Episode 5: Everything Wrong With...

You probably don’t know a lot about Naoko. However, by the end of this episode, I hope you’ll understand her a little bit better.

Viewer discretion is advised.

★

It was a beautiful Saturday morning in late May, and Naoko had just woken up. Upon setting her sights on the end of her bed, she noticed that her mom was there with a present in her hands.

“Happy birthday, Naoko-chan!” she said cheerfully. “Dad would have greeted you too if he wasn’t at work.” She handed her daughter the wrapped gift with a great smile on her face.

“Thanks,” Naoko said politely.

A swirl of negative feelings started to swirl up inside of her as she started to unwrap the present slowly. She knew that her mom didn’t know much about her, so… there’s that.

“Oh! Wow,” gasped Naoko, but she didn’t really mean it. What she got was a flowery dress and a birthday card with a fashion store gift card inside.

More specifically, a flowery dress from Forever 21 and a gift card for Forever 21. Hooray.

“Thanks, Mom,” Naoko said again, just for good measure. She tried to smile as genuinely as she could but it was really hard to.

“I was hoping that you could wear it for me today. I’m sure it’ll look wonderful on you.” Her mom smiled gently. “I washed it and everything, don’t worry.”

Naoko kept the smile on her face, but she noticed that it stiffened up.

God, I hope Mom doesn’t notice.

Yet again, Naoko’s mom hardly ever noticed her. Naoko felt so detached from her mom that it was really awkward whenever she happened to be around. Not only was she busy 24/7, either around the house or at work, but she never took the time even when she saw her to ask “How was school?” or “How are you?”. Maybe she truly was busy, maybe it was something that Naoko couldn’t begin to understand.

All in all—if she wasn't so busy all the time, Naoko was sure her good-natured at heart mother would pay more attention to her.

That’s where her dad came in. He had a job but he didn’t do as much housework as her mother. He asked her how she was doing and what she was up to. More importantly, they hung out together.

Once her mom left the room, Naoko finally got out of bed and began to put on that stupid dress that didn’t actually suit her at all. Probably.

Then, she began her Sins video.

Everything Wrong With My Birthday in Under 24 hours.

Spoilers. (Duh.)

The morning begins and Mom gets me stuff I don’t like. Ding!

Something notable about Naoko was that her dad was the owner of a YouTube channel called CinemaSins which she helped her dad out with—at least in terms of picking the movies out. The main draw to the videos was the fact that the narrator, her dad, nitpicked and pointed out various flaws and inconsistencies within famous and beloved movies.

Let’s just say that after almost three years of helping her dad make those videos and watching them with him, the idea of “sinning” something (adding a point against the movie) became ingrained into her brain, to the point where she sinned her own life now.

But it was fine with her. It made life intriguing, to say the least.

“That’s one sin already and the day just started,” noted Naoko under her breath as she brushed her hair in front of the mirror.

To be perfectly honest, the dress looked fine on her. It fit fine, it didn’t clash with her hair, eye, or skin color at all, and it was indeed an appropriate day to wear it. However.

It just wasn’t her. It didn’t fit her style, nor did it feel like something she would ever wear.

Her mother’s mouth dropped open. “Oh my gosh… look at how beautiful you are!”

Naoko spun around in her dress just to make her happy.

Her mom gestured to a seat that had two balloons tied to the top seat part. On the table was a decently-sized breakfast, steaming hot.

“For the birthday girl! Oh, and I also reserved a room in this fancy place just for you! Your aunts and uncles are there decorating the place for you right now as we speak!”

Naoko raised an eyebrow as she sat down to eat. This feels more like Mom’s birthday party than mine. I would’ve preferred a pool party or heck, even a party at a restaurant would be better than this! Ding!

“Oh, and I invited your friends, too!”

“Which ones?” Naoko was too afraid to ask.

“You know! Mari, Tomo, and the other two!”

Naoko didn’t want to know how she had gotten a hold of them. And how did her friends not tell her about this? Oh, well. At least those were her only friends. At least she didn’t have any more of them.

This is a pretty lame attempt at a surprise party when the surprise has already been revealed. Ding!

