Kaito was asleep, lying in a terrifying dreamland full of the past. He vividly remembered that day. His Tenth Birthday, and his parents were taking him to the waterpark. He remembered the drunk driver behind them. The collision. His parents' screams. He remembered waking up in the hospital and being told that he had no family left. He was sent to live with different people, and he remembered how they treated him. He still had the scars.
Suddenly, he woke up, his head shooting up and ripping a hole through the cardboard box. Rain began to pour inside, and his eyes grew wet. If anyone had walked by, they wouldn't be able to tell the rain from his tears, pouring down his face as the rain soaked through his clothes.

(your pov)
<You were walking through the same park that Kaito was in. Suddenly you found yourself in a quiet area, surrounded by bushes. There seemed to be some kind of box there, though. You wondered what it was. While you were debating whether to look inside it or not, you heard a shaky sob. It seemed to be coming from the box. Do you go over and see who or what is crying? Or do you leave them? The choice is yours.>

Seiko walked purposefully through the park, failing to notice anything in her dogged determination to get to her favourite spot before the rain made her hair go frizzy (including the large, cardboard box that wasn't normally there!) Pausing for a moment to get her breath back, she sat down on her coat underneath a large sycamore tree, and took out her Bento Box.
She didn't mind the park in the rain. There was no one about to stare at her odd appearance or look down their nose at what they saw as unusual fare to have for lunch: salmon sashimi, egg noodles, tuna nigiri and California rolls. Whereas they seemed to be content to make do with their boring old cheese sandwiches! ::Fair play to them!:: she thought, ripping open the sachet of wasabi with her sharp fangs and squeezing a generous dollop onto a roll, before anointing everything with soy sauce (Which came in a delightful fish shaped bottle! Aah! The little things!)
Stabbing the roll with her wooden chopsticks, she was about to attempt to cram the whole thing into her mouth, when her sensitive ears suddenly picked up an unexpected noise! It wasn't the pittering of the rain, or the rustle of the sycamore leaves. Or even the trill of the robin which was flitting somewhere in the branches. No. This was a human noise! A definite sob, followed by some sniffing, as the individual fought to contain them.
::It sounds like someone's in trouble:: thought Seiko, looking around for the source of the sound, her triangular ears swivelling this way and that. It took her a minute or two (for her eyesight was not as good in this bright daylight as her hearing was), but eventually she noticed the cardboard box, and saw that it was moving!
Stowing her lunch back in her satchel, she stood up and walked cautiously over to the box, wondering: A. Who could be in there? B. Why they were lying out in the rain? And C. Why they were crying? “Um… hello?” she called. “Are… are you ok? Do you need some help?”

Kaito looked up and somehow, through his tears, saw the blurred outline of Seiko. "Ah..ah..Aren't you...No, you're not..." he stuttered. His sleeves, soaked a dark red, dripped onto the ground. "I'm...i'm fine...This is nothing...." He stopped talking abruptly and started coughing, falling over. He was still crying, and it seemed like he was having trouble breathing. "Ah...ah...AAAAAAAAH!" His sobs grew louder, and he clutched his head with both hands. His head hurt so much, and he could hear his parents' screams. His body shook hard as he cried, and he slammed his head into the ground to erase the pain. Eventually he collapsed, face pale, soaked with tears and rain. Still conscious, he sobbed into the ground, wishing the world would go away. The pain and fear of everything he'd been through twisted his insides, and he rushed into the bushes to throw up. Ashamed of himself, he started to walk back towards his box, but suddenly he saw something. He could see his sister in Seiko's eyes. Seeing that, it was like another dagger piercing him. Unable to breathe, he collapsed, hitting the ground with a thud in front of Seiko.

