Why do I feel this pain? Why am I getting hurt by this? It's not like I had a chance... I never had. I never...
The alarm rings. I reach out and turn it off, slowly opening my eyes.
— "I never what?"
I pick my head off the pillow and sit up on the bed, leaning back against the pillow.
— "Such a weird dream, but I can't remember it. But I do know I've experienced it before... in real life."
Suddenly, my mom comes into my room and sees me talking to myself.
— "Oh, you're awake and talking to yourself again. Get up already, today's the day!" she says before leaving the room.
— "Ugh, she always comes in when I talk to myself..." I mutter under my breath.
I get up from bed, thinking this will be the last time for a long while. I won't be waking up in this room again because today I'm moving to Tokyo.
*One Month Ago*
My dad is sitting on the couch, holding my result card. He's so focused on it, it's embarrassing. It feels like I'm on trial. He looks at me with a side-eye, then glances back at the result card before speaking.
— "Kazuma... What is this?" he asks.
— "That's my result card, Dad," I reply.
He narrows his eyes at me.
— "Are you joking with me? What kind of result is this?"
I'm too embarrassed to respond, so my dad sighs and speaks again.
— "I never thought my son would turn out like this. No one in our family has been this bad in school, but look at you... Just embarrassing our family name like it's nothing."
I shake my head, feeling a mix of anger and embarrassment but I didn't reply
My dad puts the result card on the table and looked at me completly before saying
— "Because you have the family name Shinomiya attached to you, I can't just let you redo high school. That would be embarrassing for the whole family. So, I've decided to send you to the best college in Tokyo."
I raise my eyebrows in surprise. I'm angry about this. I don't want to go somewhere I don't deserve to be.
— "Wait! No, I don't deserve this. I'm not going to Tokyo. I'll redo high school," I protest.
— "You should be thanking me. I'm saving you from lifelong embarrassment," Dad replies.
— "I would've, but not now. I know you're not saving me, you're just doing this to save face for the family," I say, frustration rising.
— "Think whatever you want, but you're going to Tokyo, and that's final," Dad says.
*Back to the Present*
I still don't know how he pulled that kinda string for a college in Tokyo that's a big deal but yeah that's practically why we're moving to Tokyo. I guess I'll be living in an apartment owned by some guy named Mashira. He's an old friend of my dad's, and he's not charging rent, so I won't have to depend on my dad as much. After packing up my bags, I'm ready to go.
I grab my bags and walk to the living room, where my mom is waiting to say goodbye.
— "So, my boy is grown enough to live on his own," she says, looking at me.
— "Living on my own isn't that hard, Mom. It'll be a piece of cake," I reply.
— "You're my boy after all. I'll miss you, and your dad will miss you the most," she says with a smile.
— "Yeah, sure," I say, looking away in annoyance.
— "Kazuma! You've got your dad wrong. He loves you and always wants the best for you," she says.
— "If he really loved me that much, why is it just you here to say goodbye?" I ask.
— "Your dad had an urgent meeting—" Mom starts to defend him, but I stop her.
— "It's alright, Mom. It's time to say goodbye," I say.
I hug Mom one last time before leaving the house. I look back at the house one more time.
— "Damn, I'll miss this place."
I turn away and start walking. It takes me 10 minutes to reach the train station. I get on the train and sit by the window.
— "It feels like the beginning of something new," I say to myself.
— "Don't act like you're the main character, son," a random old man sitting beside me says.
I looked at the old man then look away in Embarrassment I really need to stop talking to myself
I look at the window again and yeah it does feel like a new begining…
After the long ride, I finally arrive at Shinjuku Station in Tokyo. I look around. The station is chaotic—there are so many people. I quickly exit the station and find a taxi. I give the driver the address for the apartment I'm looking for. After a short while, I reach the place safely.
I look at the apartment in front of me and take a deep breath.
— "So, this is the place I'm going to live from today onwards," I say to myself.
A little boy passing by hears me and says,
— "Look, Mom, that boy's talking to a house."
— "How dramatic," his mom laughs.
I look away, embarrassed. Ugh, I need to control this habit.
I walk inside the apartment's gate and see a large garden at the entrance. A guy is watering the plants. He looks at me and says,
— "Hey, you're Shinomiya's kid?"
I guess this is Mashira, my dad's old friend.
— "Yes, sir, I'm Kazuma Shinomiya. Nice to meet you," I reply.
— "No need to be that formal. Just call me Uncle Mashira," he says.
He seems like a chill guy.
— "Okay then, Uncle Mashira," I say.
— "You must have gotten great grades to get into one of the colleges in Tokyo. Every student from outside Tokyo dreams of being in one of them," he says.
If he only knew how I got here. Anyway, I need to play along.
— "I'm not that good of a student, Uncle," I reply.
— "Every good student says that. And you're a Shinomiya—your family's bound to be talented. Just like your dad was," he says, reminiscing.
— "Ugh... It's always 'Dad this, Dad that.' I came all the way to Tokyo and still hear about him," I mutter to myself without realizing.
— "What did you say, kid?" he asks
Shit I'm screwed for this stupid habit..I need to cover up
— "No, no! I was just wondering how good of a student my dad was," I say in defense.
Uncle Mashira chuckles.
— "He was a brilliant student. He used to tell me to study, but I slacked off. I had goals, but they were too big to pursue," he says.
