This is Earth

*Masayuki*

I sat at the computer in the library. Am I really going to do this? It almost sounds too ridiculous. Still, it doesn�t hurt to look. I glanced around me for a quick second before opening the web browser. I typed in �Suiten, October 15th, 2005� and hit search. It almost seems too silly. Ninety-seven articles about that subject appeared before me. I clicked on the first link I saw. The whole article popped up before me.

�October 17th, 2005,� I read to myself. �Two bodies found in the woods. Two female bodies were found in the woods by a jogger in the early morning. It is uncertain if the cases are connected.� Next article.

�The case was believed to be a hit from a gang. One of the girls was believed to be from Tokyo. Not many clues have been found to support this theory. The second girl is believed to be a local.� Next article.

As I read each article, I began to put together a brief image in my head. So, two murders took place on that night. The culprits are mostly guys from the Yakuza in Tokyo or something of that nature. The first victim was the intended target while the second one looks like collateral damage. The motive seems to be unpaid debt. To me, the first victim seemed to be a prostitute on the run from Tokyo and hiding in Suiten. Makes sense; there�s nothing in this boring little town. But what of the second victim? Wrong place at the wrong time. From there, I had it all figured out.

That�s what I believed at least.

But then, I came across another article. I got a chance to see a picture of each of the victims. The second girl�s picture caught my attention.

That�s Baby Doll, I thought. No, that can�t be right. I stared at the picture hard. It looks just like her, but�

I shook my head. It�s just a joke. Yeah, that�s it. One huge joke on me. I felt myself grinning.

She just did this to creep me out and make me stop asking questions about her, I thought. Pretty clever, I have to say. But, that�s not going to work. I�m going to get her for that and expose her for the truth. Sorry Baby Doll, but the joke�s on you!

That was my first thought at least. I still don�t understand how I could be so dead wrong.