January 16, 2010

AN: So I meant to post this back in December. I finally finished chapter 6 after working on it since July and felt like I was on a roll and was going to finish chapter 7 as well. Weeeelll… that didn't happen. I didn't even start chapter 7. But oh well. I'm just going to post this anyway. Maybe I'll write some of it tonight.

I hope you enjoy this chapter!

Odaiba High

Chapter 4

-Mimi-

Well, I screwed up.

I've never made such a mistake before. Never before have my actions directly resulted in someone being hurt. And Serena didn't just get hurt – she broke her arm in two places! All because I had to go and trip.

After the game ended and all my fellow cheerleaders and I had changed back into our normal clothes, Coach Timber told us we were going to visit Serena at the hospital. My best friend, Phoebe Jenkins, drove me and our other friend Mindy Yelsun since she had picked us up that morning before the game. Phoebe is a year older than Mindy and me and also the captain of the squad.

"I can't believe you did that, Mimi," Phoebe snapped as soon as we were in her car.

"What?" I said, taken aback. "What did I do?"

Phoebe glared at me. "What did you do?! You fucked up! You made the squad look like amateurs out there! Only junior high squads trip and drop people! We will never be able to recover from this!"

I scowled and crossed my arms over my chest. "I think you're overreacting a little, Phoebe. People make mistakes all the time –"

"No, they don't!" she spat. "You're the only one that's ever done anything like this before."

I turned my head to look out of the window, my eyes starting to fill with tears. "Why does it sound like you're more worried about the squad than about Serena?"

"Oh, don't pull that on me," scoffed Phoebe. "Don't try to make me act like the bad guy here. I'm going to have to work all season to make sure everyone forgets about this little slip-up – which will probably be impossible. People are already saying this will be the most memorable game ever and it's not because of the soccer team."

Mindy remained obediently silent in the back seat during the entire exchange, and Phoebe and I didn't say anything more to each other during the ten minute drive to the hospital. I determinedly stared out the window so they couldn't see that I had tears in my eyes. I felt so horrible for what I'd done. Phoebe was right; I can't afford to make mistakes like that. There are differences between being half a second too late on a move and dropping a girl that causes her to shatter her arm. No one was ever going to be able to forgive me for this.

We reached the hospital and met up with Coach Timber and the rest of the squad in the waiting room. The receptionist told us that Serena was still being examined and that we would have to wait a while until we could see her. Phoebe avoided eye contact with me and sat with our other friends, Angela and Kelly. Mindy glanced sympathetically at me before joining them. I wasn't particularly close with any of the other girls on the squad, so I dejectedly sat next to Coach Timber. I kept my head down and took a couple deep breaths to keep myself from crying again.

"Mimi, I don't want you to blame yourself for what happened today," Coach Timber's rough voice said in my ear.

I looked up at her, surprised. Coach Timber rarely ever compliments us, constantly criticizing us and telling us what we're doing wrong. It works well with her deep, manly voice. So to hear her, a woman that never hesitates to tell a person that they're ruining an entire routine, say that was shocking. "Wh-what?"

She put her hand on my shoulder. "Everyone makes mistakes. I don't want you to blame yourself and I'll make sure the other girls don't as well. You tripped over a poorly placed pom-pom – the accident was completely out of your control."

I smiled lightly. "Thanks, Coach."

We had to wait about thirty minutes before we were allowed to see Serena. A doctor led us down a few hallways to her room, where she was lying in bed with a thick cast covering her entire right arm, starting from her wrist and ending at her shoulder. Her parents were in there as well.

"You can have a couple of minutes only," the doctor said, before exiting.

"How are you feeling?" asked Phoebe sweetly, her tone completely different from the one she used on me in the car. I wanted to roll my eyes but figured that might give off the wrong impression. I've known Phoebe for so long that I know she doesn't really care about how Serena is. The two of them have never gotten along so well. I can't figure out why, though. Serena's always been nice to me – and everyone on the squad, frankly.

"I'm fine," she said quietly. "It doesn't really hurt anymore."

