Preface

I'm not going to lie, I'm a little scared. No matter how much I try to deny it, there is just something about the prospect of a new school that scares me. Don't get me wrong, I love school, I'm just a quiet soul, slightly weird, but nothing too bad. My mom used to tell to me about how I would sit in our yard when I was little and just watch the cars pass. I don't really remember why I did it, I guess people just interest me, the way they pass the world by, without ever giving a second glance to the simple things they drive next to, to busy wrapped up in their own lives, no doubt. But that was back before my dad left us, before my mom stopped looking her own children in the face, and before my brother and I had to move, to Kadic, of all places.

Chapter 1

The summer before my 9th grade year is when everything changed. I don't know why it happened, or what triggered it, but Dad was angry, really angry, angrier then I had ever seen him. I was in my room when I heard our front door slam open. It startled me, but I wasn't too alarmed; Dad had a tendency to come home drunk. However, that night was different, he didn't stomp up to his room and slam the door behind him like he usually did on days when he stayed too late at the bar. That night he stopped.

Mom was in the kitchen, preparing for dinner, when my dad came home. I heard them start to argue. I didn't think much of it, couples fight, right? Then things started to get a little scary. I heard glass shatter against the floor, cabinets slam, the situation was getting serious. My door crept open and I could see my little brother's frightened face peering through the doorway. I knew he was on the brink of tears, so I quickly signaled him into my room, where he ran straight into my arms, burying his face into my shoulder.

It took about half an hour, but things had finally started to calm down. Hiroki was now fast asleep, with his head resting against my tear-soaked shoulder. I knew things were still going on downstairs, but I felt it was safe enough to step out of my room. As quietly as I could, I carried Hiroki down the hall to his bed and tucked him in. It amazed me how light he was, but then again, he was always small for his age, such a tiny 6th grader. I was so exhausted, I could hear my dad tumbling up the stairs. I decided I would sleep in Hiroki's room, just for the night. Everything would go back to normal in the morning, I hoped.

X

Sadly, nothing had gone back to normal. When I woke up, Dad was gone, along with all of his stuff, and half the money in my parent's joint bank account. My mom was a sloping, slobbery heap of tears on the couch. I could tell Hiroki was trying to comfort her, but to no avail.

For the next week, everyone in our house seemed to be in mourning. We needed to leave, and everyone knew it. My mom decided that we were to move out as soon as possible, but we weren't going to sell the house. My mom was still holding on to the slim hope that my dad would come back.

Two weeks after the fight, we had found a house and were all packed up and ready to move. The house was a huge Victorian style, hard to believe we could afford it. I was ready to start new. I helped mommy carry the bags out of the car and into the living room. The movers had gotten here a little earlier, so all of our furniture was already here. I took a couple bags of my things and ran upstairs to check out my new room. I climbed the dusty stairs up to the top floor, where our bedrooms were located.

My room was simple; tan wallpaper, a small bed, and a old, grimy dresser. There was also a huge set of Victorian windows that led out onto a beautiful balcony. I stood in the middle of the room, running my hand through my short, shoulder-length hair, and open the dresser door to the left. It was dusty, like the rest of the house, but I liked it. I took a few paces back, to where I was standing in the middle of the room again. I sneezed, and a cloud of dust flew into my eyes like the soldiers in a war. I ran to the closest window, and flung the curtains open.

The suns harsh rays momentarily blinded me, but after a few seconds I was able to gain back my composure. The window was facing the side of the house, so I had an up close view and personal view of my new neighbor's house. Just the kind of view I had been hoping for, not.

I opened up the large windows and stepped out onto the small, decorative railing of my balcony, letting the fresh air fill my lungs. It felt good, having the early July sun pounding down on my face, and the slight breeze blowing through my tousled hair. It felt like I had stood there for an eternity, but, of course, something had to interrupt my peace. It was a small, repetitive sound, but it was annoying the shit out of me. The worst part was, it was coming from the room straight across from mine.

