Note: Just in case you're wondering, all the dialogue between characters in this fanfic is actually being spoken in Japanese, even though it's written in English. The only circumstances under which any of the characters are speaking in English are when it is actually specified that they are, or when Americans are speaking to each other (such as when Blaine was talking with Lieutenant Colonel Calderon in the previous chapter). Just wanted to let you know this.

Sure enough, the school year progressed well for Blaine Rhodes. It was a little slow and difficult starting off, but he quickly learned how to integrate himself into the Japanese academic and social system.

He grew fond of the school uniforms. They were the colors of red and blue. He and the other boys wore formal white shirts, jackets, and long pants while the girls wore sailor suits.

He did spend a lot of his time with five of the six students he had had lunch with on the first day. Those people were the Class President Genji Nishihara (Boy #14), the Class Vice-President Chieko Suda (Girl #11), Tatsuo Inoue (Boy #2), Asayo Endou (Girl #5), and Kiyomi Takayama (Girl #12).

The only one he did not spend a lot of time with was Goro Shiroi (Boy #10). Goro was always trying to get involved in different types of activities. He did speak with Blaine during lunch and engineering class, but other than that, they did not converse very often.

On the third day of school, Blaine arrived a little early and Genji and Chieko gave him a proper tour of their school. Blaine was the only person in Class 3-A who was not familiar with the school's layout, as he had not attended Keio Shonan-Fujisawa Junior High School for seventh and eighth grade. All forty-four of his classmates, on the other hand, had.

Genji and Chieko were very descriptive in their tour. They told him everything about the school, including famous people who had attended it and historical moments it had been involved in. While the school was relatively young, it still held a lot of history.

Genji and Chieko frequently spent time with Blaine during lunch, but as the class representatives, they often had work to do in the Student Council. So outside of class, their time with him was limited.

The two people who spent the most time with Blaine were Tatsuo and Kiyomi.

Tatsuo had frequently been ridiculed by his classmates for his fascination with western culture. When Blaine arrived in Fujisawa, Tatsuo finally had someone he could relate to. Thus, he and Blaine quickly became good friends. In fact, some would say they were the best of friends.

Many pleasant hours were spent between the two as they discussed American history. Tatsuo invited Blaine over to his house many times where they could talk all they wanted without fear of the government listening. Tatsuo once showed Blaine his collection of American movies which he had acquired from the black market. It was quite diverse. They ranged from Francis Ford Coppola's The Godfather to Barry Levinson's Rain Man to Steven Spielberg's Saving Private Ryan to Martin Scorsese's Goodfellas to Fred Zinnemann's High Noon to Frank Darabont's The Shawshank Redemption. Blaine had to admire Tatsuo's taste in films. But he was surprised to discover that Tatsuo had not even seen these movies yet.

His reasoning was simple: Japanese dubs of English films were just as bad as English dubs of Japanese films. He did not want to get dubbed versions; he got the original English language versions. However, the DVDs did not come with Japanese subtitles. There was a piece of equipment he could buy that would allow him to put Japanese subtitles onto English-speaking films, but that equipment cost him a lot of money. So he planned to wait until he either had enough money saved up to buy the equipment, or just go ahead and learn English.

Fortunately, Blaine had seen most of the movies in Tatsuo's collection. He had the perfect solution to the problem: the two of them could watch the movies together, and whenever the actors said anything, Blaine could translate it into Japanese and announce it to Tatsuo.

They put this theory to the test with The Godfather. It actually turned out to be a very effective strategy. Tatsuo especially liked the famous "Leave the gun, take the cannoli" part.

Blaine and Tatsuo decided to make watching an American movie a weekly event. Every Saturday, they would meet at Tatsuo's house to watch one. Blaine was more than willing to be the movie's interpreter for Tatsuo. Tatsuo's parents and siblings grew fond of Blaine; they always made him feel welcome whenever he was over.

While Blaine considered Tatsuo to be his best male friend, he got along famously with several of the other male students in his class.

Physical education took place every other day. During this class, Blaine was paired up with the perceptive Kenzou Iwamoto (Boy #3). The two of them proved to function well as gym partners. Whether they were weight-lifting, running, playing team sports, or wrestling, Kenzou gave Blaine the guidance he needed to keep up with the masses. After a couple weeks, Blaine felt that he was ready to face off any physical problem that came his way.

