Chapter 2
Matthew and Kumajirou had been walking for an hour. They had passed the long rows of apartments and had come to a big, grassy field. As they were crossing the field, something in the long grass caught Matthew's eye. Matthew and Kumajirou bent down to see the small coin.
It looked about the size of a silver dollar. It was silver with blue lining, and in the middle, there was a golden star. Matthew picked it up to look at it more closely. But the moment he touched it, a bright light began to glow around it. He dropped the coin in alarm, but the light grew brighter. When the light had disappeared, Kumajirou gasped.
Matthew was gone.
Matthew sat up, groaning and holding his head to stop it spinning. When his vision was steady again, he looked around. He was sitting on the side of the road, and behind him and across from him, there was a line of trees. Several cars whizzed past him on the road. A feeling of dread set in when he saw that Kumajirou was no where near him.
"Where am I?"
As if to answer, something caused him to look up, and he saw a big sign above him that read "Welcome to Ohio!" By that time, the only word Matthew could say was a faint "Maple."
A couple of days later, Arthur was on his way to Alfred's apartment. But this time, it wasn't to yell at him. He hadn't seen Alfred for a few days, and to be honest, he was growing a bit concerned. So he was going to check on him.
Arthur walked up to the door and knocked. There was no noise coming from inside.
"Alfred? Are you in there?" He called as he knocked again. Still no reply.
He turned the doorknob, and to his surprise, the door was unlocked. He opened the door, and he was slightly startled by the sight he saw.
The TV was filled with static, and on the couch, Alfred lay in a fetal position, clutching the game controller. His hair was a mess, there were bags under his slightly bloodshot eyes, and he occasionally let out a couple tired groans.
"Alfred!" Arthur ran to Alfred's side. "My God, what have you done to yourself?!"
Alfred turned his head and looked at Arthur. "I can't….finish….the game….Arthur…." he croaked. "I've been playing….for two days straight….and I can't….beat….the last level…."
"Alfred, listen to me," said Arthur. "You need to take a break from this game; you're exhausted."
Alfred hesitated for a bit. But he finally laid his head down and mumbled, "Okay."
"I'm going to turn this TV off, and you're going to head to your room and get some rest-"
The door suddenly burst open. "Alfred! Arthur!"
Alfred and Arthur looked in the doorway to see Francis.
Arthur screamed and shut his eyes. "YOU FORGOT TO CLOTHE YOURSELF AGAIN!"
Francis, who looked like he had just stepped out of the shower, was only wearing a towel around his waist. His hair was wet and his eyes were full of fear.
"That doesn't matter!" he said. "Is Matthieu here? He said that he was coming over to my house today, but he never showed up. I tried to call him a couple times but he didn't answer."
"And so you had to run here practically naked to ask us?" said Arthur.
"Chill out, dude," said Alfred. "I'm sure he's around here somewhere."
He looked in the kitchen and knocked on the door of the bathroom, calling Matthew's name. Matthew didn't answer back.
He looked in his brother's bedroom. It was empty. Even Kumajirou was gone. Alfred noticed a note lying on the bed. When he picked it up, he noticed that the date on the top indicated that the note was written a couple days ago.
He began to read:
Dear Alfred, Arthur, and Francis,"
I appreciate all that you've done for me all these years, but I feel like I must move on. Kumakichi and I have left, probably somewhere where the people I'm around will actually get along and I will be noticed. I'm sorry. I will miss all of you.
Love,
Matthew
Alfred stood there, still as a statue, holding the note in his hands. Time seemed to have slowed down. He felt something inside of him shatter.
Arthur and Francis came up behind him. "Alfred, did you find him?"
Alfred turned around to face them. They noticed that tears were welling up in his eyes.
"He left," he said quietly as his voice cracked.