I am...to be...what, exactly? Who am I supposed to be? Who will tell me? Who will show me?

The truth is...I don't know what it means to be happy anymore...to live...to grow...

I've realized something...disturbing. I'm supposed to be so smart, yet this problem...eludes me to a certain extent. It scares me...

...Alone...I am alone. I realize it, now. I feel it, I see it. Nobody to keep me warm. No protection. No friends. No reminders, no encouragement.

It's amusing, if you can call it that...I had everything...love...warmth...security...and it was taken away from me in an...instant...

It hurts so much...everything...gone...every single moment...I cry...alone...alone...why? Why? Why? WHY? WHY? WHY ME? WHY DO I HAVE TO HURT? I DON'T DESERVE THIS, DO I! WHY CAN'T I BE STRONG? I...

I want to die...please...take me too...please, don't torture me like this...I don't want to live like this...please...please...

She sat on the wet grass in the park, the rain pouring down around her. She didn't care, or want to care. She just wanted happiness...

There was blood all over her dress, turning the white fabric a deep crimson red. The rain slowly washed fresh blood off her hands. Her sky blue eyes were empty and motionless. Tears ran down her face as the paramedics carried two bloodied bodies out of the wrecked house.

She was only ten years old. Too young to know what this meant, some said. But she knew perfectly well. She suddenly giggled for a bit as the tears spilled down her face. The giggle turned into a soft laugh as her shining blonde hair brushed across her lips. The laugh became louder...and louder...and louder...her body was shaking with laughter, and she fell back on the damp grass, holding her sides as her laughter was becoming uncontrollable. She laughed, and laughed, and she couldn't stop.

She didn't stop, or want to stop. She wanted happiness. And she was enjoying the bit she had at the moment, thank you very much.

At fifteen, he had already felt the long-lasting effects of heartbreak.

He looked at her from his window, and let out a sigh. Why this guy? It seemed so...cliché...girl next door falls for rich, handsome local hero, who happens to be the rival of the lovable, clueless best friend-who-wants-to-become-more-than-that type of guy.

Too bad he was the latter, and not the former.

Damn that Chaud...was what he was thinking. Lan Hikari felt - no, knew - he had lost his chance with her...the girl next door...

Maylu... he said to himself, why couldn't I have you? Is it...that this wasn't meant to be?

Maylu Sakurai was the ideal girl...at least...that's what he was thinking...maybe...this was a sign...

Of course, it wouldn't be the first time.

The first clue was when he spotted the two lovebirds smooching outside the theatre. This was about two years ago...

The place they had selected was just about inconspicuous to anyone passing by.

Unfortunately, the word inconspicuous wasn't in the vocabulary of one Lan Hikari, a likely reason why he stumbled onto the spot.

Maylu had asked if they could stay friends a couple days later. Lan didn't pass up the chance to preserve their long-standing relationship. But it had been a while, and he still felt uneasy, a litle hurt, and discouraged. He didn't know if he could find another girl like Maylu...

One thing was about to change his way of thinking, though.

She walked down the street, her eyes scanning the neighbourhood. They rested on a good-sized blue house, with a trimmed front lawn.

She had found her place.

It was perfect. A small, quiet neighbourhood, close to the train station, a beautiful park nearby...ACDC Town was the ideal place to rebuild a life, to mend a broken soul...

Her blonde hair shone in the midday sun, her blue eyes sparkling in the light. She wondered if she really could follow her destiny here...she had no parents, no relatives...nobody to lean on...

She shook the thoughts out of her head. All of that hadn't stopped her before. She could do this.

She stepped inside the house and found everything set up to her liking. She smiled. The movers had been paid well and given proper instruction. She didn't want it any other way.

A knock on the door disturbed her thoughts.

She opened the door, and saw a woman in a purple dress, with short brown hair and a friendly smile. She held a cake in her hands, and spoke cheerfully.

"Hello! Welcome to the neighbourhood. My name is Haruka Hikari. I'm from that house across the street, the one with the doghouse out front...umm...here! I baked this cake especially for you and your parents...may I ask where they are?"

The young girl struggled to come up with an answer...she felt compelled to tell this woman everything...she pulled herself together, and gave an answer.

"My parents...died...a long time ago. I came here on my own. Thank you for the cake, Ms. Hikari. I hope to see you again soon."

Haruka felt her mind go blank, and she had to force herself to speak. The girl's words, and the way she said them, were almost surreal...like some kind of...alternate reality, or something...

