"Oh, isn't it? And exactly what are you going to do about it, and with what proof? What you say doesn't matter because, until the Child Care Services say otherwise, you're stuck with us. And there is nothing you can do about it."

Those words seemed to haunt me even through to the next day. After taunting me a little more, Ben finally left me alone. It seemed to take me forever to fall asleep after that, as I couldn't get what was said out of my mind. Though I didn't want to believe any of it was true, my imagination ran wild and I couldn't help but think back on all the little things that happened in the past three weeks. Namely that none of my family had so much as reached out to me in all that time.

Why wouldn't they do that? I was still living in the same town, it shouldn't be that hard. Were there legal issues going on that I didn't know about? Was Ben actually telling the truth or was I just being gullible in believing him? I didn't know. I couldn't know. I was just a sixteen year old girl; how would I know how all this worked? The only thing I know is that there was no way in hell I wanted to spend the next two years with this family.

Despite how much my mind had been racing, I must have been able to fall asleep at some point. Because, next thing I knew, I was waking up to the alarm I had set myself for school. The last thing I wanted to do, though, was go to school today. I was already dreading the many long classes, boring lunch hour and, most of all, Lisa. Not just Lisa, though, but her two best friends as well. They were just as bad as she was and made my, as well as bunch of other kids, school life hell. Because of this, and other things they have done, I have taken to nicknaming them the 'Three Bitches of High School.' Never to their faces, though, even if I really wanted to.

However, despite my desires to just stay in bed, I soon found myself walking the five blocks to school at eight thirty in the morning. If I still had my mountain bike I'd easily ride it to school. However, on my third day living with the Bakers, it was accidentally destroyed when someone moved it in front of Ben's truck. Of course that someone had to be Robby. Sandy and Ben weren't as heartless to purposely destroy my property. I did get blamed for it, though. Of course they'd never even think their cute, little, innocent son would ever do such a thing.

Anyways school was going better than I had expected it to. I watched videos in most of my classes, teachers were sympathetic about my family and my lunch was actually delicious. I had brought money for the school's canteen and, to my luck, it was chicken burger day. I love chicken burgers and I am not ashamed to say I pigged out. I had bought myself three burgers, a bag of ketchup chips, and a bottle of coke for my drink.

The best part about the school day was I hadn't run into Lisa or her two best friends. In high school classes were very different than they are in middle school and elementary. We do still have home room but we only use it for about the first week or so in the beginning of the school year. After that each kid goes off to their own class. Unlike elementary or middle school we don't stay in one group all day. My reasoning for saying this is the likeliness I had not run into Lisa or her friends was because none of them were in my morning classes. Sadly, I couldn't say the same about my afternoon classes.

My first class after lunch was Art. Lisa herself wasn't in that class but Rebekah Starch and Amy Little were. Rebekah and Amy were Lisa's two best friends and the two biggest bitches besides Lisa herself. Unlike Lisa, however, Rebekah and Amy weren't from rich families. No, they're just stuck up snobs that think they can get away with anything they want. There used to be a fourth girl in the group of bitches but, right before coming to high school, she became humble and very kind. I think surviving cancer may have had something to do with it.

Anyways, my art class didn't go all that horribly but it didn't really go good either. I had finished my art assignment early, as art was one of my easier classes. So, for the rest of the class, my teacher allowed me to do what I wanted as long as I didn't disturbed the rest of the class. Luckily I had brought volumes three and four of my Vampire Knight volumes to school with me. I only had one chapter left of volume three before I could move on to volume four. So everything seemed good up until that point.

Rebekah, who had also finished her own assignment, had decided to taunt me. Both she and Amy were sitting at the table behind me and would throw paper balls at my head when the teacher wasn't looking. That wasn't the worst thing they did though. Every time a ball was thrown they'd say things like Hey, orphan freak or Why don't you go cry to your mommy or even you're the reason your parents are dead but that one was only said if they were feeling especially nasty and mean. And, as with throwing the paper balls, would only do so when the teacher either wasn't paying attention or was outside the room.

You have no idea how badly I wanted to hurt them. To just spin around in my seat and punch them in the face. However, I knew that wouldn't end well for me. For one thing, despite the issues I was going through at the time, I was actually on pretty good terms with the teachers. Unlike my foster family, they were kind, understanding and had a certain level of patience I don't think they'd have if I were just another student who acted out. Even if they did end up understanding if I happened to lash out, it was a relationship I didn't want to sabotage by suddenly getting violent. As for the other thing the dismissal bell for the end of class rung before anything else could be done.

