Once upon a time there was a very wealthy business man from a very prestigious family. He was devoted and content with his work but felt something missing. One day when he was 23, his family arranged a meeting with another prestigious family. During this meeting, he was introduced to a beautiful woman. He was polite to her, and she played the family assigned role of a smitten girl over the next few weeks of arranged meetings. The man thought this was what he was looking for, the missing piece he yearned for so he agreed to get down on one knee when his family made their intentions clear and suggested he settle down with this girl. The girl immediately said yes and the two were to be married in eight months.
As three months of planning went by, the man and the woman were happy but the man's happiness was beginning to fade and his doubts were born. Maybe this wasn't the person for him, and this wasn't the life he wanted. But he stayed quiet, loyal to his father and he suffered in silence. Another three months went by and his depression began to grow and his smile no longer hid his true emotions. The girl ignored this, pretended it wasn't real. But the man's family saw his unhappiness. His father decided to send him on a business trip to Italy over the next few months. The man agreed in hopes that he could clear his mind and so, he went for the allotted two months intending to be back a little before the marriage.
Fate intervened and he met another young beautiful woman. He fell in love with her as deeply as she fell in love with him. He had finally found his missing piece and saw that his engagement lacked the love he found. She knew he was engaged but they were so in love that he decided that when he would return home, she would come with him and explain the situation. If his family did not agree, then they would run away together. He was willing to give up everything to be with her. But the girl he was supposed to marry sent spies after him and she learned of his betrayal so she formed a plan.
The day before his return, he received tragic news. While he was gone, his father died in a terrible car accident. A letter from his father was relayed to him with his wish that his son would marry the women in japan. The son, overwhelmed with guilt and sorrow made a tragic decision and the woman he loved agreed, knowing he had no choice. So they spent one last night together and he returned, never to talk to her again. Upon returning, his family shunned him as the woman had informed the family of his betrayal. Once again he was faced with a choice: be disowned from his family, or beg the girl's forgiveness and be united in marriage. Wracked with guilt and sorrow due to his father's death, he agreed and begged the girl forgiveness. She forgave him, and they were married a week later. On the night of their marriage the girl put another plan in motion and got the man drunk. That night, a child was conceived.
Five years passed by, the man and his wife and his daughter lived together in Kanagawa. The man was still unhappy and in those five years he drowned himself in his work. One night a little before the eve of his daughter's sixth birthday, a little girl showed up on their doorstep. She was welcomed in and taken care of by the wife. She was cleaned up and as the father came home, they saw that the little girl looked exactly like his daughter. The man and his wife asked her many questions and they received answers. The girl was his daughter, the product of that night in Italy exactly six years ago. Unfortunately her mother had died of a sickness recently, and she had no other living relatives. The man had never forgotten about his love in Italy and was sad that she had died, but he was happy. Happy that there was still a piece of her and it was here. He had a daughter and she was here. So after consulting with his wife, the man took his daughter in.
The man loved his daughter, he started working less to spend time with her and his daughter came to love him in return. The wife and her daughter were jealous. They saw that the man was happy and they feared he would leave them behind, so the wife developed a plan. Two years later on the girl's eighth birthday, just before the other daughters own eighth birthday, the man died in a tragic car accident. The family mourned and the little girl had nowhere to go. Her father's family rejected her because she was an illegitimate child. The father had left behind a will. The will left all his riches and everything he owned to his wife's daughter, this included the daughter he so loved. His daughter was left with nothing and became a slave to her once envious step-mother and step-sister.
The truth behind the story? The wife's family was going bankrupt. They hooked her up with the man so they could share his riches. Upon hearing of the man's betrayal, she arranged for the car accident that killed his father and then she faked his letter. Once the man came home, she accepted his apology and made it so he could never leave her by having a child. She lived lavishly in his riches and even though he did not love their daughter, she too would inherit his riches. Then the other daughter showed up. Her plan was ruined as this girl was loved AND was older then her daughter, automatically giving her the inheritance. So once again she formed a plan and set it in motion two years later. She orchestrated a death once more and faked his will. Now the wife had all his money and his families money, and her daughter would too when she grew older. As for the other girl, she would pay for almost costing her, her fortune.
7 YEARS LATER
Sana Sonozaki woke up to the sound of silence. She sat up quickly, realizing something was wrong. She looked at her old model cell phone and noticed the time. Glowing letters reflected 7:35 back at her. "SHIT!" she shouted and rushed around her room looking for her uniform and quickly brushing her hair. Not finding said outfit she rushed downstairs, only to see it in the dirty clothes hamper. She paused. She swore she had done the laundry…. On closer inspection she noticed all the dirt smears and grass streaks on it. They looked intentional and she cursed under her breath. "Damnit Suzume…." Rushing back upstairs she grabbed her spare uniform that overtime in its spot had gained many wrinkles. She threw it on and ran down the stairs with her backpack.
Outside her half-sister Suzume was waiting in a car, her mother in the front seat. She sighed and braced herself. She wouldn't ask if it weren't absolutely necessary….and here must have been some reason they were waiting outside in the car, right? She knocked on the window with a hopeful, small (fake) smile on her face. Her nearly identical sister rolled down the window and smirked. Uh oh..
