she made, the more of her breathing pace become shallow and rapid, along with the stream of glistening drops rolling down her forehead, down to her pale cheeks that dripped to the ground. As she was embraced by the feel of fatigue, her hands busily untangled the headphones she had put on a long ago before slamming it back to her bag in exhaustion. Grabbing the sport drink bottle nearby, she drank the entirety of it precisely in one go, as if she was stranded in the desert and that it was the last thing on earth that could quench her thirst. However, she still hadn’t felt any better.
“Shit...”
Almost inaudible, she cursed herself in manner of a whisper just for nothing in particular, or so she thought. It was not like she didn’t acknowledge the precision of being selfishly lamenting on herself for her somewhat burdening problem. It was just that unbearable condition she was been on recently that had pulled her to the ugly truth that she might die if she didn’t find a way out soon. The disturbing hisses inside her head that asked to be hauled out kept nagging her on the edge, where the evident displeasure was coming from her frustration. That itself; made her become reactive and overly sensitive at every deeds she did with irritation. Though that until now, she still couldn’t figure out what her actual predicament is.
True to her earlier prediction, the rising sun did help get rid of the cold air that she was basked in; though she could have been more colder due to her own already lazed sweaty body thanks to her daily practice this early morning, she felt warm thanks the timely rising of the sun and its rays. She took a small towel in her bag, as she felt her perspiration not making any sign of stopping soon and because it started to suffocate her pores as well, she began wiping her neck, hoping to get rid of the displeasing feeling on her skin. It didn’t help that she found her parsed damp hair getting in the way, so she took a small band in the bag’s front pocket and began tying up her hair in a bun before she continued lapping the rest of the sweat.
Although practicing her dance today was tiring, it was nonetheless her intention to be up at this hour because this was her usual way of diversion; at least she didn’t do it before school, not that the thought ever struck her. She never did want to appear in school like she was just doing a construction work for hours, it would feel terribly sickening, considering how her clothes would cling to her skin and how her limbs would ache and beg to be eased.
‘It’s better this way…’
‘…Better than that…’ She thought as she held a solemn expression on her face. And there, her mind slowly drifted to the thought she had been avoiding on. It was like natural, no matter how hard she tried to intentionally forget, even to the point of doing something or any other thing just for it to subside; the disturbing contemplation always keeps finding its own way back to her mind, almost irresistible. The feeling of emptiness and hollowness was somewhat growing bigger by the time, asking to be filled with the desire of figuring out a way escape, but she knew, that it was actually not an option.
There had to be deeds done for any solution, unless she wanted this to stay out forever, that way creating fossilized frustration deep down her heart. However, she knew she would spread the fire even more if she dared to take out her aggravation into real actions.
Suddenly, a vibration came from around her outer thigh made her almost jump out in surprise and fright, but when she noticed just what exactly had caused her such a scare; immediately shook her head and sighed softly, not bearing any bad will against the little gadget in her pocket. She was even slightly thankful enough that there was finally something to distract her away from drowning deeper to her own sea of hesitance. While her left hand was still busy dabbing the rest of the sweat drops on her upper chest, the other hastily made its way to the pocket of her pants where the continuous judder was from. She opened the flip of her phone and sighed instantly as she read the incoming text message,
「ミルキーちゃん、今晩 父さん 帰ってくれよ、知ってた?
学校 終わって一緒に 買い物 する?
父さん シチューに 待ってる かな。。。?(笑) 」
「Milky-chan, Dad will come home tonight, did you knew? Let’s go shopping groceries after school. Dad must be waiting for some stew (LOL) 」
“Sayanee…” She unintentionally mumbled the name on the top of the text, where the name of sender located was. Without even bothering to reply it, she closed the lid and threw it in her bag with exasperation. It was not like she had problems anything relating with her father. She didn’t even hold anything against the man since her father was already kind, caring and hardworking, he was there to provide them everything they needed and anything they wanted to the very best that he could. Hating him would be a tad bit too cruel and ungrateful of her, but it doesn’t mean that she would feel comfortable in her own home.
There were a few things here and there that she wanted to avoid and a few more that she didn’t want to face. Maybe she was being selfish like a spoiled damned rich brat, but it can’t be helped, this was how she felt and even she herself found it irritating and constricting, but what was she to do? She just can’t do anything about it yet. Not now, not when she’s still confused and lost, and that she’s still just trying to rearrange her thoughts and figure them out.
‘I need to stop thinking of this…’The girl shook her head frantically while she gritted her teeth together tightly with her fist clenched on her side, the damp towel in her hand wasn’t left unattended as she clutched it tightly in a bear grip, as if it was the only thing she could grasp upon, but begrudgingly, she opened her bag and tossed it inside along with her headphones and iPod, not giving it any second thoughts as she placed her whole mind and body in packing up her belongings, knowing that if she let her mind astray again, she might just sink down even further into the deepest part of that aching emptiness and frustration bounded inside her heart.
Her mind was like being forced by an unseen power to think about that particular frustrating thing she always wanted to avoid. All too strongly that it was like a wall of a lucid dream in every part of her life, every second that she began to seek another distraction to subside her painful frustration. The unsaid thoughts that always hung onto her lips became the greatest taboo which constantly attempted to find its way out. However, she still could feel grateful to be able to gain her self-control, even though she was persistently being trashed to the ground. And even as she’s drowning in her own abyss of sadness, she still found out her meaning of existence, though it was a grief truth. At least she knew what makes her still stay was someone worth to fight for.
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End of Prologue
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That ends the prologue. What do you think? : )