JOURNAL

When Aoi asked them for a journal for Christmas, Heero did not think much about it. She claimed all her friends had them, either colourful or pink, and she wanted one that came with a lock in the shape of a heart. He supposed it was natural for girls her age to want such things, so he and Relena bought the notebook and wrapped it in a colourful paper.

Then the holidays were over and their usual routine restarted. The journal was always with her. She carried it around the house, scribbling. Heero would merely shake his head at her, but Relena seemed worried.

'Heero?' she whispered in the darkness of their bedroom. 'Are you awake?'

'What is it?'

'I'm worried about Aoi. She keeps writing on that journal… All the time! And it's never unlocked!'

'She's eleven, Relena. What do you think she could be writing?'

'She's almost twelve. I don't know. It could be anything. What if she has a boyfriend?'

'She can't have a boyfriend. She's too young for that.' He tried to reassure her… and himself.

'You could open that lock without breaking it…'

'No, I could not.'

'Heero, you can hack into the Vatican's computer. Do not tell me you can't open that cheap lock.'

'It's private, Relena. If you're that worried maybe you should talk to her. It is the right thing to do.'

'I know…'

'Mom? Do you remember this?' the eighteen year old Aoi waved the little journal in front of her face.

'Of course, I do.' She smiled from the sofa where she sat reading a book. 'That gave us quite a headache… Right, Heero?'

Heero looked up from his laptop and narrowed his eyes. 'You gave me a headache because of that journal.'

'Why would a journal cause so much trouble?'

'Maybe because your mother was curious about what you wrote in it.'

'I was worried not curious.' Relena corrected.

'Well, I am very sorry to disappoint you, but this is probably the most ridiculous journal ever penned.' Aoi shook her head dramatically, then walked up to her mother and handed her the notebook and the little keys to the heart shaped lock. 'You can read it if you wish.'

'Thank you.' Feigning disinterest Relena placed the journal on the seat beside hers and reopened her book.

Aoi returned to her bedroom and the hard task of packing. She was finally going to college.

Relena waited until she had heard her daughter's bedroom door close and reached for the journal. The lock opened with a click and she started reading until the tears in her eyes made it impossible for her to continue.

'I can't believe she's leaving us.' She whispered to Heero when he sat beside her and pulled her close.

'She won't be gone forever.' His eyes found the journal, she still held open, and he read.

Dear journal, today I woke up at seven, I brushed my teeth, I made my bed, I had breakfast, I organized my bag, I put on my shoes, I walked to the bus stop, I went to school, I came back home, I did my homework…

It went on.

He met Relena's eyes, and they laughed.