"I'm thinking of getting my tongue pierced," my friend Heather told us as we sat down at our usual lunch table. Heather, as a rule, only wore dark-colored clothing, and today was no exception. The chains on her baggy black pants clattered against the plastic cafeteria chair as she took her seat. Since middle school, she had been dying her hair her signature shade of pale orange, earning her the nickname Peach.

"The ones in your ears not cutting it, eh?" I said, sitting down across from her. I looked at the warm, freshly-prepared school lunch in front of her and felt envious. My grandmother always insisted on packing me a bento box of leftovers every morning.

"Wouldn't that hurt?" Marcie asked, her face growing pale at the very thought of a needle going through her tongue.

"Oh, it'll hurt like a bitch," Kyle said, sounding quite sure of himself. I still hadn't grown used to seeing him with short hair; he had shaved off his shoulder-length locks for a local play, and it hadn't quite grown back yet.

Marcie sighed, "I don't know why you would want to do something like that."

"Uh, it looks cool, duh," Peach said, showing off a mouth full of food.

At last, I gathered up a bit of courage and opened the bento box, a little bit relieved when I found soggy chicken nuggets and some stale rice. One day, Grandma had combined curry and my dad's tuna surprise, and the cafeteria had to be evacuated. I had been weary of my bento boxes ever since.

I sighed with relief, "Thank goodness…"

A loud beep erupted from the loudspeaker, telling everyone in the lunchroom that an announcement was about to be made. The noisy cafeteria quieted instantly, listening to the familiar voice of the office secretary:

"Kia Yat… Yatza… You know who you are. Please report to the main office. What's-your-name, to the front office."

Kia Yatzatoki, I thought while the rest of the cafeteria "ohhhh"ed at my apparent condemnation. I've been going to this school for more than a year now. You think they'd learn how to say my name.

"Mmmmm, you're in trouble," Kyle sang.

"Don't tease her," Marcie scolded. "What if she really is in trouble?"

Peach snickered, "What'd you to get sent to the office, Kia?"

"I have no idea," I answered honestly. "I've actually been on my best behavior lately..."

"You should go," Marcie said, toying with her long brown hair. She always did that when she was worried. "If you lollygag, you could get in more trouble."

"Jeez Marcie, she isn't getting expelled or something," Peach said, rubbing the other girl's back gently. She looked back up at me, "You're not getting expelled, are you?"

"There's only one way to find out," I sighed, sliding off of my chair and waltzing over to the office. The principle was waiting for me when I got there, looking quite agitated.

"You, come with me," he said. His words were quick and choppy, and he didn't look back to make sure I was following him as he marched off to his office. From behind, it was very obvious his new thick mop of hair was a toupee.

Possible scenario one – Principle Foghorn has been replaced with a cyborg, I thought, fighting back the urge to laugh as I entered his office. As he took his place behind his desk, I noticed the third person in the office with us. She was tall and thin, with faded blond hair pulled up into a tight bun.

"Please, sit," Principle Foghorn said, pointing to the remaining chair. I obeyed, not taking my eyes off of this new woman.

"Miss Ya-… er, Kia," he said. "This is Mrs. Silfverberg."

"It's a pleasure to meet you," she said, with a very thick Swedish accent. I wondered briefly how he could pronounce that beast of a last name, yet mine remained unfeasible.

"Mrs. Silfverberg is from the International Exchange Program," Principle Foghorn explained. "It seems you applied to take part in her program."

I nodded, "Yes, I did."

"When you applied, you had to take a language proficiency exam," he said.

I nodded again, "Yes, I did."

"You scored unbelievably high," Silfverberg said, looking completely elated. "You're the only one we tested from this area who qualified to take part in the program."

My heart jumped, "You mean, I get to go to Japan?"

"Not so fast," Principle Foghorn said sternly. "I'm curious, Kia, how you managed to pass a Japanese proficiency test…"

"Uh, I am Japanese," I said, failing to mask my frustration. "And my mother teaches Japanese at the community college; I've been bilingual my entire life. Why is it so hard to believe that I could pass a language proficiency test?"

