My eyes watered as I woke to the sound of my alarm. I had barely gotten any sleep last night. Ever since we had moved, I hadn't been able to sleep very well. But having to wake up early, that was especially bad.

I pushed "sleep" on my alarm clock, and yawned. Pulling myself out of bed, I looked over my room. A number of taped up cardboard boxes sat around my bedroom. We had moved here only a couple of days ago and I hadn't really gotten to unpacking yet.

A change of clothes sat on top of a plastic storage bin that served as a temporary dresser. I started changing out of my pajamas and into them.

"Blue jeans, white shirt," I said, "and my lucky hat."

As I changed into them, my mom knocked on my door.

"Akira," she said, "Akira, are you up?"

"I am, mom," I said, putting my shirt on, "I'll be out in a sec!"

I grabbed my hat, and stepped out.

"Breakfast is ready," mom said, "go grab yourself a plate. Your father is already eating."

"Thanks, mom," I said, walking down the hallway into the kitchen.

As I entered the kitchen, a delightful smell of eggs, rice, and fruit hung in the air. Dad was sitting at the kitchen table, enjoying a plate of his own.

"Morning, Aki," he said, casually. "Sleep well?"

"Not really," I said, rubbing my eyes. "I think I'm not used to sleeping in a new place."

"Yeah, you get that from me, probably," he said. "Your mother can sleep virtually anywhere, but me? I need a few days before I'm really used to a place. It's made sleeping in hotels really hard."

"Ohhhh," mom said, teasingly, "you know that's a lie. You slept just fine on our last trip."

Mom and Dad chuckled, and I grabbed myself a plate of my breakfast before sitting down.

"Eat up, it's really good," Dad said.

I cut off a piece and ate it.

"That's really good, mom."

"I'm glad you like it," she said. "I felt like making something a little different this morning. Especially for my special girl's first day at her new school and all."

"You don't need to do that," I said, rolling my eyes a little bit.

"Speaking of," Dad said, "I'll be driving you."

"Isn't it just up the street?" I asked.

"Oh, no, I can't let you walk there until I know what it's like here."

Jeez Dad, I thought, this again? I was fine walking to school when we lived in our old house. Why is it a problem here?

I would have said something to him, but I didn't want to get into it. We'd have one of those long discussions, and I'd probably be late for school because of it.

I nodded, and finished my breakfast before heading off to get ready.

I grabbed my school bag, and headed out to dad's car. Mom waved goodbye through the window, and I smiled and waved back.

I opened the passenger door, and got into Dad's car.

"Ready for today?" He asked.

"Still sleepy," I said, "but I should be okay."

"Same here," he said, chuckling, "we can both fight it off."

"You don't seem tired to me," I noted.

"Try this, I tried entering from your side of the car this morning."

"You're kidding," I laughed, "we've been in America for almost four years, Dad!"

"Like I said, I'm way too tired this morning."

Dad pulled the car out of our driveway, and we headed to school.

Today I was starting my first day at Palmview High School. We had just moved a little under a week ago from another city in California, because Dad had to relocate for work. I kind of hated the idea of moving, especially when it had felt like we had just settled down not too long ago.

"I know you hated moving," Dad said, almost as if he could read my mind, "but I think you'll like it here once you adjust. I've heard the neighborhood is nice, and the school here is plenty safe."

"I know, dad," I said, "I just kind of miss our old house, just a bit, you know?"

"I liked it, too," he said, "but work promised me we won't be moving for a long time now. Especially with my position."

"Okay," I said, "I'll hold you to that."

"I'll keep that in mind," he said, a smile on his face, "if I have us move again, you have my permission to be angry."

I rolled my eyes.

He drove his car up to the school's parking lot and saw me off. From here, I was supposed to go to the school's head office and find my class schedule.

"Just one day at a time, Aki," I told myself, "you can do this."

I walked in through the front gate, and walked to the front office.

Inside, a blond secretary tapped away on a keyboard. The moment I walked in, she looked up at me, and gave a smile.

"Oh, hello," she said, "do you need help with something?"

"Hi," I said, "I'm new here and I was told to come pick up my class schedule before I started."

"Oh, of course," she said, "can't really find your class if you don't know where your class is, right?"

"Yeah," I said, forcing a smile.