My last class was bittersweet. It was horrible in one way but it got better by the end of it. My last class was History. Both Rebekah and Lisa took it with me. Unlike her friends, Lisa wasn't scared to bully others even if a teacher was right in her face. I don't want to go into too much detail but Lisa ended up making this loud announcement pretty much about how I was a stupid orphan. That how history could have been changed if I was with my parents the night they died.

Most of the students were shocked by this but a few of the crueller kids in class laughed. Lisa herself got sent to the principle's office where her parents would be called. Lisa didn't look happy about it and on the way out she shot me a glare. I knew it was more than likely she blamed me for getting her in trouble but I didn't care. It was worth it and I loved watching her get into trouble.

Now it was the end of the school day. It being a Friday most of the other kids were thrilled for the weekend. I could hear a group of boys talking about snow boarding before all the snow disappears as I passed by them. It was only the beginning of February and the snow from winter was slowly melting away. So I couldn't blame them for wanting to do so. Even though there was still a month of winter left, if the weather continued being how it was, the snow would likely be gone in a couple of days.

Here in Canada, my home Provence Manitoba, weather was famous for being a little on the weird side. Some years we'll have winters up till early April. Other years our winters simply feel like a chilly fall. In those years there is barely enough snow to cover the roads and kids are lucky if there is enough to go sledding. Those years the coldest day would have to be around minus ten. But on the longer and colder winters it can get near to minus forty. This year was a middle thing. We've had a few blizzards but some days were still warm enough that I've seen some people walking around without a coat on.

Upon exiting the school building, I bit at my bottom lip thoughtfully. I didn't want to return home just yet. I was still angry, and admittedly a bit scared, to confront my foster family after what happened last night. Perhaps I would stay for an hour or so; just sit on a bench and finish reading volume four of my manga. After all, there was no real reason I had to be back so soon. Then again, while I don't really care if it made them angry, I also didn't want to deal with my foster parents more than I had to. Plus, the sun goes down around five thirty in February.

"Who is that?

"I don't know."

"He sure is cute though."

"He looks Asian."

"I think he's Japanese."

"Do you think he'd take me on a date?"

My thoughts disrupted, I turned my attention to a large group of about seven girls. Every single girl seemed to be talking about a boy, that I could hear easily. A Japanese boy from what one of the girls said. However, when I looked, I couldn't see who they were talking about. At least not at first. Upon taking another look, and turning my head slightly, I noticed a boy standing across the street; looking around as if he were searching for something. However, as I was standing pretty far back, I didn't have a really good look at him. Normally I wouldn't even care but, as I wanted a reason to procrastinate anyways, couldn't help but be somewhat curious.

So, deciding to get a little closer to the group of girls, but also trying to keep my distance from them, I stepped forwards to get a better look at the person they were talking about. It was a boy alright, not that I hadn't been able to figure that out before. From what I could see he seemed to to be on the tall side and had straight, dirty blonde hair. His clothing, which I personally considered a little too warm for the current weather, consisted of shoes I didn't know the brand of, brown slacks and a blue collar shirt. Though he looked a little on the pale side, I could understand why the girls thought he might be Asian. The most noticeable thing about him, however, was the trouble expression on his face as he looked around.

'Hmm, must be lost. Unless he's waiting for someone who's either late or ditched him.' I thought as I took a moment longer to study him. For some reason, something seemed a little... strange about that boy. Something... I flinched, torn from my short lived thoughts as the girls near me suddenly squealed and gushed loudly amongst themselves.

'Oh dear God, they're almost as bad as the Cross Academy girls. Give them some black skirt uniforms and they could fit right in.' I thought with a roll of my eyes, annoyed and embarrassed at my schoolmates' antics. Well, screw staying behind to read; I'd much rather go back to the Bakers than stay here and listen to anymore squealing.

The only thing in doing that, I'd have to pass the boy to get back to the Bakers' house. To be honest, I didn't know how that made me feel. Unlike those other girls, I myself wasn't boy crazy and even find girls who act like that both annoying and embarrassing. I am, however, quite shy and have trust issues. Have even before my family's death. I'd just much rather stick to myself and avoid people as much as possible. Some consider this rude but I'm not actively trying to be mean about it. I've just stopped caring about making friends and want to be alone.

As far as this boy was concerned, I don't know what it was. As I said, I'd have to pass him to get home and I didn't know how that made me feel. Aside from uneasy. Honestly, I'd much rather just avoid him but, to do that, I'd have to walk an extra three blocks to get back to the Bakers. That was something I didn't want to do even more. So, sucking in a good deal of cold air, I let it go slowly and gathered my nerves before making my way towards the crosswalk so I could cross the road.

