Aome (青目; Vol.2)

Chapter 3

(???, ???. A little girl with bruises and small cuts was crying in the dark. She was alone until a person came up to her and asked...)

???: Emiya, what happened? Why are you crying?

(The little girl wiped her tears with her hands and tried to clear her throat.)

Little Emiya: Some kids were bullying me because I wear big glasses, and they told me that I'm ugly... (*sob*) Why am I born like this...?

???: Ah, Emiya... Here's a napkin for you to dry your tears. (The mysterious person gave her a napkin from their pocket.)

Little Emiya: Thank you, Daddy. (She takes the napkin from her father and wipes her eyes and nose.) Do you think I'm pretty?

Emiya's Dad: Of course! You're my little angel. You're kind, smart, and a well-behaved girl. Don't let those kids bully you for your appearance. You're pretty on the inside, and that's all that matters. Someday, when you'll get older, there will be someone out there who will like you, despite what happens or how you look like. Oh! I almost forgot, here's a gift for you.

(He takes out a yellow-wrapped bag that's tied with a red ribbon at the top. Emiya took the gift, looked at it curiously, and pulled the ribbon to reveal a cat plushie that resembles her. Emiya's face lit up into a smile.)

Little Emiya: (Looks at her dad) Wow, it looks like me! But... how did you get this?

Emiya's Dad: Ah, don't worry about it. All that matters is that my daughter's happy and isn't crying anymore, right?

Emiya nodded and went toward her dad for a hug. Then, her dad took her up in her arms and walked away from the darkness.)

(???, ???. The sun was setting as the rays shot through the classroom, giving the students an orange light source. In one of the classrooms, a girl has her head put down on a desk, presumably crying uncontrollably. Her phone vibrates from her school bag, which gets the girl's attention. She picks it up and looks at the notification.)

??? (thinking): Ah, Mom's getting worried about me. I should get going.

(The girl picked up her bag and went out of school and walked home slowly. As she walked towards her home, she recalled what happened before she was crying.)

???: (fades in) ...so, that's why I like you. Will you please be my boyfriend?

???: Ah, well... (He looks out of the corner of his eye, where he spots his three friends holding up a notebook saying, 'REJECT HER'. He then looks back at the girl who confessed her feelings towards him.) I'll be your boyfriend under one condition... (fades out)

???: (fades in) ...What's wrong? Can't sing anymore? (*snickers*)

???: Ah, thank goodness. I won't have to hear your voice anymore.

(The boys who were the girl's crush's friends laughed at her for losing her voice while singing a high-pitched song, while the crush looked the other way. The girl saw this and slapped him across the face and left the circle of shame created by the boys.)

(After she reached home, she took out her notebook and wrote "I'm home" on a page, tore the page, placed it on top of the shoe cupboard, and walked towards her room without paying attention to what her mom said.)

Girl's mom: Emiya! Where are you going?! You didn't even say that you came back home, is everything okay? EMIYA! *Sigh*

(The front door opens to a man in his late-40s who looks at the note that Emiya wrote and took it in his hand.)

Emiya's dad: Honey, she did say that she's home. She wrote it on a piece of paper for some reason, did she go to her room already?

Emiya's mom: *Sigh* Yeah, but she's never like this... can you go talk to her? I still have to prepare dinner.

(He nodded and went up to Emiya's bedroom door and knocked.)

Emiya's dad: Emiya, can I enter your room?

(The door opens to her room. He enters the room and the door closes behind him. He sees Emiya with her notebook and tear stains on her swollen face. She then sits down on her desk while her dad sits down on her bed.)

Emiya's dad: So... tell me what happened. Why are you using a notebook to talk to us? Did you catch a really bad cold or something?

(Emiya opens her notebook and writes down what happened to her today. After her dad finishes reading, he hugs her. She starts to cry again.)

Emiya's dad: ...Hey, you crying again? (He puts his hand on her head for comfort.) There, there, it's not your fault. You didn't know what they were planning, and you were brave enough to teach that boy a lesson so that he doesn't do the same to other girls who are also like you. Just know that I'll always be on your side when things go wrong, okay? (Emiya nods.) Dinner's ready, do you want to eat?

(She nods and they leave the room together.)

(November 27th, 2005; 2:00 pm. Emiya's room. It's raining outside with large raindrops almost splashing on her window. Emiya's lying down without any expression, looking away from the door. After her dad passed away, she hasn't gone to school for weeks. Her mother's not nagging her to go to school because she's also feeling the same after losing her husband who she loved dearly. And if she ever goes to school, she'll still be talked down by her classmates and made fun of her disability and her late father's death. At one point, her desk was written all over with profanities and messages telling her to kill herself. She couldn't stay there any longer and stayed in the nurse's office until school ended because she didn't want to make her mom worry anymore. This kept happening for one month until it affected her grades and attendance that her school had to expel her for neglecting her education. However, this all changed with one major piece of news... at the dinner table)

Emiya's mom: We'll be moving to Kyoto to your grandma's house. Your grandma found a job for me so that you can go back to school again without having to go through the bullying that you went through for the last 2-3 months. And I can't believe that the teachers did nothing to stop the students from picking on you, even though you tried your best to ignore them. I think they should've been expelled instead of you because you did nothing wrong. (Emiya nodded along.) And how dare they talk poorly of my husband?! It's none of their business to talk about this. Though... our neighborhood's small, so it's inevitable. Anyways, we'll be leaving on December 1st, so pack your bags now before you forget. Okay?

Emiya (written): What about the school fees? And...

Emiya's Mom: *Sigh* Do you remember the field trip you went on with another school? It's the same school, plus I've heard good things about them, so you should be okay there. (Emiya goes to her mother and hugs her.) Okay, okay. Now, go eat fast and pack your bags, okay?