The jovial Michio Ueno (Boy #4) showed Blaine many ways to spend his time outside of class. Michio was one of those people who always liked to "live life to the fullest." He was always laughing, always joking, and always cheering his friends up when they were depressed. Everyone enjoyed having Michio around, especially Blaine.

Some of the other boys whose company Blaine enjoyed were the magnanimous Hitoshi Ohara (Boy #6), the supportive Daisuke Araki (Boy #1), and the kindhearted Naozumi Matsuno (Boy #20). Hitoshi was a pacifist who denounced violence in any form. He was glad Blaine was in their class because he had long hoped that the tension between America and Japan would cease to exist as soon as possible. Blaine's presence there gave him hope.

Daisuke and Naozumi were best friends, even though their personalities were different in several ways. Daisuke was assertive and candid whereas Naozumi was diffident and reserved. They had been best friends ever since they could walk. Both of them got along with Blaine very well.

Blaine also spent a great deal of his time with Kiyomi and Asayo. However, sometimes Asayo felt like a third wheel, as Blaine and Kiyomi were often focused on each other. So sometimes, she just hanged out with her friends on the cheerleading squad whenever Blaine and Kiyomi were deep in conversation.

She would always say things like "Guess I better leave you two alone" or "Three's going to be a crowd" or "Maybe you two should get a room."

Blaine and Kiyomi were amused yet stunned at the same time whenever she said anything suggestive like that. They insisted that there was nothing personal between them. In response, Asayo would only casually say "Right, sure."

While Blaine and Kiyomi were irritated by Asayo's "accusations," they did admit that they were starting to feel like more than friends.

At first, Blaine felt that these feelings were a little unprofessional of him. After all, he was in Japan to study, not to fall in love. He needed something to keep his mind focused. So he decided to join a club or take part in an extracurricular activity.

When word got around that Blaine Rhodes was looking to involve himself in the school's programs, the open-minded Ichiko Murakami (Girl #20) suggested that he could take part in a charity group that she and her affluent friend Eiko Hirakawa (Girl #17) had established one year earlier. Blaine agreed and applied for that club. The club gave support to non-profit organizations across the country and did volunteer work for those in need.

While it did fulfill Blaine's desire to do something productive, the charity group was not particularly time-consuming. Its members only met once a week, after school on Friday.

So Blaine continued seraching for another activity or club to join.

The agile Wataru Koumura (Boy #8) suggested that Blaine try out for the rugby team. Wataru mentioned that he had seen Blaine in physical education, and that he easily had the strength, determination, and flexibility of an ideal rugby player. While Blaine was grateful for the offer, he had never been one for competitive sports, so he turned down the invitation.

When Blaine mentioned that he always came out on top in riflery and archery whenever he went to summer camp, Shuuichi Kai (Boy #7) and Maki Nakamura (Girl #15) tried to convince him to join the school's marksman club and crossbowman club respectively. Shuuichi was a crack shot with just about any type of firearm. He practiced frequently at his uncle's firing range and he had plans to join the Japanese army when he was older. Maki's skill with a bow and arrow was practically unheard of, as she had one of the sharpest pairs of eyes in the whole of the school. Blaine ultimately decided against joining either.

Kotoyo Fukumoto (Girl #18), the class virtuoso, suggested Blaine could join the school's band, as he had practiced the trumpet, the keyboard, and the guitar back in America. Blaine did like the offer at first, but he knew that working in a band was normally a long-term commitment, and he did not have the time for such a thing, so he graciously turned down Kotoyo's offer.

In the end, Blaine decided to try out for the musical, as he had taken a drama course in middle school. Tsukasa Yoshizawa (Boy #22), the head of the drama club, was delighted with Blaine's decision. Tsukasa was very committed to his work, but his flamboyant attitude and his arrogant behavior quickly started to annoy Blaine.

Fortunately, there were other members of class 3-A in the cast of the musical. There was the shrewd Riyeko Imamura (Girl #3) and the decisive Teru Machida (Boy #19). Both of them were easy to get along with, and they helped Blaine learn to tolerate Tsukasa's brashness.

All the same, no matter how hard he tried to avoid it or deny it, Blaine constantly felt himself getting closer and closer to Kiyomi. He began to wonder if she felt the same way. He also began wondering if she would have liked to be more than just friends.

