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Students around here say the Takei boys were just troublemakers and up to no good and that they made us all look bad here at Nabesho High School. Made the whole student body look bad in the eyes of the other schools in Kyoto. Whenever something bad happened, everyone always blamed the Takei boys.

That’s Takei like Ta-KAY-ee, not Takai like it was spelled in the newspaper article when spring began. Most of the information in that article wasn’t even true and I kept thinking about it when I came home. Just sitting under the blooming cherry tree those first days back, thinking about how that Takei name was misspelled. It had been warm outside and the delicate cherry blossoms were floating like feathers as they are now.

I heard that the Takeis lost their mother. Their father also by the time I knew them. Mr. and Mrs. Takei had died a few years before. People say they died in a car accident. The Takeis were left with no one but themselves and Haru was only three years old. Haru didn’t talk about them very much, so I never really knew how they died.

I sat under the tree for two days thinking about how we were so alike, yet we grew up to be so different. My mother died too, in a plane crash when she was headed to the U.S. on a business trip. Father changed after she died. I would come home to an empty house with a note on the table:

Sakura,

I have to work late at the office again. I left lots of food in the fridge, so eat up. Take good care of yourself, don’t stay up too late, and finish all of your homework!
Love, Dad

I guess father wanted to do everything he could to get away from the pain and sadness. He wasn’t really there for me as much anymore. I grew up without anyone to tuck me into bed at night or to cheer me up when I was feeling bad. And even though I’m sixteen now and can take care of myself, I know a little bit how the Takei boys felt.

Sato was the oldest. He was tough and had so many girlfriends I lost count. But I didn’t really know him that well. The twins, Reiji and Koji either, though they were only a year older than Haru and me. The three of them were the most immature guys ever and always sweet-talked their way out of trouble. One day at school, Reiji and Koji asked my friends and I to play basketball with them. I knew something was up, but Yuri-Chan insisted that we could take them on. I knew she really liked Reiji. It turns out that the twins only wanted to look under our skirts when we jumped to make a shot. We all slapped them good, leaving their faces red and burning. Haru said Reiji and Koji just liked to flirt with girls and to pay them no mind. I’ve never seen Haru flirt with a girl, not even once. The other three sure could.

The four of them were as different as sugar and salt. Reiji and Koji had light hair, but you couldn’t tell because they dyed their hair so many times. Those two had dark blue eyes like the dark depths of the ocean. Sato and Haru’s eyes were an even darker blue color. Almost purple- like the darker shades of the sky when night slowly crawls in. Sato had light brown hair too, but he always covered it up with a hat. What set Haru apart from the others was his pitch-black hair. When it hit against the light, the shine of his hair sprang out and could catch anyone’s attention.

When I noticed him again, after years of growing up and living somewhat alone- when I saw him again like it was the first time, standing in the morning sun by the front of the school, it was that shining hair that caught my eye. Gleaming at me like a polished jewel.

He was just there- leaning against the wall, staring at the ground, deep in thought. It was unusual seeing him of all people wearing the school uniform. He looked up, as if my eyes had stung him somehow and when he saw me looking, a smile grew on his face. He stood straight up and I sensed he was walking towards my direction. I got nervous and turned around, walking to Yuri and all of my other friends at the school gates. I didn’t stop to tie my shoelaces.

The ground was covered with my school papers scattered everywhere.

“Do you need help?”

“Oh, thank you Yuri-Chan.” But it wasn’t Yuri. It was Haru, kneeling on the ground looking right into my eyes, smiling. I was surprised that a person like him would help me pick up my papers, let alone come to school. His eyes were drawn to one particular paper.

“Do you need help with your homework? Maybe we can study together. Come by my house sometime, alright?” he was still smiling at me, those same soft eyes looking into mine. I started laughing. The thought of him helping me study was all too funny. Did he get better grades than I did? But then again, with grades like mine, anyone could. All of a sudden there was whistling and hollering coming from the courtyard.

“Wow, look at what Haru has found himself! Nice choice, Haru!” It was Reiji and Koji with their friend, Hachi Kazari.

“Don’t pay any attention to them!” Haru’s face was purple. “I-I’m not like my brothers, so please don’t judge me by them!”

Yuri heard all of the shouting and helped me up. She looked at me with a curious look. Probably wondering why I was with Haru. She and I walked to the school doors, with my papers stuffed messily into my bag. And Haru called back, “Nice seeing you again, Sakura Kazama!” I turned around and not knowing what to do, I smiled and said, “Same here.” The surprises never stopped. He remembered my name. We were only just classmates in the fourth grade. And what did he mean, don’t judge him? I hardly knew him.

I wondered why he said that to me and why it mattered to him what I thought. I was just a girl he knew in class, nothing else. But what he said kept coming into my head- as I would try to pay attention to Ms. Imamura’s equations on the board or just eating lunch with Yuri and our friends. Thankfully, Yuri didn’t mention anything about what happened with Haru and me. For a few days I kept thinking about Haru and his hair and how he looked at me. And then Yuri-Chan and the girls came over to my house and started planning what to wear at the annual Tanabata Festival coming up. Pretty soon, Haru Takei slipped out of my thoughts.