Wish We Were Older
Title: Wish We Were Older [Chapter 1]
Author: carcrashheart_8
Pairings: RyoDa [more pairings to come]
Rating: PG-13 for now [strong language]
Summary: When his parents go overseas to work, Ueda is forced to go to an all-boys boarding school for his high school years. There, he meets Ryo Nishikido, a stubborn, strong-willed boy who ends up becoming his roommate. Ueda quickly falls for the other boy despite Ryo's rude words and bad attitude. Trouble starts up, however, and soon this seemingly one-sided love ends up becoming a love triangle and eventually a love square. Despite it all, Ueda must overcome these obstacles in order to maintain his spot at the elite high school.
Disclaimer: Title taken from "Wish We Were Older" by Metro Station
Ueda rolled his suitcase up next to him as he stood in front of the large doors of the building he would call home for the next 3 years. The enormous structure had about 100 windows on each side, most of which were the windows to the dorm rooms that the students lived in. Ueda took a deep breath before making his way up the stairs and into the building.
He walked down a long hallway for what seemed like an eternity before stopping at the lobby, which contained about 20 or 30 teenage boys yelling and screaming, attacking each other with whatever they could find.
“What kind of place is this?” Ueda whispered to himself. He nearly fell over when two boys came running up behind him, and crashed into his suitcase. He eventually lost his balance and fell over, his suitcase falling on top of him. As he struggled to get up, he was startled by another boy coming over to help him up.
“Whoa, are you okay?” the boy asked him.
Ueda looked at him with an awe-filled expression. Never before had he seen such a well-formed face on a boy his age. The boy looked at him strangely until Ueda finally managed to speak.
“Y-Yeah, I’m fine, thanks,” he mumbled as he picked himself up along with his suitcase.
The boy just nodded slowly before waving and running off to join his friends, the two boys who had knocked Ueda over in the first place. Ueda ran his fingers through his hair and just continued to stare at the handsome boy before losing complete sight of him.
“You must be Ueda Tatsuya-kun,” a female voice called out from behind him.
Ueda jumped and clutched at his chest like he was having a heart attack. He turned around and saw a well-dressed elderly woman smiling back at him.
“I am Nishikido Keiko. I’m the headmistress of St. Sebastian’s School for Boys,” she smiled endearingly.
Ueda quickly straightened up and then bowed towards his new headmistress.
“Nice to meet you, I’m Ueda Tatsuya. Thank you for letting me in your school,” he said in a polite manner.
The older woman smiled and patted Ueda on the shoulder.
“Your parents have helped this school out a lot with their donations. It was the least I could do for them. I’m sure you’ll make a fine addition to this school. Please do your best,” she bowed her head and turned towards the group of boys screaming near her and simply cleared her throat to get them to stop.
Ueda just gulped, only barely realizing the power that the headmistress had and the respect she commanded. The boys all stood up straight with their hands at their sides like soldiers ready for inspection. The headmistress looked over them sternly at first but the she smiled and clapped her hands together.
“Everyone, I want you all the have a lot of fun today. Classes start on Monday and I believe you should all enjoy the remaining days of your summer vacation. I have to meet with the new teachers, so please be on your best behavior but also, have fun. Goodbye.”
“Yes, headmistress,” the boys all shouted in unison.
The headmistress walked out the front door and everyone sighed with relief. They all went back to playing around and Ueda couldn’t help but notice the difference that occurred in that short amount of time. He shook his head and dragged his suitcase behind him and made his way to his new dorm room. When he made it to the room, he noticed that the door was open. There were two names on the door but he didn’t bother reading them and instead just walked over to the nearest bed and put his suitcase on it and sat down, sighing heavily.
“This building is so high. I must’ve gone up 10 stories,” he sighed to himself.
“Actually, it’s only about 5. It just seems like more because whoever constructed this building didn’t know how to make stairwells,” a voice said to him.
Ueda jumped up from his bed and looked around. He didn’t see anyone and was sure that a ghost had been talking to him. He shivered comically and then jumped again when a finger tapped his shoulder. He turned around and went into a karate-type pose but was shocked to see who was standing in front of him.
“Uh-are you okay?” the boy asked. It had been the same boy who helped Ueda up not too much earlier. Ueda’s heart started to pound uncontrollably as he stared at the gorgeous face of the other boy.
“You’re-You’re-” he stuttered.
“Aren’t you the kid who fell in the hallway? You’re quite odd, you know that?” the other boy scoffed.
Ueda didn’t say anything and just stared at the boy in front of him. He finally realized what he was doing and immediately started to blush and look away.
He then looked back and said in a dramatic voice, “My name is Ueda Tatsuya. I’m a first year. My parents are working overseas and I will start classes here on Monday. Nice to meet you.”
He bowed the upper-half of his body and expected for the other boy to introduce himself but instead all he got was a laugh.
“Haha, you really are weird,” the boy chuckled.
Ueda felt his cheeks go hot and he stood up straight. He wanted to defend himself but he was interrupted by two boys at the doorway.
“Oi, Ryo. You want to go get something to eat? I haven’t eaten since breakfast.”
Ueda gawked at the two boys and realized that they were the ones who had been running up and down the hallway, knocking him over in the first place.
“Eh? Ryo?”
The boy that Ueda had just introduced himself to answered, “My name’s Ryo. These are my friends Yamapi and Toma. We’re first years too and we’ve known each other since elementary school.”
“Ah, I see. Childhood friends!” Ueda smiled widely.
Ryo stifled a laugh, “Yeah, I guess so. Um-what was your name again?”
“Ueda Tatsuya! First year! My parent’s are working overseas and I just started here at St. Sebastian’s. Nice to meet you,” Ueda bowed again.
Ryo’s friends started laugh uncontrollably.
