Cuxie: Whee! I couldn't wait any longer to post this! I just hope I'm not overwhelming myself again.

Ami: I'm all grown up now.

Cuxie: Yep. And your life's not a Candyland either, kid. But we'll get into that later. I need to start the first chapter! Will you please...?

Ami: MewCuxie12 does not own Shugo Chara!

Cuxie: Ha! I remembered! And since I did it first chapter I never hafta do it again! :P Ahem, rolling!

...Ok. It's ok. Calm down. I can do it,I chanted over and over in my head as I reached a shaking hand towards the doorknob of the 4th grade Sun class. It's the first day of school. I'm always so nervous on the first day. Last year, just like today, I stood outside the door for who-know's-how-long, building up the courage to go inside. Hoping it wouldn't be so bad.

I really hope it's not so bad.

Still shaking slightly, I opened the door and entered as quietly as possible, hoping I wouldn't be noticed. A few heads turned my way and I instinctively looked down at my feet. No one spoke to me as I made my way to an empty desk in the corner.

A lot of the students were clustered in small groups, talking about what they did on their break, catching up with their friends. I recognized some kids from my class last year. Silently, I took out my notebook and pencil and waited for our teacher. We had about six minutes until class started and some people were still arriving.

"Hey, isn't that Amu Hinamori's sister?"

I tensed up and hung my head down, pretending not to hear. Two boys in front of me were openly staring and conversing about me. I didn't recognize them, so I doubt they were in my class last year. I pretended to write something in my notebook.

"I think so. But she doesn't look anything like her sister."

"Yeah, she's kind of...plain."

I kept scribbling nothingness on my book, hoping they'd let it go and forget about me. They were a little rude, but they weren't wrong.

Unlike my sister, Amu, with her silky pink hair and luminous golden eyes, my hair is a boring light brown color. I curl the ends and put it into two pigtails with ribbons each day, unlike Onee-chan, who does a little something different with her hair and her signature 'X' clips everyday. My eyes, for some reason, are a duller, less shiny version of my sister's. I've always wondered how Amu can look so effortlessly beautiful without trying while I just blend into the background. But I guess that's just life. It's always been that way.

"Should we ask her if she's really related to Amu Hinamori?"

"You ask her."

"No, you ask her."

Thankfully, before either of them could decide who would ask me, the teacher entered. Itou-sensei, a woman who looked to be in her mid-30s with short black hair, kindly asked us to have our seats.

The first day of school is always the easiest, work-wise. No homework and no real classwork. The 80 minutes stretched on endlessly as Itou-sensei explained the class rules, materials we'd need, and a short synopsis of what we'd be doing this year. And still there wasn't enough time. All throughout class one of the boys tried to get my attention. I pretended not to notice, but I knew as soon as class ended I'd be ambushed. So I spent my time trying to figure out what I would say.

The only reason I did this was because--

"Oh my! I completely forgot to take attendance!" Sensei cried.

Well, that's pretty much why.

I listened carefully, waiting for my name to be called. Honestly, I was a little bit relieved. Maybe once they knew who I was they'd leave me alone.

You know that's not going to happen, a small part of my mind said. I sighed.

"Ami Hinamori?"

"H-Here." I raised my hand slightly, knowing she wouldn't be able to hear my soft voice, but I couldn't bring myself to speak any louder. I was still too nervous.

She smiled down at her attendance sheet. "Hinamori...I had your sister a few years back. She was a darling. How is she, dear?"

I hate it when teachers do this. I know my sister was the perfect student. But I can't stand them drawing unwanted attention to me. Not only that, but now I bet she expects me to be a genius or something. "She's fine."

"Well, please tell her I asked about her."

In front of me, I saw the two boys exchange knowing glances. This definitely wasn't over.

***

At the end of class, just as I predicted, the two boys approached me. I had barely stood up from my desk when they came up to me. They were both grinning like they'd won a prize. The one on the right had shaggy brown hair and bushy eyebrows. The one on the right was taller with bluish-green hair.