Naoko faked yet another smile. “Cool cool Mom,” she replied, shoving another bite of banana pancakes into her mouth.

At this rate, this so-called party might be half horrible and half great, considering my friends are gonna be there. Augh, but with my aunts there and everything, it’s gonna be like living in a women’s jail cell for four whole hours, except the fact that the only things my aunts murdered are their credit cards. Ding!

★

Although it was her birthday, Naoko decided to do what she does best every Saturday: be a shut-in.

Okay, so maybe not a shut-in, but rather an antisocial person.

Naoko rolled around in her bed, still unhappy with life. She was guessing that her party would start in the evening, around dinner time perhaps.

She sighed heavily, clutching her pillow tight.

“If only I had Mimori’s power to time travel,” she said aloud softly. “That way I could fast forward to tomorrow as soon as possible.”

Buu… I’m gonna text Mimori just for the heck of it.

Almost like she knew that she was going onto Facebook Messenger, Naoko turned on her phone and saw that she got a text from Mari.

Happy Birthday! :)

Hope you have an AWESOME day!

Underneath that was a picture of Pinkie Pie jumping out of a cake with a big open smile on her face.

Naoko knew that Mari was trying to be festive with the attached image. It was a sweet thought, even though she didn’t really care for My Little Pony.

It was a bit late to think about that because seconds later Mari replied with something else:

Sorry about that. Mimori possessed me for a moment there. That’s what I get for hanging out with her so much!

I hope so, Naoko decided to respond back. How did you not tell me about the not-so-surprise party though? She was still quite a bit frustrated about what was happening behind the scenes.

It took a few minutes for Mari to reply. When she finally did though, it didn’t make matters any better.

Oh, you know! YOUR MOM! Mari replied back childishly.

Naoko rolled her eyes. “Why do I even bother?” she said, sighing.

Mari making a ‘your mom’ joke in 2015. Ding!

Oh well. See you this afternoon, Naoko replied finally.

After responding to all the birthday messages on her Facebook, including ones from her friends, Naoko sat the phone down on her bed and got up, stretching her back and neck.

“Ahh… let’s do something to cheer me up!”

Naoko already knew what she was going to do—sin a movie! She had a habit of doing spontaneous sinning events when she was in a real bad mood, which wasn’t too terrible enough, surprisingly enough.

Blindly, she chose a movie from the bottom of her closet. The movie she ended up with was a romantic comedy from 2009.

Naoko then turned on her laptop, put in the DVD, pulled some candy out of her desk drawer, and started watching.

The movie was bad. In fact, it was so bad, it was good. And it cheered her up greatly.

By the end of the movie, she came up with a total of 90 sins. That was the highest amount she had ever gotten yet from a romantic comedy, and yet she was glad about that. All the thoughts about her mom only knowing her by the fact that she occasionally recorded episodes of Once Upon a Time on their DVR were gone.

Speaking of her mom, Naoko heard her call up the stairs in her usual shrill voice.

“NAOKO! I NEED TO TELL YOU SOMETHING!”

The girl obediently ran down the stairs, wondering what was up and so urgent.

“Honey, I hope you don’t mind but I’d like to go out to the mall and hang out with you before we leave to go to your party!”

Naoko’s face fell flat, despite that always being her default facial expression.

“Um, yay,” she said unenthusiastically.

Mom wants to hang out with me? What kind of alien came down and possessed her? Ding!

Her mom’s face fell too. “What’s wrong, Naoko-chan? Are you not feeling well all of a sudden?”

Mom asked me if I’m not feeling well after all this time of not doing that. Ding!

“Mom, I’m feeling fine. It’s just that it’s my birthday, not yours. I’ll still go to the mall with you, but could we please go to the stores that I want to go to? In case you were thinking of checking out those high-end fashion stores, which is not where I’m wanting to go.”

Her mom sighed. “Okay sweetie. If that’s what you want.” She patted her daughter’s back lightly. “My little angel. I can’t believe you’re already fourteen!”

Barf. That deserves a ding.

