Nyoko softly knocked on Buster's door. She didn't expect him or his mother to answer the door right away, but she did expect an answer nonetheless. She wasn't sure how either of them would react to her coming all this way from Colorado by bus. Would they even let her live with them after what had happened? She didn't know enough about condos to see if they allowed random fourteen-year-olds to move in with other people, but this was a risk she was willing to take. She waited a few seconds before the door eventually opened to reveal Buster's mom Bitzi, a pale-skinned green-eyed woman covered in freckles who was wearing yellow pointy-ended glasses and a pink bathing robe and slippers with her auburn hair in a clear shower cap.
"Who are you?" Bitzi asked.
"My name's Nyoko Goshima," she replied, tears threatening to fall from her eyes. "But online, I go by Xxlapislazuli88xX."
Bitzi nodded. "Ah, I see. Well, my name's Bitzi, and I'm Buster's mom. What are you doing here?"
"I just came here by bus from Colorado 1,700 miles away, and I was hoping to stay with you."
"Oh honey..." Bitzi practically breathed. "What for? You can tell me."
Nyoko took a deep breath and forced herself to calm down. "My mom kicked me out of the house because I'm still in mourning over my baby. She told me that as long as I was her daughter and I was living under her roof, I was going to follow her rules. Also, she was still insisting that it was my fault that I got raped because I guess, in her eyes, I had sex before marriage. So I told her off, grabbed my stuff, and got out of there. To make matters worse, she thinks I'm going to end up dead in a ditch. Well, I'll show her."
"Sweetie, I'm so proud of you for standing up for yourself, but I don't know if it was a good idea to leave during fall semester. Aren't you worried about getting in trouble for truancy?"
Nyoko shook her head. "Nah. I'm not going back. Why should I anyway? I've already cut ties with my family."
Bitzi sighed. "Alright." She turned around and called out for Buster. "Buster, your Internet friend is here!"
"I'm coming, Mom!" Buster could be heard yelling back.
Just a few seconds later, Buster ran right over to where his mother was and found himself standing in front of Nyoko. Nyoko could hardly believe what her AIM friend actually looked like. Just like his mother, he had pale skin covered in numerous freckles. Unlike his mother, though, he was blond and blue-eyed and didn't wear glasses. He was wearing a purple button-up pajama top with dark pink dinosaur designs, dark pink pajama bottoms, and aardvark slippers.
"Oh my gosh!" Buster exclaimed with a buck-toothed smile. "Nyoko, is that you?"
Nyoko nodded. "Yep, it's me."
"Wow, you look great! I can't believe this is the first time we're meeting in person."
Nyoko chuckled uneasily. "Yeah, me neither."
Buster's smile soon faded away. "How and why are you here anyway?"
"I came here by bus 'cause my mom kicked me out of the house."
"Oh dear. I'm sorry you had to deal with that."
Bitzi took the bag containing Nyoko's belongings. "Well, you are absolutely welcome here as long as you need to stay. For now, let's get you settled in our guest room. Afterwards, we can get you something to eat. I bet you're famished."
Bitzi and Buster led Nyoko into a small room with a twin bed and a little dresser. Attached to that room was a small bathroom with only a toilet, a sink, and a shower stand.
"Just make yourself at home," Bitzi said. "In the meantime, I'll be making dinner. Tonight, we're having meatloaf, macaroni and cheese, and peas."
Nyoko gave Bitzi a hug. "Thank you so much. You're the best. You really are. In fact, I'm never going to forget this."
Bitzi chuckled. "You're welcome, Nyoko. I'd do anything for Buster's Internet friend."
A few weeks had passed since Nyoko had come to live with Buster and his mother. In that time, Bitzi signed Nyoko up for late enrollment at Lincoln High School where Buster was currently attending. She was also declared Nyoko's legal guardian. Buster and Nyoko were also getting along better than ever, even having movie nights on the weekends. While Nyoko had never really regularly watched comedic films like "Snow Dogs" and "Big Fat Liar," she did find them somewhat amusing, even when she was watching them with Buster. In turn, Buster had something of a soft spot for romantic films like "A Walk to Remember," "My Big Fat Greek Wedding," and "Bridget Jones's Diary."
One day, shortly before winter break was to commence, Nyoko was hanging out with Buster and his friends at the cafeteria. Arthur was talking a great big deal about how much he was looking forward to his first date with Francine, The Brain was discussing how he'd just entered a math contest, and Binky was talking about how many weights he lifted last week. While everyone conversed with one another, Muffy ran over to their table and handed them copies of the "Teen People" magazine.
Muffy was a fourteen-year-old girl with a yellowish complexion, green eyes, a short stubby nose, and a round face. Her dark auburn hair was stylized into a twisted updo with bangs laying on the right side of her face, and it was accessorized with two oversized mauve butterfly clips on either side of her head. She also wore matching dangling butterfly earrings; as well as a lavender halter top, a white bubble skirt, and purple high-heel boots.
"What's this about, Muffy?" Arthur asked curiously.
"Apparently, Eric Cartman of Fingerbang is already engaged to Maya Diamond," Muffy replied. "They've only been together for two months, and they already have to get married. Can you believe it? I heard that they're going to have the wedding at Central Park. I bet it'll be so romantic!"
Nyoko couldn't help but think something about seemed off. Have to get married? Did that mean...? Oh my God, it did. It was the same reason her parents had given for why they'd married while still in college. She had to force herself to calm, though. The last thing she needed was to go into a flying rage over Eric, especially when she was trying to start over fresh.
"I guess, but Eric's twenty-one years younger than Maya," Arthur pointed out. "He's only slightly younger than her sister Petunia. Don't you think that seems even a little weird?"
"No, so what?" Muffy retorted.
"So?" Arthur was getting a little red in the face. "He's a minor just like us, Muffy. For all we know, she could be taking advantage of him. I can't help but get skeeved out just thinking about it."
"Yeah, me too," The Brain chimed in. "Maybe she took an interest in him because he doesn't have that much experience when it comes to romance. Plus, with a power imbalance like what Eric and Maya have, he's less likely to criticize her and point out her flaws."
"Guys, can we change the subject?" Buster asked. "I'm not sure I want Nyoko to feel uncomfortable just hearing about Eric."
Arthur sheepishly chuckled. "Oh, sorry. So what else is new?"
"Well, Mom just got a new job offer at the local newspaper for some town called Beach City," Buster replied. "She said it's located in Delaware."
Binky loudly gasped. "Wow, really?"
Buster nodded. "Yeah... which means Nyoko and Mom and I might have to move down to Beach City by the end of the year."
Nyoko had already known that, but just hearing him bring that up still made her upset. Was she willing to leave everyone behind again? She couldn't just do this again, could she?
