Dairy Of Ellen

A Girl Who Was Loved (2)

The next afternoon.
I ate lunch, and washed the cutlery. I dried the was.h.i.+ng, and took a breath. My ch.o.r.es for the day done, I left for the forest.
Because I promised I'd come visit her again. I felt somewhere in my heart that yesterday had been a dream, so in part, I also wanted to confirm that.
I walked the familiar forest path and headed for her house.
Though I'd only walked the path once, I didn't get lost at all, arriving at the garden of red and blue flowers.
Exiting the thicket, I saw the rose garden and red mansion. The same thing I had seen yesterday.
No, it hadn't been a dream.

I turned the handle. The door wasn't locked.
Was it left open for me? Actually, it wasn't locked yesterday, either. Perhaps it was so the black cat could come through.
That seemed unsafe. Perhaps people coming in at all was very rare.

"Viola!"
When I opened the door, Ellen quietly shouted at the sight of my face.
The girl who had yesterday been bedridden now sat up in bed, her back resting against a big pillow.
She seemed more well than yesterday.
There were a few unfinished books around her bed, and a round table beside it with a steaming teacup.
"You came back... I'm so glad."
Ellen narrowed her eyes to look at me. What kind of expression was this? My chest was pounding.
Though her face was covered with bandages, the gesture helped me to see her as no different from a normal girl.
I pulled a chair close to the bed and sat down.

Again, I had seen no one on the way to Ellen's room.
But seeing her bandages freshly replaced and the tea on the table, I was sure there were someone tending to her in the house.
There were two cups of tea.
Seeing me notice it, Ellen spoke.
"That's for you, Viola."
Had the person caring for her prepared it for me?
"Can I?"
She nodded yes.
"Thank you."

I took the teacup.
The white cup was decorated with flowery line patterns, and looked very expensive. A big difference from the dull cups at my house.
Ellen slowly reached for her tea. It was such a small hand, and it trembled. I even found myself thinking "finally" when she at last grabbed the cup of tea.
Ellen smiled, noticing my concerned gaze. I smiled too, feeling a little shy.
As I drank, I looked around the room.

The white walls had not a stain on them. The furniture was gorgeous. Little shelves were packed with colorfully-bound books. Expensive vases held beautiful roses.
I looked at her ribbon and one-piece. The fabric was so high-quality, I was almost jealous.
This girl must be quite loved, I convinced myself. For I believed the money spent on her must be equal to the affection she received.

As before, the black cat slept at the windowsill, collecting the rays of the sun on its black body.
"Is that kitty yours?", I asked.
Ellen inclined her head.
"Hmm... Not really. He just sticks around."
"Really?", I replied, finding it unexpected.
Meooow, the cat went as if replying.
I felt like he was saying "That's not true," and I laughed.

There were now two empty teacups on the table.
I heard a bird flying off very near the room. Was there a nest there? I looked out the window in thought, then back to Ellen.
"Hey, Ellen. You didn't always live here, right?"
"Yeah," she nodded.
Her hands were neatly folded on the sheets.
"I came here a long time ago. ...How'd you know?"
"Because of your unusual eye color."
She blinked them. Then she smiled, as if remembering.
"Oh yeah. I read that in a book, once."
She took one of the books beside the bed and opened it.
"There aren't any people with gold eyes here, right? Let's see... Look, here it is."

I took the book from Ellen and looked at the indicated page.
Indeed, it talked about the history of people's eye colors in the region.
But I was surprised by how small the words were, tightly-packed on the page.
Just reading it made my head hurt. Could a girl younger than me really read such a difficult book?
I asked, not taking my eyes off the words.
"Ellen, can you read books like this?"
"Yeah. I can't go outside, so reading is about all I can do..."
Hearing Ellen's voice suddenly droop, I looked up. She was hanging her head.
She didn't just read because she liked to.

"You can't go outside?"
"Yeah."
Ellen looked up with realization.
"I-It's not contagious or anything. But my legs... it hurts to move them."
I followed Ellen's gaze to her legs. Though I couldn't tell their condition, hidden by the sheets.
"I see..."
That was all I could say. Hoping to change the topic, I asked cheerfully.
"Hey, Ellen, how long have you been here?"
She shook her head.
"I don't know. I was just... here. I used to live somewhere else, but... I don't really remember."
"What about your father and mother?"
She shook her head again.
"I used to live with them. But... I haven't seen them since coming here."

I couldn't immediately believe her.
They prepared such a wonderful house for her, yet wouldn't come to see her?
But her face told me everything. I grew sad, and was desperate to uplift her.
I chose my words carefully and was cheery.
"I'm sure they're busy with work."
Ellen looked at me.
"Work?"
"Yeah," I nodded, looking around at the furniture in the room.
"I mean, they have such a big house for you to live in. That must take a lot of money. And there's the cost of medicine, too. They must be too busy working for you to see you often, Ellen."

"Hmm..."
Ellen lowered her gaze, thinking.
She rubbed her bandaged fingers together.
"...They're working... for me?"
"Right!"
One more push.
"It's all for you, Ellen. My father's always coming home late because of work, too."
"I see..."
Ellen thought, her head still lowered.

Soon, I saw the sparkle return to her eyes.
She looked up, took the book from me, and clapped it shut. I was a little surprised at the sound. Her gloomy face already gone, she looked at me and smiled.
"Hey, Viola, your eyes are green, right?"
I faltered at the sudden and obvious question.
"Huh? Yeah."
"Your hair's sparkly like the sun, and your eyes are like glossy leaves. It's so pretty. Can I see them closer?"
I laughed nervously at the suddenly cheerful Ellen. But it was much better than seeing her gloomy.
"My eyes aren't that interesting..."
"No, they're really pretty. Show me."

I shyly brought my face close to Ellen. She played with the ribbon in my braid with her little hands, looking into my face.
We stared at each other up close. I wasn't sure if I was seeing blood vessels pa.s.sing through her gold eyes because of her sickness, but they emitted a strange color.
Looking at them so close, I felt like I would be sucked in. Ellen's eyes were far prettier than mine.
From her body came a smell unique to sick people, a smell of medicine.
Her words - "I can't leave" - flickered in my mind.

There's someone who loves you.
It made me happy to know that.

That night, at dinner.
Father and I sat across from each other and ate.
I was staring off into s.p.a.ce, thinking about Ellen.
"Something good happen today?", father asked suspiciously.
I had apparently been beaming without even being aware.
"N-No, nothing...?"
"Hmm."
After my curt answer, he didn't say much more.
Father put a cut of meat in his mouth.
"It's fine to go play, but don't go too deep in the forest."
My hands stopped in the middle of tearing some bread, then I nodded after a little bit of thought.

Ellen's house was in the forest.
But it didn't seem like part of the deep forest that father was concerned about. I could reach it rather quickly, without getting lost.
On the other hand, "deep in the forest" seemed to describe Ellen's house perfectly.
I felt a little awkward and went on eating, not looking father in the eye.