4Howdy! :) this is again your friendly and enthusiastic writer, Miyano Ran! thanks for checking out my stories! This story is actually something which I planned to be a novel two years ago. I wrote the outline of the whole story handwritten in paper but I haven't finished it until now. Lucky I still have the draft with me. I already have an ending planned for this, just gotta write! :) Maybe if you guys review and enjoy my work, I will be motivated to write more! THANKS!
PS: I was inspired to use Brunei for the setting since I love anything Asian and my favorite Taiwanese actor and singer Wu Chun was born there! :)
Our Time
Chapter 1: Ginfuko
"…100%." Ms. Ayane, their Japanese teacher, announced with a smile. The whole class cheered. Everyone in school knew that Ginfuko Sheh was always the best in their Japanese elective class since she was one of the handful students who had Japanese blood. Ginfuko was born with a Chinese-Japanese heritage, a Bruneian nationality and most of all, a kind and pure heart. Ginfuko's dad, Sheh Kua Lo, was a Hokkienese. He was born in Fujian, Southern China. On the other hand, Ginfuko's mom, Ayuzawa Nina, was an Osakan. She was born in Osaka, Japan; therefore, she had a distinct Kansai accent. Both of her parents migrated to Brunei, met each other and got married.
Ginfuko has an elder brother and sister, and a younger brother and sister. Ginfuko was fourteen years old and she was in her first year of high school. She has a Chinese surname while she carried a Japanese name, although, it is pronounced Jinfu in Chinese. Ginfuko can also be pronounced as Kinfuko, but she's called Ginfuko anyway. Her elder brother is named Mototake, a 1st year college student in engineering, was eighteen years old. Her elder sister, a sixteen year old 3rd year high school student in the same school as Ginfuko, is named Ayu. Ginfuko's younger brother, Yoshiro, was a nine year old 2nd grader while her younger sister, Sawana, was a seven year old kindergarten student. This tale starts with Ginfuko, a girl who has a perfect and happy family living in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam's national capital, in the early part of the year 2012. She is also a good student with nice friends.
"…as expected." Her best friend, Adrian Cheng, a Burneian-Cantonese Catholic, said with a smile. "You really gotta teach me Japanese. I need high scores to beat you in the list of top tens for crying out loud!" Ginfuko grinned at him and said. "Well, at least you're good in our Chinese classes." "Don't make me laugh." He responded while stretching his arms. "So are you. Even better than me, I should say. Doesn't really matter anyway, you speak Hokkien or Minnan dialect; I speak Cantonese, but we study Mandarin." "Why did you take up Japanese electives anyway?" Ginfuko asked curiously. "What? I can't learn now?" Adrian asked sarcastically. "Was just asking... never said you can't." Ginfuko made a giggle in amusement and faced the blackboard again.
Everyday, after school, Ginfuko would go home and take a shower, study, and watch TV. Today, soon enough, she will be having dinner. At dinnertime, Ginfuko sat in front of a bountiful meal of Chinese and Japanese cuisines with her big family. She loved her family and she was very contented of her simple and happy life. "Moto!" Her mom complained with her hands on her waist. "Can you please start eating and stop playing your PSP! You're worse than Yoshi!" Mototake growled and left his PSP on the couch where he was seated, stood up, and unwillingly marched towards the dining table where his four siblings and two parents were impatiently waiting for him.
"The food's delicious today!" Little Sawana said temptingly to her brother while smiling. "We've got a plate of California Maki, steamed fish in soy sauce, fried noodles, crispy Shanghai rolls, Miso soup, roasted duck, Asohos tempura, and fruit jelly for dessert! They're all your favorites!"
Mototake grinned and took a seat. He tapped the head of his little sister lovingly and apologized for being so reluctant on eating dinner with his family. "Gomenasai, that game my friend Balbur lent me was just so addictive… I was this close to winning!"
"But, you know, dinnertime with family's the most important, right?" Ginfuko's dad, Kua Lo, said while grinning. "Wakata…" Mototake responded with a grin. It was in Japanese and this meant 'understood'. "Itadakimasu!" He said excitedly while breaking his chopsticks in to two. It was what Japanese would say before meals. He was so close to fishing a maki when Ginfuko stopped him and reminded. "Ahia, we'll pray first."
