What a Life This Is - A Collection of Short Stories

WAR! - Part 1

Kadence Sakurayashiki-Nanjo meets politician's daughter Aiza Kikuchi-Shindo. It's not pretty.
———

"Did you guys see the news?" Miya asked one Saturday afternoon, and Kaoru looked up from his iPad beside him and replied, "No, why? What's it say?"

"This Japanese politician is relocating his family to Oahu, they just arrived today," The nine-year-old replied, and Kojiro looked up from the armchair on the other side of the room, "Politician? What's his name, maybe we've heard of him."

"I heard about that," Kadence piped up from the couch beside Kaoru, looking up from her phone to add, "Apparently he was one of the youngest members of the Diet- whatever that is, and he relocated his family because he and his husband could get officially married here."

"Okaaaay- but what's his name?" Kojiro asked once again, and Kadence pursed her lips at him before looking at her phone, "I can look it up."

There was a few seconds of expecting silence, and the sound of Kadence typing away at her phone until she looked up again and said, "Ainosuke Shindo."

Kaoru choked on the tea he was drinking, eyes wide as Kojiro's own narrowed to slits, and his mouth slowly curled into a dark scowl, "What..?"

"Oh! He has a daughter my age!" Kadence suddenly exclaimed, ignoring her parents reactions while Miya tapped his Papa's arm, "Are you okay, Papa?"

"Y-Yes.." Kaoru wheezed, eyes flickering over to Kojiro, who was still staring into space with a disgusted look on his face as he growled, "Shindo.."

Kadence finally looked up from her phone at the sound of the politician's name, and she arched an eyebrow at Kojiro, "Dad? You good?"

"Yep." Kojiro replied flatly, getting up from the armchair, "I'm gonna go upstairs."

As Kojiro left the living room and headed up the stairs, Kaoru paled at the next sentence Kadence said..

"It says here that their daughter, Aiza, is starting at my high school on Monday! Cool!"

"Yep.." Kaoru rasped, "So cool.."

———

The following Monday, Kadence was in homeroom talking to her friends, Cameron and Jaylin, about Aiza Kikuchi-Shindo, the politician's daughter who was supposed to be attending their school starting that day.

"I heard her family is rich, and like- SUPER influential in Japan," Jaylin said, twirling her long strawberry-pink braid around her hand as she continued, "Makes sense since her Dad is a politician and all."

"She's super popular on Instagram, MILLIONS of followers," Cameron added, pulling out his phone to show the two girls Aiza's latest post.

"That's cool," Kadence mused, "I wonder what she's like in real life."

Suddenly, the bell rang, and all three teens moved to their seats just as their teacher, Mr. Stewart, walked in and closed the door, "Alrighty, good morning everyone."

"Good Morning.." the whole class responded in a cluster of voices, and Mr. Stewart walked to the front of the classroom and sat at his desk, pushing his wire-frame glasses up his nose and folding his hands on top of it as he began to speak, "As you know we're getting a new student today, and she just so happens to be the daughter of a politician, and social media famous."

The class nodded, and Mr. Stewart's voice became stern, "I'm only going to tell you all this once, there is no need to crowd her or bombard her with questions, or judge her for anything her father has done. Remember she's a child and a teenager, just like all of you."

There was a knock on the door, and the whole class looked up at Mr. Stewart said, "Oh, that should be her."

He got up and walked to open the door, and a hush went over the room as the girl standing outside walked into the classroom.

Kadence stared at her from the other side of the room, gazing at her azure hair, ruby eyes, and flawless skin..

'Oh, wow..' Kadence thought, 'She's really beautiful..'

[I went online and found a photo of a blue-haired girl, then I made her eyes reddish so you can kind of visualize what Aiza looks like]

"Aiza Kikuchi-Shindo?" Mr. Stewart asked, and the girl tossed her blue hair over her shoulder and replied smugly, "Yep! That's me."

"Okay, you can sit at the empty desk next to Xavier, Xavier, please raise your hand."

A guy across the room from Kadence raised his hand, and she watched intently as Aiza strutted through the classroom and plopped down in the seat, dropping her very expensive-looking Coach bag on the floor next to her. Speaking of expensive, her whole OUTFIT looked like it had a pretty hefty price tag, with the Prada heels and shiny watch on her wrist, complete with heart-shaped sunglasses that sat on her head.

[Aiza's fit- cause why not]

"Wooow, look who's been spending Daddy's money," Jaylin leaned over and whispered to Kadence as Mr. Stewart started class and began to teach, and the two girls giggled louder than they meant two, quickly being silenced by a stern look from their teacher.