CHOCOLATES IN MONSOON | HRK

01 | glitter and rock n' roll

CHAPTER ONE ;; HARUTO
glitter and rock n' roll

Haruto Watanabe hated the rain.

The constant noise of the raindrops falling on tin sheds, water splashing in sporadic bursts against windows and the unpleasant squelching of his Wellington boots weren't welcome. The honks of the cars - rendered blind by the rainwater on their wind shields - wasn't welcome. He almost always got mud on his feet and dirt on his hands. Besides - who ever liked anything cold ?

...or wet for that matter.

Correction : he didn't just hate the rain. he despised it. he abominated  it.

But quite surprisingly, he was dry at the moment. Haruto Watanabe - the boy who abominated rain - was sitting on one of the cold metal contour recliners at the airport, listening to rock and roll on his iPod. Other boarders came by from time to time, sat beside him for a while, sometimes fixing him with politely curious eyes, sometimes just minding their own business.

There were interesting people too. One bearded man came right up to him, asked him for a cigar and then went his own way, not waiting for a reply.

Another disheveled fellow in rags asked him for an umbrella to which he scowled, clutching his backpack to himself.

Obviously.

It was raining outside again. Through the wide glass walls of the airport and the windows of the cafeteria, he could see the dark, stormy clouds rushing in waves of darkness toward the west, the rain falling in heavy, probably loud sheets of water upon the airport roof.

It didn't matter. Haruto didn't want to think about that. He had his earphones plugged and he was listening to rock and roll. Some good rock and roll. The stuff that could get your feet dancing to the beats, head bobbing up and down in energetic enthusiasm. Definitely not the type those highschoolers liked listening to in coffee shops.

This was some good rock and roll. Some hotboy rock and roll.

Comforting to an extent.

Listening to it made him forget that he had gotten into a fight with his parents the previous evening. A heated argument which had led him to book his own flight ticket and come straight here. He wasn't exactly in trouble though. His parents had bought a new home somewhere near and they were supposed to go there but he was going to wait.

"Son. We are sorry ! Okay? We are sorry. Stay at the airport. Your mother and I are coming as quickly as possible. Stay safe. Stay put. Hold on tight !"

Because his father had said the aforementioned. He wasn't a toddler that he had to hold on tight and stay put and everything but he was at least a good son and he listened to his parents.

Haruto shuffled his playlist again, sliding his legs forward in a lazy posture, and put his head back against the cool metal recliner.  He heard a lot of rock and roll, yes, but a bit of Khalid didn't hurt either. He tilted his face to a side, the coolness of the chair comforting against his skin, which made him feel sleepy.

That was when he first noticed the guy.

Interest didn't spark in him at once - like people said it often did.

A polite confusion was what quickly followed after his eyes set on the thin, lanky figure of the boy. He was crouching by the doors of the cafeteria, trying to do something with his shoes, eyebrows furrowed in concentration. He was wearing a bright red hoodie and jeans - a white headphone perched carefully on his head and had a mickey mouse watch on his wrist.