Akushi

Chapter Seven

I watched as Rena continued to peer out the window. I wondered what it was she was looking at. Whatever it was, it must have been interesting, because I have been standing here behind her for a couple minutes now, and still she hadn't noticed me.

I did not want to startle her by calling her name, but perhaps now would be the perfect time to talk to her about her odd behavior. I needed to know what was bothering her and I did not want to start our fun, adventurous day until everything was resolved.

"Oh, it's you Keiichi-Kun," she finally said before turning to face me. She must have seen my reflection in the window. Her smile was jovial, but I knew it was fake. Even if she was just as excited as I was to get the day started, she was sad. "Did you have a good sleep? Did you?"

I guess small talk wouldn't hurt first, but I wasn't going to let her avoid my upcoming conversation so soon. I grinned. "Ah, yeah, I feel a lot better today," I replied, assuring my friend that I was ready for the day. My smile faded as I watched her closely.

Rena chuckled cutely and pointed at the kitchen table. "Hurry up and eat, Keiichi-Kun." Yes, having breakfast only made the opportunity more perfect. So, I sat down and watched as Rena went to the stove to grab the pancakes she made for me. Good, old Rena.

"Hey, Rena," I started as her back was facing me, "is something going on?"

"Hm?" she replied slowly as she was collecting the pancakes with the spatula and placing them on my plate that was on the counter next to the stove. "What do you mean, Keiichi-Kun? What?"

Was she really playing dumb or was I just imagining things? No, the way she acted, especially in the mountains with the others, was definitely not my imagination. "Well, you've been acting strange," I continued. "Different."

Rena picked up the plate and faced me cluelessly. "Have I?" Still, she was playing innocent and I watched as she made her way to the table and sat the breakfast out in front of me. Any other time I would dig at it in an instant, but I was momentous.

"I'm just concerned," I said as she sat down across from me. "I feel like there is something wrong. Is there?"

"No." She said it so quickly, and the tone in her voice was harsh, as if she hated the fact I asked and wanted to forget about it. Her blue eyes seemed cold, yet lifeless, and at that moment I was certain that she was lying.

I wanted to tell her that, but how could I? This side of Rena was a bit frightening, and bringing up the fact that I was eavesdropping on her and her father was out of the question. Still, I had a gut-wrenching feeling and I started to feel nauseous.

"Keiichi-Kun, you don't look so good," she said dully. I could tell, though, that there was concern in her eyes, and perhaps I was wrong to bring everything up. Maybe I needed to let it slide for now and let Rena enjoy the vacation we were on.

"No," I replied, throwing away the nervous feeling in the pit of my stomach. "I'm alright, now. So, where do we start?"

"Hm?" She no longer seemed angry or nervous, but specifically confused. This time I knew she wasn't playing dumb.

"You know, the town. Our day."

Rena blinked and gave a soft smile. "Oh, I get it now," she said and chuckled softly, forcing me to laugh along with her. However, mine was nervously off. "First," she continued, "eat your pancakes, Keiichi-Kun!"

I felt a little better, even if I knew something was going on with Rena. I could tell that she was going to make it through without filling me in on her problem. "Right." I bit into the first bite of the soft pancake. I could taste the buttery sweetness, a familiar taste: Rena's cooking.

"Hauau, Keiichi-Kun so cute when he eats."

The next thing we did was take a walk through the small, quiet town. It gave off the familiar vibe of Hinamizawa, especially with the fresh air. I shut my eyes and enjoyed the breeze as Rena dashed off ahead of me and turned to me while pointing ahead of us.

There was a large lake that was almost as blue as the sea itself. On top of the lake were floating lily pads with frogs resting on was like living in a fantasy movie.

Rena went crazy over the frogs first, squealing with glee and squirming in place. "Ohh, those frogs are so cute!" she let out. "Oooh, look at the water lilies! I wanna take them home with me!"

I watched, glad to see her back to herself. She always made my day. I stepped forward as she called out to me, telling me to get a closer look at what she was now peeking at. Kneeling down next to her, I saw thatshe was pointing down at the shallow end of the lake, and beneath the surface were a group of tadpoles.

"They are the babies," Rena said softly, and then placed her hands on her cheeks. "Hauu, hauu, hauu!"