Seiko stared at the tall, skinny boy with the blue hair, looking first confused and then deeply hurt. Unfortunately, his was a reaction that she had come to expect, and, although it failed to surprise her, she was unable to quell the sudden spark of disappointment at yet another failed friendship attempt.
Ever since she was little, she had had to endure the repulsed reactions of people who had come over to admire the ‘beautiful little blonde girl’, only for them to draw back when they saw her pointed ears, her tail, sharp teeth, claws and… most of all… her freakish odd eyes!
And so Seiko had come to accept that she was ugly. Too ugly to have anyone tell her any different. In fact, the only person who told her she was beautiful was her father, but he was biased! And, what with his job, had hardly any time to sit and talk to her about her woes anyway.
As the boy disappeared into the bushes (presumably to be sick) that was the final straw for her! “Humph!” She muttered. “I know I'm a freak, but there's no need to react like THAT...!”
Slinging her bag over her shoulder, she was about to walk off in a huff, when he came stumbling out of the bushes, took one more look at her… and then collapsed at her feet!
Seiko rolled her eyes. Great! Just great! Well she couldn't exactly leave him there now, could she?! Sighing, she knelt down beside the boy, the wet grass soaking through her black tights as she turned him over to check that he wasn't dead. Well, he definitely had a pulse (Her ears told her that!) and he was breathing quite fast.
But it was the cuts on his wrists that drew her attention. Reaching into her satchel, she quickly pulled out a pack of gauze and pressed the square cloths into the still bleeding cuts, shushing the boy as he began to stir. “Just hold still,” she said. “I'm Seiko by the way. Do you need me to call you an ambulance, or anything?”

Kaito slowly opened his eyes to find Seiko trying to stop the bleeding from his cuts. "I'm...I'm Kaito...I'm fine, this happens so much now...but I can't get used to it....but, thank you anyway," he said in a shaky voice. He slowly stood up on his feet, reaching out and grabbing Seiko's shoulder for balance, then drew his hand back quickly. "I'm sorry...I didn't mean to grab you, that was stupid and rude of me," he muttered while looking at the floor. "B-but...why..why are you being so nice to me? I'm just an outcast, rejected by everyone!" His words became slightly louder, and he remembered all the "substitute parents" who had hurt him, attempted to kill him, and told him it was his fault, that he was a failure. "W-whatever your reason..T..Thank you..Thank you so much!!!!" he cried finally, falling to his knees. He raised his head to look at Seiko, and tears were pouring down his face. "No..nobody's ever been kind enough to even ask if I need help..Thank you..thank you, so much!!!" he sobbed. "No..Stop crying, you can't cry! They'll find out and punish you again! You're supposed to be almost a man! You can't cry! Stop crying! Stupid 18-year old! You'll have to cut yourself later, to atone for this!" his mind shouted at him. Unfortunately, he was no longer in control. He lowered his head agin, his tears falling to the ground like the rain that had already soaked him and Seiko. Desperately trying to calm down, he was still sobbing, which ashamed him. He was pathetic. Men aren't allowed to cry, he told himself. I can't cry. But he still did, his tears falling like rain. "I'm sorry...I'm pathetic, aren't I? I'm supposed to be a man....." he said, his voice breaking.

Seiko cocked her head to the side, slightly intrigued by this crying boy in the rain (Who clearly was NOT fine!)
“I know,” she said. “I do it too.” And to prove it, she pulled back the sleeve of her black hoodie, then took off the ripped arm warmer (Which was of a matching shade) to expose a pattern of criss crossings and hatchings marring the milk white fur on her arm, before quickly covering it back up again. “I ran out of room,” she explained. “So I recently started on my legs too. And you're not pathetic. Everyone gets upset.”
::He’s kind of cute actually!:: she thought as she regarded him. “So? Kaito? Do you want to tell me why you're so upset? Surely it wasn't just my hideous appearance that prompted such a reaction?”

Kaito suddenly looked up, startled by Seiko's words. "You? Hideous?" he asked. Suddenly, he started chuckling slightly. "Ha..I can't believe someone like you would be considered hideous. You're beautiful," he said. Then he remembered Seiko's other words. Do you want to tell me why you're so upset? she had asked. He couldn't answer. If she knew, she'd tell someone, and then they would find out. They would hurt him again, and probably hurt her, too. Looking at Seiko's face and her expression that said she really did want to know, she didn't just think of him as another mistake, hurt him. He wasn't used to this. Tears fell down his face again as he remembered his sister who had the same expression on her face when he cried as Seiko did now. He remembered his sister, who had committed suicide because he was so depressed all the time. "Seiko...Please, don't don't leave..." he sobbed, digging his fingernails into his scalp. He rushed into his box to find his only possession, a very sharp knife with a serrated blade. Taking it out, he cut his wrists deep. The blood dripped onto the cardboard and mixed with his tears, and he grabbed his hair, trying to tear it out. "Ah...She's...She's...ah...AHHHHHH!" His sobs grew louder although he tried to keep himself quiet, the voices of his family screaming in his ears. It hurt. It hurt a lot.

