Gakuen Alice

The Problem With Being Rich

By mysilentvoice

…

This is amazing. The ceiling is at least fifteen metres high. The couches are made of leather. There's a fountain in the garden and the entire property is surrounded by forests. Did I forget to mention the front gate is made from gold? Pure gold. Oh, I'm sorry, did you think I was talking about a castle in England? Sorry to disappoint you, but this ain't no castle. It might as well be one though. This is Alice Academy. One of the most elite schools in the world and definitely the best in all of Japan. So anyway…What the heck am I doing here?

Let's see, if we summarize all the events that have taken place over the past few days into one nice essay, it would look something like this:

I woke up to the sound of the alarm clock, it's persistent ringing bringing me out of dreamland. How I wish I had stayed in that land though. I did my usual morning routines, and skipped down the stairs to the kitchen. Surprisingly, I did not fall flat on my face. "Good morning, grandpa!" I smiled, pulling out a chair. I would have sat on it but there was something else I had to ask my grandfather first. I bit my lip. "Grandpa, why is there a mysterious woman in our kitchen?"

My grandfather laughed nervously, "Well you see-" I narrowed my eyes. "Don't tell me she's your girlfriend? You're too old." Oops. Grandpa is glaring at me now. Time to run away–

"Ouch!" I cried. My poor, poor head. It's as if the sky came crashing down on me. "What'd you hit me for?" I whined.

My grandfather frowned. "You were being an idiot, Mikan. Now listen carefully to Yuka-san here. She has something important to tell you."

"Yuka-san?" I suddenly remembered the stranger in front of me. I blushed. "Sorry about earlier, Yuka-san. My grandpa's just so old and has never been seen near a woman except the one who sells fish–Um, wait, never mind. I'm Mikan Sakura."

Yuka-san smiled kindly at me. "No worries, Mikan. I'm just so glad I finally got to see you. You've grown so much."

I scrunched my eyebrows in confusion. "Are you one of grandpa's old friends whom he used to play poker with? A lot of them drop by claiming I've grown a lot."

"Uh, no. I only knew your grandfather for a day or so, just enough time to get acquainted and have him take you in."

I cocked my head. The universal sign for: Huh?

Yuka massaged her temples. "Sorry, this may be a little confusing. Let me explain my story first. When I was still a teenager, I attended this very elite school for rich kids. I come from a wealthy family, but I'm not in touch with them anymore. So while I was at the school, I fell in love with my teacher, who–"

"Wow!" I exclaimed. "You fell in love with your teacher? Is that even legal?" Yuka looked a little taken aback, but she smiled nonetheless.

"I'm not sure about illegal, but I do know that I love him very much. But anyway, he was my teacher and came from a very, wealthy family, even wealthier than mine. His bloodline even traces back to nobility. And through a series of events, we both realized we loved each other and then, we eloped."

I gasped. Grandpa shot me a glare. But never mind. "Cool, you mean you ran away together? That's so sweet! But why did you, if you don't mind me asking?"

"Well, our families were forcing us toremain at the academy so as to forge strong ties with the academy. The academy is owned by another wealthy man, and our families wanted us to befriend him and all the other students who came from approved backgrounds. But me and my teacher, we were tired of that sort of life, being rich and all, so we ran from the academy."

Yuka looked into my eyes. I could feel myself tearing a little. She smiled sadly. "We managed to get quite far, but our families and the academy had sent people to pursue us, wanting to bring us , one night, I don't know why but my teacher, the love of my life was killed. We were running through a deserted town, and those our family hired to chase us were hot on our heels. I know they weren't given orders to actually harm us, but one of them, most likely a traitor or spy, took out a gun and shot my teacher. The other pursuers were shocked and a fight broke out amongst them. I took advantage of the situation and ran, knowing my lover could not be saved."

I don't know why, but I felt as if I died when I said that. Her story was so sad. What, why am I crying? I clamped both hands over my mouth, a choked sob barely managed to escape. I glanced over at Yuka-san through a blur of tears, and I knew that she was crying too.

Yuka-san dried her eyes with a tissue grandpa offered her. "I was eight months pregnant at the time he died," she sniffed. "And I was so scared. I was alone, my baby was about to be born, and there was always someone chasing me. Finally, I went to my best friend. I knew her while we were in the academy and she herself was being pursued. I didn't want to trouble her and her husband, but I was desperate. I found her just in time, and my baby was born in her home."

I smiled. "That must have been a very happy moment for you. What did you name your baby?"

