Marianna Lorena - Yakazawa District Monday, April 4th

I lathered soap onto my hair and gently massaged my scalp. I closed my eyes and let the water spill onto my head and shoulders. I thought about the upcoming day and felt a sea of butterflies in my stomach. I gritted my teeth and used my hands to wring out my hair. I watched as the soapy bubbles went down the drain.

After a few more minutes of standing under the showerhead, I turned off the water and grabbed my towel from the rack. I dried off my legs first and then my torso. I wrapped my hair in the towel and began to change into a black dress with white polka dots. It reached my knees but I still put on black tights underneath to cover up my legs.

I moved towards the sink and began to comb my hair. I styled it into a simple rope braid. I smiled at the mirror before grabbing my perfume. I spritzed a small amount onto my wrists and on my neck. I took a deep breath and said, "You can do this. Everything will be fine."

My legs robotically carried me to the kitchen. I made myself a lazy breakfast of cereal. My appetite was completely gone but I forced myself to eat every bite.

When I finished, I went to my front door. I slipped on my boots and opened the door to my apartment. The cold air smacked my face and I shivered involuntarily. I reopened the door to my apartment and grabbed a warm cardigan from my closet. I went outside again and began to walk to Ouran Academy.

Having gone to the school every day since Thursday, I was beginning to familiarize myself with the route. I went over my presentation to myself as I walked, occasionally glancing at notecards I had made for myself. I wasn't going to be using the notecards while I talked so I had to make sure I got everything right.


Sylvia Sanchez (Suzume) - Yakazawa District/Ouran Academy Monday, April 4th

"Is that really your uniform?" Hiro asked with a grin.

I scowled at him and nodded. "It's the most hideous piece of shit that I've ever seen." Hiro laughed as he opened the door for me. I entered his apartment and watched him trail off into the kitchen.

"I'll make some toast," he announced. I sighed and grabbed the yellow monstrosity off the hanger. I moved into the bathroom and began to change into it. The fabric of the dress was of very good quality to my surprise. It was also quite soft. I looked into the mirror and could hardly recognize myself. I looked quite dainty and feminine in the dress. It hid all my scars.

Turning off the bathroom light, I stepped back into the kitchen. Hiro had two slices of toast on a paper plate with butter beside it. I mutely grabbed the toast and began to eat. "Where's your mom?" Hiro asked me.

"She's working and staying at the Suoh mansion," I answered.

"When is she coming back?"

"Supposedly today but I heard that the Suoh's are going to host a party to celebrate the 15th anniversary of Ouran Academy so who knows really," I sighed. "Can I stay with you tonight?"

"Yeah that's fine," he replied. "Do you got clothes?"

"No, I gotta get it from home after school," I told him.

"Okay, I'm going to brush my teeth real quick and then I'll drive you to school."

"Okay," I responded watching him leave the kitchen. I continued to nibble on my toast and sighed to myself. A pit resided at the bottom of my stomach as I thought about my first day at Ouran. There was no way that I'd find the day enjoyable. Everyone was most likely going to be rich and entitled.

"Let's go," Hiro boomed. I stood up and followed him out the door. We walked down the steps of his apartment and got into his blue mustang.

"When is the initiation going to be?" I questioned.

"This Friday," he answered. "It's going to happen an hour after school."

"I see," I hummed. I glanced out the window as Hiro put on some music. The farther we got, the nicer the buildings became. Soon enough we were behind a line of limos.

"Is this shit pink?" Hiro blurted out. I squinted my eyes and leaned to the right to see out of the car.

"I think so… I've never actually seen Ouran before," I responded. We moved forward as the limo in front of us left.

"I'm so glad I don't have no god damn mama to send me to some punk ass school," Hiro told me. "I'll pick you up later and we can drop by your house to get your clothes."

"Sounds good," I nodded. "I'll see you later." I got out of the car and glanced around. There were other students getting out of their limousines. My mother had told me that Suoh Tamaki would be showing me around but she never told me where to meet him.

