Beginning Of Introduction 1

"Why did you bring me here?" asked Neil writhing trying to escape from Sain's tight embrace. He tried to get up several times but slipped again.

"You'd rather live on the streets than with me?" Sain asked resting his chin on Neil's shoulder.

"Yes," replied Neil curtly. He closed his eyes and tried to remain silent to let Sain do whatever he liked. Isn't this his job now?

"Why?"

"I don't want to bother other people and I want to be independent," Neil said quietly, biting his lip tightly.

"Others? Independent?" Sain snorted at Neil's answer until Neil had to open his eyes wide, but he didn't say anything. Sain then continued his words when he knew Neil didn't reply. "You still think I'm someone else after all that happened to us? From the marks that appear on your neck and my neck it indicates that our relationship is not just a trivial thing you think."

"Your toy?" he asked thickly sarcastically.

Sain sighed deeply, he shifted Neil's body so he could stand up. Neil didn't have to bother seeing him take a towel and cover up the things he needed to cover up in front of Neil. Sain's eyes then rolled to look at Neil and said "Why are you making things complicated like this? Where did those words come from?"

"From the person, you killed, Riksa," said Neil emotionlessly. He didn't want to see the reaction of Sain who stood up, Neil instead lay down in the bathtub and closed his eyes. Neil then whispered to himself. "I've always wanted to hate you Riksa, but I can't."

***

On Neil's first day at formal school. He could never get used to the crowds and people he encountered all the time here. Neil became awkward and his lips stiffened as he was about to blurt out word for word when he was asked this and that.

Neil doesn't understand why the girls in his class talk to him so much, but Neil doesn't like this at all and he tends to keep quiet and curtly tell them to leave. However, it seems that they are ignorant and don't care about how uncomfortable Neil is with the whole thing. What was he looking for from Neil? Why are they so stubborn?

"I'm sorry, I can't because I have other things I want to do at home," Neil said as each corner of his lips curled awkwardly at a girl with long hair with a black ribbon wrapped around her head. The smile didn't leave Neil's lips as the girl nodded and smiled back at him looking shyer than ever. "Maybe next time,"

The girl nodded and tucked a few strands of her hair behind her ear. "It's okay. I'm Lisa, in case you forgot my name."

Neil took Lisa's hand that was held out to her and shook it lightly. "I'm Neil."

Lisa smiled even wider and covered half of her lips with her raised fingers. "I like your name, I hope we future ."

Neil didn't nod, but he just replied to Lisa's words with a faint smile. With a curt nod from Lisa ending their conversation, the girl went back to her seat. Neil let out a breath that he accidentally held. Somehow things like talking to people that Neil didn't know very well, was were exhausting and drained a lot of his energy.

"You're still not used to it?" The voice from Michelia distracted Neil's mind who was ready to drift anywhere. Michelia was Neil's first friend and perhaps the only one who kept him from feeling any other uncomfortable feelings. Michelia had things that made Neil feel comfortable talking to her, even though they had only known them for less than a week.

"It's weird talking to other people, after maybe three years I've only been talking to my father and the teacher from home," said Neil giving a glance at Michelia sitting next to him and turning his gaze back to the book lying in front of him.

"But you're talking to me now," replied Michelia with an amused smile playing on her gaunt face.

"You're different, Lia. Others feel foreign and I don't want to know a lot of people," said Neil honestly, he didn't want to know a lot of people, just one for him. He will focus on studying, make his father proud and then graduate with good grades.

Michelia nodded her head, it made Neil happy to make Michelia his friend. He didn't ask much about things that were strange to Neil's hearing and it made Neil awkward.

Neil shifted his gaze to his reading material which he had neglected for a while opening on the table. Read line by line, paragraph by paragraph that is finely printed there.

"Good morning, this time Mother brings good news. You have a new student besides this Mother. I hope you can be good friends." The teacher suddenly came and stood in front of the class. Neil glanced at the new student there and looked back at his book. The teacher in front of him spoke again, "Please introduce yourself to your new friends for the next three years."

