ちびまおう- たなかきみこ：dakyuha！
chibi maou – tanaka kimiko：＃9
Kimiko dropped her backpack onto the floor of her room with a thud and sat on the edge of her bed. She looked over at her dresser and opened the first drawer. She pushed aside the shirts and various garments at the top, and carefully uncovered an old, tattered photograph.
The picture portrayed a young family, standing proudly in front of a small run-down house. A lively, handsome man of 24 had one hand firmly planted on his 10-year-old son's shoulder. The son had an odd, bug-eyed expression about him, and his smile revealed some gaps in his teeth. The husband's other arm was wound around the neck of a attractive young woman. Despite her smooth and youthful features, her expression was one of somebody who had seen many hardships. She had one hand placed on her large belly.
Kimiko often tried to remember ever seeing that woman's face, but it was much too long ago for her to possibly recall. Her mother had left them almost immediately after she was born. Every year on her birthday, give or take a few weeks, Miko would receive a postcard from her mother wishing her a happy birthday. The last postcard from Yokohama had been titled "Happy Birthday Himeko." Kimiko didn't know why she bothered keeping the postcards, when they all said the same things.
"I'm having a great time in such and such place. Hope the family is well. I hope (insert a misspelling of Kimiko's name) is doing good in school. Keep your nose clean, sweety.
Love, Kagumi."
She didn't even understand why she kept wanting to her mother, when she hated her so much. But now, she needed somebody to talk to, and it was her mother's DUTY to be there for her. Only she wasn't.
Miko pulled a tack out of her cork bulletin board and held it hesitantly above her mother's face. After a few moments, she tacked the picture to her board, the metal needle going straight through her mother's head. The woman's smile was still visible from underneath the plastic tack head. Miko took out another tack and stuck it through her neck to cover up the smile. And just for the heck of it, she stuck two or three tacks in her brother's head too.
Since she had nothing better to do, she opened her backpack and pulled out her extremely overdue homework. "Better to do it now than never." she decided. But as she took out her math book, she noticed a small sheet of paper at the bottom of her bag. She pulled it out curiously and unfolded the slightly crumpled note. The neat, sparkling green handwriting was written on cherry-scented stationary.
"Dearest Kimiko-chan,
I have resolved to write to you in a letter what my wavering courage does not permit me to speak to you personally. From the moment we first met on your first day at Tomoeda, I was captivated. I can't explain wherefore or for what reason, but since then there hasn't been a day where I don't think of you. I realize that you will not return my feelings, and that is why I cannot disclose my identity, for your sake and mine. I hope you will forgive me for the vagueness of this message, but I dare not give you too many hints to who I am.
Lately I have been troubled by your apparent "intrigue" with a certain Chinese classmate of ours, but she has strongly assured us that it was meant to be some kind of prank. I don't understand the motives, but I nevertheless won't interfere with anything that might forfeit your personal happiness. Recently you have seemed very low in spirits. It hurts me to see you so unhappy. Please remember that no matter what, I will always love you. Were I to die tomorrow, my devoted spirit would go on loving. Be happy, Kimiko-chan, 'After a long rain, a rainbow always will shimmer through to lead you back to sunshine.' I hope someday I have the chance to be your rainbow, as you have been mine."
The note was signed by a small stamp of a cartoon kitten's face, hearts drawn in sparkling ink.
Kimiko fainted, the note fluttering out of her fingers as she fell with a muted 'thump' onto her bed.