"That's good," cooed Phoebe. "I hope you realize, though, that you won't be cheering for us anymore this year. We'll have to replace you."

"Is this really the time for that?" Coach Timber said harshly.

Phoebe shrugged innocently. "I don't know if I'll be able to see her again before Monday, so I thought it might be best to discuss now."

Serena frowned deeply. "I know," she said softly. "Don't worry, I know you will have to replace me."

I stepped forward, approaching the side of Serena's bed. "Serena," I said earnestly, "I just wanted to tell you – I'm really sorry about what happened. I hope you can forgive me."

Serena half-smiled. "Of course, Mimi. It was just an accident."

"Yeah, Mimi, none of us are mad at you," another senior girl, Gabrielle, said.

I glanced over at Phoebe, who was scowling at me.

-Kari-

When Tai finally got home from the soccer game that afternoon, he knocked loudly on my door and then entered without waiting for permission on if he could come in. I was lying on my bed, reading, when he walked in. I glanced up and said, "What if I had been changing?"

He ignored my comment. "So have you decided if you want to go to Mindy's party yet?"

I shrugged. "I don't know. I really don't think I'll have fun."

"Aw, come on!" he urged. "T.K. will be there."

"He said he would think about it at the game," I said.

"Well, I saw him after the game," Tai countered, "and he said he was gonna go. He also said he would text you about going with him."

I raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

"Yup! Would I lie to you, little sister?" said Tai cheekily, grinning at me and getting up to leave my room. "I'll be leaving at nine, so let me know if you're going so I can drive you."

He left, and I pulled out my phone. I scrolled to T.K.'s name and sent him a text: Are you going to Mindy's party?

He answered a moment later: Probably. Are you? We should go together.

I'd never been a fan of parties. And by parties, I don't mean sleepover birthday parties. I mean real, high school parties. I went to one last year and absolutely hated it. My friend had dragged me to it, since she had an older cousin that told her about it and she begged me to go with her. It had been an awful experience. Drunken high school students stumbling around, not even able to speak coherently. My friend had really wanted to try alcohol and after failing to talk her out of it, I was forced to hold her hair back as she puked up three shots of vodka. I always believed that that was evidence that no thirteen-year-old should be consuming alcohol – people aren't supposed to throw up so much after that small amount. Sora and Tai had found me later, and Tai, even though he was pretty drunk as well, was furious at me. Sora was sober so she offered to take me and my friend home. Tai was angry at me for a whole week, mad that I hadn't told him I was planning on going and that I'd even thought it would be a good idea. After I apologized about a thousand times and he forgave me, he said I couldn't go to another party like that until I was in high school and he was with me. Fast forward nine months to now.

I texted T.K. back: Yeah, I guess so. Tai said we're leaving at nine. Should we pick you up?

It took him about ten minutes to reply back. Actually, Matt decided to go so he's going to pick me up. We'll go at nine, too. See you there!

I glanced at my alarm clock. It was four 'o clock. Five hours until the party. Deciding to get out of the house for a little bit, I picked up my camera from where it hung from a hook on my wall and left my apartment.

-Sora-

I arrived at the Kamiya household a quarter before nine. Tai and I only live about a block away from each other and he agreed to drive me to the party. Since my house is in the opposite direction from Mindy's, I figured I'd save him the little bit of driving time by just walking over.

I've been friends with Tai for so long that I no longer knock on the door; I just let myself in. Tai's parents weren't home and the doors to both Tai and Kari's rooms were open. I poked my head into Tai's room first and announced my presence.

"Hey Sora," he said, not looking up from his computer video game. "I'll be ready in a sec."

I rolled my eyes and shook my head. I guess boys will be boys. I left his room and entered Kari's. Said girl was sitting on her bed, wearing a nice outfit and makeup.

"So you decided to go?" I assumed. Kari rarely wears makeup and typically has a very casual wardrobe.

She nodded. "Yeah. I figured I might as well. After all, if I don't, I'll just be sitting at home alone on a Saturday night and that doesn't sound very appealing today."

