Every children have some sort of childhood hero. For some it would be Superman or Spiderman saving the world. Youhei, on the other hand, had a different view on childhood fantasy and that differs him from most of the other people. Although his childhood life was consist of purely suffer and pain from unpleasant events regarding himself or his family, Youhei would always try his best to think positively and always hope for the hero to show up one day and deal with his problem so he can have a peaceful satisfying life. In that sense, what he anticipated of a hero is an Angel, a savior. The concept of when a person is suffering, an angel would descend from heaven and extend a hand out for support. At first it sounded like a joke to his friends...
"What are you saying? Angels are so unrealistic and almost impossible to be true."
"Then where do spirits go after they die? My grandpa is probably watching over me now with his angel friends!"
You really can't blame him-- Youhei was just a little seven years old who didn't experience that much of a childhood life. His mother has immigrated to New York, in search of a better location to find a job to take care of the family. For that exact reason, Youhei was being taken care by his grandmother. Due to the fact that his perceptions of things were different than everyone else, his friends were limited. And for that reason, most of his childhood was composed from pure stories and fantasies. His grandfather, who he adored most in the family, passed away just when he entered first grade. Due to the same time frame between the death of his grandfather and his first year in school, a lot of thoughts went through his mind. Where do dead people go afterward? Is my grandpa really watching over me in heaven with other angels? In a sense, life was tough and Youhei had no option but to keep his emotions in when he was around people, and let it all out in tears when no one was watching or when he confronted his family.
Take revenge for me! Help me beat those bad guys down! I don't like school anymore! - Those are the words Youhei would always say when he goes home to his grandma every single day and gets bullied in the school bus by upperclassmen. What Youhei didn't realize was that, there was nothing that his family could do to help him. All the conflicts happened outside of school, in the school bus. Since it was outside school facility, the school had no obligation to take action even if Youhei's family approached the school faculty and discuss the ongoing problem.
It was a typical school morning, and Youhei was once again bullied by the upperclassmen who take the same school bus as him. While hygiene was one of the strict regulation in school, Youhei would sometime enter school with wrinkly shirts and sweats everywhere, due to his struggle to resist the upperclassmen. It was futile, no matter what Youhei did, nothing will change. He was weak and there were no one in the school bus who would give a hand. Just when Youhei was about to give up and decide to live life all alone, not thinking or caring about anyone else, an angel approached in his presence. She was not holding a wand, nor was she wearing an angel halo on the top of her head. She was just a typical student, just like Youhei himself.
"Must've been tough to be bullied by people and not having people to help, eh?" the angel questioned Youhei as if she knew what he was going through before she even met him.
"Who are you? Are you just going to be like those other upperclassmen and bully me also?" Youhei responded, although he still imagined the figure of an angel inside of the girl that he was talking to.
"I'm Juri, just a normal first grader like you. I sit on the other side of the classroom so you might not have recognized me. And you are?"
"Youhei, nice to meet you, Juri."
"Youhei, so I guess we're friends from now on. If there's any problem, I'm only half a classroom away!"
Short yet simple and at the same time affectionate, that caught Youhei's attention.
...and that's how everything started.
It was a mysterious feeling Youhei experienced during that short greeting with his new friend, Juri. It was a warm yet nostalgic feeling-- something that he had never experienced ever since the death of his grandfather. The feeling of being protected when there's a problem being thrown at him was the best way Youhei could describe it as. Although Juri and Youhei had only knew each other for days, the friendship developed fairly quickly.
Youhei was always this shy, timid kid who only befriends with people who approached him, because he feared that if he approached someone and would only be bullied in the end. Juri, on the other hand, was completely opposite. She was a pretty girl with high expectation on her academic standards and for that reason, she was famous among the teachers and the students. On the other hand, she was an open minded, easygoing person, so it was easy for Youhei to truly understand and he didn't feel weary at all when trying to share his personal problems.
As time progressed, Juri and Youhei knew more about each other and talked more in and out of class. Before they knew it, second grade started and they ended up being in the same class, once again. Youhei thought of it as if his grandfather is looking after him up in the celestial heavens and made sure that there is someone there in replace of his grandfather-- to provide the happiness and support that Youhei needed the most. By then Youhei started to realize, what he first anticipated of an angel is not exactly true.
Angels are not heroes that come and deal with your problem. Angels are people who will dedicate their time and effort to relieve you, support you, and to ensure you end your day with a smile on the face.
Chapter 2: Support ~ Preview
From a short greeting to a long lasting friendship, what is ahead of Youhei in his struggle to becoming independent in life? Is his so called "Angel" really going to take the role of an angel? What was Juri's thoughts of Youhei?