Ginfuko's family had a mixture of Japanese, Bruneian and Chinese cultures and traditions. Her dad learned Japanese while her mom learned Hokkien, so, language was not a problem in their family. Daily communication for them was multilingual. And so, sometimes, Ginfuko would call her elder brother as 'ahia' which was addressing him in a Chinese way, while sometimes 'nii-chan' which was in Japanese. Her family was also Roman Catholic. She was one of the 11% of the population since there is 11% of Chinese and 11% of Roman Catholic in Brunei.
After they all finished praying, they started digging in eagerly and ate to their hearts' content. While eating, they watched TV. Ayu took the remote and turned it on Cable. She loves to watch the American channels all the time. While they were watching, they suddenly saw a very handsome teenage boy singing on TV.
"Whoa! Sugoi! Anohito wa dare?" Ginfuko expressed while her eyes practically staring at the TV screen with a big chuck of duck wing sticking out of her mouth. "Ginfuko, don't talk with your mouth full! The duck's coming out!" Yoshiro laughed while pointing at her mouth. "You don't know him?" Ayu asked in shock. "Should I?" Ginfuko asked while raising a brow. "He's only the hottest American sensation ever!" "Oh… no wonder I haven't heard of him. Earth to Ayu… we don't live in America." Ginfuko retorted while swallowing the duck.
"Eee ya ien dao oh…" Ginfuko's dad, Kua Lo, expressed while smiling. He meant that the boy was so handsome. "Ho la!" Ayu agreed while grinning and nodding. "Ee mia zueh MNM." She was saying that the boy's name is MNM. "Hige si simi khuan eh mia, ah?" Her dad asked her what kind of name was that in Hokkien. "He's stage name's MNM." Ayu replied and explained. "But that's actually the initials to his real name, Michael Nathan McGuire. He's a really hot singer and actor, and he's only fourteen!" "Whoa… he's just my age? He looks so matured!" Ginfuko asked in amazement while pointing at the TV screen. "Yeah!" Ayu said while nodding. "He's so handsome with his blue eyes and blonde hair, isn't he?"
Soon enough, Ayu's four siblings were huge fans of MNM. He was the most sensational young teenager of the world…
The next day, Ginfuko sat on the couch on that lazy afternoon while flipping the channels with her remote control. She came across an American channel and saw MNM performing on stage. Her eyes were stuck to the TV screen for quite sometime as she was mesmerized by his tantalizing aquamarine eyes, the sway of his perfectly silky short blonde hair and his enticing smile.
Then, Ayu and Moto suddenly passed by and teased her for having a crush on the American pop star. Ginfuko simply shook her head and denied the claim. However, she herself knew that she could feel her cheeks heating up in embarrassment. Ginfuko wished that, one day, she would be able to meet her idol. She researched everything about him, such as, his blood type, birthday, height, weight, family background and history. It may sound kinda scary and creepy… that she acted like some kind of a stalker, but, after reading on his profile, she knew that he was a really talented boy with a good upbringing.
Ginfuko believed that MNM isn't like the other superstars who do indecent acts and who drool over money and fame. Yes, he was different. He wasn't anything like other superstars. He had good morals and values. And, what's more is that he was discovered in Youtube like many other young artists were. He was already a singer at the age of three and he could play several musical instruments at ten. Truly, MNM was a musical genius and not only that, his pretty face could get him to earn billions in Hollywood's top chart movies. To add a plus factor, he is also an amazing dancer. No wonder Ginfuko admires him so very much. She wasn't certain if she has a crush on him, but, what she did know is that he was her greatest idol, and she, her number one fan.
But of course, she had to be realistic and should stop dreaming the far fetched possibilities. She knew that it would be almost impossible for her to meet such a famous superstar like him. If that happened, it would be called… a miracle.
One day, Ginfuko's best friend, Risa Punjab, a Bruneian-Indian Hindu, sent her a note during Math class. Ginfuko looked at her curiously, then, she discreetly opened the folded note while her teacher wrote several equations on the board.
