Transfer

The day before Kaia's transfer, she met up with her friends in their playground. She didn't think they were serious about this party but they were serious.

"This isn't necessary." Kaia signed, looking at the spread in front of her. She reluctantly peeked into a box, sighing in relief to see fruits.

"Don't worry. No cookies this time." Shia winked at her.

"I'm sorry about last time." Kaia signed.

"Hey, it's ok. I should have asked. My dad was in the army so I know how sudden panic attacks can be. Just by the smallest things, they can get triggered. So don't ever apologise for having panic attacks, ok?"

Kaia nodded at her.

Shia is so mature.

"Now, enough with all that writing nonsense." Faith and Aliya appeared in between them, taking Kaia's paper and pen and throwing them to Caitlyn and Max. They caught them without meaning to. "Everyone! Gather together! It's time for the main event."

"Kaia. It's only been around a week since we are friends but you have changed my life so much and I am going to forever be grateful to you. So thank you."

"I didn't do any-"

"NO! Don't you dare say that. You stood up for me, you introduced me to wonderful people. I never thought I could ever be accepted unless I changed myself. But every one of you has accepted me as I am and I love you all so much for it."

Everyone smiled at her as Caitlyn hung onto Kaia's arm, leaning against her.

"You are a good person, Kaia. No matter what happens. Everyone thinks so too." She looked at her and smiled.

"This is for you Kaia." Aliya shoved a present into Kaia's arms. "It's from all of us. Open it!"

Kaia carefully took the tape off and then the wrapper. When she saw what it was, she gasped.

"Do you like it?" Caitlyn asked.

"No more having to carry pieces of paper for you!" Faith declared.

"It's impossible to change years of your life to be able to cure illnesses, so devices are still being made and developed for those that are sick and with disabilities," Max remarked.

"It's easy to see where the priority lay." Shia scoffed.

It was a smartphone, with a pen at the side if she wanted to write with it. It has a sleek purple and green multichrome design.

"You guys didn't hav-"

"Try it out first! I'll show you!" Faith turned on the phone and showed Kaia all its functions. "There's a specific reason we chose this one."

Faith took out the pen and showed her how to write on the phone, it could even project out and speak whatever she wrote.

"This button," she pointed at a green one at the bottom, "I hope you don't have to use them at all. If you are in trouble, you can press it and it will sound like a person's scream. Ok? Now. Let's scan your face."

Faith placed the phone's camera in front of Kaia's face, it scanned her face and started processing something.

"What's it doing, Faith?" Max asked, peeking from behind them.

"It scanned her face and will find a voice that matches her face the most."

"So, we kinda get to hear what Kaia would sound like?" Caitlyn squealed. "Do you hear that, Kaia?"

Kaia smiled and nodded at her.

"Done! Try it now." Faith handed the phone to her with the pen. The phone screen was entirely white, that was the space for her to write.

"Wait! Take down all our phone numbers!" Caitlyn shouted. As she said that, everyone took their phones out and looked at her in anticipation.

I forgot that they all had phones. But why didn't they ever take them out?

"How did you guys afford this?" Kaia signed looking at them.

"We saved up," Shia said. "Don't worry about these little things, Kaia. We just wanted to do something nice for you."

"Kaia~ Write it down~" Faith and everyone else was getting impatient to hear her 'voice'.

"Thank you." Kaia looked at each one of them, smiling then her expression turned sour as she began to write.

"I just really don't like you all behaving as if I'm leaving this town. I'm just going to a new school, the same one as MAX."

They stared at her in silence, taking in the voice and looking at her face. Trying to match the two together.

She pouted.

"I don't like feeling like I'm leaving you guys behind, aga-"

She quickly erased what she was about to write and wrote 'alone' instead. She nervously looked at all of them to see if they noticed but they were too absorbed with the voice that they didn't really pay attention to what she said.

"Kaaiia~" Caitlyn wailed, hugging her. "You sound beautiful. Just like you should have. I can die happy now, hearing your voice."

Kaia grabbed her and shook her head vigorously. She took the phone and wrote, "No die. Not one of you will die before me. Got it?"

She pointed the pen to each of them as they nodded, a little afraid of her sudden outburst.

"Sorry. Kaia. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to say that." Caitlyn quickly apologised.

"It's ok. Just . . . don't say it again, ok?"

"Ok."

Kaia went back to smiling again and wrote, "So? How's my voice?"

"It suits your face," Aliya said, assuming the Thinking Man's position. "But I know what Max will say. 'Voice or no voice. Kaia is Kaia.' Right, Max?"

"Shut up. It is true. The voice is nice but you're you with or without it." He smiled at her.

"Is your brother ok?" Faith whispered to Aliya.

"I don't know. He's just like this. One of the top students in his school, so many girls like him and he's like this only to Kaia."

"Top student?" Faith's eyes widened.

"It doesn't look like it, right? But he always works so hard at everything he does, not only schoolwork. Sometimes he becomes sick with how hard he works."

"Why do you think he does that?"

"He is adopted and I think he still believes that he needs to work hard otherwise we will throw him out as his last family did."

"Oh. I didn't know. I'm sorry if I-"

"It's ok. My aunt, uncle, and I love him so much like our family. We just want him to know that he doesn't have to try so hard all the time. But he doesn't listen." She laughed. "He's my brother and always will be. Just like my aunt and uncle are my parents and you guys are my family. Nothing will ever change that."

