(I'm back and have a new username. Why, you ask. It's because most of my web aliases are r0seinmisery and it will be easier for people to recognize me and such. Sorry if this confuses you. I'm sure you'll get used to it eventually ;-) )
Up until fourth grade, Tam had been the only Asian student in his upscale Catholic school. Tam used to cry because he was different. As he once put it, some people didn't like him because he had differently shaped eyes. In Atlanta, some people had been raised with prejudices against non whites. Just as many people were blind to the difference, but it didn't matter. Someone hated Tam because he was Asian, and it made him cry. Of course, his tears would be discreet. Imagine the humiliation of someone finding out that Tam cried! It wasn't at all masculine and it would ruin Tam's reputation forever.
That all changed when the Japanese girl Sarah came to school. Tam saw somebody who looked like him! He was ecstatic. Now he wouldn't feel so left out. There would be somebody else who had differently shaped eyes. Sarah was a year younger than Tam since she had skipped a grade. She was also much shorter. The attractive girl would never reach Tam's height, or even come close for that matter. In the height department, Tam took after his six foot one father.
Tam and Sarah had become close friends. They shared secrets. For instance, Sarah told Tam that her real name was Mika. Her mother legally changed it because she wanted her daughter's name to sound more American. Sarah, or Mika if one preferred that, told Tam how she wants to move to Tokyo when she's older. Tam told her his suspicions about adoption. They had remained friends, nothing more. Tam wanted more at times, but Sarah was content with just staying friends.
Tam, sweaty from his run, found himself ringing her doorbell again. Sarah rushed to open the door. Smells of sushi and fish immediately greeted Tam. Sarah's mother owned the best Japanese restaurant in this part of Atlanta. Whenever Tam visited his friend, he was sure to have a nice meal.
"Hi Tam. I'm eating dinner right now, so do you think you could come back later?" Sarah asked.
"What? You aren't going to invite me in or anything?" Tam joked, knowing he wanted to dig into the tempura in the center of the kitchen table.
"Doesn't your mother feed you at all? Look, I'll get a plate out for you and a fork. I can't let you use chopsticks again. You made such a mess last time you used them," Sarah motioned for Tam to enter her home. Tam sat down and began to help himself to the tempura shrimp. He licked his lips and dug in. Tam polished off his food and turned to Sarah. He was going to talk about who he thought his real parents were. If there was anyone he could speak to about this, it was her.
Just as he was going to open his mouth, the doorbell rang. Sarah opened the door to reveal an angry looking Chris. He gave a smile to Sarah. He always liked the girl. She studied hard and was a good influence on Tam. He marched over to the table and spoke to Tam in a stern voice.
"Where have you been Tam? You had me worried sick. I was looking all over the place for you. Why did you run off?" Chris questioned his son. When Tam just shrugged his shoulders, Chris decided to take a nicer approach. "Look, why don't you thank Sarah for the hospitality and come home? I think we need to have a nice long family chat."
Tam's ears perked up when he heard the words "family chat". Were they finally going to discuss his parents? Tam gave Sarah a quick hug and ran out the door. He was finally going to hear the answers he had searched for.