Disclaimer: I own naught. But if I did, Chichiri would end up taking over the world... or fall in love with some random girl and be happy. Oh, and that scar might just suddenly disappear...ehehe.

Chapter One: Just Another Typical Day

"Oi! Don't forget to bring back the Chinese!" Sean yelled out after his friend, Kentai.

Kentai waved in reply. "Yeah, yeah, I won't!"

'Right. Just like you didn't last time. Baka Kentai, getting distracted by some skirt,' Sean thought a bit uncharitably. Sighing, he shut the door. Turning around, he surveyed the messy room. Sean fished in his shirt pocket for a list. Upon finding it, he browsed the list. "I guess I could start by washing the dishes," he muttered. Cleaning certainly wasn't on the high school kid's favorite things to do list, but it had to be done eventually.

Hours later, Sean had finished with the majority of the cleaning. 'Kentai can do the rest,' he decided. 'Now where did I put that book?'

Kentai loved walking in the city on a warm day. It was nice and peaceful, if you ignored the yelling drivers honking at the more foolish jaywalkers. The first flowers of the spring season had blossomed in the U of M commons, giving the air a wonderful scent. The sun warmed the skin, while the breeze kept the temperature perfect, not too hot, not too cold.

The scents of the city wafted across Kentai's nose, some tantalizing, some the oily smell of exhaust. Stopping at The Golden Gate, one of the best Chinese resteraunts for miles around, the young man picked up Sean and his orders of General Tsao's chicken, crab rangoon, and Mongolian beef. Resisting the urge to devour the tasty meal, Kentai walked to the nearest bus stop to go back to his dormitory.

Sean and Kentai were both students of a boarding school. They met each other for the first time after the orientation. Sean friendly demeanor helped soothe any worries Kentai had about having a stranger for a roommate. Now, after eight months, they were best friends.

The boarding school had clics, just like any other school. There were the geeks, the popular people, the artists, the punks, and other various groups that were set in stone. Once you entered, you didn't leave, unless you wanted to join the rejects, the despised and lonely ones.

Shen, Nikolas, Rui, Kentai, and Sean didn't join any clic. They preferred to just hang out with each other, ignoring most of the other school population. Shen was a track runner, but he didn't hang around the other atheletes. They made fun of him whenever they could for being a loner, but none of that bothered the teen. Nikolas was very studious, but certainly no nerd or geek. His good looks kept anyone from teasing him for his smarts. He, in fact, had a fan girl club that adored him. Rui was the painter of the oddball group. She had wonderful vision. She never painted people, but instead covered her canvas with glorious scenery. Kentai liked to study like Nikolas, but he kept to himself, never drawing any attention from anyone. Sean, however, was the prankster. He was loud, obnoxious, and brash. He got into fights, tped people's rooms (without getting caught either), and generally caused mayhem. No one really messed with them, but preferred to ignore them, except for Nikolas's fan girls who sighed after him from afar.

Kentai jumped off the bus and walked towards the dormitories, humming a nonsensical tune. Life was good.

Crouching down into ready position, Shen waited for his coach to give the signal to start. When the whistle blew, he was off like the wind. He loved running track. He felt free, almost like he could fly away from all the troubles plauging him. His just a bit less than perfect scorings always gave his parents something to grouse about whenever he talked to them. He knew he was trying his best, but his parents always believed that he could do so much better. "You're wasting your potential, Shen!" his father had yelled at him. "Do you just want to be another bum on the street?"

"I won't lose. I'll make it, I'll show you," Shen growled. The other track runners, even the fastest, were shocked to see Shen fly past them. They had never seen him go so fast.

"When did he get so fast?" was the collective thought of the runners. Shen beat all of them with ease.

"Shen! How come you haven't run like that before?" the track coach demanded. "You could go for the State championship!"

Shen shook his head tiredly. "I can't afford to. My grades can't slip down any further, or I'll have to quit track."

The coach shook his head sadly. "You could get a scholarship, kid."

"I don't need one," he muttered. "Besides, I doubt I can do that again."

"Go shower and go home, then. You don't need to be here," the coach snapped angrily.

'How frustrating it must be for him. I'd be mad too,' Shen thought wearily as he trudged towards the showers, leaving most of the track team staring at him, still wondering how he ran so fast.

A/N: So here's my new story. Odd, neh? I'm just doing this for fun, to see how my writing style is. The plot is making itself up as it goes along, so I can't really say how this will all end. I don't even have the faintest clue what I'm doing. Please review and tell me how good, bad, or okay my work is. Ja ne!