I don't know if I have similarities with my dad or not but I certainly have similarities with Uncle Mashira and Looking at him he might have been a playboy at his time
— "Now you see where your dad is and where I am? Just this small apartment and a little business."
It's Certainly not a small apartment, but I reply,
— "I see, Uncle."
— "I'm sure the only thing you want to see right now is your room," he says.
Uncle Mashira knows exactly what I need.
— "You got me, Uncle," I say.
He hands me the key to the apartment.
— "Catch," he says.
I take the key, look at it, then back at Uncle Mashira.
— "The key to the second floor, where you'll be living," he says.
— "Thank you, Uncle. It'll be a pleasure to live here," I say before heading up to the second floor.
Uncle Mashira watches me head up and mutters to himself,
— "This kid is so much like you, Kazuki," before smiling.
Meanwhile, I make my way up to the second floor and unlock the door. The first thing I see is a couch and a TV. A little further in is a dining area, and next to it, the kitchen.
At the end of the hallway, there are two rooms.
— "Why the hell are there two rooms? Who cares, though," I mutter to myself as I continue exploring.
I step out onto the balcony and take in the view of the city. Just as I'm starting to enjoy the scene, I hear someone unlocking the door. I quickly make my way to the entrance.
— "Is that you, Uncle Mashi—"
I stop halfway it was a girl,Is she lost?She is short and cute but ugh that's not the point..Let me ask who she is first
Before I can ask, she looks at me and says,
— "Who the hell are you?" in an arrogant tone.
Isn't it strange for someone to ask that after barging into someone's home?
— "Isn't it me who should be asking that question?" I reply.
— "Sorry for not introducing myself," she says, "I'm Akari Matsumoto. Now, who are you and what are you doing on my floor?"
My head blows. Is this the same Akari?
— "Akari? The topper girl from Kyoto Elementary and Junior High? That Akari?" I ask, double-checking.
Akari is shocked. How does he know me? I don't recognize him.
She crosses her arms before replying,
— "How do you know me?"
— "I was your classmate back in elementary school. I'm Kazuma Shinomiya. I don't think you'll remember me," I say.
— "Oh, you're that short kid! I remember you now. You've gotten tall, I didn't recognize you," she says, looking at me with wide eyes.
I narrow my eyes.
— "You could've just said you remembered."
— "You still haven't answered my question. What are you doing on my floor?" she demands.
— "Your floor?" I say, confused.
— "Yeah, my floor. What are you doing here?" she says, still not making sense.
— "Ain't no way this is your floor. It's my floor!" I argue.
— "Huh? The guy down there watering the garden... what's his name?" she asks.
— "Uncle Mashira?" I reply.
— "Yeah, that! He told me the second floor is mine," she says.
I show her the key to the second floor.
— "You see this? It's the key to this floor, so that proves it's mine. You must have misheard the third floor which is yours," I say.
— "I'm not deaf! Are you an idiot?" she snaps.
— "You're the one who's not making sense. This floor is mine, and I have the proof," I argue.
We go back and forth about whose floor it is until Mashira, who's been casually standing by the door, says,
— "You both are going to stay here, starting today. You're roommates."
We both just look at him, stunned but uppon realizing what he meant we both were like
— "WHAAAAAAAAA—??"
*After a while*
Mashira was sitting on the couch. Right in front of him, we both sat on the other couch beside each other to discuss the current situation when Akari screamed out:
— "We can't live together! I can't just live with someone I basically just met!"
— "I understand that, but I have no choice," said Mashira.
— "What do you mean? What choice? Why should we be roommates?" Akari asked.
— "Akari, calm down," I said, then looking at Mashira, I added, "Uncle, please explain the situation."
Akari was kind of shocked that he was using her first name. "Of course, we knew each other a long time ago, but it's been years now. He's calling me by my first name... Well, I don't mind, though." She stayed quiet as Kazuma explained and waited for Mashira's explanation.
[Note: In Japan, calling someone by their first name is a big deal. You can only do so with people you're really close to.]
— "I've known your families long before you two were born, so I try to take as little as possible from you guys. And Shinomiya, I'm not even asking for any money for your stay."
— "I understand that," I said.
Akari stayed quiet but was clearly annoyed. She just wanted to know why she needed to share a room with someone else.
— "My third floor is occupied by some foreigners for the next six months," he said.
— "Why did you give them a floor for just six months?" I asked.
— "They're paying me ten million yen for six months! I can't deny an offer like that," Mashira said.
— "Ten million!" they both said in disbelief.
— "Even an idiot wouldn't reject that kind of offer," I muttered to myself.
Akari pushed me with her elbow before saying,
— "What are you blabbering about now?"
— "Uh, nothing," I said, quickly shifting my focus back to Mashira.
— "So, I'm giving you guys a low rent, two rooms, a better place than any rented apartment in Tokyo, but you both have to be roommates. Now, it's up to you two to decide if you want to stay or leave," he said.
Kazuma thought I don't really want help from my dad again, so I have no choice. Akari thought I can't find a cheaper apartment than this, so I guess I don't have much choice. It's just six months. No big deal, it'll be over in the blink of an eye.
— "I'll stay," they both said together.
They looked at each other.
— "So, I guess we're roommates now," I said.
— "Not for long," Akari said.
Mashira stood up from the couch before saying,
— "So, for the next six months, you two are going to be roommates! That should be a piece of cake."
Wait... I just realized—this is Akari. Akari Matsumoto, my childhood crush. And now, she's my roommate.