Beyblade Fan Fiction ❯ Afriad of the Light ❯ A Day at Home ( Chapter 11 )

Chapter Eleven

"Ozuma?"

The young boy wandered downstairs into the kitchen. He appeared to be either, dead to the world, tired or he was sleep walking. Tsugani watched her son as he strolled over to the kitchen window, reach up than sharply pull the dark red curtains over.

"Honey is there something wrong?" Tsugani tried again.

Ozuma plopped down on to the kitchen chair next to his mother and lay his head down on the table. He let out a little moan.

His mother rubbed his back gently, but he jumped up, startled from the sudden touch. Looking frantically around, he stopped and smiled seeing that it was just his mother. "Oh.. Sorry, Mom."

Like any mother she instantly thought he may be sick, so she placed the back of her hand to the boys forehead. "Nnooo, you don't feel warm. So what's up?"

Ozuma opened his mouth to speak, but just ended up sighing. He shook his head. "I just had a long night."

"No kidding, I heard you laughing up a storm until practically two o'clock last night. That must have been some dream."

"I wasn't...." He shook his head. He couldn't say that he wasn't the one laughing and that it was the couple, he'd look crazy and the last thing he wanted is to end up in some mental home. Although, if it would get him out of that house, he'd pretty much take anything right now. "I didn't sleep well, I was up all night closing the blinds and things."

"Closing them? Now I know something is wrong." She stood from the table to fix her son something to eat. "You usually go around opening them. Did you bump your head or something?"

"No."

"I found all this glass in the pantry yesterday," she went on like she hadn't heard him. "I hope you kids weren't playing too rough when I was gone."

The sound of an egg crack was made and moments later the smell of sausage filled the air.

Ozuma smiled. That's what he needed a nice hot breakfast to get him started. He was surprised he woke up at all! He had been awake all night, sneaking around the house making sure that no light would get in come the dawn, then he finally crashed onto his mothers bed. He stapled curtains to the wall, planned to push things in front of them later on, but with his mother at home it wasn't going to be an easy task. Not to mention, how would he explain what he was doing without sounding completely insane.

"I don't want to be sued by someone's mother because there son had to get a shot, from a cut he got in my house."

Ozuma laughed. "Don't worry, I was the only one who got cut."

"Well what were you doing in there?" She set the breakfast onto a plate then handed it over to her son. "Aand your orange juice."

"Zeo and me were playing cops and robbers."

"Oh." She sat down again. Cocking her head, she frowned. "Ozuma, what happened to your face?" Tsugani cupped her sons chin, turning his head left then right to check out the marks. Long red gashes covered her sons cheek, like finger nails from a cat had dug into them.

"Umm, I don't know. It happened last night when I was up." He touched his cheek.

"Aaaww," she stood. "I'm gonna get the first-aid kit."

When his mother left the kitchen, Ozuma began to eat. He wondered if the couple was around. If his mother would be alright going around by herself. Everything seemed quiet. The noise died down around four o'clock so he trusted that everything was safe.

Only thing I have left to do now is find Rei and Kai. He turned his head upon hearing his mothers return.

"Here you go." Fixing up the cuts with the medical cleaning items, she than bandaged them up with one big band-aid. Smiling at her work, she gave her son a reassuring hug, then cleaned up the kit. "So, what are we planning to do today?"

"Funny you should say, we," starts the boy. "I thought maybe you and me could hang out today, catch a movie or something?"

Tsugani laughed to herself. "Later, I have too many errands to run."

"I'll come with you!" He insisted.

"You could, but don't you wanna spend some time with your friends?"

"Tch. What friends..." Mutters the, usually, calm boy.

Tsugani frowned, then stood. "We'll be leaving at 10:15 when the stores open." Her heart ached that her son wasn't getting along well with his new friends, but she didn't mind spending the day with him at all.

Ozuma smiled at that. He loves shopping! "I'll get dressed now." Getting up from the table, he shoved in the last of his sausage then chugged as much orange juice as he could, before dashing upstairs. He didn't get two inches near his room before he stopped. Blinking, he walked slowly toward it. The curtains were still drawn, but there was still an eerie feel in the air.

The mixed boy swallowed hard as he approached. It's too dark up here for them to be around, so why do I feel scared. I'm safer this way, I am... I have to stop letting this fear of the dark get to me. His hand came out to the door, and slowly, he shoved it aside. The light is my enemy now I have to accept-.... His mental train came to a screeching halt. He didn't know whether or not to be afraid or ignore it. But there on his bed, resting comfortably on his pillow.... was the mask that he had made.

Blinking hard at first, not really believing it was there, he took another step into the bedroom. Just ignore it Ozuma, you're stronger than they are. You've figured out the coding and you're beating them. Self assured, he walks further into the room, directly to the closet. He wasn't about to be set up by going for the mask. Opening the door, he removes his clothes for the day. A blue t-shirt that had an Eagle feather on it, that read: We're becoming extinct, and a pair of blue jeans.

His sneakers were already downstairs, so he quickly dressed then made his way out of the room. Once in the hall way a door slammed at the other end. He ignored it. Now was not the time to be afraid. Although, part of him wondered what was back there. He had never gone any further than his bedroom in all the time they've lived in the house. And at the end of the hall, is a small corner that lead to a door. His Dad's come from there a few times, so he could only assume that it was where the attic was.

"Ozuma!" His mother called from downstairs.

"Coming!" A thought occurred to him, and he dashed back into his bedroom to the closet. Searching through his book bag, Ozuma located a notebook and pen. He had to leave Rei a note. Since he didn't know where he lived, but he was sure that he and Kai would go out to the lake again. He had seen them there tons of times, so it must be like a hang out spot to them.

