5. King of the World
1446 Words
15 minutes later and both mother and Jane are sleeping. I scoot off the bed, place the book back on the princess bookshelf and quietly exit the room.
I hear my sisters laughing down the hall that leads to their room. That must mean dad & Kenta are in the living room where the sounds of the TV can be heard.
I quietly head to the kitchen for a glass of water. I must not have been very quiet because as I head to my room on the opposite side, I hear dad call my name.
“Yeah dad?”
“Is your mom already asleep?”
“Ah. Yes, my story-reading puts everyone to sleep apparently” I say sheepishly.
He chuckles.
“Aww I’m actually pretty beat myself” he says before stifling a yawn. “Shucks. Kenta I forgot to help you find your bedding.”
“Too busy talking about your glory days?” I inquire, knowing the answer.
“You caught me” he shamelessly claps Kenta on the arm. “You must have heard my stories a hundred times.”
“Yes” Kenta doesn’t deny it, “It is good. Really. I like your stories.”
Dad smiles appreciatively.
“Dad, I could help Kenta with the cots and blankets. I’m not tired if you want to head to bed.”
“You sure hun?”
“Yeah of course.”
“Okay...” he starts, “And then you’re straight to bed, too, alright?”
“Yes, Dad.” I say, aware of him needing assurance. “I’ll read myself to sleep.”
He nods as he smiles “I don’t expect anything less. Alright guys. Good night. Kenta get a good night’s sleep, we will be practicing early in the morning.”
“Yes Sensei,” he replies. “Sleep good.”
“Night dad” I say as he pauses in front of me and gives me a hug.
“Love you honey-Bree.”
My heart warms at my favorite nickname in the world.
“Love you too dad” I say fully aware that I’m now blushing because this exchange of affection is happening in front of Kenta.
My dad takes one last glance at both of us before waving his hand and heading to his room.
“Haha sorry” I begin to apologize “my dad has a soft spot for me.”
“It is nice” he says. “Erm. My father and my mother do not say ‘I love you.’ Not show many affections.”
“Oh” I say. I guess it’s true. In all my years in Japan, I never really saw people, let alone family members, show much affection in public.
My parents toned down their affection a lot since moving here and taught my sisters not to be kissing in public as it is considered rude.
But to not hear my parents say “I love you?” I can’t imagine it. I mean, my mother and I were never really close, but if she ever punished me harshly, she would tell me it was because she loved me and didn’t want me to learn bad behaviors. And my dad, well he says he loves me every chance he gets. I feel a bit sorry for this boy in front of me.
“Umm. Let me show you where to find your sleeping things.”
He follows me to the hallway closet where we keep the extra blankets and the traditional Japanese futon cot for sleeping on the floor.
He helps me carry them to the living room. We only need to move the single couch to make room enough to lay the cot down.
I spread the blankets over the cot and put down a couple of pillows.
“Thank you very much” he says.
“No problem. Do you need anything else?”
“The... erm...” he starts making a motion with his hand as if holding something small and shaking his thumb up and down as if pressing down on something.
“Oh the remote!” I finally understand, “dad likes to hog it. It’s probably just lost in his seat.”
I walk over to the single couch and rummage in the cushion. My hand nudges against a hard plastic with buttons.
“Here you go” I say as I pass him the remote.
He bows his head a little and takes the remote. He immediately changes the channel from a channel playing old 60s movies, and begins flipping through.
I notice he’s swaying his hips each time he changes the channel as if he’s excited to see what will show up next.
I stifle a laugh and he turns to look at me, I don’t mean to offend him.
“You don’t watch a lot of TV?” I ask.
“Yes. Erm. The Television I watch... erm.. not American. American is, how you say.. interests me much.”
“I can see that.” I say laughing. “What would you like to see?”
“A movie? Yes, any movie. I do not mind much,” he says.
He hands me back the remote and I find a channel that is playing a movie I watched with Lilia that came out earlier last year, “Titanic.”
I really like this movie and it is still in the beginning so I decide to stay and watch. If Lilia was here we would already be singing “My Heart Will Go On” at the top of our lungs. My smile disappears as I think of how much I already miss her.
“You are fine, Bree?”
I look up and realize I’m not watching the movie anymore. He is turned around studying my face.
“Oh I’m fine. I’m good, I just miss my friend.”
“Erm.. Lel-lee-erm?”
“Lil-eeh-uh” I pronounce for him. “Lilia is visiting her grandmother, her Obaasan, for a while.”
“I see. And she is. Erm. Good friend to you?”
“Yes. She’s my best friend.”
“Friend is good. Bree is friend to me? Yes?”
I look at him surprised. Up until today we actually never exchanged words, only glances that I immediately tried to pretend didn’t happen.
But I am looking at him longer now than I ever have. I search his face for sincerity.
“Yes. I guess we are now.”
He smiles and turns back around to the TV. He says nothing else and I try to look past him to focus on the movie.
This is a bit strange. I am unsure of how I feel. I mean he is cute for sure, but there’s an awkwardness I feel in the midst of the nervousness. I am not like all the girls in my grade that wear the latest trendy tops and slender bell-bottom jeans.
Right now I am wearing gray joggers with an oversize t-shirt.
Relax Bree. He said friends. Don’t make this into something it isn’t. Friends is good.
Jack is on the screen dancing with a little girl with a bow in her hair. She reminds me of Jane, who always wears cute little skirts and flowy tops. I keep thinking how much I hate dresses. My mother had to force me to wear them to church and I would immediately change out of it the second I got home.
Jack pulls Rose up to dance and I have to admit, I do love her sparkly dress. She is very pretty. Of course Jack would want to dance with a girl like her.
From where I am sitting, I can see the side of Kenta’s face as he watches intensely at the scene of them dancing. We both smile as they laugh and spin around in circles. I don’t know what love between a boy and girl feels like, but I imagine it’s something like this.
I wish I was as confident as Rose. I couldn’t help but think of all the popular girls in my class and how the boys would admire them.
I didn’t realize that my eyes were getting heavy and my thoughts were becoming strange dreams of me on a boat.
“Kenta I’m flying!”
“Yes Bree, you’re the king of the world!”
“And you’re my queen?”
“I’m anything you want Bree”
“Anything?”
“Yes, anything”
“Then... a puppy! I’ve always wanted a puppy!”
I turn around and Kenta is the cutest Shiba Inu I have ever seen.
“Oh you’re so cute! Come here!”
Kenta the Shiba comes closer and jumps up and begins to lick my face.
“Okay! Okay! That’s enough kisses”
I try to gently push him down but he’s suddenly not a small dog anymore.
He is a beast and he’s got all his weight on me.
I feel frightened that I will be crushed.
“Please Kenta... stop... uhh..”
And I can’t make him stop. My body is frozen and he is pushing his nuzzle roughly into my face.
Stop... is all I could think... but I couldn’t say it.
I blink and he is Kenta again. He has my wrists pinned down to either side of my head.
He is forcing his tongue in my mouth and I can’t say anything.
I’m murmuring trying to speak but no words form in my panic.
I can only think, I don’t like this and I want it to stop.
I don’t recognize this face forced against mine.
I don’t see kindness and I don’t feel shy.
I feel fear.
I feel hopeless.
I try to shake my head away but his grip on my wrists tighten.
It’s painful.
Eventually I get tired resisting.
My body is frozen under him.
* * *
- Writer
