The three teenagers were greeted at the door by a young woman in a ponytail, wearing a dirty apron around her slender body. She leaned forward with excitement, as she grabbed Mickey and Rain’s hand in the most gentle way.

            “You guys made it!”, The young lady said as she pulled Mickey and Rain into the house, “Grandma and I have been busy all morning preparing something special for you two.”

            The young woman was Goh’s fiancé, Nanami. She was twenty-four years old and was attending her last year in nursing school. Even though she was still young, her actions and ways of speaking, resembled that of a mother.

            Mickey’s Grandparents were sitting at the dining table, waiting for their grandchildren to come join them. The tabletop itself had a simple yet beautiful design carved into it. On the table, there was an assortment of cooked meats and extravagant dishes. The aroma from the prepared meal permeated throughout the small house, feeling as if everyone was in a restaurant that moment.

“Come sit down you two, I bet you all must be hungry after all that traveling.” Nanami said, as she pulled out two chairs for Mickey and Rain.

Goh soon entered the house, carrying the remainder of the luggage from the car. Without hesitation, Goh placed the belongings on the floor next to the door as he tried to catch his breath.

“I must be getting out of shape. Walking up those steps while carrying these boxes is a real workout.” Goh explained, as he wiped off the light sweat from his forehead.

Nanami quickly pulled a chair for her fiancé and then pulled another chair for Jiang. In a warm yet shy tone, Nanami spoke, “Jiang come eat, you can sit here next to Goh.”

 Without giving any attention to his family, Jiang casually walked past them without a word. He headed to the hallway and went straight to his room, shutting the door behind him hard enough to make a decently loud sound.

“How rude! Today is the day of my arrival and he welcomes me with a slammed door! Who does he think he is? No respect whatsoever.” Rain exclaimed.

Mickey was slightly embarrassed by how bold Rain spoke in front of everyone. He then leaned towards Rain, lowering his head as he whispered to her.

“Rainie, don’t try and make a scene in front of Grandma and Grandpa. You don’t want them to have a bad impression of you, right?” Mickey advised.

Rain’s face formed a pout as she let out a soft hmph. She then aggressively stuffed her face with the food in front of her.

“There’s no need to get upset because of him. He’s just being a dramatic kid. Don’t let his attitude ruin our day.” Goh remarked, as he drank a glass of water.

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It was the first day of high school for the three adolescents. Even though Jiang was a year older than Mickey and Rain, all three would attend the eleventh grade together. Jiang had to repeat his eleventh school year again due to his delinquent nature by neglecting his studies and devotion to school.

That morning, the chatter of songbirds from outside woke Mickey up. Mickey gazed across the dim room only to see Jiang still sleeping on his bed from a ground-eye-view. Mickey slept on the floor with his futon bed sheet. He preferred it that way, as he could sleep better on a firm surface. Mickey then took a glance at the clock hanging above the door. To his surprise, he was going to be tardy for class if he did not get ready at that moment.

Hesitant to wake Jiang up, Mickey spoke in a low soft tone, “Jiang, wake up. We need to get ready for our first day.”

Mickey then washed up and swiftly changed into his school uniform. As Mickey finished getting ready, he headed towards Rain’s room to check on her. Right before he could knock, Rain’s door suddenly opened. Caught off guard, Rain was somewhat startled as she did not expect to see Mickey standing in front of her. The girl was already dressed and prettied up for the day.

“Rainie, we’re going to be late for school if we don’t leave now!” Mickey explained.

Rain then let out a loud yawn while stretching her arms above her head, as her long dark hair flowed down to her back.

“Doesn’t that jerk of an uncle own a car? We’ll make it on time when he drives us there. Stop worrying too much Mickey and relax,” Rain said in an assuring and confident voice.

