Digimon Fan Fiction ❯ The Inevitable Fate ❯ Chapter I : The Encounter ( Prologue )

The Inevitable Fate

Chapter 1

He placed his head restlessly on his right hand as his left foot tapped the floor in a slow steady rhythm. For the past half an hour, his mind had been wandering ceaselessly off class. He hated History more than anything and the soporific weather did not help much either. It had been particularly hard to concentrate when the continuous sound of pelting rain on the window kept ringing in both his ears, disturbing his peaceful reverie and that's not all. The outside world was dark and gloomy as if the sun would never cast Her golden rays upon the earth ever again. No sign of living life could be seen on the streets. No kids running about exuberantly in the playground. No birds humming their usual afternoon songs. No nothing.

His gaze fell upon the ever-cascading droplets and then he sighed out of boredom for the tenth time. Rain….yuck. Despite his loathing towards the foul weather and the dull subject, he kept telling himself, just bare for another a few more minutes, the class would soon be over; and so does the rain. But the more he brood, the slower the time seemed to fly. Trying to obliterate those unpleasant thought, he averted his eyes and focused upon the neatly scribbled blackboard as the sensei babbled on about the hardship during the medieval times; how ancient civilization manage to endure those unpredictable weathers and blah, blah, blah, so on. His demeanour in the class is always alert and active though he disliked History but this time, he just felt like lying down his head.

When he first sat for the History paper, he had half expected himself to fail but it turned out to be quite all right. He had actually passed with flying colours, not to mention receiving unbelievable remarks from his sensei, and best of all with absolutely no hard works! And he was supposed to represent his school for the annual History competition, which was going to be held the following week. Folly isn't it? Perhaps he was a genius after all. You now what they say after all, child prodigy. Ha! He could be considered as a child prodigy if he ever scores well in Physic. His expression changed at the very thought of it.

Just when he was drifting in and out of sleepiness, a strident voice bellowed right at him, jolting him back to reality.

"Akiyama-san! Repeat the last sentence I've just mention just now!!"

"Err….Akiyama-san?" he blurted out while running a hand through his spiky hair.

"No!! The sentence before it!!" the sensei howled once more, eyes glinting with fury.

He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Err….something concerning the Egyptian ancient civilization?"

The whole class now was watching them with amazement. It's not everyday you are likely to come across the infamous Ryo Akiyama, the most hot, good-looking lad and practically smart too getting berated by teachers. He was after all every teacher's pet. Well, Almost. A few girls exchanged glances and began to giggle uncontrollably but stopped immediately when received treacherous glare from their sensei. He was rather displeased with their lack of sobriety attitude.

Right, back to the troublesome kid.

"Haven't you been listening?!! What are you doing throughout the entire lesson?!!" He yelled once again with wrath.

"Err…" he answered uncertainly. "Sleeping?" He put a hand behind his head and grinned sheepishly.

The class roared with laughter. The sensei was getting rather impatient every second and gritted his teeth. He glared at the class. The laughter ceased abruptly and it was back to the tensed atmosphere. Guilty heads turned back to their works and all that was left to deal with, is this kid.

The sensei cleared his throat and began to speak in a more civilized tongue. "In case you don't know about the latest imposed rule Akiyama-san," there was a certain evil glint in his eyes as he spoke, "those who show lack of discipline in general classes are not allowed to participate in any sports held by the school."

"Which means you will not be playing for the school basketball team." He added as an afterthought; all the while enjoying the effect it brought to his face.

He gulped. He was the captain of his school basketball team and if he left out from the team, they could never get to the finals. Basketball was his passion ever since his first year in Shonandai High School. And it was his dream to lead his team into the interhigh finals and to conquer the most feared and the best team in the whole Japan, Tendouji High School. And as he visualized his coach screaming frantically at him, he began to feel the fear that had developed within him ever since the first year. His coach's temper. That is something you don't want to mess up with. All he can do in the meantime is to apologize to the sensei and behave like a good, innocent schoolboy.

"Gomen, sensei. I assure you I won't repeat the same mistake again." He bowed low, giving him a boyish look that could melt every girl's heart.

