FLASHBACK:

"Creep."

"A woman without any fashion sense."

"Weird."

"She looks like a zombie. Her clothes were too baggy and out of style."

"That girl's a 'slowpoke'."

"Loner."

"A girl who's living in her own little world and doesn't have any time to comb her hair."

"Witch."

"Why is she like that?"

"Is that how an ordinary girl should look like?"

"Freak."

"Maybe she isn't a girl...she doesn't look like a human either..."

"G-"

These are the words which she usually hear from people around her. Although she appeared to be indifferent about what others say about her, doing her part as the "great pretender" in concealing her emotions almost perfectly...deep down inside, she can feel that pain.

It was the same hurt that she carries for a long time now. Obviously as time goes on, she already got used to this scenario...hearing such awful words from people who actually don't know a damn thing about her is something that she's struggling to endure all this time.

Ever since she stepped into the Academy as a new student, she experienced being talked about by the rich students wherever she goes. They never stopped babbling about the way she walks and her manner of presenting herself to people (in terms of appearance and the way she dresses).

For this young girl, nothing is wrong about her.

It just that...she perfectly knew that she isn't now the person that she was before. For her, the one who she called as her "old self" had vanished with the grave.

Whatever the reason behind this, nobody knows...except her.

Lunch break.

The school refectory was filled with students who were patiently waiting for their ordered meals in straight lines. The entire facility looked like some sort of an English restaurant because of its extravagant, luxurious chandeliers, furniture, and table ware. Some of the students were already eating while chatting along with their peers.

She entered the refectory with a lunchbox in her hands.

As usual, everybody was staring at her, their eyes were looking at her with criticism and discrimination. She ignored them and looked for a nice spot to enjoy her lunch meal.

Once she managed to find the perfect place, she pulled out a chair and sat quietly. Sh put the lunchbox on the table and opened the lid. The savory aroma of the food coming from her lunch box began to satisfy her senses.

"Nice. Beef steak for lunch." she thought and then said her prayers silently.

Suddenly...SPLASH!

She opened her eyes and blinked them shockingly. In just a splash, her lunch has been ruined by water. She found herself, soaking wet. Her black hair was damp, as well as her clothes. Just as she was about to stand up, she heard whispers coming from the students who are with her in the refectory. Then, she heard footsteps coming for her. She slowly looked back.

She saw three beautiful girls standing behind her. Two of them were staring down at her while the one who was at the center was looking at her with a fake sad face.

"Oh my! I'm sorry. The pitcher suddenly slipped from my hands." the girl at the middle said to her mockingly.

What happened next shocked everybody. The three mean girls poured the remaining water from the pitchers to her. Afterwards, they took out three bags of flour and opened them. They instantly poured the flour onto the girl's head, covering her entirely with it.

These girls began laughing as they enjoy this "moment". Most of the students laughed with these girls, while a few of them simply stared at the poor girl with pity.

The terrible scenario ended in silence.

She stood up and closed her lunchbox. Then she stood up from her seat and slowly walked away.

Nobody knows, including her, that someone's watching the whole ruckus behind the shadows.

"TAINAKA-SAN! W-WHAT HAPPENED TO YOU?"

Momoka stared at the wet girl with surprise, her eyes starting to cry. She instantly took out some tissue napkins to the quiet lady and held her hands tightly. Soga, with a contemptible face, asked the girl sternly.

"Tell me, Tainaka-san! Who did this to you?" he said.

The girl never said a word, instead she looked away from her two classmates and sighed heavily.

Momoka sighed as well, patting the girl's shoulder.

"Misaki-kun...please tell us so we can help you."

Misaki (the girl) clenched her fists and mumbled these words: "P-Please, don't mind me...y-you don't have to do this for me..."

"No! Don't say that, Misaki-kun! Kazukiyo-san and I care about you." Momoka blurted, shaking her head as tears fell down from her eyes.

With tears in her eyes, Misaki suddenly ran away, leaving Momoka and Soga.

5:00 PM.

The grand clock tower chimed loudly.

