M.A.R.

She rushed through the thick forest in the hot, humid air, pushing through the low branches so she could keep a clear view of the light that was shining thought the leaves. She couldn't help but laugh because she was having so much fun!

The boy behind her laughed as well as he watched his clumsy best friend trip over her own feet in this tropical forest.

Their hearts were racing, sweat plopped off of their round, childish faces in bucketfuls, their breaths were short and fast. The girl saw the light getting closer as she stumbled on. She was so excited because she was finally going to win the race! But what she didn't know was that the boy was giving it up for her. He really wanted her to win, who knows when the last time he'll see her is.

In a rush to claim her title, the little girl vacuumed up a deep breath of air and pushed herself faster and faster until she finally broke through the vivid green leaves.

"I won! I won!" she cheered in glee as she jumped up and down. The little boy smiled and sat down panting as the girl continued her winning applaud.

"Yay! You won!" the boy also cheered once he had caught at least some of his breaths. But he soon averted his gaze, his smile gone.

"Huh?" the girl stopped as soon as she heard the glum is his tone. She plopped herself down on the sand next to the boy. He turned to her with a fake smile. "Ritsuka? What's wrong?" she asked, worried.

Ritsuka looked away. He didn't want to tell her he was sad. Not on the last day. So he sucked up his emotions, smiled again, and shook his head. "Nothing's wrong, Ami. Why-"

Ami couldn't help it, she had to hug Ritsuka. He always thought of her before himself. Ritsuka blushed as she playfully rubbed their foreheads together and laughed.

"You know you're my best friend, right Ritsuka?" Ami stopped, but left her forehead on his. Ritsuka's smile vanished at that statement. He knew that no one on the island liked Ami for whatever reason and that's why she and her family are moving away to the big country. He turned away from her eyes to the grains of sand on the beach.

Ami's emotions ran wild at that moment. She was sad and mad, annoyed and curious all at the same time. Why didn't anyone like her? Why doesn't the daycare lady like her? Why don't the other kids in the daycare or her neighbors or anyone like her? Why? Ritsuka was nowhere near surprised when he started hearing soft cries in his ear and warm tears running down the side of his face.

"Why...don't...they...like me?" she asked between sobs. "You...like me... Right, Ritsuka? Why can't...they?"

Ritsuka couldn't answer because he didn't know why, either. He just knows that no one liked the little girl that was crying on his lap for the last time. He himself was already out of tears, but he still comforted her. Ritsuka knows that he's the only friend that Ami has and now she'll have to be alone again.

"You won't forget me, will you?" he asked as soon as she stopped crying. He looked down at her red hair and tightened his hug around her. She shook her head, her teary face wetting his. Ritsuka never thought that he'd have to lose someone like her. Someone he could call his best friend and truly mean it. Someone he felt so close to. What was so wrong with Ami that made this whole village-island dislike her, neither of the two kids knew. All they know is that it's going to break them apart.

Ritsuka sighed and laid his cheek on top of her head, facing the tropical sun. Ami smiled and kissed the cheek that was using her head as a pillow. The little boy blushed and turned back to face her.

"I love you, Ritsuka!" Ami smiled at her best friend, her round face glowing in the mid-morning sun. Its bright rays bounced off of her hair perfectly making her look like a sea angel.

Ami gasped in surprise as Ritsuka kissed her back on her forehead. She looked up at him, started, as the salty sea breeze teased his perfect blonde hair. "I love you, too, Ami." He smiled back.

"You won't forget me, will you?" Ami asked him, a little worried.

But Ritsuka answered with confidence, "Never." __________________________________________

"Bye Ritsuka!" Ami waved from the ship, gripping the photo of him in her hand. Her parents waved goodbye as well. They were grateful that their only daughter had a friend like Ritsuka. They were worried that she'd be left along because of the island's prejudice thoughts.

Ritsuka waved back at the boat that was sailing away, the photo of her safely stored in his pocket. His emotions were bittersweet. Sure, he was happy that Ami could make more friends, but he was also sad to lose her. "Bye, Ami..." he whispered out loud before he turned and ran into the forest. He wanted to get home quick before this freak storm hit.

"Ami, let's go into out cabin. I think it's going to rain." her mother urged. Ami simply agreed as she watched Ritsuka run into the forest. Ami's father picked her up before the wind got a chance to carry the five year old off into the crashing waves.

"Father..." Ami whispered as she was set down on top of the cabin bed. "Why do they hate me?" Ami's parents paused in their tracks. ________________

"We don't hate her, Ritsuka." His father stated, quite bluntly, as he wrapped his soaking son into a towel.

"Then why don't you like her?" Ritsuka questioned as he took the towel from his father.

Ritsuka's father stopped and looked at his son before he stood up and walked into the kitchen. "You're too young to understand." He muttered as he pulled out a pan from a drawer.

"I'm six, father." Ritsuka rolled his eyes.

"See? Too young." His father replied as he busily went to work on lunch.__

"Will I always be too young?" Ami asked as tears tugged on the corners of her eyes.

