The train comes to a halt, and I rush off with my luggage. I was greeted with pleasant smiles of some other citizens.
I am Akiko Chinatsu! I'm 15 and I've just moved all the way back from the UK to visit my home town again! Luckily enough, close family friends of ours live here and they've invited me to come stay with them for a year or two. Honestly I miss these sights. There were some tourists as well, which I waved at as I past. A few waved back, and some just looked at me like I was a crazy person. My main priority was to make sure I didn't break my guitar.... And that I actually made it to Mr and Mrs Akiyama's house in one piece. I felt a vibration in my pocket. It was from.... Kimiko! She's my friend from Tokyo when we went to live there once. My mother and father demanded that I must stay in touch with one of my Japanese friends so I don't lose my Japanese completely. If you're wondering what I look like, here's a photo of me from last year. It's still extremely accurate!

I'm so excited to live the Japanese lifestyle again! My whole family initially moved to Japan from Europe when I was only I baby, so you could call it my... Homeland? I skipped along the sidewalk humming to myself. I finally arrived. House 104. I gulped, and wheeled my bags towards the front door. I rung the old fashioned doorbell, and waited for about a solid 4 minutes. The front door creaked open, and there stop Mr Akiyama. "Ah, good afternoon Miss Chinatsu! It's been a while."
I bowed politely, and he gestured for me to enter. Their house was beautiful. I untied my shoes, and slid my feet into some slippers they had laid out for me. I curiously followed behind Mr Akiyama, as he led me into the guest bedroom. "This will be your room Miss Chinatsu." He gave me a warm smile. "Please, call me Akiko." I gave him a hug. "It's nice to see you again!"

After he had exited the room and closed the door softly behind him, I proceeded to slide around on the clean, wooden floorboards with my slippers. Then, I began to unpack my suitcase, and place everything on hangers or in neat piles in the closet. I had even brought my duvet from home to make myself feel comfortable. I flopped down on my back, and stared at the ceiling, which had beautiful cherry blossom leaves painted delicately on it. I gently shut my eyelids and imaged myself on the first day of school. My vision however was interrupted by- "Where's my little Chinatsu?" I couldn't believe my ears. Seiichi!? Seiichi Akiyama!? I flung open the door and hugged him tightly. "I thought you were studying abroad!" I was delighted.... Overjoyed to even be in his presence. He's a year older than me, and is my best friend. "I came home to surprise you. I was passing by Kyoto anyways, so I decided to stop by!"
Mr Akiyama peered around the kitchen door. "Hungry?"

I sat upright in my chair as Mr Akiyama placed some ingredients on the table, and let us decide what we wanted for lunch. Seiichi and I raced to grab exactly want we wanted first, like a competition. I grabbed an empty bowl, and took handfuls on berries and a variety of fruits and dumped them in a bowl. I poured some soy milk out of the jug, and looked at Seiichi. "So, Akiko." He began, accepting his loss in silence. I smirked at the look on his face. "Where did you live in the UK again?"
I swallowed my mouthful of food and replied. "We returned to our old home in Rye. Father moved to Manchester, so I've been switching between two homes recently." Seiichi looked me in the eyes. "Must be tough."

"It is."
Our eyes were locked. I remember all the good times I've had with him. Seiichi is only a year older than me. I still remember when we were little, and we built forts. I remember him standing up to bullies for me in middle school. Then, I remembered how much I loved him.

Then I remembered the horrifying truth;

I still do.