★

Naoko was glad that she went to the mall with her mom. It was a pretty worthwhile trip in her eyes. Since she'd already gotten birthday money from her grandparents, who apparently weren’t going to the party, she’d spend almost all of it on her friends for little gifts… just because.

She was looking over the things she got for her friends on the way to her not-so-surprise party. They were small, but polite nonetheless. Naoko bought Mari a box of Reese’s, Mimori a My Little Pony stuffed animal that she knew she didn’t have, Tomo a magnet with a boombox on it, and Kasumi a journal with hearts on it. Of course, Naoko had to get something for herself, so she ended up getting a bad-looking movie in a bargain bin.

“We’re here!” her mom announced after she finished singing a trashy, overplayed pop song on the radio. Naoko made a mental note to insist on changing the channel to the alternative rock station after the party on the way home.

The two women got out of the car and surveyed the building where the party was to be held.

To be honest, it looks like a place that you’d hold a wedding in, some fancy place and all that.

“Your dad is going to come in just an hour after he leaves work, okay?”

“Okay, Mom.” Naoko droned, hiding the notes of excitement and nervousness in her voice.

Mom says the word ‘okay’ more than that stupid romance novel. Ding!

As Naoko and her mother walked into the big building, an older man greeted them at the reception desk.

“Good afternoon,” he said warmly. “What is your reservation?”

“Akane Nakano, five p.m to nine.”

“Right this way, ma’am.” the man instructed, gesturing to his right.

As he directed them in, Naoko’s mouth couldn’t help but drop.

The room was huge—and it was beautiful. Half of the room was covered with tables and chairs, the other half had the dance floor with the DJ booth, as well as a modest table full of birthday presents.

Yes, almost all her guests were there, including her aunts, uncles, cousins, friends of her parents, and of course, her own friends.

“Thank you so much Mom,” Naoko said, still in awe.

“Even better,” Naoko’s mom smiled, patting her on the back. “Your dad hired someone you said you like to be the DJ. Go on, say hi!”

Oh God, is it really him? Naoko worried, sweat starting to drip down her face. She decided to take a peek to confirm it while he was still setting up his computer in the back.

“Um, hello back there?” She greeted the boy a little quietly.

A face popped up from the back.

“Yeah?”

Naoko almost fainted. It’s HIM! Deduct sin points simply because Dad knows what he’s talking about… and also that I like him.

“H-hi,” Naoko’s face faltered. “You’re my DJ, r-right?”

“Yup,” the boy replied. “My name is Nathan. You’re turning fourteen, right?”

Naoko nodded up and down like an idiot.

“Then why is your playlist full of… ‘90s alternative and grunge music? Damn, you’ve got good taste.”

Naoko continued nodding. “Because modern music sucks, and I’m not a big fan of pop music.” She looked away from him for a split second. “D-ding.”

“So… you’re a hipster?”

At that point, Naoko stopped nodding. “Ah, no, not really. B-bye!”

And with that, Naoko ran away and near the door to the entrance just to reevaluate the current situation.

1: She had met Nathan, Dad’s friend on YouTube, who’s totally hot and only sixteen. 10/10 would date.

2: He called her a hipster, which is okay because she got that a lot. Seriously, who would watch bad movies unironically?

3: She ran away. Of course she did. And yes, she would be back later.

And that’s when she saw her friends running up to her, practically screaming in her ears.

“Did you see the DJ?” Mimori squealed. “He looks so hot!”

“Hey Naoko-chan, I hope you like my present!” Kasumi hollered.

“Are you gonna play ‘Funkytown’?!” Tomo wanted to know for some reason.

“Hi, Naoko-chan!” Mari shouted the loudest.

Naoko was pretty overwhelmed. “Um, guys… could you please step a few inches away from me? I’m getting kinda claustrophobic here.”

The girls backed away from her all at once.

Naoko cleared her throat. “The DJ is 2hot4me, I bet I’ll love your present, sadly no, and hi.” In the end, she forced a smile but it broke because she started hyperventilating.

“Calm down Naoko,” soothed Tomo. “You’re going to be okay.” Despite just backing away, Tomo went back up to her and massaged one of her shoulders.

There’s that word again, Naoko snarked. Ding!

