Chapter 3: Changes
Hikari sighed with frustration. She had been trying to find the perfect light for at least thirty minutes and nothing had was good enough. It was her first test doing a professional photoshoot in the photography course she was taking.
"I can't seem to get it right."
"Don't worry, Hikari." The teacher said and went to help her. "Just place the light here and adjust it like this."
"You make it seem so easy."
"And it is, you just need to practice a little more. Don't worry if you don't get it right at first. It comes with practice. I struggled with it too when I started."
"What did you do?"
"I practiced." She smiled. "Would you mind if I asked you a question?"
"Not at all. You can ask me."
"Do you plan on pursuing photography as a profession?"
"I'm not really sure. I've been taking amateur photos since I was eleven, but it was just a hobby back then. But my friends and family say I take good pictures, so I sort of became the official photographer of the group."
"You have a lot of potential, so I can see where they come from and agree with them."
"Thanks." A smile appeared on Hikari's lips. "And then I just thought I could try it to see how it goes."
"Well, I'm sure a lot of companies would love to have you as part of their staff. So I think you should really consider it as a profession. If you don't want to stick with it afterwards, that's okay. But I personally think it would be a waste of talent not to try it."
"I guess it won't hurt to try."
"I can definitely offer you an internship as a photographer in my company if you're interested."
"I am. Thank you."
"Alright, great." She picked up a card from the purse and handed it to Hikari. "Here's the address to my company. Take your mother or father with you, so I can talk to them."
"I will. Thank you so much."
"You are free to go for today. See you tomorrow."
"See you. Bye."
.
"Are you really sure you want to do this, Hikari?" Yuuko asked when Hikari told her about the job offer. "Teaching has always been your dream."
"I know, but I love taking pictures. And this course really made me see things in a different way. Maybe this could work.
""Okay, if that's what you want."
"It's just a test to see if I will be a good photographer. My teacher said I'm very talented at it and it would be a waste not to invest on it. If things don't work well for me, I have a second option."
"If you're so secure about this decision, I guess it won't hurt to try it and see how things will go. We can do there tomorrow."
"Thank you, mom."
.
Mimi was in absolute awe with the bright green field and also the light green dress Sora had made especially for her twentieth birthday. It was a long dress with long sleeves that went all the way to her elbows. She felt like a princess.
"Is this a good spot?" She asked Hikari when she stood over a small hill.
"I think so. Let me see." Hikari lay down on the grass to get a good angle for the picture. She wanted to take a photo in a perspective she never did before and hoped it would work. "Yes, I think it's perfect. On 3. 1, 2. 3."
"She looks so stunning." Sora said as Hikari stood up and Mimi started going in their direction. "I never fully understood why she didn't go into modelling or something."
"I agree. She has such a natural talent for it, it's a waste if you ask me."
"I can say the same thing about you, but you already realized that."
"Yeah." Hikari couldn't help but laugh.
"Let me see them." Mimi had finally gotten near then and looked at the camera in her friend's hands.
"Wow, they are really good."
"Oh my God, they are amazing!" The model for a day squealed at every photo Hikari was showing. "I specially love these ones you took from the girl. They turned out so cool!"
"I think so too. I was a little unsure about them because it was something new for me, but I'm impressed with them."
"You're very talented at this, Hikari. I really think you should become a professional photographer. It's clear you were born for this."
"I agree with Mimi."
"I don't know. I'm still deciding on it."
"You're not so sure about being a teacher anymore?"
"No." She confessed. "I didn't think I would enjoy being a professional photographer so much."
"It's okay to be torn, Hikari." Sora said softly and grabbed her hands. "Back in high school, I really got into Sewing and I felt very strongly about it. But at the same time, there was Ikebana, which I also learned to love with time. I realized not too long ago that I can't live without sewing clothes and that Fashion is what I really want to study in college. I just haven't gotten the courage to tell my mother. I don't want to disappoint her." She sighed. "But, hey, this is about you and it's normal to have doubts."
"She's right. Things change and so do people."
"Yeah." Hikari said weakly. "Why don't you two do a photoshoot together?"
"That's a wonderful idea!"
"What?" The red haired girl asked surprised and looked at her outfit. "But I'm not even wearing nice clothes for it."
"It doesn't matter, let's go." Mimi grabbed her hand and started pulling her towards the small hill nearby.
