Chapter 2

She could see all the bright colors of the season out of the window that she was seated directly next to. The train was clad in kanji and pastel colors, mainly consisting of faded red and off white tones. Small, square-shaped clothes hung and were swaying from the ceiling of the train and had bright images of berries and were really quite cute. The whole vibe itself that it gave off was rustic but childish, exactly what made Kamiko even more interested in the design. The handles that were hanging were attached with thick white fabric that seemed to have a jagged texture to them. From that, many darkly colored wooden rings were tied to it. The doors were also red, much like the banners and advertisements seen from the inside, but were brighter and shinier. The roof and curved walls, however, were painted with the same dirtied white and had many small areas of chipped paint that revealed the original metallic silver of the aluminum. The cloth in which the seats had been sewn with didn't quite match the rest of the aesthetic, though. They were tattered on the edges and the dye was dim against the worn-out cushion hidden beneath it.

There were only a few other people who had been seated already within the car, most of them were older, well, at least older than her. She looked around once again and after individually examining near every inanimate object the reach of her eye, she grew bored and didn't know what else to do, and it especially because the train wasn't scheduled to leave for about another fifteen minutes. Therefor, she pulled out her phone from her beloved purse and managed to turn in on though being piled within the cluster of her bags which had been stored as closely to her body as possible so she could keep an eye out on it all.

She found herself to be endlessly scrolling through her Western friends' most recent posts of them at parties and having fun with each other- without her. Oh how Kamiko would miss those whom she grew up with and spent the majority of her life's milestones with. Though there as always the distinct ethnicity difference that she thought would divide her from others there at first, they all treated her just the same as they had treated anybody else which her younger self had really appreciated. She was honestly afraid of what and who her new school would hold for her in the now soon future. Still reminiscing on the past with her original friendships, she had unconsciously tuned out the ruckus of the unknown personalities which surrounded her.

Someone had sat next to her, though she hadn't noticed. Not that she could possibly know anyone on that car anyways. Once she did realize the woman's presence, she looked up from her mobile phone and was taken by utter surprise.

"Oh, sorry! I didn't mean to scare you. Are you alright?" The girl asked. She was dressed in extreme colors of clothing, all bright and neon. Her hair was very dramatically done and everything about her appearance seemed so extreme to Kamiko. If she had to guess, she would assume that she's into gyaru fashion or something along those lines. Though, she didn't consider herself to be very well educated when it came to Japanese fashion or trends, especially the more recent ones. Since her grandparents were very conservative and liked to keep things traditional, she wasn't planning on picking up any of the woman's style, but it definitely interested her. Her aura was incredibly friendly, seeming to draw her in, making her want to befriend her.

"It's all good." Kamiko assured.

"Where are you headed?"

"Ah, Sakaiminato..." She believed that this would probably be the end of this topic, making things now awkward because she may not know of Kamiko's destination.

"OMG," she exclaimed, "No way me too!... Let me see...are you enrolled at Sakai High, too??" She seemed overly excited, though Kamiko also was delighted to have already acquired a potential friend, was still surprised by the odds. But, it fell to amuse her still.

"Actually I am! Have you heard of Mizuki's Manga? My grandparents own it and that's where I'll be staying there.

"Yes!! That's where I go to get my weekly supply of action comics. And...you didn't hear it from me but there's this guy. He goes to the dojo that's like right next to your family's shop. He's the talk of the school-well at least he was last year. Oh so mysterious, no body really knows much about him but be basically like lives in that karate studio."

To her surprise, Kamiko was intrigued, Mysterious you say? She thought to herself. His description interested her. Maybe it would give her something to put time into since she was undoubtedly intelligent and found school quite simple when it came to academics.

"-But anyways, never mind that for now." The girl continued. "What's your name?"

"Kamiko Horikishi. My stepfather's parents are the ones that I will be staying with." She added just to explain the name difference and eliminate and confusion early on. "What's yours."

"Ah you're name is so beautiful, mine's Naomi Watanabe." Kamiko honestly believed that the name fit her from what she knew about her so far. Naomi meaning beauty seemed perfect for the girl.

The aesthetically pleasing train had come to a stop before they knew it. She guessed that since she spent the majority of her time spacing out on her phone and speaking to her new friend, she really caused the remaining time to pass by quickly. Her heart stopped for just a second thought, as she found the same attention striking boy with the brisk white highlights staring into her eyes again. Shook, she stood for a paused for a fast second before Naomi pulled her back to consciousness by shaking her shoulder.