Here's the next chapter in Sky of Love. RainWanderer and I worked on this together to get the best results, and we both think it turned out well. But, for all of the people who have read Sky of Love chapter 1, when Samosu punched Izo in the face, we changed it to the stomach. So, hope you like it-
Chapter 2
Almost immediately, Izo sat up, and grimaced with the pain form his injuries. But, he bit his lip , sitting up right and look at the person who was sitting next to him. It was a girl. She sat, motionless, and looking straight at Izo. Her silver eyes seemed to glow as they fixed into his brown eyes. Her hair was a blue shade of the sky, flowing freely down to her shoulders and gracefully dancing in the breeze. Her school uniform - white blouse and purple skirt - embraced her small, slender figure tenderly. His heart beat started to slow down as he stared at her, dumbfounded.
"Why are you sleeping on the bench?" said the girl, her voice clear like crystal bells.
Izo couldn't even respond. Time seemed like it had stopped for him. Eventually, he came to his senses and replied weakly, "I...I was in a bad situation last night."
"A bad situation?" The girl asked Izo and slightly bent towards him, curiosity shown on her face.
"It was my worst Valentine's Day ever..." Izo sighed deeply.
"Why?" The girl continued to ask, but with more attention.
Somehow, Izo felt comfortable, just sitting next to the girl and talking with her. But, he was still hesitated to tell her his miserable life story. "Well..." he tried to start, then his voice trailed off to an awkward silence.
"You didn't have anyone to be with in Valentine's Day?" Those words sank Izo's heart as they left the girl's lips. He embarrassingly looked away, smothering his face in his hand, then finally admitted:
"Yeah...I was alone. The only person alone in the day of love. Ever since grade one... Pathetic, isn't it? It seems like life hates me. Why do I have to always being alone? I want to be in love, just for once in my life." Again, Izo sighed, depression heavy in his heart, like the sadness filled in his soul. "And yesterday, luckily for me, I was not lonely: I was being beat up by some brutes from my school. How generous life is to me." His words were spiced with sarcasm, while his hand reached up to the side of his head and felt dry blood caked under his hair.
Then he felt a hand gently touching his wound. "Does it hurt?" The girl asked him.
"I-it is nothing." Izo shuttered, blushing at this sudden act of kindness. "I have been through worse, living in this crappy life."
"So if you had a girlfriend, would your life be happier?" A question that Izo did not expect came from the girl. He turned to look back at the girl and noticed she wasn't looking at him anymore, but gazing up to the sky above.
"What do you mean?" he questioned, his voice full of hope. She looked over at him and chuckled. All of a sudden, Izo felt like he was being teased. Just like what all of the other girls did to him.
"Sorry, that was a silly question, isn't it?" the girl apologized. She stood up, and flicked her bangs out of her eyes. "I think that you will be happy one day. Life might be hard on you right now, but you will find your love one, sooner or later. Somewhere, sometime, you will see her. Don't be sad." She smiled to him. "Remember, life is not as cruel as you imagined it to be." The girl said as she started to walk away, Izo staring at her back.
"Oh, right." Izo suddenly heard the girl voice once again. "I forgot to asked you your name." She turned around. "Izo..." The boy found his name left his mouth without him knowing. Something was lit up inside Izo at that moment, as he held his hand up to his chest, and find his heart racing. Something was burning in his soul, agitating his mind, but at the same time, it felt so soothing and...strangely pleasant. Is this...
"I am Aiko by the way! See you again!" Aiko waved to him, before she disappeared behind a corner.
...Love?
Izo was left alone on the bench, just as he was before. But he was not like before. He looked at the spot where Aiko had sat earlier. It was empty, like the emptiness suddenly appeared inside him. Or maybe, the emptiness was already there, but after meeting with Aiko, he finally realized how much he wanted to fill in that emptiness. The air turned cold that moment. On the sky, a cloud covered the warming sun. Izo had nobody to talk to, and nobody to share his thoughts with now that Aiko has gone. His heart, a few moment ago was being warm as he sat next to Aiko, now felt cold, as usual. He hauled his body off of the bench and found his cuts and bruises to still be swelling. He trudged down the city street and slowly came to the suburban part of Tokyo. After walking a few blocks down his street, Iko noticed he being watched by other people. He looked at himself and found he was hurt a lot more than he thought, and he was not quite in fact walking, but dragging his body along. He pulled up his shirt, just to find patches of discolored skin covering his torso. This will take a while for me to recover. Izo thought. Facing the door of his house, he fumbled with his keys wearily before he finally opened it.
As Izo walked inside, he flicked on the lights to find an empty house. He threw his backpack on the floor and didn't even bother taking off his shoes. He entered his kitchen and headed for the fridge, his throat dry. Right before opening the door, Izo noticed a note on it. He pulled out a soda and ripped the paper off at the same time. As he sat down at the table, he read the note, which said:
Izo,
Your father and I have left on a business trip and will not be home until Friday. There is money in the silverware cabinet and the fridge is full. If you need anything, call my cell. And try not to get in any trouble.
I love you
Your mother,
Misaki
"As usual..." He crushed the note in his hand without caring.
After finishing his drink, Izo threw the bottle into the trash can and headed for his room. Different than the typical boy's room that one might think of, it was always neat and clean. His computer was a little dusty, however. It was unusual, since the computer was the only thing he used and really took care off. But because of what happened that night, it was left uncleaned. Izo hit its power button on the back, and the screen lit up. His dark, curtained room immediately became bright. A small apple flashed on the screen and then soon after, his wallpaper-a pretty girl and flower petals floating around her- appeared. It calmed him a little when he was feeling really down. Izo sat down in his chair and slouched into the cushioning. He had a long day, and sleep was all his body wanted. But his mind was occupied with Aiko...
***
Izo opened his eyes, and found himself on the same bench he had fallen asleep on in the morning. His bruises ached a little as he sat up. The early afternoon breeze was calm and comforting. People walked passed before him, not noticing his existence. Izo scratched his head, feeling something was not quite right, as if he was forgetting something. He looked over his shoulder and found the bench was empty. Then he realized what he was forgetting. Aiko. Aiko wasn't there. A dream, he thought, It was all just a stupid dream. He sadly shook his head as he stood up from the bench. "Why I keep dreaming those things...Not like I will find love in my rotten life anyway."
"Remember, life is not as cruel as you imagined it to be." whispered a voice to his ear.The same voice, clear like crystal bell came from behind him. Aiko! Izo spun around, but there was no one there. Her voice was so close, yet seem like so far away. Then someone slowly embraced him from behind.
"So if you had a girlfriend, would your life be happier, Izo?" Aiko's voice rang in his ear.
"I-I-I.." The blushing boy couldn't talk properly, as Aiko's hands wrapped around his chest and her supple breast were pressing gently against his back.
"Izo..." Aiko suddenly released him "Come with me."
Confused, Izo turn around and found Aiko. She was wearing the same white shirt, and her purple skirt were fluttering in the wind. Her hand was reaching out to him. "Take my hand..." she smiled to him, waiting.
Without a thought, Izo held her hand. A sudden feeling of lightness washed over him as the sky came closer and closer to Izo. He glanced down, and realized he was flying. The people and the building becoming smaller and smaller below him until they are nothing more that small dots on the ground. Aiko suddenly made a spin in the air and draw Izo closer to her. Her eyes mesmerized him in its silvery gleam, and he could not think of anything else, but only Aiko before him now. The boy's face turned red hot when his lips was just a hair's width away from Aiko's soft lips. Then even that distance disappeared as their lips connected...