“HAHA! This kid is so freaking formal, he sounds like an old man!” the boy named Toma laughed.
“I can’t believe you got stuck with him for a roommate, Ryo,” the boy known as Yamapi remarked.
“Roommate?” Ueda mumbled.
Ryo nodded his head, “Yeah-I guess you and I are roommates, Ueda-kun. Kind of unfortunate, don’t you think?”
Ueda didn’t understand what Ryo meant by that but was too embarrassed to ask. He just faintly nodded his head and turned to unpack his suitcase.
“Come on, Ryo, my stomach’s been rumbling for hours. Let’s go already,” Yamapi whined.
Ryo laughed again and looked at Ueda, who returned the glance but then quickly looked away. Ryo had a bit of a frown but it disappeared. He just stuck his hands in his pockets and followed Toma and Yamapi out into the hallway, leaving Ueda alone in the room.
Ueda sighed and sat down on the bed; he put his head in his hands and muttered to himself. He felt like a complete idiot thanks to Ryo and his friends. Once more, he couldn’t believe how much he had been enamored with Ryo’s looks. He felt like hiding somewhere, never to show his face to his classmates again.
The thought dissipated when a knock came on his door. He turned to look and saw a pair of goofy-looking boys smiling at him without saying a word.
“Yes?” Ueda smiled awkwardly.
“Are you Ueda Tatsuya-kun?” one of the boys asked.
Ueda nodded, “Y-Yeah?”
The two boys barged in and stood in front of Ueda, smiling even wider.
“I’m Tanaka Koki and this is Nakamaru Yuichi. We’re your next door neighbors!”
The boy named Nakamaru smiled, “Nice to meet you, Ueda-kun!”
Ueda just stared at the pair. He wasn’t used to such friendliness from anyone, especially not boys his own age.
He eventually answered to them, “N-Nice to meet you.”
“Hey, Ueda-kun. Do you want to get lunch right now with us? We were just heading to the cafeteria,” Koki suggested.
“Yeah, they’re having beef and noodles! I heard the food here is fantastic!” Maru made a gesture that reflected his excitement.
Koki nodded in agreement before making the same gesture.
Ueda sneered at the pair, unable to believe that there were two bigger idiots than the boys he was talking to now.
“Um-sure, I guess. I am kind of hungry,” Ueda mumbled.
“Great!” Koki cried, grabbing one of Ueda’s arms and pulling him up, while Maru grabbed the other arm and did the same. The pair of them led Ueda all the way down the hall and onto the cafeteria, which was surprisingly connected to the dormitory. It was relatively convenient, at least in Ueda’s mind.
The sight of 3 dozen boys standing in about 6 or 7 different lines at different stations for different foods made Ueda’s eyes grow big. More and more of the quirks of his new school were beginning to make Ueda regret ever letting his parents talk him into enrolling. But before he could decide to leave and go off somewhere else to find food, Maru and Koki dragged him to one of the 6 or 7 lines and the three of them waited until they managed to get food of their own.
It seemed like only seconds before all the boys waiting in line began to get restless and proceeded to push and shove each other out of the way. Ueda dodged several flying fists and kicks before getting a bowl of food and putting it on his tray. He maneuvered his way through the crowd, catching sight of both Koki and Maru who miraculously already had their food and were waiting for him at the entrance to the main dining hall. Ueda figured he could make it over to them without bumping into anyone if he came up with a decent enough strategy.
He started walking, still dodging the boys around him but he only looked away for a split second before bumping into someone and sending his food flying through the air. Ueda had knocked whoever was in front of him down to the ground and he ended up falling on top of the other person. Ueda groaned in pain and started to get up but not before he apologized over and over.
“I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to bump into you. Please forgive me. I-”
Ueda got up off the ground, as did the other boy, and just stared at the angry person in front of him. The boy he had knocked down had happened to be a second year student who had a reputation for bullying others. Not only that, but he was much taller than Ueda and he had menacing look upon his face.
“You-You come in here like a complete klutz and spill all your food on me! Who do you think you are?” the taller boy grumbled.
Ueda started whimpering, unable to apologize any further. The taller boy then started walking towards Ueda, putting his hands out like a villain from a horror movie, ready to attack his victim. But before he could do anything, someone put their hand on his eager arms and stopped him.
“I don’t think you want to be doing that,” the boy stated.
Ueda gasped to see that it was none other than Ryo who had stopped the older boy from killing Ueda in front of all their classmates.
“What? Who are you?” the older boy growled.
“I’m this idiot’s roommate. Who are you?” Ryo answered.
“My name is Akanishi Jin and I’m a second year who could make your years at this school a living hell!”
Ueda thought for a moment. That name, Akanishi, had seemed so familiar to him. He wasn’t exactly sure why but he knew for sure that it was a name he had heard before.
“Well, Akanishi Jin, my name is Nishikido Ryo and I could be the one to make YOUR years here a living hell.”
“Nishikido?” Jin whispered.
“NISHIKIDO?!” Ueda gasped.
As it turned out, Ryo was the grandson of the headmistress and he came from a long line of males who all attended St. Sebastian’s. He was just one of about 5 generations of men in his family to go to that school and he would certainly not be the last.
Ueda’s heart started pounding again. The thought of the boy he was sharing his room with also being related to the headmistress made his brain’s circuits go haywire.
“YOU’RE RELATED TO THE HEADMISTRESS!” Ueda gasped once again.
Ryo just looked at him and laughed tauntingly. He let go of Jin’s arm and smirked, “Now-are we done here or am I going to have to teach you a lesson?”
Jin shook his head and said nothing. Out of a nowhere, a tall boy with an unnatural head of blond hair came barreling over to Jin’s side, gasping and panting and looking like he had been running for his life.
