Sana faces the turmoils of emotions alone, until she met new nakamas.
They had a bad start, though, especially from a certain peach.

TW: mention of death (minor character)

The past few days went by like a blur for Sana who had just turned 14 last week. She is sitting at the back porch of her grandmother’s house, overlooking a huge pond of koi fishes with neatly trimmed bonsai trees. For the first time after she arrived in Japan, she can finally find peace. She excused herself after breakfast and found herself walking unconsciously to this beautiful place. The girl took a deep breath, trying to calm the currents of emotion playing in her head. There were too much going on in just a matter of days and Sana only wanted to remember the good memories, memories of her father…

Drops of tears fell down her eyes like a broken tap, wetting her cheeks and shirt as the girl silently cried the loss of her father for the first time after the shocking news. Her father, her kind and lovely father, was met with an accident in his hometown during his work here. It was so sudden for everyone, that little Sana didn’t have time to process the news in her blurry head. She blindly followed her mother, who surprisingly, didn’t shed a tear either, as they rushed to the airport. She only remembered her mother’s deep frown and red eyes while holding her hands tightly, never letting go even once.

She was met with her grandmother’s teary face as soon as she reached a big Japanese-styled home, welcoming her in an embrace she always loved, but this time she felt the difference. It was sad, and lonely. The whispered apologies of her grandmother filled her ears as she broke the news that her father was already gone. Sana didn’t let go of her grandmother throughout the mourning and cremation process, clinging to her as if her life was in the old woman’s hand, watching forlornly as her mother handled everything with swollen, wet eyes.

She didn’t understand it then, but now realization finally dawns on her that she had lose a precious person. A hero she once looked up to and depended on, had disappeared and left her. Sana hugs her knees closer to her chest, grieving on her own as tears continue to flow together with an aching heart, her whole body trembling in muffled sobs.

A hand found its way on her quivering back, startling the girl as she whips her head to the person, only to be met with the gentle smile of her grandmother. She pulls the little girl in a hug, humming a tune that was familiar to Sana. The girl followed, mumbling the words she knows by heart.

“I know this song.” She said in between her sniffles, the older woman letting out a soft laugh while patting her one and only granddaughter’s back. It was what her dad always sings to her when she can’t sleep at night.

“It was a song I heard in the past, when I was carrying your father in my tummy.”

Sana smiled as her grandmother rubs her stomach with a lovely grin, “Your father was always a kicker, he never stayed quiet but whenever the radio played this song, he would calm down and stayed silent. I never understand the foreign words, but the tune somehow got stuck in this illiterate brain of mine. I will hum this song as a lullaby for your father, and as he grows up, that smart little young man had found the real song and memorized it himself.”

A sad giggle came from her grandmother, a lone tear dropping from her eye.

“Papa really loves that song. He would sing it in his awful voice whenever he wants to annoy me and mama,” Sana laughs at the memory, “But I love it the most when he sings it during my bad days. He just knows how to cheer me up and makes me happy again.”

Again, tears automatically fell. Her grandmother cooed, wrapping her arms around the fragile body as they cried together. The days went by solemnly for the whole family, her mother finally having the time to rest and give Sana the attention she needed after handling the family’s affair. During dinner however, her mother and grandmother got into a small dispute as the former mentioned about returning back to Korea.

“We’re going back soon, mother.”

“Already?” A frown appeared on the old woman’s face, “We’ve discussed about this, didn’t we? Don’t you think it’s too soon?”

“I know, but… We still have a life over there.”

The ticking of clock filled the room, along with the clinking of their bowls, before Sana’s grandmother sighs deeply.

“Have you considered my offer?”

“I don’t want to impose on you too much, mother.”

“Nonsense!” Her grandmother huffed, “You are a family to me as much as your husband is!”

“But –”

“Have you thought of Sana?”

Her ears perk up at the mention of her name, fully understanding every word exchanged from the other occupants of the table. She doesn’t want to interfere, even if deep inside she wants everyone to have dinner peacefully. She notices her mother’s down casted look as she avoided the old woman’s stare.

“I can take care of her on my own.”

“Are you really able to?”