Reluctantly, I opened my eyes. A decision I instantly regretted, forgetting how bright the summer sun could actually be. I squinted for a few seconds before I was able to get used to the blinding rays. Then, I lowered my head to find the source of incredibly irritating noise. Standing there, completely oblivious to everything, was a small, pink haired girl, who was mindlessly drumming her delicate fingers along the railing of her balcony.

"Hey," I shouted to her, but she still wasn't paying attention. "HEY," I screamed a little louder, hoping she'd hear me this time around. I wasn't sure if she had heard me, or if she had just gotten that feeling I always get when someone stares at me for too long. The girl looked up, and then removed a previously hidden headphone from her ear.

"Who are you?" she asked, confusion flowing through her voice. The directness of her question took me back a little. She didn't seem like a very direct type of person. It was almost intimidating.

"Um, hi. My name's Yumi. I just moved here." I really was not in the mood to have a long, uncomfortable discussion with this girl.

"Oh right, I heard we were getting new neighbors. I'm Aelita Hopper." She gave me a huge smile and walked closer to the edge of her balcony, leaning against the railing. "Gosh, it'll be good to have another girl my age in the neighborhood. Being the only girl in a group of guys isn't as fun as it sounds." She winked playfully at me, and I laughed awkwardly.

"You're the only girl?" I asked, out of pure politeness.

"Not exactly, just the only girl anyone in this neighborhood anyone can stand." I wasn't sure how to respond, so I just nodded my head in agreement. "Yeah. So what's your story? You got any brothers or sisters?" She asked, seeming more intrigued in the conversation then I was.

"Yeah, I have a little brother named Hiroki. I love him and all, but he can be such a brat sometimes." I told her

"I know whatcha' mean."

"You have a little brother too?"

"Well, kinda," she said "You see, my dad travels a lot, so I live here with my aunt Susan and her son Odd. He's the same age as me, but he acts like a gigantic kid sometimes. He should be back any second. I'm sure he'd love to meet a cutie like you."

I blushed. I was never good around the opposite sex. Boys always made me feel nervous and unsteady. That makes my experience in the dating department little to none. So the idea of living next to a boy my age is almost scary.

"He's a real Casanova. I swear he goes through at least ten girls a week."

"Where is he now?" I asked

"He's at his friend Ulrich's house. He actually lives in the other house next to you."

Great, another boy living next to me. That's exactly what I need.

Then I heard a knock coming from inside Aelita's house.

"Hey, open up," came an unknown voice from the other side of her bedroom's door.

"Speak of the devil." Aelita said, jumping down from the railing She opened the large, half-sized windows and climbed inside. "Wait here," she instructed me.

I could here voices from inside, but I couldn't make them out, and the room was to dark to see inside, so I was left outside, trying to gather my thoughts on the new living situation. If anything, at least it seems that I have somewhat of a new friend here. Not such a bad start, I suppose.

I waited there for a good five minutes before I saw Aelita's head stick through the open windows. "Hey Yumi, do you want to come over? You can meet your new neighbors." She said, motioning me to come toward her with her hands.

"Um, sure, let me just go tell my mom." I told her.

"Okay, I'll meet you in your front yard." Aelita said with a large smile. She must like people. She's so upbeat it's scary, but she seems nice enough.

"Okay," I told her before climbing through the window. I ran through the bare room and flung myself down the steep stairway.

"Mom!" I called out running from room to room, searching for her.

"I'm in the kitchen." I jogged to the kitchen and stopped in the doorway to catch my breath. "What's wrong?" she asked, chopping vegetables on the granite counter tops. It's just like my mom to go through all this fighting and moving chaos, and the first thing she has to do is fix us nice, traditional dinner.

"Is it okay if I go over to the neighbors house for a bit?" I asked, still out of breath.

"Sure, be back by dinner time." She answered, not looking up from the sharp knife she was diligently moving across the counter top. She stopped caring what I did once my dad left us. I knew she had bigger things on her mind. I was out the door and flying across the bright green lawn, towards Aelita's house in less then two seconds. It was that moment I realized how lucky I was to find someone here so quickly. I definitely need someone to talk to, just to get my mind off things.