Waking up was never the easiest part of my day. The first thing that I thought of every morning was the fact that I was jobless, and then whatever bill was the latest.

I didn't have to worry about that as early as I usually did, because my alarm clock didn't go instead of waking up to the shrill "ding, ring, ding, ring," of my alarm, I woke up because I fell off of a cliff in my dream. Honestly, it was more startling than my alarm clock, and I was much more lucid than usual when I bolted straight up in my bed.

Okay, it was an air mattress - not a real bed. But it counts. A little.

(What could I say? Money was tight.)

I was sweating. The apartment was scarily silent - and dark. Usually, the lamp on the floor next to me was on, but right now it wasn't. I shuffled around for my cell phone, but couldn't find it.

Where did I leave it?

I stood up, pushing the thin sheet off of my body, and reached my hands in front of me. Careful, small steps...I felt for the wall and when I found it,I headed for the light switch. When my fingers touched the switch, I couldn't help but sigh in relief - I had a mild fear of the dark.

I flipped it on. Nothing. Click, click, click. I flipped it several times, but still nothing. Strange. I was sure I changed that light bulb recently. I started to sweat a little more, but not because of the heat - this sweat was the cold sweat of fear. I could feel my hair clinging to the back of my neck.I tried flipping it a few more times, but still nothing. I headed to the next switch - nothing.

Okay, okay, okay, okay. Okay.

Okay.

What day was it? Was it the 10th? Where was my cell phone? Where did I put the damned thing?

I banged my head against the wall, Fuck this. I was crying, with tears of frustration running down my face.

My electricity was gone. Great.

"Great," I banged my fist against the wall, "Fucking great!" Everything sucked lately. Everything. Bills? Fucking bills.

Fucking growing up. I wasn't ready to be out on my own. What was I thinking? Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.

I took a breath.

Breathe. It's okay. It happens. People stumble before they stand. It's okay. I started groping the air, trying to find the table. My cell must be in my jacket - I doubt that I took it out to charge it.

I was right. The light, though dim, was more than welcome. It was about eight in the morning, a little later than I was used to waking up. It should be light outside, so my panicking was ultimately useless.

I opened the door to my room, and saw the living room was also a bit dark. The curtains were drawn, so I pulled them open sharply. The sun shined right in my face. It was hot but welcoming. Light was good. But it was a little too hot in my apartment, and I needed to hurry and get my electricity back on so that I could get some of that sweet, sweet air conditioner.

I pulled up all the blinds and curtains that I could and splayed out my bills onto the table. I counted how much money I had left - about 11,850 yen - and tried to decide what was more important - my cable television/internet/home phone, or my cell phone and food.

Definitely my cell phone and food.

I set aside about 7,110 yen for that, and then the other 3,160 yen would count as a down payment for my utilities, which were bundled. I didn't know that until I tried turning my faucet on and nothing came out. After calling my landlord, he confirmed that with 3,160 yen they'd at least turn it back on for awhile. I'd still owe them another 3,950 yen next month on top of the 7,110 yen that would be due by then.

I bit down on my pen, trying to add in my head. The math all landed to the same conclusion - I needed a job. But working was hard - anywhere that would hire me would want some kind of physical work. I was too delicate for that! Lifting boxes, handing out flyers for hours, standing in front of restaurants and flaunting my body to try and lure people to the establishment...!

Not my kind of jobs. No way. No how. The very thought of it made me want to...ugh!

Snap.

Ink rushed into my mouth, causing me to gag and spit all over the table. Black splotches of ink/saliva stained everything I had been looking at, making most of my bills unreadable.I didn't know if I should try and wash my mouth out first, or hurry and try to clean the papers.

No, they'll smudge even worse. Leave them,I told myself, rushing into the kitchen and slamming my faucet on - only to be reminded that I had no running water. I cursed out loud, swallowing some ink in the process. I opened my mini-fridge and decided that I would have to wash my mouth out with Ramune since there was no water. Trying not to close my mouth, I fiddled with the Codd-neck bottle. I was having some problems pushing the damned marble in, but when I finally got it open in rinsed my mouth as good as I could. It was hard not to try and drink the Ramune instead of just rinsing with it - It was my favorite flavor, orange.

