After September 23rd

Mikaela's Memory Fragment

"Harmless Pranks"

"Are you ready? My little raven?" My mother asked as she walked me to school.

"I am," I nodded.

"Remember, your Sensei is there to help you if you need alone time, okay?"

I nodded.

"And try not to use your notecards so much. Don't be scared when a kid comes up to you, they only want to be friends,"

"Yes, mama,"

"Sebby packed your bento with all your yummy food. Open it up just like we practiced,"

"Okay, mama!"

"Kiyomi will be in the same class as you, so ask her for help, okay?" My mother smiled, "Thankfully, she's not like her bitch of a-"

"Ahem, madam,"

"Isamu is just a class away, ask your Sensei for permission to see them if you need help," said my mother, "Do you have the notecard with his class written down?"

I took the notecard from my pocket and showed it to my mother.

"Good," She smiled, "Keep it safe with you,"

"I will,"

We reached the gate, and my mother stopped to hug me.

"Okay, my little raven, this is it. Do you know what you'll say when you enter the class?" She asked.

"Mm! I am Mikaela Yuki. It's a pleasure to meet you all, I hope we can all be friends," I said, "I practiced,"

"Good job, I'm so proud of you," My mother said, smiling.

I smiled and let her kiss my head. An assistant walked me to my classroom. My Sensei told me to stand in front of the classroom and wait for further instructions.

"Quiet down," He said boredly, "We have a new student, go ahead and introduce yourself,"

I froze as I saw how many people I would be speaking to. They all looked bored with me from the start. I found Kiyomi in the crowd. She whispered to her desk mate, and she covered her laugh.

"Go on, we don't have all day,"

I stared at my classmates; they all waited for me to finally speak.

"I...I am M-Mikaela Yu...Yuki, it's a um... pleasure to-" I said and mumbled the rest. I took a polite bow and turned to look at my Sensei, waiting for further instructions.

"Go sit next to Yua Hata-san, on the back," He said, annoyed, and pointed to a girl.

I listened and took my seat in the last row, next to her. I smiled politely, and she returned the smile. She quickly turned away and moved her belongings closer to her desk. The whole morning, I struggled to keep up, and Yua refused to help or even turn to look at me.

"10-minute break," Our Sensei announced.

He threw his books on the podium and left.

"Hey, Mika-chan, right?" A girl came up to me along with her two friends.

"Mm!"

"So, Kiyomi-chan is your cousin?" She asked.

Kiyomi turned to look at me with an empty expression and turned back to her friends.

"She is,"

"And you're Japanese?"

"I am,"

"Why are you so brown? You don't look like Kiyomi-chan at all," She laughed, and friends joined in, "Is your skin real? Or did you color it?"

"I'm Japanese..." I muttered.

My classmate grabbed my eraser and forcefully grabbed my wrist. The other lifted my sleeve and helped her friend pin my arm down. They used the eraser to try to erase my brown skin. I struggled, feeling the eraser burn into my skin while they laughed.

"Ew, gross! It's not coming off," The girl who initiated everything laughed.

I fell on the floor and backed away to a corner. I scanned the room for Kiyomi. She had a small smile on her face.

"Stop crying, it was just a prank. Give the crybaby her eraser back,"

They threw my belongings on top of me. I covered my face to not be scratched.

"Hey, Kiyomi-chan!" The girl called and sat on top of the desk next to my cousin, "Your cousin is no fun,"

"She's a bit slow in the head," Kiyomi answered and shrugged, "Leave her alone,"

I picked up my notebooks and put each one into my school bag. I noticed my fidget toys and hid them inside my pocket. I sat still and played with my infinite cube as fast as I could. I waited for Kiyomi to come up and tell me she didn't mean it.

I waited for Kiyomi to ask Yuri to stop pushing me against the wall.

I waited for Kiyomi to ask Naomi to stop tripping me with the broom while cleaning up.

I waited for Kiyomi to ask Yasu to stop putting eraser dust inside my umbrella.

I waited for Kiyomi to ask Tatsuke to stop throwing my belongings into the water fountain.

And I waited as those harmless pranks got worse and much scarier. I placed my bento on top of my desk; it wasn't big enough to cover everything that was written down, but at least my bento covered the slur that hurt the most.

I sat down to eat alone and opened the box. I jumped and fell as I saw worms wiggling inside my food. The flower vase broke when I kicked my desk while I was backing away. My usual aggressors laughed.

"Pick that up, Mika-chan," He groaned, "Yuki-san, help your cousin!"

Kiyomi stood up and walked up to me.

"Stop crying, it was just a harmless prank," She frowned, "Don't go crying to Aunt Delaney or Asagiri-san,"

"I...I-I won't..." I stuttered and helped Kiyomi throw away the bento.

"I...I-I won't. Learn how to talk Mikaela," Kiyomi mocked me.