So, here's the little chat that Toris and Natalia had at the end of chapter 19. While writing it, I had a certain song in my head that I thought really fit Natalia. I'll talk more about it in chapter 21, when it comes up. In the meantime, I hope you enjoy this brief interlude to That Crazy Asian Family! ^_^

Natalia led Toris over to the abandoned park bench. Getting comfortable, Natalia avoided looking directly in his general direction. However, she could still see his eager face out of the corner of her eye. Natalia sighed, smiling wryly. Toris looked like he was trying to keep the excitement off of his face, but Natalia could still see it anyway. It figures that the one person who was this eager to listen to Natalia's complaints and concerns would be the one guy that she hated.

And Natalia knew that she hated him.

What else could that feeling she felt every time she saw him mean? Her stomach would clench, she would feel nauseous and her blood pressure would rise. All these were sure signs that she loathed him.

Right?

However, Natalia knew that right now she couldn't be picky. She had to get this off her mind, and if Toris was willing to listen then she wouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth. Natalia paused. She would have to hit Alfred later for introducing her to such a strange phrase. Then again, it probably wasn't his fault; Arthur had most likely been the one to teach it to him. Still, a gift horse? What in the world was that? A horse that one gets as a gift? A gift-bearing horse perhaps? And why shouldn't you look it in the mouth? Granted, Natalia didn't know why one would want to look in a horse's mouth in the first place, but this was ridiculous. Almost as ridiculous as that other phrase of Alfred's, where cats and dogs rain down from the clouds when it's particularly stormy.

"Miss Natalia?"

Natalia shook herself out of her thoughts, glancing at Toris. "I'm fine. Just thinking weird things thanks to Alfred again." Toris smiled. He knew what she meant; his friend was very strange after all. Toris still remembered the time that he and Alfred went to the city to visit SeaWorld, as the franchise was having a brief show there, and Alfred had managed to befriend one of the whales. After much talking, pleading, eventual tears and convincing, Alfred was able to talk Toris into helping him smuggle the whale out. Toris didn't like to admit his part in the criminal activity, but he was happy to know that the whale was happier at his new home…

…at Alfred's place. It was a wonder no one had shown up to question him about the whale, really. Then again, Antonio had a pet bull, so no one could really say anything.

"So," Natalia began. "I'm not sure how much you heard, but my parents…my mother wants me to quit being friends with Lili and Mei now."

"That's horrible!" Toris exclaimed, turning to face Natalia. He had an intense look in his eyes, and Natalia knew that he wasn't just saying that. He really was upset that she wasn't allowed to see her two friends anymore. For some reason, that made Natalia feel uncomfortable. A pool of warmth had settled in her stomach, and it was slowly spreading. That didn't really seem right to Natalia, since she was starting to feel cold as dusk descended and she was still upset. The sudden warmth didn't seem to fit in. Natalia brushed this feeling away and ignored it in favor of completing her tale for Toris.

"I haven't decided what to do yet," Natalia admitted quietly. She saw from the corner of her eye where Toris leaned in closer to hear better. She suddenly had an urge to stab his hand or yell in his ear, he was so close. However, he probably wouldn't even notice. That's how it always was with him. "Obviously, I should do what my parents want me to. They're my parents. But…I don't want to give up my friends." She didn't want to admit to Toris of all people that they were her only friends. That would probably only make him pity her, and that was one thing that she did not need from him.

"Well…" Toris trailed off, looking into the distance thoughtfully. Natalia fixed her gaze on him, expectant. Toris' eyes moved to look straight at Natalia, soft smile on his face. "What do you want to do?"

Natalia's brow furrowed. "My parents say-"

"No, I don't mean what do your parents want," Toris cut in gently, shaking his head slightly. His gaze hadn't wavered in the least. "What do you, Natalia, want?"

"I want to be friends with them," Natalia said without hesitation. Her eyes widened at her confession. She hadn't meant to say that. She would get in trouble if her parents found out. She would be in so much trouble…

…But for some reason, Natalia couldn't bring herself to care. That scared her the most.

If there was ever anything that Natalia believed in the most in this world, it was that she had to listen to whatever her parents said. Natalia had to move into another house? Fine. Natalia had to change her name? Of course. Natalia wasn't allowed in her brother's house without prior permission from her parents? Only natural. …Natalia wasn't allowed to marry her brother? Well…that would be—hard, it would be difficult, but she…could manage.

Compared to all of that, not being to not be allowed to be friends with two, insignificant girls? It should be a no-brainer. It should be obvious to all. However, that 'obvious' thing was the most difficult order that Natalia had ever been given.

She had been living under the pressures that her parents had put upon her for so long, it only seemed natural. Didn't other families live like this? Natalia found it a hard concept to grasp that someone should live differently. She never could understand the looks that she would get from her classmates, the overly loud whispers that spoke of pity but had the tone of condescension. What made them so superior? Didn't they know that Natalia stood light-years ahead of them? That she and her family, though especially Ivan, were in a different plane of existence than where they lived? This had been what Natalia had always thought, because this was the only way she was ever raised.

And then she met Mei. Mei didn't act like the others around her. Mei was above them, even though she didn't act like it or have any reason to make other people think so. But Natalia could tell, Mei was set apart from them. And so Natalia made a friend. Mei was there to listen to Natalia's complaints, to listen to the extraordinary events of her life that seemed perfectly normal to her, and in turn shared her own stories of her own extraordinary life. Natalia found a kindred spirit. She had found a savior. Mei saved Natalia from her loneliness, from her boredom. But she hadn't stopped there.

