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??? POV

'Only this. This alone. I won't give up on it.'

'. . .That's good.'

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After being released from the hospital, I was sent to my aunt and uncle's house. They have 2 children. A daughter and a son. About the same age as me.

I paid my respects to them as sincerely as possible.

"Thank you for letting me stay here. I hope I'm not too much of a bother."

I greeted them with a smile, hoping to leave a good impression.

When I raised my head, they were smiling back.

But I was overly familiar, overly familiar of that look they had on their faces.

Someone inside me was saying━

'Ahh. . .they're not happy with me here. I wouldn't get along with them.'

I automatically drew a line. It was some sort of mechanic defense.

Stay away from them as much as possible.

Don't do anything to disturb them.

Be cautious of every word you say.

I spent my days quietly, cleaning the dishes, doing household chores. I have to do at least this much to please them.

I stopped attending school since I didn't have money to pay my tuition fees.

My relatives were 'kind' enough to make me live in their house, I can't possibly bother to ask them to pay for it.

I decided to get a part-time job.

Taking care of the children in the nearby nursery.

Apparently, I was really good at it. I also didn't expect that I'll have fun chasing children and playing with them.

Their parents were also very kind. They were very grateful to me. They had such bright smiles.

The owner of the nursery was an elderly couple. They are very kind. My co-worker was kind as well.

Everyone here is so kind to me. I even thought that I'd want to stay and work here permanently.

I was happy here. I really was.

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'Ow, that hurts. Where is this place? I zoned out, here I thought I would wake up in Naiko's room.'

I suddenly woke up in here. What a messy room. Shattered furniture. Screaming voice.

My sight was blurry and I felt dizzy. Funny, even though I couldn't see properly, I could clearly recognize that voice.

That familiar high-pitched screaming voice━

"Mo- mother, I'm sorry. Please don't hit me."

'Why is her mother here again? She was working overseas wasn't she?'

Then something clicked. It was being cut off. Some parts of the memories are being cut off. I didn't know why though.

I could only tell one thing. Last memory, it was still summer. In this one, it's autumn.

"Why do you think I spent so much money raising you? For what? This useless piece of paper?"

". . .I'm sorry, mother. But, I want to be an artist."

Her cheek was swollen red. Probably because of her mother repeatedly slapping her.

Even still, her eyes were resolute. Her words didn't have an ounce of regret.

"You━!"

slap*

Her mother kept on slapping and scratching her face for a while, then she went back to her own room.

'She calls herself 'mother'!? For real?'

She was lying down on the floor. Her whole face was filled with scratches, it was badly swollen.

'She should go to a hospital, get it treated!!'

She was in a trance for a while and reached out to the paper her mother threw away.

"I too, want to be happy with this choice. This is the only thing I have. No matter what, only this. I won't give up on it."

Even though her whole face must be hurting, she spoke up and smiled.

A satisfied smile.

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'It won't go away. Even now, I can still see it. Vividly.'

'. . .'

'Probably because she blamed me for it. It won't go away.'

'Even though. . . it wasn't your fault.'

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