"Out of my way, orphan freak." Rebekah basically growled as she pushed past me. I stumbled in the wet snow but caught my balance before I could fall. I did, however, drop the manga I had been carrying.

'Bitch.' I thought, glaring after her as I watched her approach the Japanese boy. The boy himself was now looking in our direction, probably because Rebekah had decided to grace him with her presence. Or he heard her insult.

Well, whatever the reason, I decided it wasn't worth my attention and instead bent over to pick up my book. Chances were Rebekah would try to seduce this boy. Which wasn't at all a big surprise, seeing as she was the slut of her friend group. Maybe even throughout the entirety of the school. She didn't necessarily dress like it but I've personally seen her making out with at least three different guys in one day before. There was also a rumor, in which I can believe, that she has sex with a different guy every other Friday. She has no respect for her body and gives other girls a bad name, which was just another reason why I hated her.

"Are you alright, Ms?"

Startled by the unexpectedness of the voice, I flinched before looking up to see that the Japanese boy was standing right in front of me. Instantly I could feel my cheeks turn a little red and a small lump formed in my throat. Alright, so though I wasn't boy crazy, that didn't mean I couldn't become attracted to them. And, him being so close to me, I could tell why those girls back there acted the way they did; even if I still thought they were over exaggerating. This boy was highly attractive. Moreover, and what kind of confused me, he also looked kind of... familiar. Not only that, but his voice. I swear I've heard it somewhere before.

It was strange but what made it all the stranger was I felt I knew where I recognized it from. And why, in relation, he looked so familiar. It seemed downright impossible, but this boy resembled a real life version of Takuma Ichijo from Vampire Knight. The only difference would be his voice sounded freakishly like the man who voices him in the English Dub of the anime. So this couldn't be his Japanese voice actor. I mean, I have seen images of some of the voice actors and they resemble the characters pretty well. I've also seen men who could pass for a live action version of Kaname Kuran. But, again, the voice didn't match up. And, even if it did, what was he doing in a small town like this?

"Ms?"

I blinked as the boy spoke again and felt my cheeks darken a little in color. I must have spaced out there for a moment in my surprise. Thank God the weather was cold enough to cover up the fact I was blushing. Or at least I hoped it was. I don't know if I could handle the embarrassment if he noticed. Especially given who he looked like. And Takuma wasn't even my Vampire Knight crush. Mentally shaking away those thoughts, I snapped myself back into reality and gave him a small nod.

"I'm fine, but I can't say the same for my book." I said as I quickly grabbed it and stood back up again. The cover, which had landed in the snow, was pretty wet. Which was pretty disappointing but I was at least relieved to see that none of the pages suffered the same fate.

"Well, better the cover than the actual pages. The cover is thicker and smoother. It can stand getting a little wet without ruining the manga." he smiled at me as he fished in one of his pants pockets. When he pulled his hand back out again he was holding a tissue.

"Here, this should help dry it. Nice choice in manga by the way."

Unable to stop myself, I could feel my face get even warmer and I darted my gaze away from his as I took the offered tissue. I don't know what made me more uncomfortable in that moment. The fact that someone who strikingly looked and sounded like Takuma Ichijo complimented me on my choice in manga, or the fact he was being nice to me. Not everyone was as blatantly mean to me as Lisa and her friends were, but not many went out of their way to be nice, either. So it really wasn't something I was used to. Or even liked in some instances, but that's only because every other time it's been fake kindness. Something usually brought on by pity and, while I would like people to be more understanding, I don't want their pity.

Seeing as though this boy... this Takuma lookalike, didn't know me, I didn't think that was the case here. Unless he happened to be like this with everyone, he had no real reason to show me fake kindness. From what I could tell, he was genuinely trying to be helpful. I suppose it just kind of surprised me that he had decided to come over to me rather than speak to Rebekah. It wasn't often when guys ignored her and a quick past the boy's shoulder confirmed she did not look happy about it either.

"Thank you." I thanked, using the tissue to quickly dry my book cover. Fortunately, as the Takuma lookalike had pointed out, it was easy to clean and, once I was done, I placed it in the safety of my backpack. Still feeling pretty uncomfortable, I then shifted as I continued to avoid his gaze and manoeuvred my backpack back over my shoulders.