Seiko glanced over her shoulder. ::Is he talking to me?:: she thought. Well, no one else was behind her, so she guessed he must be! “Beautiful? Me?” She giggled. “Now that's funny! Most people just look at me in disgust! The nicer ones call me names. Ugly freak seems to be a favourite.” She shrugged, her smile fading. “I don't care! They're words can't hurt me...!”
He was crying again! ::Oh no!:: she thought, ::I said the wrong thing!:: “I'm- I'm sorry…!” she stuttered, “I shouldn't have asked…! I can be so nosey sometimes…I- Hey wait! What are you doing…?!”
She knew exactly what he was doing, of course. She did it herself. But seeing someone else doing it didn't make it any less disturbing! However, she also knew better than to try to stop him. He was holding a serrated knife for God's sake, and, judging by his apparent mental state, who knew what else he might do with it! So, she simply said, “You're doing it wrong. You'll give yourself an infection… blood poisoning, if you do it like that!”

Kaito didn't care. He didn't care if he died. He suddenly stood up, his tear-filled and overflowing eyes wide. The knife fell to the ground, covered in blood. Blood streamed down Kaito's hands and dripped onto the ground. He turned around and got a good look at Seiko.
"S...sister?....No, you're not...You look just like her...Please, don't leave, like she did..DON'T LEAVE!" he screamed. He stared at Seiko for a while longer, then fell onto the ground, sobbing. His wrists hurt. His mind hurt. Everything hurt. He could feel the memories flooding back again...the car. The intoxicated driver behind them. Something hitting them. Flying through the air. Blood...his parents' blood, his blood. Waking up in the hospital. His sister telling him that he needed to cheer up. His sister jumping off the skyscraper. More blood. Being hit. Being thrown into a wall. Being strangled, left without food, cut. Shot with a gun. And Seiko was right here in front of him. She's going to leave too, he thought. "Please, Seiko, don't leave...don't leave...please...." he cried quietly. "ah....you're going to...ah..Ah..AHHHHHHH!" He screamed again, collapsing to his hands and knees. He leaned over the ground, crying hard, his tears and blood mixing together.

Tentatively, Seiko placed a hand on Kaito’s shoulder. “I know what you're thinking,” she said. “You don't care if you die. But, trust me. You don't want blood poisoning. I’ve had it twice. Almost lost my arm the second time round! Then I would have been a one armed freak!”
She thought for a moment, weighing up the options, shivering a little because her hoodie was soaked through! “Look,” she said finally. “Do you want to come back to my house? It's not far. My dad won't mind. He's at work anyway. We could… you know... watch a film or something...?”

Kaito was far too upset to answer her. Without thinking, he pulled Seiko into a tight hug, holding onto her and sobbing. "Please, don't go...Not like her.. I don't want to lose anyone again!" His tears dripped onto the wet grass, and his emotional state seemed to be getting worse. After a little while, he choked on his own tears. He couldn't breathe. It hurt. It hurt. It hurt so much. He was tired, tired of living, tired of fighting himself everyday. Tired of having the memories haunt him. His body shook against Seiko, he was cold, soaked to the bone, and hurt. He just wanted to die. Existing hurt. "Why...why concern yourself with me? I'm just a mistake, a failure. It's my fault they died. My fault she jumped. I should be dead already.." His voice broke again, sending a fresh waterfall of tears down his cheeks. Taking in a shaky breath, he collapsed against Seiko. His body was limp and cold, his breathing shallow. The blood from his cuts soaked his sleeves with red. His face was pale and losing color.