I know we have different afternoon classes now, but meet me at the canteen later. Let's eat lunch together! I'll tell ya' something good.
xoxo risa ^^
Ginfuko looked up and grinned at Risa while giving a nod. Unfortunately, the teacher turned around at that time and saw their note-passing mischief and scolded the two. The class laughed loudly.
"So… what's the news?" Ginfuko asked Risa with curiosity in her tone during lunch. The intense excitement in Risa's face was evident, and soon enough, she could no longer hide it anymore. "MNM's coming here in Brunei! He's having a concert, right here in Brunei Darussalam!" She exclaimed joyfully. Ginfuko's mouth dropped wide opened that the rice inside her mouth came out. She stood up in an instant and asked for reassurance. "MNM? As in the MNM? Omigosh! Really? O… em… gee!"
Risa grinned. "Yeah! This Saturday night, 8pm, at the Abdul coliseum. He'll be there, singing!" "Wow! I can't believe it! How exciting! I never would've thought that a popular guy like him would come here to our country! I wanna go!" "Of course we will!" Risa interjected. "So will Amar, Adrian and Clara!" "Uh…. Amar and Adrian? I thought that they didn't like petty pop sensations who were pretty boys?" Ginfuko asked with an apparent disbelief in her giggle. "Um… they said… girls can't go alone on night concerts." Ginfuko let out a gentle smile and said. "That's nice. So, they're worried for us."
Clara Hakbar and Amar Waddaulah are also Ginfuko's best friends. Both of them are Bruneian native Muslims.
As soon as Ginfuko got home, she told her whole family about MNM's concert on Saturday and asked her parents if she had the permission to go. The rest of her siblings were ecstatic to go, too, even their little one, Sawana. At first, they were reluctant, but, as soon as Mototake said that he will be their chaperone, they both agreed at last.
"Chotto matte…" Their mom said 'wait a sec' and queried. "Kore wa konserto… ikura desu ka?" She asked how much the concert was. "I haven't asked Risa!" Ginfuko gaped and said in realization. "I gotta call her now." "I hope it's not too expensive…" Ayu said while crossing her fingers hopefully. Luckily, it turns out that the concert had a discount for people going in groups, and since they were all five, the price wouldn't be much. They were all happy that they could attend the concert. And so, they called the Abdul Coliseum to reserve seats for them and eventually took the tickets - with seats which were near to the front row.
That Saturday morning, the nine kids prepared excitedly for the show. Four of which were Ginfuko's siblings and the other four were her friends. They all went to their respective places of worship, met up, and ate lunch afterwards. At about seven in the evening, the nine kids were all lined up outside the concert hall while jumping about in excitement, except for Adrian and Amar, that is. They were there to accompany their other female friends. They held their tickets with glee while grinning from ear to ear.
Soon enough, they all gave their concert tickets in the ticket booth near the entrance and entered the huge concert hall. All they could hear was the loud deafening sound of screaming fans. Not long after, they were part of them, screaming their hearts out, most especially when they announced that MNM would appear on stage in five minutes.
"It's starting! It's starting!" Risa screamed at the top of her lungs. Ginfuko and the others, excluding Amar and Adrian, made a succession of wild shrieks along with the rest of the fans in the fully-packed concert hall. Everyone, especially the young Bruneian girls were screaming and yelling like mad when MNM finally appeared on stage. Some over-enthusiastic fanatics fainted due to excessive emotional excitement, others continued screaming while taking photos while others raised up poster signs that read 'We love you, MNM' and waved ecstatically. It was a really festive kind of atmosphere. Everyone was overjoyed in seeing the handsome young blonde.
"My goodness! I can't believe he's just right there!" Ginfuko screamed excitedly while jumping uncontrollably, pointing at MNM. Her tears of joy were almost bursting out. Then she remarked as a matter-of-factly. "If I get to hold his shoe, it'd be a miracle! Oh goodness sake, he's so handsome!" Adrian, who was at Ginfuko's side, wasn't too pleased with his best friend going crazy over some egocentric pop star. But, he had to admit that he was quite handsome and he had his charms with the girls. However, Adrian believed that he, too, was handsome. Adrian had fair skin, tiny Chinese eyes, high bridged nose, and a nice body built. "If only Ginfuko can scream like that for me, and find me handsome, too. Sheesh, just cuz' he's Caucasian. But I think Asians have better features." Adrian thought to himself while pouting.
