"Oh well," Hoshin said. She looked at the bed, then out the window. "I guess you can have the bed."

"What?" questioned Sammy, opening a pack of gum and tossing a piece towards Hoshin. "Where are you gonna sleep?" Hoshin grinned and stepped out onto the balcony, fixing her necklaces. Her grin slowly changed to a look of preoccupied self-awareness-something... that didn't happen that often. Hoshin was about to actually think of what she was saying before she said it. Sam half-watched Hoshin and half-watched the science documentary of pygmy Galapagos turtles that just happened to be on the TV.

"Girl," Hoshin spoke into the wind, "I have a feeling."
"Oh?" said Sam, now fully entranced in the program. "Bout what?"
"A feeling, like this trip will change our lives. I don't mean to get all weird on ya, but I just know that something remarkable will happen on this trip-something more important than school ya know?" She leaned over the balcony and cocked her head sideways to look in at Sam.
"Like the time when you threw up on Hiya's angora shirt? And we learned that those stains don't come out?"
"No, I'm being serious, Samisu. And besides, we made a promise never to talk about that again."
Sam knew Hoshin was being serious for once and tried to break her head away from the television set. Hoshin faked a concerned smile. She went back to thinking again and Sam, trying to break the tense moment, stated "But that still hasn't answered where you're going to sleep."
Hoshin laughed. "I'm gonna be out partying and hanging out on the ship. I won't need a bed," and then on second thought, "maybe just a small ottoman for part of the morning."
"You have to sleep sometime," Sam informed with a smile.

Hoshin took out her beeswax and started propping up her hair, trying to keep it in at least a half-decent position.

Hoshin's hair took hours to dry and it always flopped to one side, making it very unattractive. Someday, she decided, she would cut it, if only it wasn't so contradicting in the stylists opinion. She could only hope Noriko wouldn't see her, or she'd never hear the end of it.
"Well..." Sammy replied, looking forlornly at the bed. "I guess...well, we have no curfew right?"
"Exactly."
"I just hope no one attacks me anymore," Samisu pouted. "Once was enough, you know. Plus, it was embarrassing, someone barging in on me when I've only got the handkerchiefs they try to pass off as bath towels wrapped around me."
"It was just someone being stupid, trying to," Hoshin paused, her unspoken words hanging in the air. "You know. Anyway," she began, brightening up, "you won't be bothered anymore, thanks to me." She took out her pepper spray and put it in Sammy's hand, closing her fingers around it.
"Won't you need it?" Sam asked, looking at the small can that rest in her palm. Hoshin opened her suitcase in reply, revealing dozens of pepper spray and spray paint cans.
"Hey! Didn't you promise you wouldn't vandalize anything on this trip?"
"Oh... oops? Heh, well, they're not gonna turn around the boat now, right?" Hoshin gave Sam the grin that she gave to everyone when she knew she was right...or just before she did something stupid, moronic, or vandalistic.
"Just don't do anything on this ship, please," Sammy begged.
"Sure, of course not, Sam." Hoshin grinned and closed her trunk, then snuck a peak at the television. She flopped on Sam's bed with the remote in her hand.

"Mmm," said Hoshin, her eye's widening with interest. "Pygmy Galapagos turtles!" Small marine creatures, being a secret passion of Hoshin's were revered in all forms. Hoshin checked the windows and doors and then snuck back to the TV, "Well," she said, "if it's on, I might as well watch it." She said this very loudly, so that, to someone in the room it would appear that Hoshin was trying to avoid suspicion of her program choice -- or that she had just found a small crowd of ants eating an apple underneath the bed.

Just then, Sam burst back into the room and Hoshin fumbled frantically with the remote, clicking it to a movie that was strangely similar to Titanic.
"Sorry," said Sam, "I forgot my purse." She grabbed it off the bedside table and then caught a sidelong glance at Hoshin who was whistling a fairly innocent tune. "Well, isn't this just the perfect movie to show on a cruise?" Hoshin said, laughing nervously.
"Yeah," said Sam, essentially suspicious, "Yeah I guess. Well, I'll see you later I guess." She walked cautiously out the door and Hoshin slunk back into the pillows.
"Now," she thought, " I'll just see what other interesting programs are on. She removed a small case from her own pocketbook and opened it up. Inside was a pair of black square glasses -- something she had been hiding from her friends for almost two years. She put them on, and flipped to the first page of the TV guide.

