Chapter 7: A New Friend
Kiyoshi's eyes swung open at the strike of 4 A.M. and sat up as he adjusted to the dark room. He turned to find his wife fast asleep and the clock reading 4 A.M, but began to lie back down to fall asleep again to no avail. Kiyoshi got up and walked to the window. After getting used to the scenery, he noticed something bobbing in the lake below him and quickly dashed outside to investigate. In the moonlight, Kiyoshi discovered the object was a small toy boat. It had colors of blue and white, but he also found a large crimson mark stretching across the toy. On the bottom, there was an engraving, "Happy Sails to be Free," written in red. Kiyoshi took the toy into the boathouse and smiled as he placed it on the shelf. He started outside and looked up at the windows only to be stopped by an odd sight. Takeo was wide-awake and staring directly at Kiyoshi, but he has noticed something else. There was a pair of glowing red eyes behind Takeo that were also staring at Kiyoshi. Kiyoshi broke his halt and dashed upstairs to Takeo's room only to find his son fast asleep in his bed. Confused, but also relieved, Kiyoshi rubbed Takeo's hair and patted him before leaving the room. He returned to his room and got back in bed, but still doesn't feel tired at all as he lay there until the morning sun rose above the trees.
Eventually, the rest of the family got up for breakfast. Kiyoshi noticed that Takeo looked sleepy as if he hadn't slept too well last night; something painfully obvious to Kiyoshi. "Takeo," He called with Takeo raising his head to glance at his father, "are you okay? You look tired." "Uh huh." Takeo yawned as he finished his cereal and left the room to play with his toys in the living room. After the family's breakfast concluded, Miki washed the dishes, rinsing them, and planting them in the dishwasher. However, Miki felt something cold touch her shoulder. She turned around only to find nothing. Still confused, she eventually finished her chore and began to head upstairs to make Takeo's bed. However, when reaching the stairs, Miki began to hear Takeo whispering to himself behind her. At first, she wanted to turn back and question him, but then thought that it was normal for children his age to make up friends. "We just moved in, he'll make some friends soon." She thought to herself. However, after continuing upstairs, Miki thought that she heard Takeo whispering, "There's nothing to be scared of. She's my mommy."