"Well," he said, opening a manila folder on his desk. "It's just that your grades aren't very impressive; other than music and theater, they're rather dismal."

My face flushed with embarrassment. I mean, I knew I wasn't the brightest crayon in the box, and that I didn't put a lot of effort into school. But was that really going to wreck my chance to visit Japan? Sure, I could always go on my own, but this program was all-expenses paid; the students who were selected to take part were all sponsored by families in their respective host countries.

"Kia," Mrs. Silfverberg said, placing her cold hand over mine. "No one is trying to insult your intelligence-"

"Consider my intelligence insulted," I grumbled.

"But Mr. Foghorn's concerns are valid," she said. "Ouran Academy is one of the most prestigious schools in the country. I just wanted to make sure you knew what you were getting yourself into before you committed to anything. The school year is set up differently in Japan; they've already started their second term for the school year, so you'll be behind-"

"I want to commit," I said quickly. "I really want to do this. My grandma talks about Japan all the time; I've wanted to go there my whole life…"

She smiled at me, "Alright, if you're sure. You still have some time to think it over; perhaps you should consult your parents-"

"My mom was the one who first told me about the program," I said. "I'm sure she'll be thrilled."

And if I did turn down the opportunity, I'm sure Dad would be pissed that the two hundred dollar application fee went to waste, I thought, but I decided to keep that little bit to myself.

She nodded, "Congratulations, dear; the paperwork is already in the mail. As soon as your parents sign the forms, we'll get your plane tickets lined up and-"

"Whooo!" I cheered, unable to contain my enthusiasm as I jumped out of my chair, punching the air. I almost forgot to say thank you to Mrs. Silfverberg and the principle before I ran out of the office, eager to tell my friends the news.

When I returned to the table, two new people had joined us – one of them in my chair. Shin-Li, an adorable girl of mixed oriental origins was helping herself to my bento box. Her black hair was cut short at the top and long on the sides, with random streaks of pink and bright blue thrown in here and there.

I was much more surprised to see the second newcomer. As a senior, David was only taking the minimum number of credits needed to graduate, and therefore only had to attend school for half of the day (that is, when he bothered showing up at all). In fact, he mentioned to us several times, he was only finishing high school so he could take part in the spring musical.

That was his passion; music. Though I could play more instruments than he could, I could never hope to match his talent. He was already a popular act at several local venues; everyone knew that if anyone could make it as a musician, it was David.

The fact that he was completely gorgeous didn't hurt, either. His brown hair was always perfectly disheveled, his face scruffy, and his tight pants just tight enough. Today he wore a bright neon scarf that I knew would look ridiculous on anyone else, but somehow he pulled it off.

I had been fully prepared to jump and squeal as I told my friends the news, but seeing David had caught me off guard. So instead, I sat down at the table wordlessly.

"Yeah, tongue piercings hurt like a bitch," Shin-Li was telling Peach. "Remember when I tried to do mine, and then it got all infected? Bleeh, nasty! You should do your lips. My snakebites didn't hurt nearly as bad as I thought they would."

"But you already did that," Peach sighed. "I wanna do something different, ya know?"

"Kia, are you alright?" Marcie asked me.

"I heard you got called to the office," Shin-Li said, eating another one of my chicken nuggets.

"Give me that," I hissed, snatching back my bento box.

"So, what's the verdict?" David asked. "Are they gonna take you away in cuffs?"

I laughed nervously, "Not exactly…"

"Kia," Peach gasped, her motherly-instincts kicking in. "What happened in there?"

I grinned, "I'm going to Japan!"

"You're what?" Kyle said.

"I'm going to Japan!" I exclaimed again, this time so loud that the entire lunch room heard.

"Hey, that's pretty rad," David said. "That's where your grandma's from, right?"

I nodded, "Yeah, she immigrated to the United States in the 1930s."

