A/N: Big thanks to MaxtheFirst for the original story idea, various story contributions, and editing for early chapters.

A/N 2: Although this story obviously derives itself from the Clannad Visual Novel/Anime, the story is written in a way that is fairly accessible to newcomers.

Update/A/N 3: As part of my edit updates, I changed the abruptness of the ending in this chapter as well.

Update/A/N 4: Rated T for alcohol abuse and tobacco use. Putting this here due to character limit.

Serendipity

Prologue

I was nervous.

Honestly, I don't know why I was nervous. That day, my parents had prepared a birthday party for me. Tomoya Okazaki, my close and only friend, and maybe some of his friends to. I tried to smile, but in my heart, I felt really nervous about what exactly it would be like when people I didn't know came to my house.

However, fear wasn't the only emotion gripping and tugging at my heat. Joy also firmly found a nice home inside as well. Ever since my parents had announced the party, I'd been extremely excited, even spending an hour of my day picking out the outfit I'd wear on the special day. As someone who spent most of my time reading books, taking time to look pretty in front of others was something I rarely found the time to do.

While I sat at the dinner table in my house, thinking about all of these wonderful, nerve-wracking things, my parents called me up to their room.

There was nothing unusual about that. My parents had talked to me about lots of things. The most intriguing discussions, however, were started by my father.

Both of my parents were scientists, researching the idea of tiny alternate dimensions existing parallel to our world. Because of this, they'd both developed a profound love for the world, and the beauties that existed within it. Eventually, I came to notice all of the wonders the world had to offer.

When I walked inside their room, I was always staggered by the desks overflowing with scientific thesis, and notes on various experiments they'd conducted in the past. I sat down on their bed as they stood over me. Normally, my parents were cheery and enthusiastic but today, they seemed solemn. I started fidgeting uncomfortably, noticing a packed suitcase in the corner of the room.

"Honey," my father said, bending down on his knee so his face came down to mine. "Your mother and I have some important business to take care of."

"Oh," I said, still greatly worried about what he might say next. "When do you have to go?"

"Actually, we have to leave" he hesitated slightly looking in my eyes, a sorrow mist filling in his own. "Immediately,"

My heart began to beat abnormally faster than I accustomed myself to. Emotions consumed and took possession of my mind in ways I'd never seen before. How could they leave now? Why did they have to leave? Couldn't they delay whatever they had to do until later?

"No, you can't leave, you just can't!" I stood up on the bed, stress bursting through my veins, and my small, childish fists beginning to clench. "You promised you'd be here for my birthday, you can't leave me now!"

"I'm really sorry," my mother said. "But, at least your friend Tomoya will be able to come over for the birthday party, and a friend of ours we'll come later to take care of you for the few days we're gone."

"I really wish we didn't have to leave," dad said. "But this is very important. We'll be back as soon as we can."

"It's not fair! Why are you leaving me now, am I really that unimportant to you?" I began to feel tears pouring in streams down my face. I was scared. They had never missed a birthday before. What if Tomoya and his friends didn't show up?

I'd be… alone.

"Sweetie…"

"I HATE YOU! I HATE YOU BOTH, why can't you love me, not care about your stupid work!" Before they could say another word, I was out the door, and on my bed, cuddling my pillow. Maybe I'd overreacted, but at that moment, I was too angry to reconsider my actions.

"Why, why don't they love me? Why….."

I continued to sob, hoping they would come to me; I overheard my parents speaking in hushed voices. Would they come to me? Instead, I heard them walked down the stairs, and into some sort of car. I buried my face into my pillow and cried in my abandoned loneliness.

Under normal circumstances, my parents wouldn't have left me all alone. Normally, the caretaker would have been in the house, watching a mindless, as my parents called it, television program. However, she was gone, out sick with a nagging cold, so for the time being, I was all alone.

After what was only a few minutes, yet felt like hours, I stopped crying, and started to feel guilty for the way I acted. I remembered how Tomoya said he'd be coming to my party, and smiled.

"At least, he'll be there." A renewed confidence started to shift my focus temporarily away from my parents "important" business.

I only met Tomoya by chance. He'd found himself lost while trying to chase butterflies, and accidentally walked into my backyard. My mother and I were outside, and she promptly made a comment on how "cute" he was. Of course, he was embarrassed, but soon enough we became friends. He'd talk to me about all sorts of things, and comfort me when I felt upset about something, even if he couldn't fully relate to my situation. Even though he probably didn't understand many of the things I read to him from books, he still listened intently, trying to register what I told him. Yet, he seemed to carry some hidden sadness of his own, different from mine. Sometimes, I wished he'd talk to me about it as I talk to him, but the last thing I wanted to do was bring up bad memories he had. However, whenever he'd visit, his energy and warmth towards me like I was special and unique would always cause me to smile at some point in our conversation.

