I didn't talk to Mom that night. I really should have but I didn't. I was too ashamed, embarrassed, and angry at her. She said she would be there, and she didn't. Everybody else had their parents and family there, and it was an embarrassment for Kotone's parents to ask, "Koharu-chan, where's your mom?"

I didn't even eat with her that night. When Mom told me to come down for dinner, I told her I already ate. I actually had a secret stash of Pocky in my room for occassions like this, and I lived on that for the rest of the night. 

The next day, I had to go back to school. I don't know why I thought everything would be normal.

I got to school, and I had just arrived in my classroom and was going to my seat when some classmates of mine ran up to me. They had never spoken to me in my life. "Koharu-chan~!" one girl sang my name. "Omedetou gozaimasu!"

"Eh?" I asked.

"For making 'Hanabi' and getting into Johnny's Entertainment!" another girl said. "It's so amazing!"

"Can we have your autograph?!" a boy asked.

I smiled nervously. "Anou, sorry, but I'm not signing anything."

"WHY?!" All of them asked. It scared me enough to make me back up towards the door. 

"Ah, well," I began making sure I still had my school bag. "We haven't even released a song yet, and we're not even famous yet--"

"You're a Johnny's," the first girl said. "Any Johnny's is infamous."

"Please! An autograph!"

"Just one!"

This was officially scaring me, and more people had come and surrounded me by now all asking the same thing. I couldn't take it. Before I knew it, I was running out of the classroom as fast as I could, and the mob followed after me. I paniced. 

I ended up skipping school that day. Instead, I ended up at J-Storm in Hanabi's lounge. I was only there an hour before Kotone walked in. "What are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same!" I said. "Why aren't you at school?"

"Do you know how hard it is to focus when everybody and their dog comes up to you and is asking for either your autograph, your bandmates' autograph, or Yamada Ryosukes' autograph?" Kotone nearly slammed her book on the table next to me. "God, I hate people."

"Isn't your school almost 16 kilometers from here?"

"Well, the train is an amazing invention. What about you? What happened to you?"

"I was mobbed. So I ran."

"Eh?" we heard. We turned and saw Nuria standing in the doorway, also in her uniform. "You too?"

"What are we going to do?" I asked outloud. "Any school we go to is going to be the same."

"So you were attacked too?" Nuria asked sitting down with me. "It's amazing! I just walked in the front gate and suddenly everybody was my best friend!"

Kotone also sat with us. "I don't know. I wonder if my parents would let me drop out."

"Mine won't!" I exclaimed looking at her. "If I dropped out, Mom would be furious! She might even threaten to pull me out of Hanabi!"

"Ah!" Aiko said walking in. "So I'm not alone. Thank goodness!"

"I'm going to be furious if Sora lasts until four o'clock," Kotone said. "If she doesn't get mobbed, not only will I not forgive her, but I'll ask for her immediate removal from Hanabi!"

"You can't do that," Nuria said. 

"Watch me."

Sora lasted until lunchtime. Then she came running in and collapsed on the couch. "Glad you could make it!" Kotone told her. "I was about to go all out on your if you didn't show up!"

"Kotone-chan, be nice," I told her. "What's with you today?"

"I'm pissed, can't you tell?"

Sora sat up and looked at her. "Well you have not been through what I have been through! I have been mobbed, attacked, almost assaulted, and annoyed to the point where I would rather scratch my eyes out!"

We suddenly heard a soft knock on our door, and everyone turned towards the door. Then we gasped. Nuria screamed. 

"Hello," Matsumoto Jun smiled slightly. "May I--"

"Oh my god!" Nuria exclaimed running up to him. "Matsujun, my name is Nuria Barreto and I'm a HUGE fan of you! I've watched all of your dramas and I love you and Mao-chan together and we were born on the same day and--"

"MY GOD NURIA SHUT UP!" Sora yelled. "I have a headache and you're annoying voice is not helping me in the slightest!"

Nuria looked back at her, suddenly embarrassed. Jun just laughed. "It's okay! It's nice to meet you too. I'm glad that I have a fan like you in the new infamous girl Johnny's group!"

Nuria's face turned bright red. I wanted to laugh.

"Matsumoto-san," Kotone spoke up nervously. "What brings you here?"

"There was a rumor that Hanabi wasn't in school. I was curious. Why aren't you in school?"

"We didn't really have a good day," Kotone answered. "Everyone came after us."

Jun nodded. "Ah, I can understand perfectly. Why don't you try transfering schools?"

"Where would we go?"

"You could go to Horikoshi."

Aiko gasped and looked at him. "You mean... we can actually go there?!"