"...I...I'm sorry. I guess...it would be nice to see you again...can...can you tell me your name?"

"My name is...Ciel."

"Yes...it was nice to meet you, Ciel...goodbye, for now..."

"Goodbye, Ms. Hikari."

Haruka walked silently across the street. This is...a surprise...oh...I think I need...to lie down...

When she did get home, she immediately fainted onto the living room couch.

"Hey, Lan! I just heard someone finally moved into that house across from you. Want to go say hi?" Maylu called to her friend from her window.

"Sure," he replied, "I'll be right down in a flash!" Lan put on his sneakers, and grabbed his PET before walking out of his room.

The screen flickered on to reveal Lan's trusted Net Navigator and twin brother, Megaman.

"Heya, Lan. Where we going?"

"We're going to help welcome someone to the neighbourhood, Megaman. I wonder if these guys like to netbattle?"

"Is that the only thing you think about, Lan? It's a wonder you have an A-plus average at school, how do you manage to concentrate?"

"It's all in the genes, bro."

"Riiiiight. C'mon, we don't wanna keep the ladies waiting."

Lan met up with Maylu on the sidewalk. "Hi, Lan. What's up?"

Maylu had matured more beautifully and gracefully than anyone could imagine. She had a slim, curvaceous body that would make most guys weak in the knees. Her chestnut-coloured eyes sparkled like diamonds, and she allowed her red hair to grow down to her shoulders, giving her a look that added edge, but also made her look a little bit younger, as well. She was wearing a red vest with a pink tank top, and a red skirt with white knee-length socks. She had bright yellow sneakers on.

Lan smiled. "Not much, just doing some homework..."

"You? Doing homework, again? On the weekend, no less? I never thought I'd see the day..." Maylu replied good-naturedly.

"Yeah, well you've seen it, and now you've gotta believe it!"

Lan hadn't changed too badly either. He mostly wore his headband around his neck, allowing his messy brown hair to scatter on top of his head. Some of it hung over his forehead, shading his chocolate brown eyes a little. He had an athletic build, and there was visible definition in the muscle on his body. He wore his standard blue vest, opened up to reveal a black shirt underneath. He wore navy blue shorts that went past his knees, and had bright blue basketball sneakers on his feet. The Hikari family logo was stitched onto the sides of the shoes.

"Well, we're not getting any younger, so let's go," Maylu said.

"Yeah, might as well," Lan replied.

The two knocked on the door and heard footsteps approaching. The door opened, to reveal a young girl, about the same age as both Maylu and Lan. Lan started to speak, but the sight before him stopped him cold.

"Hello, welcome to...the...neighbour...hood..."

Ciel practically looked an angel from Heaven to Lan. She had a slender, curvy frame that could literally stop traffic, bright, sky blue eyes that could put you into a trance, long blonde hair that shone like the Sun itself. She had on a red shirt that revealed her midriff, a short pink skirt, and was wearing flip-flops that revealed her dainty toes. She had an aura of innocence and purity about her that couldn't be ignored.

Lan felt that he couldn't speak, his heart was racing faster and faster…what could he do? What could he say? He somehow managed to pull himself together and speak, finally.

"Sorry...I kind of blacked out there…my name's Lan Hikari, I live across the street."

"My name's Maylu Sakurai and I live right beside him, in the pink house. It's nice to meet you, and welcome to the neighbourhood, again," Maylu said gracefully.

"Thank you very much," Ciel replied politely. She started to think about what she was going to say next, when she finally looked into Lan's eyes.

It was only half a second, but it seemed like an eternity to both of them. One hundredth…Two hundredths…Three hundredths…

Everything stopped moving at once. It seemed like there was no gravity, that nothing else existed…time had stopped, but was still going at the same time.

There wasn't anything to think about. Nothing to say. Ciel and Lan both were caught in this half-second trance and neither wanted to let go. Still, they knew they had to at some point…but it seemed too soon.

The half-second was up. Lan and Ciel blinked simultaneously. There was something there, they both felt it. An unthinkable, undeniable force was moving between them. Neither shoved it off. The thought remained inside both of them. Ciel broke the split second silence.

"My name is Ciel. Ciel Amé. It's very nice to meet you both. Um…would you both like to come in, for a bit? I'm in the middle of cooking something, and I would be delighted if I could share it with you."

"Sure, why not? We would love to try your cooking, Ciel. We'll stay," Lan replied.

Lan and Maylu walked into the house, and Ciel shut the door after them.