I knew that those things at least, his smile, his happiness, was not fake.

Never having any friends, I was so thankful to have Tomoya in my life. He wasn't only my first friend outside of my parents, but he was possibly the best friend I could ever have.

I really, really, wanted him to come.

I dashed down the stairs, and sat myself on the dining room table. As I waited, I tried to think of where my parents might keep the cake if there was a cake. I searched every nook and cranny of the kitchen I could find, and then turned to the fridge. As I opened the refrigerator, I grasped the plastic protected cake with both of my hands, and placed it on the table. I resumed my position sitting at the table as I continued to anticipate Tomoya's arrival, I started to get flustered.

I was about to squeal when,

"DING DONG,"

I fell backwards.

Regaining my composure, I walked over to the door. Taking a deep breath, I opened the door.

There was Tomoya Okazaki, standing with a gift in his hand.

"Oh, ah… Hello Kotomi. 'Sorry my friends didn't come, but I…."

"It's alright, I'm glad you came," I smiled. If only he knew how much he really meant to me.

"Aw, it was nothing, really. After all, we're friends, right?" Then he looked at me and continued.

"Wow, that dress looks pretty on you." He paused for a few seconds and blushed lightly at his statement; he, however, quickly recovered, reverting to the calm happy boy I knew so well.

"Thank you, Tomoya-kun," I my cheeks turned bright red at his compliment. He'd never commented on my appearance before, so why would he suddenly do so then? Suddenly, I remembered. I had picked a dress specifically for this day, and awkwardly nodded. "Th-h-hank you. I didn't think it looked that pretty."

"No, it looks really good on you." He stole a quick, awkward glance at the ceiling. "Can I come in?"

"Oh, of course you can." I grinned, leading him to the dining room table. As soon as he saw the cake, he practically leaped into an empty seat. "Wow, this cake looks yummy! When can we eat it?"
"Well, now I guess."

"Shouldn't we wait for your parents, though?"

"They had to go somewhere urgent for their job. And since no one else is coming, I don't see a reason we can't eat now."

"I guess not," he smiled, as if not having parents was the most natural thing in the world. "After all, a party's still a party even if there is only one guest." He grinned. "In this case, that'd be me." I chuckled as he opened the plastic case, and almost immediately began to cut the cake. Suddenly, he dropped the knife, and shook his head. "Aw man! I forgot to sing happy birthday!"

"Oh, it's okay. Besides, my parents may want to be the first ones to sing it."

"Well, I'll be the first friend to sing it and they can be the first parents who sing it," He began the song, embarrassment finding it's way into me again. I couldn't help admiring his singing voice; he didn't sound as gruff as he probably thought he did.

"Alright, let's eat!" he announced as he finished. We spent a few minutes eating the cake my mom had prepared for me. Tomoya kept going back for another slice of the cake as we talked. Soon enough, only a few slices remained on the case.

"Boy, I'm stuffed!" He exclaimed. "What do ya think we should do now?"

"Well, we could play a game." I suggested.
"That's a good idea…. What game?"

"Hmmm…." I paced back and forth near the table, considering what exactly we should play. Thinking my parents would be here for the party, I'd assumed they had come up with games. "We could play soccer in the backyard."

"Soccer? I didn't know you played soccer."

"My dad taught me. I'll get the ball and be right back." I dashed up the stairs and into my room. Sure enough, as I looked into my closet the ball was there, lying still on the floor. Nodding determinedly to myself, I picked it up, and returned to the kitchen.

"That's cool," he smiled. "Alright then, what're the rules?"

"Okay, we'll go to three points." I led Tomoya outside. "You'll start on that side of the field," I pointed near the flowers my mom and I had planted. "And I'll go on the other side of the field. I'll place the ball on the center of the field. When I say go, we'll run for the ball, and try to get it into each other's goals which are in the places I told us to start. Whoever gets three points wins." Before I'd even finished, Tomoya had taken his position.

"Alright then, let's get started!" He yelled, his enthusiasm causing my face to light up without me even knowing it.

"Three, two, one, go!"

I wasn't much for sports normally. Reading, writing, and other forms of education was something that enthused me much more than sports. However, I remembered hearing Tomoya say he enjoyed sports, and I wanted to prove I could do more than just school work and read books. I could have fun to. I didn't tell him my father had been playing soccer for years, and that he had been a lead player on his university's team prior to his scientific endeavors.