"So like, how long are you going to be there?" Shin-Li asked, reaching for another nugget. Peach swatted her hand away for me.

"For the rest of the school year, I suppose," I said. "The school year runs differently in Japan, so I'm not sure exactly. When I applied for the program, I said I wanted to do the full year, so-"

"So you're going to be leaving soon, then?" Marcie asked. She sounded as though she was on the verge of tears.

"Yeah…" I gulped. "I guess so…"

The rest of the day was a long string of congratulations and pats on the back. Everyone in the theater program seemed upset to see me go; they all seemed to think that I would be the best choice for the female lead in the upcoming play. On the other hand, my chemistry teacher had to go out into the hallway when I told him the news, so the class wouldn't hear his cries of joy.

"I'm sure he was just happy for you, Kia," Marcie assured me as Peach drove us home in her beat up station wagon. "Yeah, that must be it."

"Marcie, its fine," I said, not looking up from my magazine. "After all the lab equipment I've already broken this year, I can't exactly blame him for being happy to see me go."

"Well, here's your stop," Peach announced, pulling into my driveway. "Unless you want to invite us in or something."

"Whooo, we're hanging out at Kia's!" Shin-Li cheered, running up to the front door before I could say anything.

I sighed, "I guess we're hanging out at my place…"

"That's a good girl," Peach teased, ruffling my hair before she got out of the car.

Obaba-san isn't going to like this, I thought, following my friends up to the front door, where there was a huge envelope carelessly stuffed into the mail slot. I pulled it out and read the address; it was for me, from the International Exchange Program.

"Wow, that was fast," I said.

"What's in it?" Marcie asked, peering over my shoulder.

"It's all the paperwork I have to fill out to be an exchange student," I explained. "Information about my host family should be in here, too."

"Hahaha, found it," Shin-Li said, holding up the spare key.

I frowned, "How'd you know where it was? My parents won't even tell me where they hid it."

"It was easy," she said, unlocking the front door. "There was a secret compartment in the Buddha's tummy."

I looked down at the tiny statue, "I knew it was you the whole time, you stupid jerk; why don't you just take the middle way right out'a my life, huh?"

Peach laughed, draping her arm over my shoulder, "Come on, let's get inside and open that fancy envelope. I'm curious…"

When we entered the house, the only sound that could be heard was the humming of the fish tank. Until I flipped on the light, the tank was also the only source of light in the room, as well. The house was small, and most of it hadn't been redecorated since the 70s.

"Who is that up there?" my grandmother called from the basement, which we had converted into an apartment for her.

"It's me, Obaba-san!" I called, signaling to my friends to be quiet as I led the way into the kitchen. She didn't like having visitors.

"And us, Obaba-san!" Shin-Li added, completely ignoring me. "We're here too!"

"Kia, what have I told you about bringing those hood rats into my house?"

"They won't stay long," I said, grabbing a six pack of root beer out of the fridge. Peach grabbed a box of doughnuts off of the counter while Marcie and Shin-Li rifled through the cabinets until they found some chips. We all squealed and giggled when we heard my grandma start up the stairs, and we hurried up to barricade ourselves in my bedroom.

"I love that old lady," Shin-Li giggled as she settled down on my bed, carefully moving my guitar so she had plenty of room. "It's so funny to hear her curse at us in Japanese."

Yeah, but you don't have to hear about it later, I thought, collapsing onto my beanbag chair. My room was pretty small; with my twin bed, dresser, and vanity/desk, there was hardly enough room for the four of us. For the most part, I managed to cover the nasty rose-covered wallpaper with posters, doodles, and photographs.

I tore open the envelope, accepting a can of root beer when Peach handed it to. I couldn't help but groan when I realized just how much paperwork I had to do.

"That looks like loads of fun," Shin-Li said, shoving a doughnut in her mouth as she booted up my apple-red lap top.

"Don't get that all sticky," I scolded, knowing that it wouldn't do any good.