The conversation stops as they resume dinner, with Sana wondering why her name was being mentioned several times. However, the idea of going back home sends a spark of gleam in her eyes. She misses her house, where things weren’t so foreign for her to do the things she likes. Her thoughts drifted back to her home when a face appeared in her mind.

Tzuyu.

She wondered what her bestfriend is doing right now. Does she miss her? Was she surprised Sana had to go to Japan so suddenly? Did someone tell her about uncle? Tzuyu is close to her family, especially her dad. He would sometimes join them playing or bring them to a nearby park for a small picnic together. Her friend did mention that her father is really nice for treating her like another daughter, even forcing Tzuyu once to call him “Papa” too instead of uncle.

“Come on, Tzuyu… I want to hear you call me Papa!”

“B-But… I can’t.”

“Why not?” He whined, it almost resembling her friend. Tzuyu rubbed her nape apologetically. “Because you are Sana’s papa, not mine.”

“We can share!” Sana excitedly suggested, gaining an agreeing nod from the handsome man.

“But I don’t want to.” Tzuyu said with a bit force as she averted her gaze to the ground. “I still love my dad… even if he’s not here anymore.”

They were caught startled with her statement. The father-daughter shared looks, before Mr Minatozaki patted Tzuyu’s crown with a smile.

“Alright, then! I’ve decided to let you call me uncle instead. Is that okay, Tzuyu?”

Tzuyu shyly nod as she was met with the grinning face of Sana’s father, the exact copy of her friend which had the same aura that yells “I won’t take no for an answer”.

“I can’t hear you, Tzuyu.” The way he asked wasn’t that of authority, more of a playful father who wants to mess with his kid. One of the things Tzuyu was fond of.

“Yes… uncle.”

As hard as it was for Sana, her friend must have felt worse. At least, Sana still has her mother. Tzuyu must have gone through the same sadness when she had lost both her parents and Sana didn’t feel alone for the first time. She knows Tzuyu will be there for her and they will get through this hard time together. She can’t wait to meet her bestfriend, can’t wait to be home and mess with granny, can’t wait to spend time with Tzuyu.

That is, until another bomb had been dropped. Her mother had decided to live with her grandmother for a few more weeks, until everything is fully resolved. She didn’t get to say, didn’t have a say in it because she wouldn’t understand. She’s still a kid, as her mother stated when she put up a tantrum. She was pacified by her grandmother, saying it is for the best, and for her own sake too.

Sana feels betrayed by her family for the first time. She was ignored by her mother, while her grandmother tried her best to pacify Sana whenever the girl made a strike of her discontentment by giving them silent treatment and refusing to eat for days. But Sana is only a kid at heart. She didn’t have the heart to give her mother the cold shoulder, not when the latter had been trying her hardest to look for a job the whole day and crying to sleep at night. Sana is only a kid, but with a good heart. She made up with her mother after peeking through her room every night, and apologized to her grandmother after finding the old woman hugging her father’s portrait to sleep.

Things didn’t go so well, but Sana tried her best to behave and be the good child she is, as she once promised to her dad when she was seven. She kept that promise to her heart, the one thing that keeps her from lashing out from dissatisfaction. Perhaps, if she’s being a good child, they will go back faster.

A month had past, and Sana was still waiting for nothing while her mother had been too busy searching for jobs. The next week, her mother had decided to put Sana in a school nearby. She protested, her question mainly on when will they be going back to Korea had fell on deaf ears. She reluctantly went to the new school, the unfamiliar faces almost made her run away on her first day. But she remembered Tzuyu, and wished she was there too. This must have been what she felt too when she got to Korea a few years back. The only exception was Tzuyu got Sana back then, but she had no one here.

She found a playground on her way back to school and decided to stay since the sky is pretty that evening. She wondered if the sky is the same in other places, if the view is the same back in her previous house, if Tzuyu is watching as well. She laid on the covered slides with a hand supporting her head, as she let the tears fall along with her loneliness. She misses Tzuyu and granny, the one who’s there when she got no one to play. Her grandmother is kind, but she’s a working woman, and now her mother is doing the same too. There was no point in going back home, there was no one in that house either and she’s not in the mood to be cooped up in her empty room.

Sana sits on the swing, her legs pushing in slow tandem as she remembered a memory with her father, a small smile adorning her gloomy face.