I laughed. "Good point. Do you know anyone else who's going?"

"T.K. said he was gonna go," she said, glancing up at me. "And Matt also."

My heart rate skipped a beat. "Matt? Really? He didn't seem interested when I told him about it."

Kari shrugged. "T.K. told me he was going."

I turned my head so Kari wouldn't see the small smile on my lips. However, the ever-so-intuitive girl must have noticed something because she said, quiet enough so that Tai wouldn't hear, "Is there something going on between you guys?"

"Me and Matt?" I repeated, and I laughed loudly. "Of course not! We're just friends." Kari didn't look like she believed me, so I added, "I'm just glad he and I are finally becoming friends after knowing each other for so long. I like hanging out with him."

"Alright," said Kari, although she still sounded unconvinced.

However, I knew how to turn the tables on her. "What about you and T.K.?"

"T.K.?" she stammered, and I could tell she was genuinely surprised. "Wha – no!"

I was slightly bummed because she actually sounded authentically shocked. But I convinced myself that she was just ignoring her feelings. "Mhm," I smirked. "Just wait."

Kari turned red and opened her mouth, gaping. "I never even – we're friends! He's new and I'm just the first person he met. Geez, Sora, I didn't even meet him a week ago!"

"Okay, okay!" I cried. "No need to get defensive."

Kari looked positively baffled. I left her to her thoughts and knocked on Tai's open door again. "Come on, we gotta go! Get off that damn computer!"

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" Tai jumped up. "I just had to win first. Now I'm ready for celebratory activities."

Kari and I piled into Tai's ancient Oldsmobile. This poor car had belonged to Tai's father and grandfather before him and didn't have much life left in it. I remember when he was given this car on his sixteenth birthday and Kari told me she was glad that it was likely going to fall apart before it came to be her time to own it. However, Kari had only a year and a half until she turned sixteen and the car was still running.

"Alright Myrtle," Tai said as he started her up. "Mindy only lives six blocks away, so please don't give out on me."

Tai gives his car, christened Myrtle, this pep talk before every single time he drives it. One time, he was a half hour late to school and didn't give her the pep talk and she broke down four blocks from our school. Thus, he believes that these talks are what have kept her alive for so long.

The car puttered out of Tai and Kari's apartment complex and we miraculously made it to Mindy's house without losing any parts or killing the engine. Every time I ride in this car, I prepare myself to not reach my destination and am always so awed when I do.

We had to park one block over from Mindy's house because her entire street was already filled with cars. As we approached the front walk, where quite a few people were mingling on the porch and lawn, a few senior boys noticed us and cried, "Hey Tai! Sora! What's up?"

Before we could answer, another one said, "Tai, nice goal today! That was sick."

"Oh, it was nothing," said Tai bashfully.

"But what about Serena breaking her arm, eh?" a third boy mused. "That was rough."

"Phoebe said they're holding tryouts for a replacement on Monday." The first boy looked me up and down. "Sora, you should try out."

"No thanks." I rolled my eyes.

"Yeah, we don't need to see Sora in a cheerleading uniform," the second boy said. "We already get to see her in her tennis outfit."

I sighed in annoyance, stepping past Tai and the boys into the house, Kari following close behind. I saw Tai crack open a beer and made a mental note to, once again, not drink, as I would have to be the designated driver for the night.

Mindy's house was fairly large, but it was still crowded with so many people crammed inside of it. Kari and I pushed our way through the crowded living room and kitchen, already feeling very claustrophobic, and entered the backyard.

She had a large backyard as well, equipped with a pool, half-basketball court, stretch of grass, and ping-pong table. Quite a few people were scattered about out here as well, lounging on the grass, playing basketball, swimming, or playing beer pong.

"There's T.K.!" Kari said suddenly. I glanced over to see her walking towards the aforementioned boy and his older brother. Matt noticed her approaching and looked over her shoulder, seeing me. He smiled. I smiled back, feeling light as air.

That's a normal feeling for friends.

