The Pinky Ring [chapter o1]
The young man with medium length soft brown hair matched his hazel brown orbed eyes. He wore a casual white plain t-shirt and faded blue jeans. The only accessory that stood out was his sliver ring on his left pinky. It looked like he didn’t try to stand out too much amongst the crowds. He sat quietly on the wooden stool watching people in the busy streets briskly walking by the Starbucks coffee shop. The young man pulled his grande white chocolate mocha drink towards his lips; before he could take a sip of it someone caught his attention. He looked down from the second level of the Starbucks store and saw someone running through the intersections without walking on the pedestrian marked road, cars from all over the direction honked its horn while trying to avoid running over the man. The young man laughed to himself and placed his drink back down on the table, amused at the man sprinting into the coffee store. Within twenty seconds, the sound of apologizes and bumping into furniture could be heard. As the sound drew closer the young man turned his head around and saw the sprinting man smiling sheepishly.
“You’re late.” Said the young man finally taking his drink and sipped it slowly looking at the man panting and breathing heavily trying to catch his breath back.
“Sorry Kazuki, you know how the traffic is, awful isn’t it.”
“Don’t worry about Jin, you’re only ten minutes late.”
“Mou… Kazu.. Don’t make it sound like I’m always late.”
“Well out of ten times you’re late….. all ten times.”
“Let’s go, I’m sure you’ll like your new job as my personal secretary rather than waitressing in some little unknown restaurant barely earning a living. Also, I bought you a new apartment complex; it’s really nice, actually you’re right across from me. It’s got a nice skylight, big panel windows, and a sundeck. Also, to top it all off a nice brand new car, so you can stop taking the subway stations, buses, taxis, and trains. You have a driver’s license so why don’t you actually put it into use? Please, lastly, whatever you do, please don’t pay me back. We are brothers, not blood related, but real brothers my name is Akanishi Jin and your name is Akanishi Kazuki and you have a little brother name Akanishi Reio and you have a mother and father. Your life will only get better okay? Oh, one more thing, mom would be really glad if you can go back and visit her. Do you understand?”
Kazuki simply nodded in agreement, “Sure, I’ll go visit mom some time soon.”
They climbed into Jin’s sliver Acura-tsx 2009 car and drove off to Kazuki’s new home. When they finally arrived Jin parked his car in the vip parking lot and look the elevator up to the 5th floor. When they reached room number 23 Jin opened the door to Kazuki’s new home. Right away they entered the living room the left side was the kitchen and the right side was a large empty space and further down a staircase to the second floor. The first floor was brightly lit by the windows in all three sides of the room. Jin quickly took off his shoes and walked two steps to see a telephone hanged on the wall and beside it little buttons to push.
“Watch this, if you want to taint your windows and have less sun shine through you press this button and than your windows become dark blue. It’s like putting on sunglasses, that way you have privacy and stuff. Save a lot of money on electricity bills anyways. And this telephone and little screen are for you to answer to see who’s at the door. Press the green button to let them in, the blue button is the windows, and the red one…. it’s the fire alarm, don’t ask how I know. All your clothes, I put them in a box and it’s upstairs in your room. The furniture’s, I donated them, your other little things, it’s in another box that’s also in your room. I’ll go back to my apartment and grab to a can of beer.”
Jin quickly slipped back into his shoes without even wearing it properly and dragged his feet across the hallway carpet and opened his apartment door and threw off his shoes and ran towards the kitchen. Kazuki took off his shoes and walked onto the white tile floors and walked towards the window and touched it with his fingertips it was cold because of the feeling of glass yet warm because of the summer rays shining upon the outside of the window.
Even though I’m not exactly sure what my background was before, living this luxurious life feels really empty. Money can not buy everything, I’m sure Jin knows that too, but maybe that’s because he is use to it. But, I, not remembering my past or my name, how can I have such privilege to live like this?
“I’m back, Kazu!” Jin hollered from the entrance scrambling to throw his shoe off making it land in different directions. He tossed the beer in his left hand to Kazuki causing him to fumble a bit before finally grasping it firmly.
“Nice catch.” Jin laughed.
“Very funny, what if I missed and it hit the window and breaks it, it’d be like a domino effect breaking all three sides of the window.”
“Nah, you think too much.”
Jin walked towards the window and sat on the ground legs apart and lied against the paneled window. Opened his beer and took a big gulp and smiled contently. He looked up looking at Kazuki, watching his younger brother staring at the beer can lingering in his deep thoughts again.
“I didn’t know a beer can was so interesting, sit Kazu”
Jin patted the floor next to him motioning his little brother to sit down next to him. Kazuki slowly slid down next to Jin and looked down at the floor. The room filled with silence as the two brother stared into space.
“Jin…… tell me what happened again.”
“Again?”
“Yeah….”
