Kaneko Boa
18
Kaneko has always lived a privileged life, although it isn't because she's of high class. Her father is in some shady business which caused her mother to leave them when she was young. Growing up with her father, the two became very close and she became very spoiled; made to believe that she deserved only the best. Her father is a strict and scary man, it's no wonder no one ever tried to visit her. Kaneko was never allowed to date, even though she's 18 now, she's not allowed to have any friends over especially boys. It's a rule she's never broken and doesn't want to because she doesn't know how her father would react.

It was late and her father still wasn't home. This was normal for Kaneko though, her father usually would be gone for hours. Sometimes even days but he always called to let her know he was okay. Drying her hair, she got dressed in some shorts and an oversized sweater. Slipping on her tube socks and red converse, she walked out of the bathroom and tossed the dirty laundry in the basket before making her way to the living room and staring at the phone. Nothing, no ringing, no messages left. Nothing. It was enough to make her worry but she had to believe he'd be fine. "Maybe he's just really...really busy with work." She told herself. It wasn't the best work, what he did, but it was all he did. It was all he knew and yet she wasn't even sure how he had fallen into it. What had caused him to turn to such troublesome work?

It didn't matter. If the police had him, he'd still call. Though, there would be nothing she could do. Maybe her mother was right in leaving when she did. But why leave her behind then? Instead of thinking such sad thoughts, she walked to her bedroom and picked up her cellphone then quickly sent her father a text saying she was going for a walk. She couldn't sleep, not until he called or came home. So with that being sent, Kaneko made her way out of the house and locked the front door behind her after grabbing the key and stuffing it in her pocket. It was a nice night out, a little on the cool side but that was perfectly okay with her. The park wasn't too far from here, and so that was where she was headed. She knew it could be dangerous but being stuck inside her house all day with nothing to do was just boring.

The entire time Kaneko walked towards the park, she was checking her cellphone as if her life depended on it. Nothing. "What the heck?" She said quietly and that's when panic really started to set in. If he was in prison, he had a right to one phone call. What if he had called the house by accident? What if he had lost his phone? "Dammit dad, what are you up to?" Kaneko pouted as she stopped walking to think. Should she try calling him? What if he still didn't answer though? She stuffed her hands deep in her shorts pockets, gripping her cellphone in one hand and her house key in the other. She would wait another couple of minutes before she called. She needed to distract herself somehow. This was where having friends would be great, but seeing as how she didn't, she had to distract herself in other ways.

Kaneko resumed her walk to the park and once there, she looked around as if hoping someone would be there. But of course, it was abandoned. All the normal people were sleeping in their warm beds and here she was, out in the cold, sitting on a swing and looking at the stars in the sky. She always did have an interest for the stars, the constellations. She didn't know all of them, but she knew a few and she could usually find them with ease. "It's strange that depending on the earth's rotations, we see different constellations. Strange but cool." She said with a smile. She was her own friend.

All was silent, all was well. Except for her missing father who had yet to call, but it was okay. Worrying wouldn't do anything. Course if the tables were turned and she was the one missing, her father would send people to look for her and bring her home. She didn't have that kind of power over anyone though. The leaves in the trees rustled as the wind blew, sending a few loose leaves to flutter across the sky and to the ground. The sudden sound of a voice frightened her, she hadn't noticed anyone else was here. Kaneko gasped and quickly rested a hand on her chest to calm her beating heart. The chains of the swing rattling loudly at the sudden movement.

"I.." Her dark eyes looked around and landed on a male who was seated on the bench nearby. When had he gotten here? "Yes, y-you're right about that. No two constellations look alike. Well actually, the little dipper and the big dipper look the same but I guess they're different because one is bigger than the other." She noted. Kaneko wasn't sure why she had even said that, thinking back it sounded idiotic to state the obvious. He had spoken so she only felt compelled to reply but she didn't expect to keep a conversation going, he looked busy anyway. What was he even doing?