"Thank you for the help, but I need to go now." I said, trying hard not to come off as rude as I began to walk past him and put the now dirty tissue in my jacket pocket. I didn't manage to make it more than a few steps until I heard the crunch of feet following after me.

"Ah, please wait a moment. Do you mind if I come with you? I'm new here and I fear I've gotten myself lost. I can't find Main Street and I'm expecting to meet someone there." The Takuma lookalike said from behind me, which caused me to stop walking. Turning to look over my shoulder I once again saw the same troubled expression he had a little while ago and watched as he took a quick look around.

'So I guess I was right after all; he is lost. Said so himself. No wonder he looks so troubled. If I ever got myself lost in Japan, I'd probably be freaking out pretty badly.' I thought, feeling sympathetic for him. As for letting him come with me, well... even though I was still unsure about this boy, he did take the time to help me. Helping him was the least I could do in return and, honestly? As weird and uncomfortable as I found this, I couldn't help but be somewhat curious as well. So, after a moment of considering it, I gave a small sigh but shrugged.

"Sure, suit yourself. I'm not going all the way to Main Street but I can direct you there once I get home." I told him and turned my head in front of me once more as he walked closer and smiled.

"Thank you. I really have no idea what I'd do if I couldn't make it to main street in time." The Takuma lookalike told me, clearly very grateful I had decided to help him. I nodded at that and, though my heart was pounding quicker than usual, found myself starting to relax just a bit.

"It's fine, I don't mind helping. I live close enough to Main Street so it's no big deal." I shrugged off. Although, as we continued to walk down the sidewalk, it did make me wonder why he hadn't asked for help sooner.

After all, with how troubled he had looked before, and how grateful he appeared now, it seems clear he had been desperate to find Main Street. There were plenty of other people around he could have asked directions from. Rebekah included, who had made the attempt to approach him and continued to glare at me even as we passed her. It was actually pretty funny, seeing her all mad like that and I personally felt some justification that she finally got some karma. That said, maybe this Takuma lookalike could tell she was a horrible excuse of a girl and chose to have nothing to do with her.

As for everyone else, I suppose it was possible he just recently got lost when I spotted him. The town I lived in wasn't big but it wasn't small either. To put it in prospective it can take a person about a little over an hour to walk to one end and back. Maybe a little longer depending on how fast they walk. Either way, though I was kind of curious about this, I didn't care enough to ask so I'd never know what his reasons were for sure.

Anyways, after that neither of us seemed to say anything for the next little while. And, to be honest, it was one of the most awkward moments I experienced in a long time. Especially when other people walking home would look our way and whisper. I knew it was more so directed towards the Takuma lookalike but during those moments I felt my nerves tense up each time. I was in between wanting to snap at those people or want to disappear into the ground. Either way it wasn't a pleasant experience. Thankfully, though we had walked in pretty much silence for the last block or so, with the only sound being the crunch of snow beneath our feet, it was short lived.

"That girl back there. She called you a..." I heard the Takuma lookalike start to say but soon trailed off. Turning my head to look at him, I noticed that, though he was still smiling, something that hadn't seemed to leave his face since I told him I'd give him directions, he looked uncomfortable.

"An orphan freak, yeah." I finished for him, nodding slowly. So that means he had heard her back there, and came to my aid because he felt sorry for me. Or he simply didn't like the way she acted. I don't know, but I could tell by his tone he wasn't trying to offend me. It was actually kind of sweet.

"You're an orphan?" He asked softly, his tone what I could only describe as sympathetic, yet not in a way I felt he was pitying me. As for his green eyes... well, I had to look away from that stare as I nodded again and hung my head as a frown formed on my face.

"Yeah, for a little over three weeks now. My parents died in a car crash when a gas truck ran a red light. My younger sister was with them at the time and also ended up dying." I explained as we reached the end of another block. Lifting my head again so I'd be able to see, I made sure no cars were coming down the road before crossing it and making a left turn.

Suddenly I flinched as I felt a hand touch my left shoulder. Turning to look next to me I saw the Takuma lookalike with his arm reached out and a sad smile on his face. It was him who was touching me, obviously, and I wasn't sure how I felt about it. On one had I had serious personal space issues and hated being touched at the best of times. On the other hand, however, being comforted by someone who wasn't simply trying to pity me was something I had wanted for a very long time. So the way he was touching me made me both uncomfortable but, unlike what I probably would have done any other time, I didn't force it off of me.

"I'm very sorry to hear that. It's a horrible thing to lose your family so young and in such a way. I myself may also be an orphan." The boy told me, his tone kind but distant; almost as if he was lost in a far off memory. I blinked at that, pushing down a sudden urge to cry as I instead looked at him in confusion.