"If course it matters. Look at you, all pretty."
"You don't look bad at all with this dress. It's gorgeous, just like you."
"Hikari, I can't do this with these clothes. I'm sorry."
"I agree with Mimi, Sora. You look stunning and this dress suits you completely."
"You heard her. Now let's go." Mimi held her friend's hand again and pulled her up the hill.
The girls were walking home later that day and came across a group of children having a small school stroll with their teacher in a park nearby. Hikari watched them intently during the whole way and both Sora and Mimi noticed it.
"They look sweet, don't they?" Sora asked as she looked at them too.
"They do." The younger brunette slowly nodded. "I… I picture myself in that teacher's place."
"That would be cute."
"You should go for it."
"What?" Hikari looked at Sora confused.
"It's clear how much you want to be a teacher."
"I…I…"
"You can still be a photographer in your free time. You don't need to give up on it to be a teacher, you know?"
"You really think so?"
"Of course." Sora smiled.
"Can you imagine how cool it would be if you became the teacher of our future children? They would have the best teacher ever."
"That would be amazing."
"I guess you have your answer then."
"Yeah." Hikari looked at her with a smile on her face. "I guess I do."
.
Hikari turned around after the warm breeze messed her hair and the sunlight made her shut her eyes to adjust to the change of luminosity. She took a long look at the entrance of her college building for the last time. Four years had gone by since she first stepped inside as a freshman student. The person who she is now is nowhere near the one she used to be and she was very proud of this new version of her. A smile crept on her lips seconds before she spun on her feet and resumed her way out.
As she walked towards the exit, her smile got bigger when she spotted Taichi and Takeru outside, along with Tailmon.
"Hi. What are you two doing here?"
"We wanted to take you out to celebrate your final day as a college student."
"Are you serious?" Hikari asked, barely unable to hold her excitement. "You don't have to, really."
"Don't be silly." Taichi put his arm around his sister's shoulders. "We promised we'd be here on our last day and would take you to do whatever you wanted afterwards. My little sister just graduated."
"Oh God, you're so dramatic sometimes." She couldn't help but laugh. "I wonder if this is something older brothers do."
"You can bet it is. Yamato was the same way. Well, maybe a little less dramatic than Taichi, but he still was."
"So embarrassing."
"Hey! I'm still here." Taichi protested.
"I couldn't forget it even if I wanted to." She stuck her tongue out at him and then turned to Takeru. "I'm glad it doesn't happen only to me. By the way, weren't you supposed to be in Kyoto?"
"I was, but I left earlier to come here."
"What?! Takeru, you shouldn't have done this! I didn't want you to miss classes because of me."
"I told you."
"I know, but I made a promise to you and didn't want to break it. Besides, I can ask one of my classmates for the subject and catch up tomorrow."
"Still, I can't believe you did that."
"Don't worry, everything is alright." Takeru smiled.
"So, sister, what do you want to do?"
"Hmmm…" Hikari thought for a moment. "I'm not very creative at the moment, so maybe we can go the arcade to play a little?"
"That sounds like a really good idea."
"I'm in. Are you ready to lose?" Taichi teased. "I'm so ready to win."
"Oh God, why did I even suggest that?"
"Oh come on, Hikari. I'll let you win some games."
"Geez, that makes me feel much better."
"Hey, there's an event happening nearby." Takeru said after he grabbed a paper from a woman on the street. "It looks fun. Maybe we can do there."
"That sounds good to me."
.
The trio arrived at the place about fifteen minutes later and was shocked to see how huge it was. It looked like one of those parks that sometimes appear in teenager movies when the main characters go on a date, with big stuffed animals as prizes in the attractions. At least that's how Hikari felt.
"Wow, this is way bigger than I expected."
"I've always wanted to come to one of these." Taichi said, still in awe with everything. "Do you think they have a game where you can shoot a duck or something?"
"Probably." Takeru replied. "They even have a Ferris wheel."
"I'd rather have gone to the arcade." Hikari confessed. "This place looks strange."
"You're just not used to it. There, I found the shooting booth." Taichi ran towards it and the other two younger people followed him closely. "Which one do you want, Hikari?"
"What?"
"Choose which stuffed animal you want to have and I'll try to get it for you."
"Okay. I think the white one."
"Alright." He adjusted the gun to the perfect spot. "Here we go."
