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A week after their secretive friend group indulged in salty soba and sweet chocolate savories, Sophie organized another time to meet with Ash and Nobu in the Kaiken Sushi Restaurant in near Seiya High School. Known for their supremely delectable dragon rolls, Sophie longed for the taste and wanted to enjoy it with her friends. However, after checking her cellphone constantly for her secretive group chat with Ash and Nobu, she noticed Nobu hadn't sent or read a message after that day they met up. Bothered by his unnatural behavior, Sophie decided to text him a check-in message to ensure that he was safe.

It was Sunday afternoon, and Sophie attempted to send the message while she walked down the streets near Seiya High School for a club meet-and-greet. With her school uniform and laptop bag strapped around her shoulder, Sophie remained calm; her club members were filled with upperclassmen that were popular amongst their friend group. Before she sent the message to Nobu, a text message from her brother Naoto came aloft to her phone.

"Hey. Yakisoba tonight, Mom asks?" Naoto texted.

Sophie's mouth began salivating at the thought of homemade yakisoba. Her favorite type of yakisoba was her mother's, stir-fried together with spicy chilis and organic broccoli. Sophie texted back immediately, replying "Hell yeah, be home tonight early!" With an enthusiastic smile, Sophie's spirits were lifted just thinking of homemade family food. She swiped Naoto's message away and began finishing her text message to Nobu.

"Oi," The voice of a nearby gangster wearing a tattered white tanktop approached Sophie with a green glass of beer in his hand. He and his lackey began surrounding Sophie from the front. "What's a cute little schoolgirl like you headed off to, hmm? You lost?"

Sophie stood her ground, using her strength to fight back against the gangsters. "Where does it look like I'm going?" She angrily swayed herself aside, holding tightly to her laptop bag. "Can't you see what I'm wearing?"

"Yeah… school outfit, long red hair, curvy body… the rebellious type, I'd guess," The gangster described. He stared at Sophie's laptop bag as he blocked Sophie's path down the street, holding onto her shoulder. "Say… what's in the bag? I'm curious."

"None of your business!" Sophie cried, shoving the gangster's hand off of her. She reared her right leg back and swiftly kicked the gangster in the genital area, causing him to squeal and clench them together in pain. The second gangster snatched both of Sophie's arms and lifted her off of the ground. "Let me go! Let me go, damn it!" She yelled.

"Fucking bitch," The second gangster mumbled. "Shut up and give us that stupid bag!"

"Ooh, she's a feisty one, all right," The first gangster complimented after regaining control of his pain. He cracked his knuckles and began approaching Sophie with a sniveling snicker. "Hold her still. I'm gonna teach her a lesson about respecting your elders."

Before the man could swing at Sophie, she used her legs and kicked him back towards the ground. She scanned the arms grappling her from behind and noticed the gangster's hand was exposed. She chomped down on his finger and freed herself as the man yelled in absolute pain.

"Goddamn it, I'm gonna kill you!" The gangster yelled, backing up and clutching his bleeding finger. His back collided with an unknown tall shadowy figure standing behind him. The gangster turned around noticed a black-haired suited man grinning at him in a neutral state. "Huh? Who the hell are you?"

"Me? I'm her father." The man lied. He delivered a swift punch to the gangster, sending him flying to the ground. He pulled out a pistol from a side-holster and pointed it at both of the delinquents, smiling at them. "And I suggest you get away from my daughter. Surely you all have better things to do than harass innocent girls on the street. I thought you gangsters were more honorable than that."

Both of the gangsters whimpered in fear at the sight of the man's pistol. "We're sorry! Don't shoot! We're sorry!" They cried, sprinting away into the alleyway from where they came from.

The mysterious man stood beside Sophie with his pistol still drawn at the alleyway. After several seconds, the man placed his pistol away and sighed. "Seriously, what is with all this unnecessary chaos?" He asked, shaking his head. "You've got these people who think they own the streets, but at the mere sight of a gun, they pretend as if they never associated with them. Straight up pitiful, if you ask me…"

Sophie recognized the man immediately based on his voice, suit, short hair, and facial features. "You…" She whispered, squinting at him. "You're that guy we ran into last week at our school."

"Oh, that's right!" The mysterious man wagged his finger at Sophie, chuckling at her response. "I could have sworn you looked familiar. You were with that rough delinquent in the hallway! Boy, I'm sorry that you had to deal with that. As much as he is, I know how much trouble he must be for you-"

"He's actually my friend," Sophie interrupted, holding onto her bag tightly. "And I remember you were looking at my other friend with some perverted stares. What was that about? And what the hell were you doing at our school?"

