Kiri: Chapter 6

Skye Daniels tapped her pen against her chin as she stared blankly into the middle of the classroom. She knew from the other teachers that her brother was having troubles with the students in his classes. According to the biology teacher, the pranks were a nearly constant occurrence some weeks.

With any other student, she would have counseled him to talk to his parents and the guidance counselor, but she was his parent and still had no idea what she could do to help him.

“Ms. Daniels?”

Looking up, the brunette woman half-grinned sheepishly at her former student who was sitting on the other side of the table looking over the test papers he had come to help her grade. His deep blue eyes settled her for the moment, and she shook her head.

“Sorry, Ryo. I guess I can get just as distracted as my students sometimes.”

“You were thinking about what I said earlier, huh?” Ryo asked as he propped on elbow onto the table and leaned his chin into his hand.

Blinking, Skye nodded with a sigh. “I knew he didn’t like it here, but I didn’t know that he would ever say he hated school, and he didn’t say anything else about it?”

Ryo shook his head slightly. “When we got back to my apartment, I went to work on my story, and he started reading again. Sunday, we spent the entire day working on our homework, but we really didn’t talk much at all about anything.”

“I guess I’ll have to talk to him, but the chances of him opening up to me are pretty slim,” the teacher said in a weary voice.

“Oh, I was going to ask if it would be alright if he spent the weekend with me again,” Ryo said lifting his head from his hand. He shrugged slightly at the curious look his former teacher shot him. “He asked me to ask you for him.”

“I don’t have a problem with that.” Skye paused then shook her head. “Actually I think it’s a wonderful idea. Kite has always been a loner when he’s amongst kids his own age, but he settles in really well with older people. This may be good for him.”

“I was wondering about something,” Ryo interjected as he leaned back in his chair, stretching his legs out under the table and crossing his arms over his chest. When Ms. Daniels’s gray eyes met his own, he frowned slightly as he began to put his thoughts into words. “I know Kite is living with you now, and I know you’re his sister. The one time I’ve heard either of you mention your parents, it was in the past tense—“

Skye held up her hand and shook her head. “There’s a lot in Kite’s and my past that needs badly to stay in the past. I took legal custody of Kite about three years ago. Before that he lived with our parents.”

“When I first met him, he was saying that his classmates were teasing him about something his dad had done,” Ryo pressed.

The warning tone in Skye’s voice was both unmistakable and maternal causing Ryo to blush slightly and duck his head to the side as she spoke his name. “I don’t mean to be rude, but there are some things that you don’t need to know right now, Ryo.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Ryo said in a chastised voice. His eyelids slid low over his dark blue eyes as hurt filled him.

Relenting somewhat, Skye leaned forward to touch his forearm. “We’ve had a difficult time. Mark and I decided that it would be best to keep things quiet for Kite’s sake. I don’t mean to be so cold about it.”

“It’s okay,” the Asian man said with a small smile at his favorite teacher. “I’m done grading my papers. May I go now, teacher?”

Laughing softly, and grateful for the subject change, Skye nodded. “Yes, and thank you. I get to spend a lot more time with my family thanks to your help with the grading.”

“It’s really no problem,” Ryo said as he rose to his feet. “I was actually thinking about talking to my advisor about taking some education classes, and maybe teaching when I graduate.”

Skye beamed at the black haired man. “I think that would be wonderful, Ryo. You’d make such a good teacher—“

“I don’t know about that.”

“Oh you would. Don’t belittle yourself for the sake of modesty!” Skye reprimanded with a stern frown.

Smiling, Ryo nodded his acceptance as he gathered his jacket from the front of the room. He glanced out the wall of windows and sighed. “Can you believe that yesterday it was so sunny out there, and now look at it. It’s like the heavens have decided to attempt Noah’s flood all over again.”

Skye nodded. “I’m glad the weekend was pretty at least. The fall always has such odd weather around here.”

“Yeah, it’s kind of nice though occasionally. My algebra teacher’s road flooded in a low place, and she couldn’t make it to class today. Even the darkest clouds seem to have some kind of silver lining.”

“True,” Skye agreed with a smile. “Thank you for your help, and if Kite wants to come visit you, anytime is fine with me. Just let me know that he’s there so I won’t worry about him okay?”

“Sure,” Ryo said as he opened the door. “I’ll see you later. Bye!”

As the door closed behind him, Ryo heard the teacher call her own good-bye. He hummed softly as he strolled down the hall towards the front entrance of the high school. As he neared the doors, he heard a muffled sob from his right followed shortly by a dull bang.

Coming to a halt, Ryo arched his eyebrow as he stared at the door to the boy’s bathroom. Curiosity tugged at his mind, and he cautiously opened the door and stuck his head inside.

“Hello?”