“Jin! Jin! Are you okay? What’s going on?” the boy asked.
“Nothing, Junno. Everything’s perfectly fine,” Jin smiled at Ryo, in a seemingly fake way.
Ryo just smiled and rolled his eyes, watching as Jin and his friend, Junno walked away. Ryo laughed to himself and crossed his arms like he had just done the work of a hero. Everyone who was looking at him quickly turned away when their eyes met with Ryo; they all went back to waiting in line for their food, this time without any trouble.
Ueda stared at Ryo open-mouthed, still unable to believe that he was roommates with someone so seemingly powerful.
“You should stop getting yourself into trouble,” Ryo scolded. He walked away and joined Yamapi and Toma for lunch, once again leaving Ueda alone. Despite the coldness that the other boy had just shown him, Ueda felt some warmth in his heart, knowing he had been saved by Ryo. He got a new bowl and tray and headed over to join Koki and Maru for a long-awaited lunch.
After lunch, Ueda went back to his room. He groaned as he walked down the hallway, rubbing his neck and sighing, feeling exhausted from the incident involving Jin and Ryo. He was sure he was about to get the life beat out of him if it had not been for Ryo. Thinking of Ryo made him smile widely and he whistled on his way to his room. He stopped when he saw Ryo and the headmistress in the room, Ryo sitting in his desk chair and his grandmother standing over him.
“Do you realize what trouble you have caused?”
Ueda held his breath, hoping he wouldn’t be found out by either person.
“I’m sorry, I just-”
“You just what, Ryo? You are supposed to maintain your composure in such situations. Your grandfather went through a lot to get you into this school and if I had not become the headmistress, who knows where you would end up? Ever since your parents died, you have acted like a misguided troublemaker. I will not stand for it much longer. Remember that, as you spend your days at this school; I do not want have to remind you ever time you start trouble. Do you understand me?”
Ryo didn’t say anything and just nodded his head. The headmistress uncrossed her arms and sighed, putting her hand on her grandson’s shoulder.
“I just want what’s best for you, Ryo. I know it may not seem like it but I’m doing these things for your own good. I want you to graduate you from St. Sebastian like your father and your grandfather and all your other male relatives. Isn’t that what you want?”
Ryo still didn’t say a word and again, just nodded his head. He had his hands folded in his lap and was holding his head down, too afraid to look up.
The headmistress smiled faintly and whispered something to Ryo, which Ueda found hard to hear. When he saw the headmistress turn around, he gasped and ran down the hallway, hiding behind a corner. He looked around and saw that she had gone the opposite way. Only then did he make his way down the hallway and into the room he shared with Ryo, the headmistress’s grandson.
“Hello, Ryo-kun. How are you-”
“Shut up! You’re so noisy!” Ryo growled, getting out of his seat and stumbling over to his bed. He threw a pillow over his head and groaned.
Ueda gasped a bit, feeling a little shocked that Ryo had acted so rudely to him. Nevertheless, Ueda smiled to himself and sat down at his desk and took a sheet of paper. He began busily scribbling on it, making Ryo curious as to know what he’s doing.
“What are you writing so loudly?” Ryo pouted, taking the pillow off his face and leaning up on his bedpost.
Ueda turned and smiled at him, causing the other to blush a tad.
“I’m writing a letter to my parents. I want them to know that I’m settled in and that I really like St. Sebastian’s already.”
“Idiot. How can you like this school when you almost got beaten up today?” Ryo scoffed, lying back down and throwing his pillow back on his face.
“It’s because my roommate is you,” Ueda whispered softly.
“Eh?”
“Nothing,” Ueda laughed nervously.
Ryo growled, “Idiot.”
Nighttime came and the two were lying in their beds, unable to fall asleep. Ueda decided to break the silence, unsure of whether his roommate was still awake or not.
“Ryo-kun?”
There was no response.
“Ryo-kun?”
There was still no response from Ryo.
Ueda sighed heavily.
“Will you shut up already and go to sleep?! Damn, you’re the most annoying person I’ve ever met!”
Ueda scoffed, getting up from his bed and trying to look at Ryo despite the darkness, “Well, you’re not exactly Prince Charming! You’ve been rude to me ever since I got here! With a grandmother like yours, I would’ve never guessed you were such a jerk!”
Ryo jumped up out of his bed and stomped over to Ueda who was sitting on the edge of his bed.
“What did you just say?” Ryo asked with a menacing gleam in his eyes.
Ueda could see the other boy’s profile in the moonlight and it made his heart beat faster. He licked his lips but didn’t say anything.
“Hey, answer me, you-you fishlips!”
All of a sudden, Ueda’s mesmerized sight disappeared and he just said, with a slight sneer, “Fishlips? What are you, 5? I’m going to bed. I have class in the morning. I suggest you do the same.”
Ueda crawled back into bed and put the covers over him, leaving Ryo standing over him, a bit shocked. Ryo stood there for a couple of seconds before finally getting the hint and going back to his own bed and attempting once again to fall asleep.
He couldn’t see it but Ueda was smiling to himself, a tad odd since he had just been insulted by the other boy. In Ueda’s mind, however, it was as if he had just been given an endearing nickname from his significant other. He soon fell asleep with that same smile on his face and his mind full of thoughts of Ryo.
The next morning, both boys had a bit of trouble getting up. Luckily for both of them, their respective friends came to wake them each up.
“RYO! GET YOUR ASS OUT OF BED OR WE’LL ALL BE LATE FOR HOMEROOM!” Yamapi announced through a rolled-up newspaper he had picked up off of Ryo’s desk. Toma laughed as he poked Ryo in an attempt to startle the other awake.
Ueda had his own wake-up call from Koki and Maru who felt it was their job to wake up their new friend.