It was hard to tell from where she was, but he had a small bag with him and he was taking things out from it. It wasn't a food item though, that much she could tell. Whatever it was, was small. Kaneko tore her gaze away from him and looked down at her cellphone once she had relaxed. Her hair was still slightly damp from the shower, but the wind was clearly helping it dry off. There was a small tinking sound, or well the sound of something rubbing against something else. It wasn't very loud. What was he doing? And why out here? Why not in the comfort of his home? Maybe he didn't have a home. That was a sad thought to have.

When the male turned his head towards her, she saw him from out of the corner of her eye and it looked to her like he had a bandage on his face? It was hard to tell though but when she turned to really look, he was focused once again on whatever it was he was doing. Had he really not seen the stars lately? She wouldn't mind looking at the stars with him, but she didn't even know him. Kaneko was curious as to what he was doing, but would it be rude to ask? She remained on the swing and glanced down at her phone when she felt it vibrate. A text, it was from her father. Quickly she opened it and read it. He was fine and he was on his way home. He expected her to be there by the time he got there. She didn't text back, instead she let out a sigh of relief, her father was okay.

Looking back towards the stranger, she stepped off the swing; ready to take her leave. "Well I hope that you have some time to see them again. Although, they're hard to see sometimes because of all of the lights around the place. But when all lights are off it's really lovely." She started walking but stopped and looked back at him. "Um...I hope it isn't rude of me to ask but, w-what are you doing out here so late?" she asked him, deciding at the last minute to change her question. It was at that moment that she noticed the bandage was really there. It was hard to truly make out but it was a faint outline over his eyes. Great, now she felt terrible. "I..I'm sorry. Like...r-really sorry. I didn't mean to offend you w-with what I said earlier. I, I didn't know."

Herbal remedies? People still did that? So that was what he was taking out from the bag, herbs. She was right in guessing it wasn't food. "Sounds nice and relaxing." Kaneko answered quietly. Perhaps he found it relaxing, she wasn't sure she would. The only herbal thing she liked was herbal tea, and that was only sometimes. Though of course she liked herbs in her food as well to make it taste better but she knew nothing of herbal remedies.

Kaneko was relieved that he hadn't been offended, and she made a mental note to be careful about what she said next time to anyone she came in contact with. He seemed like a nice person, but even so, she wasn't going to let her guard down. It was dark and if he was awake, then chances were that others were probably still awake too. She quickly bowed her head in response to him even though it was pointless, but it was the polite thing to do. "Yes, that would be nice." She answered softly. The idea was silly, there was no way she'd see this person again. She didn't think so anyway. Kaneko watched the strange man walk away and after a while of staring, she quickly started to make her way back to her own home. Her father's car wasn't in the driveway when she arrived which meant she had beaten him to the house. Good.

Taking her key, she shoved it into the lock and unlocked the door. Pulling the key out and stepping inside, Kaneko looked outside once more to make sure she wasn't followed before closing the door and locking it again. The house was dark but it didn't matter, she would just wait for her father to return before turning in for the night.

The doorknob turned and in walked Kaneko's father who was surprised by his daughter running into his arms and hugging him tight. She had been so worried, but he was fine. He was here, and he was fine. He apologized for being late, but Kaneko knew it wasn't going to get him to arrive earlier next time. "It's okay, I know you have work to do and work comes first." She said, giving her father a quick kiss on the cheek. "You must be tired." She said, stifling a yawn of her own. "I'm exhausted. But come, you need to get yourself to bed. Don't worry about me. I'm just going to lock up, shower and then hit the hay." Her father instructed. Kaneko nodded and gave him one more hug which he returned and placed a kiss on her forehead. "Goodnight Kaneko." She smiled sleepily. "Goodnight dad." she whispered and left to her room.

Their home wasn't fabulous, but it was still pretty impressive. Her room was spacious, and her bathroom was nothing to complain about. Kaneko closed her bedroom door behind her, undressed and pulled on some pajamas then slipped under the sheets of her bed. She was sleepier than she though, which she found interesting since she wasn't sleepy at all back in the park. Maybe that was because she was actually doing something and then he showed up and she had someone to talk to. For a brief moment she thought of the stranger and wondered what had happened to him. That would remain a mystery though, she didn't think she'd ever be brave enough to ask. With that thought in mind, she fell into a deep and peaceful sleep.