Misaki stayed at the hallway, still in her damp clothes. The flour went dry as it stuck onto her hair, face, hands and her wet clothes. Apparently, she looked awful. Her face reminded her of those ghosts which appear in most Japanese horror movies which she usually watches at night before going to bed.

When she looked at the clock tower by the window, she sighed.

"Geez...this is the first time that I skip class." she thought sadly and leaned onto the glass, her eyes staring at the seemingly grayish sky.

A bolt of lightning suddenly appeared before Misaki's eyes. It just flashed itself from a distance between the dark clouds, making the female to step back in shock. Then, she heard thunder rolling above her head, creating those "roaring" sounds. Another bolt of lightning flashed again in the sky, and then thunder rolled.

Misaki ran with fear in her eyes; her chest began to feel heavy and she can feel her heartbeat pounding abnormally fast. She looked for a room to hide and cover herself from the dreadful thunderstorm coming ahead.

She found a door. Without thinking, she instantly opened it and went into that room, leaving the door slightly opened. It was then that she realized that the power has been knocked down by the lightning.

The lights went out.

Misaki found herself in the middle of this devouring darkness. Worse, the lightning flashed once more and thunder roared again.

No luck, she can't see in the dark. She decided to stay in her position and then knelt down with her hands covering her ears. Her eyes were shut tightly, ignoring those scary sounds that this thunderstorm creates. She was so afraid; she simply sulked herself on her place, waiting for the thunderstorm to end soon.

After that thunder, she heard odd sounds coming from out of nowhere. These sounds were followed by countless appalling screams which echoed all throughout the pitch black room.

Misaki let out a scream.

"AAAAHHHHHH!"

Suddenly, the power went back and the lights went on again.

Misaki opened her eyes slowly, her whole body trembling in terror. She barely noticed that that there were seven shadows standing behind her.

The clock tower struck again. It's already 6:00 PM.

Misaki stood up slowly. She could feel the gravity underneath her feet. Though she tried doing it, it was hopeless. She can't move.

Suddenly, she heard voices behind her, saying:

"W-Who is t-this?"

"Hey, Miss. A-Are you alright?"

She slowly turned around with a horrified face, until she found herself looking at seven terrified young males who were then looking back at her with their aghast expressions etched upon their faces.

Lightning struck once more. Then, everybody screamed with fear.

Misaki ran out of the room, screaming. Those seven people in that room were left, speechless. Terrified.

BACK TO THE PRESENT...

The school bell rang as the clock tower signaled 4:30.

Everybody went out of their classroom with happy faces, now that their expressions mean that classes are done for today.

Misaki's face looked worn-out due to lack of sleep. Her eyes were bloodshot and eye bags were formed underneath her dark orbs. Furthermore, her face looked terrifying because of its pallid color. She was walking along that hallway, carrying a pile of books in her hands. She could sense the weight upon her hands, arms and shoulders as she tried ignoring the pain that these heavy books brought to her.

Her appearance caused every student at the hallway to stare at her frightfully.

The black-haired female sighed and went on, ignoring those people as always.

When Misaki arrived at the main floor of the high school grade building of Ouran Academy, she decided to take a break. She sat by the stairway and put the books down on the floor. She panted heavily and took out her handkerchief from her pocket, and then wiped the sweat off of her forehead. From a short distance, she noticed a big group of female students laughing while on their way upstairs. Misaki glanced at those girls, and then picked up the books.

By coincidence, Misaki heard those girls talking:

"Hey, girls! Do you want to come with us to Music Room 3?"

"What are we going to do there? Our Music class is already over."

"No, we're not going there to take up our Music subject."

"So, what are we going to do there?"

"Trust us. We're sure that you're not going to regret this day that you came with us."

Misaki's ears were alarmed by this conversation. And so, with a determined face, she thought of this thing:

"I have to find where Music Room 3 is."

As Misaki was about to walk upstairs, someone called her.

"MISAKI-SAN!"

She turned around and see one of her classmates, holding three dictionaries in her hands. Misaki let out a doubtful look as the girl classmate approached her. She could see the anxiety in her classmate's eyes, since she knows that nobody dared to approach her, even her classmates.

"U-Uhmmm...Misaki-san, c-can I-I ask you a favor?" the classmate said nervously and then handed the dictionaries to her.