"Hello, Brunei!" MNM's enchanting voice which melted thousands of maidens' hearts resonated in the coliseum. "I'm so glad that I am here performing in front of my fans! I hope you enjoy!" Girls were screaming yet again while waving their hands excitedly. Other girls screamed confessions of love for him, too. Ginfuko's smile never disappeared either as she enjoyed herself in the concert.
"Neechan! He's about to sing his first song, entitled, Love You Again!" Yoshiro told Ginfuko excitedly. He addressed her as 'neechan' of which means elder sister. Everyone else became even more energized as the music started. Then, all they could hear was the undeniably beautiful and hypnotizing voice of the young singer. He sang song after song until two hours have passed. It was already ten in the evening but the concert was far from over, they still had two hours of fun to go. Everyone loved it. Even Amar and Adrian who weren't exactly fans of him and just came for the reason that they had to watch out for their female pals would be lying to themselves if they said his voice sucked. MNM sang really well and he had a strong appeal, too.
In the middle of the concert, Ginfuko noticed a nice and unique bracelet that Adrian was wearing. She asked him where he bought it from and he said that it was a family heirloom which was originally his grandfather's. He narrated to her that after his grandmother died, his grandfather went to America due to business matters and remarried a White as well. But, at that time, his family was still in Hong Kong, and Adrian wasn't even born yet since he was already born in Brunei. Adrian's dad found a good business in Brunei and so they migrated and decided to settle there for good. And so, he never met his grandpa at all. However, before his grandpa migrated, he left his most precious bracelet to remember him by. Adrian was given the bracelet by his dad so that he will always remember him, even though they never actually met each other. This bracelet was also very important, because, it might be the missing link that would allow them to meet in the future.
After hearing such a story, Ginfuko's eyes gleamed as she was gently touching the metallic bracelet with her finger. She seemed to have quite a liking for that bracelet. Seeing that she looked interested, Adrian told her that he could lend it to her and let her wear it for the duration of the concert. And at that, Ginfuko was so glad and thanked him. She wore the bracelet which perfectly fit her slim wrist. Seeing her like it, Adrian couldn't help but smile.
While the concert was still going on, Ginfuko was able to squeeze herself in the crowd and managed to get very near the stage. Ayu and the others were yelling things like 'so unfair' out of jealousy. Lots of screaming fans were waving their hands while jumping, hoping that MNM would hold their hand. Ginfuko did the same. She prayed hard that MNM's warm hands would be able to at least stroke hers. As MNM sang, he squatted and held many of the girls' hands while giving them that striking smile of his. MNM caught sight of Ginfuko who looked really cute and held her hand for the shortest time. But, in that split second, Ginfuko was already above the heavens, in cloud nine for that matter, since her greatest idol was able to not only stroke her hand, but grasp it firmly. Ginfuko was so hyper that she kept jumping and screaming. "I'm your number one fan!" All her friends and siblings saw this and gaped at what happened. They couldn't believe it. Ginfuko was the luckiest among them all. Adrian, on the other hand, was feeling slightly jealous for some reason, and it wasn't because he is a fan of MNM.
However, with all that excitement, Ginfuko realized something. She suddenly felt her heart drop as she stared at her wrist that MNM recently held. Adrian's bracelet was gone! And it was a very important family heirloom, too! Adrian would surely be very upset with that. She panicked and tried to find the bracelet in the sea of screaming fans but to no avail. She realized that the bracelet must have come off when MNM held her hand. Sadly, she walked towards Adrian and courageously told him about it.