"Principal Leonard is currently in a meeting, he likes to meet his new students if he can, so he'll have to miss you today," she said. "Can I get your last name, please?"

"Fujita," I said promptly.

"Aha, here you are," she said. "Here's your student I.D. card, and your schedule."

She placed my schedule and a temporary student identification card on the desk.

"Your first class will be in science, with Mr. O'Connor, room 403. Would you like me to walk you there?"

"No," I declined, "I think I'll be able to find it myself."

"Of course. Before I forget; your books will be ready to pick up by lunch today. They'll be in the library for you."

"Thank you," I said.

"Well, if nothing else, it was very nice to meet you, Miss Fujita. I hope you have a wonderful year with us!"

I nodded, checked the school's map, and walked out to head to class.

According to the school's map, room 403 was located in a two-story building next to the cafeteria. Students were packed around at lunch tables waiting for the first bell to ring. Everyone mingled and grouped up in their own cliques.

I felt like I stood out by being by myself. I hated being in public spaces for that exact reason, but it was so much worse having to start over again, especially it being the second time I've had to go through with this. I hated it when we first moved to the United States, but at least I'd gotten used to my old school.

Here, I was alone again, and too shy to go up to anyone to socialize. So I guess the only person I have to blame for my own issues is me, but just once, I'd love to run into someone and just make friends with them.

The morning bell rang, and I made my way to class.

I entered room 403, and inside, multiple students had already sat down. At the front of the class, a somewhat stocky man sat at the front of the class. He wore a green flannel and glasses. At his desk was a plaque that said, "Mr. O'Connor, science teacher."

"Ah, welcome," he greeted, his voice full of enthusiasm, "are you my new student?"

I looked away a little, somewhat embarrassed about being noticed, and nodded.

"Now, now, there's no reason to be shy," he said. "I'll let you introduce yourself."

I walked to the front, and Mr. O'Connor stood next to me.

"Class, we have a new student today. This is Akira Fujita, and I hope I'm saying that name correctly."

"That's correct," I said, and I faced the rest of the class.

"Ms. Fujita here is from the upper north part of the state. I expect everyone

to give her the utmost respect possible."

"You can just call me 'Aki'," I said, "all of my friends back home did that."

"'Aki' it is, then" he said, "Now, I'm aware you don't have your books yet,

but not to worry, I have a spare you can borrow for the day."

"Thanks," I said as he grabbed a book off of his desk.

"You can give it back to me at the end of class," he said, and pointed at an empty desk in the middle of the classroom.

I sat down at my new seat, and he began.

"Now, class, before we begin," he announced, "I wanted to bring up one of the most fascinating articles I read today. Take a look at this!"

He pulled out a magazine, with an article stating: "New breakthroughs may allow for full-body virtualization."

"Now, this might sound like an article made to simply garner attention," he said, chuckling, "but I've been reading into this myself, and it's absolutely fascinating."

Mr. O'Connor sounded so enthusiastic about this topic, I almost wondered if he was even going to teach the class on what he was supposed to be teaching in the first place. Can't say I blame him, though, he seemed rather passionate on the subject.

"Imagine this, everyone," he continued. "I know all of you are thrilled by the current standing of virtual reality and whatnot, but imagine going further than that! Why, imagine your whole body being put into a computer, able to still feel and move yourself, but to be taken to a new world entirely!"

It sounded far-fetched, but if this was the guy selling me on the concept, I'd say he'd done his job.

"A world beyond our own, built by us. Imagine the things we could find out being so close to the data in front of us!"

"However," he sighed, "it is all fantasy at this point. Maybe one day we'll see it come to fruition. Anyways, class, open your textbooks to page 71."

I opened my textbook, and went through with the lectures.

I had finished science and math for the morning, and the bell had rung for lunch. Stepping out, it seemed that clouds had settled in, and it began to rain.

I had a reminder set on my phone to go pick up my school textbooks, so I headed to the library to grab them.

When I arrived, I showed the librarian my school I.D., and they grabbed them for me. A rather quick exchange, but they seemed busy, so I took my books and left.

I pulled out my binder, and noticed I didn't have enough space for all of the books. The only thing sitting in it was my science homework right now. It was light enough that I could carry it with one hand.

I walked out the library, noticing the rain had stopped. I was starting to feel hungry, and headed for the cafeteria.