He thought about this, and then he thought about whom else in his class was in that type of relationship.

Officially, there were only two couples in Class 3-A.

The first couple consisted of the placid Yasuko Oomori (Girl #6) and the defensive Mamoru Niwa (Boy #15). They were easily the most intimate couple in the whole of the class, as they were seen kissing each other during lunch and passing period quite often. Sometimes they made out during homeroom whenever they had the opportunity.

Blaine decided to ask them about their relationship. When he did, he was more than a little surprised to learn that they were planning on breaking up. The reasoning was that Mamoru was always busy helping his family on various projects while he rarely made time to meet up with Yasuko outside of class.

Blaine suggested that Mamoru properly learn how to prioritize his to-do list and work out a way to help his family at specific times. That way, he would know precisely when to spend time with Yasuko.

This schedule worked out perfectly. Blaine had actually saved Yasuko and Mamoru's relationship! They remained the class's most notable couple. However, they had never really slept with each other. They wanted to wait until they were in a committed relationship for that.

The other couple was composed of the tenacious Akina Kikuchi (Girl #8) and the reliable Fumitaka Hirata (Boy #17).

They were not as intimate as Mamoru and Yasuko, but their relationship – unlike Mamoru and Yasuko's – was not platonic. It was common knowledge that Fumitaka and Akina had slept with each other on at least one occasion, as they boasted about it to their friends over the summer.

Both of them were also known to be very vindictive. Akina never let another girl within grabbing distance of her boyfriend, and all the other boys would never risk Fumitaka catching them looking at his girlfriend. So while the two of them were not as close, they made certain that everyone else knew that they had "claimed their prize" and that no one else would "take their prize" away from them.

So those were the two couples in Class 3-A; the relationship between the boy and girl was very different, however. One was built upon affection and chastity; the other was built upon desire and sex. However, both relationships were stable. Neither couple had any long-term plans, but they showed no signs of breaking up.

There were rumors going around that the empathetic Yuuga Suzuki (Boy #11) and the graceful Yuriye Sakaguchi (Girl #9) might have been a third couple. But both of them continually denied this gossip, stating that they were "just friends."

This made sense to Blaine, as Yuuga was very independent, and Yuriye seemed to prefer the company of her friends.

After having a talk with Mamoru and Yasuko and another talk with Fumitaka and Akina, Blaine began to wonder if he actually had a chance of being with Kiyomi.

He thought about it: she had been the first one to officially welcome him to Japan, she had given him her cell phone number, and she said "good-bye" the Spanish way to him. Aside from that, Kiyomi did not seem to be involved in any manner with any of the other male students in Class 3-A.

Two months after the school year began, Blaine made his decision. He approached Kiyomi and asked her if she wanted to be his girlfriend. She enthusiastically replied "YES!" and embraced him lovingly.

Word quickly got around that the two of them were a couple. Asayo joked by saying "The native male not good enough for you, Kiyomi? Going for something a little… longer?"

Kiyomi gave Asayo the evil eye, quickly shutting her up.

A lot of the boys, including Tatsuo, congratulated Blaine for beginning a relationship with Kiyomi. Tatsuo explained to Blaine that he had been friends with Kiyomi for a very long time, and she had never really shown interest in any member of the male gender.

"At least now we know she isn't a dyke," Tatsuo had remarked.

Blaine pretended to laugh, but truthfully, he didn't find that joke funny. It was actually somewhat insulting. But Tatsuo was his best friend in Japan, so he let him make those jokes, just as Kiyomi let Asayo make her own dirty jokes.

Blaine's schedule was quickly filling up. Monday through Thursday after school, he would rehearse the musical with Tsukasa and the other performers. The musical turned out to be Les Misérables. The Japanese rendition of it was rather peculiar, but enjoyable all the same. Tsukasa held the lead role of Jean Valjean while Blaine played Javert.

Aside from the musical, the rest of Blaine's non-academic schedule was as follows: on Friday after classes ended, he would meet up with Eiko and Ichiko and work with the charity group. Kiyomi decided to join the group after a while. On Saturday, he would meet up with Tatsuo to watch (and translate) an American film. Tatsuo had an extensive collection; so they had no fear of running out of material to watch. Lastly, on Sunday, Blaine would meet up with Kiyomi at her house and hang out with her.