That was when Natalia met Lili. Lili, like Mei and Natalia before her, had her own plane of existence. She was special among the special. Not only was she a part of the Burghaps, she hadn't even been born into the position. No one really knew the details of her arrival except for the other members of the Burghaps. This only added to the mystery and the intrigue of the young girl.

Sometimes, late at night, Natalia would wonder if she could even compare to these two extraordinary girls.

Still, Natalia knew that if she should have any sort of friends, these two would be perfect. She could never fathom having to give these two precious girls up. But that was what was expected of her. Natalia didn't even notice as she started to tear up. She was trapped.

Trapped by her parent's expectations, trapped in her world where she had to be perfect, do everything perfectly, and trapped by her own inabilities. There really was no other way to describe how Natalia was feeling now. She was hopelessly, inexplicably trapped. Worst of all, there seemed to be no way out.

She could either follow her parent's orders and 'break up', as it were, with Mei and Lili or she could rebel, disappoint her parents, and disgrace her family. Neither way was really appealing. Why couldn't things be simpler?

"Miss Natalia?"

Shaken, Natalia spun to look at Toris with wide, watery eyes. She hadn't even realized that she had been looking away, but apparently sometime during her musings, she had. Toris looked at her with concern, hand raised halfway as if he wanted to wipe away her tears. He hesitated, and then reached into his pocket for a spare handkerchief. Handing it to her, Toris spoke in soothing tones.

"What happened? Is something wrong?"

Taking a shuddering breath, Natalia spoke again. "Yes. I've messed up, and I don't know what to do now. I can't—I can't…I just don't know what to do anymore. Everything I've done so far is apparently wrong, and I think I'm turning too stubborn for my own good. I know that what I'm doing is wrong, but I don't care; I just don't think I can do what's needed of me to make things right. I know all of this about me, but I don't think I can change." Taking a look at Toris, Natalia smiled sadly. And you can't help me, can you?

"Well, who says you have to change?" Toris asked, shocking Natalia with his question. "After all, I like you just the way you are. I don't think you really have to change if you don't want to, do you? Especially not to just meet someone else's expectations."

Natalia stared at Toris incomprehensively. How is it that he knew just what to say to make her feel better? Natalia could feel more tears fall from her eyes. Hurriedly, she wiped at them, breaking her eye contact with him. She could already feel her chest surging with warmth. Did his words do this? This…this insignificant person? Natalia's chest tightened again. Why did it do that? She didn't know, but she knew one thing.

She wanted to hear more nice words.

"How can you know that for sure?" she asked, staring at her lap. She kept him in sight, though, out of the corner of her eye. "Maybe it's best if I change. Maybe I should change. How do you know that I shouldn't?"

Toris hummed, looking into the night sky. Nearby a street lamp in the park lit up, giving them some light. Natalia caught herself holding her breath, waiting for his answer. Waiting for him to help her. "I suppose that's true…" Toris said eventually. Natalia could feel something in her stomach plummet at his words. Was this disappointment? "But then again, you don't have to change all at once, you know. Is there anything about yourself that you don't particularly like, or something that you feel that you need to change about yourself?"

And just like that, that same something in her stomach started soaring. Natalia felt lightheaded, and it took her a moment to hear his question.

"Hm? Oh, uh," Natalia stuttered. Stuttered. This was ridiculous. "I guess not. Well, maybe…maybe I would like…" she said, getting softer and softer, "I would like to have Brother not hate me. I would like to be able to keep my friends." I would like you. Natalia froze. Where did that thought come from? It…It almost sounded like…like she liked him. That—that couldn't be possible, could it? Natalia could feel her cheeks growing steadily redder and redder. Great. She could only hope that the low lighting around them hid her blush.

"Well, if it's you, Natalia, then I believe you can do it!" Toris said happily, not noticing Natalia's internal crisis. "I believe you can do anything you put your mind to, so don't worry, okay?" Reaching over, Toris took the handkerchief in her hands and wiped at some spare tears that she had missed. He smiled, bright and happy at her. Natalia could feel herself falling for him.

Standing up abruptly, Natalia walked a few feet away, needing to get away from him for right now. She had to think about things. For one…he believed in her. That was the nicest thing anyone had ever said to her. No one…no one had ever told her that they believed in her before, not when they meant it. That meant the world to her.

Behind her, she could hear Toris stand up, not sure what he had done. "Miss Natalia?" Oh, he was back to calling her 'miss' again. Natalia wasn't sure she liked that…

Turning around, she managed to give him a cool look. "Thank you, Toris. I'm feeling much better now." Her cool demeanor didn't dampen his spirits, it seemed, as he smiled brightly at her. Natalia smirked in return.

"I'm glad I could be of help," he offered modestly. …And this was the guy that Natalia apparently liked? She shuddered delicately, easily passed off to the chill night air. She still couldn't get used to this. After liking her brother for so long, she suddenly liked Toris? She couldn't believe it. There had to be a catch. What she needed now was some time to think. She would be better after she had had some time to herself.

Still, she really needed to hear those comforting words from this boy's weird sense of logic.

"Also, don't tell anyone about this chat we've had. Okay?" Natalia asked imperiously. At the end of the day, even after all of her self-discovery, she was still her.

She couldn't change overnight.