The Dream Shifter

Chapter 191

The third boy slapped his hand on Seiji's desk looking at him with a wicked expression. "She probably took one look at him and regretted she was his. Isn't that right?"

The boys laughed moving closer to him. Any light or salvation closed behind them. "Well Seiji? You little momma's boy? You chased her way didn't you?"

"Yeah, she got sick of hearing you whining all the time for her!"

"Even his daddy knew better than to stick around!"

Seiji's head tilted down with a deep impenetrable shadow over his eyes. Sweat built up along his neck and face. His hands clinched in his lap pressing together painful. He wanted to say something, anything, but his mouth would not open. All he did was take in all of the laughter and their twisted looks. It was his new routine, no longer spending time in the warmth of her light.

He returned home that day having received another round of verbal a***e after school before they let him leave. It left a boiling set of emotions primed on the surface. He nearly reached the limit of his endurance. Seiji slowly walked the stone path to the shrine. Their grandfather stood out front removing stray weeds from the grounds.

When his grandfather took notice of Seiji arriving he stopped his work and half turned to face him. "Shoji's been calling for you. I think he's hungry."

Any other day, Seiji would have continued to walk without a second thought in mind, but not that day. He knew well enough that Shoji never called for him, he was still too young. All he ever said was 'mama', a painful reminder. Seiji snapped with a fierce glare through thinly narrowed eyes, "I'm not his mother! Why don't you go find her for him, if you can pick weeds all day!"

Not expected such a venomous retaliation, it took him a moment to recover. "There is no one to find," he responded curtly and sharply with a snapping tone mixed in attempting to put an end to the discussion immediately, "He has none."

"Yes, he does! She's out there right now!"

His grandfather turned his full body to face Seiji, no longer content to give him half of his attention. The full height and stature bore out through his words. "There is no one! We are the only family! End of discussion!"

Seiji felt shaken in the presence of his grandfather. All of the anger that he felt meant nothing before him. He had never seen him or heard him raise his voice to him. Seiji was at a loss. Any more words came out muted, barely audible. He just marched on into the shrine wanting to get out of sight as quickly as possible.

The rest of the night followed in relative silence. Seiji had no words to say still taken back and his grandfather spoke nothing to him. Only Shoji spoke and it still came out as broken Japanese. In the morning, Seiji thought the atmosphere improved, but the moment he saw his grandfather it all came back to him. All of the emotions and words that he held back rose to the surface. Awkwardly functioning, he made breakfast and left for school. Class returned him into the familiar a***e from the other boys, which he could not act upon. However, when school ended something happened. Something changed for Seiji on that day.

The leader, of the roughly grouped elementary school boys, shoved Seiji up against the wall of the school. Through the day, Seiji tried to ignore them as usual, it only seemed to make them more annoyed with Seiji. "Where do you think you're goin' Seiji? You've got no one to return to so quickly!"

"Right!" the second boy piped up, "Stay and let's have some fun!"

"Yeah, you've got no one anyway!" the third chimed.

A twitch in Seiji's eyebrow responded to the words. Within his mind, the words echoed repeated. 'There is no one!'  His grandfather's words pounded against his head making him ache. Seiji forcibly grasped the side of his head wanting it out. 'He has none!' The voice became louder and louder until he could not even hear the children.

His other hand rose to hold down the pressure he felt. 'Stop it! I do! Don't tell me I don't!' Seiji shook his head a little trying to fight his grandfather's voice. A sweat along the back of his neck and shoulders built up as heat from inside his body grew. 'Shut up!' The pain in his head spread further making his arms shaking and spun a terrible odor in his stomach.

The stronger it grew the more he hated it.

He hated it!

Laughter from the kids broke through for a moment when Seiji opened his eyes. His eyes narrowed viciously fueled by the endless emotions stored inside. Seiji lunged forward, the leader's arm brushed away in the motion, tackling the boy to the ground. The other two boys stepped back surprised that Seiji, always quietly taking their a***e, had acted out for the first time. Seiji let his fist fly without even thinking. 'I do! I do!' Each punch came backed with his thoughts.

After the initial surprise finally wore off for the two they grabbed Seiji up off the kid and threw him backwards. Seiji stumbled and slid a little on the grass, but his rage ignored everything that happened. He went after the next boy in his sights without thought to the others. His hands grasped for the kid grappling for a hold when his friend came in behind and grabbed Seiji. Seiji strained at their hold savagely reaching for anything. 'Don't tell me I don't! Don't you!'