The sensei nodded with an evil look and accepted his apology. "If you ever step out the line again," he paused, "don't complain that I've never told you before the new school rule." And then he proceeded with his abandoned lecture, leaving the dazed-looking boy alone.

*~*~*~*~*

"Henry! Have you seen Jeri?"

"Jeri? Err..sorry, no. Perhaps she's with Takato."

"Ya know, they ARE always together." He pointed out the obvious.

Rika Nonako scowled. Of course she knew that. They have been best friends for the past five years!! She gathered her books and held them to her breast and was preparing to leave when Henry's voice reached out to her.

"Where are you going, Rika?" he asked.

"Somewhere where I can get peace and quiet." She replied coldly before departing off in search for a somnolent place.

*~*~*~*~*

"Boy, you sure make him angry just now, Ryo."

Ryo and a few friends of his stepped out from the classroom, chatting idly along the corridor.

"You sure have a lot of guts to sleep in that old git class. Come to think of it, you're the first one to do so!"

"I'm just tired and sleepy. That's all. Really." He assured them when they gave his those I-don't-believe-you look. "How could anyone stay awake when he had training up till ten last night and only got five to six hours of sleep? Plus, it was raining the whole morning! Come on, I'm not a robot you know."

"Very true." One of his friends, Keiji nodded in affirmation while the others followed but still the I-still-don't-trust-you look lingered on each of their faces.

"I know you don't believe me!!" he exclaimed once more when another two whispered among themselves. "Seriously, I don't stay up all night online chatting though I've only done once last -" Oops, there he had spilled the beans.

"What are you doing staying all night long, eh, Ryo-nichan?" Curiousity began to rose among the group members as one of them, draped an arm over his shoulder. He knew that when his friends start to address him as Ryo-niichan, they would not let him get away easily without demanding a truthful answer from him.

"I..I..you know that time when Yuriko sensei gave us that biology project?"

They nodded.

"I was burning midnight oil, browsing from one web page to another, searching for reliable information on the topic. That is why I was late to school the following day."

Hiroaki shot him a piercing stare but he accepted his explanation anyway. "Always so hardworking…no wander you have so many fans." He patted Ryo's back in a meaningful way and then he grinned ear to ear. "Talk about the devils…" his voice trailed off when a whole myriad of screaming girls began to engulf them.

"Akiyama-kun, could you sign an autograph for me?" one of his fans made a grab for his shirt.

"Would you go on a date with me?"

"Ryo!!! You're SOOOOOOOO CUTE!!" squealed another fan.

He tried to brush them off but they seemed to be more aggressive than usual. All their paths were blocked as the crowd began to expand.

"RYO!!" one of his friends shouted through the rabble. "Run away quick. We'll cover them for you."

Ryo gave them an I-owe-all-of-you look, "All of you will be in my mind, always. Sayonara my good friends," and cut through the ever-larging crowd. "Idiot!!" Keiji shouted. "We're not going to die yet!!! And remember you owe us one meal!!" A self-mocking smile beamed across Ryo's face. Despite his extremely tall height, he managed to break free from the herd of mad fans; all the while didn't dare to look back. Girls can be quite scary at times. He ran down the corridor and exited through a door right at the end of it. He halted after running a few distant away from the exit. His forehead was glistening with sweat and that entire running had made him more exhausted than ever. And there's another training this afternoon.

"I guess I could make up some story. Perhaps pretending that I have a bad headache and then come down with a serious flu following with severe stomach ache…"

"It won't work." Came another voice, interrupting his thoughts.

"Ah, it's you." He replied flatly for she was the last person he had wanted to see right then.

"What do you mean by, 'Ah it's you'?" she imitated his annoying voice.

He raised a brow. "I'll keep a mental note that I'll hug you the next time we met." He smiled.

"I don't mean that. It's just that -" she blushed a scarlet hue.

He furrowed his brow once again. "Just what?"

"Next time sound more enthusiastic. The way you greeted just now really bugged me. Really." She turned away immediately, afraid that he would notice her sudden change in voice.

"Okay, okay, Kumiko. You don't have to be -"

Silence.