The mysterious man scratched the back of his head and trailed his eyes away. "Ah, shit… you think I deserve that attitude with all those questions after saving you? And calling me a pervert? Man, what is with kids these days…"

"You gonna answer me?" Sophie asked. "And how do I know you weren't following me this entire time? Sure, you just happened to magically appear behind me and save me from this. Is that what you want me to believe?"

The mysterious man moved close to Sophie and looked into her eyes with a playful stare. "You can believe whatever you want, sweetheart," He said. "I'm not here to mince words, but I just happen to be going to your school again. You should thank me. I'm a guard."

"Guard for what?" Sophie pressured. "Our school doesn't need guards. We already have police, and I don't see a badge on you."

"Yeah, well…" The guard nodded and moved away from Sophie with his hands clapped together. "Some people need our help. I suggest you clear your mind and open your eyes a bit more. Don't want to have to tell you straight up. It's a sensitive topic. You should think back to when you first saw me," He said, stepping back towards the sidewalk towards the school. "You have a keen eye, by the way. Stay out of trouble!"

As the man walked away, Sophie clenched her bag tightly once more and swallowed a large amount of saliva. "He's a guard… but for what?" She whispered to herself. "Keen eye… what does that even mean?"

She shook her head to break free from her wrapped thoughts. "Crazy guy, I swear. But if that means Meguro-san and I are gonna be seeing him a lot from now on, then-"

Then, it hit her. The moment she said Ash's name aloud, Sophie pieced together the mysterious guard's words together and resolved the existence of his presence at her school in her mind. But her thoughts were indescribably bitter as if they were nearly impossible. She gasped and held her breath, placing both of her palms over her mouth. She was speechless. She was stunned and couldn't move. If her assumptions were correct, then she realized that all of her plans would have been canceled and replaced with only one plan in mind.

"No…" Sophie whispered, turning back the way she came with a teardrop gleaming underneath her eye. She sprinted back down the street, losing her breath midway as she used the full extent of her stamina. On the way down the street, a group of her close friends including Ayaka and Celeste moved in a huddle on the way to their weekend meet-and-greet club meeting. She inhaled a deep breath before sprinting towards them in a panicked state.

"Oh, Hiragi-san?" Celeste was astonished. "What are you doing here? You're supposed to be heading to the meet-and-greet."

"Guys, guys…" Sophie lost her breath. "Do you know where Meguro-san is?"

"Hmm, I think she's staying home today," Ayaka said. "Why, what's up?"

"Thanks!" Sophie nodded at them and dashed down the street once again to search for her best friend. Ayaka and Celeste looked at each other and shrugged in response to her unusual behavior.

Sophie continuously sprinted down several blocks down the street to Ash's house. Ash's generous landlord lady gave her a year's worth of free rent for being a carefree and spirited young girl. Sophie knew Ash's living situation was difficult despite the generosity; her father had passed long ago and her mother remained on Planet Scorpio for important business. Therefore, she lived alone and provided for herself with the exchanged money from her home planet.

Ash lived in a neighborhood filled with kind elderly men and women who appreciated and supported her alien heritage and background story. They treasured her in their community and showered her with gifts for being herself, a special person who was treated like a human among the people. Although the neighbors treated her like this, sometimes unsuspecting bystanders would watch their conversations with Ash and reprimand them for their actions by supporting an alien. Sophie thought of her neighbors as she continued speeding down the street in search of her home, knowing that she could have been safe because of her caring neighbors.

Several minutes passed, and Sophie finally arrived at Ash's apartment complex. Her back, forehead, and neck were drenched in sweat. She took several seconds to catch her breath before she entered the forest-like complex, removing her shoes at the front before stepping inside. She ascended the flight of multiple stairs searching for apartment number C212. Ash was all that was on her mind. After her treasured kindness ever since they had met in elementary school, Sophie needed to be here for her in case things went awry.

At last, Sophie stood in front of Ash's door. She rang the doorbell once. "Meguro-san, are you there? Open up! It's Sophie. It's me." Her voice began losing confidence and strength. "Please, open up. Please."

The door opened, and Ash stood by the door with a confused face. She was wearing a cream-colored blouse that revealed both of her shoulders and pajama-like fuzzy shorts. She noticed Sophie sweating crazily in front of her door and didn't know what to say. "Sophie…?" Her light voice said. "Why?"

"Please let me in, Meguro-san," Sophie said, bowing in respect. "I'm sorry for the sudden entrance."

"Okay," Ash said, stepping aside to let her best friend enter. She closed the door as Sophie entered the living room. Ash's house was minimalistic; her studio-like apartment only carried the essentials. A twin-sized bed in her room, a study desk, a refrigerator, dining table, and water gallons were all that she needed. Several pictures of herself, Sophie, Nobu, and other friends of hers in school were framed among the other pictures of her adventures on the white walls across the living room. The only special and colorful aspects of Ash's house were colorful and tropical souvenirs that Sophie gave to her as a present for their blooming friendship. A majority of Ash's pictures were of her and Sophie together.