“Ueda-kun! Rise and shine! We don’t want to be late for a new school year!” the pair called out as if they had rehearsed it beforehand.
Both Ueda and Ryo groaned, wiping their eyes and batting away the boys waking them up.
“What time is it?” Ryo yawned. Ueda turned his head and looked at the clock.
“Oh my gosh, it’s 7:45!”
“7:45?! Homeroom starts at 8:00, doesn’t it?!” Ryo cried out, jumping out of bed and fixing to find his uniform.
Ueda did the same as he grabbed his pajama pants and pulled them down and slipped on his uniform pants. He stopped before buttoning them up and looked at the invading persons in his room.
“Do you mind?” he said with a bit of a glare.
Yamapi and the others nodded and went outside in order for the two boys to get dressed. Ueda buttoned up his pants and turned to look for his belt when he saw Ryo, shirtless, standing only a few feet away. He was searching for his shirt and having a hard time looking for his school-issued uniform tie as well. Ueda’s cheeks went red and he could feel his chest tighten a bit.
Ryo ended up noticing the other boy staring and scowled, “Take a picture, it’ll last longer!”
Ueda shook himself out of his stupor and scowled as well, “Do you know anything other than tired clichés?”
Ryo just grunted and kept searching for his clothes as Ueda finished putting his on.
Minutes later, both were dressed and groomed and ready to start the day. They hadn’t had a chance to eat breakfast since they were running late and immediately went to homeroom along with their friends.
As luck would have it, the pair ended up in the same homeroom, accompanied only by Maru and Toma.
“Whatever you do, don’t let them sit anywhere near us,” Ueda could hear Ryo whisper to Toma. Toma cackled and nodded as he looked at Ueda. Maru just smiled blankly and pointed to a pair of seats on the other side of the room. Ueda smiled faintly back at the other boy but looked long enough to give Ryo a death stare that should have instilled some fear in the other boy. Instead, it only made Ryo taunt his roommate even more. He mouthed the word “what?” and pretended like he was from a gangster movie, making a threatening gesture towards the other boy.
Ueda just shook his head and sat down in the seat behind Maru, folded his hands and waited for the teacher to arrive.
Finally, their new homeroom teacher, a 20-something year old man came in, with his hair mussed and his glasses hanging off his face.
“Ah, I’m sorry, I’m late, everyone. I overslept and-ah, my name is Domoto Koichi and I will be your homeroom teacher for the year. And one thing I want to make clear, the seats you’re sitting in now will NOT be your permanent seats!”
Everyone groaned in response, which prompted the teacher to put his, hands up to get them to stop.
“I know, I know but it’s easier if I have a seating chart done in advance and-” he rummaged through his bag for a laminated piece of paper that had about 30 names on it, written in the order of the classroom layout, “I happen to have a seating chart right here. I made it last night.”
No one smiled even when the teacher smiled. The man just shook his head and continued, “Okay, first is-”
Ueda thought to himself as the teacher read off the names that, if anything, he could not be placed next to Ryo. It was bad enough that the two were in the same homeroom, not to mention living with each other. He did not want to be sitting anywhere near the sharp-tongued boy, not if it killed him.
“Um-Ueda-kun?”
“Yes!” Ueda stood up in response.
The teacher smiled, “Please take your things and move to this desk.”
“Yes!” Ueda grabbed his bag and waved to Maru before sitting down in the desk that the teacher had pointed to.
“Okay-and sitting behind Ueda-kun, will be-Ikuta-kun.”
Ueda sighed with relief but still felt a bit annoyed that Ryo’s friend would be sitting behind him. Toma rolled his eyes and made a sound that reflected his own annoyance at the teacher’s decision. He reluctantly grabbed his bag and tossed it next to the desk before sitting down. Ueda didn’t turn around even when Toma began whispering to him.
“We’ll have a ton of fun this year-I’m sure of it,” the taller man chuckled.
Ueda shuddered at the feel of Toma’s breath on his neck. He didn’t respond and instead kept his eyes forward.
The teacher had made his way down the next row and to the desk directly next to Ueda’s.
“Sitting here will be-let me see-uh-”
“Please don’t be Ryo. Please don’t be Ryo,” Ueda closed his eyes and said a silent prayer.
“Nishikido-kun?”
“Son-of-a-” Ueda grumbled, jerking his eyes open.
Ryo nodded his head and sauntered over to the desk. He stood over it for a few seconds, staring at Ueda, waiting for some sort of response. When Ueda failed to meet his expectations, Ryo sat down with a slight smirk on his face.
“Someone’s messing with me-I’m sure of it,” he said in a not-so-subtle tone of voice.
Ueda growled in response, crossing his arms and looking away from Ryo. The other boy just laughed and slouched down in his desk.
“Okay, behind Nishikido-kun will be-Nakamaru-kun. Is there a Nakamaru-kun here?”
“YES!” Maru shouted accidentally.
“Hello,” the teacher smiled, “Please-sit here.”
“OKAY!” Maru nodded, bowing deeply before scurrying over to his new desk and sitting down. Ueda turned and smiled at his friend who smiled happily in return.
“Oh man-we got both of them, sucks, huh, Toma?” Ryo taunted.
Ueda turned and glared at the other boy, “I guess we have bad luck, don’t we, Nakamaru-kun?”
Maru and Toma gave each other slight looks and shakily responded. They decided not to get themselves involved with the war waged between the two roommates.
Ryo and Ueda just glared at each other as the teacher finished seating the rest of the students.