"Adrian… I did something very bad. I don't know if you can forgive me." Ginfuko said to Adrian in a soft and shy voice. With the loud music and all the screaming fan girls, it was impossible for them to understand each other. It was dark and everyone was dancing wildly while the booming sound of loud music continued. "What? I can't hear you!" Adrian yelled while closing his ears. And so, Ginfuko screamed back. "I said I'm sorry!" "What?" Adrian screamed while trying to get nearer to her. "I can't hear a thing! The music's too loud." Ginfuko sighed and shouted right at his ear. "I said I'm sorry!" Adrian finally understood what she had to say at last. His face turned into a worried frown and asked. "What? You're sorry, what for?" "I lost your bracelet!" Ginfuko yelled while tears were coming out of her eyes. "What? What did ya' say?" Adrian asked loudly in exasperation. Communication didn't go well in rowdy places like pop concerts. "Why are you crying?" Adrian yelled. People continued to scream while MNM sang his heart out while walking from left to right on stage. "I said I lost your bracelet!" Ginfuko yelled. "I'm really sorry!"
"What, you lost my bracelet? My grandfather's bracelet, you mean?" Adrian yelled back in surprise. "Yeah, I'm sorry!" Ginfuko screamed while tears streamed down her face. "How'd you lose it?" Adrian asked back loudly amidst the deafening environment. "When MNM held my hand!" Ginfuko explained loudly at his ear. "It must have fallen off! It was a little loose for my wrist!" "Oh no, my dad's gonna kill me when he finds out!" Adrian yelled back worriedly. "I'm not mad at you, don't worry! But I'll be toast when I get home!" "I'm really sorry! I'll go tell your dad that I lost it!" Ginfuko yelled back while putting her two palms near her mouth to increase the volume of her voice. "It's okay!" Adrian yelled back. "What? I can't hear? Gosh, the song's turned into rock now, and I can't hear a thing! What?" Ginfuko cried out helplessly.
"I said it is okay! It's not your fault! 'Twas an accident anyway, you didn't mean to!" Adrian yelled back. "Oh!" Ginfuko said while nodding. "But still! I feel guilty enough already!" "What?" Adrian yelled while continuing to cup his hands on both sides of his ears. "I said I'm guilty! I feel bad about it!" "Hey! What are both of you screaming about? You guys are not watching MNM sing anymore!" Mototake asked at the top of his voice. "Ahia, I lost Adrian's important bracelet! Must have fallen off when MNM took my hand! We can't possibly find the bracelet with all these people! And it's so dark, too!" Ginfuko explained while wiping her tears. "Oh… I'm sorry for that, Adrian." Mototake said while facing Adrian. "But it was an accident." He added. Then, Adrian replied. "I know!"
"Let's enjoy the concert! You won't wanna miss seeing MNM do his back-flip, would you?" Adrian shouted at Ginfuko with a radiant smile while caressing her hair. His voice couldn't possibly compete with deafening sound of the gigantic speaker beside them. "Don't think about it, okay? It's alright!" "Thanks, Adrian!" Ginfuko didn't hear everything he said, but the message got through her. She yelled with a small yet sweet smile. "You're really nice and understanding!"
And so, another hour passed by and now there was only one hour left before the concert ends. Everyone started dancing to the music again and everyone cheered when MNM did his ultra cool back-flip and cartwheel moves when his dance number came up. Then, MNM sang another one of his songs, I'm Cool, You're Hip. Everyone sang along with him. Even Amar and Adrian, who weren't even fans of him and were even reluctant to watch, had to admit that MNM had an amazing performance and they had a great time. Soon enough, Adrian and Amar became fans of MNM, too. He had such a strong appeal that even handsome guys would fall for him. And to think he was only fourteen.
After the concert ended, tons of fans still lined up to take more photos of MNM and others were struggling to get his autograph even if it was already past twelve midnight. Other more daring wild fans tried to go near MNM and embrace him but before they could do that, MNM's talent manager and the security guards did a barricade to stop them from passing. The girls were screaming wildly while trying to push the guards violently but in the end, they weren't able to. MNM hurriedly ran towards the backstage to escape from overly obsessed fans which freaked him out.
