Hello everyone, I'm so sorry that I haven't posted anything for so long.I've been studying/preparing but now I finally have summer break (year 8 is an important year for us in sweden becuse in year 9 you'll be graduating before you reach gymnasium (10,11,12th year of school) and if you fail you have to retake a year!). Again I'm really sorry and once summer ends I probably wont update as often because I'll begin 9th grade, but I'll try my best. Now, enough of my problems and on with the story!

(READ ARTHURS NOTE AT THE END PLEASE)

It was still dark outside, the clock tick tacking its usual routine, signing that it was still in function after the painful trip to the wall a few days back. Flashes of light escaped through the window now and then, lightening certain places of the apartment whenever a car passed by. In the darkest corner of the lifeless apartment a young girl was curled up in a blanket, tears pouring down on the cold wooden floor.

You're a disgrace!

"Stop..." Mitsuki's voice broke into a whisper, her fisted hands weakly clenching her head. Her nails dig into the skin of her palm, she didn't flinch as a thin stain of blood began to drip down her wrist, instead she curled up even more as if she would become invisible to the world. It hurt, it hurt so much that breathing was getting difficult, it felt like there was no oxygen to breathe, even when she began to gasp for air, but that was not what caused her suffering.

You ungrateful child! You're unworthy to carrier the same family name as ours!

"No...mom...dad" Mitsuki began to tremble in fear as the voice echoed in her ears, the grip on her head tightening. The tears wouldn't stop falling, her eyes began to redden and cheeks already swollen. Her eyelids were growing weaker and weaker from all the crying, she didn't have any strength left to fight the sleep that grew. Willingly she let her mind rest once again.

'Help me'

Mitsuki opened her eyes, the beaming sunshine that lighted up the room had woken her up from the deep slumber. As her eyes adjusted to the brightness she stood up from the uncomfortable sitting position in the corner of the bedroom. Taking a quick glance at the time before heading to one of the many boxes with the letter 'clothes' imprinted on. It was 9:13. Too early for a Saturday morning but not according to Mitsuki, she was a morning person so it was only natural for her to be awake at early hours, despite her condition. She still felt a bit tired though, her head was throbbing with pain, probably from lake of sleep, her face felt sticky and sore from all the crying. The hours spent at school weren't all positive either, it just added to her pressure and misery. Yesterday had been hectic, something she didn't want to deal with today, rumors sure spread fast and trouble has already been attracted. So much as happened since she moved to Tokyo, it seemed to bring back some unpleasant memories that she thought had faded long ago.

Mitsuki took a quick look at herself in the mirror, she eyed the spaghetti top along with the baggy sweatpants before looking back up to her face. Her hair a mess and heated red cheeks, burning with soreness. Her face felt gross and odd. Her eyes still burned but there was no evidence left that she had cried, such as red puffed eyes. One hand went up to her neck to touch the now yellowish blue bruise. Closing her eyes a scene replayed.

Thump! The force of her petite body hit the wall behind her with full force. "You shameless brat!" I told you not to hang out with friends!" A woman in her mid30s yelled.

"Meroko was only walking me home-" Mitsuki was interrupt by the slap.

"How dare you talk back to your elder?" Picked up by the collar of her shirt she failed to notice the punch aimed for her cheek, out of instinct she titled her head slightly, the impact of the fist instead hit the left side of her neck. Dropping her to the floor the woman gave Mitsuki a last kick before grimace in disgust.

"What a pitiful sight. From now on you will live on your own!"

Mitsuki shook her head at the memory, not wanting to see any more of it. She headed towards the bathroom and grabbed a hairbrush along the way, she started washing the not so smooth face clean before brushing the knots in the brown curls, she winced, the knots were stubbornly stuck together. Mitsuki soon began to brush slightly roughly till her head grew almost numb, the aching in her skull distracted her mind from recalling those images from the past. Once she felt refreshed Mitsuki started to unpack a box containing personal belongings & clothes and placed them in the wardrobe next to the bed. When that was done she took a look around the living room.

Boxes stacked upon boxes were pushed against the wall, more littered the floor all around the large room. "It will be a long day" she muttered under her breathe.