Taken completely by surprise, Seiko didn't really know what to do! So she held him back, wrinkling her sensitive nose at the smell of blood and damp clothes! “I think you have me confused with someone else,” she said. “Please, don't cry! You're not a failure! In fact, you're the first person I've met who hasn't been repulsed by me, so you can't be that bad! I'm not going anywhere. I can be your friend... if you like? Plus I've REALLY got to get home. I have to go to the shop to buy groceries for my dad's dinner you see. He can't even make toast!”
However, Kaito didn't reply. In fact, he didn't respond at all, not even when she shook him! "Oh God!" She thought, reaching into her bag, grabbing her phone and dialling the emergency number. "He- hello?" She said. "Um... ambulance please! My-my friend has cut himself real bad! Yes, he's bleeding! No. No response! I'm in Haiku Park! Ok, yes I will. Please hurry!" Staying on the line, she went to fetch her coat, which she then wrapped around the boy, and then held him, talking to him until the paramedics arrived...!

The paramedics arrived quickly and instructed Seiko to get in the ambulance along with Kaito. They took him to the hospital to analyze his condition, and not too long after he was admitted, a doctor came up to Seiko in the waiting room. "Ma'am, we have good news for you. Your friend's condition is not as bad as it seems, and you may see him now if you want. We believe that he collapsed because of an injury from his childhood," explained the doctor. He led Seiko into a room with soft white light, your average hospital bed against the wall, and the various machines keeping Kaito stable, then left. Kaito looked across the room at Seiko when she came in, his soft blue eyes full of fear, sadness, and relief.
"Seiko. You're here," he said in his shaky voice. Before Seiko could respond, a woman in her 40s walked through the door and glared at Kaito. His expression quickly turned fearful, as the woman walked up to him and hissed something in his ear.
"You pathetic idiot," she said. "Are you trying to kill yourself? Like your sister?!" The woman angrily slapped him and then punched him, leaving him defenseless and hurt. She then turned around to face Seiko and said, "I'm sorry you had to see that. I was just punishing my mistake of a foster son for giving you trouble." At this, Kaito started to say something, but the woman kicked him hard with a "SHUT THE F*** UP, PATHETIC FAILURE!" She then grumbled to herself and left the room.
Kaito looked at his foster mother, then at Seiko. "I'm sorry, Seiko. S-she's right..I'm a...f-failure.." His voice broke in the middle of his sentence, and he started to cry again. Couldn't he do anything right? Why was he so hopeless? His sobs shook his body, and tears slid down his face.

While waiting for news at the hospital, Seiko dialled her dad's number. As usual, it went to answer phone. “Hi Daddy," she said. "It's me Seiko. Just to let you know, I'm not going to be able to cook tonight, ok? Are you cool to get a take out? I'm in hospital with a friend, you see. Ok, gotta go. Ring me when you get this... Love you!”

Just as she hung up, the doctor came to tell her that she could see Kaito, so she followed man into a small, white room filled with bleeping machines, Kaito lying in a bed. He looked awful! However, she was pleased to see that he was awake. She smiled, and was about to say something, when all of a sudden this horrid woman barged in and started hitting Kaito for no apparent reason!
Shocked and appalled, but not knowing what to do, Seiko simply stood there with her mouth open, eyes like two saucers and ears flat! And she stayed like that, even after the woman had left! Then, her expression darkened. “I'll be right back!” She said to Kaito, showing her teeth a little. “I promise!” She added, and then marched up to the help desk.
“Who let that woman in?!” She demanded to the secretary who was manning it.
“Which woman?” The secretary asked.
“Black hair. In her forties…!”
“Oh! You mean Kaito’s mum…?”
“I don't care who she is!” Seiko snapped. “You are NOT to let that woman in here! DO you understand?!”
“And why is that, miss?” the secretary replied cooly.
“She just attacked Kaito! She's probably the reason he's sick!”
“Alright,” said the woman. “If an assault has just been committed, then it is hospital protocol to call the police. They will be waiting if the Mrs Shion comes back. And, don't worry. She won't be allowed back in. However, the police WILL want a statement from both you and Kaito.”
“Ok. Thank you,” said Seiko, and then headed to the nearest toilets. Locking the door, she reached into her satchel and pulled out a little pouch, which she then unwrapped and selected a scalpel from the array of sharp implements she had. Then she rolled down her tights and slowly cut a line into her thigh, gasping a little, but then feeling a warm sensation… a feeling akin to euphoria and a sense of leaving her pain behind. The events for the last few hours had shaken her right to her foundations. She couldn't let it show, but she needed to release it. And this was the only way she knew how.
The feeling only lasted a few seconds before her leg started to hurt, so, while she pressed a square of gauze into the cut, she did the same on the other leg… although the feeling wasn’t as intense. Her stupid body had been expecting it that time! Disappointed and angry with herself for pushing her luck, she cleaned the cuts, stuck plasters on them, rolled her tights back up and went to wash her hands, before heading back to check on Kaito. She walked back into the room to find him still sobbing, but a doctor was with him. “I’m going to put you in touch with our psychiatric team,” he was explaining to Kaito...