I followed the mass of students into one large central building. To my relief, I saw the "office" sign at the side of the building and headed that way. I stepped inside and saw a woman typing away on a computer. I approached the counter and waited for her to acknowledge me.

"How can I help you?" she asked, not bothering to look up from her computer.

"Do you happen to have a map of the campus?"

"They're right here," she said, gesturing to a series of pamphlets.

"Thank you." I grabbed it and left the office. I leaned against a column and opened up the map on the floor. I took out my class schedule and examined the map. My first class which was math was in classroom 2-A. The rest of my classes would be in 2-D. I took a deep breath and closed up the map. It was time to head to class.

When I got there, the teacher had me wait outside. I watched as the other students filed in. The bell rang eventually and when it did, the teacher opened the door. He gestured for me to enter. I stepped inside and everyone's gaze fell on me. I stood at the center of the room. "We're having a new student join us for this new school year. Please introduce yourself to your classmates."

"My name is Sanchez Suzume. It's a pleasure to meet you all," I bowed to them all.

"Welcome to Ouran. Does anyone have any questions for Sanchez to answer?" he asked them.

"Where are you from?" a male student asked raising his hand.

"I'm originally from a city called Los Angeles in the United States," I responded. "I moved to Japan two years ago."

"Do you have a boyfriend Sanchez-san?" one boy asked. I glanced at our sensei and saw his face turn into a stern frown.

"I think that's enough," he said dismissing me from the front. I breathed a sigh of relief as I moved to the back of the class to sit down.

"SORRY SENSEI!" a loud obnoxious voice yelled as the door to the classroom opened. I spotted a blonde boy followed by a dark-haired boy with glasses.

"Suoh, Otori, you're both late," the teacher stated dryly.

"It won't happen again Kagame-sensei," the dark-haired boy bowed.

"You can sit down Otori," Kagame-sensei told him.

"Uh… sensei?" Suoh stammered.

"Next time you're late I will give you detention. Being the son of the Chairman doesn't earn you any special favors in my class," Kagame-sensei warned. A small smirk worked its way up to my face. Kagame-sensei might just become my favorite teacher and not just because math is my best subject. Suoh nodded his head in shame and moved to sit with Otori.


Marianna Lorena - Ouran Academy Monday, April 4th

"How did your class go for the kindergarten parents?" Mishi-san asked me. She was with two other women that I vaguely remembered from the elementary staff meeting.

"It went well," I smiled. "I was worried about messing up but thankfully I remembered everything. How about you? Did all your tours go well?"

"Yes they did," she responded. "I'd like to introduce you to Aki-san and Seno-san."

"It's nice to meet you," I told both of them with a bow.

"Aki-san is one of the kindergarten teachers and Seno-san teaches fifth-graders," Mishi-san explained. "Lorena-san is an English teacher for elementary and high school students."

"How was your day Aki-san, Seno-san?" I inquired.

"Mine was good," Aki-san giggled. "I had a lot of worried parents about leaving their child alone at school."

"My day was also pretty good," Seno-san answered. "I ran tours and they all went well."

"How old are you Lorena-san? You look very young," Aki-san commented.

"I'm 21," I stated.

"Wow! Are you done with college yet?"

"No, not yet."

"So where are we going to be going shopping today? Nakamura-san said that the meeting will end at 4:00 pm. That gives us enough time to go to Tanjin shopping mall." Seno-san proposed.

"Tanjin mall sounds good," Mishi-san agreed. "Do any of you need a ride?"

"I do," I chimed.

"I have a car so I'm good," Aki-san announced. "Let's meet at the coffee shop on the West Side."

"Alright, Lorena-san and I need to head over to the high school campus so we'll see you later," Mishi-san excused us. I waved goodbye to Aki-san and Seno-san as Mishi-san led us away.

Just before we were leaving the elementary classes I saw a ragged Kagame-san run towards us. "Lorena-san, Mishi-san how did the kindergarten half-day go?" he asked us.

"It went well," Mishi-san answered for the both of us. I was relieved not to have to say anything to Kagame-san.