**Meanwhile, down the hall, Hiya was pounding on door number 412. "Hello?" Hiya cried, glancing amidst the hall.
"Who's there?" A voice replied from behind the door.
"I-Chan," Hiya replied, nervously fidgeting with her suitcase.
Inside sounds of struggling towards the door, then tripping over what appeared to be a large object were quite evident to Hiya. A Japanese curse accentuated the click of the door opening, and there Yumi stood, looking down at Hiya and her belongings. "What on Earth are you doing?" He demanded, one hand lingering on the doorknob.
"Moving in. You have 2 bunk beds and I call a top one," Hiya ordered, walked into the medium-sized room, and then threw her pillow on top of an empty bed.
"Konban wa, Hiya-chan," Ueki greeted from where he hung upside down from the other top bunk, doing inverted crunches. His red face hid the slight blush that had emerged as Hiya entered, for he was just in red and black polka-dotted boxers.
"But... Why?" Yumi asked, his attention returning to the blonde.
"Because I said so, that's why," she said hotly, already a bit tense from having to bunk without her girl friends in the first place. "We got moved to another room, and there's only one bed. I decided to let Hoshin and Sam have it, being the nice girl that I am, and figured that I could room in here with you guys."
"Oh... Why the switch?"
"Because I uh..." Hiya blushed and put a hand behind her head. "I kicked the door down."
"What?" Yumi grinned, oddly enough feeling only slight surprise.
"I heard Samisu scream and I couldn't find my keys." Hiya made gestures trying to compensate.
"Oh, when the guy was in the room and she was in the shower."
They were silent for another moment as Hiya threw her bag up at the wall.
"Oh, and Hiya?" Yumi started, breaking the silence.
"Yes?" Hiya replied, turning around to face him.
"I'm sorry about what I said earlier. I didn't mean it." Yumi looked down at the beige carpet, refusing to meet her green eyes.
"Oh, Yumi, it's okay!" Hiya exclaimed and surprising all three people in the room, hugged him.
Yumi backed up, waving his hands in front of him. "I don't want your ditzy germs rubbing up against me," he smirked, knowing that he had hit a nerve.

Hiya fumed, searching the room for some sort of weapon. Spying a large flashlight on the desk, she hefted it into her right hand. "Die Yumi!" she yelled before promptly whacking him over the head with it.

Yumi hollered, his arm delayed from the brutal attack. "That really hurt!" He stated, rubbing the sore spot on his forehead.

Hiya raised her arm for another smack, but before she could drive the hard metal into Yumi's equally hard head he had bolted out the door. Hiya followed, still holding the flashlight.

Yumi laughed, passing Noriko and Kodaki who were busy admiring the ocean view at a door to the deck. Noriko looked up at Yumi before his eyes turned in the direction of Hiya. "A goddess," he sighed, his eyes filling with stars. "Greetings, Hiya." Hiya merely glared at him and continued in her pursuit.

"Hey Hiya! Catch!" Kodaki yelled and tossed her a broom.

Hiya caught it and dropped the flashlight. Yumi looked back and his eyes widened, wondering why Kodaki had had a broom with her in the first place. Hiya raised the broom over her head before he could find an answer and attempted to whack him once more. Looking ahead of Yumi, she stopped it in mid-swing.
"Yumi! Look out!" Hiya screamed, pointing with the broom handle.

Yumi stopped and turned around just in time to see a metal pole come flying at his face. He jumped backwards and followed it to where Jadoku stood holding the other end, looking at him with a fierceness only he could possess.

"Yumi Shimo, I challenge you!" He yelled and swung at him again. Yumi ducked, the pole flying an inch over his head. Jadoku jumped into the air and kicked the unsuspecting Yumi's back, launching himself up and over him.
"Yumi!" Hiya called out to him, tossing the broom aside.
"Jadoku!" Kodaki hollered at the same time, running down the hall towards her arrogant boyfriend.

Yumi stood back up, ignoring Hiya entirely. "Fine," he agreed, his fist flying towards Jadoku's face before the words had left his lips.

Punches and kicks flew through the air, most wasted by a quick block or duck. Neither seemed able to land a hit, for they both seemed to be of the same strength.

Hiya looked back when she heard the talk of a large group of students passing by, including Ueki, Samisu, Hoshin, and Noriko, who had wandered off shortly before the battle began.

"Wow, they both have really intense power. I mean, I knew Jadoku did, but Yumi? Since when did he learn martial arts?" Ueki asked the others, pausing to watch the fight. Noriko, completely ignoring his blue-haired friend, approached Hiya and took her hand. Hiya gasped, startled.

"Come with me. Now that Yumi is occupied I can make my formal greeting," Noriko whispered, pulling Hiya closer.

"Formal greeting?" Hiya repeated, confused.

"Yes." He moved his head in even closer. Hiya growled but for some reason, she remained powerless and couldn't move. Noriko closed his eyes, eagerly awaiting the moment when their lips would meet.

"Hiya!" Yumi screamed and forgot about Jadoku, lunging towards Noriko. Hiya turned her head and Noriko missed his target by a mile.

"Yumi, watch out!" Hiya called and pointed at Jadoku. Yumi looked up and was immediately kicked into the wall, head first. Hiya ran over to him, fearful of what she might find.
"Yumi are you okay?" He didn't answer. Hiya looked down at his motionless body, frightened. "You fool! Yumi wake up, you... You jerk!" She screamed, shaking him. Yumi's eyes opened, and he looked up at her with a laugh.

"You tricked me?" Hiya growled, clenching her left fist.
"Who's the fool?" he asked, sitting up. His smirk faded as his eyes found Jadoku again and he stood back up. "This fight isn't over yet," he stated, then walked away from the crowd.
"Oh..." Kodaki and Hiya said at once. Kodaki had, after since Jadoku and Yumi were pretty much evenly matched, settled down by the opposite wall to watch.
Samisu walked over the them, cheerful as ever. "Are you guys hungry? Want to get something to eat?" Hoshin groaned and hit her head against the wall twice, a dull thud resonating from the plaster.

Chapter 9
Tobei