When the game started, Tomoya easily scored the first point. He was much faster than me, and keeping up with him proved to be difficult. After resetting the ball, the second round began.

I dashed as fast as my little legs could carry me. Instantly, I noticed I was moving at the same speed as Tomoya. When we were only a few feet from the ball, I slid downwards, kicking the ball as I did. Tomoya turned backwards as he observed the ball reaching the goal. Dad had taught me that in soccer, reaction was as important as speed.

"Wow, Kotomi-chan, you're really fast!" He smirked. "But don't get cocky just because you got one point on me."

In the third round, I stayed back near my side of the yard. In order to win, I felt the most effective strategy was to stand back, and see if I could intercept the ball from him. As my father had said at times, "Let the opponent make the first mistake, and let him underestimate you; once he has that thought on his head, he will keep it even after you prove him wrong." Sure enough, Tomoya came at the ball too slowly, and let the ball drift a little too far from his foot. Just before Tomoya could kick the ball, I moved the ball slightly to the side, and made another score. "Whoa…." He said. "But you're not gonna score again, Kotomi."

Next round, I employed the same tactic I had in the first round. However, Tomoya reached the ball a second before I did, and after moving the ball a few feet away from me, kicked the ball into my goal. In a matter of seconds, he'd easily adapted to my tactics.

"Alright!" He cheered. "Okay, this one's for the game." He offered me his hand. "Good luck, Kotomi-chan."

Every time he called me 'chan', I noticed the red in my cheeks as if it was the first time I'd ever blushed. Now, however, my mind was on the game, and no matter what, I was going to try my best to win. I shook his hand and said, "You too, Tomoya-kun."

When we reached our positions, Tomoya called for the game to start. Even in my dress, I felt like I was running faster than I ever had in my life. My entire body nearly burst open with adrenaline as I finally made it to the ball.

I was prepared to make a kick before Tomoya side stepped the ball away from me. He was not holding back now.

Remembering his tactic, I closely followed him at close range, making sure the ball didn't get a shot at my goal. Tomoya did not let the ball get too far from his foot so I could not steal it this time. He was intent on forcing the ball into my goal.

After a few minutes, he made a mistake. He accidentally kicked the ball towards my direction. I exploited his mishap, kicking the ball down the path.

For a few seconds, the ball seemed to slow down too soon. Realizing the ball might not cross the plane, Tomoya burst down the field. Surely enough, just as Tomoya started sliding to reach the ball, it crossed the goal line.

Somehow, I had won.

Tomoya looked towards the ball, and then back at me. He slowly walked up to me, and sighed. "Wow, Kotomi. You're a natural. To be honest, I never thought that you were good at sports."
"It was a good game. You played really well, Tomoya-kun, I think I was just lucky.…"
"No really," he smiled. "You're really good it was like playing a pro,"
"Well…." I said, awkwardly. After a few seconds of silence, I smiled. "My father played back in his university days before he started pursuing his career as a scientist," My spirits lifted at the memory of the many Saturday mornings racing back and forth across the makeshift field as he taught me the in and outs of soccer. I tried to understand everything I could, even if it didn't come as naturally as school. "You made a few easy mistakes near the end to, Tomoya-kun-"

Before I could complete my response, I heard a knock at the front door. The sky was almost completely dark.

"Someone at the door?" He asked. Shrugging, I ran back through the house, Tomoya closely following me, and opened the door. I hoped it was my parents, who had come back because their trip had been cancelled, or potentially delayed. On the other hand, it could be the person my parents were getting to watch me. I was hoping for the optimistic theory; that my parents had returned.

They hadn't.

Three men stood at the door. One was a gray haired man with small, sad gray eyes, who had been to dinner a number of times at my house, one of the few party guests my parents had. Another was wearing sunglasses, and seemed to be shaking uncomfortably. The third man had an unusually skinny face, and his features seemed to almost force themselves into a frown. All three of them wore matching suits, and hats.

"Kotomi Ichinose?" The gray haired man said. "I'm a close friend of your parents. I…." He grabbed his hat, and placed it near his chest. "I'm afraid…" He sighed, a tear going down his cheek. "I have bad news."

"What is it, sir?" I didn't know who these men were, but I began to feel very scared. Tomoya held my hand although I did not notice it then.
"You're parents… Have both died. The plane they were on crashed into the ocean."

Edited January 2, 2014