Blaine's first meeting with Kiyomi's parents proved to be a little awkward. Kiyomi had told her parents that she had gotten a boyfriend, but she never told them that he was from America. She did not feel any need to mention this, as her parents never seemed like the xenophobic type.

Fortunately, both of her parents accepted Blaine and did not object to their daughter's relationship with him. So they were free to socialize, as long as they kept the door to Kiyomi's room open whenever they went there.

Even though his social life took up much of his free time, Blaine managed to find ample time for his homework and studying, too. He kept up with the curriculum just like everyone else.

Blaine showed excellent potential in chemistry, calculus, and engineering. In fact, he was so dexterous in these subjects that Gakuto Yamashita (Boy #21), the class mastermind, offered Blaine to join his group.

Of course, Blaine knew better than to accept. Gakuto's "group" was more a gang, even though all of its members were not violent by nature. It was led by the outspoken Osamu Sano (Boy #9). The other members were the incisive Toshirou Oosaki (Boy #5), the burly Kazumitsu Hayashi (Boy #16), the feisty Kaminari Ishida (Girl #2), and the voluptuous Reika Fujihara (Girl #19).

All six of them had a reputation for handling things in a very dark fashion. Whenever someone gave them trouble, that unfortunate fool would usually wind up in the hospital or in heavy debt. So Blaine politely declined Gakuto's offer.

While Blaine got along fine with most of the boys in his class, he was not too bad with the girls in his class either. On certain occasions – mainly social gatherings – some of the girls had actually tried to seduce Blaine, even after it became public that he and Kiyomi were together. A few examples were the precocious Rumi Hakugi (Girl #16), the cogent Namiko Abe (Girl #1), and the avaricious Tamayo Shintani (Girl #10). Blaine tried his hardest to turn down the girls' "offers" without hurting their feelings, even though they proved to be very persuasive. These girls had a reputation for being very stubborn, but Blaine managed to avoid succumbing to temptation. He wanted to save his virginity for whoever would be his future wife. The girls respected his wishes, but still tried "persuading him" every once in a while.

Most of the other girls just wanted a platonic friendship with Blaine, much to his relief. One such example was Hina Tashima (Girl #13), the class jokester. Hina loved to pull pranks on people, and she loved Blaine's sense of humor. Most of Hina's pranks were relatively harmless, like when she switched around some of the chemicals before a chemistry lab. This resulted in Gakuto Yamashita's experiment blowing up in his face, leaving him covered with soot.

However, sometimes Hina's jokes got out of hand. One time, she took the taciturn Sayeko Watanabe (Girl #22)'s inhaler and hid it from her. Sayeko got an asthma attack later that day and she freaked out when she could not find her inhaler. Blaine angrily told Hina "Joke's over," took back the inhaler, and returned it to Sayeko before she needed to go to the hospital.

One day after cheerleading practice, Kiyomi and Asayo introduced Blaine to some of their friends who were on the squad. Four of these girls were in their own personal clique, and all of them were from Class 3-A. One of them was the aforementioned Yuriye Sakaguchi. The other three were the fearless Chiaki Iwasaki (Girl #4), the timid Shizuye Chida (Girl #14), and the steadfast Tomoe Yamakawa (Girl #21). Chiaki appeared to be the leader of the group, as the other three girls followed her around almost everywhere she went.

All-in-all, Blaine quickly became one of the most popular students in Class 3-A. In fact, the only person who seemed more charismatic than him was Genji Nishihara. Even though he never had a girlfriend, most of the girls had a crush on the Class President. Even Chieko Suda had a bit of a crush on him, even though she was his partner in the Student Council and their relationship was almost entirely business in nature.

The compulsive Misaki Ozawa (Girl #7) had by far the biggest crush on Genji. She would frequently follow him around, pass him notes with "I love you" written on them, and constantly fawn over his intelligence and physique.

One time during economics, everyone was assigned random partners to work together on a project. Blaine and Misaki ended up being partnered together. Once they were finished working, Misaki spent her time gazing over at Genji. Then she told Blaine all about her fantasies involving the Class President. Blaine just sat and unwillingly listened, figuring that Misaki desperately needed someone to talk to.

Other than economics, Blaine rarely talked with Misaki, as she never seemed to be interested in socializing with anyone. She would often try hanging out with Genji, but as the Class President, he was usually too busy to find free time.