"Can you tell me what is wrong?" Ash asked, stepping close to Sophie and examining her sweaty outlook. "You should be at school. What is wrong?"

"No, I wanna know what's up with you!" Sophie retorted, dropping her laptop bag on the carpet floors.

"You're… you're yelling," Ash hesitated to speak as she stepped back in fear. She held her hands together. "What do you mean?"

Sophie clenched both of her fists and closed her eyes. She held her breath before letting her thoughts out. In a matter of a few seconds, their environment and nature completely shifted. Sophie bellowed aloud, releasing her concerns and worries out with a single shout.

"I want to know why you're on suicide watch!" Sophie cried, letting her tears fall to the floor.

Ash's eyes widened in surprise. She had also held her breath and remained still. She placed her hand on a wooden beam leading to her room, remaining in silence. "How? How do you know that?"

"So it's true," Sophie said, shuddering at the mere thought of her best friend thinking about suicide. The mysterious guard was telling the truth. The intensity of the situation started to plague Sophie's mind with unnecessary thoughts and emotions that she could not bear to control. "You… you coward." She said with a monotone voice, looking down at her feet.

"W-What?" Ash whispered.

Sophie lunged at Ash and pushed her on her pink flamingo-themed twin bed. The two of them plunged together on it. Sophie pinned Ash's wrists together and refused to let them go, seizing the opportunity to protect her and understand the truth. "You coward!" She repeated again. "How could you, Meguro-san!? Goddamn it! I risked my life and limb to protect you in school! I spent so much time with you and gave you all that I had! You smiled… you smiled all the time whenever I was with you! With Shibusawa-san! With Ayaka and Celeste! So why!?" Sophie pounded her fist on Ash's cushioned bed. "So why would you do that to yourself? Why would you do that to me?"

Sophie began bawling and losing control of her temper. Her grief was expressed with crying and moaning in agony from the mere thought of her best friend thinking of suicide. Ash wrapped her arms around Sophie and held her tightly. She leaned forward to Sophie's ear and whispered into it.

"You already know the answer," Ash said.

Sophie gasped and moved back. Her eyes were swollen. "No, you can't say that anymore! You have me! You have Shibusawa! Forget what everyone else says about you being an alien! Forget Fuma and Nakai! They're all idiots! Just focus on me, Meguro-san! Just focus on me!"

"I have been focusing on you," Ash whispered, placing her right finger on her lip. Her cheeks began blemishing into a light rose color. She flipped her platinum hair back and twirled a strand of it with her fingers. She stepped forward until her face was extremely close to Sophie's. "I have always been focusing on you, Sophie!"

Ash snatched Sophie's shoulders and pushed her onto her pink twin-sized bed. Sophie fell back as Ash slid closer to her face. Without another word, Ash pushed her lips onto Sophie's mouth, kissing her erotically as she groped her breasts. Ash continued to passionately kiss Sophie with her eyes closed, lost in absolute ecstasy. Sophie however, kept her widened eyes open baffled by her immediate actions. Not only was Ash on suicide watch, but she finally expressed something that had been kept hidden for so long, Sophie thought. She should have seen it coming, she told herself.

Ash moved her lips back as she embraced Sophie with her body. Her breath inhaled and exhaled her steamy fumes from her mouth combined with her passionate affection for Sophie. Ash slipped her left arm over her exposed blouse to reveal her pink brassiere, losing herself in the moment. "I love you, Sophie," She whispered, diving herself back onto Sophie's body. She grinded her exposed breast with Sophie's chest, kissing her once again. "I love you!"

"Meguro-san, stop it!" Sophie cried, angrily shoving Ash off of her body. Her voice was relentless and quick to snap. As Ash moved back from Sophie's push, she continued advancing on her seeking to embrace her with her arms. Sophie pushed her back again. "I said, stop it! You can't! You can't do that!"

Ash recovered herself after being shoved to the ground once again. "Why?" She asked. "I can love anyone, just like you love Mano and Shibusawa. Just like you love Ayaka and Celeste. Why can I not love you?"

Sophie knew that Ash still did not understand their culture and her definition of love based on her alien heritage. "I love them as friends, Meguro-san!" She exclaimed. "You're my best friend, but you're not loving me as one. You're loving me as something else!"

"Yes," Ash said. "What is wrong with it?"

"You can't!" Sophie repeated. "You can't love me as a woman! I don't love you like that, Meguro-san. I love boys. I only love boys. I can't love you that way!"