END CHAPTER 1
A/N: My first Ryoda in such a long time ^^ If you're currently also reading my Arashi fanfic, please don't worry, I'll be updating both as quickly as I can :] Anyways, I'm really happy with this series because it allows me to do something within the location of an all-boys boarding school, which you know will lead to some fun XD I'll put my best effort into this series so please enjoy and feel free to comment ♥
Author: carcrashheart_8
Pairings: RyoDa [more pairings to come]
Rating: PG-13 for now [strong language]
Summary: When his parents go overseas to work, Ueda is forced to go to an all-boys boarding school for his high school years. There, he meets Ryo Nishikido, a stubborn, strong-willed boy who ends up becoming his roommate. Ueda quickly falls for the other boy despite Ryo's rude words and bad attitude. Trouble starts up, however, and soon this seemingly one-sided love ends up becoming a love triangle and eventually a love square. Despite it all, Ueda must overcome these obstacles in order to maintain his spot at the elite high school.
Disclaimer: Title taken from "Wish We Were Older" by Metro Station
Ueda rolled his suitcase up next to him as he stood in front of the large doors of the building he would call home for the next 3 years. The enormous structure had about 100 windows on each side, most of which were the windows to the dorm rooms that the students lived in. Ueda took a deep breath before making his way up the stairs and into the building.
He walked down a long hallway for what seemed like an eternity before stopping at the lobby, which contained about 20 or 30 teenage boys yelling and screaming, attacking each other with whatever they could find.
“What kind of place is this?” Ueda whispered to himself. He nearly fell over when two boys came running up behind him, and crashed into his suitcase. He eventually lost his balance and fell over, his suitcase falling on top of him. As he struggled to get up, he was startled by another boy coming over to help him up.
“Whoa, are you okay?” the boy asked him.
Ueda looked at him with an awe-filled expression. Never before had he seen such a well-formed face on a boy his age. The boy looked at him strangely until Ueda finally managed to speak.
“Y-Yeah, I’m fine, thanks,” he mumbled as he picked himself up along with his suitcase.
The boy just nodded slowly before waving and running off to join his friends, the two boys who had knocked Ueda over in the first place. Ueda ran his fingers through his hair and just continued to stare at the handsome boy before losing complete sight of him.
“You must be Ueda Tatsuya-kun,” a female voice called out from behind him.
Ueda jumped and clutched at his chest like he was having a heart attack. He turned around and saw a well-dressed elderly woman smiling back at him.
“I am Nishikido Keiko. I’m the headmistress of St. Sebastian’s School for Boys,” she smiled endearingly.
Ueda quickly straightened up and then bowed towards his new headmistress.
“Nice to meet you, I’m Ueda Tatsuya. Thank you for letting me in your school,” he said in a polite manner.
The older woman smiled and patted Ueda on the shoulder.
“Your parents have helped this school out a lot with their donations. It was the least I could do for them. I’m sure you’ll make a fine addition to this school. Please do your best,” she bowed her head and turned towards the group of boys screaming near her and simply cleared her throat to get them to stop.
Ueda just gulped, only barely realizing the power that the headmistress had and the respect she commanded. The boys all stood up straight with their hands at their sides like soldiers ready for inspection. The headmistress looked over them sternly at first but the she smiled and clapped her hands together.
“Everyone, I want you all the have a lot of fun today. Classes start on Monday and I believe you should all enjoy the remaining days of your summer vacation. I have to meet with the new teachers, so please be on your best behavior but also, have fun. Goodbye.”
“Yes, headmistress,” the boys all shouted in unison.
The headmistress walked out the front door and everyone sighed with relief. They all went back to playing around and Ueda couldn’t help but notice the difference that occurred in that short amount of time. He shook his head and dragged his suitcase behind him and made his way to his new dorm room. When he made it to the room, he noticed that the door was open. There were two names on the door but he didn’t bother reading them and instead just walked over to the nearest bed and put his suitcase on it and sat down, sighing heavily.
“This building is so high. I must’ve gone up 10 stories,” he sighed to himself.
“Actually, it’s only about 5. It just seems like more because whoever constructed this building didn’t know how to make stairwells,” a voice said to him.
Ueda jumped up from his bed and looked around. He didn’t see anyone and was sure that a ghost had been talking to him. He shivered comically and then jumped again when a finger tapped his shoulder. He turned around and went into a karate-type pose but was shocked to see who was standing in front of him.
“Uh-are you okay?” the boy asked. It had been the same boy who helped Ueda up not too much earlier. Ueda’s heart started to pound uncontrollably as he stared at the gorgeous face of the other boy.
“You’re-You’re-” he stuttered.
“Aren’t you the kid who fell in the hallway? You’re quite odd, you know that?” the other boy scoffed.
Ueda didn’t say anything and just stared at the boy in front of him. He finally realized what he was doing and immediately started to blush and look away.
He then looked back and said in a dramatic voice, “My name is Ueda Tatsuya. I’m a first year. My parents are working overseas and I will start classes here on Monday. Nice to meet you.”
He bowed the upper-half of his body and expected for the other boy to introduce himself but instead all he got was a laugh.
“Haha, you really are weird,” the boy chuckled.
Ueda felt his cheeks go hot and he stood up straight. He wanted to defend himself but he was interrupted by two boys at the doorway.
“Oi, Ryo. You want to go get something to eat? I haven’t eaten since breakfast.”
Ueda gawked at the two boys and realized that they were the ones who had been running up and down the hallway, knocking him over in the first place.
“Eh? Ryo?”
The boy that Ueda had just introduced himself to answered, “My name’s Ryo. These are my friends Yamapi and Toma. We’re first years too and we’ve known each other since elementary school.”
“Ah, I see. Childhood friends!” Ueda smiled widely.
Ryo stifled a laugh, “Yeah, I guess so. Um-what was your name again?”
“Ueda Tatsuya! First year! My parent’s are working overseas and I just started here at St. Sebastian’s. Nice to meet you,” Ueda bowed again.
Ryo’s friends started laugh uncontrollably.
