Chapter 2: Normal Problems
“Good morning Winnipeg! This is 144.43 Jam. Your daily source of the good old classics. Today’s June 6th, 2018. You folks still doing okay? The storm let up a bit but it's still pretty chilly out there at about minus thirty one Celsius. As always dress warm and make sure your insulation is still intact. Now for today's song, we have Men At Work's Who Can it-"
I was staring through a window, to the house at the other side. There were children playing, all dressed up in thick jackets. They were trying to make a snow castle and to be honest it looked poorly built. Even then, the kids looked so happy. It made me irritated. I liked the irritation, it was better than the bottomless emptiness that I was feeling ever since I came back home. The burning nothingness that was boredom. For the past few days it was the same routine, get out of bed, eat, take a bath and change from my dirty set of blue pajamas into a clean set of blue pajamas, rinse and repeat. I really wanted to beat this head against the glass but I had a feeling mother wouldn't take too kindly to that.
A while ago I had looked through those old sketch books of mine. I had to say I was pretty good back then. It was all mostly landscape drawings but they were good landscape drawings with the occasional portraits. I tried to draw, but the pencil would just hover over the pages doing nothing. I stopped after two days.
I left the window and wheeled over to my shelf full of games. I thought that playing my 2DS would help, instead it left me very frustrated. No, that isn't the right term. It was more that I was frozen. The hand would do it again, it would hover over to the shelf full of my games but then it would retract back to my body. I don't know, I feel this odd heaviness in my chest as I try to decide which games to play.
This was the first time I had ever felt this overwhelmed after I woke up. I'll be frank, I was very annoyed by this.
"How about I try this Animal Crossing game..." The hand reached out before it retracted, "no... Maybe I should try Fire Emblem... Wait, aren't there like, four of them here? Which one am I supposed to choose?"
This kept up for a while, an hour really. I had woken up early, mother had went up to help me out of my bed. It was still weird being hoisted up by a machine but it was for the best. The doctor says it's very dangerous to pick me up by the arm strength alone as it could risk damaging me should I fall or the body gets held in a bad posture.
After securing me in my wheelchair, she told me that she's going to convince her husband to help with cooking as she went down. After that I heard sounds of protests and pleading about not wanting to be poisoned. I should really ask about that later but right now my focus was on the games in front of me. "Why can't this be simple?"
Maybe it's because I had no clue what any of these games are. Actually now that I thought about it, there's no reason for me to be so hesitant, I mean if I had no idea what any of these games are (minus the synopsis on the back) then why should I care about which one to try? It doesn't matter that I'm hearing a bunch of footsteps downstairs along with what sounded like three voices. It doesn't matter that I can hear the creaking of the stairs as feet rushed up to the second floor. What matters is that I just stick this hand out and grab a game to get this all over with.
With grit and determination, the hand stretched out and snatched a game out just as the door to my room slammed open and a voice called out, "Touko! Guess who's here!"
The game slipped out of the fingers as two large arms encircled me and held me in a death grip. I may have been exercising but I still woke out of a coma, these spindly arms can barely do anything to pry off the arms off the neck. "S-Stop... Need... AIR!"
"I miss you so... Oh, like, I am so sorry." The arms retracted from the neck as a hand was held to it. I coughed out for a while as I tried to look around me. "Behind you."
Straining the neck to look behind me, I saw a girl. She was about 164 cm tall, with long blond hair that was let loose, fair skin and moderate amount of make up with lips in light pink lipstick and mascara. She smiled at me with cheerful blue eyes and a sort of carefree air. She wore a light jacket and short pink skirt and a pair of knee high, pink leather snow boots with heels. I stared at her for a while. "Isn't it cold in that outfit?"
She gave me a cheeky smile. "Cold? Why should I care about the cold when I'm this hot."
I titled the head. It was odd since it was also trying to look backwards and that annoyed me so I tried to swivel my wheelchair around when I remembered that the game fell on the ground. It was just next to the front wheels, I tried to reach for it but it was too far away.
"Let me help you with that." The girl behind me picked up the game as she examined it with one eye closed. "Say, didn't you hate this game?"