“It was about 10 years ago our family was all in the car and we were coming back from dinner and we saw the car ahead of us trying to speed to pass the orange light. I guess, you were really out of it, you were in the middle of the road and the car ran right into you. It was a hit and run. My dad quickly pulled over to check on you while my mom was calling 119 for the ambulance and police. We followed you to the hospital, there was blood all over your face and you were in the emergency room for 18 hours. If I remember correctly, the surgery failed and resulted you in a coma. We went to visit you everyday and after almost a year you finally woke up. You couldn’t remember your name, age, where you lived, the name of your parents, or anything. Also, you didn’t speak for half a year, the doctor said it was because of the shock that you had from the accident. So we decided to look after you, we put poster up for lost child and stuff, but two year passed there was no information what so ever. So mom and dad decided to adopt you. The only thing on you was that sliver ring, inside it engraved Kazuki so mom and dad decided to name you that.”
Jin looked at Kazuki and placed his hand on his younger brother’s shoulder and slightly squeezed it for reassurance. The little one looked up and dazed into his older brothers eyes. His lips trembled slightly in fear, his nose was starting to go cheery red, and his eyes also became red and teary. Jin pulled his brother into his arms and allowed Kazuki to cry on his shoulder. Jin felt his brother firmly holding onto the back of his t-shirt not letting go. Jin’s heart winced in pain hearing his own little brother crying so much, he felt like crying himself. But how could he? He had such a good life, a wonderful family, he had no right to cry like little Kazuki who have experienced so much in the past. Jin couldn’t help himself, he felt his eyes also getting teary but he quickly brushed it away and sniffled slightly. He hugged Kazuki even tighter and dug his face into the little ones shoulder to hide away all his pain and sorrow.
I’m so sorry Kazu, I really wish I can trade places with you. It really hurts to see you like this. I’ll protect you forever. You’ll have a good life now. As long as I’m alive, I promise you I will risk my life to save and protect you. Stay strong Kazu. Ganbarre
After Kazu cried himself to sleep he laid on Jin’s lap sound as sleep like a baby. He had a soft snore and curled into a little ball. The orange and yellow sun was setting behind the two brothers’ back, Jin looked at the shadow that had been casted into the room.
Have a good life; I’ll make all your wishes come true.
Jin slowly tried to get Kazuki’s head off his lap and carefully placed him onto his back and carried him into his own apartment and placed him onto his king sized bed.
Sweet dreams.
He sat on the arm chair next to the bed and looked at the little ones sleeping figure.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-The.Pinky.Ring=-=-=-==-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Flashback
“Oh my god, dad, there’s a kid on the road!”
I could hear my mom scrambling for her cellphone trying to take a picture of the back of the vehicle to use it as evidence but the car was long gone. I felt the car halted to a stop and I quickly opened the car door before my dad could lock the door to make me stay put.
“Are you okay?”
I rolled the little kid to lie on his back. I fell back seeing the blood all over his face I crawled on my knees and looked at the little boy. His hair was stained in red and the front of his skull kept bleeding. He tried all his effort to stand up despite his serious conditions. He seemed to be whispering something, than I finally had the courage and crawled next to him lowering my head to hear his whispers.
“Mi...Mi...…R…Ri…Ring”
“Ring?” I restated
He gave me a faint nod I looked left and right lowering my head to ground level to see anything was on the floor. Under my dads car I found the sliver ring I quickly scrambled to reach under the car and grabbed the ring. I crawled back and slipped the ring back onto the little kid’s finger and he a small smile curved onto his face. By than my dad screamed out my name and pulled me off the ground, I was placed back into the car and the doors were locked. It was just me and my little brother, he was sleeping at the time, he didn’t remember anything. My dad was outside with my mom standing beside a police officer giving out evidence on the hit and run.
I sat in the car looking left and right trying to doge all the adults, I wanted to see if the little boy was okay. I didn’t even realize my knees were scraped and slightly bleeding. I was always a chicken and cried the loudest whenever I got hurt. It was the first time I didn’t even realize my own pain when I was trying to look after someone else.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-The.Pinky.Ring=-=-=-==-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
“Kazuki, the ring, is it that important? Who’s the person name that started with Mi? You always wake up from your sleep screaming and yelling, is it about the past? Kazuki, what should I do? I’m so confused.”
Jin whispered silently hoping for a reply. But the little one was fast asleep; he didn’t even stir in response. He sighed and slumped down in his arm chair further and closed his eyes. Hope to run away from reality from his emotions, dilemmas, future. Most importantly, stopping himself from conveying his feelings to him.
Kazuki sleeping with his back against Jin cried silently.
The ring is important Jin, it is the most important thing I have right now. And I don’t know who the person I called out is, I don’t remember anything. I’m really sorry, I feel so stupid, I’m trying very very hard to remember everything, but nothing triggers it. I’m so sorry for causing so much trouble in your family always having to worry about me. Every time I ran away from home, you guys get even more worried, so I decided to finally stay put. Jin-niichan, I’m sorry.
Kame sniffled under the covers and biting the covers so the sound of his sobs wouldn’t be heard.