"So, is there anything in there about your new, Asian family?" Peach asked curiously.

"The family I have is already Asian," I reminded her as I flipped through the pages, trying my best to keep them in order. At last, I found a clue.

"It says my sponsor's name is Yoshio," I read. "Yoshio Ootori."

"I'm on it!" Shin-Li announced, and then began typing furiously.

"On what?" I asked.

"Creeping, of course," she said. "I want to know everything about this fellow before we send you over there."

"It says he owns a bunch of hospitals or something," I said as I read further.

"Looks like the family's pretty well off," Shin-Li concurred. "This Yoshio dude owns Ootori Medical, and like, a bazillion other things. Oh hey, a family photo; wanna see?"

"How are you finding all this?" Marcie asked. She was sitting quietly on the floor, letting Peach comb and braid her long, cinnamon-brown hair. That hair was always the center of attention at our girly sleepovers.

"You'd be surprised what you can find out about folks online," said Peach.

"Show me the picture," I said, scooting closer to the bed so I could see. The family photo looked very… proper. Everyone was dressed in matching suits, the only female in a beautiful gown. They all had the same black hair and dark grey eyes.

"The one with the glasses is about our age," Shin-Li told me. "The rest of the kids are older; like, in their twenties or something."

I wonder why their mother isn't in this picture, I thought absently.

"They look nice enough," said Marcie. "The younger one is sort of… handsome…"

"Awww," Shin-Li squealed. "Marcie is in love!"

"I am n-not!" she stammered, blushing furiously. "I j-just said he wasn't bad looking! Why do you always twist everything I say?"

"They look very well-bred," Peach said, in a very British accent. "I must say, I approve."

"Man, this is so not fair," Shin-Li grumbled. "Kia gets to run off and live with a bunch of rich people, and I'm still stuck here."

"Gee, whatever will you do," I said dryly. "Peach, can you toss me a pen? I want to get started on all this paperwork…"

The next few weeks went by quickly. Before I knew it, I was hugging and kissing everyone I knew goodbye and boarding my plane. To save money, my parents were sending most of my things over in boxes later on, so I only took a week's worth of clothes and a couple necessities with me.

I was too excited to sleep during the twelve-hour flight, and the in flight movies were hardly entertaining enough to keep my mind occupied. I had filled up half a notebook with song lyrics and little doodles by the time we landed. I followed the rest of the passengers to claim my luggage… and was unable to resist the urge to sit on the contraption with my suitcase and ride around in circles, waving at everyone who chose to stare at me.

"Yatzatoki-san, I presume?"

Despite the fact that the voice was deep and calm, I still yelped with surprise, tumbling off of the conveyor belt and onto the ground.

"The one and only…" I grumbled, staring at the very expensive-looking pair of shoes in front of me. As I sat up, my eyes traveled up, examining the person in front of me. He was tall and slender, wearing a freshly ironed pair of slacks and a button-up shirt. His black hair was neatly combed, and his dark grey eyes were shielded by a pair of rimless glasses.

I recognized him immediately as the youngest Ootori boy from the photograph, though I could not recall his name.

"That must have hurt," he said, smiling kindly as he offered me his hand. "Are you alright?"

Graciously, I grabbed it, thankful for the help as I stood, "I'm fine. I've had worse falls than that."

"At any rate, it's a pleasure to meet you," he said, his smile not fading for a second. "My name is Kyoya Ootori. I realize that my father was supposed to come greet you in person, but unfortunately he will be out of town for the next few weeks on some impromptu business. I hope you're not too disappointed."

"It's cool," I shrugged. "He's the owner of Ootori Medical, right? He must be really busy."

"Yes, that's right," Kyoya said, looking a bit surprised. "How did you know that?"

"I, er, I did a little bit of creeping," I confessed. "When I got all of my information in the mail, I googled your family to see what you were like."

"Ah, I see," Kyoya said, grabbing my suitcase. "Do you have any other luggage, Yatzatoki-san?"