I smiled down at them. If it was something Rena adored, I did too. However, the next thing we went to take a look at was something I loved even more.

The food market. I was especially fond of the ramen shop that caught my eyes. Rena, though, dragged me away toward the fresher foods. "You need more fruits and veggies in your diet," she said. "I'm gonna cook you something delicious tonight."

"Really?" I was more than thrilled, completely forgetting about the instant noodle cups of many flavors. However, it was hard for me to stay focused on the fruits and veggies that Rena was giving me a tour on. She went on about how fresh they were, but they just seemed like regular fruits and veggies to me. I did not know what was so special about them.

"You have to try the melon," Rena said as she carried a large round fruit in her arms, cradling it like a baby. By the time we were finished shopping, we had several bags. However, the melon was Rena's favorite and went on about how she was going to make me a spectacular fruit salad.

We were only a few houses away when Rena stopped in her tracks and pointed at a hill to the right. "Look, this is a shortcut!" she said happily.

I took a look at the hill, which seemed like more of a hard hiking trip. I was not looking forward to that, especially while carrying a bunch of grocery bags. In fact, it seemed like a long way more than a shortcut.

Although, I had to trust Rena's judgment since she used to come here as a child. She knew what was up, so I followed her up the hill.

Rena continued to sing about her exciting future of fruit salads, when she suddenly tripped and dropped the melon.

"Rena!" It was all I could do to drop the bags and take a hold of my friend before she could fall. However, her life wasn't near as important to her as the large round fruit that rolled down the hill, and into a nearby garden.

"Oh no!" she exclaimed, looking traumatized. Knowing her, I wasn't surprised.

"It's okay, Rena, I'll get it." I slowly started down, but only made a few inches forward before the girl stopped me.

"No, Keiichi-Kun." She smiled, but it looked a little fake, as if she was hiding something. Her voice was a bit shaky like she was afraid. What was she so apprehensive about? "Don't worry about it."

"Huh?" THat sounded strange, especially after hearing from her about how important the melon was. "But I thought you wanted to make me a fruit salad with that thing."

Rena placed her hands behind her back. "It's okay, I don't want you to do that. I'll get another one tomorrow."

I could tell that she didn't want to do that. She wanted that melon more than anything, and it was up to me to get it for her. However, it looked like she was going to be too stubborn about it, so I made up an excuse to have her continue up the hill without me. "Let me tie my shoes. I"ll carry the bags, just go on ahead."

"Oh, are you sure? Are you?"

I smiled modestly. "Yup, now go on."

"Okay!" She quickly paced up the hill and rambled on to herself about the meal she was going to prepare for me. It made me excited, but didn't distract me from my next mission.

I hurried down the hill without slipping on the way, and soon caught a glimpse of the melon hiding in the distant garden. I quickly continued forward, then I turned right and entered.

The garden was full of tomatoes. They weren't the reddest, but they still looked good enough to eat, and it made me wonder why Rena hadn't shown me this place before.

I shrugged it off and slowly stepped forward, trying not to squish any tomatoes. I finally got to the melon and picked it up easily before scanning the area. It was quiet with nothing to see, not even an insect, except for the tomatoes.

Not wanting Rena to wonder where I was, I quickly headed back and left the garden. Then I ran up the hill and began to call Rena. "I got it, Rena! Surprise! Hey, Rena!"

It took less than a minute to finally get a glimpse of my friend coming back for me. I couldn't see the expression on her face, but I could tell she was eager, because she rushed over without a breath.

"You can make the fruit salad after all," I said as she finally approached me. When she did, however, I felt her spike the fruit out of my hands like in a basketball game. I watched as the melon rolled back down the hill, but didn't watch it stop.

I slowly peered at her and felt a negative vibe from her, as if she was mad at me for doing something wrong. Was she really angry at me for doing her a favor? Or was it because I lied about tying my shoes?

"Don't go back down there again," she said softly in a way that sounded scary. "It's dangerous."

I stared at her, confused as ever, and now all my worries for her problems and concerns came storming back. Whatever was bothering her before definitely didn't go away. Either that, or something new came across her mind.

The look on her face was worry and sadness, and she lowered her head like something had defeated her and there was nothing she could do to change that.

Whatever it was, didn't come clear to me. This whole trip didn't come clear to me anymore. Not with my friend's off behavior.