Chapter One
'Oh my god, I cannot believe I just did that. '
Kairi Hiyashi, a regular teen from Destiny High, had just sealed her fate. Or at least, it sure seemed that way. She was currently 5 blocks from home, standing outside the post office next to a large crimson mailbox, having a mini panic attack. Her hands, which only moments ago held a tremendously important letter, were shaking really bad.

She had just sent a job application to Paupou Publishers INC, the most famous publisher in the city. For years Kairi's friends, family and teachers had told her she was an amazing writer, and that they had expected to see her name in print someday, which was, and still was, a lot of expectations to live up to. So she mustered up all the courage she had and wrote a business letter to Paupou, explaining why the job was important to her, what kinds of things she wrote, and a portfolio of essays and poems for preference. Kairi didn't want to bother with the smaller publishers.
'If I'm really that good, I want to work in only the best place. ' She always was picky like that, even when she was little, at least according to her childhood friend Ventus.

"I remember when I bought you a doll for your sixth birthday." He would smile.
"I was really excited to give it to you, because I thought you'd love it, but when you opened it, you cried because I had bought the wrong colour!"
Somehow, that story always came up in the worst moments, like when Ven had to move to California. It was after they had finally graduated elementary school, and got to take on middle school. But unfortunately, Kairi had to take it on by herself, which had devastated her for months. Ven tried to comfort her, but he too was distraught about the move. When the time came for them to say goodbye, they stood at the airport, and Ven whispered in Kairi's ear.
"Maybe in California I'll find you a better doll."
Kairi couldn't help but laugh through her tears. Those were the last words they spoke face to face. They still would text and Skype, but it wasn't the same.

When Kairi told Ven she was thinking about applying for a major publisher, he encouraged her.
'Go for it :)' he had said while they were texting one night.
'But what if I don't make it?' She replied.
'Who cares? At least you can say you had the courage to!'
And so she stood, at the large crimson mailbox, where she had just sent off her letter. Kairi sighed and crossed her fingers.
'Maybe.' She thought. 'Just maybe, I'll actually get somewhere in life.'
Kairi glanced at her watch.
"Five o'clock?! Ah crap!" Gathering the rest of her thoughts, she made a run towards Ginger Ave. And completely ran into someone in her hurry, knocking them and herself flat on the cement.
'Damn, I hope I didn't scrape my face too bad...'
As she lay there, rubbing her head, she remembered she wasn't alone.
"I am so sorry, I guess I'd better watch where I'm going." The sunlight was directly in her eyes, so she couldn't make out their face, but the silhouette was definitely a boy's. He reached out and offered his hand to Kairi, who was still lying on the sidewalk in pain. As he began to speak, she immediately knew who he was.
"That's alright, just make sure you look out for others when your running like that, okay Kairi?"

Embarrassment washed over her, and as the sunlight faded she realized she was staring directly into the baby blue eyes of Sora Takahashi.
Flustered, she looked away, jumped up, and mumbled an apology and something about being late before running like hell to the other side of the street and out of there. Out of all the times she could've ran into HIM, it had to be today?! Kairi kept running, even when she could hear Sora calling after her, and she didn't stop running until she reached her house. She opened her front door and slammed it violently. Then she collapsed onto the floor in a heap of sweat and nerves.

Her mother came out of the kitchen, taking in her daughter's state of condition.
"Kairi, you know it doesn't matter if you're 10 minutes late, you could've CALLED ME." She felt Kairi's sweaty forehead.
"Are you alright dear? You look like you've seen a ghost. "Kairi had wished she'd seen a ghost instead. Her younger brother Zack decided to walk into the living room at that exact moment. He smirked at Kairi.
"She didn't see no ghost mom. She saw her pretty boyfriend SORA." Kairi's face decided to then turn a lovely shade of red that matched her hair. Zack laughed and ran away as she yelled,
"He is NOT my boyfriend! Mind your own business and learn better english,dumb ass!" Her mother scolded her for using inappropriate language language in a respectful household. Kairi rolled her eyes. Zack was only a year younger than her, and he said almost as many swears as she did. As if reading her mind, her mother said,
"I know you two are very close in age, but you are older and need to be a better example. Besides, he's still an innocent child and we have to keep it that way for as long as we can. "
Kairi snorted. Her brother, innocent? That's like saying Hitler didn't kill anybody. Her mother ran to the kitchen to get a towel for Kairi's sweaty, now bright red face.
"By the way," her mother asked,
"Who is this Sora?" Kairi's face turned a deeper shade of red.
"Oh he's nobody important. He just used to hang out with me and Ven when we were little, so that's um, probably why Zack thinks I like him. "A complete lie, but her mother seemed to believe it. Her face softened.
"I see. You two are just friends then?" Kairi nodded. They actually never saw face to face anymore, but that was just a minor detail.
"Okay, I can live with that. I was really worried for a minute there. There's no need for you to go running off with boys just YET." She grinned. Kairi smiled back as her brother emerged from his hiding place behind the corner. He probably thought it was safe to come out now, while their mom was still around to protect him from Kairi's punches.
"Y'know Ma, we're not as innocent as you think. We'll, I'm not as innocent as you think anyway."
Kairi's mom raised an eyebrow.
"Oh really? Just what horrors of the world have you discovered darling?" Zack took his hands out of his pockets and started counting with his fingers.
"Well, I know about drugs, alcohol, sex, rape, oh and I saw this video..." He stopped to grin at his mothers horrified reaction.
Zackary! Oh my poor little baby, what has the internet done to you?!"

Kairi thought this as a perfect opportunity to slip away unnoticed. When she reached her room, she flopped face first on her bed, exhausted. Of course she was late getting home. Of course she ran into Sora the day on one of the most important days in her life. Sora, the boy with cute spiky brown hair, the bluest eyes, and a smile that could light up the earth. Damn that perfect smile. Kairi had been crushing on him for what seemed like forever, but was actually just since 2nd grade. When she was 5, he used to chase her around the playground, telling her that when he caught her he would tie her to a raft and sail away with her. At the time, she just thought he was an annoying little kid. But he eventually grew on her, but by that time it was too late. He had already found a new circle of friends, fitting into the popular crowd perfectly. How could he not, he was athletic, cute and friendly after all. It now seemed nothing more than a children's dream. She heaved a big sigh.

'Its just like the movies,' she thought. 'Unpopular girl falls for the guy that's way out of her league. Except in the movies she actually GETS the guy. 'Kairi had written many love stories and poems, inspired by Sora, and she had included them in her portfolio of 'little masterpieces', which is what her mom called her writing. But she knew it would never be more than a fantasy. Sora would probably end up with Tifa, Selphie or any other of the popular girls. People had told Kairi that she was pretty, but she didn't believe them. Her hair was always trying to stick out at odd angles, so she usually wore a ponytail, or a headband if it was a good day. She wasn't exactly large or obese, but she wasn't a skinny model either. A 'healthy weight' is what she was. And she honestly didn't care. Chips and dip were her go-to, and she had no shame in that. Kairi liked her friends, Namine and Xion,and they were way nicer than those popular beotches, but she wasn't about to get asked to prom anytime soon. At least, not by Sora.
'Maybe if things work out with Paupou, I can finally get over him.'
'Maybe.'