“HAHA! This kid is so freaking formal, he sounds like an old man!” the boy named Toma laughed.
“I can’t believe you got stuck with him for a roommate, Ryo,” the boy known as Yamapi remarked.
“Roommate?” Ueda mumbled.
Ryo nodded his head, “Yeah-I guess you and I are roommates, Ueda-kun. Kind of unfortunate, don’t you think?”
Ueda didn’t understand what Ryo meant by that but was too embarrassed to ask. He just faintly nodded his head and turned to unpack his suitcase.
“Come on, Ryo, my stomach’s been rumbling for hours. Let’s go already,” Yamapi whined.
Ryo laughed again and looked at Ueda, who returned the glance but then quickly looked away. Ryo had a bit of a frown but it disappeared. He just stuck his hands in his pockets and followed Toma and Yamapi out into the hallway, leaving Ueda alone in the room.
Ueda sighed and sat down on the bed; he put his head in his hands and muttered to himself. He felt like a complete idiot thanks to Ryo and his friends. Once more, he couldn’t believe how much he had been enamored with Ryo’s looks. He felt like hiding somewhere, never to show his face to his classmates again.
The thought dissipated when a knock came on his door. He turned to look and saw a pair of goofy-looking boys smiling at him without saying a word.
“Yes?” Ueda smiled awkwardly.
“Are you Ueda Tatsuya-kun?” one of the boys asked.
Ueda nodded, “Y-Yeah?”
The two boys barged in and stood in front of Ueda, smiling even wider.
“I’m Tanaka Koki and this is Nakamaru Yuichi. We’re your next door neighbors!”
The boy named Nakamaru smiled, “Nice to meet you, Ueda-kun!”
Ueda just stared at the pair. He wasn’t used to such friendliness from anyone, especially not boys his own age.
He eventually answered to them, “N-Nice to meet you.”
“Hey, Ueda-kun. Do you want to get lunch right now with us? We were just heading to the cafeteria,” Koki suggested.
“Yeah, they’re having beef and noodles! I heard the food here is fantastic!” Maru made a gesture that reflected his excitement.
Koki nodded in agreement before making the same gesture.
Ueda sneered at the pair, unable to believe that there were two bigger idiots than the boys he was talking to now.
“Um-sure, I guess. I am kind of hungry,” Ueda mumbled.
“Great!” Koki cried, grabbing one of Ueda’s arms and pulling him up, while Maru grabbed the other arm and did the same. The pair of them led Ueda all the way down the hall and onto the cafeteria, which was surprisingly connected to the dormitory. It was relatively convenient, at least in Ueda’s mind.
The sight of 3 dozen boys standing in about 6 or 7 different lines at different stations for different foods made Ueda’s eyes grow big. More and more of the quirks of his new school were beginning to make Ueda regret ever letting his parents talk him into enrolling. But before he could decide to leave and go off somewhere else to find food, Maru and Koki dragged him to one of the 6 or 7 lines and the three of them waited until they managed to get food of their own.
It seemed like only seconds before all the boys waiting in line began to get restless and proceeded to push and shove each other out of the way. Ueda dodged several flying fists and kicks before getting a bowl of food and putting it on his tray. He maneuvered his way through the crowd, catching sight of both Koki and Maru who miraculously already had their food and were waiting for him at the entrance to the main dining hall. Ueda figured he could make it over to them without bumping into anyone if he came up with a decent enough strategy.
He started walking, still dodging the boys around him but he only looked away for a split second before bumping into someone and sending his food flying through the air. Ueda had knocked whoever was in front of him down to the ground and he ended up falling on top of the other person. Ueda groaned in pain and started to get up but not before he apologized over and over.
“I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to bump into you. Please forgive me. I-”
Ueda got up off the ground, as did the other boy, and just stared at the angry person in front of him. The boy he had knocked down had happened to be a second year student who had a reputation for bullying others. Not only that, but he was much taller than Ueda and he had menacing look upon his face.
“You-You come in here like a complete klutz and spill all your food on me! Who do you think you are?” the taller boy grumbled.
Ueda started whimpering, unable to apologize any further. The taller boy then started walking towards Ueda, putting his hands out like a villain from a horror movie, ready to attack his victim. But before he could do anything, someone put their hand on his eager arms and stopped him.
“I don’t think you want to be doing that,” the boy stated.
Ueda gasped to see that it was none other than Ryo who had stopped the older boy from killing Ueda in front of all their classmates.
“What? Who are you?” the older boy growled.
“I’m this idiot’s roommate. Who are you?” Ryo answered.
“My name is Akanishi Jin and I’m a second year who could make your years at this school a living hell!”
Ueda thought for a moment. That name, Akanishi, had seemed so familiar to him. He wasn’t exactly sure why but he knew for sure that it was a name he had heard before.
“Well, Akanishi Jin, my name is Nishikido Ryo and I could be the one to make YOUR years here a living hell.”
“Nishikido?” Jin whispered.
“NISHIKIDO?!” Ueda gasped.
As it turned out, Ryo was the grandson of the headmistress and he came from a long line of males who all attended St. Sebastian’s. He was just one of about 5 generations of men in his family to go to that school and he would certainly not be the last.
Ueda’s heart started pounding again. The thought of the boy he was sharing his room with also being related to the headmistress made his brain’s circuits go haywire.
“YOU’RE RELATED TO THE HEADMISTRESS!” Ueda gasped once again.
Ryo just looked at him and laughed tauntingly. He let go of Jin’s arm and smirked, “Now-are we done here or am I going to have to teach you a lesson?”
Jin shook his head and said nothing. Out of a nowhere, a tall boy with an unnatural head of blond hair came barreling over to Jin’s side, gasping and panting and looking like he had been running for his life.
“Jin! Jin! Are you okay? What’s going on?” the boy asked.