"Hey, so you're Amu Hinamori's sister, right?" the blue-haired boy asked me.

I nodded, knowing I'd stutter if I opened my mouth.

"That's so cool! She's like a celebrity! What's she like?" He was speaking kind of loud and some of the other students were stopping to listen.

Before I could answer, not that I really had an answer prepared (What could I say? She's nice, pretty, perfect? They already know that.), the brunette boy started questioning me.

"Isn't she going to be on Utau Hoshina's new album?"

Another girl, whom I recognized from my last class, jumped in as well. "Yeah, I hear she's going to be on the cover with Utau-san!"

"Is it true?"

"Can you get me an autographed CD?"

The questions were coming so fast, I didn't know who was talking or who to answer first, let alone what to say. I clutched my books to my chest. A small crowd of students was surrounding my desk. Crowds make me really nervous. I can never speak when I'm surrounded by so many people. My mouth dries out, my hands start to sweat, and my heart beats too fast. It's nerve-wrecking.

"Are you gonna answer us?" Someone asked impatiently.

Finally, I lost my nerve and ran out of the room, locking in my future for the rest of the year. It's always the same. I never get through the first class. I always get tongue-tied. I never know what to say. I always run away as soon as they start asking about Onee-chan...

My big sister is a legend. An icon. A semi-celebrity on her way to stardom. And she's perfect.

And I mean, perfect. In every way possible.

Everyone's heard of Amu Hinamori. Onee-chan's 16 and in the 10th grade. She gets straight A's, she's captain of the volleyball team, and she's the prettiest and most popular girl in Seiyo High School. It's amazing how perfect she is, how many people know her. Most girls would be jealous, hate her even, but Onee-chan's so nice and cool that it's kind of impossible not to like her. And her popularity has sky-rocketed since she agreed to be featured on Utau Hoshina's new Radiancealbum. She's going to be on the cover with Utau-san, my idol, and she even has a few solo songs on the album. Not only that, but she's been close friends with Utau-san for years now. Her manager offered Onee-chan a recording contract. She put it on hold until after she finishes high school.

Now, Onee-chan can't walk down the street without getting asked for her autograph.

I love her so much, but she's made it so hard for me. The only reason anyone ever talks to me is to ask about her. Everyone expects me to be perfect too but...I'm not. I can't be.

Amu was well-known even when she was my age. She used to be the Joker of the Guardians and the coolest girl in school. Everyone knew the Cool&Spicy Amu Hinamori. And she's always had celebrity friends. When she was just a year older than me, Amu did a photo-shoot with Yua Sakurai, the former model now turned singer. She has a picture of them together on her dresser, and in one of Yua-san's interviews she named Amu as her "inspiration for becoming a singer".

How can anyone expect me to be that cool? I'm not even a Guardian and I doubt I'll become one anytime soon. Especially the Joker, which is supposedly a rare Guardian that's only appointed every few years. There hasn't been one since my sister.

I was so distracted by my thoughts that I wasn't looking were I was going. My head was ducked and I was running blindly through an nearly deserted hall in the general direction of my gym class.

I rammed into someone, sending us both to the floor. My books flew out of my hands.

"Ow!"

"Oh, I-I'm so sorry! I-I didn't mean..." My voice trailed off as I stared at the person I knocked down.

Makoto Seo stared back at me with dark blue eyes. Dirty-blonde hair fell across his face and he looked confused. Seo-san is the current Jack's chair of the Guardians. He's also a member of the track team. Everyone likes him because he's so friendly. He'll help anyone who needs it. He's also pretty smart.

Oh my gosh! I ran into a Guardian!

"I-I-I'm sorry!" I cried again.

He laughed and stood up. "It's fine. Accidents happen." He reached out a hand to help me up and I took it. He quickly retrieved the scattered books. "I think this is yours." He handed me my notebook.

"Thank you," I mumbled at my feet.

"You looked like you were in a hurry."

