I looked up with tears in my eyes at my mother who was tucking me into the soft blanket on my futon. She smiled down at me and felt my forehead.
"Well, you still have a fever so I guess you get to stay home from school tomorrow. Don't cry sweetie, I know you don't feel well but you'll be better soon." She got up and turned the light off and came back to my side. Pulling up her own blanket, my mother turned to me.
"Mommy, can you tell me a story before I go to bed?" I asked.
"Alright sweetie, if you promise to go to bed after that." I nodded my head quickly. "Okay, so what story do you want to hear? Cinderella? Maybe the Lion and the Mouse? Wait, I know! How about I tell you the story of the Maid and King?" My eyes shined at the story. My mother knew it was my favorite and that if I had my way she would tell it to me every night. "Alright, alright. Lets see, how does it begin again?"
"With 'a long time ago, there was a lonely King' mommy!" I said, repeating the words I had heard so often before.
"Sometimes I think you know the story better than I do, dear heart." She laughed and started. "A long time ago, there was a young and lonely King. He had every possession that he had ever desired because of his high power and education that came with his title. He worked hard for his kingdom and people. His hard work showed in the lands prosperity. However, even with the success he was lonely and sad. His people never understood why he was unhappy despite their best efforts.
"One day, a beautiful young woman appeared outside the Kings castle. 'I wish to serve his Majesty' she said. The guards wouldn't let her in at first, but she remained outside determined to serve him. They finally let her in, giving her the lowly job of a maid. She happily accepted.
"She quickly became the best maid in the castle and earned everyone's respect but had yet to actually meet the young ruler. The young woman one-day came upon the King in his study and saw how sad he looked in the moonlight. She came into the room and the poor King without having to hear any words was comforted by the strange woman. Their eyes met, and it was love at first sight.
"The two began to spend their time together and soon their love began to show to other people. However, the Kings advisors didn't approve of their relationship. They believed it was best to get rid of the woman before it was too late. So when they heard that the King was planning on taking the woman for his wife, the advisors quickly set the plan into motion.
"The advisors told the King that if any child from the lovers were to come into being before marriage, the maid would have to leave the kingdom with the child and never return. The King agreed, confident that no such thing would happen. However, they had given the maid a potent drink to become pregnant, so when the night came, a child was conceived. Heartbroken, the king was forced to say goodbye to the maid that he loved so much. He never married or loved another. The maid that had shaken the kingdoms roots left the land and forever wandered the world with the beautiful child. She also never married but she did love again, after all to love a child is to still love." My mother ended.
At this time, tears were in my eyes because of the unhappiness that the King and Maid had felt. My mother wiped away my tears and kissed me on the forehead.
"It's so sad mommy! Why couldn't the people just let them love in peace?" I asked.
"Its because they thought that bad things would happen if they were allowed to be in love. Now its time for bed like you promised!" My mother said in a mockingly stern voice. Then, lying down, she held my hand.
I slowly opened my eyes to the awaiting light. It looked like the sun had risen only a short while ago. Yawning, I sat up and stretched feeling refreshed for the first time in a long while.
Remembering my dream, I couldn't help but wonder at why I had it. Maybe it was meeting Yuyi for the first time yesterday. It was actually a memory of when I was 8 and too sick to go to school or anything else. My mother had taken care of me so nicely. It was around that time that I realized that the story I held so dear was actually what had happened to my parents. Maybe I had loved it subconsciously because of the truth it held.
My father was so powerful with his business because of him working in the same area as the generations before him. My mother needed a job very much back then, and knew that his house held servants, which meant good jobs. After working for him for a few months, they fell in love. But, just like the story, his business partners didn't like my mother interfering with my father's social life. So, they made a deal that if he had a kid with my mom before any real commitment was made she would have to leave and cut off all ties to him.
Even though it sickened him, my father was prideful and wanted to stick to the promise when I came around. They had decided it was for the better for me to be raised with love from my mother then with distance from how I would otherwise have been raised. Apparently my father would have had to hire nannies to take care of me because of how strenuous his job was.