Her mother sighed and took a seat next to her daughter. "I'm sorry, honey. Sometimes some people just don't belong..." she cooed as she held Ami in her arms.

"But Ritsuka was my best friend! Does that mean nothing to anybody?" the little girl cried, tears dripping onto the smiling picture she still held in her palms.

"Oh, darling..." her father stroked her fine, red hair. "We know he was your best friend, but some things were just never meant to be."_______________________________________________________________

"So she was never meant to be my best friend?" Ritsuka questioned rhetorically.

"Now we're thinking positively!" his father praised, "Maybe she wasn't!"

Ritsuka didn't want to talk to his father anymore. He was only rubbing salt in the wound. "I just hope Ami gets to her new home safely..." he whispered as he watched the roaring wave's crash with the earth in the supernatural storm..._____________________________________________________________

"Attention everyone!" the captain called through the speaker system in an urgent tone. "Please remain in your cabins! The storm is bigger than we expected and we might have to turn this ship around!"

"We're going back to the island, mother?!" Ami asked cheerfully. She was so happy that she'd get to see Ritsuka again. She really wanted to go back even if she didn't belong. But her parents weren't as cheerful. They wouldn't mind going back to the island as long as they were safe. "Mother, does that mean we're going back to the island?" Ami asked again.

"I don't know. Mai?" Her mother held Ami tight in her arms, leaving her just enough room to put the picture of Ritsuka in her pocket. Both parents had something else running through their mind, something they thought was impossible. Ami's father rushed to look out the circular window, but he could hardly make out a thing in the harsh rain. Suddenly, the boat started rocking violently in the maddened sea and Ami screamed in terror.

"Mia!" Father called for mother as he lost his balance at the exact same time that the power went out. Mia tightened her grip on her daughter in the inky darkness as she called out her husband's name. She was afraid that he'd have broken something in his fall.

"Its okay, Mia, I'm fine." Father reassured as he mysteriously turned up from the darkness with a flashlight. Ami had just noticed that her mother was crying. Then she looked back at her father who sat down and sandwiched her between her mother.

The family sat there and waited for anything. Calls, warnings, some information, some help. But nothing came. Ami grew tired and nodded off now and again, but she wanted to keep herself awake so she could go back to the island and play with Ritsuka.

"Mother?" she called, but when she shined the light on her face, she found her mother asleep.

"Yes, sweet heart?" her father answered, instead.

Ami leaned on her father and yawned, "Do you think that Ritsuka is okay?"

"Ritsuka? The six year old boy on the island?" her father teased.

"No, the other Ritsuka." Ami stated sarcastically as she laughed.

He father laughed as well, "Well, he is on the island. He'll be perfectly fine." He promised in an all knowing voice.

"Are you..." Ami yawned again as she nestled closer to her father's warm embrace, "...sure?"

"100%" he kissed her head and smiled as he thought about how he had such a kind hearted daughter, even though she's only five. "Now sleep my little angel, we'll be home in no time."

Ami was puzzled by that statement. "Where is...home?" she asked, but her eyes shut before she could hear the answer...

She never really understood what happened next. All she could remember was her father shaking her awake, her mother sobbing all of her make-up off as she told her daughter to swim up as fast as she could, and then being shoved out of the window.

Ami slipped and fell on her bottom, the rain came down so hard it make her cry in pain, the thunder so loud it made her bones rattle. When she regained full consciousness she found herself sitting on the side of the boat, and the steel boat was sinking with her parents still in it! She looked back through the now closed window, and she tried to stand up in an attempt to get them out, too. But it only led to her fatal demise. The last expression she saw on her parents was that of pure terror...

Ami fell into the vicious ocean. She tried to stay afloat as wave after deadly waved pushed her into the deep waters. She was running out of breath and her head began to spin, but all she could do was think about her mother telling her to swim up. Whenever she would come up from the waves she'd gasp desperately for air only to be pushed back into the sea over and over. Seconds turned into an eternity, until, only moments after falling in, the sea had a claim on her soul. She fell deeper and deeper into the ocean and lost all consciousness...

When she woke up again, she felt strong arms holding her tight. She looked down to see a shiny, blue tail.

'A fish?' she thought, 'A fish with arms?'

Ami looked up and saw a boy who's bronze hair shined red in the setting sunlight. His green eyes matched the color of sea foam and he had sun kissed skin. But that was all Ami could make out as her tired mind fell back into sleep...____________________________________________________________________

"Father?" Ritsuka asked as he began on his breakfast. "So you think Ami and her family are okay?"

"You're already worried about them?" his father responded with obvious annoyance. "They just left yesterday! Enjoy the peace, why don't ya?" his father grunted. "If I were young, huh!"

"I know..." Ritsuka replied as he looked out into the calmed sea. "But... I just have this bad feeling... I hope Ami is okay..." Ritsuka couldn't help but feel as if something had gone terribly wrong...____________________________________________________________________