"Wonderful. Let me know if you need anything Lorena-san," he addressed me directly.

"I will," I replied. He waved at us and left us to leave the campus.

"Are you ready for your classes?" Mishi-san asked me once we started walking again.

"As ready as I'll ever be," I told her with a small smile. "I've never worked with high school students so I'm nervous."

"You'll do great," she reassured me.

"How about you Mishi-san? Are you ready to meet your new cohort of students?"

"I'm excited," she grinned. I was slightly jealous of her confidence. I was too nervous to feel excited.

As we reached the high school building, we went our separate ways. I went into classroom 3-A. The students were still finishing lunch and barely spared me much of a glance. I headed for the desk and set my laptop down. I opened it and pulled up my slideshow on the screen.

"Yay Takashi!" a shrill voice yelled. I cringed at how loud the voice was.

"Keep your voice down please," I immediately said in irritation. I glanced at the door and my jaw nearly dropped. It was the cute kid that I had seen at the diner on Friday.

"Sorry sensei," he apologized quickly. I blinked in confusion. There was no way he was in my class… but he was wearing the high school uniform and not the elementary one. I reached into my bag and started searching.

"What's your name?" I asked him without looking up from my bag. I pulled out a few sheets of paper that were stapled together.

"Haninozuka Mitsukuni," he answered. "But you can call me Honey." I ran my finger down the list and looked for the H's. Haninozuka Mitsukuni Age 18 Class 3-A English

I examined him carefully in utter disbelief. This boy was seriously 18 years old?

"Sensei," a deep voice said. I nearly jumped as I realized that Haninozuka's companion had addressed me. Unlike Haninozuka, he was quite tall and obviously looked like a high school student.

"Yes?" I responded. I flinched as I recognized him from the diner as well. It seemed that my two students frequented my neighborhood but that was odd considering that they were wealthy students. The Yakazawa District wasn't known to be safe from what Mishi-san had told me about the new student from Shinoto.

"Excuse Mitsukuni's behavior," he bowed.

"Not to worry," I smiled. "What's your name?"

"Morinozuka Takashi," he answered stoically. I glanced back down at my list. Morinozuka Takashi Age 17 Class 3-A English

"Well, Morinozuka, Haninozuka feel free to take a seat," I told them both. I noticed that Haninozuka had frowned a little and didn't move. I gave him an apologetic smile and said, "Sorry Honey, I forgot you don't want me to address you by your last name."

"Thank you for correcting yourself sensei," he grinned. I watched him bounce into a seat. The bell rang signaling the start of class.

"Good afternoon everyone," I greeted.

"Good afternoon sensei," everyone chimed. I gave everyone a smile and projected the slideshow I had made.

"My name is Lorena-sensei and I'm going to be your English teacher this year. I was born and raised in the United States," I introduced myself. A picture of the American flag was shown along with a photo of me during high school. "This year I'm going to be preparing you to take one of two exams, the TOEFL or the IELTS. It's up to you whether or not you wish to take the exam. If you wish to apply to an English speaking university outside of Japan it's highly recommended for you to take one of these two exams to prove your English proficiency. Additionally, some universities may require you to submit an essay. If you need to write an essay and want me to go over it, hand it in at least one month before it's due."

I went through the syllabus and the expectations for the class. Following this, I had the class take a quiz that I had created to see where the students level was at.

After Class 3-A I went to Class 2-A and finally to Class 1-A. They went pretty much the same; with me going over the syllabus, class expectations and giving the students a quiz. When the school day ended I headed back to the elementary school building. The elementary staff meeting was mostly just going over best practices for the first day of school for the elementary students. I didn't expect to have to meet many of the parents thankfully as English was just seen as a regular elective class at the elementary level.

Mishi-san waited for me with a light smile. "My car is in the back parking lot."

"Lead the way then Mishi-san." She led me through the elementary campus and I quietly admired all the sakura trees. They weren't quite in full bloom but a few of them were blossoming. I half-listened as she excitedly told me about her new cohort of students. She explained her curriculum in great detail and how she was planning to execute future lesson plans and activities.

