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High school was a troubling time for anyone, whether you had a supportive family every step of the way or not, there was always some type of obstacle in the way. K had no supportive family, or anyone to even call 'family'. It was his senior year of high school, but in all honesty he hadn't even expected to make it this far without killing himself. The only thing keeping him from standing in a busy highway was the thought of what the next day could bring. Maybe his mom will finally listen to him when he complains, an his father will finally accept him for who he is. Hell, maybe he'll find someone with common interests to bond over with. That day never came, but maybe tomorrow! Or the day after, or the week after.
While K waited for that day, he tried his best to make it through the school day without breaking down. He knew the consequences he'd face from his parents if he ever got sent home by the counselor if they caught him crying, so he forced himself to suck it up and bear the pain until the end of the day. Then he could go home and cry as much as he wanted—silently, because his father hated hearing someone he expected the best out of crying.
"You're supposed to be a man, act like one," K could still hear those words echo in his mind from the last time he got locked out of the house in the middle of winter by his father with his mother standing by his side. They stared at him like he wasn't their child. Like he was an intruder in their house. Like he wasn't human.
It's okay, because that was last year. This is a new year, and his parents promises they would never do something like that again! He believed them, why wouldn't he? Those were his parents, and they did love him at least a little bit. That's what K liked to believe, at least.
Tomorrow he'd go to school and do the same thing he's been doing for the past few months. He walked the quiet hallway with slugish steps. He was already a bit late to class, so he doesn't really care. Once he got to class, he took a deep breath before he knocked on the door and waited for someone to answer. It didn't take long before he was sitting at his seat, silently taking notes during the class period. Usually he would try to be in class for the whole period and go to the bathroom during passing, but he really couldn't hold it this time.
K raised his hand, and asked politely if he could use the restroom once he was called on. He walked out the classroom when given permission without another word, and walked down the silent hallway. K was completely zoned out while he walked absent mindedly, before he heard another set of footsteps ahead. K looked up from the floor and saw someone—Fuma. He was a guy he knew and shared a few periods with. Neither of them would call each other a friend, but they weren't complete strangers either. Acquaintances, of you will. They worked together often for classwork, but as far as sharing a real bond together, there was nothing more and nothing less between them. That's what K assumed, at least. K stopped in his tracks as the two shares a glance, before Fuma looked away just as quickly and walked into the men's restroom. He reached his hands into his pockets and pulled something out, but K didn't think much of it as he walked into the restroom shortly after him.
K entered a stall and took his time relieving himself, but by the time he had finished he smelt ash. Not from a fire, but from something else. Intrigued, K left the stall and washed his hands before he began opening each stall one by one, looking for the source of the smell. Eventually he got to the last one, which was locked. He assumed it was the one Fuma was in, and while the two had nothing between them, he wanted to make sure he wasn't in trouble or hurt somehow.
"Fuma, are you okay?" K called out with two gentle knocks. There was a short moment of silence as he waited for an answer, before Fuma finally mumbled a soft 'yeah'. K was about to ask something else, like if he could come in, but that would be far too weird and would probably make Fuma highly uncomfortable. He hesitated for a moment before he turned to walk away from the stall, but stopped immediately after. "K, right? You can come in." Fuma offered from the other side of the door. He needed to get back to class and finish his work—his parents would kill him if he didn't. He needed to keep his grades up, needed the notes so he could study tonight, needed to see what Fuma was doing...
As they always say, curiosity kills the cat.
K attempted to push the door open, but it was locked, which he should've already assumed but was too blinded by the excitement to see what Fuma was doing. "It's locked, and yeah, it's K." K could hear Fuma grunt as he stood up to unlock the stall door before he sat back down on the floor. K pushed the door open again, this time without fail.
Now, K didn't know what he expected, but to see a pack of cigarettes and a lighter on the floor beside Fuma. He was too stunned to speak, and stood there, staring with his mouth agape. "Not what you expected?" Fuma questioned K with a snicker at his reaction. K nodded slowly, and gently closed the door and locked in behind him. He stood there awkwardly while fidgeting with his hands. "Are you just gonna stand there?" Fuma teased and gestured for K to sit beside him.
K, for some reason, obliged without question. Maybe it was because the two were in the same boat. Fuma's parents weren't the best either, if anything worse. He only had a job so he could buy cigarettes and his own food, considering his parents forgot about him so often to the point they usually forgot to make enough food for him as well. At first he'd fight with them about it, but after getting beaten and neglected for the past four years, he learned that to live in his circumstances, he'd have to support himself without the help of his parents. So, with only his intelligence and determination, he supported himself enough to live without any major problems. Sure, he didn't talk to his parents, nor was he able to sit and relax in the same room as them without the constant fear of getting hurt or yelled at by them, but as long as Fuma didn't think about it, it didn't exist. Apparently, he's incredibly good at ignoring things, even if they impact his life so seriously.
K has his suspicions on Fuma and his life at home, but asking would feel like he was trying to rush Fuma to be comfortable around him. He didn't even know if he wanted to be friends with Fuma—he seemed cool, but he didn't actually know him that well.
Interrupting his train of thought was Fuma with an interesting offer. "Want to try it?" K looked at the lit cigarette extended to him by Fuma's hand with uncertainty. "You don't have to, I'm not forcing you or anything, ya know?" Fuma added with an oddly warm tone. He was oddly friendly with K, despite barely knowing him. K, warily, took the cigarette with gentle hands. He really needed to get back to class, but new experiences awaited him, and what his parents didn't know wouldn't hurt them, right? "Go slow, or you'll choke." Fuma warned, and watched K take a hit of the cigarette slowly.
K coughed almost immediately after he took a short drag of the cigarette. "Jeez, relax." Fuma chuckles and patted I'm back as he coughed. K, despite choking on the smoke, was already thinking of going again. "Can I take it again?" He urged, just as Fuma was about to take the cigarette from his fingers. "... Sure." Fuma shrugged and watched as K took another drag of the cigarette, this time more controlled and longer than before. "You learn fast." Fuma said softly, and took the cigarette as K passed it back to him. "You won't tell anyone, right?" He asked cautiously. He didn't want to think about what would happen if his parents finding out, but he knew that whatever happened would be bad—terrific, even. "Hell no. If you get caught then I will too, and I don't think either of us would want that to happen." K reassured, and watched as Fuma took a small puff of the cigarette.
"Good, then let's keep going until this runs out." Fuma grinned and passed the cigarette back to K. K nodded in agreement, and this exchange back and forth between the two went on until they finishes the cigarette, which was just 5 minutes before the bell rang. The two cleaned up quickly and exited the stall just as quick. They washed their hands and walked to the door of the restroom. Just as they opened it, the principal had been passing by.
K and Fuma stood there while sharing at the principal, who stared right back at them. Their eyes weren't red, but they definitely smelled of weed and smoke. That alone was enough for the principal to be able to tell what they were doing. "Come with me to my office. You should know better than this, Mr. Murata, we've already had this talk before." The principal said and gestured for the two to follow him to his office. K and Fuma exchanged a glance, and while they should be nervous of what might happen, they were both too high to care all that much.
It definitely hit them that they'd both be in deep trouble the moment they sat down in those leather chairs across from the principal.