"W-What is it?" Misaki mumbled timidly, though she tried hiding her shyness away.

"May you r-return these t-to the l-library...p-please?" the classmate requested.

Misaki was hesitated to accept the heavy dictionaries from her classmate's hold. But she can't just say to her classmate that she doesn't want to do the favor. That would be bad, Misaki thought.

And so, with a bow, Misaki accepted the books.

Her classmate smiled at her anxiously and said, "T-Thank you, M-Misaki. I owe you one."

Afterwards, the girl ran away., leaving a startled Misaki at the stairway.

"Oh no! Where am I?"

Misaki had been walking back and forth; yet, she couldn't find where the library is. This building was too spacious and big for an academy. Misaki couldn't believe how in the world did she get into this place, up until now.

Realizing that she had lost her way, Misaki continued walking.

Suddenly, she found this certain hallway familiar. It's as if she already came in this place. Misaki thought about it...what if she already went to this hallway? But, the thing is, she can't remember when did she come here, or the reason why did she come here in this recognizable spot in the Academy.

Then, her eyes gazed at a big door, with the sign saying, "MUSIC ROOM 3".

Misaki felt an abrupt leap in her chest; her eyes looked at the knob closely. It so happened that this door looked...familiar to her. She held the handle gently. A sudden emotion filled her bosom; it was anxiety...unexplainable anxiety.

With a deep breath, Misaki thought, "Here comes nothing.", and then opened the door.

"I-Is this the library?"

Misaki's eyes went wide as she looked around the open room. She was standing in front of the door.

She can't believe what she's seeing:

"Apparently, the sign says that this room is Music Room 3. There was a grand piano over there. Unbelievably, there is a lot of people here...all of them were female students. S-Still...is this really a music room or what?"

Misaki noticed that this so-called music room looked more like a visitor's lounge or a fancy restaurant. She could smell newly-bake cookies, Earl Gray, and petite madeleines filling the entire room. Much with her surprise, there were rose petals scattered on the floor; their sweet-smelling fragrances caught Misaki's sense of smell instantly.

Female students inside this room were laughing and talking with one another, their faces blushing pink and their smiles looked so bright. This scene was a sore for Misaki's eyes, not until she saw something...or rather...somebody inside the room.

In the farther right part of the room were three girls, giggling with delight as they take their afternoon tea.

The girls' faces looked familiar to Misaki.

Her mind got struck with a mental bolt of lightning...she got it!

"Those three were..." Misaki said in disbelief.

Misaki walked in small steps.

Slowly.

Easy.

Misaki finally noticed it. She wanted to go and see those three girls, who in actuality, the same mean girls who poured water and flour onto her at the refectory moments ago. She wondered if she is ready to pay them back right now here in this room.

She never realized that everybody in the room started to cry in fright. The girls stepped away as they see her approaching; their faces filled with horror.

Her hands clenched. Misaki's face went stern but calm as she slowly approached the girls. It was then that a person suddenly tapped Misaki's back.

"Would you like to have some tea?"

Misaki turned around and saw a pair of big, brown eyes looking at her.

She stammered, now that she fully recognized the scenario:

All eyes were on her.

Her face and body were damp and heavily covered with flour.

Most of all, her dark, dull eyes were staring at the big, brown ones...awkwardly.

Misaki stepped back, until she accidentally tripped over after stomping onto something hard. In a split of a second, Misaki fell down; the books were accidentally thrown away in the air.

Everybody went terrified as they saw Misaki on the ground, her body lying motionless.

The next thing that happened?

The smaller books fell on some of the tables, breaking those expensive porcelain tea sets and plates.

One of the dictionaries fell from the table where the three mean girls were staying. The thick-paged book fell onto their plates and teacups, causing them to scream madly.

The second dictionary bumped onto an large antique flower vase. Obviously, the vase fell and broke into shards.

And the third one? It landed farther. This time, it wrecked the frame and the soundboard located inside the grand piano.

When everything fell into place, the music room was filled with peace.

All of a sudden, the girls have gone wild.

"AAAAAHHHHH!"