Rubies In Your Raging Eyes

< 5 Years Ago >

 The reason I was curious to know Sakura, was simply her eyes. Out of all the people I had ever seen, hers were the most similar to mine. A scarlet hue, reminiscent of blood.

 "Since you aren't an albino, red eyes are truly an anomaly, Franz." The school doctor had said after requesting my eye examination. "It shouldn't be much of a problem. Your eyes appear to be light blue or gray in almost all situations." He said, the wrinkles on his forehead quite apparent. "Only in high lighting, or when you are really angry, will they appear pink or red. So try to control your emotions."

 I had heard this diagnosis again and again, from multiple optometrists. To see one with natural red eyes in any lighting condition... Let's say I was quite captivated by those eyes.

 It was recess time again. I was reading a book on the bench at the corner of the playground, as I usually do. The chocolate milk I had bought last evening was besides me too.

 I'm not a hypocrite, so I'll say it straightforward. Friends are a pain. You have to laugh along with them even if a joke wasn't funny, and they cause all sorts of trouble which might end up causing trouble for yourself. I was a loner. With the only saving grace being the handful of love letters I got from class fellows.

*sob*

 Huh? Is someone crying?

 "Look at this little arrogant prick, she stole my money and now she's crying."

 This voice... was coming from the dark alleyway across the street from our school. For a moment, I was just sitting there, consumed by my thoughts. Should I go there? What if it's some thugs, would they kill me? What am I supposed to do for a stranger??

 "Do you want to do nothing, and let your guilt consume yourself?" It was the single thought that I had lived with since then, and it made me jump across the fence and into the alleyway.

 "You wanna get beat up more, hu-" His words were cut off by the sight of me.

 "Who are you? Scram!" The fat boy in front of me was from a grade above me. "Hey Jibang, he's a 6th grader." His lackey whispered. "Hah, you came to save your girl?" I saw where he pointed, and the sight horrified me. A frail young girl, beaten and bruised, with her squinted scarlet eyes staring into mine.

 I smirked: "You couldn't beat up a guy, so you got together with your gang to beat up a girl? How shameless." To this, the dark-haired girl in the corner responded: "I ordered him to do it." Now I started laughing: "That smile on your face is ugly. Hahahaha..."

 "Tch. I'll teach you a lesson you bastard!"

 Huh? Why are his punches so slow? It felt like I could see where his fist was. All I had to do accordingly.

 "Huff Huff... Cowardly... You can only dodge?" To this, I only smiled: "It seems like this is your first fight, Jobang." "The name's Jibang!" He wiped the sweat of his temples.

 "Heh, I'm only getting started." This guy... has a lot of openings. His chin is exposed since his left hand is way in front of where it should be. "This should do."

 My punches are quick, to say the least. I developed it from the fights as an orphan in the streets, and from the manager of the orphanage who himself was a boxer. Such a small fry is easy pickings.

 I gauged his strength with a right jab right on the chin, and he couldn't block. "How are you... so fast?" He said, knees quivering from the shock of my punch. Yet I had no time to waste on him. A kick on his right shoulders, then a left hook, and he was left knocked out.

 "Now now, let's see... This much should be good, right?" I said after banging Jibang's face on the asphalt. "You couldn't see my hands while I was punching, could you?" Before the other guys could react, I signaled them to keep quiet.

 "I'll report this to the principal, so run away while you can." The girl chuckled: "Hah. You think you can just report us like that? You don't even know our names!" I tried holding back my laughter; "Are you an idiot? Or are you blind? Can't you see the nameplates you are wearing?"

 "Eh?" In a split second, all 4 of them were clutching their chest in an effort to hide it. "Too bad for you guys, I already read all of them. Jin Jibang, Choi Eungkang, Lee Imsan and-" "All right... All right" The girl, red in the cheeks, looked at the ground with a defeated expression. "C'mon Jibang, we'll deal with that girl later." And just like that, it was silence again.

 "Sakura, are you ok?" She looked at me with wide eyes: "How do you know my name?" I looked at the fence road between the school and the alleyway, then back at her. "We're classmates, don't you know?" I flicked the specks of dust off my uniform.

 "Are you ok, Franz?" So she knew my name. "Yeah, I'm fine... Here." I gave her an outstretched hand. "Get up." After a bit of hesitation, she grabbed my hand. And her hand was rough. I glanced at it to reaffirm my thoughts, and I was right. It bore the scars of past beatings. I held back from asking her about it, though.

 "Your punches were so fast, I couldn't see them!" She tried imitating them at slow motion. "What martial art do you do? Boxing?" I sighed. It was the first time a person around my age had asked about it. "Ah... It's my dance... steps." Her eyes gleamed upon hearing that: "Dance steps? I wanna learn too... Can you teach me, Franz?"

 "It's not an art you can learn in a day, you know?" I smiled seeing her infectious enthusiasm. "Then..." She said as she looked away: "Would you... be my... friend?" That last word came out as a squeak.

 I felt an unexplainable feeling in my chest, as if I was floating while not floating. Her words felt strangely warm. "Yes." I blurted out. "Please take care of me, Sakura?" And now, her happiness was infectious. "Haha. I made a friend!" She started jumping up and down, which could only make me laugh. "Let's hang out after school. Are you free at that time?" She giggled in response: "I have all the time in the world!" She said as she sprinted towards the school. "Hey! Wait for me, Sakura!"

.....

 "Franz, you... how long have you been doing this?" Sakura's voice woke me up from the nostalgic daydream. I had been punching the bag for the last hour.

 "Harder... Faster" The fury in my punches was unrelenting. "Stop it, Franz. You'll be fatigued again." She put her hands on my shoulders. Only now did I realize how heavy my breathing was. "Here's your towel. Take a shower. You smell of old socks." She remarked as she closed the door and left. "It's 8 already?" I thought as I sprinted to make dinner.

 Only when the adrenaline left my body did I feel the side-effects of such long training.

 I shall beat this maniac called Dracula.

 Or should I say your real name... Jin Jibang?