Ginfuko wasn't that desperate. She didn't join the crazed fans and decided to go home instead. It was already very late anyway. She knew that MNM must also feel exhausted after such an energetic concert and needed rest, too. "Clara, Risa…" Ginfuko called out. "C'mon! Let's blow this joint!" "Kay!" Clara shouted back while trying to avoid getting injured by a stampede of girls running towards the backstage. Nonetheless, the guards were firm in stopping them. And so, Ginfuko's four siblings and four friends went out the coliseum. They all had the best time of their lives and had so much fun and excitement, too. They all entered Ginfuko's family van for a ride home. Ginfuko's dad picked them up and was the one driving the car. He would bring Clara, Adrian, Risa and Amar to their respective houses.
"So, kids, how was the concert?" Ginfuko's dad, Kua Lo, asked while driving. "MNM was amazing!" Ayu screamed while looking like she was still having a mini-party of her own. Ayu was still dancing and waving her hands wildly while listening to MNM's songs from her earphones in full volume. Her dad laughed and said. "Looks like the concert's still not over for you. Glad you had fun." "Oh yeah! Oh yeah! MNM rocks! He was so handsome up close!" Ayu yelled while singing one of his songs. "Pa! I forgot to mention, Ginfuko was able to hold hands with MNM!" "Yeah! She's so lucky!" Risa and Clara said. "Whoa… wow…really?" Her dad asked in shock. And so, he asked. "Did you get called on stage or something, Ginfuko dear?" Ginfuko laughed and answered. "No… I went near the stage and I was one of the many other fans who were waving their hands while jumping! While MNM was singing, he bent down to touch all of our hands! He's such a cool unreachable superstar, and I got to hold his hand for like… a second! I'm so happy! I can't believe I had contact with him!"
The two eldest people in car, Mototake and his dad, Kua Lo, really couldn't help but laugh. They were the only ones who understood it in such a messed up way that the others couldn't even grasp. "You have no idea how wrong that sounded!" Mototake said while chuckling, clutching his stomach with his palm. "What do you mean?" Amar asked curiously. "Nii-san?" Little Sawana and Yoshiro asked innocently. "Wrong?" Ginfuko asked, not comprehending. "It is better you youngsters don't know." Ginfuko's dad said while still laughing. "Just never say that again." Ginfuko scratched her head and asked again. "Say what?" Mototake and his dad just giggled. "Shobe, never mind, forget what we said." Mototake said while addressing Ginfuko as 'little sister' in Hokkien.
"It was really fun!" Shrugging the thought, Amar and Adrian both expressed. Adrian said. "Amar and I aren't really fans of that MNM singer dude, and the only reason we came is to accompany our girl pals. But, after today, I might actually check out his songs. He's pretty cool indeed." Amar nodded in agreement. "Ooohh… the concert sounds so good; I wish I also went with you kids!" Ginfuko's dad said while smiling. "You should've really tagged along, otousan!" Yoshiro told him and addressed him 'dad' in Japanese. "I had work, remember?" Kua Lo said. "Anyway, he's having another concert!" Ayu said while she was shaking her shoulders and stomping her feet.
"What? Another concert? Here in Brunei? When?" Everyone chorused excitedly. "Why do you know so many things, shobe?" Mototake asked her. "Don't you know that I'm updated with American entertainment? I know everything there is to know about foreign actors, their tours and concerts, and their latest gossips!" "That's our Ayu. She idolizes everything Caucasian." Her dad remarked. Then he suggested. "My dear, why don't you try listening to Japanese songs, or Chinese songs? There are lots of handsome Taiwanese superstars, you know, in case you didn't already know about that." "Blondes with blue eyes are more attractive!" Ayu replied while humming another one of MNM's songs. "You should like your own kind, too, you know. Chinese, Japanese or Malay boys are also as attractive." Mototake told her and sighed. "But I guess there's no convincing you there, right?" "Right! Americans are awesome!" Ayu screamed while flipping her hair from side to side, swaying her head to the music.
"So anyways, he'll have another concert next Saturday! After that, he'll be going to Japan for another concert!" Ayu said while gloating. "Pa, can we go to Japan, too?" "You have school, Ayu." Kua Lo responded. "Aw…" Ayu grumbled. "It's okay; we can go to the next concert, right Pa?" Ginfuko asked hopefully. "You have exams next week, right? If you guys get high scores, then, we'll see." Kua Lo responded with a smile. "We'll definitely be going!" The kids cheered.