"Yes?" she oozed. Sana gulped.
"Um….could I ride with you to school? I'm going to be late if I ride my bike."
Suzume smiled gently and Sana relaxed a bit but then froze as a sinister smile spread across her look-alikes face.
"Just kidding! Enjoy being late to school, loser! Sucks to suck." She sneered as she rolled up the window and drove off, her mother chuckling in the front seat.
Sana sweat-dropped and sighed. Putting her shitty situation past her, she hiked up her skirt, glad that she was wearing tight black shorts underneath, pulled her hair back in a bun, grabbed her bag, and peddled at the speed of light towards the school. She arrived at Rikkaidai middle school in ten minutes flat. A personal record. Feeling pleased with herself for arriving on time, and even a little early, she attached her bike to the rack and went inside to the bathroom to fix herself up. She smiled a little and let her skirt fall back down to her ankles. Yes, she wore the long style skirt instead of a short one like every other girl in the school. Partly because of choice, and partly because…
"Ugh she is so gross. It's like…an embarrassment to be related to her!"
Sana's thoughts were cut short as evil decided to appear for the second time that morning. Upon entering the bathroom, her suspicions were confirmed. Her half-sister Suzume was there with her three right-hand subordinates, AKA Kimiko, Haru, and Miki. They all turned to look at her and smirked. Kimiko spoke up first.
"Look at what the RAT dragged in girls.."
"How pathetic!" Haru giggled in agreement.
"Your sooo right Suzu-chan! She is positively repulsive!" Miki added, joining in on the laughter.
"Now Girls, her life is already sad enough. Such a poor, ugly girl. Let's leave her to wallow in her misery, shall we girls? We don't want her ugly to rub off on us now, do we?" Suzume cut in.
The girls all squealed in disgust and walked briskly out of the room, each of them bumping shoulders with Sana roughly as they exited. Suzume went last and she stopped in front of Sana, their noses touching. She glared and hissed sharply.
"Don't forget your glasses, loser. And you better braid that hideous hair of yours." With that warning she stormed out of the bathroom, leaving her half-sister behind. Said sister sighed again and straightened up, fully entering the bathroom and walking over to a full length mirror. She whistled low. Even though those girls were wrong, and she knew it, she had to admit she really wasn't looking her best right now. Her clothes were wrinkled, her hair was frizzy and had twigs in it, her face was all red, and she was covered in sweat. Putting a smile on her face, she began fixing herself up. This morning wasn't really all that bad; it was stuff she was used to. In fact her morning was kind of good. She hadn't had to deal with her step-mother and she had a real lucky streak on her way to school. She really was happy about her new record.
After washing her face, brushing her hair, and straightening her uniform, she looked in the mirror satisfied with her work and still with a few minutes to spare before class started. She put on a smile. She knew for a fact those girls were wrong. Everyone knew her sister was beautiful. They just didn't know that she had the same face. She had long wavy black hair to her waist, and sparkling grass green eyes. Her skin was normal colored, neither overly tan nor pale. She was skinny, but not as skinny as her sister because of all the toned muscles she had. Not that she was bulky or anything, she was just about right. Sana was very content with her body, and had no insecurities about it. Very people knew this though. No, at school she had to braid her hair in twin unattractive braids and her skirt went all the way to her ankles. Despite having perfect vision, her step-mother made her wear big framed glasses that hid her eyes. To finish it off, she had a size larger uniform on which drowned her in it and did not show her figure whatsoever.
Sana didn't care much though. Boys weren't worth her time and she had all the friends she needed. Well…friend. And besides, she was focused on more important things. Her grades for example, and her job were all she needed. Just three more years and she was free. She really didn't mind the skirt, she thought it was more her style anyways, and her hair was ok tied up since it was less of a nuisance that way.
In contrast, her sister Suzume kept her blonde-dyed hair free and straight, swept backwards to show off her make-up covered face. Same skin tone, height, and structure. If the two wanted to, they could easily pass for twins despite having different mothers. There were only three physical differences between the two. Number one, Suzume had brown eyes while Sana had green eyes. Number two, Sana had more muscle mass then Suzume, but it was hardly noticeable unless someone looked very closely for a long period of time. Finally, Sana had a heart shaped birthmark on the inside of her right thigh. No one could ever tell that they looked alike though because she was always hidden behind fake lenses and baggy clothes. Most people didn't even know they were related. She was the equivalent of the class loner. On the other hand, Suzume was the queen bee. She was Head of almost all tennis fan clubs, Beautification Club Vice Chairman, and Class Representative. Oh, and she was the girls tennis team captain.
Sana smiled again; she looked her normal and self-albeit the look was chosen for her. She picked up her bag and walked to class, entering just as the bell rang. She smiled on the outside and on the inside, but deep way down, she was tired of her life and couldn't wait to get away from her so called family and just do what she wants. It was the dream that kept her going. She couldn't help but hope something would change…very soon. Despite how ordinary the day seemed, her wish was granted. Things were about to change.