However, as I turned, I ran right into someone. The binder flew out of my hands, and I fell over.

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

"Oh no," a boy said. "I'm sorry, I wasn't looking where I was going!"

He bent down and offered me a hand. I looked up at him. His hair was dark and somewhat messy, and he wore a black jacket with a blue line going down the zipper, and somewhat faded blue jeans.

I grabbed his hand, somewhat miffed at him, but also thankful he at least said sorry.

"Sorry again," he said, "I kind of got distracted looking at my phone."

I picked my backpack up, and brushed myself off.

"It's okay," I said, "I've done that a few times myself."

I looked around for my binder, and saw it had landed in a puddle.

"Ah, damn it," he said, grabbing it for me. "I think you'll probably need some new homework. Your binder looks pretty light, are you new here?"

"I am," I said. "I just started today."

"Well, I should probably introduce myself," he said, "I'm Griff."

"Akira," I said.

"I should go with you to see your teacher, help you get a new copy. I don't think it would be right to make you go yourself. Besides, I ought to clean your binder, at the very least."

"I'd appreciate it," I said.

"Well, then, I'll head with you to your class, and maybe you and I can get some lunch."

"Sure," I said, nodding, and walked back over to my science class.

On the way, he was still looking at his phone.

"You seem pretty sucked into your phone," I teased him, "What's so important that you'll randomly bump into girls?"

"Bad habit," he said. "You're not the first girl I've embarrassed myself in front of because I wasn't paying attention."

I laughed. "Somehow I believe that."

Griff and I walked back to Mr. O'Connor's class. Mr. O'Connor was inside, eating food from a lunchbox. He noticed as I walked in.

"Ah, Akira," he said, and then looked at the figure behind me. "Oh, and, what a surprise, Griff."

"Hey," Griff said. "I kind of bumped into Akira and ruined her homework, so Ifigured I'd come back here with her to get a new copy of her homework."

"Ah," he said, "I have extra copies, not to worry."

He got up from his seat to open a filing cabinet at the other end of the room. Griff looked over at his desk, and his attention was caught over the magazine he showed earlier too. Griff opened the magazine to read about it.

"Ah, caught your eye as well?" Mr. O'Connor said, walking back.

Griff looked over at him.

"I understand it. This is something someone your age would find a little more interesting than anything I taught in my class."

Mr. O'Connor handed me a new copy of my homework. I pulled the old one out of my binder and tossed it.

"Yeah, sorry about that," Griff apologized. "I didn't even really get interested in stuff like this until the end of summer vacation."

"Not a problem," Mr. O'Connor assured. "It's just good to see you again."

Griff let out a short laugh. "I doubt this kind of stuff is possible. It's all theories."

"You sound rather skeptical," Mr. O'Connor said with a grin, "I take it you've looked into this before?"

"I've read a couple books about it," Griff said. "Even then, the experts don't think it's entirely possible."

"One can only dream," O'Connor sighed, "anyways, I had better let you go. I assume neither of you have had your meals yet."

"Now that you mention it," I said, "I am pretty hungry."

"Then we'd better get going," Griff said, "good to see you again, Mr. O'Connor."

"Likewise, Mr. Darhen."

We both left. Griff and I walked out to an empty seat, and I pulled out my packed lunch, while Griff went to grab lunch from the school's food service counter.

He came back, and sat next to me.

"You seemed knowledgeable over what Mr. O'Connor was talking about," I commented.

"What, you're not excited by the idea of leaving your own reality?"

"It just never seemed all that believable," I said, "and normal people like us probably won't be able to see it."

"We probably won't," Griff said. "Considering that we don't have anything nearly powerful enough to get there. It's also an issue of if there would be anything on the other side."

He scooped a spoonful of mashed potatoes into his mouth.

"Obviously," he continued, "I would love to see what the other side looks like, but I'm not sure we'll ever get to that point, at least in our lifetime."

Griff opened his phone, and noted the time.

"Ah, lunch is almost over," he said. "Hey, before I go, could I possibly get your number? I wouldn't mind meeting up again sometime."

"Asking straight out, are you?" I asked, my eyebrows raised.

"Hey, it wouldn't hurt to keep in touch," he retorted. "Besides, I already have a girlfriend."

"And why aren't you eating lunch with her instead?"

"We, uh, don't go to the same school," he said, embarrassed.