"Hey guys," Kari said as we reached them. "Did you just get here?"

"Yeah, a few minutes ago," said Matt. "I can't believe everyone's already drunk already. People really don't waste any time, do they?"

"Not really." I laughed.

"Hey, Sora!"

I looked over my shoulder and saw Mimi, beaming. "Oh, hey Mimi!" I greeted, hugging the younger girl. "How are you?"

"I've been better," she said cheerfully.

I frowned. "Right, I forgot. How's Serena?"

"She's doing alright," said Mimi sincerely. "We all went and visited her today. I think I'll go back tomorrow too and bring her flowers. I just feel so bad!"

"Well, it's not your fault!" I told her.

She half-shrugged. "Well, anyway, how are you guys?" She looked around at the group. "I don't think I've met all of you before."

"My name's T.K."

"And I'm Kari."

"Oh, you're Tai's little sister, right?" Mimi said, smiling. Kari nodded. Mimi's eyes flickered over to Matt, and she smiled wider. "Hi Matt."

A loud battle-like cry rang out through the backyard and the five of us turned around to see a stark-naked freshman standing with his hands on his hips at the top of Mindy's rock-waterfall – the same freshman that looked just like Tai. "I'm king of the world!" he yelled drunkenly and jumped into the pool. Snickers and cat-calls erupted from other party-goers.

"Who is that!?" Mimi gasped, half-amused and half-horrified.

Kari was giggling uncontrollably, her hands over her mouth in an attempt to stifle it. "That's Davis Motomiya," T.K. said, also chuckling.

"He must be Jun Motomiya's brother," I noted.

Matt groaned. "That girl annoys me."

Mimi turned back to him and smiled. "So Matt, how are things with your band?" she asked.

"They're good," he said. "We're getting a few gigs lined up and gaining some exposure, which is good."

"Super!" Mimi beamed. "I love seeing you guys perform. You're awesome!"

"Er… thanks, Mimi."

"Anytime!"

"So, uh… how are things in the cheerleading industry?"

Mimi sighed. "Well, things were going stupendously until today. Now we have to hold tryouts and get some new girl to learn all our routines by the game next week – it's gonna be busy!"

"Yeah, sounds like it. That's a lot of bad luck."

She shrugged, her face still bright. "Yeah, but it's gotta be done! And I love cheering, so I don't mind!"

I glanced in between the two of them as they continued to chat away, frowning slightly. T.K. and Kari had wandered off and I felt immensely like a third wheel for the second time that day. Feeling dejected, I slunk off to go look for Tai.

-T.K.-

Kari and I separated ourselves rather quickly from Sora, Mimi, and Matt to wander around. It was strange being at a party like this, especially since Kari and I were seemingly the only freshmen – well, except for Davis, but as he was still doing backstrokes in the now otherwise empty pool, I didn't think he would be good company. I also wanted to keep away from Tai, because I knew that if he could see us, he would be watching to make sure I flirted with his sister.

The whole situation was so backwards.

"Having fun yet?" I asked.

"Not quite," Kari answered. "Besides, can anything really top Davis's entrance?"

We reentered the house, squeezing past people to cross to the front of the house, where we stepped back outside. There were a few people mingling out here, but none of them paid us any attention.

"If I'm being perfectly honest with you," said Kari, "I'm not really too interested in staying here much longer."

"What a coincidence," I grinned. "Neither am I. But what could we do instead? Neither of us can drive anywhere."

Kari frowned in thought. "Well…" she said slowly. "I live right behind Odaiba Lake and my apartment is only about six blocks from here. We can walk."

I nodded. "Let's do it."

We started our journey to the Kamiya residence, silent for the first few moments. Finally, I said, "So, there's a lake here too?"

Kari nodded. "It's not a very big one. It's kind of more like a big reservoir, actually. But it's just called Odaiba Lake."

"That's cool. And you guys live right behind it?"

She nodded. "Yeah. It's kinda funny; whenever my parents tell people from out of town that we live behind a lake, they automatically think we're really rich and probably live in a very expensive apartment. But really, Odaiba Lake is pretty ugly, and our apartment is no more expensive than any other one in town. My parents don't correct them anymore, though."