“Nothing, Junno. Everything’s perfectly fine,” Jin smiled at Ryo, in a seemingly fake way.
Ryo just smiled and rolled his eyes, watching as Jin and his friend, Junno walked away. Ryo laughed to himself and crossed his arms like he had just done the work of a hero. Everyone who was looking at him quickly turned away when their eyes met with Ryo; they all went back to waiting in line for their food, this time without any trouble.
Ueda stared at Ryo open-mouthed, still unable to believe that he was roommates with someone so seemingly powerful.
“You should stop getting yourself into trouble,” Ryo scolded. He walked away and joined Yamapi and Toma for lunch, once again leaving Ueda alone. Despite the coldness that the other boy had just shown him, Ueda felt some warmth in his heart, knowing he had been saved by Ryo. He got a new bowl and tray and headed over to join Koki and Maru for a long-awaited lunch.
After lunch, Ueda went back to his room. He groaned as he walked down the hallway, rubbing his neck and sighing, feeling exhausted from the incident involving Jin and Ryo. He was sure he was about to get the life beat out of him if it had not been for Ryo. Thinking of Ryo made him smile widely and he whistled on his way to his room. He stopped when he saw Ryo and the headmistress in the room, Ryo sitting in his desk chair and his grandmother standing over him.
“Do you realize what trouble you have caused?”
Ueda held his breath, hoping he wouldn’t be found out by either person.
“I’m sorry, I just-”
“You just what, Ryo? You are supposed to maintain your composure in such situations. Your grandfather went through a lot to get you into this school and if I had not become the headmistress, who knows where you would end up? Ever since your parents died, you have acted like a misguided troublemaker. I will not stand for it much longer. Remember that, as you spend your days at this school; I do not want have to remind you ever time you start trouble. Do you understand me?”
Ryo didn’t say anything and just nodded his head. The headmistress uncrossed her arms and sighed, putting her hand on her grandson’s shoulder.
“I just want what’s best for you, Ryo. I know it may not seem like it but I’m doing these things for your own good. I want you to graduate you from St. Sebastian like your father and your grandfather and all your other male relatives. Isn’t that what you want?”
Ryo still didn’t say a word and again, just nodded his head. He had his hands folded in his lap and was holding his head down, too afraid to look up.
The headmistress smiled faintly and whispered something to Ryo, which Ueda found hard to hear. When he saw the headmistress turn around, he gasped and ran down the hallway, hiding behind a corner. He looked around and saw that she had gone the opposite way. Only then did he make his way down the hallway and into the room he shared with Ryo, the headmistress’s grandson.
“Hello, Ryo-kun. How are you-”
“Shut up! You’re so noisy!” Ryo growled, getting out of his seat and stumbling over to his bed. He threw a pillow over his head and groaned.
Ueda gasped a bit, feeling a little shocked that Ryo had acted so rudely to him. Nevertheless, Ueda smiled to himself and sat down at his desk and took a sheet of paper. He began busily scribbling on it, making Ryo curious as to know what he’s doing.
“What are you writing so loudly?” Ryo pouted, taking the pillow off his face and leaning up on his bedpost.
Ueda turned and smiled at him, causing the other to blush a tad.
“I’m writing a letter to my parents. I want them to know that I’m settled in and that I really like St. Sebastian’s already.”
“Idiot. How can you like this school when you almost got beaten up today?” Ryo scoffed, lying back down and throwing his pillow back on his face.
“It’s because my roommate is you,” Ueda whispered softly.
“Eh?”
“Nothing,” Ueda laughed nervously.
Ryo growled, “Idiot.”
Nighttime came and the two were lying in their beds, unable to fall asleep. Ueda decided to break the silence, unsure of whether his roommate was still awake or not.
“Ryo-kun?”
There was no response.
“Ryo-kun?”
There was still no response from Ryo.
Ueda sighed heavily.
“Will you shut up already and go to sleep?! Damn, you’re the most annoying person I’ve ever met!”
Ueda scoffed, getting up from his bed and trying to look at Ryo despite the darkness, “Well, you’re not exactly Prince Charming! You’ve been rude to me ever since I got here! With a grandmother like yours, I would’ve never guessed you were such a jerk!”
Ryo jumped up out of his bed and stomped over to Ueda who was sitting on the edge of his bed.
“What did you just say?” Ryo asked with a menacing gleam in his eyes.
Ueda could see the other boy’s profile in the moonlight and it made his heart beat faster. He licked his lips but didn’t say anything.
“Hey, answer me, you-you fishlips!”
All of a sudden, Ueda’s mesmerized sight disappeared and he just said, with a slight sneer, “Fishlips? What are you, 5? I’m going to bed. I have class in the morning. I suggest you do the same.”
Ueda crawled back into bed and put the covers over him, leaving Ryo standing over him, a bit shocked. Ryo stood there for a couple of seconds before finally getting the hint and going back to his own bed and attempting once again to fall asleep.
He couldn’t see it but Ueda was smiling to himself, a tad odd since he had just been insulted by the other boy. In Ueda’s mind, however, it was as if he had just been given an endearing nickname from his significant other. He soon fell asleep with that same smile on his face and his mind full of thoughts of Ryo.
The next morning, both boys had a bit of trouble getting up. Luckily for both of them, their respective friends came to wake them each up.
“RYO! GET YOUR ASS OUT OF BED OR WE’LL ALL BE LATE FOR HOMEROOM!” Yamapi announced through a rolled-up newspaper he had picked up off of Ryo’s desk. Toma laughed as he poked Ryo in an attempt to startle the other awake.
Ueda had his own wake-up call from Koki and Maru who felt it was their job to wake up their new friend.
“Ueda-kun! Rise and shine! We don’t want to be late for a new school year!” the pair called out as if they had rehearsed it beforehand.
