Chapter Twenty-One: A Girls� Story:

Miki pressed her hands together.

�Okay,� she said. �I�ll cut out the boring part and cut to the fun part. I came to Hiroshima after my aunt�s death. She left me her house.� Miki sat back with a smile on her face. �I loved that crazy woman, got me into doing art,� she said. �It broke my heart when she died. Anyway, I inherited this house, but as you can see it was too big for me to live in alone. I don�t enjoy being alone too often.�

�She wanted some roommates to live with,� Isaac added.

�Thank you,� she said. �But I�m telling the story here.�

�My bad,� he said. �Continue.�

�I thank you for understand,� Miki told him. �So, I decided to look for some roommates. However, just anyone couldn�t live with me. I needed to feed off of art around me.� She put her hand on Isaac�s art.

�He was the first one I was drawn to,� Miki admitted.

�I just have that charm,� Isaac said.

�Don�t kid yourself, buddy,� Akemi told him.

�You know you want some of this,� he said. My sister stuck out her tongue at him.

�Anyway,� Yumi cut in. �I came along when my mother and I weren�t getting along so well. I ran away from home and met Miki and Isaac in a book store.�

�She looked so cute that I had to take her in,� Miki said. I gave her a puzzled look.

�Did she ask you to�?� I began to ask. Both girls broke into laughter.

�No, no, no,� Miki said. �I only do that for dudes.�

�I figured as much,� I mumbled to myself.

�I still talk to my mother,� Yumi said. �She�s come to accept that I am no longer a child and can make my own decisions.�

�She still has to see her from time to time,� Yusuke chimed in. She glared at him with eyes of poison.

�Shut up,� she murmured.

�Now, now,� Cassius said. �Less fighting, more talking.� Yumi and Yusuke snorted as they looked away from each other.

�Then, I came along next,� Romi said. �To be honest with you, I didn�t have much of a plan for my life. I was just going to college in Hiroshima at the same time Sunao here was.�

�We were in the same class together,� Sunao spoke up. �How crazy was that?�

�Very crazy�� I mumbled as my eyes trailed away from them.

�In fact, Sunao here was the one who told me about this place,� Romi continued. �I needed a place to stay and Miki and Isaac let me be part of their family.�

�I think I�m starting to see a pattern here,� I mumbled to myself.

�You better,� Akemi told me. I forced myself to smile at her statement. My mood changed as I looked at my sister.

�How did you come to live here?� I asked. Akemi sat back with a smile on her face.

�Well, I have been spending most of my time in the south of Japan, couch-surfing,� she answered. �I came here and couch-surfed with these guys and ended up staying here to this day.� I frowned at her answer. Why am I not surprised?

�I just stayed here because I could,� Sakura-hime said. �I just drifted around Hiroshima myself and ended up here.� That doesn�t surprise me either, I thought.

�Finally, I brought you here to live with us,� Akemi said to me. I gave her a blank look.

�Me?� I asked. �But I don�t really live here.�

�None of us really did,� Cassius replied. �We just ended up that way.�

�But� I�m trying to get into college,� I said.

�So are Yumi, Romi, and I,� Sunao pointed out. �We still are.� I looked at all of them with their eyes locked on me.

�Face it, kid,� Akemi told me. �You�re pretty much one of us now.� I didn�t know how to take all of this. I didn�t feel like any of them, but could I go back to my life in Tokyo. What was waiting for me there? My parents and Hitomi were dead. I already graduated from high school. Heck, I doubt that I still have my apartment anymore. Did I still want to go Todai around all of that time I tried to study for the exam? If not, what could I do? Where could I go? I have no money or means to get back to Tokyo.

I lowered my head. �I�� I said. �I just need a moment.� I stood up and quietly walked out of the living room.

�I think we might have scared him,� I heard Yumi say behind me.

�Nah, he�s a tough old boy,� Akemi said. �He can adjust just fine. Just give him some time.� I shook my head to myself. Oh, nee-san, I thought. Why do you and Hitomi think so highly of me? I am not as strong as you love to think I am. I closed my bedroom door behind me.