A Child With No Soul

-Beginning the Game-

    Black, brown, and blue. "Those are the colors on our charm bracelets" I said to my friends, Hikari and Takeshi while holding the little bracelet up to the sky and staring at it, puzzled a little. "Of course!" Hikari said excitedly. "I put our three favorite colors on them. "Blue for me, brown for Takeshi-kun, and..." Hikari paused for a second, fidgeting. Then she continued. "Black for you, Mamoru-chan" I look down at her and smile. "Thanks so much, Hikari. I love it" I say. "Me too" says Takeshi after me, while smiling at the bracelet in his hand. "Really?" she beams. "I'm so happy. I made them so Mamoru-chan wouldn't forget us when she moves away. They're a sign of our ultimate friendship!" I stare at her, shocked for a moment, before I smile and say "Ha, silly. I could never forget you guys. You're my only friends in the world." They both look at me and smile big. "Mamoru!" I hear my mom yell my name from the bottom of the hill my friends and I were standing on. "Time to go!" "Okay, mom!" I yell back "Oh!" Hikari jumps on me, squeezing tightly, not wanting to let go. "Prove to us that you won't forget" she says. "Promise that you'll write to us and visit us whenever you can, and we'll do the same." "Okay, I will. I promise" I smile at her then she hesitantly let's go of me. Takeshi had to pull her the rest of the way off and wipe the tears from her eyes. I wave and say goodbye, then run down the hill to my mom. "Mom, we have to come back here sometimes. Like during vacation or something!" I say to her. "Well, of course we're going to come back. We do have family here as well" she says to me. "Ah, right. Can't wait!" I turn around and wave to them once more before getting into the van. I sit in the back with our dog, Pochi in the middle, and my younger brother and sister, Fuyu and Aki on the other side of him. My dad started the car as soon as my mom and I were inside. I looked out the window to see my friends still there, waving down. 'They really are my only friends in the world, and now I have to leave them.' I thought this as I felt tears well up in my eyes, but I wiped them away as soon as they formed. I got out my phone and logged into my favorite game to try and take my mind off things. The game is called "Calamity Soul." It was created here in Japan a few years back, and has gained a lot of popularity across the world. Its still popular even today and ever since I first played it, I've been using it to escape my real life problems like right now. Before I met Takeshi and Hikari, I was bullied constantly for being so quiet and different. My mom is American while my dad is Japanese. I inherited her blue eyes and my hair is naturally curly like hers. My first name is a boy name, too. Mamoru. I was very anti-social, so people thought I looked weird, acted weird, and they called me a boy a lot. If Takeshi and Hikari hadn't stepped in and helped me, I probably would've fallen into depression. I'm very thankful to them for that. Luckily a year after I met them, the game came out and I played it whenever I didn't hang out with them. Its my sanctuary for when I'm alone. When I first played it, though, I of course had no idea what I was doing. I picked a random starter for my avatar, which no one else seemed to use or want. Maybe because she had a glitch in her left arm, she couldn't speak (only mumble) since her voice bank is broken, and she's a bilby. Despite looking nothing like one, I don't think bilbies are very popular animals, either way. I felt bad for her, especially since she reminded me of myself. Sad, lonely, and un-welcomed, so I used her. She had short black hair, blue eyes, a tiny black nose, a light blue tank top with yellow stripes, ripped blue jeans, brown cowgirl boots, and black finger-less gloves, all covering her light brown skin. She was also very skinny, and not that strong, but I worked really hard with her, and gave her upgrades. After having her for awhile, I decided on naming her. Marimo Soulless. She looks a bit different now. With longer hair, still black, but down to the bottom of her knees. Her eyes are still blue and she still has a tiny black nose, but now she wears a brown cowgirl hat with a silver buckle, a light blue bikini top with yellow streaks, black shorts with a brown double belt, and a silver buckle holding them up. Black thigh high socks, brown calf high boots, black finger-less gloves, a brown jacket draped over her shoulders, and a black arm warmer (Hatsune Miku style) covering the glitch on her left arm. All on top of her still light brown skin. I've been playing this game ever since it came out, and I've gotten a lot stronger at it, even gaining the title "Soul Queen". Something my friends, nor parents know anything about. Nobody would guess that quiet, little Mamoru would be good at video games. But its all I'm good at, so I stick with it. I finally log into the game, though I can't play it without my Retina Mask (which is like an Oculus Rift, but a bit smaller) but its in my bag, in the trunk, so I only log in to check my messages. 'My inbox is filled with fan-mail again' I sigh, lowly. 'Marimo is very popular for being so strong. I wish I could be as strong as my avatar in real life. Then maybe I would be treated normally. That'd be nice.' I sigh a bit louder, without realizing it, and lean back in my seat. My dad looks in the mirror at me for a second and asks me what's wrong. "Hmm? Nothing" I reply. I look back out the window, but then close my eyes. 'This is gonna be a long ride.'