'How lonely' I thought as I got up. I may not have known Yuyi as a person for long, but I couldn't help but pity him. He had had to give up his true love because of his own work, and he wasn't strong enough to fight against pride and promises to be with her. In a way, I saw him as a slave to his work.
The walk in closet was larger than I had thought at first, but I eventually found a pair of pants that were loose along with a plain white shirt and grabbed some tennis shoes and socks. I put up my long hair into the usual pigtails that reached past my butt and decided that right now was as good a time as any to talk Yuyi.
Thankfully I was able to walk the whole way to his office in the house without getting lost, although it did take me over 10 minutes to make sure I was headed the right way. I knocked on the door and after hearing a muffled 'come in' I opened it and slipped in.
Yuyi was sitting at a large desk that had a mountain of paperwork on it. In his hands was a manila file but he put that down and told me to sit on the chair opposite him.
"It's perfect timing that you're here right now, Serena. I was just looking into suitable schools for you to attend. So far, it's a tie between Ouran and St. Lobelia."
"Actually, that's why I need to talk to you. You see, I was thinking that it was best if I were to find a job and cut back on school." At this he started frowning. "Well, what I mean to say is that I don't wish to burdon you with all the things that go with schooling like tuition and extra activities. After all, I understand you're an important man." I paused because I knew he needed to have a say in this important conversation.
Yuyi didn't say anything for a minute or two. "I don't like this idea of yours. After all, what would your mother say if she were around?" I flinched at those words, remembering her anger at the idea when I said it to her. "I want to see if there is any alternative. Any at all. It's just not right for a young lady such as yourself to stop school when its so important. You've learned much so far, and then you want to quit? I will not hear anymore of it. You will go to school, whether you want to or not. The only matter now is what school you will attend out of these two choices. The first is an all girls school, while the other is co-ed. Both are very reputable so it will not matter which one you decide." He passed me two photos, one from each school. The first one was of a typical high school uniform for girls that was white and a reddish maroon color. The second had two uniforms in it for a guy and a girl. The girls was a ghastly yellow dress that looked like it was a failed attempt at lolita and had fallen in paint. The guys' however, was a soft blueish purple and black slacks. The black shoes were also a nice touch I thought.
I had known all along that he wouldnt go with me quitting school, and that I just was fooling myself with false hope. Now I had to come up with some way that would get me out of wearing a hated girlish red thing, and a horrid yellow thing. Then I thought for a second. He had said he wanted an alternative to me quitting right? Well, the only uniform I like is the guys', and I would be safer than if I were to go as a girl. After all, the track record for getting attacked wasn't exactly clean.
"How about I make you a deal?" I asked. He looked at me suspiciously for a moment, and nodded for me to continue. "I will go to school, and I wont complain or bring up the idea of quitting again if…."
" If, what?" I could see that I had caught his attention. So far so good, right? Now for the moment of truth.
" If you allow me to masquerade as a male student. That way, I wont have to worry for my own safety like I would if I were to attend as a girl, and you will know that I wont be cutting school." He seemed to consider it for a second.
"And what about your hair? Would you be able to cut it off?"
" My hair? I can tie it up in a ponytail like I usually do. It wont be in the way at all."
"What of your womanly figure? That won't be so easy to hide."
"I have undershirts that will hide anything that might show that I'm a girl."
"Your eyes might give you away. They are, after all, quite feminine."
"Then the other kids will see me as a very feminite man."
He looked thoughtful for another moment. I believed he would say no to this idea as well. Then he surprised me and started laughing. He didn't stop for at least a minute, and I held my breath the entire. When he stopped, he had a mischevious glint in his eye, almost as if he knew something I didn't.
"Alright, you have a deal. As long as you don't cause any unnessacary trouble, you will be enrolled at Ouran Academy as a male student. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to begin filling out these papers for the school." And with that, he picked the manila folder and turned around in the chair.
I got up and left as quickly as I could, unable to believe that I had actually convinced him to let me do something so crazy. 'Maybe it wont be so bad here' I thought with a little hope shining through. 'And maybe school will be uneventful as well. That way I wont have to do much. After all, how much trouble can a bunch of rich kids be?'