"I did?"
"Yeah, you always hated how linear Ocarina of Time was," she explained before handing me the game. "You were, like, on about how A Link to the Past was far the more superior game because it let you choose your own path at your own pace rather than force you down a path."
"I said that? Sorry, I can't remember."
She stared at me for a bit before something dawned on her. "Oh crap, I totally forgot that you lost all your memories."
"That's fine. You just forgot for a moment, that's all," I responded. "Besides, I didn't lose all my memories, just memories of who I was."
"Memories of who you were huh..." She walked over to me with a curious expression. "You know, you're awfully calm about this you know that?"
Before I could answer, a cough came from the door. Standing there was a plain looking girl with long wavy brown hair and eyes of the same colour. She had a roundish cute face and she wore a long beige winter coat with black practical winter boots. "You know Annabelle, busting into people's rooms is a bit rude you know."
"Oh come on Hakuno, I just wanted to meet my old friend again," she pouted.
"Yes, because invading someone's private space is a sure sign of friendship and respect," she stated plainly.
"Kill-joy," she scowled.
I looked back and forth between them. "You two don't seem to like each other."
"Nah," the blond one waved off. "We're both totally friends. It's just that she tends to have a stick up her ass," she beamed.
"Trust me. We would be at each other's necks if we didn't know each other so well," the plain one stated.
I looked back and forth between them. They seem friendly enough, though I'm not sure what to make of them. "So uh... You're Hakuno right?"
"Kishinami Hakuno. I maintain a close relationship with your family and others."
"No fair! I got here first! I should be the one to introduce my name!" The girl beside me pouted.
Hukuno simply just sighed at her. "You had plenty of time."
"No I didn't! You just barged right in as I was just having a pleasant conversation with Touko and... Hey? Why are you rolling away from me like that?"
"Rolling?" I looked at my wheelchair a bit. I moved it backwards some meters away from her. "I think a better term would be wheeled."
"Nah, it's totally rolling and... AH! That's not the point! Why are you getting away from me like that?"
"Oh, it's that you feel a bit overbearing is all."
"Overbearing?!" She looked very hurt.
"What's so surprising about that?" Hakuno stated as she walked up to me, "it's only natural that she feels that way in the state she's in."
"Come on, just give me some slack. I haven't talked to her for, like, a year now."
"The same applies for myself as well Annabelle but the person we should be thinking about here is Touko," she looked towards me. "You want us to leave for a bit?"
I thought to myself. "Nah, you guys did burst into my room but I'd like some people to talk to other than my parents and little sister."
"Yay! I knew you'd understand!" The blond girl beamed out loud as she jumped forward and gripped me into another hug.
"Ack!- Air! Need air!" A loud grumble came from the stomach as I felt vibrations ripple across it. "Oh- Some... Food would be...- AIR!"
-(O)-
We were all downstairs now. The blond girl, who told me her name was Annabelle Della, was drinking a mug of hot chocolate, same with Hakuno. I was eating a plate of mashed potatoes and a cup of strained mango juice. The mashed potatoes had a nice texture, all soft and smooth without any hard pieces in it with some freshly made gravy to spice up the taste.
"Mashed potatoes?" Annabelle noted. "Is that all you're eating? Get some bacon or eggs, eating nothing but mashed potatoes is going to get old quick."
"The doctor says that my body would go into shock if I ate any solid without slowly acclimating to it," I responded. "Though I would like to eat something like bacon. I'm already hating the taste of gelatin because of this diet."
"Well that sucks, being forced to eat only one type of food," she grumbled in response.
"Such procedures are needed when you wake up from a coma," the plain one said.
"At least it tastes good," I said.
"Glad you're enjoying it kid," father replied. He was currently washing the dishes as my mother was sitting in a chair grumbling to herself. "Oh don't mind her, she's just mad that she didn't get to help cook today."
"I needed the practice okay?"
"Yeah, but having our daughter as the test subject is paramount to shoving poison down someone's throat."
"Hey! It's not that bad okay? I just... Lack practice is all."
