AN: I can't say this is my first time writing a fic, but this is definitely the longest thing I've ever written in such a short amount of time. I was so inspired by this character and I feel like he will be really poignant for the reader that lets him in. xoxo da em0 ch1ck

It was the best of times, and it was the worst of times. All times are measured carefully and placed into categories. This time was both positive and negative, so it fits into both. I want to make sure you understand that this time was important, but not just for our hero. This time was a time recognized throughout the world as the day that everything changed. In fact, if we want to get specific, the hour of the event occurred not a moment too soon or too late, and, because of this fact, many people recorded the perfection of the time that this occurred. It occurred suddenly, like a bad dream you don't want to wake up from because you're confused and want to know more about what's happening, especially why your parents are vampires and want to feed on your aura and why they changed their names to your favorite characters from Dragonball Z. I never wanted my mother to be named Goku, but sometimes things happen and you can't change them no matter what. Our hero learned this lesson that day. It occurred opportunistically, like a small bumble-bee stinging a flower so it can eat the pollen to survive another day. It occurred prominently, like a earthquake felt all around the world on every technotonic plate.

It was our hero's birthday. It was April 29th. It was at exactly 3:00 pm, the day that school at Yamaku Academy ended for the day. AJ was packing up his backpack with the small amount of belongings that he had. After all, he was an orpan, and he could not afford anything more than the bare minimum to survive. The staff and faculty of Yamaku had been welcoming to AJ like two clowns waving to the elderly to brighten their day from the beginning, even offering him a scholarship so that he could afford to receive the care necessary for him to thrive in a school setting. Like all students at this school, AJ suffered from a disability that made it difficult for him to thrive in a school setting. In some stories, the narrator might wait until the end of the story for you to find out what AJ's disability was. They might leave you guessing when they abandon their precious ficcy to complete college apps or browse forums for emo people. I am not one of those people. Okay, maybe I've abandoned a fic or two in my time, but this time I am going to tell you right from the ghetto that AJ has a disability, and his disability is that.

As I was saying, AJ was an orpan that was packing up his belongings so that he could return to his room. Most students at Yamaku participated in extracurriculars like art, where they made art with whatever functioning body parts they had, and student government, where they played Risk ™, and AJ also participated in extracurriculars, but it was Saturday so there were no clubs that day. AJ was walking on the cement that felt hard underneath his threadbare shoes when he saw something in the sky. Up in the sky, millions of miles above AJ's head, was a plane. It was a beautiful plane AJ thought to himself as he watched the plane fly overhead. It truly was beautiful, comparable to Helen of Troy and the like. AJ wanted to be a pilot, but he could not because of his disability, and also all of his family members were captains on ships and did not want him to be a pilot. He never listened to them, though; in fact, his essay on that very topic won him admission into Yamaku Academy with a scholarship that permitted him to attend.

At that very moment, everything changed. A pair of pinkish yellow pigtails plopped on the ground next to AJ's feet. The world stopped as AJ stared at the top of the most beautiful scalp in the world. Not a hair was out of place on this head, and AJ could not stop staring as though he was hypnotized by the ringlets in her pigtails and, just for a second, AJ forgot he was a poor, disabled orpan. At that moment, AJ became a man.

Two large saucer eyes that kittens would gladly drink their milk from looked up at him like the moon. He saw the depths of the time space continuum in the glistening sunset of her pupils.

"I'm Emi! What's your name? xD," she said smiling rapidly.

"Uh.. uh.. I'm.. uh.. uh…," he replied stammering while shaking in his threadbare shoes.

"xD That's an awfully silly name for an awfully silly boy. Are you wearing those shoes ironically? I noticed that the amount of people at Yamaku who shop at thrift stores and wear old clothes has been increasing since the popularlity emergence of that song by Macklemore ™.," Emi said while laughing and later on in the sentence thoughtfully.

"No.. I'm.. uh.. poor.," AJ stammered while trying not to stare too long at her ocean-deep eyes that he wanted to swim in forever.

"Oh wow, that's a neat name! Is that Indian?," she asked inquistively.

"I mean… uh… yes, I'm… Indian, but, um my name is AJ.," he managed to get out in one breath.

"AJ! Wow, AJ, we are going to be the best friends in the whole wide universe until the day that we die.," and just like that Emi and AJ were inseprable. Everyday Emi would bring AJ to the track and they would run as many miles as they could without passing out. It didn't even matter than Emi didn't have legs or was 7 years younger than AJ. They always made their friendship work. Usually I would right more about this, but this is a one-shot so I'm trying to pick up the pace because I have to start my homework soon.

As I was saying, one night AJ and Emi were playing a Japanese-inspired visual novel on AJ's laptop. AJ had been raving about how emotional it was, and he was as in touch with his emotional side as I was when I watched the Fault in Our Stars ™ trailer earlier today and I don't even care what you say about the metaphor line Gus is perfect and I really don't appreciate you making fun of a character that you don't even know especially when you don't understand the hardships and strifes that they've been through and I bet you don't even know what true love is because Hazel and Gus have it and you don't because you don't look past superficial things like some imagined pretentiousness in Gus's voice and you just wish you were half of the man that he is or that you could be as in sync with teenagers as John Green ™ and write characters like him in your fanfiction, okay? Okay. Now I'm crying again just like AJ was when he found out that his favorite character Hanako was not just burned on the outside as evidenced by the scars on her body, but on the inside on her heart as well. Emi was also really emotionally affected by this part as well because she started crying and as she was crying AJ noticed tears welling up in her eyes.

"Emi, my love, are you okay?," AJ asked from the bottom of his heart, but deeper than that. It was more like the abyss of his heart.

"AJ, I don't want to be burned like Hanako. Or blinded, doomed to never see the one I love, like Lilly. I don't want to lose my arms and never be able to touch your precious face except with my feet. I don't want to ever miss any part of anything we ever share.," Emi confessed passionately, wiping away at the small rivers on her face.

"I understand completely, Emi. You are my one and only. I lost my parents at sea, and I've never truly been able to let it go. But I can't hold it back anymore what I feel for you. I know we aren't officially dating yet, but I just want you to know that I've felt closer to you that everyone I've ever met. I don't want you to ever shut me out again or slam the door. We don't need to keep our distance from our true feelings anymore. For the first time in forever, I finally understand. Can I just say something crazy? Will you marry me?" Ajay sobbed choking back tears looking into the eyes of the love of his life, swimming in the great pools of wonder that were only halfway as deep into her soul as the words he just uttered that pierced her ears.

"Can I say something even crazier? Yes."

THE END