"Ryo??" she waved her hand frantically in front of him.

"Hello??" questions after questions began tackling her addled mind.

Ryo on the other hand stood frozen on the spot as he caught a familiar glimpse of a certain auburn-haired girl, walking down the other corridor. For a brief moment, his heart took a great leap and his critical faculties seemed to have deserted him.

"It's her…" he breathed.

"Who?" She eyed him suspiciously.

"It's her…" he mumbled to himself again.

Puzzlement upsurge Kumiko's heart and as she gaze upon the spot Ryo's been staring for the past ten seconds but she saw nothing.

"I don't see anyone."

"Look, Kumiko. I don't mean to be impertinent but I've got an important errand to deal with. Can't chat any longer. Bye." And with that he sprung across the lawn to the next corridor, his eyes searching wildly for any sign of her distinct figure.

*~*~*~*~*

"Where the hell can I get peace?" she cursed silently as she sauntered down the lawn where a few couples were making out under some maple trees. Throwing them a dirty look, she proceeded to the next block and climbed up the stairs. She had been wandering for fifteen minutes already but could not spot any ideal place to study. And since she was only a first-year, she had got herself lost plenty of time. She always either end up at a dead-end or entering some third-years classes.

*~*~*~*~*

Ryo ran towards the spot he had last seen her but it looked like she had already left. His eyes lingered on the spot and then his surroundings before letting out a desperate sigh.

"Must be daydreaming." He noted as he put a hand on his forehead to feel his temperature. "All these running really make me sick. Better rest now or I won't make it for the training later."

A single idea popped out of the blue and was registered in his brain within second. There's a place where he can get tranquility without having to fear any disturbance from his fellow fans. Before letting his fatigue to get a better grip on him, he took the first turning on his right and ascended up the stairs before disappearing from view.

*~*~*~*~*

As she strode down the hallway, guys whistled as she passed, calling her by silly nicknames.

"Yo, sweetheart! Want to make out with me?"

"What's with the cold attitude, babe?"

Instantly, she felt a massive surge to confront that bastard and give him a piece of her mind but she had not entirely lost her mental faculties yet. Leaving bad impression in the first day of school is something she don't intended to. Besides, she had plenty of experiences, which were bad enough to last her a lifetime.

She ignored them and turned to her right almost immediately when she saw the sign bearing one single word, 'Library'.

Finally, some peace and privacy!!

She entered hastily and registered herself in the check-in counter before looking a place to settle down where she would likely to get solitude instead of unpleasant interruption and irritable encounters. She scanned the area thoroughly and crossed the room to the other end of it. As she walked, her eyes went wild, searching for an empty table but not a single one was vacant. When she finally got to the other end of the room *the library is extremely huge*, the rest of the tables were occupied except for one which only accommodate an inhabitant but he happened to be fast asleep. She was left with no choice but to settle down on that particular table and spent the rest of the break there, revising her studies and updating her unfinished homework.

Half an hour passed swiftly…

RRRIIIINNGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! < p class="MsoNormal">

The school bell rang significant the end of the break. Everyone in the library was hurrying back to his or her respectful classes and the same goes to Rika Nonaka too. She packed her things promptly in an amazing speed.

The infamous now you see it….now you don't technique.

She removed her glasses and placed them in a case fastidiously and was about to turn and leave when her inner instinct stopped her. The lad who had been sleeping with an opened book placed in front of him hadn't shown any sign of movement yet. Just another idiot she conceded but somewhat felt indifferent towards him as if she had known him somewhere but she couldn't quite remember. Perhaps the positive side of her had finally emerged, she shook the figure lightly first then violently. The figure rose from his sleep and stifled a yawn, the book that had been concealing him fell with a soft thud and as time droned on slowly, the goddess of mercy smiled conspiratorially upon these two fascinating beings, knowing that the wheel of fate was about to spin when both of them let out loud gasps, with looks of disbelievement.

"Rika?!!"

"Ryo?!!"

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Review Please. Critics and flames are welcome too. The next chapter will be out very soon depending on the inspirations. This chapter had been edited here and there.

Signing out,

Psycho_kyugurl