Chapter Twenty-Four: Prelude to the Tragedy:

Sappoto-san and I spent the morning packing up. �Do it as fast as you can,� I told her. She nodded without argument. I don�t like the feeling of shit going down. I try to run away from it as fast as I can. Right now seems to be the right opportunity. However, we experienced a delay. A slam on the door captured our attention. Hiromi stood in the doorway with eyes of the devil.

�You told him, did you?!?� she snapped. �Did you?!?�

�No,� I said. Sappoto-san looked at me, confused.

�Told him what?� she asked.

�Liar!� the girl barked.

�I didn�t,� I said.

�Then how the hell did his dad find out?!?� Hiromi shouted.

�I don�t know!� I snapped back. �Go ask him if you want! Leave us out of this!�

�Well it�s too late now!� the girl yelled. �You know my secret! I hate you!� Hiromi stormed out to her bedroom. I clenched my fists by my sides. And this is why I hate dealing with teenagers. Sappoto-san turned around to me.

�What�s going on?� she asked. �What is she talking about?� I sighed aloud. Can�t get better! I sat down on the bed and patted the spot next to me.

�Come here,� I said. �I�ll tell you the truth.� Sappoto-san looked at me for a moment.

�What?� she asked.

�Come on,� I said. �Come and sit.� She did so in silence. I took in a breath and began my story about Hiromi and Toshio�s love story. She looked at me with unease the whole time. I nodded at the end.

�So, yeah,� I said. Sappoto-san shook her head at me.

�This is bad,� she said. �We have to tell her father.�

�No,� I said. She gave me a look with big eyes.

�But why not?� she asked. I looked away from her.

�Don�t tell me�� she said. I pressed my lips together as I nodded.

�No!� my friend yelled. �This is wrong!�

�But they�re young and in love!� I said. �They are like you and Atticus!� She shook her head at me again.

�It�s still wrong,� she said. Sappoto-san rose to her feet and headed for the door. My eyes followed her every moment.

�Where are you going?� I asked.

�To tell her father!� Sappoto-san blurted out. I grabbed onto her wrist.

�You can�t!� I shouted.

�But we must!� she shouted back. �What she�s doing is wrong!�

�Can�t we just let them be until we leave?� I asked.

�No!� Sappoto-san shouted back. �He has to know the truth.�

�Just give her a little bit longer.�

�No!�

�Keep it down, will you? They could hear us.�

�They need to, so let go.�

�Not until no choice your mind.�

�I will not.�

�Then, I won�t let go!� We kept struggling like that for ten minutes until we heard the front door steps slam shut. We paused and looked at each other.

�Do you think�� Sappoto-san began to whisper. I nodded once. We both instantly hurried out of the room and down the stairs. Something inside of me yelled that this wouldn�t end well.

And sure enough, Hiromi had gone outside to meet her lover. To our surprise, that boy stood own her front lawn with his arms out wide open. A puzzled look came over my face. What the hell was he doing? Does this kid have a death wish or something? My mind related back to the story of Romeo and Juliet. I shook my head as I pictured the outcome that could possibly unfold before us as Hiromi embraced Toshio in her arms.