Kaito was afraid. Why didn't Seiko come back? Nobody was there. It was like she never had been. Suddenly, a doctor entered the room and started talking about psychology and how there was something wrong with his brain. "N-no...I'm not a monster...Not a freak....Please, just let me go....." he sobbed. Eventually he had had enough. He jumped out of the hospital bed and ripped the IV plug harshly out of his arm, causing it to bleed. Not noticing that Seiko was back in the room, he brushed past her and ran as fast as he could to the main entrance. Before the receptionist could stop him, he was outside in the dark, where a storm was brewing. Thunder sounded, and lightning flashed across the sky. Underneath the thunder, Kaito could still hear his sister telling him how pathetic he was. I want to die. I want to die. I want to die, he thought as he ran towards the park. The knife, covered in dried blood, still lay outside the ruined cardboard box. He picked it up and cut once, twice, three times, ten times on each arm until each one was completely covered in cuts. He then stood up, blood dripping fast from his sleeves. It felt like he could hear Seiko's voice. A wave of hallucinations crashed over him, and he saw his dead parents and sister in front of him. They stared at him with disapproving looks, and then they closed in around him. Each one put a gun to his head. "S....Seiko.....Seiko!! Seiko!! SEIKO!!!!" he cried, before realizing that he was the one holding a gun to his head. With tears spilling out of his eyes and uncontrollable sobs shaking his body, he moved his finger to pull the trigger.

“If you want to kill yourself, then that will be your decision!” said Seiko, stepping out of the shadows. “But it isn't very fair on the ones who are trying to help you, is it? Make your mind up, Kaito. What is it to be?”
Suddenly, in the distance, came the unmistakable sound of sirens...!

The sirens startled Kaito. He dropped the gun before the police arrived and sprinted to where the bridge was that went across the river. Knowing it wouldn't kill him, only hurt him slightly, he flung himself over the edge of the bridge railing, plummeting to the fast-rushing water below. It was deeper than he had remembered, must have been all that rain. Exhausted and tired of everything, he gave up, slipping into unconsciousness. I don't care if they find me. I'm going to die soon anyway, were his last thoughts before there was nothing but darkness.

“Kaito! Please…!” Seiko cried. “They're not going to hurt you! They just want to help…! STOP!!!”
But he wouldn't listen! Or maybe he just didn't hear? He simply ran to the bridge and threw himself over the railing, crashing into the dark river below! Then she heard him screaming. Frantically, she stood at the railing, trying to find him, but he had disappeared under the churning waters… and it was far too dangerous for her to follow…! “Kaito!” She shouted, tears streaming down her face. “KAITO...!!!”

"It's alright, ma'am. These waters aren't deep enough to drown someone," a police officer told Seiko in an attempt to reassure her as another officer or two climbed down the banks to the river. Within minutes they were back, carefully carrying an unconscious, soaking wet Kaito between the two of them. "Officer Kiriyaga," said one. "We performed CPR on him. He's breathing okay, but shows no signs of regaining consciousness. It's best to take him back to the hospital."
"Thank you very much, Officer Tsuruga," said the policewoman standing at Seiko's side. They carefully put Kaito into an ambulance with the help of a few paramedics who had arrived on the scene. Once they got to the hospital, Officer Kiriyaga instructed Seiko, "Once he wakes up, you should ask him about his childhood. Make sure you get the whole story. Trust me, if you do, you'll understand why he's so broken. We've had a few run-ins with him before. Poor guy has been through things nobody should have to go through." The police officers left, leaving Seiko beside Kaito. His head was bandaged in places, and the cuts on his arms were covered by bandages as well. His mouth was covered by an oxygen mask to help him breathe. Who knew what he would do when he woke up? If he woke up?