He looked at her incredulously. "Kirika, I've been trying to teach you for about 18 years and you've never improved your culinary skills in the slightest in that amount of time. It's safe to say that you should stay away from the stove."
"Fine, fine... I won't 'poison' our daughter then... Oh? I think our baby's crying. Better go check up on Aoko."
As she left the room, father turned his attention towards our group. "So girls, you need anything else before I go to pay some things over at the bank?"
"Some more hot chocolate would be nice Mister Aozaki," Hakuno responded.
"Sure, sure. One refill coming up, how about you Annabelle?"
"Nah. Trying to watch my sugar intake."
"Suit yourself," he shrugged. "It that all?"
"Hmmm," the blond thought to herself for a while before speaking again. "When can Touko go out with us?"
He froze before he could pick up the kettle. "Excuse me?"
"Well... She's been cooped up in her little bed at the hospital for a year right? Sure she can't flex her legs anymore but I think she'd like to get out for a change."
"I-I'm... I'm not sure if we can let her out now. She only just got out of the hospital just a few days ago."
"Come on! She's a tougher girl than that. Sure she's uh... Well you know..." She looks at me.
"Don't worry. No offense taken."
"Hmmm..." She seemed to be taking note of something. "Anyways. I think getting a bit of fresh air would be great for her. Even a visit to Polo Park Mall would be nice, it's indoors so you wouldn't have to worry about snow getting in her wheelchair."
"Well I don't think that-"
"I would like to go outside for a change," I interrupted.
"Wait, kid you're still recovering and-"
"But I don't like being all cooped up," I told him. "I don't know why. The butt doesn't feel itchy, not that I could feel anything from it. I haven't felt any sensations from these legs since I woke up but after I just learned how to write in English and Japanese again and getting through all those procedures back at the hospital I found that I really wanted to get out for a change. I mean sure I got all those games and stuff to keep me preoccupied but I don't know any of them and well... I'm just bored I guess, bored and curious..."
"You sure you-"
"I want to go out," I said again.
"Fine... I guess after you finish your breakfast you and your mother, sister and your friends can go out to Polo Park Mall on the wheelchair taxi while I go to the bank," he said reluctantly. "Oh, and I almost forgot. You gotta need to take a bath before we get going kid."
I sniffed myself. "I don't smell that bad."
"Just go take a bath kid."
-(O)-
I looked out the window as the taxi drove down the crowded street. The roads have been cleared up of most of the snow but you could barely see the asphalt through the ice and snow. Some of the cars that we've passed by even had chains attached to their wheels to keep traction. The snow pile that had been pushed off the road by snow plows were about 3 meters tall. We passed by abandoned houses and stores, I could tell because they were covered completely in snow and no one had bothered to shovel them. The sky was nothing but a complete canvas of clouds so thick that any light that got through was a dull mist that only made everything feel moody.
I was currently wearing a blue jacket with black snow pants and a new pair of snow boots the same colour as the latter. My mother, sister and Annabelle were with me while Hakuno said that she'd be in her own car. Turns out she had her own maid, a girl with orange hair in a long blue winter coat that was waiting for her outside one of those old cars, all black with leather seats and blocky shape. The maid seems very affectionate.
My electric wheelchair was locked down to the vehicle by a bunch of straps. At first I thought they would be weak but turns out they're stronger than they looked. That was helpful, this wheelchair was quite heavy after all. Though at the time that wasn't where my focus was. I was more focused on the figure that seemed to be keeping up with us from a distance, the figure hid behind the snow and jumped across the roof but for some reasoned no one seemed to have noticed it. I didn't bring it up but I kept my focus on it as well. Much like it, I wasn't quite sure if I could even tell anyone and have them believe me.
Mother seemed to have noticed it as well however. She kept giving quick glances out the window with a worried expression as she tended to Aoko who was strapped to a child safety seat. Annabelle didn't seemed to noticed it at all, she just kept tapping her fingers on the armrest as she looked out the window. "Hey, Touko, how many snowman did you counted so far?"
"Oh? Snowmen? Sorry, I wasn't paying attention. I think I counted two so far."