Hikari held the stuffed bear tight against her chest as she, Taichi and Takeru returned to their own houses. Takeru was going to stay at his mother's apartment for the night, since it was too late for him to go back to Kyoto on his own.
"So this was fun." She eventually said, without looking at them. "Thank you both for doing this to me."
"You're welcome." A smile appeared on Takeru's face. "So what's your next step?"
"Send out some resumes and wait until I get called for an interview and hopefully find a job soon."
"I'm sure you will find one before you know it. Any school will be very lucky to have you as part of their staff."
"I agree with Taichi."
"Thanks." Hikari smiled gently. "I hope you are right. What about you, though? What's your next step?"
"I have something very exciting planned. I can't tell you much about it, but I'm sure you'll be surprised and shocked when you find out."
"Really? Can't you even give us a hint or something?"
"No, I'm sorry. You'll find out when the time comes. It will be worth it, I promise."
.
Hikari woke up that morning feeling like she had been run over by a truck or something. She could barely sleep at night because of how nervous and anxious she was. It was going to be her first day as a kindergarten teacher. She yawned and stretched her arms before pushing herself out of her bed.
As soon as she walked into her living room, she realized it was still rather dark since it wasn't even seven, but what really caught her attention was something that was lying on the kitchen table. It was a big bouquet of red roses wrapped up in a white paper. Katsuo was distracted making some toasts and coffee and was startled when he saw her.
"I wasn't expecting you to be up so early." He quickly walked to the table and grabbed the bouquet. "I bought this for you."
"You didn't have to." Hikari said as she walked closer to him and smiled.
"I wanted to. Today is your first day, isn't it?"
"Thank you. They are beautiful." She wrapped her arms around him and looked up into his brown eyes. "It is."
"How are you feeling?"
"So many things I can't even describe. I'm happy, excited, nervous, anxious… I feel like I'm in this roller coaster of emotions."
"Today is the day your dream finally comes true, so it's normal to be feeling like this. I have no doubt you'll be amazing at it though. You've worked really hard for this moment."
"I know. I'm afraid I won't be able to do it though." She pulled up a chair and sat down, cupping her face with her hands and placing both elbows on the table. "I'm just gonna be thrown into this classroom full of kids and have the huge responsibility of teaching them how to read and write."
"This is a big responsibility, yes." Katsuo placed a cup full of coffee in front of her and then sat down near her. "But I think… no, I'm sure you are ready for this. You just need to believe yourself a little more. You've got this."
"Thanks for always being so encouraging." A gentle smile came to her lips. "I'm confident, it's just… new challenges can be frightening, you know?"
"I do." He grabbed her hands and held them within his. "But it will change as you keep doing it. Soon enough, you won't feel frightened anymore. Trust me."
"That's true. And there's also…" Hikari glanced to the door at the end of the hall with a bear decoration hanging on a nail. "How can I leave him alone?"
"We've been over this before, Hikari. You won't leave him alone, I'll be here the whole time. We can do this."
"But you have to work."
"Yes, but from here. My boss will understand if I need to take some minutes to take care of Yamazaki. She's a mother, so she knows what it's like."
"Okay, okay." She knew nothing she said would change his mind. "I know you can do this."
"You've postponed this moment for Yamazaki's sake for two years. Now it's your time to shine. We'll be here cheering for you all day. And when you come back later, we want to know everything about your first day. Also, I want you to not forget that he's very proud of you already. So am I."
"I'm so lucky to have you two in my life. I don't know what I'd do without you." Hikari leaned forward and wrapped her arms around her husband's neck.
"We're just as lucky." Katsuo replied and then kissed her briefly. "We'll be alright."
"I'm sure you will." She sighed and took a sip of her black coffee. "Well, I might as well get ready or I'll be late for my first day."
She stood up and started heading to their son's bedroom to see if he was already up. Though she knew Katsuo would surely do great on his own, leaving Yamazaki to go to work still made her heart ache, no matter how much she had been telling herself everything was going to be fine. She walked into the room and the scent of baby powder immediately filled her nostrils. Hikari walked to Yamazaki's crib and softly brushed his brown hair. By the time he'd wake up, she would be already gone. But she knew both of them would be here waiting for her. She bent over and planted a kiss on her son's head and carefully walked out and closed the door.