I laughed. "Is Odaiba Lake really that ugly?"

"Oh, yeah," she said, nodding. "The water is murky and gross. And there isn't a beach or anything. It's just dirt and weeds and hundred-year-old, half-dead trees surrounding it. The only people that go there are people our age. They just go there when there's nothing to do – like what we're doing now."

"Do people swim in the lake?" I asked.

"Not really," she said. "I mean, Tai and I have a few times, because we've lived there since I was two. When there's a large body of water twenty feet from your apartment and it's a hundred degrees in the middle of summer, you'll pretty much swim anywhere. Sometimes people will come and swim in it, but usually people just walk around it. The water's really cold all year round, so it only feels remotely nice when it's triple digits anyway."

"That's pretty cool," I said. "Odaiba is such a nice little town. I mean, you have the big city ten minutes away, but Odaiba is like its own little bubble. I guess that can be a bad thing in a way, but I like it. It's big enough so that you don't know everybody, but small enough that you know just enough people… you know what I mean?"

Kari giggled. "Not really."

I grinned. "It's hard to explain. Where I used to live, it was just a cluster of towns shoved together, so much so that even people that lived there for their whole lives didn't know where one ended and the other began. There were about eight high schools and my friends lived all over, some as much as a half an hour away. But here… it's one big town, you have everything you need here, and everyone that lives here goes to the same high school."

Nodding, Kari said, "Yeah, that makes a bit more sense. There's actually a sense of community here."

"That's exactly what I meant," I said, "and you summed it up in one sentence." I laughed. "I feel a little stupid right about now."

She smiled. "It's okay. It was fun listening to you try." After a moment, she added, "Hearing you say it like that makes me appreciate Odaiba a lot more. I always find myself complaining about how boring it is, but really it isn't. It just feels that way because I grew up here. The fact of the matter is that there really is a lot to do here. And it really is a very strong community-based town."

"Your whole town gathers into a crowded stadium to watch a high school soccer game," I said. "It can't get much better than that."

A few moments later we reached Kari's apartment complex. The apartments were two stories high and she pointed hers out to me, which was the one right in the middle in the second story. We didn't go up, however. We went around the side to the backyard behind her apartment.

"We share this with our downstairs neighbors," she said. "They let us install this little door in the fence a few years ago." She led me to the back fence, above which I could catch a glimpse of Odaiba Lake. She pushed on the fence, and two planks moved backwards. She pushed it until the two planks lay horizontally in midair, leaving a small, two-and-a-half foot space for someone to slip through. "Go on," she urged. I bent down and crept underneath the wood, emerging on the outskirts of the complex. Kari followed me and then fastened the planks vertically again.

"There's a huge fourth of July celebration here every year," Kari explained. "The whole town comes out; companies set up booths, food chains have tents, and some people have stations where they sell homemade jewelry and stuff. There are bounce houses, tons of food, places for fake tattoos, and a band. It's a huge deal. It costs, like, ten dollars a person to go, though, so my dad built this fence so we could kind of sneak in for free."

"That's awesome!" I said earnestly. "Your dad seems like a cool guy."

I finally looked around, taking in the view of Odaiba Lake. Kari was right – it was definitely very ugly. We were standing on a dirty path way underneath a few old trees right outside of her backyard. The small lake was probably only an acre or two in size, but it was molded so strangely that the size looked bigger. It seemed to be shaped like a circular horseshoe. One end of the horseshoe was closest to me and Kari, and the other end was a bit away. There was a stretch of dirty land and a large tree in between the two ends, and there was a small bridge going over the middle of the horseshoe.

"This is kinda cool," I said. "Yeah, it's ugly, but also cool. I wouldn't mind spending a summer here."

Kari shrugged. "Well, if I had to choose between Odaiba Lake and no lake, I would definitely choose Odaiba Lake."

She trembled next to me, and I glanced over at her. "Are you cold?"

