STARTING SONG: "Chicks = Trouble" by Mötley Crüe
It took way too long to get this chapter out, and I apologize to anyone who was waiting for it.
CHAPTER ONE
"I hate you, Nunnally! I wish you had died instead of Mother!"
Even though I need to relax, I can't help but clench my teeth at the memory. I need to try and think of something else.
The human body is seventy per cent water.
Hirobumi Itō was the first prime minister of Japan.
Turtles breathe through their butts.
To keep salaries low, McDonald's and other fast food restaurants engage in anti-union activities.
Strawberries have more vitamin C than oranges.
Nunnally likes strawberries.
I shake my head vigorously. No, bad thoughts! If I start thinking about Nunnally, I'll just get upset again, and I need to concentrate. I take a deep breath and resume rubbing my wrists together, trying to loosen the ropes tied around them.
The jump from the Golden Gate Bridge is 250 feet. Trauma from the jump is dramatic and can cause ripped blood vessels, demolished central nervous systems, and a transected spinal cord. While a few have died from drowning and one from a shark attack, most die from the impact of the body on the water. Only 1% who jump survive.
During the Middle Ages, mixed breeds of peasants' dogs were required to wear blocks around their necks to keep them from breeding with noble hunting dogs. Purebred dogs were very expensive and hunting became the province of the rich.
Sharks belong to a group of fish known as the elasmobranchs, or cartilaginous fishes. Rays and skates, which may have evolved from sharks, also belong to this group.
Silvered leaf monkeys are silver to dark gray in color. Infants, however, are bright orange.
Ah, it's loose! I free my hands and get to work untying the rope around my legs, glad that those stupid escape lessons are finally paying off.
Okay, first things first. I start kicking at the taillight. After a few good hits, it falls out, and I turn around to peer outside. I am momentarily dumbstruck: The tall building and bright lights I expected, but not the sight of so many girls in maid outfits passing out fliers. I must be in Akihabara, but why would they take me here?
Oh, God. Please tell me I didn't get kidnapped by otaku. They might... do things. I've seen the anime that comes on late at night!
Right, I need to focus on getting out of here. I stick my hand through the opening where the taillight used to be and start waving around, trying to get someone's attention. Unfortunately, before that can happen (that I know of), the car pulls to a stop at the curb. I quickly withdraw my hand and wrap the ropes hastily around my wrists and legs, then lie down and pretend to be unconscious. After a few seconds that feel like hours, I hear my kidnappers remarking on the broken taillight.
"It was already loose," one of them is saying to the other. "Don't worry about it."
"Yeah, but, what if he-"
"I said don't worry about it!" the first guy snaps, then I hear the trunk door open. "Rise and shine, little prince!" he sings. I don't move. "I said, get up!" the man says, grabbing me by my collar and yanking me up.
Using the element of surprise to my advantage, I kick him in the chest, causing him to drop me. I quickly scramble out of the trunk and start running.
"Hey, get back here!" the second guy calls after me.
Yeah, right. I think, ducking into an alleyway and climbing into a pile of garbage bags mere moments before the kidnappers arrive at the entrance.
"Where'd he go?" the first man asks, looking around. "I'll wring his skinny neck!"
"Aniki... We won't get paid if you do that."
"We won't get paid if he gets away, either!"
The two men head in my direction and I duck down, hoping against hope they didn't notice me peeking out of the bin. There are a few tense minutes in while I listen to them searching through the alley for me.
"Maybe he's hiding in here," the second man says, shifting through the garbage so close to me I can feel my heart stop.
"Idiot!" the first man says, and the second guy leaves. "He's a prince! He's not going to hide in the trash!"
"I guess you're right..."
"Come on! He's not hiding around here, so he must've run through."
They finally leave, and I breathe a sigh of relief, which I immediately regret, since some of the trash went up my nose.
I drag myself out of the trash, feeling my breakfast climbing back up my throat. I just barely manage not to throw up on myself, then make my way out of the alleyway, in the opposite direction from where the kidnappers went.
I stand on the street for a moment, suddenly painfully aware that I'm in a foreign country, thousands of miles away from the majority of my family. And, to top it all off, I ran out of the house in my pajamas this morning, and don't have any shoes.
I smile a little, thinking of how the kidnappers had called me a prince. No one who saw me now would believe that. I reach up to wipe away something stuck to my forehead. It's a ramen noodle. And it was stuck to my head.
My vision blurs and I reach up to rub my eyes. Crying won't do me any good right now. There's no telling when the kidnappers will figure out they went the wrong way and come back, and I need to find a phone.
I turn and start walking down the street.
"Excuse me," I say, standing on my tiptoes to see over the counter of the restaurant next to the alley. "Um, do you have a phone I can use?" I asked once I finally get the waitress' attention.
"In the back," she says, pointing towards the back of the restaurant.
"Thank you." I head in the direction of she indicated and find a pay phone against the wall. I pick up the receiver and drop some change in (even though I didn't bother to dress, I still had the presence of mind to grab a little money before leaving this morning). However, I hesitate with my hand over the touch pad. I know the number, I just can't bring myself to dial it. What if I get back and Nunnally's still mad at me? She'd have every right to be, of course, but...
I set the phone back on the receiver, take my money back, and leave the restaurant.
The cosplayers surrounding me make the walk seem unreal, and I begin to wonder if I'm dreaming. Even though I must smell to high heaven and look terrible, no one spares me a second glance, probably assuming I'm in cosplay as well. I need to get some clean clothes.
I pass by many businesses, looking for one that seems empty, wanting as few people to see me as possible. Eventually, I discover a store that suits my purposes: A tiny Gamers. Looking through the window, I can only see one customer: A short girl with long, blue hair.
I take a deep breath, and open the door.
Everyone who reads this far receives a box set of "A Little Snow Fairy Sugar".
ENDING SONG: "One Year of Love" by Queen