"Awwww~ Aliya~" Faith hugged her. "You're so young and still so smart."

"How old are you?"

"Thirteen."

"We are the same age then." Aliya laughed. "I like to act younger than my age. It makes people happy! Come on, let's get some more cakes!"

Faith looked at Aliya in admiration, a soft smile on her face as she followed behind.

Kaia stared at both of them, a painful smile on her face. She looked up at the sky and the clock, then at all her friends around her, laughing and talking with each other.

She clutched the phone in her hand as she remembered what is to come. She needs to find that black-haired boy as soon as possible.

"Kaia!" They called her over.

Leave tomorrow's worries for tomorrow.

She walked to them and took the juice bottle from Shia's hands.

♣

Kaia was doing a final check of her uniform, her tie hung untidily around her neck but that was just because she still couldn't tie her tie.

Maybe she should just call ma'am Elena and ask her for help.

She stops fiddling with it when she remembered what had happened. The moment ma'am Elena found out that she was planning to transfer, she searched her out and had a talk with her.

When she was satisfied that Kaia's wish to change schools was not because of any external force. Kind of. She became completely supportive.

She even stayed back in school to help her prepare for the entrance exam and interview, lending her books after books for reference.

Kaia already knew everything she needed to because of her previous life's desire to escape the real world, so she read everything she could get her hands on in the library.

She was genuinely impressed that she remembered everything, but that was only because her teacher explained everything in such a clear way that her memories came flooding back.

Spending so much time with her made her almost reconsider changing schools.

Almost.

She should do something for her. What would she like?

"Good luck today, Kaia." Her father called from the room.

Ever since that day, Kaia and her father only ever talk to each other when it is absolutely necessary. He also disappears more often, but always comes back by nightfall.

She doesn't know what he's trying to do. He sometimes tries to hold conversations with her but they were dry and she was uninterested.

Kaia waved at him and walked out the door, just as he was about to say something. She heard him start his sentence but still walked out.

She couldn't bear to get hurt all over again by the same person every time. She had to stay focused on what she needed to do.

"Kaia!" Max and Aliya were standing at the junction from her house to the road.

"Let's go together!" They exclaimed.

She smiled and ran to them. "How did you know where my house was?"

"We don't. We just know that you live around here so we waited."

"You could have given me a message." Kaia signed, taking out her phone.

Aliya didn't need to know sign language to understand what she just said.

The two looked at each other, amazed at each other's stupidity. Their expressions made Kaia laugh and they were definitely communicating telepathically.

"We'll do that next time." Max scratched the back of his head, laughing nervously. "You look good in your unifor- is your tie ok?"

She looked at the black cloth in a knot around her neck. "I don't know how to do this. Is it that bad?"

"No. No. Not at all. But . . . if you want me to . . . you know, make it for you, I can."

Kaia beamed. "Really? You know how to do it?"

She took off her tie and gave it to him, watching him undo knot after knot. After it all came loose, she watched as he skilfully redid her tie.

"Yeah. Aliya didn't know either so I learned it. Here. Is it too long for you?"

She wore the tie around her neck and adjusted it. "No. It's just enough. Thank you, Max. You're a lifesaver."

"It's nothing. If you need to make it again, don't hesitate to ask me, ok?"

Kaia nodded, she missed her old uniform but this was good enough.

"Uh . . . Kaia?"

She turned to Max but when he didn't continue Aliya spoke for him.

"Hair, Kaia. Your hair is coming out of your ponytail. I can take care of this!"

They stopped at the side of the road so that Aliya could fix Kaia's hair. "Didn't you check yourself in the mirror before you left?"

Kaia shook her head.

"That explains it. But shouldn't your father know how to tie a tie at least?"

"Aliya." Max frowned at her and shook his head.

Aliya looked at Kaia's solemn expression and realised that she may have said something wrong.

"I'm so sorry, Kaia. I didn't mean to-"

Kaia took her phone out and began to write, "Don't worry. Even my father doesn't know how to tie a tie so we're practically useless." She smiled but it never reached her eyes.

"Let's get going. We don't want to be late right? And you did an amazing job, Aliya. I should ask you to be my hairdresser." Kaia was trying her best to clear out the tense atmosphere that suddenly dropped.

"Only the best can afford me. Are you the best?" Aliya retorted, looking out from a pair of imaginary glasses.

"Look at me and you'll be able to tell." She replied as they made their way to school, continuing their conversation till they reached the gate.

Max watched them in silence. His smile never leaving his face.

At the gate, Aliya ran to her school just a block away from theirs. She protested heavily when Max and Kaia offered to drop her, saying that she is a 'big girl now'.

They couldn't argue with that so they let her go.

Kaia stared at the gate, her knees felt like jelly all of a sudden. They were a little too early so only a handful of students were there, staring at the two students standing in front of the gate without moving.

"Whenever you're ready." Max smiled at her. "I'm here so you don't have to be scared and if anyone dares to bully you like they did in your old school, tell me. I'll just talk with them, ok?"

Kaia looked at him in awe. If Shia is the big sister of the group then he is the big brother of the group, she instantly felt safe with him there.

She took in a deep breath and realised it, nodding to Max.

"Ready." She signed and they entered together.