"What is this?" Daiken whispered as he continued to walk towards the closet that was attached to the wall. (It's usually found in traditional Japanese houses). Opening the door wider, he saw the gem sitting comfortably on a folded futon. Curious to know what it was, he went closer and poked it with a finger.
The stone was cool but moments later it felt as if Daiken's fingertips were on fire. The brilliantly shiny gem glewed blue then slowly became red. Just as Daiken placed his whole palm on the glowy stone before his vision went pitch black.
"Daiken, listen to me, those people out there are not your friends. The people out there don't love you. They'll try their best to use and manipulate you to do their dirty work." The voice came from a lady with messy hair, wounds, bandages and a lot of blood covered every inch of her.
'Who is this? They sound so familiar…'
"Buh ka-chan… Ritsu- nii shad that he wou potect me… Shou I noh plway wih him agaiin?"
'WHO IS THAT?! Why does he sound like me? Ugh, my head's throbbing… wait- WHY CAN'T I MOVE? Where the heck am I?'
"No sweetheart… You will understand when you're much older but please promise me that you'll stay away from them…"
'Have I had this conversation before? Sounds so familiar yet I can't remember it.'
Daiken tried his best to open his eyes but failed to do so. He couldn't move or talk. The sounds of those voices and his own breathing was the only thing he could do. The sense of touch was taken away.
'What happened to me? I can't- I can't remember what I did… It's cold… It's freezing cold…'
It changed again. Like a camera in the side of a room Daiken saw the scene with his eyes but didn't know how it happened.
"'Kasan? Why awe you in the dawk?" Said a small childish voice and kept slurring his words.
"Daiken… I'm sorry… I'm so very sorry…" The woman cried.
"Mu… Mummy pwees dow cwy. I- I wih- I wih bwe a goo boy. Pwees dow cwy mommy…" The child cried but tried his best to get the words out.
The boy whom the lady called Daiken cried hugging his mother. In that dark little room away from the outside world of light and laughter, the two hugged each other not knowing why the other was apologizing for.
As a child sympathy is strong when it comes to someone they love, this small boy knew nothing of why his mother weep so badly but weeped with her
"It's not your fault- It's not your fault my sweet Daiken you d- did nothing wrong." The lady sniffled.
She pulled away from the hug to comfort her crying child. She wiped his large, salty tears and snot from his small tan skinned face. He tightly hugged her back and with his baby hands, he too whipped her tears before giving a kiss on her cheek.
' 'Kasan? OKASAN? She is alive…? She's here? KASAN CAN YOU HEAR ME?.. Please… I… want to talk to you… please...'
Knowing that his words are never going to be heard by the two, Daiken screamed out. He wanted to cry but no tears came out. He tried harder to kick, twist and turn in his frozen state. His urge to move became stronger after hearing the lady's voice. He knew it was her.
"Mummy… cuw you tew me woy you wer cwying?" He sniffled and rubbed his eyes.
"Come here darling. You're fa- 'Tosan won't be coming home anymore…"
"Wat? Woy won to-chan com ome?"
He was strong for such a small child. Even though he knew his father won't no longer come home, he didn't cry or make a fuss about it. He wanted to know why father won't come home but of the fact that he might not have a father.
Daiken stared at the little boy. Looking at the boy, Daiken knew that child and he knew that his understanding of things was far greater. He knew the kind of person his father was. After all, that child was Daiken himself.
The vision changed.The boy was a little older and so was the lady. She sat on the floor of the bathroom and puked her guts out into the toilet. The little boy- Daiken stood beside her, rubbing her back. Like the previous vision he didn't know why she did as such but continued to be with her.
"Ka-san… are you ok? Is your tummy hurting? How can I help you?" His voice, a little older than the previous version.
He asked, feeling helpless that his mother was in agony. His eyes became teary and mouth shivered. He pressed his lips firmly in order to to let the tears fall.
"I… Um… It's… Its fine sweetie" She stuttered before taking in a deep breath and making herself comfortable on the floor. "You are going to become a big brother, Daiken…"
"Really? Yay! I'll be a good brother, don't worry Ka-san, I'll protect them and keep them away from harm. " Unable to contain his happiness, he jumped up in excitement.
Euphoria was spread across the little boy's face. His eyes glittered in the dim light and a wide toothy smile that had a few holes here and there. He's tiny fist bumps to the air and adorable small feet, carried himself around the room. His mother sat there staring at her child, laughing a few times but to Daiken, who saw it all in the frozen, cold body, knew she was faking it. He's seen that smile before, she was crying inside. Hurt and pain was heard in her laughter.
'Okasan… Why were you unhappy?… Are you still alive? Is there hope that I may be able to talk to you?... or should I just watch my forgotten memories? ....I miss you so much… I wish I could tell you about that cute boy I met during orientation day or about the volleyball matches I played.' Daiken began to cry.
To some, losing a parent during times you needed them the most is one of the hardest experiences to face. Knowing that you are going to suffer alone in the world, no guardian or lover could ever fill that void.
"Daiken, sweetheart… Come see your sister and brother." The same woman said.
She lay on a white sheeted bed and an incubator with the two smallest beings Daiken ever saw laid to her. She looked pale and very dehydrated. Her voice was very dry and she had swollen, chipped and bleeding lips. The room was white and a saline hung above, near the lady. With her weak arms she beckoned her oldest to meet his siblings.
" Ka-san…" Daiken ran up to his mother and gave her a tight hug.
'I shouldn't have touched that stone… I should have been careful… I left Aika and Haru alone… How will I get out of here?' His tears had dried and marks were on his tan cheeks.
The vision changed again. To the day that Daiken feared and hated the most. To the day that gave him sleepless nights for years to come. That one rainy day he hated himself for…. It was his mother's death day.
Daiken's field of seeing the vision his memory unfold was from above watching down upon his younger self and mother. During this he can't move his field of vision. This time he was looking straight at himself.
"Ka-san! Ka-san!" He said running to his mother's room. "Aika jus... " He abruptly stopped.
Through a small crack in the door, Daiken saw a terrible sight. A man held his mother by her hair and kept punching her. She grunted and cried for him to let go.
Daiken, not wanting to see her in such a situation burst through the door and bit the man in the hand that held the lady's hair. Screaming in agony the man jerked away his hand that had small teeth marks on them. Little Daiken ran over to his mother to help her up when the man took out a pistol, aimed at the tiny child and shot.
The boy was left unhurt but his mother wasn't. She had pushed him away and had gotten hit instead. A huge pool of red soaked the carpet and the lady's tattered dress. She gave light touch on her child's hand before her breathing stopped.
With raging anger Daiken leapt at the man and using his tiny fist kept hitting him. The older swung his free hand, throwing the boy across the room, hitting his head on the wooden table.
'So this is what happened. Uncle Fuji… he lied to me… Oka-san was shot. SHE DIDN'T DIE WHILE GIVING BIRTH. HE LIED TO ME. I- I can't trust him… 'Ka-san was right, never trust anyone.' Daiken felt so betrayed and hurt.
Many emotions came over him all at once. He was furious, wanting to punch his uncle across the face. He felf misery looking at his mother's cold body on the hard floor. Daiken felt a pang on his head and it started throbbing again.
After the man had left the room, Daiken, still conscious, dragged himself to the phone on the table and dialed the emergency number. He couldn't say anything except for 'please help me.'
'I don't know what to feel anymore... He lied to me... Aika and Haru... they aren't... they aren't my blood siblings... My head hurts... I wish it'd stop. I wish I never found out about this.'
The visions stopped, everything went black.