The pen etched, back and forth; back and forth, darkening the spot above the forehead of the boy.

'Light, but not too light. Dark, but not black. Chocolate brown. Yes. And his eyes…..how could anyone forget those baby blue eyes? He had such a wonderful personality. Such a…. serious look. How do you put that all on paper?' She wondered silently to herself, a soft smile forming on her lips.

The bell above the door let out a huge roar, and the many bodies surrounding her jumped to their feet. These bodies push for the door, hurried, any spare second could cause a loss of the time NOT spent in class. Her hand released the pen. Slowly warping two fingers around the drawing, she slid it into the binder sitting on the desk. The room had emptied. She glanced around to see the teacher, Mr. Humphre staring at her. She grinned, a little embarrassed, and slowly stood. She picked up her bag and hung it on her shoulder. Mr. Humphre cleared his throat as the girl made her way silently to the door.

It was coming. She knew it was coming. "Kairi….." Frozen dead in her tracks, Kairi grinned with worry, and turned to the teacher. "Mr. Humphre….?" She asked. He, once again, cleared his throat. The girl made her way to his desk, dreading his next attempt at words. "I have been informed by friends of yours that….." he paused. Kairi laughed to herself. Friends? Kairi had no friends outside of Selphie, Riku, and the new boy, Karu Takahashi. What was he getting at? She barely spoke to anyone at Destiny High School in the past few years. "Well, It seems that people have been aware that you have been… 'kept away' for a while now, Kairi."

Kairi frowned. "Is there something wrong with silence, Mr Humphre?" She asked. The man tried to smile. "I have taken notice as well, Kairi." He sighed. "Have you ever thought you might… hurt yourself, Kairi?"

Kairi stared at him, dumbfound by the question. "--Maybe you should see the counselor, Mrs. Hooving?" She was taken back by his suggestion. "I don't need--"

"My dear, I am not dumb… something is troubling you, and, well, I don't want you to go out on us one day…" Kairi blinked at his suggestions of suicide. She swallowed, sick from the thought. "Please, Kairi dear, tell me! I need to know so that I can help you. Accepting the truth is the first step to a successful recovery." He pressured her. Kairi glared at him, and without another word, she turned for the door. "Kairi? Kairi? Look, come back, we're not done talking yet. Kairi--"

She moved down the hallway as fast as her legs would take her. She was troubled, but it wasn;t as though anyone could understand. Right foot, then left foot; right, then left. She could feel their eyes on her. Her classmates eyes; her 'friends'. She frowned. She knew they were laughing at her. 'What does he know?' She groaned. 'I don't need a psychiatrist.' She sighed. 'I need life to be normal again!' Kairi stopped dead in her tracks, turning to the right.. There was a mirror hanging in the hall before her. She frowned. "Never realized that before…." She paused, before laughing at herself. "What is normal?" She whispered. 'Were things ever that simple for us?' Her hand clutched the folder tight across her chest as a tear ran down her check. 'Why am I crying?! I should be used to this feeling by now'

It seemed like the halls were thinning. Kairi began to walk again, only stopping when the bell rang, the loud sound taking her by surprise. It was the end of the year, and a new alarm system with a stronger pierce had recently been installed… or was it her nerves? She chuckled, obviously late for her next class. 'If I had stayed and listened to the old mans lecture, I could have at least gotten a pass.' The halls had emptied now. "Better hurry." she whispered, turning for the other direction.

She began her walk to class through the dead silent halls. Kairi's finger tips traced the binding of the folder. Was her story ending? Or was this only the beginning? Loud footsteps broke Kairi's train of thought. She turned around to see him coming down the steps. Mr. Humphre. Thinking quickly, the girl darted into the nearest room that she could find. As the door shut, she dropped her bag and leaned against the wall. Closing her eyes, she let out a sigh.

"Can I help you dear?" A kind voice came from in front of her. Hesitant to open her eyes, Kairi moaned a little. Slowly, her eye lids rose, and standing before her was a very happy looking woman dressed in all white. She had light gray hair, and pale white skin. The walls were white as well. It was like staring at clouds…...

"Am I dead?" Kairi mumbled. "Oh, such a funny little thing…" The woman smiled, offering her hand to the younger girl. Kairi took it, allowing the woman to help her up.

"Are you new here?" The woman asked. "Oh, no! I have been here since freshman year." She paused. "Where am I?" Kairi asked, confused, but thoughtful of the source. "This is the nurses office dear! Oh my, I do not recognize you at all."

"Oh... I'm just a… healthy soul." She lied. "I haven't been down here much." She bit her lip, pulling a strand of hair from her eyes. "Well…" The woman began, "I don't think I've seen you down here before…" Kairi grinned. "I'm just perfect." She lied again. The woman laughed. "Yes, yes, you are a funny one, I would know it! Well child, what's the matter?" She walked to her desk, taking out a chart and a glass thermometer from her desk drawer. "What?" Kairi asks, obliviously. "Well, you are in the nurses office!" The woman laughed. "Are you not feeling well?" Kairi gained a small smile. "Oh. Uh, yeah… Im kinda dizzy…" Kairi lied again. A third time. She would regret it later.

"Oh my, my, my, my! Alright, lie down, hun….." Kairi walked slowly over to the bed. She gently sat down, careful not to wrinkle the paper. She closed her eyes taking a deep breath in. She could hear the kind woman, humming to herself on the other end of the room.

'The start.' Kairi decided. 'This is the start of my story…'