There was a pause ahead for a while, but Neil strangely felt a gaze directed at him from someone that made Neil almost lose his focus on reading. "Introduce my name is Space Science. You can call me Sain. My hobby is painting."

Neil was silent he seemed to feel familiar with the name the man threw in front of the class as if he had heard it before. However, where and when exactly Neil did not know. Neil with his curiosity, raised his head and Neil's bright brown eyes rolled, he was directly faced with jet black eyes which were also staring at Neil intently. Neil's brows furrowed questioningly and guessed that this man named Sain seemed to hate Neil with just one look.

The look that Sain gave him was as if he was ready to fight Neil, as it was so sharp and intense. Neil's cheeks felt hot, so he quickly turned his gaze elsewhere and he muttered under his breath. "He hates me, even though we don't know each other yet."

"I don't think so, Neil," said Michelia suddenly and Neil felt embarrassed when Michelia caught Neil's mumbling that suddenly escaped his lips.

"You see, Lia. He looks at me like he's ready to hit me at any moment. We don't even know yet," whispered Neil to Michelia quietly. Neil looked up again and saw Sain still watching Neil with his black eyes which this time flashed.

"I don't think so. If he makes you uncomfortable, Neil. You can keep your distance from him," Michelia didn't bother to whisper, she looked at Sain and Neil alternately looking subtle and not too obvious.

"I've done it, Lia," Neil said confidently, he didn't look back at Sain this time Neil felt the man start walking to his seat.

It only took a moment, Neil again felt the gaze of someone who seemed to be going to punch a hole in Neil's head from behind. He rubbed the back of his neck uncomfortably.

The hours and minutes that passed while the class was going on for some reason made Neil even more uncomfortable. He occasionally fidgeted in place, smoothing his hair, rubbing the back of his neck, scratching his cheek, piling one foot on the other. Most importantly Neil felt uncomfortable because he constantly felt gazes directed at him from behind. Neil occasionally looked back but instead, he found Sain who was still staring at Neil, and this time with his eyebrows moving up and down when their eyes met, it made a lot of questions swirl in Neil's head.

What is this person doing? Why did he keep staring at her with that weird expression lingering on his face?

Due to the uneasy feeling and the heavy atmosphere around Neil sitting that grew e, even more, Neil rose to his feet almost instantly making his head spin. He immediately excused himself to go to the toilet for a while to calm his heart and his cheeks which were burning with time.

Neil got to the toilet, he immediately washed his hands and washed his face with running water. He took a deep breath and exhaled, Neil again washed his face and wiped quickly. He looked up to see his face from behind the mirror and instantly Neil gasped and his eyes widened to find the figure of Sain standing behind him.

Why is he here too?

Neil forced himself to form a faint smile on his lips, he turned directly to face Sain while he was conscious at the sink and trying to be friendly to this man who started to take a step closer to Neil.

Neil raised his voice and started talking to Sain who this time was watching Neil's movements openly, this was just a small talk. "I'm Neil Putra Mahendra, call me Neil."

Sain who was standing in front of him stuffed his hands into the pockets of his gray pants. He slightly looked up and didn't take his eyes off Neil at all, making Neil agitated under the intense gaze he received from Sain.

Sain opened his mouth and said in a hoarse voice then he said, "You already know my name. I'm Space Science, call me whatever you want.

Neil raised his eyebrows, then he finally said by asking Sain's permission, he's a new student after all. here even though Sain was late for a few days. "Riksa, can I call you that?"

Sain didn't answer right away, he was silent for a long period for Neil. The eyes that Neil was watching in front of him seemed blurry as if he was remembering something in his mind. , then those eyes refocused and sharpened that made him say in the midst of their silence. "Whatever, you ask a lot of questions," Sain quickly.

Neil's eyes narrowed at Sain's answer that sounded harsh, his lips suddenly twitched. At first, Neil thought maybe a little she could be friends with Sain later if this guy was nice. However, Sain said something else. "Okay, we are not friends."b