Suddenly, the doorknob from Mickey and Jiang’s room began turning, and could be heard throughout the hallway. The two then stared across the hall to see Jiang emerge from his room. Jiang’s hair was slightly unkept, and he was not wearing his school attire. Jiang walked pass his niece and nephew and headed outside. Now puzzled, Mickey and Rain followed Jiang as they tried their best to keep up with his pace.

Jiang was about to get into his car and drive off until Rain immediately stopped him. Her eyebrows naturally arched together in irritation, as she stared Jiang straight in the eyes.

“Aren’t you going to school as well? So, take Mickey and I with you then!” Rain demanded.

Taken back, annoyance surfaced all over Jiang’s face, as he answered Rain. “This jerk of an uncle isn’t going to school today. If I were you two, I get running right now or else you’re going to be late for your first day.”

As he cleverly said those words, Jiang got into his car and drove off. Rain was enraged with what had just happened. Never in her life has she been denied of any sort.  Still trying to process the situation, Rain stood in utter disbelief that this was going to be her life for the next two years.

Mickey furrowed his brows as he tried to assess the situation. He then grabbed Rain by the wrist, pulling her towards the direction of their new school. 

“Let’s go! I know a shortcut we can take to get to school from here. If we run, we’ll make it on time!” Mickey stated.

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            The two finally made it to the outer gates of the school. At the entrance, the school’s name could be read above the stone pillars, engraving the words “Morning Glory High School” on them.

            Mickey and Rain’s fast strides soon became casual steps, as they got closer to the school yard, trying to slow down their uneven breaths. Many students were crowded by the school walls, looking at the boards to see what classroom they would be in for the year.

            With a bit of nervousness, Mickey was surprised by the sheer number of students who attended Morning Glory High. Since he lived in the rural areas, he was not used to seeing a lot of kids his age in one place. Yet Rain was not taken back at all by the massive crowd. She was still reliving the moments of Jiang’s unheroic gestures in her head.

            “The audacity that dude has, making us run to school like that.” Rain complained.

Mickey replied as he light-heartedly chuckled, “You’re still thinking about that? Next time listen to me and don’t rely on Jiang.” Mickey then ran towards where the other kids had gathered, “Come on, let’s go see what class we’re in.”

            The area that was once packed by hordes of students became almost empty, only a few stragglers like Mickey and Rain were left. Mickey carefully scanned the panel vertically with his soft eyes, tracing his finger down the list of names, hoping to find his immediately.

            “Ah, I’m in Class C-2, what about you, Rainie?” Mickey said excitingly.

            Rain was still searching, until she finally let out a long sigh and responded, “I’m in class C-4 along with our stupid uncle…”

            The two then went on their separate ways. As Mickey entered his classroom, he looked for the empty desks, as each desk had a piece of paper with a name written on it. He soon found his spot. He sat in the second column closest to the window side, in the fourth row.

A new school means I have to make new friends, Mickey thought to himself as he sat alone in his desk.

His focus was on the piece of paper that had his name on it, folding it multiple times to keep himself occupied. Suddenly, Mickey could feel someone lightly tapping on the left side of his shoulder. Mickey turned to see who was trying to get his attention. It was a boy who sat by the window, across from Mickey. The boy had short hair and a welcoming smile on his face.

“You’re Mickey, right? Jiang’s cousin?” The boy asked.

Mickey nodded, as a genuine smile naturally formed on his face. He was grateful that someone came to talk to him first, relieving him from his anxiety.

“I’m Hao, it’s nice to meet you. I heard that two of Jiang’s cousins would be coming to our school. I saw you and I’d guess that you’re probably one of them, but are you two actually blood related? You look way more approachable than Jiang,” Hao jokingly laughed.

Mickey laughed as well then replied, “Actually he is my uncle. I’m glad to meet you Hao! I hope I can get to know everyone in our class as well.”

Hao’s grin widened, placing his arm around Mickey, as if they were good friends already.

 “Don’t worry, everyone here is really nice. You’ll get a chance to meet them all, and I can tell you which of the girls are the easiest to talk to,” Hao explained proudly.