"Yeah, that sounds about right. Most people don't go outside that often anymore because of, you know, the non-stop snow and stuff."
"Oh I think it's because all you kids spend so much of your time on those little electronic gadgets of yours," mother responded, though she seems to be only keeping half her focus on the conversation.
"Whatever," the blond grumbled.
I was about to say something when I noticed that the taxi turned a corner and into a parkade that was adjacent to a two storey building. "Oh, is that Polo Park Mall?"
"Yup. It's got everything, a food court, electronics, medicine, furniture and clothing shops up to your waist." Annabelle said delightfully.
"That sounds nice."
"Oh wait till you see the place. It's practically the best place to shop other than maybe the Forks."
"Yes, the Forks do have some nice clothes..." Mother responded.
Annabelle gave her an odd look. "Hey, Touko's mom. You feeling okay over there?"
"Oh? Oh! Yes, I'm totally fine. Fine as the day when I was born!"
"Okay... It's just that you seem worried about something."
"Oh... Well, you see. This is Touko's first outing since she got out of the hospital. Of course I would get worried."
"Nah. She'll be fine, you'll see," she beamed. "We'll go to all the shops! (At least the ones that matter.) We'll get you some new underwear, better pajamas then those same tacky blue ones you all have, get you a phone, eat out at the food-"
"Can't eat solids, remember?"
"Oh right..." She said as she scratched the back of her neck. "So feeling excited about hanging with your old friends again?"
"Oh that? Well..." I thought to myself for a bit. "I'm sorry. To me this is the first time I've ever met you guys. I wanted to go on this trip because I wanted to get outside. Sorry if I... Hey, why're you smiling at me like that?"
Annabelle had turned her head to me from her seat. She had a small smile on her face before talking to me. "You're a lot more polite this time, you know that?"
"I am? I don't know, only you knew the me before me."
"Eh, you were a lot more blunt before. Acutally you're still kinda blunt but in a innocent kind of way you know? Back then you told other your thoughts about them to their faces but that itch to get out? Still the same."
"You mean I was easily bored?"
"I meant that you liked to get out a lot," she explained. "Never liked indoor places, made you all anxious to move and stuff."
"Well I guess it's good that I'm getting out of the house then."
"You know, you should smile more."
"Huh?"
"You got that flat frown now," I felt the taxi stop as the driver went out and opened the back door. "Oh, looks like our little conversation has to continue another time. Time to unload you Touko!"
"You're making it sound like I'm cargo," I noted. It took a while but we managed to get me off the taxi. Mother took off the baby seat with Aoko still in it from the taxi before paying the driver. He thanked us as he drove away.
The cold air bit the bare skin. The arms wrapped around the body as I looked up to the massive building. "There seems to be quite a lot of people going in."
"Actually there are less people going in than about a year ago," she explained. "When your four seasons get switched for non-stop snow that tends to ruin a lot of people's days."
"You don't say..." I looked around. "By the way, where's Hakuno?"
"Oh she said to meet her over at Starbucks. She said something about meeting someone before going with on our little reunion party," she patted on my shoulder. "Come on Touko, lets get in. This cold is freezing my legs off."
"Hey! Wait for me honey!" Mother was about to come with us when someone stopped her. There was another woman, about her height and wearing a nun's outfit. Her hand was currently on her shoulders. "Oh... It's you..."
"We need to talk Kirika." I couldn't see the other woman's face because it had a hood that obscured it but oddly enough her voice was quite similar to mother's. I don't know why, but that nun really made me cold, not literally cold but more like she was making me cold on the inside. Something was telling me to get away from her.
"Okay then..." She looked towards us. "Go on without me honey! I'll catch up with you later! Oh, and find Hakuno quickly, I bet she's gonna get lonely quickly."
"Lonely? Please, she has that over enthusiastic maid with her," she muttered under her breath before turning to me. "Come on Touko! Guess it's just the two of use for now! Time in head inside Touko! First off, to Starbucks! Hakuno got a lot of cash with her, she gonna pay for all the the clothes we're going to get you."
"I don't know, my clothes seem fine to me."