"Nope," I said. "I just brought a few things; my parents are shipping the rest of my junk over in boxes."

He nodded, "Well, let's get going, shall we?"

"Uh, sure," I said. "Unless you wanna give the luggage wheel a try. It's a blast."

Kyoya looked at me quizzically, "No thank you."

"Suit yourself," I shrugged, letting Kyoya lead the way out of the airport (seeing as I had no idea where I was going). "I can carry my own bag. You don't have to do it for me."

"I was instructed to be a perfect gentleman, Yatzatoki-san," he said, holding the door open for me. "And that is what I intend to do."

"Wow…" I said, not really sure what to think of that. The setting sun outside was almost blinding, so I grabbed my knockoff Ray Bans out of my jacket pocket and slipped them on. "I didn't think people were like that anymore."

"They aren't."

I yawned, "Oh…"

"Are you tired, Yatzatoki-san?"

"Please," I said exasperatedly. "I don't really like formalities, and we are going to be living together, right? You can just call me by my first name, Ootori-kun."

"Fair enough," he said. "In that case, you may call me Kyoya, if you wish. That's our car over there, the red one."

I only had to scan the parking lot for a few seconds before I spotted it; a beautiful red convertible. The man behind the wheel waved when he spotted us.

"Do you like it?" Kyoya asked. "I know that red is your favorite color…"

"That. Is. The coolest car. I have ever seen." I said, fighting off the urge to squeal. I really wanted to take out my phone and take a picture of it, but it was still in the bag Kyoya was carrying for me. "Wait, how did you know my favorite color?"

"You're not the only one who does their research," he said, putting my suitcase in the trunk. "I especially enjoyed those videos on your facebook page."

I gulped, "Hehe, which ones did you watch?"

"I watched all of them," he said, still smiling. "The ones from the circus were particularly amusing; I thought only children were afraid of clowns…"

"Well…" I trailed off, feeling my face burn with embarrassment. I'd told Kyle to take those offline a long time ago. "I call shotgun!"

Kyoya watched me climb into the passenger's seat, looking quite amused as he sat down in the back, ordering the driver to take us home. There were more buttons and knobs in that car than I had ever seen before, and that was more than enough to keep me occupied for the short trip.

I was a bit disappointed when I saw the house – or the estate, rather. When I signed up to be an exchange student, I was expecting a more… traditional experience. The house was huge, and very modern; western. I knew right away that I would end up getting lost inside it. The rest of the houses in the neighborhood were big, but the Ootori estate trumped them all.

I wonder of Ootori-sama is trying to compensate for something, I thought, whistling as I stepped out of the car, "Golly, do you think it'll be big enough?"

"There's plenty of room," Kyoya said, removing my suitcase from the trunk. "I assure you."

"I was being sarcastic," I giggled. "This is at least twice the size of my house… Probably more like five times the size of my house."

"I'll show you your room," Kyoya said, leading the way up the stairs to the front doors, which were opened by two nearly identical butlers as he approached.

If it was even possible, the inside of the estate was even more elegant than the outside. Everything was freshly polished and new, as if it had been purchased hours before my arrival. My new room was no exception. The walls were a brilliant hue of lavender, and after my long flight, the fluffy matching comfort looked to inviting to resist.

"You should get some rest," Kyoya suggested. "You start school first thing tomorrow."

I groaned, "For real? I don't get a couple days off to enjoy myself first?"

"I'll see you in the morning," Kyoya snickered, closing the door behind him as he left.

I took a deep breath, standing in the middle of the room. I turned around slowly, taking in every detail. I felt like a guest; like I wasn't in my own room. This was far from the tiny box I occupied back home. On the contrary, this room alone was probably bigger than my house, especially if you included the luxurious bathroom I found connected to it.

I collapsed onto the bed, looking up at the ceiling. It felt odd, not seeing glow in the dark stars plastered across the ceiling in my room.

"I suppose I'll have to get used to it…" I sighed before I drifted off to sleep.