Feeling really warm all of a sudden, Mitsuki made her way towards the balcony. She opened the twin glass doors wide open and breathed in the fresh cool air. It was a nice day indeed, for a moment she felt her mood lighten up by the relaxing weather, but it didn't take long for the previous thoughts and memories to replay itself.

"Maybe a walk around the city will help" She sighed, looking up at the bright sky.

"You bet" Mitsuki nearly jumped out of surprise. She heard a masculine chuckle at the action. No doubt, the all too familiar voice couldn't go unrecognized by Mitsuki. Turning her head at the direction of the laughing she saw Takuto leaning over the edge of the balcony fence, his lips curved into a smile and eyes sparkling in the light, making her heart skip a beat.

"D-Don't startle me like that!" She pouted, turning away from him.

He voiced out yet another chuckle at the girl next to him. "Is that how you usually greet people?" She crossed her arms and let out a huff. Knowing that she wasn't going to answer he began a new topic. "What are you doing so early in the morning?" The curious teenage boy asked in a playful manner Mitsuki had grown used to.

"Unpacking" Came her short reply rather firmly.

Takuto titled his head, confusion clearly written on his face. "Unpacking?" He repeated.

"I just moved in recently, remember? Now if you'll excuse me I have things to do" Just before she could make an exit she heard him call out. "Is everything alright?"

Mitsuki halted, her hair covering her widened eyes. Why did he ask that all of a sudden? She hadn't even shown any signs of pain, actually she almost forgot those bitter feelings and memories thanks to him. 'He is only asking a daily question, nothing odd, just keep cool'

When she faced him she saw the seriousness in his eyes, a hint of concern also. Mitsuki did not like where this was going, she was almost sure she wouldn't be able to lie this time, it felt like his eyes were looking through her very soul. "I heard you scream last night"

Mitsuki felt all the blood drain out of her face. She didn't know her scream was loud enough to wake someone up. The dream that woke her up last night was something she did not want to recall. "O-oh! Did I wake you up? I'm sorry, I-"

"I didn't sleep"

"Huh?" She was confused by the sudden interruption, it took her a few moments before the meaning of his words sank in. "Oh" was all she could utter, a pretty lame reply but at that moment she didn't know what else to say.

"It was only a nightmare, nothing serious, really" she replied along with a forced smile. It was the truth, just not detailed. Mitsuki was surprised at how calmly she was handling the situation, at this rate he would probably leave the topic. She didn't like the way he acted so friendly and she didn't intend to upgrade their friendship any further to the point where you really on one and the other.

"It doesn't seem like only a 'nightmare'"

A frown grew, just who does he think he is? Sure people asks if they are alright after hearing your neighbor scream in the middle of the night, but when they say it's just a bad dream and claim that it's nothing more, it would either mean: it's a messed up or scary dream that made you wake up or it's based on something personal, and Mitsuki obviously didn't want to talk about it. She had tried so hard to stay calm and not make a scene, but then he just had to say that! Of course it's not 'only a nightmare'! It felt like whenever he saw her, he was reading a book that contained all her emotions and memories. Even if he knows something's wrong he should know better than dig into others privacies. Maybe she should keep a distance from now on, if he were to find out anything more it would just add to her problems.

"What do you mean?" Mitsuki asked in wonder, her voice sounded sharp. She decided to act along and maybe she would figure out how he knew all this.

"Stop pretending, it's easy to read people in both actions and expressions" His words felt like newly sharpened draggers, his eyes seemed to look into her mind as if there was a screen playing up memories. "Now, are you going to tell me what's really bothering you or keep hiding?"

Mitsuki had anger written in her face before it change into an empty, almost a distant expression, not the type of distant look when you space out. Her eyes were still fixed on him with only a touch of saddens in them as if they were speaking an untold story. But the look disappeared as fast as it appeared before she let out a deep sigh. "I really need to work on the house" with that said she disappeared into the apartment.

I know this story was short, but if I continued I would have spoiled next chapter and a part of Mitsuki's past, well guys, see you in the next chapter :)