"Rei, I need to talk to you, please stop by my house later. My mom and I are at the store running errands so I don't know when we'll be back but please come. It's important." Signing his name to it. He folds the letter in half, then he wrote Rei's name on the blank side.

Hurrying out of his room, he heard his mother talking to someone, but there was no other voice to be heard. Oh no! He panicked. Running downstairs, he almost banged into her as she walked back into the kitchen holding the portable phone.

The Balaji boy let out a sigh of relief and was handed the phone. "Hello?"

"Ozuma, it's Max." Said a bright cheerful voice.

"Max? Hi. What's up?"

"We felt bad about yesterday, so we were wondering if you'd wanna come sleep over at my place tonight?"

"A sleep over?" He wasn't sure about this. His mother would be alone, and unsuspecting. He had to stay and watch over her.

"My mom's gonna be out at a party, Tyson and Zeo's parents are gonna be there too." The blond went on. "Your mom can come and then she can meet our parents."

"Haha, is that why you're having the sleep over- no supervision?"

Max laughed. Ozuma could hear the blush in the kids voice. "Something like that, can you come? I already asked your mom if she'd go with our parents and she said it sounds fun. Your mom seems like a great person,"

"Thanks, she is." He glanced at the time. "Look, we have to go. I'll come to your sleep over Max, thanks for inviting me. Especially with the way Tyson feels about me."

Max sounded taken aback by that comment. "How does he feel about you?"

"Well, sorry if I'm wrong but it's almost like he hates me sometimes." The mixed boy shrugged, his feelings were too confused to talk about this right now. "It makes me uncomfortable."

"Ozuma trust me, Ty's just.... not like most people, that's all. He likes you, honest." Max sighed in exasperation. "He just needs some getting used to."

"I hope so...." They were both quiet a moment. "So when's it start?"

"Eight o'clock. We'll come by and pick you up."

"Okay."

"See you later."

"Bye." He hung up the phone.

His mother popped her head into the kitchen, she had his jacket in her hand. "Ready to go?" She asked, handing it off to him.

"Yeah." Slipping it on, he thought idly to himself. I can skip out on that party and stay here to make sure the house is safe for when my mom gets home. No lights means, I don't have to worry about her. That couple may say things, but they can't touch her if she can't see them.

The two head out of the house together but Ozuma dashes around to the back. "I'll be right back Mom, I have to do something first," he calls to ease her worried expression.

Tsugani climbed into the car, starting it. Her eyes were on her son until he was out of sight.

Ozuma sped through the woods which he knew a little bit better as the weeks went by. He had to find the perfect tree that was out in plain sight so that Rei wouldn't miss it. Digging a tack from his pocket that he took from the kitchen, he tacked the note onto a tree that sat across the lake. Backing up a bit to admire the work he smiled. You couldn't miss that cloud white paper if you tried. And "Rei" was written big enough for anyone with eyes to read it.

Satisfied, he ran back to his house, climbed into the car and went to the store with his mother. He could only hope that the strange two friends would visit the lake today and that when Rei came over, he and his mother would be back by then.   * * *

Their shopping trip lasted a while since they stopped at three different stores to compare prices then they went back to the cheapest one. Tsugani then insisted that she needs a new dress for the party tonight so they stopped by a clothing store to pick one up. She modeled five dresses for her son, two of them the same color but a different cut. He liked the green one best. Once that task was done, she bought Ozuma a new pair of pajamas because his old pair had blood on it from his injured cheek.

He chose a rich red color that had gray pants that matched the shirt from the red cuffs around the ankle, just as the shirt has gray cuffs around the wrist and collar.

The sun was setting once they had finally gotten home, which gave the two of them enough time to shower, brush themselves up then be on their way. On their way back, Ozuma glanced over by the lake, the note was missing from the tree. That could mean two things, Rei got it or... it fell. But he was sure it was tacked on securely. The family car rolled across the bridge at a slow pace, his mother hates flying across this thing like Himani does. And once they arrived at the house, the first thing they saw was the Chinese boy sitting on the porch stairs.

Rei stood when he saw the car, and he waved to Ozuma and the boys mom. Kai wasn't anywhere in sight though.

"I was beginning to think you were picking on me." He said to the mixed boy once he was in ear shot.

"No, we just took longer than I expected- excuse me,"

Rei stepped out of their way. Going down the stairs, he took out a grocery bag and followed them inside the house. He kept light conversation after introducing himself. Talking about his parents and that Tsugani would see them at the party, where he went to school and his grades. Casual, 'don't let your parents, or even your friends parents, know what you really do in a day' things.

Tsugani eventually left them alone to shower for the party and Ozuma lead Rei into his room.

"So what'd you wanna talk about?" Asked the Chinese boy, his eyes looking around the room with little interest.

"It's about this house, and.... the weird stuff that's been happening,"

"Thought so."

"Than you know?!"

Rei shook his head. "Not really, but...." He stopped speaking as though he were afraid of something. "We'll talk outside when your mom's gone. I don't want anyone to hear us."

Ozuma could only smile at that. The way Rei said it, it was as if he weren't talking about Ozuma's mother at all, but someone else- Them. "Okay. By the lake? Tonight, when my mother leaves."

Rei nods, a hand came down on the mixed boys shoulder. "Make sure you're alone."

Ozuma nodded watching the other boy leave the room. He was relieved but also scared. He was right, this place was either haunted or the couple lurked around, sneaking in and out during the day hoping to kill him and his family. But this is one family that they were not going to get, and once he knows how to beat them- he will.