Right as Naoko finished her rude thought, Nathan’s voice (clearly imitating an announcer) came blasting out of the speakers.

“Aaaalright everyone! Today we are celebrating Naoko’s 14th birthday! Everybody cheer for Naoko!”

And at that moment, a ‘90s alternative techno song (one of the few techno songs on her playlist) played, echoing throughout the room. Noticing her cue, Naoko walked to the front of the dancefloor bashfully, listening to the sound of her friends cheering for her rather obnoxiously.

“You rock! Woo-hoo!” Mimori shrieked.

The music then quieted down as Naoko’s mom went up to where Naoko was and grabbed the microphone that Nathan had turned on and given to her.

“Hello everyone, and welcome!” Her mom announced joyfully, a great big smile on her face. “I would like to thank you all for coming out this evening to celebrate Naoko’s birth that was fourteen years ago today! Ever since my child was born, she has shown the world how smart and witty and beautiful she can be. I love you, Naoko-chan, with all my heart.” Naoko’s mom looked at her with wide, teary eyes.

Naoko stared back, looking a bit teary-eyed too, but only because of the emotional words her mother had chosen.

Mom chose purposely emotional words for me that barely apply to me. You could apply those same traits to anyone in this room, even Mimori, and they would still fit. Ding!

After kissing her on the cheek, she made an announcement.“Dinner will be served shortly everyone, so stay still!”

After handing the microphone back to Nathan, she took a seat next to her friends and everyone resumed gabbing with each other.

Naoko took an enormous sigh as she watched her mom abandon her, then had an idea.

I’m gonna talk Nathan into hanging out with me for a little while… Who knows when I’m going to have this chance to hang out with him again?

But because she was just a little shy about it, she decided to ask her friends to join her on her quest.

Mimori gave Naoko a smirk. “Huuuh? Naoko wants to do something slightly out of character? Cool! I’m all for it! Would you like me to freeze time so you can have ample time to talk to him~?”

Naoko thought for a moment. “Hm. Sure, why not. Although that means he's gonna find out about our powers.”

“That’s fine,” Tomo said reassuredly. “That way we can have someone else that isn’t us to know what’s going on. I think that’s a good thing!”

Kasumi and Mari agreed vocally.

As the girls quickly headed up to the DJ booth, Naoko motioned for Mimori to go up and try to tap Nathan on the shoulder in the least creepy way possible.

“Mimori! Now!” mouthed Naoko.

The aforementioned girl nodded and walked up to Nathan, waving to him awkwardly as Mimori went to tap him on the shoulder.

“Hey. Um, Mr. DJ!” she shouted as time froze around them.

The boy looked towards her, eyebrows furrowed.

“W-what just went on? Did time just stop?!”

He stepped outside of his DJ booth to look closer, and sure enough, everyone was frozen in place.

Mimori blushed as she started spewing stuff out of her mouth with absolutely no control. “Heh heh, yeah, long story, so we actually so all have superpowers, including me, and I have the power to manipulate time, so basically—”

“Ahem. Me, please.” Naoko interrupted.

Nathan jumped a bit in his stance. “Oh! Hi birthday girl. Um, wait… So you guys all have superpowers? How is this real life?”

“Yes,” Naoko smiled slightly. “And I have a request for you. A birthday request, if you will.”

The poor guy couldn’t speak because he was still trying to process what was currently happening. “Uh, um, eh…”

“You seem like a real nice guy, I’d like to get to know you. Since we both know Dad, after all. When he gets here, do you think he could manage the DJ booth for about a half-hour so we can talk?”

“Uh, that doesn’t sound awful, but I hope he’ll still pay me for that half-hour in which I won’t be working it.”

Naoko shrugged. “Oh, well. Dad’s nice, I’m sure he’ll figure something out. So, is this a deal?”

Nathan’s mouth twitched a just bit, and then he nodded. “S-sure. Why not? So at six, I’ll hang out with you, right?”

“Yes. Right during dinner.”

“Alright. Agreed.” Nathan gave her a salute.

“Woo hoo! Go Naoko, Go Naoko!~” Mimori sang.

“You can unfreeze time now,” announced Naoko.