Seiji's back slammed into the dirt again taking several more hits from the boys. He wrapped his legs up around one of the boy's legs while his arms went after another. The kids did not know how to react to the wild manner of Seiji's struggle. They fought to peel him off them. In the confusion, Seiji managed to pin one down and lay in a few more hits before tossed off. He took his beatings and broke free again landing on top of the leader running his fist into him. Drops of tears built up in his eyes the longer he went. "I have a mother!" he screamed, his voice carrying through the entire schoolyard.

Enough time had passed in the fighting, that the reporting of it finally had results. Two teachers came running out shouting ahead of them breaking up the small group of on looking students. Bruised and a bit b****y, the three boys paused in their kicks making a calculated decision. They immediately let Seiji go and ran off to stay ahead of the teachers. Seiji was in no shape to flee, his strength finally leaving him with his rage disappearing. One teacher continued after the boys while the other stayed to take Seiji back into the school.

A nurse visit and a phone call later, Seiji faced his grandfather and principal of the school. He heard little of the words between them, but the results left him with a day suspension for fighting. Another yelling from his grandfather came when they got home, which Seiji also hardly heard. Inside, something had changed for Seiji. Since that day, he always felt his emotions close to the surface, but unable to truly release them. However, he felt them as if they mixed into his skin. A slightly numb and tingling feeling surged through him. He did not understand the sensation.

Nothing was ever the same again for Seiji. The school punished the boys as well, but none of it actually stopped the a***e. It delayed it a little, but they resumed quickly. Yet Seiji no longer allowed them to get away with their talk. He struck back at them each time. Elementary school became violent for Seiji, but it was not until junior high school that truly became dark for him.

When junior high arrived Seiji left behind the kids that tormented him, but he came out of it rougher and stronger. The few that followed him to his school stayed away from him. Rumors circulated, but most did not know of his family situation. His reputation as a violent student carried with him. It brought an unease and fear through most of the junior high, as no one wanted anything to do with him. The lack of fights left him with anger resting on the surface with no outlet. He started looking for trouble out of school from anyone. A strange look would be enough for him a trigger. Everyone was making fun of him in his mind and he needed to show them all.

One day after school, another day that would change Seiji came. A more superstitious person might have considered the important meeting fate or destiny. For Seiji, the day was the happiest he had ever been in years.

Seiji, age thirteen, stood looking proudly cliché with his school jacket unzipped and wild hair casting a shadow an alley. Opposite him looking uninterested, but no less ready for a brawl, was a short thin looking kid his age wearing a different uniform. Seiji knew immediately from looking at him walking on the sidewalk that something was different. He raised his fists cracking his knuckles displaying his strength. "The moment I saw your eyes I didn't like you!" roared Seiji with barely managed raged. "That look thinking you're better! Don't look down on me!"

Still uninterested, the young teen raised a tired eye to Seiji. "I haven't said anything. What's with the anger? We've never meet."

"It doesn't matter! Your eyes said everything I needed to hear!"

"I think your eyes need to be checked, because the only thing mine are right now are bored."

"See you do think you're better than me! I'm going to show you how wrong you are!"

The boy had a little trouble dealing with the illogical pattern of rational coming from Seiji. He ran his hand through his hair sighing to himself a little. A bored glance through his fingers at Seiji gave him his attention. "Who are you?"

"I'm Seiji Tsuji and you can't tell me I have no one!" Seiji threw out his hand with his index finger pointed out at the teen in declaration.

"Huh? I haven't said that." Another sigh came from him. "Well whatever, I guess you're looking for a fight and I've definitely been itching for something. I doubt your thick head will remember it, but Yuki Hayashi is the one that has beaten you!"

"Don't go making assumptions until the fight's finished!" Yuki and Seiji charged at each other fists ready. After the first few blows most of the details to the fight disappeared for Seiji. He just remembered the feeling. The feeling was unlike any of his other fights before. All his fists ever felt was a dull pain burning with heat that made his stomach churn long after which only cure was another fist. Against Yuki, his fists ran cold. All of the rage disappeared in those moments. It was pure.

At the end, Seiji laid on the ground looking up at Yuki with the sunlight cracking between the buildings. It darkened Yuki's face leaving only an offered hand in sight. "…I lost?" ask Seiji, smiling.