There were a few other people in Class 3-A that Blaine rarely spoke to, but he was still on good terms with them. One example was Jakobe Tanaka (Boy #12), a dedicated follower of Buddhism who spent a lot of his free time meditating. Whenever Blaine tried talking to him, the two would end up having a conversation about the meaning of life and reincarnation. Truth be told, Blaine liked discussing philosophy and religion, but that was the extent of his conversations with Jakobe.

Another example was Sayeko Watanabe. Even though she did not blame Blaine for the incident with her inhaler, she mostly preferred to keep to herself. But she sometimes talked with him during literature, as both of them had a deep fondness for reading.

A third example was the reclusive Kazuki Chikuda (Boy #13). Kazuki was the only person in the class who seemed to be more distanced from everyone else than Blaine had been when he first arrived in Japan. He had always been a loner, preferring solitude over company. Blaine understood this, as everyone needs some solitude every now and then. But perpetual solitude was only good for hermits. Sometimes Blaine would work with Kazuki during history and talk about various things, hoping to find something that they were both interested in.

The one person in the class whose company Blaine did not enjoy in the least was Akiyo Furukawa (Boy #18). Akiyo was the class pervert ("There's one in every class," Genji had told Blaine). Often he was caught peeking in the girls' locker room before and after physical education. When he saw a girl he was especially interested in, he would often lick his lips like a depraved animal. Such licentiousness disgusted Blaine, even though he was used to witnessing that sort of behavior back in the United States.

Blaine knew to avoid Akiyo after one particular incident that took place three weeks after the school year began. That day, Akiyo met Blaine after class and casually asked him what he thought about Japanese women. Blaine simply told him that he enjoyed their company. In response, Akiyo scoffed and stated "Come with me, my friend. I'll show you another way to 'enjoy their company.'"

This took place long before Blaine and Kiyomi started dating; but Blaine still did not like to reminisce on it. Nor did he ever mention it to Kiyomi.

Akiyo ended up taking Blaine to a strip joint. As soon as he set foot through the door, Blaine did not feel at ease being there. He made sure to let Akiyo know that. Akiyo just dismissed his notion and said "Relax, Blaine. Just get comfortable. I'll introduce you to the girls."

Reluctantly, Blaine let Akiyo lead him inside. It turned out Akiyo's cousin ran the joint. That was how the two of them were able to get in. Once they got in, they quickly took their seats. One of the waitresses took Blaine's coat for him and hung it up on a rack.

After this, two of the dancers seemed to show great interest in Blaine, which made him feel even more uncomfortable. Akiyo assured him "Relax. They're just curious; they've never seen an American before."

This did not set Blaine's mind at ease. It just made him even more nervous, especially when the two girls crouched down next to him and began rubbing his arms.

One of them whispered in English into his ear "Calm down, white boy. We make you feel… excited."

Obviously her English was very limited. The other girl whispered into his other ear in strained English "We hear… American men… sweeter. Is that true?"

"I speak Japanese," Blaine informed them, speaking in their language.

The two of them smiled and said "Good, good."

"I guess they want to know if you moan in Japanese, too," Akiyo remarked, smirking. A third girl was sitting on Akiyo's knee and he was stroking her back delicately.

"Akiyo, can I ask you something?" Blaine asked, trying hard to ignore the scantily-clad women at his sides.

"Sure, what do you want to know?" said Akiyo, most of his attention still on the girl.

"Exactly how many times have you… done the deed?" said Blaine.

Akiyo lightly shook his head and answered "Never, I'm afraid. I'm still a virgin. I just like hanging out around here."

Blaine decided he had had enough. Being in a strip club was bad enough; there was no way he was going to stay there for any amount of time if the person who invited him was a virgin, too. He pushed his chair back, stood up, picked up his backpack, and announced "I really should be getting back to the embassy. I just remembered I have… an appointment with the ambassador."

He did not really have to speak with the Kanagawa Prefecture's ambassador, but this was the best excuse he could think up at the time.

Before Akiyo could get in another word, Blaine took his coat and stormed out the front door. He was gone by the time Akiyo came outside. Thus, Blaine's association with Akiyo Furukawa was brought to a swift end.

Blaine often wondered why some of the girls in Class 3-A tried seducing him while they ignored Akiyo. After all, Blaine always said "no" while Akiyo was more than willing to accept the girls' advances.