And with that, time unfroze and Naoko was ready to get mentally prepared for talking with her crush.

★

It was awkward, but Naoko got what she didn’t know she really wanted for her fourteenth birthday.

There she was, sitting towards the back of the auditorium while her dad was playing her favorite ‘90s alternative rock music in the background, eating dinner with the hottest guy she knew.

Now, if only the food was a bit fancier and not just regular salad and a sub. Ding!

Another slight snag in the situation was that from a distance, she could see her friends constantly looking at her and occasionally pointing. Who knew what they were talking about? Probably nothing good.

Ding! Ding! Two sins.

“In my opinion, this summer’s movie schedule just looks so boring. So many sequels going on, I just wish Hollywood cared about original movies for once in their lives.”

“Yeah, totally. I’m all in.” Nathan nodded as she sipped his Coke. “The last time Hollywood made any decent movies was probably since the Harry Potter franchise started. I can’t think of a single movie that’s done anything creative since. Unless you, um, count Avatar, but I don’t.”

Naoko’s face flushed a bit. “Yeah,” A shy smile crept onto her wavering stoic face. “That movie’s notorious for copying other movies too, like Ferngully and Pocahontas. But that’s creativity in a nutshell.” She paused for a moment. “Ah, I’m sorry, that doesn’t really make any sense, does it? I tend to babble whenever I’m near someone I can get along with well, which isn’t very often, to be honest.”

“Nah, that’s okay. I tend to be blunt sometimes. Whatever I say usually winds up sounding rude. Hey, don’t we make a great pair? We’re kind of alike in a way!”

Naoko blushed some more. “Yeah, mm-hm. I think so too. In fact, umm… I can’t believe I’m gonna admit this, but… I really like you, and I’d like to be friends with you if that’s fine.”

“Oh, sure! That’s fine! I’d like to be friends too. I know it’s a little awkward since you’re fourteen now and I’m sixteen, but now that I think about it, the age gap isn’t that wide.”

Naoko’s face looked crestfallen, then suddenly hopeful. “I’m sure my friends could fix that. The age thing, I mean.”

Nathan tapped his fork on the tablecloth lightly. “What? Oh, the whole ‘superpowers’ thing? Strange, but okay. Oh! By the way.” His voice lowered to a whisper. “I won’t tell a soul about it. Promise.”

“Mm. Sounds good to me.”

★

The party continued on after that, the only other memorable thing happening after hanging out with Nathan was dancing with her dad to “Iris” by the Goo Goo Dolls. She also opened up her presents while everyone watched and, despite a few stinkers in there, she was still grateful for them. She smiled and everything!

Naoko smirked as she laid down on her cozy bed at night and looked at her newly added contact on her phone, Nathan.

He should end up going to a few of our club meetings, Naoko thought. I wonder if there’s a way to make him my age while still maintaining his current memories. Ah, oh well. I don’t wanna think like Mimori right now. I—

And then that’s when she saw it. There was a flash drive sitting on her dresser. Of course, she was used to this happening because that’s how Naoko and her dad traded songs, but… she felt like it wasn’t for that reason this time.

Naoko magicked over the flash drive into her hands and put it into her laptop. Her excitement brewed as she saw the finder folder pop up on her screen.

And there it was. Amongst the music files.

“Everything Awesome About Naoko Nakano in Four Minutes or Less,” she murmured.

That was it. That was all she needed in order to start tearing up.

She double-clicked on the file and a familiar video player popped up. Naoko made it full screen and put in her earbuds as the video loaded.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Naoko heard the familiar sound effects as the title of the video appeared, along with a picture of her in the background.

Suddenly, her dad’s voice could be heard, and instead of counting sins, he counted "awesome points”, which was a very silly thing to call them but she forgave him because he could be corny at times.

When the video was over, Naoko was truly crying real tears.

She couldn’t help but think: What other father out there makes a professional birthday video for his daughter? Well, surely some dads, but they likely weren’t as great as the one he made for her.

And like that, everything that happened that day, no matter how insignificant, was swiped away from the day’s sin counter.

Sin total: 0

Sentence: “Do it all over again.”