Dead silence filled the room for a brief moment before a muffled voice returned, “Ryo?”

“Kite?” The college student stepped fully into the small bathroom and looked around, even ducking his head to glance under the stall doors. “Where are you?”

There was a moment of waiting silence before the stall at the back of the room opened slowly. Ryo’s eyes widened behind his glasses as Kite stepped out. The boy’s face was averted as red-rimmed eyes blinked rapidly to hold back more tears from falling. His blue tee-shirt was torn from the collar halfway down to the hem and several dark bruises on his chest peeped through the tear.

“What happened?” Ryo asked walking over to the small boy and tilting his chin up to inspect a less noticeable bruise forming on his jaw.

“Um…” Kite’s bright green eyes turned to the side to keep from looking at the Asian man. “I didn’t run fast enough this time.”

“Do you want to go to your sis—“

“No!”

Swallowing his shock, Ryo nodded and took off his jacket to wrap it around Kite. He zipped it up and wrapped his arm around the narrow shoulders as he lead the way to the bathroom door.

“Come on then. Kyon-Kyon has been missing you. You’ve spoiled him rotten you know.”

Kite sagged gratefully against Ryo’s side and whispered softly, “Thank you.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Ryo said with a sad smile. “Let me go tell your sister that you’re going to be visiting me for the afternoon, and we’ll go. I even have my car this time.”

Ryo was gratified at the youth’s weak laugh, and he quickly informed Skye, leaving quickly before she could ask any of the questions he could so clearly see in her eyes. Neither of the men spoke again as he drove them back to his apartment and led the way up the stairs.

Rain slashed down on them, drenching Ryo to the bone. By the time they got inside, the only place on him that wasn’t wet was his left side when he had held Kite close to him. He groaned miserably feeling more like a kitten thrown into a river than a human being.

As he walked into the bedroom, Kite followed with the purring gray ball of fur in his arms. Kyon-Kyon, for once, didn’t seem particularly pleased to be held by the boy, but Ryo suspected that was more because of the damp condition of his clothing than an actual dislike for the youth.

Almost as soon as he entered the bedroom, Ryo began toeing off his shoes. Shirt, socks, and pants soon followed as he shivered in the air-conditioned apartment. Grabbing a pair of warm flannel pants, the Asian man pulled them on and then turned to look at his young guest.

“Come on. You, too. Out of those wet clothes,” Ryo said as he removed a second pair of flannels from his drawer.

Kite’s cheeks were pink as he reluctantly sat the cat down on the bed and began to pull off his clothes. Ryo’s eyes widened in dismay at the number of bruises revealed when the ripped shirt came off, but he kept his mouth closed respecting the boy’s embarrassed silence.

When they were both dressed again in warm, dry clothing, Ryo retrieved a towel from the bathroom and pulled Kite after him into the kitchen where he began to heat water for some hot tea. Tugging the youth close, the older man began drying the auburn hair vigorously. Kite struggled for a moment, then relented and finally leaned against the older man’s chest, drawing his hands up protectively to his chest.

“What happened?” Ryo asked gently as a droplet of icy water fell from his ponytail beneath the collar of his sweatshirt.

The auburn haired boy shivered slightly. “They were teasing me again, and I got mad and hit one of them…” There was a soft sigh. “I normally outrun them easily, but I guess they had been expecting something like this, and I ran into another one who was waiting for me.”

“And they beat you?” Kite nodded against Ryo’s chest. “Why don’t you tell your sister?”

The narrow shoulders raised slightly. “She’s overprotective. If she finds out, then I might have to change schools again, and I don’t want to do that.”

“But wouldn’t it be better if you could find a school that this didn’t happen in?” Ryo asked, softly.

Shaking his head, Kite sniffled hard. Ryo’s hands on the towel slowed as he tried to ignore the trembling body. Wrapped his arms around the youth holding him in a tight hug, he sighed softly.

“Just so you know,” he said in a gentle voice, “I don’t agree with you not telling your sister. You can’t just ignore this. That won’t make it go away.”

“I know, but I don’t—don’t want to talk to her right now,” Kite said, clutching at the soft material of Ryo’s sweatshirt.

Sighing softly, Ryo nodded his head. “Alright. Do you want to stay here tonight?”

Kite nodded his head, still hidden beneath the towel, as tears slid down his cheeks.

“Do you work tonight?”

The boy shook his head silently.

“Okay.” Ryo gave him a tight squeeze before easing him back and tilting his chin upwards as the towel fell around his shoulders. “Go sit on the couch. I’ll call your sister and let her know that you’re staying here tonight, and then I’ll join you with the tea okay?”

“Thank you,” Kite said softly, and Ryo’s heart ached at the smile the boy offered him, which was too cheerful for the tears staining his cheeks.

***
End Chapter 6
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