Other than this incident, Blaine's school year in Japan went along very well. The hardest part of all was getting used to the difference in climate. Because Japan was in the Eastern Hemisphere, the seasons ran through different months. March, April, and May were the autumn months; June, July, and August were the winter months; September, October, and November were the spring months; December, January, and February were the summer months.

On the plus side, the seasons that followed the school year in Japan were the same seasons that followed the school year in America. At the very least, the climate made Blaine feel at home.

Blaine had documented all of his experiences with his friends, both in and out of school. As it turned out, one notebook was not enough for him to work with. By the time December came around, Blaine had begun working on a fourth notebook.

Once a week, he would call his mother in America and let her know what all he had done since the last time he called her. She was eager to know all about her son's experiences.

There had been a dance in August for the ninth-graders at Keio Shonan-Fujisawa Junior High School. It was at that dance that Blaine and Kiyomi had their first kiss.

Near the end of the night, there was a dance-off contest. Everyone was putting their best efforts into it, trying to come out on top. Most couples did specific dances; dances indigenous to Asia. However, when Blaine and Kiyomi stepped into the spotlight, they demonstrated a whole array of classic dancing from America and Europe. Blaine had taught them to Kiyomi beforehand. They had spent weeks preparing for this, and it ultimately ended up paying off. They won the dance-off.

After Genji and Chieko gave them the trophy, Kiyomi and Blaine held it high into the air as their surrounding classmates cheered thunderously. Then they looked into each other's eyes and solemnly kissed each other on the lips in front of their entire grade.

The cheering quickly died down and most people watched them in awe. It was well-known that Kiyomi and Blaine were dating, but this was the first time any of them had ever seen an Asian kiss an American.

When the two of them came apart, the cheering briefly resumed. Tatsuo and Asayo went over to their best friends and patted them on the back, saying "Congratulations! I knew you could do it!"

Unbeknownst to Kiyomi and Blaine, they were actually referring to the kiss, not the trophy.

…

Before anyone knew it, December came along. Everyone was glad that graduation was approaching. Everyone, except Blaine Rhodes.

On the next to last day of class, Ms. Kawano made an announcement. Every student in Class 3-A paid careful attention to her. She told them:

"I am proud of all of you. All forty-five of you. You've demonstrated amazing potential in these past nine months. Many of you will be moving on to the Keio Senior High School and then the Keio University. Some of you will start looking for an early job. Some of you may decide to make your own businesses. But regardless of what you do, you should know I'm proud of you."

Everyone applauded. After a few moments, Ms. Kawano went on:

"Tomorrow, the two-week class trip begins. As a special treat, we will be seeing a movie in town tomorrow night. Some of you may decide to skip classes tomorrow, but make sure you are here by the last bell; otherwise you will miss the bus. Do you all have your permission slips?"

Everyone except Blaine held up a piece of paper that had been signed by their parents or guardians. A few people were surprised to see Blaine keep his hand down, including Ms. Kawano.

"Do you have yours, Blaine-kun?" queried Ms. Kawano.

"I'm afraid I do not, Kawano-sensei," Blaine replied, "Tomorrow is my last day here. I'm not going on the class trip."

Several people were not expecting to hear that. "What?" shouted Tatsuo as he jumped to his feet.

"The exchange program only permits me to be here to study," Blaine explained, "Aside from that, I've already graduated from junior high school. In America, junior high goes from sixth to eighth grade, not seventh through ninth. Therefore, I cannot come on the class trip or stay for graduation."

There was shocked silence for the longest of times. Then Ms. Kawano stepped forward and asked "You are certain you cannot remain in Japan for a little longer?"

"Believe me, ma'am, I don't want to leave," Blaine told her, "Not at all. I've grown to love this country, as well as this school. I do wish I could stay."

"This… is final?" said Ms. Kawano.

Blaine sat thinking in deep thought for a very long time. Then he replied with "There might be a way. I'll try talking to the American ambassador tonight. At the very least, I could make it to the movie. I cannot guarantee anything, but it's worth a try."

Ms. Kawano smiled and said "I'm glad to know that. You've made a great impact on this class, Blaine-kun. I'd hate to see you leave so prematurely."

"Thank you, ma'am," Blaine replied, grinning up at his teacher.

…

That night, when Blaine got back to the American embassy, he spoke with the ambassador and asked him if it was possible for him to remain in Japan a little longer.