"You might be? What do you mean by that?" I asked, thankfully able to keep my voice from cracking. As grateful as I was to finally meet someone who was trying to give me genuine comfort, even if he did look like an anime character, I didn't want to break down in front of him.

Besides, what he said made me curious. In the three weeks since the accident, I hadn't met another orphan before. Fortunately, if I did show signs of wanting to cry, the Japanese boy ignored it. Instead he took his hand off of me and shrugged, a sad smile still spread across his face.

"Well, when I was eleven, my father was murdered by an intruder in our home. As for my mother, I don't know what happened to her. I have no idea if she is still alive or was killed as well. Now I live with my grandfather."

As the Takuma lookalike told me this, he didn't look at me. I couldn't blame him, though. Telling a complete stranger that you were an orphan was uncomfortable. For me, it mostly only ever brought unwanted pity or mocking in the case of some of my classmates. For this boy... I could only imagine what he must have gone through. Having your family die in a freak car accident was one thing but having them murdered was another. As for the mention of living with his grandfather, I decided not to think too much about it. He already looked and sounded enough like Takuma to be making even more comparisons.

Because of my lack of people skills I had no idea how to respond. Saying I'm sorry, like he did to me, didn't sound like the right thing to say. So, for the last little while, neither of us said anything and this time the silence was even more uncomfortable than before. So to distract myself, I continued to ponder why this boy looked so much like Takuma Ichijo and why he had been so troubled earlier. He had said someone was waiting for him at Main Street but it seemed to be more than that. Especially when I noticed, upon closer inspection, how nervous he seemed. For some reason, I began to get a bad feeling that it wasn't actually Main Street he was looking for.

"Well, this is where I live." I announced as we finally arrived at the Bakers after maybe a good five minutes of silence. Turning myself so I was better facing him, I held out my arm and motioned the way we had been walking in.

"To find Main Street, all you need do to is continue to go one block that way, right and from there walk two more blocks. You'll more or less find yourself at the far end of Main Street but it shouldn't be hard to find what you're looking for if you just walk down along it." I continued and lowered my arm as he turned his head in the direction I motioned in. As he did that, I made my way over to the front door; doing my best to ignore the butterflies that suddenly appeared in my stomach.

Needless to say, I was kind of regretting not offering to take the Takuma lookalike the entire way. I was in no way ready to confront either of my foster parents yet and I couldn't be sure what I'd do if I saw them. Especially after what happened last night. It had been why I had considered staying back at the school at the first place. Yet, not wanting to deal with them more than I already had to was why I decided to come back when I did. Well, that and all the giggly, squealing girls.

Stopping in front of the door, I turned back around before I opened it and looked back to the Takuma lookalike. When I did I saw him flash me another smile and my heart skipped a small beat. Damn, he really was quite attractive. And if I felt this way to someone who looked like a real life version of Takuma, than I could only imagine how I'd feel if someone who looked like my actual Vampire Knight crush appeared.

"Well, I guess this is where we part, then. Before we go our separate ways, is it alright if I get your name?" The boy asked kindly, continuing to flash that brilliant smile that only further reminded me of the anime vampire. Towards his question I thought about it for a moment before giving a small shrug. Yeah, sure, why not? It couldn't hurt.

"Yeah, that's fine with me. It's Ashley. Ashley Parker. And yours?" I couldn't help but ask, no longer able to hold back my curiosity to who he was, and why he so heavily resembled a fictional character. Suddenly, the friendly smile on his face began to change into a grin and I got a feeling in the pit of my stomach that I would not like the answer.

"Takuma, Takuma Ichijo."

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE review this chapter and tell me what you think of the change. People without accounts please review. In the review box bellow just make up a name and leave the review. Please just tell me if you like this or the original better

As I said in the original I know Takuma's parents aren't really dead but I didn't know that when I first wrote this story. There are things I am rewriting all together but there are still things I want to keep the same.

August 12/2020: This chapter has been somewhat heavily edited. The main plot point of said chapter is still the same but I've changed the main character's attitude a bit and added much more detail as well as getting rid of details I think were unneeded and only filled up space. This took me about 3 days to edit/rewrite and is over 2,000 words longer. Not including these author notes. In case anyone is wondering, I do still have the original versions of these chapters -the rewrite chapters- saved on my computer. If you don't like the changes I apologizes but, after 7-8 years, really wanted to rework them. If people are still reading these, please let me know what you think.