Seiko sat staring into space. ::I can't take much more of this…:: she thought. ::What have I got myself into? Why am I even here? This is NOT my problem… God knows I have enough of my own shit to deal with without getting involved with THIS as well…!:: Her thoughts were interrupted by her phone vibrating. “Hello?” she said in a dead voice. “Oh. Hi Daddy. I told you, I'm at the hospital… didn't you get my…? Yes! I'm fine! Yeah… I dunno. Ok. Yeah. Bye. Love you too.”
She pressed the cancel button and looked at the time. 9pm. “I have to go to work,” she said to the unconscious figure in the bed. “I'll come by tomorrow.” And with that she got up, shouldered her bag and walked out of the room.

She got to the club just in time to dump her things and get ready: apply make-up, put on her fluorescent hot pants, crop top and platform boots, pile up her white blonde hair and drop an E... then walked out onto the stage amidst cheering and thumping music. She reached her decks… the music began to play… and she drifted away to its beating rhythm… leaving her worries behind:

# “I want you to know that it’s our time
You and me bleed the same light
I want you to know that I’m all yours
You and me run the same course
I’m slippin down a chain reaction
And here I go here I go here I go go
And once again I’m yours in fractions
It takes me down pulls me down pulls me down low
Honey it’s raining tonight
But storms always have an eye have an eye
Tell me you’re covered tonight
Or tell me lies tell me lies lies
I want you to know that it’s our time
You and me bleed the same light
I want you to know that I’m all yours
You and me we’re the same force
I want you to know that it’s our time
You and me bleed the same light
I want you to know that I’m all yours
You and me run the same course
I want you to know that it’s our time
You and me bleed the same light
I’m better under your reflection
But did you know did you know did you know know?
That’s anybody else that’s met ya
It’s all the same all the same all the same glow
Honey it’s raining tonight
But storms always have an eye have an eye
Tell me you’re covered tonight
Or tell me lies tell me lies lies.”#

Somehow, even in his unconscious state, Kaito heard Seiko's words.
A few minutes after she left, his eyes fluttered open. "Seiko?" he asked. Realizing she wasn't there, he smiled sadly to himself. Of course she left. Everyone leaves, he thought. But then, he realized something. Seiko had a good reason to leave. She did care about him.
That thought comforted him, and he found the strength to reach out and take one of the painkillers the doctor had left him. His mind eased into a calm and comfortable state, and he fell into an unusually peaceful sleep, waiting for Seiko to return again.

Seiko stumbled into the hospital room at visiting time, still wearing her hot pants, with nothing but a long, black, hooded coat over the top. She pulled up a chair and then slumped across the bed, resting her head on her arms. “Eeeer…!” She groaned.
It had been a great night, but she was now regretting having not slept. And the Ecstasy come down REALLY wasn't helping things!

Seiko's loud footsteps roused Kaito from his sleep. He opened his eyes to see her, looking exhausted and tired.
"Seiko. It's alright. You can go home and sleep, I'll be fine," he told her. He wasn't sure if this was true, but at the moment, he cared more about her than about himself. He slowly started to stroke her hair, exposing a small smile.
"Don't worry about me," he said. The tone of his voice seemed to be darker, with a hint of sadness behind it. "I'll be okay on my own."
He drew his hand away from her head, turning his own to look out the window at the sun that had started to rise.

“Eeeer! My head is pounding!” Seiko said again, sounding morose. “I will later... I just don't want to move right now. At least it's Sunday… got stupid college tomorrow…! Eeeer… joy…!” She turned to look blearily at him, eyes puffy from lack of sleep... “But I'll go if you want me to?”

"If you want to stay, that's fine," Kaito said. "I should be used to being alone by now, but it still hurts. So personally, I'd like you to stay, but you're not being forced to." He pulled his pillow out from behind him and, carefully lifting up Seiko's head so it wouldn't hurt, slipped it under her. "There. Hopefully that's more comfortable," he told her softly. Turning his head to look out the window, his smile disappeared.
".....I'm sorry," he said finally. "I'm sorry for putting you through that. It's just, sometimes I..I just can't be happy. Because of what happened. The memories haunt me. It's one of the reasons why I cut myself."
His eyes darted around the room, trying to locate a sharp object. He could feel the sense of regret and despair coming back to him.