The ambassador told him that he would have to pull some strings, but it could be done. He had good connections around Japan.

The next morning, at breakfast, the ambassador told Blaine that his request to stay had been confirmed by the government. Blaine thanked the ambassador and also asked him how he managed this task. The ambassador told him that it had been surprisingly easy; all he literally had to do was ask. The government confirmed Blaine's request in a heartbeat.

The ambassador was stunned as to how they guaranteed the request so quickly; but Blaine did not mind.

…

Everyone in Class 3-A was pleased to learn that Blaine was coming on the trip, especially Kiyomi and Tatsuo.

Because it was officially the last day of school for the ninth-graders, there were no real classes; just one long study-hall.

Kiyomi and Blaine spent a lot of time going over the schedule for the trip. They were mostly just glad that he could stay in Japan with her. He was going to miss her more than anyone when he left.

…

At the end of the day, the bus arrived. The 45 students of Class 3-A piled on; most were barely able to contain their excitement.

Kiyomi and Blaine spent the first part of it wrapped in each other's arms, gazing out the window to admire the scenery.

"Did I tell you my mother is arriving in Japan today?" Blaine asked Kiyomi.

"No," she replied, "You didn't. What's she like?"

"She's just the greatest mother a guy could ask for," Blaine enlightened her, "I'm an only child, and my father's work often requires him to be out of the country. So it's usually just her and me year-round."

"I'll bet she'll be happy to see you after nine months," Kiyomi theorized.

"I know she will," Blaine remarked, "I just hope she'll be able to wait another two weeks. I was originally supposed to see her tonight."

"Well, maybe you can call her when we're at the theater," Kiyomi suggested, "I heard we'll be watching a really old, really long film from 1954. I've seen it before; it's called Seven Samurai. Do you know that movie?"

"Know it?" said Blaine. "Of course I do! That's one of the films made by the legendary Akira Kurosawa himself. In fact, in 2009, Empire Magazine made a list of the 100 best films not in the English language. Seven Samurai was number one, right at the top."

"Really?" said Kiyomi, impressed, "I never knew that."

"I saw it once before," Blaine told her, "You're right about its length; it's over three and a-half hours long. There's sure to be an intermission. I guess I'll call my mother then."

"Great," Kiyomi agreed, laying her head on Blaine's shoulder, "I'm hoping you'll introduce me to her."

"Of course I will," he remarked, "I've told her all about you. She probably likes you already."

Just then, Blaine felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked up and saw Genji Nishihara standing in the seat behind him, smiling. He was holding a piece of paper in his arm.

"Chieko and I are working on our speeches," he told his American friend, "I wanted to see what you thought of what I got so far."

Blaine nodded and took the paper. He read it over. He was really amused by the last paragraph:

"The presence of an American student, our own Blaine Rhodes, has opened our eyes to new forms of tolerance and acceptance. Had it not been for the exchange program, most of us probably would have gone our own lives without meeting an American. We'd have no way of knowing their lifestyle, their preferences, or their tastes, except for what the government tells us. But my good friend Blaine has proven that no one can be judged by their nationality. An individual is part of a group, but the group is not always part of the individual."

"I like that," Blaine slyly commented as he handed the paper to Genji.

"I thought you would," said Chieko, who was sitting next to Genji. She sat up and stated "Genji's still working on an end to his speech. Hopefully we'll come up with one during the trip."

"I'm sure you will," Blaine remarked.

Genji and Chieko spent the rest of the drive working. Little did they know that in a few hours, the graduation speech would be the least of their worries.

…

At around six o'clock, the bus pulled up to a movie theater. Ms. Kawano had already ordered forty-six tickets and gave each student one, keeping the last for herself.

As Blaine stepped off the bus, he noticed that the driver and the stewardess were taking something out of a cabinet. It looked like… metal canisters. Blaine just dismissed the idea and walked inside.

The theater was small, but the screen was wide. As it turns out, the entire theater had been rented out for Ms. Kawano's class. Everyone spread out amongst the rows. Many preferred to sit in the back while a few sat near the front. Kiyomi, Blaine, Tatsuo, and Asayo sat near the center. Ms. Kawano was also in their row, sitting near the end.

