Sanchez Suzume - Ouran highschool Tuesday, April 19th
Kimura-san texted me this morning saying she turned in the video file for the Invention section of the International Math and Science Competition. I felt a wave of hope that we would be selected. I never worked so hard for something at school, other than my math homework. It was a strange feeling to feel butterflies in my stomach about it.
Today there would be no avoiding the auto shop. I knew I had to see Silver and confront him about the gun once and for all. I had to know if it was used to kill one of our enemies, a late client, or whatever else a gun could be used for.
Hayashi-sensei, the science teacher, was beginning her lecture about cells. I glanced out of the window and sighed. The torture of slowly waiting for the bell to ring was keeping me on my anxious high. I numbly took some notes, trying to focus on the sound of her voice.
"Work in pairs to complete the worksheet about plant cells. We will be using microscopes. Grab them from the back," Hayashi-sensei instructed. I glanced around the room and sighed. No one was rushing to be my partner. I didn't bother to make friends and now this was the consequence. Another girl, Chiba-san was also without a partner.
I approached her and said, "Will you work with me?"
"Hai," she replied gratefully. I briefly looked at her small figure and beautiful long black hair. It was perfectly straight, unlike my unruly wavy hair. "I'll grab the microscopes."
I took a seat and watched her go to the back and grab them. I sighed and hoped she wasn't bad in biology. It wasn't my strongest subject. When she returned I went up to grab the slides from Hayashi-sensei. She had various slides for us to look at. Some stained different colors like pink, blue, and green.
A student in front of us passed Chiba-san the worksheet we had to complete. I took a seat and placed the slides on the side of the desks. Chiba-san handed me a worksheet and I started off by writing my name. I glanced through it and saw that it was some fill-in-the-blanks, some short answers, and some labeling of the slides.
"Let's start by working on the short answer and labeling," Chiba-san suggested.
"Sure. The first one says: If you were a scientist working in a marine laboratory, how would you go about using cellular research to better the ocean?" I read aloud. I glanced to Chiba-san who seemed blank. "I guess we could write that studying the change in cells can help us know the effects of global warming and pollution."
"We should add that we can study how the animals are evolving," Chiba-san suggested. I smiled in relief that she wasn't totally lost. If she was, we'd be here until the class ended.
"Number 2. Why are cells so important even though they are the smallest unit in the human body?"
"They convert nutrients into energy and have specialized functions to help the human body function," Chiba-san answered flawlessly. I copied down what she said and looked over to the next question.
"Number 3. If you had unlimited funding, what would you research? Provide a hypothesis, control, and experimental group for your research." I read. "Geez, this one is a lot."
"Yeah, it is," she agreed, wiping a hair away from her mouth.
"I personally would like to study coral reefs," I admitted.
"That's a good idea," Chiba-san smiled. "We can study the best methods for coral growth."
"Yeah," I smiled. We came up with the rest of the answers and did the same for the rest of the worksheet. I enjoyed looking through the slides on the microscope. It was cool to see the engorged cells. They looked so strange and alien-like. The human, plant, and animal bodies were a wonder to behold.
When the class was over I headed outside for lunch. Once I was seated outside a random boy came up to me with his glasses all fogged up and his breathing was erratic. "Suzume-senpai, you were so adorable in the Hitachiin Magazine. I admire your beauty!" he exclaimed.
"Thank… you…," I muttered out in horror. People had seen the magazine. I completely forgot about it. I was in some deep shit. I saw a crowd of boys behind him, their noses bleeding and to my dismay, they had a sign that read: Suzume-san is cute! "God dammit" I hissed in pure rage.
I immediately stood up and ran for the cafeteria. I saw the Hitachiin twins eating, surrounded by girls. They were smiling in delight until they noticed my presence. "Hitachiin Kaoru and Hikaru," I growled.
"Suzume-senpai," they both greeted with smiles.
"Why the hell was I the front page cover of your goddamn magazine?" I questioned.
"Because you're good-looking," one of them answered with a shrug. "Same reason why you'd put anyone in a magazine."
"Are you kidding me right now!?" I huffed.
"No," the other twin answered. "You are pretty enough to be on the front cover, despite your lack of modeling experience."
"This Saturday we'll be picking you up to model for our next Spring Fashion Shoot."
"Like hell, you are," I growled.
"Ahem," Kyoya interrupted. I shot him a glare. "I suggest you consider their proposal with a little more gratitude."
"Go fuck yourself," I barked, walking away. There was no way I would model for a fashion shoot. It was complete madness.
Marianna Lorena - Doutoru Bakery Tuesday, April 19th
I took a seat in the cafe, waiting for Sanchez Suzume to arrive. I felt down still about the conversation I overheard yesterday. I could barely look Aki-san and Seno-san in the eyes all day today. I was just some dark-skinned immigrant stealing jobs in their eyes.
Finally, I saw her walk in the door. She seemed like she was in a rush, her face a little red. "Hello Suzume," I greeted her in English.
"Hello," she replied back respectfully. This was a nice change from the last time we met. She at least addressed me like a teacher.
"How are you doing?" I asked her.
"Good," she answered with a nod.
"Great," I smiled. "Let's order a drink and some pastries." Suzume took a croissant while I got Anpan. We both got hot chocolate and using the gift card felt very satisfying. I would get to tell Honey that I finally used it.