Ash's eyes fell flat and lost of emotion. She extended her right hand out to reach for Sophie's gentle cheek. "I… I can love anyone I want," She said, sliding across the carpet with her exposed breast still out. "You are my best friend. I choose you. I choose you to be my lover. I want you to be my woman. Please."

Sophie slapped Ash's hand away, sending her into a state of shock. "Cut the bullshit!" Sophie screamed. "I'm not here for this! I'm here about you on suicide watch! Don't try to change the subject!"

Ash denied her purpose of being at her house. She lifted her right hand again, reaching for Sophie's shoulder. "I choose you, Sophie," She repeated. "I love you."

Sophie sighed and remained still. Ash was the catalyst to her safety and sanity remaining in the cruel world run by crime-filled gangsters and perverts. She was the only person to have appreciated her presence. She was the first true friend she had ever met since elementary school, and they had known each other for years. Sophie knew that she had made many sacrifices to herself to make that happen despite their close friendship. She sacrificed a majority of her time and life to being with Ash to satisfy her pleasures.

Now, it was nothing but a repeat of what she desired. Sophie decided to let her thoughts go, for the time being, letting Ash take control of the situation. Once more, Sophie sacrificed herself for Ash's sake. Sophie knew that Ash didn't know what love was, yet she accepted it.

Ash grabbed Sophie's shoulders and fell back on the pink bed once more. She began passionately kissing Sophie once more with her eyes shut; Sophie's remained open. Ash squeezed Sophie's breasts with her right hand and began stripping her sweaty school uniform down. She removed her cream-colored blouse and began rubbing her body with Sophie's affectionately. She was lost in absolute pleasure as Sophie remained still, letting her best friend go off without another word.

Ash felt everything, yet Sophie felt nothing.

Several minutes passed, and Ash eventually exhausted herself. She believed that Sophie was enjoying everything after accepting her love, but she was clueless about how Sophie felt. She exhaled a sigh of relief until Sophie stood back up and dressed again. Ash noticed Sophie standing and stood with her, holding their hands together.

"I'm so happy, Sophie," Ash said with a firm smile. "I love you so-"

"I don't ever want to see you again," Sophie's voice was deep and low with firm aggression. Her voice caught Ash off guard as she pulled her hands back from Ash's. "We're not friends anymore."

Ash giggled. "Sophie, I love you," She said, believing everything was a joke. She stepped forward seeking to embrace her hands together. "You're my best friend."

"You don't care about my feelings," Sophie continued with her monotone and aggressive voice. "I told you to stop. I told you that you were my best friend, not your lover. But you didn't listen. And now you violated me without my consent. You didn't listen! We're not friends anymore," She firmly said, moving back through the hallway into the living room. "Go to hell."

"Sophie…!" Ash cried while approaching her for a warm hug.

"Kill yourself!" Sophie screamed at the top of her lungs. Her voice was powerful and blunt enough to push Ash away. Both of their faces were shriveled in stress, hatred, and melancholic misery. "Just fucking kill yourself, Ash!" She said without formally addressing her by her last name. "Do you have any idea how long I've sacrificed myself for you? I've protected you from Fuma and Nakai ever since I met you! Ever since I met you, you've done nothing but rely on me, me, and me! You don't know what it means to be independent! You have no family! Just kill yourself!"

Ash gasped, beginning to whimper and whine. Her voice trailed off. "Do you… do you mean that?" She asked.

"Who cares what I think!?" Sophie shouted, snatching a framed picture of herself and Ash at a Japanese carnival. She slammed it on the carpet at full force, shattering the glass and destroying the frame. "You're nothing but a burden to me! All you've done is take, take, take! What happened to my life!? Where did it all go? I've sacrificed so much for you and this is what you do!? Just die! Die already and never come back!"

Ash mouthed off an unknown sequence of words that Sophie could not discern because of her ringing ears. Her enraged explosion of emotion was causing her ears to tingle and her senses to numb themselves. Suddenly, an unknown detonation of power set off Ash's temper, sending objects in her house flying around. A burst of invisible energy destroyed furniture, shattered all of her picture frames, and caved in the apartment's walls and foundation. Without another word, Ash began breaking down into tears and sprinted out of her house. Her overly loud and pained groaning and whining began echoing in the apartment hallways.

"W-Wait!" Sophie cried. However, a large portion of the ceiling began to shake in response to Ash's unknown abilities. A portion of the ceiling collapsed on Sophie's head, causing her to kneel down near the shattered frames. She fell back down on the carpet and closed her eyes. With her senses numbed down after being struck, Sophie's exhaustion began to take her body over. In a matter of a few seconds, Sophie was asleep.