He didn't say much else about her either. I had wanted to ask him a bit more on who his girlfriend was, but I knew what it was like to not want to talk about something.

I pulled out my phone. "sure, I'll give you a text if I feel bored enough to chat with someone."

He smiled, and I gave him my number.

Before long, the bell rang, and we returned to class. I would be glad to see the school day end.

And, luckily, it did end, though it felt like forever before the final bell rang.

As I walked out the front gate, I texted mom and asked her if it was okay to walk home.

She replied with a prompt "yes, but please be safe."

I rolled my eyes.

What else would I do? Try not to be safe?

I walked home, and opened the front door.

"Mom! I'm home!" I announced.

"Welcome back, dear," she said. "How was school?"

"It was okay, I guess," I said, taking my shoes off. "I made a new friend today."

"Oh, really? That's great news!"

I made a slight smile, and walked through the kitchen to the hallway.

"If you need me," I said, "I'll be in my room."

"We'll be having dinner around 6 P.M. or so," she said, "by the time your father gets home, definitely."

I walked into my room, and dropped my bag. My desk still hadn't been set up since we moved, so I decided to get it done on my bed. I cracked open my text books and started working on it.

It ended up being 5:30 before long. I finished my homework pretty quickly, and found myself browsing the internet for something to pass the time.

I started seeing news feeds showing up, though I normally ignored them. Something about "cyberterrorsists" being talked about and some incident that happened yesterday. I wish I could do something to help, but I was only one person. News like this bothered me, less because of how scary it sounded, but how little I could actually do to help prevent stuff like this. I felt helpless even thinking about it. It was a terrible feeling.

Luckily, my thoughts were interrupted by my mother yelling for me that dinner was ready.

"Akira!" She yelled, "dinner is a little early, come help set the table, your father will be home soon!"

I left my room and walked into the dining room. Mom had set up most of the table, I just needed to get utensils.

Once everything was set, Dad came in the door almost on cue.

At dinner, Mom served up steamed salmon and vegetables with rice. Dad and I sat down and we started eating.

"So, how are my two favorite people?" Dad asked.

"Well,' Mom said, "Akira has some good news."

"Oh?"

"Well," Mom said, "why don't you tell your father?"

"Well, uh," I said, hesitantly, "I kinda made a new friend today."

"Oh, really?" Dad said, excited. "What's their name?"

"Griff," I said, "and he seems nice."

"Oh, that's good to hear," Dad said. "You know, if you want, we could have him over for dinner tomorrow."

"What? No, that's not necessary," I said, a little red in the face.

"Actually," Mom said, "I think that's an excellent idea. I wouldn't mind meeting someone you've made friends with."

Part of me was regretting telling them about Griff. It was a little embarrassing thinking they wanted to meet him, but even more, what was I going to say to him? "Hey, my parents want to see you even though you've only known me a day!" I didn't know if Griff would even entertain the idea of that offer. He might get the wrong idea or something.

"Well, you don't have to," Dad said, "but it would be nice to meet him."

"I'll ask him after dinner," I said. I wished I could have just shot down the entire offer, but they liked being in the know with my life.

After dinner, as I went back into my room, I texted Griff.

"So, I just had dinner with my parents. I told them about you, and they want to meet you."

He replied. "A little sudden, don't you think? Lol."

Called it, I thought.

"You don't have to come, really. They just thought it would be nice."

"Sure, I don't see why not? They sound like nice people."

Dang it, why do you have to be okay with this? Just shoot it down.

"Okay, I'll let them know, then."

Not much else followed, aside from me turning in for the night shortly after.

The next day at lunch, I checked over at the lunch table we ate at yesterday. Griff was sitting there. I assumed he was waiting for me.

He wasn't paying attention. In fact, he seemed a little too into what he was looking at on his phone. I walked over, seeing if he'd notice.

He didn't. I looked over his shoulder and saw he was looking at a picture of him with a girl. His hair was shorter, and he looked a little shy. The girl in the picture had teal pigtails, and a bright smile on her face. Was this his girlfriend, I wondered.

"Boo," I said. Griff jumped, almost dropping his phone.

"Jeez," he griped, "warn a guy, will ya? I almost dropped my phone."

"Sorry," I said, "you just seem really caught up in your phone again. You should pay more attention."

"You're right, you're right, I'm sorry."

