It was three in the morning when tragedy struck the Nanase residence. The youngest family member, Haruka, awoke to a loud pounding on his door. His heart raced as he pulled the sheets over his ocean blue eyes, hoping that it was just his imagination playing tricks on him. But the knocking soon became restless, and not long after, there was a loud cracking sound heard downstairs. Haru jumped out of bed but was still too scared to investigate. But he didn't even need to, for he soon heard the screams of his mother, and the shrieks of his father. Eyes wide with fear, Haru knew exactly what he had to do. He ran downstairs to try and protect the two most important people of his life, but to no avail. His heart stopped momentarily as he looked at the two mangled figures on the ground in front of him. His knees buckled from underneath him upon experiencing the shock. He could already feel his internal panic mode setting off. He rushed to his parents' side, shaking the two and calling their names. But the two remained motionless, causing his eyes to well up with tears. However, Haru didn't have much time to cry, for suddenly, his other senses kicked in. His nose picked up the smell of...smoke? He turned quickly to the source of the smell, only to discover that his kitchen was on fire. Terror was soon struck into his heart, and he ran as quickly as possible out the door, only stopping to grab two things- his mom's necklace and his dad's wristwatch. These would be the last things he would ever grab out of the house before it burned down to ashes. After that, everything was a blur, and Haru was left confused, hurt, and scarred for life.

Haru suddenly awoke, heart pounding from the horrible memories. That incident was two years ago, and Haru still had nightmares about it. The only good thing, in his opinion, was that for every year that had passed, he had forgotten more and more about what happened that night. Hell, he was so scared that everything hadn't even registered when his parents had been killed. He still didn't understand why. He wished he could at least understand how they died, but he couldn't do that either. Despite the copious amounts of blood that surrounded his mom and dad, the police couldn't find any lacerations, or bruises, or anything on their bodies. With not enough evidence to catch the criminal/criminals, the police dropped the case completely. This upset Haru greatly, but he understood their reasons. The only reason it had upset him so much was because he had wanted to catch the bastards and reconcile by killing them himself. But he was only 14 at the time, and murder was definitely not an option. Now that he was sixteen and his grandma was no longer alive, he had to learn to go through life without guidance from anyone.

But Haru was okay with this.

He was okay with being alone. After all, he had always felt alone, and he learned to accept that this was his fate. Other kids have it worse than me, he'd constantly remind himself, and this mantra was enough to get him through his daily life.

I guess it's time to eat. he thought as his stomach growled, bringing him out of his thoughts. He got up from under his current residence, which was the side of a building in the shady part of town, and moved into an alley in search of food. See, Haru moved from town to town, seeking refuge under just about anywhere. Occasionally, someone nice would offer him a spot at their place, along with a nice meal and a warm shower. But this hasn't happened for about two weeks now, and he seriously doubted he could even come close to getting another job now. Sometimes he worked side jobs to pay for essential things, but suddenly, every job that paid well included talking to people, which Haru was terrible at. He was running out of options, he knew, so he travelled from town to town, in search of the perfect job. The town he was headed toward next, according to the signs he passed as he walked, was called Iwatobi. Haru breathed in the scent of the air, soothing his nerves. He sure hoped Iwatobi had something good for him, including a good meal.

By the time the black haired boy had gotten there, he knew that he liked the town already. It was a quaint place, with only the occasional car passing through. This was nothing compared to the crowded city of Tokyo, and Haru felt right at home. It would've been even more perfect if he could find a job here. With that new thought in place, Haru began making his way around town, scouting out different buildings and forgetting breakfast completely. Finally, when reached the end of the town, he reached a dark alley way. Right next to the alley was a medium sized office building, which looked kind of dingy, but a business building nonetheless. He read the sign above it.

"Iwatobi Printing Press. Huh." Haru whispered as his curiosity got the better of him. He walked forward and stepped inside the building. The inside wasn't as dingy as the outside surprisingly, and Haru felt comfortable enough. There was a counter and a coffee machine, and Haru could hear the hums of what sounded like printers coming upstairs. At the counter sat a man who was currently fast asleep. Haru walked up to him and observed a bell right beside him. There was a note right by the bell. It said, 'ring for service' in messy writing. So that's exactly what Haru did. The man awoke with a start, but he saw Haru and greeted him politely.

"Sorry I was asleep. It's been kinda slow around here, ya know? Anyway, tell me what you're here for." he said, firing up his computer in case Haru had anything that required that. Haru was nervous, but swallowed his fear and responded.

"I'd like to work here." The man only looked at him, shocked at his request. Here was this kid, who didn't exactly look or smell the best, wanting a job at a place that couldn't afford to take in homeless people like him. Or at least he thought he was homeless. He decided to make this clear in the nicest way possible.

"Kid, no offense, but you seem like a hom-"

"I know, I know. It's a long story," Haru wasn't exactly offended since he was used to it, but he was getting impatient and uncomfortable. "Just please, give me something." The man thought for a moment, since it was obvious this boy was desperate.

"How about a delivery boy? They don't interact with humans, and they make good amount. Enough for you to take care of yourself." Haru pondered it. All he had to do was be up early enough to deliver papers. Simple enough, he reasoned.

"Alright." He watched as the man got out several papers and began writing on them. Haru couldn't wait to start his new life. He decided he'd celebrate later with his favorite food, mackerel. Life in Iwatobi was going to be great.

I could get used to this.