Once we sat down at a table, I opened up my notebook where I wrote down a few questions to ask Suzume. I spent most of my evening yesterday writing them out. "How have you been liking Ouran so far?" I asked her.
"It's okay," she replied with a shrug.
"It's ok for you not to like the school," I told her with a small smile. "It's also okay to have a hard time adjusting from your old school."
"Fine," she shrugged again. "I don't like Ouran much. I miss my old friends. I also despise the uniform they make us wear."
"Did your old school have a uniform?" I inquired.
"No," she shook her head. I smiled. She was more expressive today, which was an excellent sign the meeting would be productive. "Did you like your high school?"
"I did most of the time. I had a hard time at home and some girls at my school were mean to me." I watched her expression as she looked into my eyes. I wondered if I seemed pathetic for admitting that. High school girls could be cruel. So could adults. I mean, she is dark-skinned you know and her Japanese isn't all that good.
"What was hard at home?" she pressed.
"Lots of things," I said. "But I think the hardest was my father."
"Oh," she frowned, taking that in. I knew from her file that she adored her father, idolized him, and had him on the highest pedestal a teen could have their parent on. It felt a little dishonest to have read that file. It kept me from getting to know Suzume from her perspective. "For me, it's my mother."
"What's hard about your mom Suzume?"
"She's never home. She's always at Tamaki's mansion cleaning and taking care of him."
"My mother was always working too. She didn't clean a mansion though," I smiled. "Even though parents make mistakes, we can learn and not make the same ones they did."
"Is that what you did?" she questioned.
"I like to think so. I dug very deep inside me and went after my wildest dreams," I told her earnestly. "No one was there to support me, no one was there to guide me. I carved my own path. No matter what happens in life, we can always carve our own path."
"I guess that's true," she acknowledged without much enthusiasm. I might have been a little too preachy.
"How is the International Math and Science Competition?"
"Fine. My partner turned in our video file for the Invention Section. The head teachers will review the video ideas and let us know next week who gets to represent Ouran."
"That's exciting. What was your idea?"
"It wasn't my idea exactly," she began. "Kimura-san's idea was to invent a robot that translates sign language into spoken word."
"Wow," I said with genuine surprise. "With an idea like that, you two can really change things for those who are deaf."
"Yeah I guess so," she acknowledged.
"I know so," I smiled at her. "I'm sure the committee will pick you both to be on the team. I can't see what other idea would be better."
"Thanks, Lorena-sensei," she said in Japanese. I blinked at the change in language but felt the warmth of the thanks.
"You're welcome," I smiled.
Sanchez Suzume - Yakazawa District Tuesday, April 19th
At the auto shop, I saw Silver underneath a car. I immediately squatted down beside him. "What the fuck happened to the gun?" I blurted out rapidly.
He grunted and wheeled himself out. "That's what I was wanting to ask you brat."
"Don't pull the I'm younger than you and am more stupid than you card. That gun was yours and your responsibility alone to deal with. I was doing you a fucking favor by having it in my safe."
"I killed my landlord with it," he admitted with absolutely no remorse. "Cops came poking their heads around after the body showed up. I killed some other folks too."
"Great so they're after you," I wrung my hands over my head. "And it's gone. Bloody fantastic."
"If the cops come asking you questions, you don't know nothing. Got it?" he growled. I rolled my eyes.
"No shit," I retorted. "I'm never doing you a solid like this again. Got it?"
"Whatever," he huffed. "I better not find out you gave them the gun."
"I'm not a snitch," I tossed back.
"Get out of my face bitch." I took a step back from this response and walked to my office area in the shop. My weapon plans were messily piled around my desk. I took a seat and opened my safe. The gun was missing but nothing else in there was. Someone deliberately took it out.
I began to work on my grenades. The process of creating the explosives was soothing to me as my mind wandered. "Scar," Big G called out.
"Yes, boss?"
"I want you to go with Hiro to the store. I need some parts, I gave Hiro a list."
"Okay," I nodded, getting up from my chair. Hiro grabbed the car keys and threw them at me. I grabbed them with one hand, smiling at Hiro.
When we got in the car Hiro immediately asked, "What did Silver say?"
"He doesn't know shit about what happened to the gun. Told me the cops are looking for him," I replied, making a turn on the road.
"Shit," he said.
"Shit."
"What are you going to do if they find the gun? It has your fingerprints all over it."
"I don't know Hiro… I don't know."
Marianna Lorena
I sat down at my desk, tears pooling from my eyes. I was really missing home. Aki-san and Seno-san's comments made me feel horrible about myself. I missed San Francisco, where I wasn't a freak and outcast.
Who was I kidding by coming all the way over here? This was a whole different country with different customs, traditions, and cultures. I had no place here.
The tears oozed down my cheeks. I sniffled before full-on bawling. I felt the heaviness in my chest as I cried.
I thought back to the weekend and the ramen that I still hadn't eaten. I numbly went to the refrigerator and served the ramen in a bowl and heated it in the microwave. It was dinner time now and while I managed to keep a happy persona for Suzume, I had a hard time really being able to stay cheery.
Once the food was ready, I pulled out my phone and put on some music to fit my depressive mood. I hung my head on the table and sighed. I also remembered how cold Honey had seemed when he said bye to me. I didn't address him in class today or yesterday out of nerves.
My eyes glanced towards the window. The sun was beginning to set. I admired the red glow painted across the sky before slurping on more of my noodles.