He chuckled, though he looked a little nervous. I wondered if it was because I might have seen over his shoulder. To be fair, I did, but it didn't seem necessary to hide.

"So," Griff said, "I'm coming to your place for dinner tonight?"

"I guess so. Is it okay with your parents?"

"Well, my uncle said it's okay. You actually texted me right as he had come home last night from his work trip."

"You live with your uncle?" I asked.

"Yeah, he's my guardian. He was supposed to be gone for most of the week, but his trip got cancelled, apparently. He's cool with it."

"Well, that's all my parents care about. They seemed pretty excited to meet you."

"Still a little funny that they wanted to meet me so quickly."

"They're like that," I said. "They just want involvement with my life, which can be a little annoying."

"Sorry," Griff said.

"No need to be. I'm kind of used to it."

We sat around and chatted a little longer before the bell rang to go back to class. Griff said he would meet at the front gate outside at the end of the day.

Once class ended, Griff was standing at the gate, and, as usual, was engrossed in looking at his phone.

"Hey," I said, "you ready to get going?"

"Hey, Aki," Griff said. "I'm ready when you are."

I nodded, and we both walked towards my house.

"You live really close," Griff commented, "and your house looks nice."

"Yeah, thanks," I said. "I'll warn you now, though: we just moved in only a few days ago. There's still some boxes lying around."

Mom and Dad got mostly everything unpacked this weekend. The living room and kitchen were all put together, but our bedrooms weren't. Not like Griff would be visiting those, anyways, but there were still plenty of stray boxes lying around.

I opened the door, and let Griff inside.

"Mom!" I yelled, "I'm home! Griff's here, too!"

"Oh, wonderful," she said. "I'm in the kitchen!"

I took off my shoes and walked further inside. Griff kept going, and I shot him a look.

"Huh?" he said, and then noticed his shoes were still on. He went back and took them off.

"Sorry," he apologised, "old habit. I usually take mine off in my room."

"It's fine," I said, "I get it."

We went into the kitchen, and mom was there, preparing dinner.

"Ah, so this is Griff," Mom said. "And how are you today?"

"I'm doing fine, Mrs., uh..." Griff said.

"Oh, Ayane Fujita," Mom said, "it's very nice to meet you."

"Likewise," Griff said, "you have a nice house."

"Why, thank you. We just moved in. Akira, if you want to show Griff around the house, feel free. Dinner is going to be ready in probably about an hour."

"Sure, Mom," I said. "Come on, Griff. I'll show you around."

I walked with Griff down into our living room. I looked around, noticing I hadn't really seen much of it myself since we moved in. I really only saw the dining room, the kitchen, or my room since we had moved in.

But now, looking at it, Mom and Dad had unpacked fairly quickly. The shelves were packed with D.V.D.'s, video games, and some board games.

Our couch sat opposite of the T.V., with the coffee table on the front. The coffee table had a book on it. Griff looked it over for a second, and then noticed something else on the table next to the couch. It was a photo of us.

"Hey," Griff said, "this your family?"

"It is," I said, looking at it.

"That's Dad, Mom, and me."

"And who's this?" he asked, pointing at the other girl next to me.

"That's my sister, Satsuki." I said.

"Is she in college or something?" Griff asked.

"No, she passed away," I said stiffly. "About five years ago."

"Oh," Griff said. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be," I said. "It's no one's fault."

I looked at the photo again. I was only eight when we took that photo, and Satsuki was just starting high school. Even back then, I still looked like a grump. Satsuki on the other hand, was full of life and energy that made people want to be around her.

"Didn't mean to tear into an old wound," Griff said, looking at me.

"I mean, it was such a long time ago," I said. "We've been living in the United States since then."

"I know," he said, "but it doesn't make it easier. I know what it's like to lose people. Though, I didn't know my parents very well, so maybe it's not the same."

"It doesn't matter," I said. "What's done is done. We've all been trying to move on."

Mom and Dad especially wanted to move on. We never really talked about it after it happened. I didn't even really want to think about it, if I was being honest, but avoiding the topic would have been even more awkward, and I didn't want to lie to Griff.

"Well," Griff said, "I won't pry too much. I'm here to hang out with you, right?"

Griff walked over to our entertainment shelf.

"I see you're into video games," Griff said. "Got a favorite?"