"Kaneko, breakfast!" Her father called from the kitchen. "Be right there!" She called back. Kaneko sat up in bed and walked over to her window, opening the blinds to let the sun in. It was surprising that her father was here, usually he left early to work. Maybe he was running late. Quickly, she walked out of her room looking like a mess, but she still kissed her father's cheek. "Morning dad, sleep well?" Kaneko asked and took a seat at the table where breakfast was waiting for her. Her father had eggs, bacon, and pancakes and Kaneko had pancakes. The only way she'd eat eggs. "I did, what about you?" Her father asked.

Kaneko shrugged, "I slept nicely. I guess it's because you were home. I don't like it when you're not here you know." It was always the same conversation, she didn't know why she bothered anymore. Her father wasn't going to change, and she just had to accept that. He loved what he did and as long as he didn't get caught, she really couldn't stop him. "I know, but I always come home, you know that." Her father answered, taking a bite of his food. Kaneko poured some syrup onto her pancakes and then cut into them with her fork before taking a bite happily. Her father was right, even though he was late most of the time, he did always get home. She just didn't like having to stay up so late for him to return. "I know.." she replied quietly.

"Are you heading out later?" she asked him, continuing to eat. He nodded and checked his watch. "In a few minutes. What about you? Will you be fine?" He asked her. Kaneko was silent for a moment. She could go for a run before work. "I'll be okay dad. I have work remember?" She reminded with a smile. It wasn't something he was too happy about but it gave Kaneko another reason to leave the house for a few hours. "I'll be fine dad, I'll call you on my break like I always do." Kaneko promised, taking a sip of the milk she had been poured.

When breakfast was finished, it was Kaneko's job to wash the dishes while her father left to his room to get ready for his work. She still had plenty of time to kill before she had to show up at her job. Kaneko worked as a waitress in one of the local diners in town. It was pretty popular, known for it's delicious shakes so it could get packed pretty quickly. Looking up from the dishes she was washing, Kaneko stared out the kitchen window in front of the sink. She could see the neighbor's house across the street. No one seemed to be home though. Getting back to the task at hand, she rinsed out the dishes and set them down on the rack to dry.

Drying off her hands, she walked to the hall and almost bumped into her father. "Leaving?" she asked and frowned. "I'll try not to be so late this time. Have a good day at work Kaneko." Her father said and messed up her already messed up hair, giving her a smile that made her feel like a kid again. "Of course dad, you too." She said. "Of course." he replied then made his way out of the house, getting into his car and driving off to wherever it was that he met the others. Kaneko looked at the front door, glad that it had been locked on his way out. Turning around, she walked to her room and grabbed her uniform from the closet and lay it out on her bed. Stepping into the bathroom, she undressed and took a quick shower. She had plenty of time and she did want to go out for a job but it would probably be better to just go straight to work. Put in extra hours, get more pay.

After her shower, she stepped out and dried off then wrapped the towel around her body and walked out to her room where he work uniform was waiting for her. A red and white pinstriped dress with a white collar, white cuffs at the end of the short sleeves and a white waist apron. She quickly got dressed, making sure everything was straight and perfect. She slipped on some white socks and some red sneakers. Drying off her hair some more, she quickly brushed it while glancing at the time on her alarm clock. The final thing to do was put on the little cloth uniform hat. Once that was on, she walked back into the bathroom and brushed her teeth.

Kaneko picked up her dirty laundry and the towel when she was done and quickly dropped it into the laundry basket, making a note to do the laundry after work. Hopefully she wouldn't forget to do that. She grabbed her cellphone and house key then went back to her room to grab her purse where she dropped her phone into. With purse and key in hand, Kaneko left the house, locked the door behind her, and dropped her key inside her purse once again. It was time to head to work. Since she didn't have a car, she just walked to work.

The sound of gravel crunched beneath her sneakers while Kaneko made her way down the street looking every bit the working class. Looking at her, you wouldn't even think she was spoiled. Maybe because she didn't really dress that way. "I should have worn a light sweater.." She said to herself. It was still somewhat chilly despite the sun in the sky. She didn't mind it though, it was lovely weather that they were having.

(That's okay, would you like them to bump into each other on her way to work?)