Secrets of the Past - Ch 1

A steady breeze blew gently in the afternoon, rustling the autumn leaves that precariously hung on the stiff branches. Cars drove by - honking every once in a while after being provoked enough by the car in front or by a fellow pedestrian that crossed illegally between streets. Iridescent lights flashed from street signals as well as from signs that advertised the many shops that accepted any and all customers whom felt like shopping.

So this is Domino City . . .  

A figure carefully climbed out of the vehicle as she analyzed her surroundings in order to become familiar with the new city she had arrived at. She was a teenage girl who wore the typical shirt and somewhat baggy pants simplistically. Contrasting her outfit, her chocolate-brown hair delicately swayed in the breeze. She repetitively blinked after she felt her dark brown eyes had glazed over - signaling that they were growing dry from the wind. Her bangs hung over her face as she bowed to her lenient driver who hadn't spoken a thing until she paid the fare. And even after she did, he had only voiced a 'thanks' before heading back into his cab. She brushed back her bangs after they fell over her face when she yawned. She had easily grown tired from her long trip and seeked sleep in order to restore her weary form. Although she needed all the sleep she could get, she was still stubborn enough to sleep late at night where she found herself collapsing on her bed. The sun soon got the best of her as she trailed off to her drowsy thoughts. She shaded her flaccid eyes from the bright sunset.

Thank goodness that Japan is the land of the rising sun. I don't think I can stand an overwhelmingly luminous sunset.

She wasn't one to complain, but the majority of her complaining had come from her extreme hostility of the sun. As a matter of fact, if it was up to her, she would make it so everyone would wake up at night and sleep in the morning like it really should be, in her opinion anyway.

"Geez . . . I wish it would just stay dark all the time. I hate the bright light," she complained with a small yet exaggerated sigh.

She stepped into the office where she explained to the manager that she was supposed to stay here during her trip. He happily handed over the key to her room. The room wasn't as bad as she would have first thought. It wasn't entirely spacious, but it was big enough for her and possibly a few other people that she could invite over. Of course, she didn't know anyone here in this new city yet, but it would only be a matter of time. Lucky for her, today was Saturday, which meant she could unpack tonight, rest up and explore the city tomorrow. She made a mental note in order to remind herself to call the Domino High School and have them enroll her for Monday.

There was a sudden knock at the door. She whirled around with her brows slightly up in surprise. She went over to answer it and to no surprise, it was the apartment manager.

"Here is all the information you need of when to pay me. I also found a spare key for this room, so if you ever lose your key, you can always use the spare as a backup. Just make sure to hide it somewhere safe because I only have three of them." The teen just simply nodded, not knowing what she could possibly say except that he is talking too quickly for her liking, but of course, she kept that piece of her opinion to herself.

He just returned her nod with unease and began to leave, but turned back around when he remembered something. "By the way, I wasn't able to catch your name. Do you mind telling me?"

The girl looked slightly taken aback as if she was not expecting this, but quickly shadowed her slight shock and answered. "My name's Karin . .You can just call me Karin." She happen to force a smile.

"Well it's nice to meet you Karin. You can call me Miharu." He smiled sincerely and bowed slightly in courtesy. He pulled out his hand for her to shake it and she willingly did. She nodded with a more friendly and genuine smile this time.

"It's nice to meet you as well, Miharu-san," she slightly stuttered before figuring out what the proper ending was to add to the manager's name. "Thank you for allowing me to stay here."

"It's not a problem. Well, I'll let you get back to unpacking. If you need me or have any questions, I'll be in my office." He nodded one last time with a reassuring smile before he left. Karin locked the door behind him when she was entirely sure that he was gone.

Well that was a relief. For a second there, I thought he may have required me to fill out a form. I got lucky for now. I cannot allow my full name to be known right now. It's too risky.

Karin inwardly sighed as she slowly unpacked her things and placed them in their temporary spots. She was unsure of what to do as she began to think of the counselor asking her to fill out her full name for the school's information. Should she answer truthfully or make up a temporary name? Will they find out if she does create a fake name or will they not even care? Perhaps there was a chance that they will only skim through her form and refer to her by her first name, but this was highly unlikely. She was in Japan afterall, and they actually refer to others by last name rather than first name like she had gotten accustomed to in her previous school.

"I guess it really doesn't matter, right? I mean, a lot of people have common last names . . Too bad the one I have isn't as common." She stretched between yawns as she finally found the energy to crawl to her bed. She managed to stifle another yawn as she turned out the only source of light in the room.

Geez . . . I'll deal with it tomorrow.