DSM S01-E07:
~SUGAR HONEY ICED TEA
FEATURED SONG:
"sugar honey ice & tea" by Bring Me The Horizon
*** Any featured song may contain explicit content! ***
Please listen at your own discretion!
CONTENT WARNING:
Contains:
- Mild language
Mentions:
- Stalking
- Sexual harassment
RIMA • 李眞
My second day is certainly off to a better start than the first. I eat an actual breakfast this time, before heading to school. Now that I've made a new friend, I look forward to the day even more.
I meet Yuki at the train station. We live in different directions, but both of our trains end up here, so we've decided to ride the final one together, starting today. I'm glad I have her with me; Yokohama Station is quite the maze, and I would likely be lost again without her. She excitedly tells me all about the station, it's history, and all the different department stores and kiosks contained within its "mall", but I'm a little too distracted to pay much attention.
Because I feel as if we're being watched.
I know, I know . . . it doesn't make any sense. We are walking through a crowded train station after all, and obviously we'll get stares no matter where we go, due to our appearance. Hell, just our hair alone act as a magnet for public intrigue and social criticism. My untamed firey red naturally contrasting with her fluffy blue whips.
But this feels . . . different somehow.
Like someone is watching the two of us, specifically.
And as more than just a casual spectator in the crowd.
I can't really explain it, but it just feels off.
The feeling started yesterday, while I was out-and-about¹ in the city with Yuki, and again this morning, on the way to school, even when I was by myself. Almost like I was being followed. But any time I stopped to look around or listen for footsteps, no one was there.
And yet, the feeling of eyes following me just won't go away.
Yuki doesn't seem to notice, but that could be due to her scatty² personality. I'm not saying that it's a bad thing, otherwise I'd be a pot and she'd be a kettle³. I don't mind it, and I like her just the way she is. But, maybe she's just too distracted to notice? Or maybe it's just my own brain running away with its old friend, Paranoia?
I don't know, but whatever it is, it's really starting to creep me the hell out.
What if it's one of those weirdos that are obsessed with taking sneaky photos of school girls, especially on the train? Or worse, a groper⁴? Khalia warned me about those creeps before I came here, so now I purposely wear shorts under my school uniform skirt and ride less crowded train cars, whenever possible.
We both arrive to class a little early, and I notice quite a few desks are still missing their owners, including . . . what's-his-name-again?
Right, Hatori.
Or I suppose it's Kurosaki-san, according to local customs.
At least I don't have to address him as "senpai".
As we take our own seats, Yuki mentions that her sister is feeling much better this morning, and will be returning to class today. But if that's the case, then why didn't Yumi join us enroute?
My quick glance at her sister's yet-again empty desk doesn't go unnoticed. Yuki seems to infer what I'm thinking and states "She likes to ride to school with her . . . boyfriend." She leans in to whisper that last part to me quietly, while holding her hand up against her mouth like a shield. As if doing so will somehow magically prevent nearby classmates from hearing her. There's a tinge of tension in her voice, and I sense a bit of . . . jealousy, maybe? But whether she's jealous of having a boyfriend, or jealous of someone spending time with her twin, I'm not sure.
The classroom slowly begins to fill up as other students arrive, all except two desks: Hatori's and Yumi's. I'm starting to wonder if the two of them are actually a couple, but then stop myself; that's just the telenovela⁵ girl in me speaking, living for the drama. I don't think Yuki would've tried so hard yesterday to encourage me into whatever imaginary relationship she thinks he and I have a shot at, if that were the case.
Unless she hates her sister.
Or if she hates them being together, at least.
Just before the bell rings, Yumi arrives, but she walks in alone. I can instantly tell that it's her. She's about the same height as Yuki and has the same facial structure, albeit her green eyes seem to have more of a blue-ish tint⁵ to them, when the light catches them at the right angle.
The classroom is already in an uproar, with the girls over-zealously welcoming her. Trying to win popular favor, I suppose. Even the guys are fawning over her, possibly trying to win her favor for a different reason. I feel as if I've been transported onto the set of a certain movie about mean (but beautiful) high school girls who are all part of an elite preppy⁷ clique. It's all too surreal, until her turquoise eyes land on me and they widen in recognition.
And I realize how absolutely screwed I am.
She's the same girl from before!
The one I almost ran into at my childhood home the other day!
That's why Yuki's last name had sounded so familiar yesterday;
the Miyazaki family lives there now!
"{It's you!}" she exclaimes in Japanese, pointing at me. I'm instantly horrified when all twenty-four pairs of eyes turn to look in my direction, the offending object of her discomfort.
"{You're the one I caught sneaking around my house last weekend!}"
Shit! Just my rotten luck that, not only had she spotted me snooping⁸ around that afternoon, but of course she happens to be in the same class as me. That groundhog den from yesterday is starting to sound more enticing by the second. Better yet, might as well make it my grave, but I feel like even six feet⁹ wouldn't be deep enough to escape this level of embarrassment. With my track record¹⁰ lately, I'll be lucky enough to make it through the week, let alone survive the semester I'm supposed to be here for.
