plain and simple.
Disclaimer: I don't own DNANGEL or any of its characters, music, etc. They all belong to Sugisaki, ne. If I did own them, however, Satoshi/Risa would be the main pairing HANDS DOWN XD But then it wouldn't ... oh, you know what. Never mind. Read on. D
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01. START LINE
The warmth of the summer breeze brushed against my skin as I sat cross-legged in the passenger seat of my uncle's sports car.
"We're almost there," he said, in his husky voice. I couldn't help but to wonder where "there" was. All that Uncle Max had told me was that we were driving to his house, which was not supposed to be far from Tokyo Airport. If three hours of driving was not considered far for the Japanese, I was ready and willing to take the first plane back to New Jersey. I absolutely could not stand long car rides, nonetheless ones that required sitting through who knew who many hours of bubbly, upbeat Japanese pop. Not that there was anything wrong with the music; it was just very new to me. Sure, I was Japanese by blood, but at heart, I was one-hundred percent American. There was absolutely no way of changing that, either. My hair had been dyed blonde; I wore blue contacts. Anime? Manga? My Super Sweet Sixteen, and Vogue. Ayu? Koda? Utada? Avril, Lindsay, and Ashley.
The only things I loved Japanese were ramen and sushi. But everything else could go back into the basement, locked away in cardboard boxes labeled with things I'd never be able to read. Nor did I intend to learn how to read, actually, even living in Japan now. I wasn't planned to start school for another few weeks. I still had time to torture the hell out of my Uncle, cry to my mother every way I possibly could, and make it back to New Jersey in time for my sophomore year, at Saint Francis's, as I'd intended.
So who had intended for me to live in Japan with my Uncle? My father. Now, let me get this straight with you before I begin to rant. I love that man dearly. He raised me; he supports me; he is everything to my mother and me. But that one night, he was completely fed up with me. Not the "You're grounded!"-fed up, either, but the fed up that made you want to crawl into a ditch and never come back out. And it was scary. And this, Japan, was payback.
It all started while we were sitting in the car one evening, while picking up my mother for work. He was testing my mental math skills, and I'd managed to screw up, at a very easy problem, at that matter. This completely infuriated him, and he began to trash every single thing I'd loved -- from my music, to my values, to my makeup and my friends. It was a never-ending nightmare, those forty five minutes. But it only got worse when we got back into the house, and I sat, typing a rant onto my Live Journal. Storming into my bedroom without even knocking (Could you believe?), he demanded me to shut off my computer. I did so, and he sat down on my bed. For a moment, I truly believed he was going to apologize to me; but rather, he came to announce my punishment.
"You have no pride in your Japanese heritage – or any of your Asian ancestry, for that matter," He began. So? I thought. He must have read my mind, because he went on, "So your mother and I have decided. We called your Uncle Max" -- instantly, my eyes widened. Uncle Max? This couldn't be good. – "and he was gracious enough to allow you to live with him in Japan for the remainder of your high school education. Should you refuse? Well, that's your problem, because you're going. You're going to discipline yourself while you are there, as well. Don't take Max for granted. He will be as strict with you as we are, and I am very sure he will be most displeased to hear how you have completely…white-washed yourself in your fifteen years. When you come back, I expect to see at least some pride in you."
I blinked. My mouth opened, but words didn't come out. Was this a joke? He had to be kidding. He had to be. But of course, with me sitting here in Uncle Max's sports car, he hadn't been. It was funny how anger could get people to do such silly things. And now, here I was, riding along as the car passed skyscrapers, shoppers, and tourists, all which formed a blurry wall of pinks, whites and browns against the bright blue Japan sky.
With all that said.
Welcome to the start of the worst days of my life.
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There you have it; I know it's short, but it's only an introduction after all. But anyway, reviews would be nice. Criticism is a zillion times welcome, just please word things nicely.