An out! "Y-Yes! I have to get to my gym class. I'm sorry. Bye!" I took off again before he could respond. I'm so stupid! I made a complete fool of myself in front of Seo-san. Now he probably thinks I'm a klutz with a speech impairment or something.

Amu would never do something like that, that small pessimistic voice in my head said. I knew it was right.

***

Gym class isn't my favorite class. In fact, I don't really have a favorite class since I'm not particularly good at anything. I do okay at most stuff, but not great. Not like my sister.

Amu's a great athlete. I've heard rumors that Amu once jumped so high during the high-jump that she practically flew. At this point, I don't think there's anything she can't do.

I just hope no one expects me to do that.

Luckily, we were just running track. It's tiring and boring, but it's not the worst gym exercise. There's not much pressure for me to excel beyond all expectations since we're just running. Which is good because even though I never finish last, I never finish first either.

A group of girls passed me, having their own mini-race. They laughed and teased each other about who would finish first. Watching them, I suddenly felt lonely and longing.

I can't remember ever having a real friend. No one really talks to me. My link to the renowned Amu Hinamori is the only thing that gets me noticed. But I've never had anyone like me for just me. Way back in first and second grade, girls used to come over to my house, but we never played together. They only wanted a closer look at the life of Amu Hinamori. They'd sneak peeks into her room and flutter around her if she happened to be home. In other words, they pretty much ignored me. It hurt so much that I just separated myself from them. Whenever someone wanted to come over, I made some kind of excuse, or I said Onee-chan wouldn't be home and they took back their offer.

I wonder if I'll end up so lonely that I'll go insane.

***

I walked home alone. When I went inside I was greeted by Mama and Papa, as usual. Papa, being Papa, snapped a few pics of me when I walked through the door. He always does that on the first day of school, but I can faintly remember a time when his camera would always be focused on me. A time when I actually enjoyed being the center of attention. When I knew how.

But there's rarely a reason to take pictures of me now. Papa spends his time documenting Amu's growth. Since she's turning into such a "lovely young woman" and "growing up so fast", he takes pictures whenever she goes out to a party of to hang with friends, or something special. Which is often.

Needless to say, I don't do anything of any interest, so pictures of me are useless. But Papa takes one sometimes. Just because.

Amu was in the kitchen, helping Mama with dinner. Mama swears she's just helping Amu since she's the better cook now.

Amu looked up and smiled at me. "Hey, Ami."

"Hi, dear. How was school?" Mama asked.

I forced a smiled for both of them. "Great. I got a really nice teacher. Itou-sensei says 'Hi'."

"Say hi for me too," Amu said. "She was a pretty cool teacher. You got lucky."

I nodded, heading for the stairs.

"Dinner's going to be in about 25 minutes," Mama called.

"Um, actually I'm not very hungry. Today was pretty tiring. We did a lot of running in gym. If it's ok, I'm gonna go take a bath and get in bed." That was technically true. I wasn't at all hungry. And the thought of sitting through dinner while Amu told us about her fabulous day did drain me of my energy, considering I had nothing at all to talk about. I went to school and did work. Just a typical day of my boring life.

After a hot shower I was feeling a little sleepy. I slipped into a pair of pink pajamas and curled up into my bed. My room hasn't changed in years. It's still fluffy and pink with dolls and stuffed animals in various places. It's the one place I feel like me. When I'm in my room I can easily imagine the cutesy, perky little girl who used to live here. I really can't say when that girl turned into a such a shy outcast. But I wish I could get her back.

I wish I could be like that again.

Cuxie: Woooow. I typed that all in one sitting. I'm so proud of myself!^-^

Ami: I...I don't know what to say.

Cuxie: Yeah, I know. I bet you're all like, What happened to the adorable Ami we all knew and loved?To that I say: If she were here there'd be no story. So, yeah. And for those of you who are thinking that this is just going to be a repeat of Amu's life, you're wrong. That'd be boring and unoriginal. And I'm ALL about original. So prepare yourselves! And R&R if you want a chapter two!