Yuka-san laughed nervously, for some reason. "Let's come back to that later, shall we?" She said. "So fortunately, my friend was kind enough to hide me for a few weeks, but one day, while we were all running away from pursuers, both hers and mine, I realized I couldn't trouble her any further. I turned to her as we crouched in a small alleyway and told her, 'I'm so sorry for all this. Thank you so much. Good-bye.' Then, I took my baby and I ran. I ran away from her, from everything and I had no idea where I was. I think I was running through small forest but soon enough I reached a small town. It was snowing and I was about to collapse from exhaustion and my baby was running a high fever. Just when I thought we were done for, an old man approached me. He took pity on me and sheltered us for the night, he even brought in a doctor for my baby. I was really grateful. But when morning came, I realized I couldn't trouble anyone, much less an innocent old man. My pursuers were sure to find me eventually. So, I left the old man's house too. But before that, I left my baby with him, and told him to take care of her for me. Then I ran again. Away from the house, away from that small town."

Grandpa was tearing a bit too, and he was looking at me in a very sad way. I wondered why. I continued listening to Yuka-san's story.

"After that, I decided I couldn't keep running forever. I had to do something. Make sure they wouldn't bother me again. And with the help of another friend from the academy, I went to my teacher's family. They were an old couple and were devastated by the death of their son. But thankfully, they were as kind as he was. They took me in, and I claimed full responsibility for his death, and told them I'd make up for what I'd done by giving them what they did not have. A heir. They were a little reluctant at first, but I worked hard and showed them I was fully capable of taking over their family business. And now, they've fully accepted me and I am in charge of everything under their company. It has been many long years and I've finally decided it was time to find my daughter whom I left behind."

I grinned. "That's wonderful, Yuka-san. Did you manage to find your daughter?"

She smiled at me. A smile so sad yet happy at the same time. She rose from her chair and approached me. I suddenly found myself being hugged by her. But, why? The answer soon came.

"Yes," she whispered into my ear. "I've finally found you. Mikan."

…

End of essay. Wow, my teacher would be proud of me. But back to the present. Turns out I'm Yuka's daughter, and she has decided to welcome me back into my original family with open arms. There was a lot of tears and hugging after that. Yuka–I mean, mom wants me to attend Alice Academy too, since she wants me to prepare for the future as heir to Yukihara Industries. I nearly fainted at that. I mean, I can't even get a B for math! But I didn't want my mother to be alone any longer, so I agreed to enroll in Alice Academy.

So here I am, in the principal's office, waiting for my mother to finish handling the paperwork. I can't believe it, the principal's office has a chandelier and a huge window overlooking the academy gardens. I swear, my jaw dropped to the floor when I walked in. But I guess I have to get used to it, seeing as I'm now the daughter of the owner of Japan's wealthiest family and company! Oh dear, I feel myself going faint again. I quickly rise from my perch on the leather armchair.

"Um, mom," I call. She's sitting at the principal's desk and I suddenly wonder if I'm being rude. "Mom, is it okay if I take a walk outside? I need some fresh air."

"Alright, Mikan. Don't wander off too far." My mother answers and the principal nods to me as well. "Be careful."

"I will." And the door closes. Finally, I was getting nervous sitting beside that glass statue. I am terribly careless after all. I scan my surroundings. There's a huge staircase in front of me, one dead end to my left and a dark hallway to my right. Alright, staircase it is. Woah, this staircase is huge, and long! Is that velvet I see carpeting it?

As I step closer to inspect, I suddenly find myself spinning, the world a big blur of color. "Ow!" I shout, my head really hurts. Crap, I'm not going to land very smoothly, not with that guy standing at the bottom staring at me like I'm an idiot. Or that's what I think his face is saying, hard to tell when you're tumbling down a very long staircase.

"Oof!" I've finally reached the ground floor. Great, I feel like I've been tossed into a washing machine. And my head hurts. And my arms. Legs too. I think it's safe to say my whole body hurts. Ouch, that's gonna hurt for the next few weeks. I shake my head a little and try to get a grip. Okay, I appear to have landed on my back, and there's a boy who's face is way too close for my liking. He opens his mouth and I'm thinking he's probably going to ask if I'm alright, but instead he says, "Are you an idiot?"

What. The. Heck?

…

Hope this chapter has captured your interest and enchanted you into reading more. Like a puppy that has smelt barbecue on the other side of the country. If you found this short, don't worry, the others will be longer.

Feel free to tell me what you think, and go ahead and suggest any possible events you'd like to take place. After all, what the reader wants, what the reader…sometimes gets. Hey, it's my story right?

Adieu,

mysilentvoice~