When I was unable to taste ink anymore, I decided that I would risk a look in the mirror. The bathroom was still mostly dark, the only window in there being a slit, so I looked with my cell phone. The LED light was very unflattering to my face. My tongue was stained black and orange, and so were my teeth. I brushed three times, until my teeth were at least mostly white again, but my tongue was doomed for awhile.

Now that that was over, it was time to start the day.I wasn't very excited.

I picked up the first seemingly decent looking pair of clothes my cell phone light could find (my laundry room didn't have any windows, so that was nice), and headed back into the living room to see the damage the ink had done to my bills.

Thankfully, the numbers were still legible, but my name was not. I had wanted to go and pay in person, but it looked like I would have to do it over the phone. Which meant I'd have to pay a little extra than I would if I went in person. If I went in person, though, they would accuse me of trying to use someone else's bill to make mine seem cheaper.

I know, because similar things have happened to me already. Surprise.

So that was a little less money for food. That's fine, really. If I stick to fast food, it won't be that bad. There was a convenience store close by - honestly, what city in Japan DIDN'T have a convenience store close by - and a meal could cost as little as 240 yen, if I tried not to get anything extra.

That would last for awhile. A week, maybe two. After that... I was afraid to even think of what I would have to do.

I wiped off my table, making sure the ink didn't stain the wood. Thankfully, it didn't. I picked up the pen that had busted in my mouth, and frowned. It was the pen I had accidentally taken from Minamino Shuichi's office. Great, there goes ever returning that.

I had at least wanted to keep it as a keepsake, in case I ever got the job, but now I couldn't. Especially since I had gotten a call from Minamino himself yesterday. It was a short call, memorable and a little cutting:

"Miss Sakana? I'm afraid we chose someone else for the secretary position. Thank you for coming to the interview, and for helping me with my busy schedule. Goodbye,"

The thought pissed me off. A lot. Who did he think he was? He could have just left off the part about helping him. That part made it feel worse that I went through all that and still didn't get the job! I placed the pen back on the table, not even bothering to throw it away. The "From the Office Of Minamino Shuuichi" that was etched into the pen stared up at me in fake-gold. Grunting, I turned away from it and started looking for my shoes.

I wondered who DID get it as I headed out job-searching for the day. There were a lot of choices to choose from. It was really no surprise that I, with no experience whatsoever, could not make the cut. I'd just have to find yet another place to apply.

Another place to reject me.

I was almost to the convenience store when my cell phone died. I had the charger in my purse, and asked the woman running the register if I could charge it while I sat and ate. She said it was fine, but wanted 200 yen for it. I gave her the money and paid for my cold hot dog and orange Ramune (Which I was determined to drink properly after this morning's fiasco,) and sat down. I hadn't even opened my drink when someone took my phone off of the counter, right next to the register, and took off out of the store.

"HEY!" I yelled, jumping out of my chair. "GIVE THAT BACK!"

I couldn't think of what to do but to take off after him. No one started running to help, everyone just stared as I, failingly, ran after some homeless guy who decided he wanted a pink and sparkly cell phone.

He was pretty big, so I was surprised at how fast he was. I almost lost him completely in the crowd of people, until God decided to cut me a break - he ran face first into a Ramen stand.

"Haha! Gotcha!" The man working the stand laughed, picking my cell phone from the bum's twitching hands and giving it back to me. "Never thought I could maneuver this thing so well. It's honestly surprising, isn't it?" He grinned at me, and I noticed right then that he seemed a little young to be peddling ramen. He couldn't have been older than me, and wore his black hair slicked back with gel, but also held the bangs out of his face with a headband.

He was waiting for a reply, so I bowed and thanked him. My cell phone, upon inspection, had a thin crack right down the middle. Oh well, at least it was back in my possession and charged. In fact, the charger was still attached to it, so I supposed that was pretty lucky.

"You look a little worn out," he said, "Come on, I'll take you back to the main Kiosk and you can have some fresh ramen. On the house," he added, noting my worried expression. He turned his cart around and started walking. When I didn't follow, he laughed and said, "I'm not going to bite you or anything. Who would pass up free ramen?"