Both Ueda and Ryo groaned, wiping their eyes and batting away the boys waking them up.
“What time is it?” Ryo yawned. Ueda turned his head and looked at the clock.
“Oh my gosh, it’s 7:45!”
“7:45?! Homeroom starts at 8:00, doesn’t it?!” Ryo cried out, jumping out of bed and fixing to find his uniform.
Ueda did the same as he grabbed his pajama pants and pulled them down and slipped on his uniform pants. He stopped before buttoning them up and looked at the invading persons in his room.
“Do you mind?” he said with a bit of a glare.
Yamapi and the others nodded and went outside in order for the two boys to get dressed. Ueda buttoned up his pants and turned to look for his belt when he saw Ryo, shirtless, standing only a few feet away. He was searching for his shirt and having a hard time looking for his school-issued uniform tie as well. Ueda’s cheeks went red and he could feel his chest tighten a bit.
Ryo ended up noticing the other boy staring and scowled, “Take a picture, it’ll last longer!”
Ueda shook himself out of his stupor and scowled as well, “Do you know anything other than tired clichés?”
Ryo just grunted and kept searching for his clothes as Ueda finished putting his on.
Minutes later, both were dressed and groomed and ready to start the day. They hadn’t had a chance to eat breakfast since they were running late and immediately went to homeroom along with their friends.
As luck would have it, the pair ended up in the same homeroom, accompanied only by Maru and Toma.
“Whatever you do, don’t let them sit anywhere near us,” Ueda could hear Ryo whisper to Toma. Toma cackled and nodded as he looked at Ueda. Maru just smiled blankly and pointed to a pair of seats on the other side of the room. Ueda smiled faintly back at the other boy but looked long enough to give Ryo a death stare that should have instilled some fear in the other boy. Instead, it only made Ryo taunt his roommate even more. He mouthed the word “what?” and pretended like he was from a gangster movie, making a threatening gesture towards the other boy.
Ueda just shook his head and sat down in the seat behind Maru, folded his hands and waited for the teacher to arrive.
Finally, their new homeroom teacher, a 20-something year old man came in, with his hair mussed and his glasses hanging off his face.
“Ah, I’m sorry, I’m late, everyone. I overslept and-ah, my name is Domoto Koichi and I will be your homeroom teacher for the year. And one thing I want to make clear, the seats you’re sitting in now will NOT be your permanent seats!”
Everyone groaned in response, which prompted the teacher to put his, hands up to get them to stop.
“I know, I know but it’s easier if I have a seating chart done in advance and-” he rummaged through his bag for a laminated piece of paper that had about 30 names on it, written in the order of the classroom layout, “I happen to have a seating chart right here. I made it last night.”
No one smiled even when the teacher smiled. The man just shook his head and continued, “Okay, first is-”
Ueda thought to himself as the teacher read off the names that, if anything, he could not be placed next to Ryo. It was bad enough that the two were in the same homeroom, not to mention living with each other. He did not want to be sitting anywhere near the sharp-tongued boy, not if it killed him.
“Um-Ueda-kun?”
“Yes!” Ueda stood up in response.
The teacher smiled, “Please take your things and move to this desk.”
“Yes!” Ueda grabbed his bag and waved to Maru before sitting down in the desk that the teacher had pointed to.
“Okay-and sitting behind Ueda-kun, will be-Ikuta-kun.”
Ueda sighed with relief but still felt a bit annoyed that Ryo’s friend would be sitting behind him. Toma rolled his eyes and made a sound that reflected his own annoyance at the teacher’s decision. He reluctantly grabbed his bag and tossed it next to the desk before sitting down. Ueda didn’t turn around even when Toma began whispering to him.
“We’ll have a ton of fun this year-I’m sure of it,” the taller man chuckled.
Ueda shuddered at the feel of Toma’s breath on his neck. He didn’t respond and instead kept his eyes forward.
The teacher had made his way down the next row and to the desk directly next to Ueda’s.
“Sitting here will be-let me see-uh-”
“Please don’t be Ryo. Please don’t be Ryo,” Ueda closed his eyes and said a silent prayer.
“Nishikido-kun?”
“Son-of-a-” Ueda grumbled, jerking his eyes open.
Ryo nodded his head and sauntered over to the desk. He stood over it for a few seconds, staring at Ueda, waiting for some sort of response. When Ueda failed to meet his expectations, Ryo sat down with a slight smirk on his face.
“Someone’s messing with me-I’m sure of it,” he said in a not-so-subtle tone of voice.
Ueda growled in response, crossing his arms and looking away from Ryo. The other boy just laughed and slouched down in his desk.
“Okay, behind Nishikido-kun will be-Nakamaru-kun. Is there a Nakamaru-kun here?”
“YES!” Maru shouted accidentally.
“Hello,” the teacher smiled, “Please-sit here.”
“OKAY!” Maru nodded, bowing deeply before scurrying over to his new desk and sitting down. Ueda turned and smiled at his friend who smiled happily in return.
“Oh man-we got both of them, sucks, huh, Toma?” Ryo taunted.
Ueda turned and glared at the other boy, “I guess we have bad luck, don’t we, Nakamaru-kun?”
Maru and Toma gave each other slight looks and shakily responded. They decided not to get themselves involved with the war waged between the two roommates.
Ryo and Ueda just glared at each other as the teacher finished seating the rest of the students.
END CHAPTER 1
A/N: My first Ryoda in such a long time ^^ If you're currently also reading my Arashi fanfic, please don't worry, I'll be updating both as quickly as I can :] Anyways, I'm really happy with this series because it allows me to do something within the location of an all-boys boarding school, which you know will lead to some fun XD I'll put my best effort into this series so please enjoy and feel free to comment ♥