"Sana, aren't you bored?"

"No, papa. I'm playing, see?" Little Sana raised her small fingers with a rubber band tangled, making shapes from her own imagination.

"But I'm bored." The man juts his lower lip out, Sana mirroring him as she stood from lying on the floor.

"Papa, you should rest. You just got back from Veronica."

He laughed, crouching next to his daughter before pinching her cheek. "It's America, honey." He pulls the reluctant Sana up. "But I want to play with you. Let's go to the park?"

"Ehh? But mama said I can't, I have homework to do."

"So you want to make papa sad, now?" The man feigned a hurt expression, causing Sana to giggle from his childish act. "Okay... but can Tzuyu come with us?"

"Of course! The more, the merrier! I miss our Chewy too."

Sana happily jumps on her feet before rushing off to the house next door, yelling for her friend's name. They went to the park, like ninjas of course, hiding from the red monster and old witch for ditching their unfinished homework. They played happily, mostly the girls pushing the man on the swing with no success, since he's too heavy with their strength combined. Nevertheless, they had fun, because her father knows how to make them entertained, even though he's still suffering from jet lag that day.

"It's good to get some fresh air once in a while. That way, you can do your homework easily." He pats them both on their heads, a gentle grin on his face. "Remember that always, okay kids?"

"Yes!" They both said together, laughing together with the man who suddenly start a game of tag, chasing them all over the park.

Sana wipes her eyes, gripping the chains of the swing tightly, as she clings to the vague memories of her childhood. Of her father, who she misses the most.

It was the same routine every day, some sort of a coping method for her to get through her grievances as well as disappointment for having no one to listen to her. However, that day she was met with two unknown faces of her classmates, which she didn’t bother to know because who cares anyway. Well, her classmates did of course, because they seldom had a new transferee coming in the middle of the semester, moreover of a native coming from another country. Much to her chagrin, these two girls decided to pop her bubble of solitude and tried to invade her space.

“Umm, ano…” Sana narrows her eyes at the intruding, gentle voice. “Are you okay?”

She raised her head to be met with a timid girl who got startled and takes a step back from reflex. Another girl with short black hair and bangs covering her eyes is standing closely behind the cowering girl with crossed arms, looking particularly uninterested with a lollipop in .

“Excuse me –”

Sana quickly cuts the timid girl with a shake of her head, “I’m fine.”

Not in the mood to interact with people, Sana jumps on her feet and slings her bagpack on her shoulder as she walk away, only to be stopped by a shout.

“Oy! Where is your thank you?”

She turns around, the girl with lollipop is approaching her while her other friend is trying to calm her down. She ignores her timid friend as she stops in front of Sana, her angry eyes piercing.

“What?”

“I said,” She takes a step forward, their nose almost touching. “Where is your thank you?”

“For what?”

Both of them are not backing down, until a pull on the lollipop girl’s arm made the latter caved in, not before glaring at the bored-looking Sana.

“Your manner .” She spats before pulling her timid friend to leave. “I told you, Mina... you shouldn’t waste your time on that new girl.”

Sana silently watched as the girls bicker among themselves, not finding their presence interesting as she too headed home. She sees the familiar girls in her class the next day, but paid no heed. Until she was assigned to a group project with them.

An annoyed click of a tongue made her look up, “We’re sitting here so move.”

Sana slowly made some space for the girls to sit around her table. Their eyes meet again in a glaring contest, until the timid girl clears for their attention.

“I’m Myoui Mina.”

Sana gives a slight nod, “Minatozaki Sana.”

“Nice to finally meet you, Minatozaki-san.”

“Sana is fine.”

Mina gives her a shy, gummy grin before turning to her friend frowning at their interaction. Mina nudges with her elbow, prompting her friend to sigh and introduce herself reluctantly.

“Hirai Momo.” She said with a bored expression as she flips through their notes. Feeling brave, Sana decides to return her remarks from yesterday.

“Your manner , too... you know?”

Momo paused her idle flipping of pages, eyes already shooting daggers. “What did you say?”

“Oh, she’s also deaf. How troublesome.”