While hot ramen on a hot day didn't sound like the best idea, it did sound better than a cold hot dog. I walked beside him as he pushed his cart, talking energetically about how many thieves he'd stopped with it. "At least five this week, and you wouldn't even - Oh, hey!" he yelled, looking forward. I followed his eyes, and saw his main Ramen stand - it was a kiosk attached to another restaurant (Yukimura's Diner, or something) all done up in traditional style. I hadn't seen an authentic ramen stand since I had moved to the city... honestly, it excited me a little.

Working the stand was a young, pregnant woman with long brown hair and brown eyes. "Oh, there you are Yusuke," she said, "Atsuko was here earlier, she was worried about you," she noticed me then, "Oh, who is this?"

Yusuke shrugged, grinning, "I don't know, but I promised her some free ramen. Take a seat," he told me, attaching his cart back to the kiosk. I noticed with a giggle that it was empty - why was he pushing an empty cart around town?

He kissed the woman on the cheek and started mixing noodles. I watched with growing hunger as he layered pork on pork on pork ontop of the noodles. It had been SO LONG since I had so much meat at once. And here I thought I was lucky to grab the last hotdog. He placed the bowl in front of me, and then told me to dig in.

Oh, I did. Ever since I left Kyoto, I had a serious lack of good ramen. The first bite was almost like I was back home again... it was the best feeling ever.

Ever.

Then I remembered my manners. "Oh, yes, uhm, yes, I, am, uhm," My manners were still learning how to talk, however, so I took a deep breathe and said, "My name is Sakana Ran, thank you for the food."

Yusuke laughed out loud, tossing some more noodles into a bowl, "Don't worry about it. The best ramen is free ramen," he placed the other bowl next to me, grinning, "Right, Kurama?

I turned to my side to see a very, very familiar person sit on the stool next to me. I almost wanted to complain to myself about how close he was sitting, but then I realized that there were only four stools, and he probably didn't have a choice.

"You know me, Yusuke," Minamino said, smiling as he broke his chopsticks, "As long as it's free, I'll keep coming." I had a feeling he was joking. Probably because I was certain this guy had more money than he knew what to do with.

Damn, I wish I could say the same. Instead, I silently ate my ramen and tried not to eavesdrop. This was the guy who had completely rejected me for a job not even twenty-four hours ago. And, though he didn't know it, whenever I looked at my bills I saw his face and pretended it was his fault that I didn't have any money. (It wasn't though. It was the naive me who decided that it would be easy to live in the city, even without a job for awhile. Yeah, the first few months were great until my parents stopped giving me money. After that... well. You were there this morning.)

"How is everything coming along, Keiko?" he asked the woman, who patted her stomach in an exhausted but happy fashion.

"Went to the clinic yesterday.., You were right, Kurama, twins."

It was at this moment that Yusuke slid Minamino 1000 yen and mumbled under his breath about a cheating nose or something.

I was getting a little freaked out. I knew that Minamino, at least, noticed, because I tucked my shoulders in a little and acted preoccupied with my phone.

"Sakana-san?" He said, much closer to my ear than I thought he would be. My body twitched upward, my hands unclenching my phone and sending it flying up in the air, up, up, up and then down, right into my nearly finished ramen, spraying chunks of pork and noodles all over my shirt. With a quick spark, some smoke, and a strange hissing noise, I knew it was done for.

And I had just paid for this month's usage for it in advance before I left the house.

There was a howl of laughter from Yusuke, followed by his wife hitting him on the shoulder and telling him to behave. Minamino apologized quickly, trying to fish the phone out of the bowl with his chopsticks, and all of this was topped off with a sharp, dry sob coming from my throat as I held back tears.

All three of them stopped and stared at me, and I was sure people from the road were staring too, but I didn't care anymore.I just stood up and walked off, ignoring Minamino trying to hand me my phone, or even Yusuke trying to ask me what was wrong.

I wanted to go home.

Not to my hot, dark apartment,but home. I hated my old house, cramped with three sisters and two brothers and both of my parents out in the middle of no where, but it was better than alone in the city and embarrassing myself in front of strangers.

All I knew was that I could really use one of my Mom's hugs right now.