"I think that one of my students can even make it into Kyoto University," she boasted. I sat down in the passenger seat and pondered that for a moment. I had to admire that Mishi-san already felt so confident and connected with her students.

"I think that with a teacher like you, your students will be able to get into any university that they put their mind to," I told her.

"You're too kind Lorena-san," she gushed in delight. We began to drive past Ouran now and I watched as the pink buildings morphed into local businesses and shops. "I also had a great conversation with the Bojinshi family. They are trying this new therapy for their autistic son and it seems to be going well." She launched into a long explanation of the different methods of treating autism and what methods she preferred to use in the classroom. I listened as attentively as I could, giving her my opinion and input as needed.

Before too long we made it to Tanjin mall. It was much larger than I had expected. I climbed out of the car and followed Mishi-san to the meetup location that Aki-san and Seno-san had agreed upon. "I think they might be here already…," she glanced at her phone. "Yeah, they are. They sent me a text while they were driving. I took the long route to the mall."

"Oh I see," I responded. We passed by a number of shops before finally reaching the coffee shop. I spotted Aki-san and Seno-san sitting down at a four-person table. They both waved at us.

"You guys finally made it," Aki-san commented as we drew nearer.

"It was all my fault," Mishi-san chuckled. "I took Seoul Road instead of Genshi." We all laughed at that. "I'll get us some coffee Lorena-san."

"Thanks," I nodded. I sat down next to Aki-san. Her long black hair was on the table. I looked at it before turning my attention to the conversation she and Seno-san were having.

"I put on five pounds over the summer," Seno-san whined. "I don't know if my dress size will be the same. You'd think taking care of the kids would help me lose some weight"

"Tell me about it," Aki-san sighed. They both took a sip of their drinks. I didn't have anything to say as I was quite comfortable with my figure and I had no kids to speak of. Mishi-san returned with my coffee. I thanked her and began to sip on my drink.

When all of us finished our drinks we stood up and headed back out into the shopping mall. We passed by an array of stores and restaurants. I couldn't help but feel fascinated by everything. I hadn't mustered up the courage to really explore anything far away from my apartment.

The clothing store that we went to was huge. There were lines of tuxedos and dresses. I gawked as the three women who came with me marched inside. "Pick some dresses and let's meet at the changing room in 10 minutes," Seno-san told us.

"Hai," we answered. I took off towards the back of the store and began to examine a few dresses. When I saw a dress that caught my eye I pulled it off the rack and into my hands.

By the time the ten minutes were up, I had 3 dresses in total. One was red, the other was silver, and the final one was black. I headed towards the changing room and spotted the trio waiting. "How many dresses did you pick?" Mishi-san asked me.

"Three," I replied.

"See Aki-san, three to four dresses is a reasonable amount," Mishi-san admonished.

"How many did you get Aki-san?" I questioned.

"Seven," she declared, flipping her hair. I sweatdropped.

"I see," I mumbled.

"Come on ladies, let's get that first dress on," Seno-san cheered. All four of us walked into a stall. The first dress I decided to try on was the black dress. It fit quite snugly against my body. I examined myself in the mirror and turned slightly to my right. My behind stood out a lot which made me laugh a little. I took a deep breath and stepped out.

I saw Aki-san in a pink ball gown dress, Seno-san in a blue mermaid dress and Mishi-san in a green cocktail dress. "Do any of you ladies think that this dress may be the one?" Seno-san asked.

"If none of the other ones look better then I'd say this one is decent," Aki-san mused. She glanced at her fingertips and then looked at the others.

"I second what Aki-san said," Mishi san chimed.

"Yeah, we still need to try on the others," I added.

We all went back into the changing rooms. I pulled out the red dress and slipped it on. It fit much more loosely than the previous dress. It had a ball gown like appearance but it wasn't completely a ball gown. The fabric was sheer which gave the dress a sexy appeal. I stepped out of the changing stall and smiled at the other women's dresses.

"I like that one on you," Mishi-san complimented me. Aki-san and Seno-san also gave me their approval on the dress. I twirled around once and laughed.