She abruptly stands up in anger, “Ha?! Why you –”

A fight ensued between them despite Mina yelling for the girls to stop, resulting in a swollen cheek and a bleeding nose with three days detention for both of them. Sana is again reprimanded by her mother once she reached home. It was the first time she had ever caused a problem at school and her mother was perplexed by her unexpected behavior.

“What is going on with you, Sana? Why are you doing this?”

She shrugs, feigning ignorance. “I didn’t do anything. She started it.”

“Well, I don’t care who started it. You’ve never behaved like this, Sana.”

The girl remained quiet, causing her mother to sigh deeply while pinching the bridge of her nose. She already had too much in her hands to even withstand her daughter’s rebellious play, assuming she’s going through her puberty stage at this age.

“Fine. Have it your way.” She waves her hands dismissively, “As a punishment, I want you apologize to the girl and –”

Sana quickly stands on her feet to disagree, “What?! Mama, no!”

“Listen to me young girl, or I’m grounding you!”

Sana is shocked to hear her mother raising her voice for the first time with a finger pointing directly on her face. She quickly turns on her heel and strides to her room, ignoring her mother’s shouting.

“Sana? I’m not done with you yet! Listen to me –”

She stops by the door, twisting her body around in anger. “You never listen to me so why should I?!”

Her mother is stunned from Sana’s outburst, her wide glaring eyes turning soft from her daughter’s quivering lips.

“You know, papa never raised his voice at me but you…”

Her lips turn into a straight line as she clenches her jaw in disappointment before running to her room, unaware of the way her mother is trembling from shock and guilt. The relationship of mother and daughter soon begins to waver as both avoid the other; Sana’s mother too preoccupied with her part-time jobs while the girl refused to face her mother due to her stubbornness. Her grandmother noticed the strain but there was nothing she could do to help as she too was too caught up with her daily job of a shopkeeper.

Sana is approached by Mina during lunch break the next day, the girl takes her own sweet time as she eats her lunch without saying a word. Sana is confused, her eyes frequently glancing at the newcomer who, surprisingly, enjoys her food despite the awkward silence between them.

“Where’s your friend?”

Mina was surprised to hear the question, Sana noticed, but she keeps her composure calm. “Momo?”

“Yeah, that peach.”

“She didn’t come today.” She grins, albeit politely, from the hinted joke. Sana slowly nods, acknowledging the answer as she pokes a piece of carrot. “Why are you here?”

The blunt question startled the newcomer as she whips her head to Sana, before panicking while rushing to pack her stuff.

“Oh! I-I am really sorry… I just –”

Sana puts a hand on her arm, stopping the girl from making a mess and leaving her side.

“Hey, you can sit here.”

“B-But… you were –”

This girl is really quick to jump to conclusion, Sana thought. “Did I ask you to leave?”

Mina takes a few seconds to answer as she slowly shakes her head, “No?”

“Then, sit.”

Sana pulls her gently back to her previous spot as she return Mina’s water bottle and lunchbox back to its respective place. Mina contemplates for a while, but after Sana juts her lips to her lunch, the former resumes eating. It was silent again, but Sana doesn’t mind.

“You’re not eating?”

She turns to Mina, the girl pointing to her untouched food. Sana shakes her head with a small smile, before a thought came.

“You want some?”

Mina watched her with open mouth, probably baffled with the kind gesture, before smiling widely and helping herself with Sana’s lunch. She only takes small pieces but it helps Sana to finish her food at least, that is if her appetite permits.

“I’m not Momo so I don’t think I will be able to finish that.”

Sana raised a brow, “What do you mean?”

Mina laughs in response with a hand covering her full mouth, “If you share your food with Momo, it practically means you’re giving her the entire food instead.”

“Is that so…” Sana slowly nod, a smile unconsciously appeared from hearing Mina’s cute giggle.

“Oh, it’s almost time for class.”

They both clean up without exchanging words, only stealing glances to see where the other is going. As if working telepathically, they walk together side by side to their class. Mina gives her a grateful smile as she saunters to her own seat and leaving Sana to her own.

The latter suddenly feels light, her body isn’t as stiff as it was before and her mind feels free from the cluttered mess of her whirlwind emotions. It might have to do with her interaction with Mina, she thought. She paid no mind to the thought however, reasoning that the girl must have been lonely and alone rather than wanting to befriend her. She’ll definitely stay away from Sana after that rude friend of hers attends school tomorrow.