"Oh, that's hard to pick," I said, "I'd have to think about that for a second."

"My favorite is the Viper Team series."

"Viper Team?"

"Never played it?" "I've heard of it, but I never touched it."

"It's based on the Viper Team comics. I used to read those all the time when I was younger."

"Huh, what was it about?"

"Well, you had Viper, the main character, who piloted a giant robot that talked with him, and he had a whole legion of other pilots who fought alongside him, and they saved the world from all kinds of crazy things."

"That sounds pretty fun," I said.

"Yeah," Griff said. "In one of the comics, I remember my favorite subplot was where Viper had his mech transferred into a humanoid robot body. She looked cute."

"Is that why it's your favorite?" I teased.

"Sure, plus it was fun to play, and had a great story about being heroic and saving the day."

"Sounds like you know what you like," I said.

"Kinda, sometimes all you need is a good story to enjoy something."

"Well, I don't think I have a favorite like that," I said, "but if I remember what it is, I'll let you know."

"Hey, no pressure, you don't need to have a favorite to like a hobby."

Griff and I continued chatting until Dad came home, and by then, dinner was ready.

Mom had served up teriyaki chicken with rice and steamed vegetables. Four separate dishes were served on the dining room table.

Mom and Dad sat next to each other, and left a seat open on the other end for Griff and I. We both sat down.

"Anything to drink, Griff?" Mom asked.

"Uh, I'll just take water, I think." Griff said.

"Of course," she said, politely, "I'll be right back."

Mom brought back a glass of water for Griff, and also brought back my usual drink: iced green tea.

"It's nice to meet you," Dad said. "Akira told us about you and we thought we should meet you as well. Sorry for the sudden invitation."

"It's fine," Griff said, chuckling. "It was a little sudden, but my uncle was cool with it. He's just glad I've got friends to hang out with."

"We feel the same way about Akira.," Dad said. "I don't think I've gotten to introduce myself. I'm Takaya Fujita."

"Pleasure to meet you, sir," Griff said.

"Mr. Fujita is fine," Dad said.

Once everything was finally settled, we started eating.

"Where were you guys living before you moved here?" Griff asked.

"We lived up north," Dad said, "but work decided to relocate me with a better position."

"And, where do you work?" Griff asked, taking a drink of water.

"I'm an accountant for Duodecim Security."

Griff spilled his water and started coughing heavily.

"Oh no," Mom exclaimed. "Are you okay, Griff!?"

Once Griff stopped coughing, he nodded.

"Yeah, I'm okay. Sorry about getting water all over the place."

"Accidents happen," Dad said, "so long as you're okay, it's fine."

Mom grabbed paper towels and cleaned up the table.

"Here," Griff said, "I'll clean it up, it's my mess."

Mom shook her head. "You're a guest in our home, so it's our job to clean up after you."

Once dinner was over, Griff and I hung out in the living room for a little while, though he was mostly on his phone, likely talking to his girlfriend.

"I think I'm going to be heading home," Griff said. "We still have school tomorrow."

For some reason, Griff seemed more nervous than before. I couldn't tell why. He didn't seem so interested in talking after dinner.

"Is there something wrong?" I asked.

"No, nothing," Griff said. "Why do you ask?"

"You just seem more tense."

"Nah," he said. "I've just got homework I need to get done. I'll have to get it taken care of before bed tonight."

Part of me didn't buy that, but I couldn't be certain.

Griff grabbed his backpack and went to say goodbye to my parents. "I'm going to be taking off here, it was nice to meet both of you."

"Oh, certainly," Mom said, "we hope we'll see you again soon."

"Do you need a ride home?" Dad asked. "I don't think you should be out after dark."

"Don't worry," Griff said, "I got one coming. They'll be here in a bit."

"Well, if nothing else," Mom said, "have a wonderful evening."

Griff smiled.

"Hey, Aki," Griff said, "I'll see you at school tomorrow."

I nodded and he left. I watched as he walked past our yard, and a car showed up. I assumed it was his uncle picking him up, but it wasn't. The driver looked like a girl with brown hair. His girlfriend had teal hair, so it couldn't have been her. He hadn't mentioned any siblings or cousins, either; it sounded like it was just him and his uncle

Something was off about the whole thing, but I couldn't put my finger on it.

Eventually, I'd find out why.