Jun laughed. "Why not? You're idols now, aren't you?" He looked at everyone's confused faces. "Horikoshi High School is a school mainly for child idols and actors. It's designed to work with your schedules so that you can go to work and still be able to go to school. I went there. Hey Say Jump goes there now. I think Chinen and Yamada are getting ready to graduate in the spring. Why don't you talk to Johnny-sama, and see if he can talk to your parents? It'll help you out, and there will be a lot of kids in your situation. Just look at it. You might find you like it."

I looked at Kotone, who looked desperate to try anything. In all honesty, so was I.

--

"Mom?"

"Huh?" Mom asked as she made dinner.

"I was thinking," I started gently. "You know how I'm now an idol and everything? Well, we were thinking maybe it might be best if I transfered schools."

Mom stopped stirring whatever it was she was stirring and looked at me. "Why do you need to transfer?"

"So I don't get mobbed by people."

"Oh whatever Amanda!" Mom scuffed. "You're not going to get mobbed!"

"I was this morning!"

"You're exaggerating!"

"I AM NOT! Why don't you believe me? I had to leave school because no one would--"

"YOU LEFT?!" Mom yelled. "Amanda! Why would you leave school? You have to graduate and go to college! You can't afford to skip!"

"I know that! That's why I'm telling you--"

"You do not need to transfer schools. You will not transfer schools. There's nothing wrong with the school you're at now."

--

The next day, the same thing happened, only it was worse. Mom's words still rang in my ear, and I tried to make it so that I didn't run away from the school. But everytime a mob appeared wanting my autograph or something and I would turn away, they'd come after me and I would have to run and try to find a safe place. I couldn't even be in class! Being in class was too much of a distraction because everyone kept wanting to talk to me. 

But I knew that I couldn't transfer. Mom would not let me transfer. Kotone and Sora and Nuria and Aiko were all transfering, and I was stuck. And it hurt. 

"Hey Koharu!" a boy said coming up to me along with a few of his friends. "We want an autograph."

"I'm not giving away autographs," I told him as I was starting to leave. 

The boy grabbed my arm. "But we came all this way--"

"Let go!" I said getting my arm free. 

He grabbed me again. "I want a damn autograph!"

"Then get it somewhere else!" I was able to get free, but as soon as I started walking away, they ran after me. I ran for my life. It was the first time I was actually scared of my school. I ran right out of the building and went back to J-Storm and cried. 

For a while, I didn't even go to school. I would get dressed in my uniform, take Brian to preschool, then take the train to work. As soon as I got there, I would cry for a few minutes because I missed school. I just missed being able to go and be normal. Even when I first moved to Japan, I was treated like any normal student. Now it was nearly impossible to get on school grounds without being confronted or attacked. 

On the fourth day of my escape, I had another visitor. "Did you give up?" 

I looked up and saw Matsumoto Jun standing there looking at me. I shook my head. "I just can't go to school. My mom won't let me transfer, but if I go to school then nothing's going to get fixed."

Jun sat next to me as he listened. "Did you talk to Johnny-sama? Maybe he can help."

"He said to transfer, but I can't."

"There's no such thing as can't. There's only 'quit'."

I looked at him and realized he was right. Of course he was. But I felt at such an impass that I had no idea what to do. 

When I got home that night though, Mom was waiting for me. "Why haven't you been going to school?"

"Do you really have to ask?" I said. "I can't focus and no one will leave me alone."

"You have to go to school!"

"I KNOW MOM!"

"Tomorrow we're having a meeting with your teachers. The school called to ask why you weren't at school, and we're going to see what damage has been caused."

My stomach turned. 

--

The next morning, we went to school and immediately people backed off when they saw me with my mom. Mom must've thought I had been lying after all. But once we got inside the classroom and talking with Sadako-sensei, it presented a different story. The same story I've been telling my mom.

"We try to help Amanda-san," Sadako-sensei said. "But everytime she walks outside, people keep coming up to her and following her everywhere. Even inside the classroom the students keep bothering her. The students just don't listen to us, and it's really sad because Amanda-san's the one getting hurt in this."

"What do you think we should do then?" Mom asked. 

"A transfer might be best," Sadako-sensei suggested. "I believe there's a high school where a lot of idols and child actors go for school." She looked at me. "Have you heard of this Amanda-san?"

I nodded. "I've heard of it."

"Maybe you'd be better there."

Mom didn't say a word on the way home. "Amanda," she said finally. "What's this school called."

"Horikoshi High School."

Mom only nodded. "Okay."

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looooooong chapter~~

but it's done!!! ^.^ next chapter, the girls will officially start working on their song!!!

chapter seven is up!! tell me what you guys think!! comments are always welcome!!!!