I hadn't turned my utilities back on yet, so a rush of hot air blew into my face when I opened my door. Oh well. I'd deal with that some other time. I didn't know what time it was, but I knew I had only been up for maybe four hours. It was maybe noon, but I was more than ready to just collapse on the floor and not wake up.

Eh, why not? I walked a few steps into my apartment, took off my shirt and straightened the camisole underneath. I got on my hands and knees and shuffled around to find a nice place on the wood floor that was at least a little cool. My legs halfway under the table, I fell asleep.

My dream had no visuals, only sounds. Opening and closing of doors, footsteps, clattering from above me. The sound of chairs scraping the floor, the creaking of someone sitting, and an amused chuckle as papers ruffled. When the sounds stopped, the visuals started.

Running, running, running. A large grass field and clear blue sky. I stopped, out of breath, and used my hand to block the sun from my eyes as I looked behind me. I could see an old, dirt road and the old, wooden buildings that lined it. It was my hometown. No real surprise that I would dream about it. I was more than home sick.

I could see my mom leaning against the fence, waiting for me. She reached her hand in the air and waved at me, and I ran towards her. At least I'd get that hug I wanted from her.

Click.

A soft noise, but I still woke up from it. Where did it come from? I looked all around, but couldn't find anything in my apartment while I was sitting on the floor. Standing, the first thing I noticed was that my back was sore. Okay, so maybe sleeping on the floor was a bad idea.

Something felt different. The sun was setting, but I could still feel it when I moved closer to the window. But it was...

Cold. My apartment was cold! B... but I hadn't turned the utilities back on yet. I held my hand up to the vent, and sure enough, cold air blasted at my hand. It had obviously been on for awhile. But how?

I flipped a light switch, and the light came on. Euphoria washed through me, but so did confusion. Did I pay it without thinking? I checked my wallet - the money I had set aside for utilities was still there.

So, what, what.. what?

I opened my door and looked at the front of were no notices or anything telling me that they miscounted my money and I got a month free, or anything like that.I shut my door and started heading to my house phone to call my landlord, and then noticed that the papers on my table were stacked into neat piles.

I flipped through the ink stained papers and then set them back down. Unbelieving, I quickly called my landlord and asked him if I had turned the utilities on. He said that he had received a notice that I had a few hours ago. After I hung up on him, I checked the others. The rest of my expenses were paid for. What the hell was going on?

Then I saw it, on the kitchen counter. a small, black, cell phone, and a note card placed under it:

Sanaka Ran,

Please accept this as a token of my apologies for ruining your previous phone. I will take care of the bill for it, but I'm afraid you'll have to work for it. Please call me in the morning. Office hours are eight-to-six.

I look forward to working with you.

Minamino Shuichi.

PS: Sleeping on the floor will give you bad posture.

I read it over twice. Three times. I remembered my dream - the sound of footsteps, papers being shuffled, HE WAS IN MY APARTMENT. WHILE I WAS ASLEEP. He even had the audacity to comment on my sleeping habits!

Was I supposed to be angry? Because I kinda was! But at the same time, a sense of overwhelming relief washed over me. Work for it? What did that mean? Work for it?

I would.

The tears I had been holding in all day dripped lightly down my face. I wiped at them, not noticing until then that I was laughing. What was this? A shojo manga?

I had little time to think of it, because the phone started vibrating. I grabbed it, awkwardly flipping it open. One New Message, it read.

This is my cell phone number. Feel free to message me if you need anything.

I slammed it shut. I would never message him. Ever. Suddenly, I felt bad. Like he was just pitying me. Perhaps he was, but I did owe him a major debt that I would have to repay. Okay, repay it, and then never talk to him again. Move back to Kyoto.

I was mortified, now that the euphoria was gone. I mean, he was in my house. It was dirty! I was sleeping... In my camisole. It was slightly see-through, and lacy, and, and... embarrassing.

He's gay, I reminded myself, but it still didn't change the fact that he was in my house while I was sleeping. Should I call the police? Isn't that illegal? I mean, really?

I was freaking out. I needed food... and I did have some extra money. I slipped the shirt I had been wearing back on, and then reluctantly slid the black cell phone into my pocket. I walked out of my apartment, and then did something I had never done since I had moved in:

I locked the door.