However, much to Sana’s surprise, Mina appeared again. She is alone again, only this time she takes a seat beside her with a frown. Sana noticed her teary eye along with a red nose.

“What’s wrong?”

The girl only shakes her head with a small smile, a forced one, Sana realized. Wanting to cheer up the girl, Sana offers her lunch again.

“Want to share?”

The girl sniffs before wiping her eyes, giving Sana a nod and a smile. They eat together in silence, Sana wondering what happened for the girl to have that sad expression on her. Just as they were about to return to class, Sana heard a couple of running feet approaching them. Suddenly, Mina slowed her steps and hides behind Sana. She holds Sana’s sleeve tightly, as if scared of the group of boys coming their way. Sensing eyes and whispers directed to them, Sana raised her head with an intimidating stare as she engraves each of their faces in her memory.

Mina is missing during lunch the following day, which was expected since Momo had finally show up that morning, albeit late which resulted in the girl standing outside the class while holding a bucket of water as punishment. Sana doesn’t give a care as she gobbles her meal which was exceptionally delicious that day. However, her alone time is interrupted when a ruckus happened nearby. She thought of ignoring it but a familiar scream caught her attention. She rushes to the site, only to find Momo being surrounded by a group of boys whom she recognized as the ones she saw yesterday; the group that made Mina recoiled and hid behind her back. Speaking of the girl, she can see Mina trembling and cowering behind Momo, tears covering her face.

All of a sudden, Momo was punched by a boy taller than her. The girl seethes as she wipes her bloodied lips, hastily attempting a kick on the boy. He easily dodged with a smirk, before motioning for the other two boys to hold the girl in place. Sana doesn’t know what possessed her, but she sprints as fast as she can before the boy managed to land another hit on Momo, slamming her small body on his tall figure. Sana quickly gets on her feet before the boy could and with a strong swing of her leg, she kicks his balls. The boy screamed in agony, attracting the attention of a teacher on duty.

All of them were called to the office, Sana included. They were given another warning and a letter which was to be given to the parents. Sana sighed as she stared worriedly at the piece of paper, wanting nothing more than to shred it to pieces and throw them into the drain.

She stops by the park, mindlessly sitting on a swing as she contemplates whether to tell the truth or lie. Taking a deep sigh, she decided to face her mother and brace herself for another earful of nagging. Just as she was about to leave, she heard her name being called.

“Sana!”

She turns around, finding Mina and a frowning Momo jogging towards her. She glanced at the short-haired girl, the cut on her lip had been covered with a patch of plaster with cartoon characters.

“Are you going home?”

“Yeah.” She gave a short answer.

“Well,” Mina put both hands on her back as she nervously faced Sana, “I want to say thank you for earlier… and sorry for getting you in trouble.”

Sana waves her hand dismissively, “It’s nothing. I’m glad you’re okay.”

She gives a small smile to the shy girl, the latter mirroring her gesture. Then, Mina turns to Momo who acted like Sana was invisible, motioning the girl to say something too. She hesitantly approaches the waiting girl before reaching out a hand.

Sana raised a brow, confused with the gesture. Sighing loudly while rolling her eyes, Momo grabs the puzzled girl’s hand and hold it in a firm handshake.

“Thanks, you know…” She mumbled while rubbing her nape.

“You really need to work on your manner, peach.” Sana replied, but with a teasing smirk. The girl huffs as she released Sana’s hand with a bit of force, albeit the ghost of smile playing on her lips. Seeing their interaction, Mina comes in between and clings to their arms.

“So, that means we’re friends, right?”

A/N:

Yes Mina isn't it obvious already? Welcoming MiMo into the story! *standing ovation* The next few chapters will be MiSaMo timeline in Japan. Anyone can guess how SaMo is going to happen?

Btw, the song Sana hums is My Way by Frank Sinatra. Give it a listen while reading the beginning scene! (I cried)

If you're confused with the time skip, please ask and I will try to explain as best as I can. For now, Sana is in middle school (14 y/o) but I don't really follow the real grading system since it's fiction. Let your imagination run wild, people!

Side note: Condolences to the passengers of Indonesian flight SJ182 and their families. My prayers goes to them.