"But you know what's sad, Pa, is that Ginfuko lost the bracelet of Adrian, and it's a family heirloom! It must've fallen off when Ginfuko held hands with MNM." Mototake said sadly. Kua Lo was shocked and embarrassed at the same time. He said. "Adrian, in behalf of Ginfuko, I sincerely apologize…" "It's okay, uncle, it was accidental." Adrian replied with a smile.
"You know what I think; I think Sawa and Yoshi are too young for that concert." Mototake claimed. "No, we're not, nii-san!" Yoshiro said in protest, and then he asked his little sister. "You had fun, right, shobe?" "Yes! Sure did!" Sawana said while swaying her legs about in glee. "But still, it was so noisy and loud in there…" Mototake said with a sigh. "Yeah, I think these two kids are too young to attend concerts." Kua Lo, their dad, agreed. "But we're with ahia, achi and ditsi, and four of ditsi's close friends. Sawana and I have like…" Yoshiro was counting with his hands thoughtfully. "We have seven elder guardians! What could possibly go wrong?" Yoshiro addressed Ayu as 'achi', Mototake as 'ahia' and Ginfuko as 'ditsi', those of which were Chinese words for 'eldest sister', 'eldest brother' and 'second eldest sister'. "That's the reason why we allowed you." Kua Lo explained. "But, if you look at it, other than Moto, who, by the way, just turned eighteen, all of them are still minors themselves." "But you still allowed us…you allowed us, you still allowed us to go… to go.. to go…" Sawana chanted while clapping her hands merrily. That made everyone smile. "Sawa-chan's so cute!" Risa said while pinching her cheeks lightly. "I know; she's so adorable, right?" Clara made a second demotion while smiling.
After a while, they reached a full stop at Clara's house. "Clara dear, you're home." "Thanks, uncle." She said as she waved goodbye to everyone in the van. "Bye-bye! See you at school on Monday! I had a fun time!" She said while her mom came out of the gates to fetch her. "Thank you very much for taking care of my Clara." Mrs. Hakbar, Clara's mom, said in gratitude while waving. Not long after, Amar and Risa were already brought to their respective homes as well. "You're the last stop, Adrian." Kua Lo said while making a turn. "Your house is just in this corner, right?" "Yes uncle." "Okay… we're here." Kua Lo said. "Thanks a lot uncle, bye!" Adrian took his bag, got out of the van and opened the door of his house with his key. "By the way, I'm really sorry about that bracelet!" Ginfuko hollered while waving. "It's okay!" Adrian grinned as he slowly closed the door behind him. "Okay, it's time for us to go home, too. Yoshiro and Sawana are already sleeping. It looks like they were exhausted. It's already one forty-five A.M. after all." Kua Lo said while stepping on the pedal. "Ginfuko, Ayu, Moto, try to get some sleep first. I'll wake you guys when we arrive home." "Okay Pa!" They all chorused. The next thing you know, they were in deep slumber.
"Wake up sleepy heads, we're home!" Kua Lo said with endearment while carefully parking the van in the garage. Nina, Kua Lo's wife, came running down the stairs as soon as she heard the gate of the garage open and the sound of the moving car's engine. "Kua Lo, finally, you guys are home! What took you guys so long? I was so worried. I was about to call you. It's already two A.M. you know! I couldn't sleep; I needed to make sure that you guys got home first." She said. "Dear, I'm sorry for letting you worry!" Kua Lo said while getting out of the van. He gave her a light kiss on the cheek. "I still had to bring Ginfuko's friends home, remember?" "Oh, I see!" Nina responded while nodding, then she asked. "So? How was the concert?" "They said that it was the most awesome concert and they really had fun." Kua Lo told her. "That's nice! I'm glad the kids had fun today, even if it is very late already. Why, if it weren't for Moto going with them, I wouldn't have allowed! So, are the kids are in the van still sleeping?" Nina said. "Haha, yeah, they were drained tonight." Kua Lo said.