"Let's try another dress before deciding on this one," I announced. They agreed and we went back into the stalls. The final dress was the one with a silver bodice. The skirt was short at the front but long at the back. The skirt was decorated with flowers made of a light fabric. I couldn't help but examine myself in the mirror. It was a very cute dress and suited my style.

I marched out with confidence this time. The squeals of the others confirmed my thought. This dress was the one.


Sylvia Sanchez (Suzume) - Yakazawa District Monday, April 4th

"How was it?" Hiro asked me.

"It was a real shit hole," I sighed in exasperation.

Hiro laughed as he pulled away from the pink buildings. "How were your classmates? Rich pricks?"

"Well apparently everyone in my class is of the lowest social standing at the school so some of them didn't have a huge ego," I admitted. "But for the most part, yes everyone does seem to be a rich prick."

"Figures," he hummed.

"I did really like my math teacher, Kagame-sensei," I added as an afterthought. "How was school at Shinoto?" I questioned when Hiro didn't respond to my comment.

"It was alright," he answered. "I was able to recruit a few freshmen to take part in the initiation on Friday."

"That's cool," I responded. "I don't think anyone from Ouran would be willing to take part." He burst out laughing at that.

"Yeah, I doubt it," he agreed. His hands moved and touched a couple of buttons of the radio system. Music came from the speakers and I danced along to the beat.

"Imma kill you bitch," I sang with the rapper in English. Hiro whooped and I laughed. He continued to drive until we pulled into the Yakazawa District again.

"We gotta get some gas," he announced, pulling into a gas station. I watched as he climbed out of the driver seat and went into the gas station. I observed a red pick up truck drive into the gas station. Two men got out of the car wearing purple hoodies. I tensed immediately and examined their sagging pants. I was still wearing the yellow banana of a uniform so I didn't need to worry but… Hiro.

I opened the passenger door of the car and got out of the Mustang. One of the purple hoodied men went to the cashier's office. I reached for the knife in my purse and followed him. Hiro came out of the gas station and the man in the purple hoodie bumped his shoulder. "The fuck you looking at you son of a bitch!" the man shouted.

Hiro wasted no time in talking and punched the guy in the face. I ran towards them and joined Hiro in kicking the man. "You motherfuckers!" the other man yelled.

He tried to punch me but I dodged swiftly. I aimed a punch at his face and it landed squarely on his jaw. He flew backwards and I wasted no time in plunging my knife into his stomach. "Yama scum," I hissed as he crumpled onto the ground.

"Come on Scar let's go," Hiro pulled me along at a run. I followed after him and we threw ourselves into the car. Hiro floored it and we gradually grew farther and farther away from the gas station. The silence was unbearable for me at that point.

"Do you think a lot of people saw our faces?" I blurted out.

"I have no fucking idea Scar but your uniform might be what makes us stand out," he grunted. I clammed up immediately in shame. My uniform certainly did make me stand out like a sore thumb.

I looked down at my hands and saw that they were bloody. My fingers were firmly locked on the blade "Shit," I cussed. "I can't go into my apartment looking like I was in a horror film."

"I'll grab you some clothes, just stay put," Hiro told me. "We're going straight home and I'll call Big G and let him know that we ran into some trouble." I watched numbly as he left me in the car. I felt like a little girl being told to wait patiently. I groaned. It wasn't the first time I stabbed someone but something about this made me feel uneasy this time around.

Hiro opened the car door which startled me slightly. He threw a lump of clothes into the back seat and started the car. "Hey," Hiro said into the phone. "We got attacked by two Yama members at the gas station on 5th street… Scar was wearing her Ouran uniform… we stabbed one of them… Naw no cops came… Ok," I glanced at Hiro nervously.

"What'd he say?" I questioned.

"For us to lay low until the initiation. He's going to talk to Yinyin and Snake about what happened. Apparently Silver and Knuckles also had a run-in with Yama members today. They are trying to move into our turf again."

"Fuck," I breathed.

"Yeah… fuck," he agreed.