Prologue

Why do human love? Why do human greed? Why can't human be alone? Why do human hate? Why do human interact? Why do human civilize? Why do human suffer? Why do human have emotions? Why do human think? Why do human have tears? Why do human multiply? How do human act human?

I don't understand. If I don't understand, does that make me less of a human, or maybe not even a human being. I just don't know the answer, no matter how much I think about it, I feel like I lack an entire world. Yet, all I can do is follow, not taking a single look out of the box. All of these questions I ask, will someone ever answer?

In southeastern region of Japan, is a beautiful city near the clean blue ocean called Fukazawa city. Fukazawa is a city that is dramatically changing every day. The people of Fukazawa love to stay because of the ocean sea shore nearby and it just happens that it's their only reason for staying. Inside the inner city of Fukazawa is filled with famous brand stores and buildings, new stores are quickly being built to compete against the top. The new buildings and companies are set outside of the inner city, but eventually they will become the new boundary of the inner city.

In a big traditional Japanese home, far away from the inner city is a family of four. An eight years old boy, his young mother, an older sister, and a younger sister too. Not a big family and the house is filled with lots of maids to do the house keeping.

My home is a bit far from the inner city, it so happens that my house is the very few traditional Japanese home, though mine is probably the biggest one of all. Even if my home is extremely big, not many people live there. The only people who is living with me are my mother, an older sister, and a younger sister; not a big family either. Remembering this day, I knew very little about my father and all I know about him is that he is a very kind person. It was a real hard time when my mother and father divorce each other, but I can't remember why though. My mother fought the court to take custody of my sisters and me, and it was tradition that the mother would take their child than the father. My mother also decided to change our family name to hers and people then feared us, because of my mother's family. My mother's family is not to be underestimated since she basically rules the whole city. If I recall, her grandfather was one of the few who built Fukazawa.

This big and beautiful city that even shines at the crescent moon is the only city I love. The criminal rate is very low compare to Tokyo and the beach is not so far from us. This very city is my precious memory, but I did not know what was coming.

I was only eight years old and I was very naïve, I mean I'm still considered a child, but it is too cruel fact for a little boy to be facing such hard times. There was some sign before the harsh awakening of reality, but it seems that happy times do not last very long.

December 9th, 2002, my mother was acting very strange in the morning. It was really rare to see my beautiful mother in the living room, spacing out by the window. I attempted to get my mother's attention by softly tapping her left hand, but it was no use, she does not answer. I double-tapped her hand again, only resulting in the same result as the first. I was furious that she did not answer me, so I decided to keep tapping until she replies to my call. After a couple more times of tapping,

"Mother, what's wrong? Are you feeling okay?" I said repeating after every tap.

"Mother…!" She still kept ignoring me. Light came back into her eyes, but still not reply yet. I thought to myself that I won't give up.

"Mo—ther…?" I said abruptly. She turns around with an angry pissed off face, and I quickly became frightened.

"Leave me alone!" She says. At the time, I thought that this might be a huge turning point for me. I have always believed that there was a huge gap between my family and me. I looked forward for a day that one day we could reunite and actually become a real family. I took the huge risk with a fifty percent chance of succeeding.

"I can't leave mother alone! Because… because…" I began to show an expression I have never felt until now.

"Did I ever ask for your worries? You just started worrying yourself!" mother yells back at me. Now I felt that I have completely disobeyed my mother's orders, I am just a disrespectful child; a bad child. My facial expression can no longer be described as an emotion, it is an expressionless face.

I didn't know what to say anymore, I was not taking my time to think, only my mouth thought for me. I tried to stop my eyes from crying, but tears just kept coming down. My body was just too weak and fragile that I could no longer hold my tears from flowing down my face.

"I can't stand you anymore, just leave… Get out of my face!" she screams and yells at me with hatred in her eyes. I, who couldn't even complete a full sentence, was unable to say anything right.

"But mother, I…" I trembled as I tried to convince her; my eyes are filled with emptiness, and no light reflects into it to give me any hope. My mother interrupts me, not letting me finish what I wanted to say.

"Hurry up and pack your things, Get out of here already! Now…!" I had already lost hope in trying to convince her and in the end; I decided to do what she said to me. I went into my room and gathered up my things. I packed up some clothing, a warm coat, and a scarf that my mother made for me that contained the love she put in it. The only things that I packed were things I needed to survive and nothing that will be too hard to carry.

Luckily I saved all of my money ever since I was very little. The amount of money I saved up was around three hundred thousand yen. Even if I am only an eight years old boy, I know that the amount of money I am bringing with me will help me survive and will last me very long.

I left the Ichinomiya main household. I turned back to see the household one last time before I head off and leave the entrance walkway, only remembering what trembling memories the house had created for me. I turned forward and continued walking. I finally reached the entrance gate, I saw my sisters walking towards me. It just happened to be that my sisters who just got back from school would encounter me leaving. They stop when they got near me, but they didn't spoke a single word, except looking at me and my bag I was carrying. I continued walking out of the gates, not even looking back anymore. I gave up all hopes for the family I wished for. My happiness became very thin and cheap.

I remembered something from a while ago, that people would call me a person who is capable of adapting to any surrounding I am place. I didn't want to believe since it would cause me to have hope for something that will probably end up shattering. As of now, I have this deep painful feeling that is piercing my heart every time I try to think back. I wonder what this feeling is; it makes me angry that I crunch my left fist tightly.

My sisters who are looking at me with a serious face still didn't say a thing. This sensation kept bugging me; every second I look at them I have hard time breathing. A breezy wind blows and passes right through me; my front hair covers my red eyes. If mother really wanted me she would of immediately chase me back; I was hoping she would, but all I could do is accept. I slowly just walk, to a place I don't even know...