"No, wait!" I jump out of my chair, automatically responding in English out of habit, as I rush to stop this train before it wrecks¹¹. "I swear, it's not what you think! I can explain~"
"So you can explain why you were totally not creeping around my house like an absolute weirdo?!" she abruptly cuts me off in perfect English, while crossing her arms. Visibly skeptical, the sweetness in her voice is now gone, leaving only piercing venom.
Before I can say anything else, Yuki hurriedly runs in between us, hands waving nervously at chest level, as if she's fanning out a fire, while she speaks in front of the class. "{I'm sure this is all just a big misunderstanding! Takai-chan was probably just looking for me. She's a new exchange student here and we became friends recently.}"
The lie catches me off-guard, but even so, Yumi remains steadfast in her assumption of me. An assumption which, now that I think about it, seems pretty accurate to anyone unaware of the whole story.
Yuki then gently grabs ahold of her sister's hands, as if to reassure her, and whispers "Let's all talk during lunch and figure it out, okay? Please give her a chance to explain! I'm sure she has a good reason," she pleads once more in English, as Yumi closes her eyes in frustration.
Then, with a relaxed sigh, Yumi nods and mumbles an "okay," although it still seems a bit forced since her eyebrows remain pinched together. She then shoots me an icy glare, and whispers, "It better be a good reason, for your sake," as she briskly walks past me to take a seat at her desk, right as the final warning bell rings for class to start. Yuki then scrambles back to her own seat, while I slump back down into mine, silently wishing for the second day in a row that I could disappear.
~ ~ ~
ADDITIONAL NOTES:
¹ Out-and-About: To explore or visit different places in a short time period. Can also be referred to as "sightseeing" if it's related to tourism.
² Scatty: Slang for the word "scatter-brained", which is a term for someone who shows disorganized personality traits, or who has a hard time staying focused on a task. Can sometimes be a symptom of an attention-deficit disorder, such as ADHD.
³ The pot calling the kettle black: An idiom Rima is referring to that is used to describe someone being hypocritical, or criticizing someone for something that they also do themselves. A similar saying is "Don't throw stones when you live in a glass house."
⁴ Groper: Someone who purposely rides on crowded "standing room only" trains so they can grope / sexually assault someone, and try to play it off as an accident due to the train shifting and the number of people jammed together. It also makes it harder to pinpoint who did it. The same can be said of unsolicited pictures being taken because it's easier to hide a phone in such a crowd. Because of this, by 2024 all Japanese phones and SIM cards require all cameras to have a shutter sound when a picture is taken, even if the phone volume is set to silent, the shutter sound overrides this setting. There are also Women-Only train cars available.
⁵ Telenovela: A type of a television series, specifically a drama or soap opera from anywhere in Latin America. The word combines tele (for "television") and novela (for "novel").
⁶ While identical twins are usually identical copies of each other (in a physical sense), they can sometimes have slight variations in things such as eye / hair color, placement of freckles / beauty marks, and actually will have different fingerprints and differing birthmarks (if one is present). This is usually due to gene variations and allele expressions, along with any environmental factors that occurred after they split DNA in the womb.
⁷ Preppy: Slang for the term "Prep School", which is a type of fashion or style that resembles someone who is popular, rich, and / or has attended a type of expensive, ivy-league, private, boarding, or preparatory schooling. Usually (but not always) more feminine, and featuring bright or pastel colors. If the term is used to refer to someone's personality, this means that they give the illusion of such a style, and it is normally not considered a complement. This person may appear condescending, patronizing, entitled, elitist, or feel otherwise superior to their peers. If that is the case, then similar phrases like "putting on airs" or "holier than thou" might also be used to describe such a person. Even if that person is beautiful, their personality might be rotten instead.
⁸ Snooping: When someone is secretly looking around or observing, usually in the hopes of discovering things, or to gather information about someone / something, often in a prying or meddlesome manner. It's essentially spying / eavesdropping on someone else's private affairs, whether it's their belongings, conversations, or activities. Someone who does this regularly may be referred to as "nosy", essentially because they keep "putting their nose into someone else's 'beeswax' ".
⁹ Six Feet Under: Refers to the 1900s traditional depth of a burial grave being dug deep enough in the ground in order to prevent animals from finding and digging up the dead corpse.
¹⁰ Track Record: An idiom used to describe when a general pattern over a period of time is identified, after observing and analyzing a series of past actions (such as performances, failures, and / or achievements). This identification and process can sometimes help gain insight and predict likely future actions. Also known as a "trend". Not to be confused with the literal term "record track", which is a recording (usually a song or musical number) that is listed on an album, or some other media format, such as a Compact Disc, vinyl record, digital playlist, tape cassette, etc.
¹¹ Train wreck: An idiom used to describe when something or someone is a complete disaster or a big mess, similar to a literal train crash/collision.
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