chapter 4.

Ayumi was on her knees, still in trouble. There had been a phone call so her step-mother had temporarily stopped hitting her with the painful wooden stick. Tears rolled down her face, she was so scared. She went through this almost everyday, yet she couldn't get used to it. The thing that got her step-mother even more mad was that Ayumi would act perfectly fine 1 hour after her beating. She heard her step-mother. "Ayumi?! Who is this?! Why are you looking for her?! Did she do something wrong AGAIN?!" Ayumi sighed. Noone thought good of her, all because of her step-mother. Everyone thought she was a troublemaker, when really all she did was... nothing. Maybe a school teacher.. or the dumpling shop owner. No, she was sure she gave the man the exact amount of money, $3.49. Her step-mother yelled. "Yusuke?! I've never heard of you! No you may NOT speak to Ayumi, and don't ca--" Ayumi quickly sprang up on her feet. Oh no, how did Yusuke get her phone number? Oh, but she wanted to talk to him so badly. She would take anything over the stick. She walked over to her step-mother, and asked her quietly, with her head down. "May I please...?"

"Hai, ...Yusuke...?" Yusuke heard the familiar cute voice except it sounded different. A little tired, or beat down. "Oh, gomen, was this a bad time, I know it was kind of rude to call withou--" "No, it's okay, it's nice to hear from you..what do you need?" Yusuke remembered the strict and kind of mean person who had picked up the phone. "Was that your mother who picked up the phone? You sound a little tired." "Hai, I'm just a little-- AYUMI! I SAID, TWO. MINUTES. DO YOU NOT UNDERST-- you know what, I gotta go, I'm really sorry." Yusuke was worried. "Ayumi, are you okay? Who is that? Why is she yelling at you? Ayumi? Ayumi?" Yusuke hung up the phone as he realized she had already done so. Yusuke wrote down the newly discovered phone number and copied down the address on a piece of paper. He grabbed his coat and ran out of the kitchen.