Things We Used To Share

A Lucky Clover

News about being a Kuran spread like the flu.

Not just because everyone had caught wind of it...

But because it was sickening.

It was almost like having the same symptoms, and all Hiro wanted to do was rest in bed until it was over.

Unfortunately, things don't work like that.

Questions arose, rumors spread, people talked. And though they didn't ask, Hiro could feel the weight of the stares his classmates gave him in secret.

"Hiro-sama." They greeted him with so much more attention, keen on knowing his secrets, knowing who he was.

But he would greet them the same way before classes, giving a faux smile and nod.

He'd act the same until they calmed down.

...if they ever would.

__________

Zero stood atop the tower, a cool breeze pushing his hair everywhere.

The Night Class has gone back to the Moon Dorms about an hour ago. And the sun was beginning to rise.

So, he should be coming.

Not that he was waiting.

And not a moment later, the door opened.

Hiro was still wearing his uniform, a candy bar in his hand as he unwrapped it.

He paused when he saw Zero.

Amethyst eyes only glared at the brown haired menace.

It was like the first time they had met. He felt his anger rise up and scorch his stomach.

Hiro gave him a concerned look.

"You're really Kuran's kid brother."

Hiro paused, eyebrows furrowing slightly. He looked away like he was caught in a lie.

But his next words were proud.

"I am."

Zero, angered by this revelation, places a hand on his gun.

...he hesitates to pull it out.

"You look betrayed." Hiro says with a sad laugh.

Zero grimaces and takes a deep breath. He keeps his hand on his gun, though.

"I keep forgetting you're a gruesome monster, too." Zero spits out.

Hiro nods with a sad smile, agreeing, which Zero hates.

"...I am." He says again, his voice softer.

He'd been shouldering Zero's hatred this entire time, not once snapping at him, or reminding Zero that he was also a monster, too.

He'd let Zero call him these different things.

...Why?

Especially as a Kuran, the highest ranking Pureblood in existence.

He didn't have to take Zero's shit. He could easily kill Zero if he said the wrong thing. He could order the Night Class to sneak into his room and smash him to pieces.

Hiro could probably do it himself with a single glance.

His strangeness wasn't like anything he'd seen before.

Hiro never tried to remind Zero he was a lower level Vampire. He fed rabbits and watched the sunset, sneaking out of his dorm and eating human food, singing around campus.

He never carried the arrogant pride the other students wore on their heads like crowns.

He never looked at the human students like they were food. In fact, when they called his name for attention, he seemed to shy away from them.

It was almost laughable.

He even spoke to Yuki like she were a friend, even once asking Yori if she liked to read some detective series after hearing her talk about some book.

Yori wasn't a fan of the Night Class students, either, but she seemed to find Hiro's presence tolerable.

She had once told Zero he was "sweet".

"I'm sorry." Hiro's small voice pulled him from his own thoughts. He didn't even notice his grip on the gun had tightened.

Hiro turned to leave.

"If my presence irritates you, I'll head back."

Zero let his hands hang loosely at his sides.

"You said you were unlucky." He finally says.

Hiro stopped.

Zero stepped forward.

"...how?"

Hiro turned around, his eyes wide and sad as he gave Zero a surprised look. They twinkled in the rising sun, making them seem larger.

Why were Vampires so...pretty? They were beasts with fur coated skin.

"...not all Kurans are evil." Hiro says, smiling softly.

Zero wants to scoff at that.

"But...family can be wicked. They can betray you, and leave wounds nobody can heal."

Zero knows.

Zero knows that all too well.

A sliver of light comes through his mind, thinking back to the days where he and his twin brother would lay in bed.

And then, him departing with the one who stole Zero's life.

"I'm unlucky, in that sense." Hiro says, giving Zero a small wave and leaving. "Almost like a curse." He says cheekily.

...Zero might be cursed, too.