CHAPTER 3

"Was that roller coaster awesome or what?!"

"I'm usually sick from those rides but I handled that pretty well! I guess that's what they meant by 'perfect bodies' or whatever. What did you think, Sota-kun?"

The little boy was still in a nervous daze, but with a wide grin on his face. Patches of powdered sugar whitened his mouth as he devoured a handful of funnel cake.

"I'm pretty sure he liked it," Hana giggled. "What should we do now? The river rapids?"

"I'd like to see if there's any rooms available at that hotel before it gets too late."

"Oh yeah. I'd rather sleep in a big fluffy bed than on the grass."

"Kari-san? You want any funnel cake?" Sota asked as he swallowed down another piece.

"Hmmm... maybe a little bit..."

"If we're dead and our bodies are perfect, you don't have to worry about the bee dees, right?"

That gave Kari pause. Ever since she was diagnosed with juvenile diabetes, she always had to meticulously watch her diet, and not overdo it on sugary treats. Does this mean I can gorge on funnel cake or ice cream and it won't give me problems? she thought.

"I think you're right, Sota-kun." She ripped away half of the remaining fried delicacy and shoved it in her mouth.

"Hey! That's too much!" Sota fumed.

"It's okay, bro. We can get another one!" Hana replied as she made her way to the booth that supplied the funnel cakes. Two boys were in front of her but she didn't mind waiting.

Kari licked her fingers. No bellyache, no pains, I'm eating a ton of sugar and fried bread and I'm perfectly fine, she thought. I could get used to this. She turned her attention to the snack booth where Hana stood in line.

One of the boys turned to leave, funnel cake in hand, and stopped in front of Hana with a look of awe on his face.

"Hana-chan?"

The look of awe shortly took over Hana's face as well. She knew that face from somewhere, but she couldn't pinpoint it. Slowly the realization set in.

"U-Uchiro, is that you?"

His face lit up. That was all she needed. It was him. The boy she played with since they were toddlers. The boy that wasn't afraid to play with her Bratz dolls, and in turn let her play Transformers with him. The boy that she hadn't seen in two years, after she got the terrible news that he drowned in a lake while on vacation with his family.

Uchiro plopped the funnel cake down and gave her a big sugar-dusted hug. Hana gripped him tightly, tears welling in her eyes but joyful tears this time. Kari and Sota were closing in on them.

"I MISSED YOU SO MUCH!" Hana cried out.

"Uchi-kun! It is you!" exclaimed Kari, as she added herself to the hugging.

"Is that Uchi-kun?" asked Sota. He grabbed a fistful of funnel cake from Uchiro's plate.

"Hey, that's not mine!" yelled Hana.

Uchiro laughed it off. "It's okay, that's my third funnel cake today. Sota-kun can have it. I haven't seen him in forever. Not any of you. What... happened..."

"Can we... not talk about that today? It's our first day here," Kari nervously interjected.

"Ohhh... I'm sorry. I really am," Uchiro replied sheepishly.

"Don't worry about it, Uchi-kun." Hana gave a reassuring smile and patted Uchiro's head.

"I'm so used to just enjoying this world, I forget that when I got here, it took about three days for me to adjust", Uchiro continued. "I hope you all feel better in time and can have fun with us."

Kari took Sota's hand, sticky from the funnel cakes. "I think we need to go ahead and get that hotel room. I hope we meet again soon, it was great to see you!" She paused. "Does... this world have cell phones?"

"Yes, I think you can get them at the hotel," Uchiro replied. "Let me follow you there and then we can exchange our line info."

Kari's eyes widened as they stepped foot into the massive hotel lobby. White marble and potted plants were everywhere. She could make out a fancy restaurant in the background. A handful of stores were also in the distance. Across from the hotel desk, on a small stage, a young blonde-haired girl in a silky dress was playing a violin while a tuxedo-clad dark-skinned boy performed masterfully at a piano, lending generously to the exquisite ambience.

The four of them approached the hotel desk.

"Hello, can I help you with anything?" asked the woman behind the counter, her bright orange neckerchief accentuating her otherwise conservative business suit.

"Do you have any rooms available right now?" Kari asked.

The woman checked the monitor. "Let me see... we do have a few available. Will this be for all four of you?"

"Um... just three of us," Kari replied as Uchiro separated himself from the group and walked over to the performing duo.

"Very well... please place your hand on this box and we'll get you checked in. Is this your first visit?"

"Yes. In fact, we're new to this world," said Kari as she rested her hand on the box.

"I see... well, I hope you take advantage of everything this world has to offer! I like to call it 'Royal World', where 'Royal' means 'Rest Of Your Assumed Life'. Everything you didn't get to do in your lifetime, you should be able to do here. Anyway, the guides from the Welcome Center already talked to you about how things work and how money is optional, yes?"

"Yes, they did."

"So would you like some cash to spend, or a credit card to swipe?"

"A credit card sounds good... you want a card too, Hana? Sota?"

The other siblings nodded.

"Very well. Let me get your room key as well. You will be in room 857."

A minute later, four cards were handed to Kari. Three of them had random numbers and a "VIDA" logo imprinted on them. One simply had "857" on it.

"We do have several stores on the far end of the concourse if you need anything. Elevators are by the restaurant entrance. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask any staff member. Enjoy your stay!"

Uchiro rejoined the three as they left the hotel desk. "All set with your room? Good, the phone store should be next. While we can't call the living world, at least we can keep in touch with each other."

Several minutes later, they all had their cell phones. The group then made their way to the clothing store for a few days' worth of things to wear. A short elevator trip later, they finally made it to their suite.

Kari collapsed on one of the huge, fluffy king beds. Sota crawled up beside her.

"I miss Mommy. I miss Yuri-san." Sota was trying his hardest to hold back the tears. Kari hugged him and stroked his hair.

"We all do, Sota-kun. But there's nothing we can do. I have to take the lead in this family now. Let's just treat this like an extra-long vacation from home and try to deal with it that way."

Hana stood by the window, admiring the night sky. Uchiro joined her.

"I'm heading back to my place. You all gonna be okay?"

Hana looked at him and nodded. "I think we'll get used to it. Thanks for the help."

"Anytime. When you're settled in I'll have to take you to some of my favorite spots, like the Extreme Park, the Silver Coast, and the Eternal Christmas village. Stay in touch, alright?"

Uchiro said his goodbyes and left the room.

Hana walked back to the two beds and a beaming Kari.

"I always thought Uchiro had a thing for you."

"Oh my God, seriously?" Hana blushed. "You're such an idiot."

"You know our parents are saying stuff like that right now. They're probably going 'Well, our angel is together with Uchi-kun again' or something like that."

"Ugh... and we can't stop them at all. I'm so embarrassed."

"Come on, let's get some sleep. Sota's out cold. He'll probably wake up screaming because he's not at home and everyone's missing. And we gotta be ready for that."

"You're right about that. Good night, big sis."

"Good night, Hana." Kari curled up next to her brother and drifted off to sleep.

Hana laid flat on her huge bed and stared up at the ceiling. This is gonna be the new normal, I guess. No more Mom and Dad. Probably no more Yuri. It's just me, Kari and Sota... but at least I know Uchiro's here too.

She could feel slumber closing in, but the thoughts kept popping up.

How long will we stay here in this world? Is there any way to visit other worlds? Is there any kind of window to the living world? Are we stuck as kids? Do we get to grow up?

Hana's eyes slowly closed. In her mind she could see Uchiro in a flashback to her younger days, both of them laughing and playing with water guns in the park.

Do we get to fall in love here?