"No," she said, but I saw the goosebumps.

Without thinking, I tugged my gray Kyoto sweatshirt over my head and handed it over to her.

"No, T.K., I'm not that –" she began, but I placed it in her hands anyway.

"I get hot easily," I insisted.

She smiled slightly and pulled the sweatshirt over her head. "That works out well," she said, rolling up the sleeves a little on the too-big sweatshirt, "because I get cold easily."

"So I'll just give you all of my jackets, then?"

"Sounds good to me."

We walked down the dirt path for a bit, circling the lake. Sure, it was kinda ugly, but it looked nice in the moonlight. We took a seat on the edge of the dirt, our feet dangling above the brown water, and sat in silence for a long time.

"I'm actually starting to become thankful that I moved here," I said, breaking the comfortable silence.

"I'm glad you moved here too," said Kari. "We haven't known each other that long but I feel more comfortable around you than a lot of people I've known for years."

"I agree," I said, nodding. "I guess there is a reason for everything."

Kari smiled. "I guess so."

-Matt-

After about ten minutes of conversing with Mimi Tachikawa, I had to pause and evaluate what was happening. Mimi and I are completely different people with absolutely nothing in common, and yet we had been able to hold a conversation for the past ten minutes without any awkward pauses. How did this happen? I've been going to the same school as Mimi since we were kids and she's always been one of the girls that I was annoyed with even though I didn't know her because she was such a stereotypical cheerleader. She clearly had no idea about this – in fact, I don't think she realizes we've been going to the same school since we were at Odaiba Elementary, because the first time I ever talked to her was the first day of school when she asked for my autograph.

However, it turns out that Mimi has a little more depth to her than I originally thought. She also has a pretty good taste in music; we don't really listen to the same things, but I respect what she likes.

"Where'd Sora go?" Mimi asked suddenly, glancing around.

I'd noticed a few moments ago out of the corner of my eye when Sora had slipped away. I thought she was going to get something to drink, but she didn't come back. I wonder if she'd gone to look for Tai.

"And my brother," I added. T.K. and Kari had disappeared as well.

"Weird," said Mimi. "Well, I think I'm going to get something to drink – want anything, Matt?"

I shook my head. "No thanks."

"I'll be right back!" She smiled at me before disappearing into the house. I sat down in one of the plastic chairs near the pool and the one next to me was filled seconds later by Phoebe Jenkins.

"Hey Matt," she said, beaming. "How are you?"

"Fine," I said shortly. Phoebe and I have also known each other all our lives – however, unlike with Mimi and me, we're in the same grade and therefore have had more social interactions. In sixth grade, she used to pick on me because I didn't have a lot of friends and was really quiet. I apparently changed a lot over the summer between sixth and seventh grade, because once we got to middle school the bullying completely stopped and instead she would blatantly flirt with me. Here we are, five years later, and nothing's changed.

"Saw you at the game today." She smirked and scooted her chair closer to mine so that our knees touched. "I don't think you've ever come to a game before."

"My brother was there," I said, "so I went to hang out with him."

"You have a brother?" Phoebe winked. "Is he as cute as you?"

I stared at her exasperatedly. She either is absolutely clueless or doesn't care that I constantly rebuff her.

"Oh, hey, Phoebe!"

We looked up and saw Mimi standing there, holding a glass in her hand.

She pulled up another chair and sat down. "The guy at the bar made me the cutest drink ever! Vodka and vitamin water!"

Phoebe rolled her eyes at me and I furrowed my brow in response. Aren't Pheobe and Mimi best friends?

"Did you see Serena fall at the game today?" Phoebe asked me suddenly. Mimi froze and stared at her friend.

"Yeah, I saw that," I said, confused.

Phoebe looked at Mimi and frowned. "It was pretty unfortunate."

Mimi glared at her friend and stood up. She opened her mouth, as if she wanted to speak, but instead turned on her heel and stomped off.

I blinked a few times, absolutely lost. What had just happened? I glanced at Phoebe, who was smiling triumphantly at Mimi's retreating form. Suddenly remembering why I dislike any type of high school social gatherings, I got up and walked away, without saying anything to Phoebe.