After about fifteen minutes, the movie began. Blaine had seen Seven Samurai only one time beforehand. Obviously this version was remastered, as its quality and sound had been notably improved.

The first half of the movie ended at around eight-thirty. Intermission began. Several students went to get snacks or use the bathroom. Blaine stepped out to call his mother. He took out his cell phone and dialed up his mother's mobile number.

Then something strange happened. The call did not even get through. The line must have been malfunctioning or something.

Blaine tried dialing again. Once again, it did not get through.

He decided to ask the theater manager about the problem. The manager merely replied "In order to ensure that cell phones do not interfere with the movies, we disable the wireless connection whenever the movie is playing."

"But it's intermission," Blaine pointed out, "Can't I at least make a call during then?"

"I'm sorry, sir," stated the manager, "But regulations are regulations."

Blaine just shrugged, turned to the front entrance, and started walking towards it, saying "Alright, then. I'll just step outside for a minute and make my call out there."

Before he got halfway, the manger stopped him and said "Sir, you cannot leave the theater until the movie is over."

Blaine looked over his shoulder and asked annoyed "Why not, pray tell? Is that 'regulation,' too?"

"Yes it is," was all the manager said, "Please return to your seat immediately."

Blaine stood there for a moment, glaring the emotionless man in the eye. Then he stomped off in frustration, saying "Very well; I can wait."

Had Blaine made it to the front entrance, he would have discovered that the doors had been electronically locked.

…

When he got back to his seat, Kiyomi asked him "How's your mother doing?"

"I couldn't reach her," Blaine responded, "The wireless connection has been severed until the movie's over."

"Why didn't you go outside?" asked Tatsuo.

"I tried to," explained Blaine, "But the manager wouldn't let me. He was acting very oddly, as if something was on his mind."

"I'll tell you something odd," said Asayo, "I went to get some candy from the snack bar. The clerk handed it to me and looked away, saying 'I hope you'll like your treat.' She said it in a really sorrowful voice, as if something was bothering her. There was even a tear in her eye."

"Do you think something's up?" stated Yuuga Suzuki, who was sitting in the row behind them, "The entire theater's staff looks as if they're going through a depression right now."

"Maybe they're all getting a pay-cut," joked Hina Tashima, who sat a few rows forward.

"Or they just hate their jobs," suggested Kenzou Iwamoto.

"Let's just forget about it all," Genji decided, "After all, we're on vacation!"

Everyone quickly agreed with Genji's idea. A minute later, intermission ended and the movie resumed.

…

An hour later, Blaine started feeling tired. He wasn't sure how he could feel tired so early. Months ago, he had gotten used to the difference in time zones between Japan and California, which was where he lived in America.

He wondered why he could feel so tired, especially since the climax of the movie was coming up.

After a minute, he hypothesized that the cumulative stress he had undergone over the school year was finally catching up with him. He thought that… until he looked to his right at his girlfriend.

Kiyomi was fast asleep. Her head was resting against her shoulder.

Blaine scoffed and said under his breath "There's… exc-exc-excitement for you. Right, Tatsuo?"

He turned his head the other way and saw something else. Tatsuo was leaning forward with his head on his knees. Blaine slowly lifted his head up and saw that his best friend was unconscious.

Now Blaine started getting worried. It was not like Tatsuo or Kiyomi to fall asleep on the spot like this. He tried his hardest to stand up. Then he looked around the room.

Everyone was out like a rock. Genji, Asayo, Chieko, Goro… even the normally hyperactive Tomoe Yamakawa did not stir.

"Better… tell… Kawano-sensei," Blaine muttered as he struggled to pull himself to his feet. To his despair, Ms. Kawano was asleep just like everyone else.

Blaine started to panic. Something was going on; something very bad. Despite his fatigue, he made it to the door and tried pushing it open. The door was locked. Blaine pounded on it, trying his best to shout "Open… the door! Open the door!"

He could see the manager standing on the other side, looking through the glass at him. There appeared to be a tear sliding down his cheek. All he did was approach the door and mouth to Blaine "I'm so sorry."

That was the last thing Blaine saw before he dropped to the ground and lost consciousness.

Note: The Program begins in the next chapter. The "new rule" I mentioned in the summary will be introduced, too. What do you think of this so far? Do you like the characters? I'm going to try to give each and every one of the students a bit of time for character development before they are… eliminated. But I can assure you; the killings will start very soon.