(open) Dorm-warming Party

After a little thought, I decided to order two or three pizzas for Yuuji, me and whoever he decided to bring along. Never know if one of the is a vegatarian, so I ordered pepperoni, plain cheese and ham + pinapple. While I wait for the pizza arrive I lay out the Xbox games I brought with me, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 16 and Final Fantasy XXXVIII. I never really thought about it before, but I wondered how in the hell these games had so many sequels... and how on earth did people manage to play on those primitive consoles with those flimsy controllers?? The all new Virtual Reality handsets were much more accessible, although a bit pricey.
I sit back on my bed and wait for the arrival of Yuuji and co.

A knock on the door "Hawke? You in there? Its Yuuji."

"Yuuji, what did you say this guy's name was again?"

I'm leaning against the wall next to his door, holding a 2 liter of root beer.

"His name is Tiberius Hawke. He's the new guy everyone in the boys dorm has been talking about recently." Yuuji knocks on the door once more
"Hawke open up."

I wake up with a start. Shit! I fell asleep! Running over to the door, I open it up.

"Sorry guys! Tiring day... come in, come in. The pizza should be here soon."

Hm...Tiberius Hawke?

English name, less common American first name. Even less common in Canada but there's always a chance. High probability to be foreign or foreign decent like I am.

Not much variable in this variable, is there?

*English* "No worries, man. I brought pop. The name is Satoshi Veach."

I speak with a different accent. Mostly American and Japanese but with a hint of German. Mixed together with my father's and two oldest brother's style of vocabulary.

I'm also much more casual with my language and vocal structure due to the fact that Japan seems much more manner oriented while most English-speaking countries are friendly attitude oriented.

"Hawke you understand what he said?" Forgetting to introduce him "Also Hawke, Satoshi Veach. Veach, Hawke."

*To Satoshi*
"You speak English? I can't place your accent, where you from? I'm from sunny ol' England myself... Nice to meet you! Thanks for the pop... Root Beer? We don't have that in England... what's it like?"
I then turn to Yuuji, "Hey man! Glad you decided to come!"

"Glad to be here! May Veach and I have a seat?"

(Christopher is walking back to his dorm until he stops in admiration of another boy's dorm, adorned with various party decorations.) {I hear Yuuji and Satoshi in there... No, I need to return to my own dorm. I remember what happened last time I tried to stick my nose in other peoples business...}

"Err... seats..seats... You can either take my bed or..." I upturn a suitcase "Ta-dah!"

Out of the corner of my eye I notice a figure looking into the room and say "Hey! Are you another of Yuuji's friends?"

England. So much can be learned from someone's parents even by only knowing their name.

Ah, so my strange accent is noticed here for the first time?

Hmhmhm, it's kind of funny how easily people write such things off as 'foreigner stuff.' I don't blame them, with how some people act nowadays with the 'I'm so offended' card played left and right.

*Back to Japanese for Yuuji's sake* "My family is originally from America. My grandparents were originally from Germany. Myself and one of my three brothers was born here, but because we learned English from my father we also picked up our families collection of both accents and signature vocabulary styles."

"As for the root beer, it is popular in America. Invented in the prohibition era and-"

Quit with the history lesson, Satoshi, just because you know it doesn't mean you need to spit it.

"-..uh, it's my favorite flavor. One cool thing about it is, like beer, different makers of it give it different styles. For instance, my favorite is a brand called Weinhard but they don't make two liters."

"We have here A&W but it's still pretty good. Probably the most popular brand."

My memories replay one instance in my past that may provide a useful piece of information.

"No worries. I've only met one person who has ever disliked it."

{That is the tallest person I think I've ever seen in my life.} Um... I'm Christopher Cook, but you can call me Nine.

"Alright, lets see if your words speak the truth Veach..." Yuuji takes quick glance at the door "Cook? Come on in. We are having a little get together for this guy." Points at Hawke

"Little ol' me! Nice to meet you Nine!" At this point, the pizzas arrive.
"Ah, pizza. I ordered three different flavors in case anyone was vegetarian and stuff, dig in!"

"Grazie."

I take a piece of cheese pizza and sit.

It is at this moment that I start digging into more than just the food.

Rather tall. A few inches taller than me. 'bout time someone on campus is. Gentle eyes, looks to be the trustworthy wise type. Noted.

His clothing choice is of a stereotypical musician or artist of the vocal and/or language arts.

What looks like either a guitar or bass case on the other side of the room but I cannot tell which from my angle.

Probably sings. Judging from his talking voice he could likely do it.

Is he...is he that similar to me?

Probably not. Likely majors his talents in music and excels in it while I am more rounded and only am moderately well in each category.

Other than that fact he seems very much like me...Interesting.

All noted.

"Sweet! Don't mind if i do." Yuuji take s a slice and begins
"so good..." He has the satisfied look on his face

Picking up a slice of pepperoni pizza I think to myself how well this is going... I think I'm gonna like it here.
"Alright... So obviously I'm gonna have to get to know you guys pretty well; what do you all like doing for fun?"

(Christoper takes a slice of pizza and sits down on the floor.) For starters, I'm technically American; possibly the only American here at Yamaku. You'll want to ask either Satoshi or Yuuji for all the happenings around school.

Huh. Cryptic. Maybe he doesn't get out much?
"Ah, an outsider too?" I say with a wink. "How did you end up coming to Yamuku? Unless it's personal of course."

"You know the reason for me Hawke" He raises his right leg and laughs

It's a long story, my friend, so I'll give you the short & sweet version: I was born on an American military base in Osaka, I spent the majority of my life traveling the globe, and now, I'm here. How about you, friend?

I feel my cheeks redden at Yuuji's comment "Hah.. yeah.. sorry about that."

I turn to Cook and hesitate for a second, and haltingly begin to tell my story: "My father was a famous musician.. I doubt you'd hear of him this far east but in England he was a household name. He wasn't home often, but when he did he'd spend all his time with me. We were... I think we were... um... walking to the cinema? I don't remember well. Can't even remember what damned film it was. After that the whole night is a blank, but I learnt the truth from a hospital bed. Me and my father were.. attacked. Men with improvised weapons. I was beaten bloody.. and my father didn't... he didn't make it. I was put in surgery for a severely wounded leg, they did all they could but I can barely walk now. I also struggle to remember clearly, but I've been getting better, I guess..."
I stop for a few seconds, met by a wall of stony silence. I guess I should continue.
"Obviously there were legal proceedings into my father's death, and after I gave my severely lacking statement I was packed off to live with my grandparents here at Yamuku. And that's about it."
I turn quickly to Satoshi "Your turn."

Heavy musician, correct.

There are few people besides me I know of who can suppress feelings enough to say such things. Not without physical effect of course but there are plenty who wouldn't be able to say something like that. Much respect for this one.

"As a child I was never a social butterfly. It was a mixture of that and the fact that I was born with both narcolepsy and an unusually strong case of Vasovagal Syncope-the disorder which makes you faint-,that I was picked on throughout my past school life."

"My mother found out and I was offered the chance at a new life here."

I made the transition between the two statements a little blunt but it isn't wise to reveal my edge on others.

"You can ask Takahashi for a reference but I really like to do a lot."

He probably is curious about this:

"Music included. I'm a rounded percussionist."

(Christopher, after hearing Teberius' tear jerker of a life story, quickly loses his appetite & decides against another slice of pizza.)