Kua Lo and Nina woke their kids up by lightly shaking them. "Wake up… you're home." Their mom whispered gently. Mototake was the first to wake up; he helped in waking up his other four siblings. Expectedly for a kid, little Sawana was crying and having tantrums as soon as Mototake woke her up from her deep sleep. Sawana cried so loud that the other three woke up in an instant. They tried to calm Sawana down but she kept screaming. "I'm sleepy! I'm sleepy! Why did you wake me up? I was sleeping!" She yelled with a very high-pitched voice that little girls usually had which was pain in the eardrums. "Honey, you can go upstairs, brush your teeth and sleep. Don't you like that?" Kua Lo asked while pulling her out of the van. "No! No! I don't wanna brush my teeth! I wanna sleep! I wanna sleep!" She continued crying while kicking them with her tiny legs. But, that didn't last long. After a while, Sawana eventually got tired of crying and fell asleep again. Nina had to carry her daughter to her room and let her sleep peacefully with no disturbance or any noise. The rest marched up the stairs and prepared for bed.
"That's it. Did you see that? Sawana's just a little kid, she can't handle staying up this late." Nina told her other four kids while Sawana was asleep inside her room. She was firm with her decision. "I won't allow a next time." "I agree with your mom." Kua Lo told them. "Aw… but shobe loved the concert! She was so piqued up and sang along with MNM! Ooohh it was so cool!" Yoshiro said. "I agree with mom and dad, Ayu. Concert's no place for little kids." Mototake said in agreement. "Maybe when she's older..." He added. "You can't go, too, Yoshiro. You haven't done your homework, have you?" His mom scolded while crossing her arms across her chest. "Aw…mom, but it's a weekend!" Yoshiro complained. "But still, we will still be going to church tomorrow and attend your cousin's wedding. You should've done your homework before you went to the concert. Good thing for Moto, Ayu and Ginfuko… they finished their assignments for the day…" Nina looked at the other three kids and reassured. "…right?"
Moto, Ayu and Ginfuko grew stiff all of a sudden and audible gulps were heard. "You didn't?" Nina asked in frustration. "You kids… you should finish your tasks before having fun." "Well, I'm nearly done with my research paper!" Mototake said with a grin while standing tall. "Uh… I… uh, forgot." Ayu was trying to make an excuse, but, in the end, failed miserably while scratching her head shamefully. "As for me, I'm done with Chemistry, Math and English. I still haven't studied for my Chinese test, but that's about it." Ginfuko said while smiling, then, she added thoughtfully. "Oh yea, almost forgot, and Japanese homework, too." "That's good! Japanese and Chinese are easy for you. But make sure you finish it by tomorrow morning." Her mom said and with that Ginfuko nodded, then, Nina asked. "Don't you guys want to go to Meili's wedding tomorrow? Oh…wait, it's already past midnight so technically it's not tomorrow, it's later today. She's just turned twenty-five and she's going to get married. I told you guys it would be tomorrow, right?" "Of course we wanna go, I've been waiting for it for a long time now!" Ginfuko said and addressed her cousin in Japanese. "I wanna see itoko-chan in a beautiful white wedding dress!" "Me too, I look forward to it!" Ayu said while raising her hands. "Me three!" Moto added.
"Is it going to be Chinese cuisine at the reception?" Yoshiro asked. "Of course! Your itoko's husband is also Chinese, so, yes." Kua Lo told his son in reply. "In that case, I gotta go!" Yoshiro said while punching a fist up in the air exuberantly. "We all love Chinese food and so does little Sawa-chan!" Moto said. "I can't believe you guys are going just for the food." Nina said while shaking her head. "No, we're not, mom!" They said altogether. "If you really want to go, you guys have to complete your assignments before noon. At noon, we go straight to the church, and the reception will follow at the evening. If you don't finish them, only your dad and I will go, and you guys have to be stuck at home studying. Do you like the sound of that?" "No!" They chorused again. "Then I suggest you better go brush your teeth and go to bed. Study fast, then we'll go." Their mom said. "Hooray! We will!" They said again as they hurriedly ran to bed.
Started: November 2010
How was it? THANKS AGAIN FOR DROPPING BY! Now.. a review would only take less than a minute. Thanks!