-Mimi-

Gosh, Phoebe is such a bitch.

I've been best friends with her for years and I hate it when she gets like this. Usually she's very sassy, but she's not typically super bitchy like this! I can't even understand it!

I felt like I was going to cry again, but not from being upset this time – I was just so angry!

I ran into Sora in the side yard, where she was sitting alone, shredding a leaf and looking very bored. She looked up when she heard my footsteps and instantly took notice of my face. "Mimi!" she exclaimed. "What's wrong?"

I sat down next to her and frowned at the ground. "My friends are so mean."

"I'm sorry," she said carefully. "What happened? Where'd Matt go?"

Pouting, I folded my arms across my chest. "With Phoebe."

"Why…?" she prodded. "Mimi, you have to give me some more informative answers here."

I sighed deeply. "I don't know. I was sitting with the two of them and then she started talking about Serena and again how it was my fault – ugh! It was so embarrassing! Matt probably thinks I'm a freak now."

Sora put her arm around my shoulders. "I doubt that, Mimi. I don't think Matt is the type of person that would care about that sort of thing. And what do you mean, Phoebe was saying it was your fault?"

"Never mind," I grumbled. "Well, what are you doing out here?"

Sora half-shrugged. "Tai was doing shots and I didn't feel like joining and I couldn't find Kari. She and T.K. just disappeared somewhere. I came out here because it's quieter."

I nodded. "Do you not drink?"

"Not really," she said. "I don't really like the taste of alcohol. Besides, someone has to be the one looking out for everyone." She smiled lightly. "I'm like the parent here."

I frowned. "That's no fun."

"Well, someone's gotta do it," she repeated. "Tai likes to drink and if I wasn't here to watch him, who knows what kind of trouble he could get into. I'm usually his designated driver."

"Poor you," I said softly.

-Yolei-

Why did I lie?

I told Sora I couldn't go the party because I was working, but guess what? I'm definitely not. I'm sitting at home, on my computer.

I sighed. I wish I wasn't so anti-social.

-Izzy-

I must have forgotten that being part of the school's Computer Club meant that my friends and I couldn't have other topics of conversation.

Three of my friends, who are fellow Computer Club members, had just left my house and I sighed in relief, collapsing onto my bed. I enjoy talking about computers as much as the next person – especially with people who are on the same level as I am – but night after night after night of the same conversations gets a little dull. And every time I try to talk about something else with my friends, they roll their eyes at each other and just ignore me. It was getting on my last nerve.

I took out my cell phone and called Joe Kido, whom I have been friends with since my freshman year of high school. The two of us took some of the same classes when I was a freshman and he was a junior, and we became fast friends. We both had our own groups of friends, but we would go to each other to talk about things other than computers and biology, respectively. Joe graduated last year from Odaiba High and is currently a pre-med student at UC Davis, which is about five hours from Odaiba.

"Hey Izzy!" Joe yelled into the phone when he picked up. I could hear loud music and distant voices through the line.

"Oh – sorry Joe," I said. "It's Saturday night, I should have figured you'd be at a party."

"It's alright!" he practically shouted. "Did you need something?"

"Not really," I replied. "I was just gonna ask when the next time you're gonna come down to visit is."

"Um… I think I'm coming down two weekends from now. Is that cool?"

"Yup. Well, you're busy, so I'll let you go. See you then, Joe."

"Bye Izzy!"

I missed Joe. As I hung up my phone, I sighed. Joe and I got along really well and I might even consider him one of my best friends. My computer friends are nice to have, but they aren't really people that I love spending time with.

"Izzy." My mom knocked on my door and opened it. "How are you? Do you want to come watch a movie with your father and me?"

I shook my head. "No… not really, Mom. But thanks."

She frowned but said, "Okay. Well, good-night, then." She stepped out of my room and closed the door behind her.

I had decided that I would not be spending "quality" time with my parents until they decided to come clean about my adoption.