" My daddy has a new job in the city so we have to move."
" But ~ I won't be able to see you again..."
" I know ~"
" Can't you stay?"
The question is naive enough but it reflected the genuine reluctance of a young child. His companion lowered her head without saying a word.
" Can I come to see you off tomorrow morning?" He asked and she nods slightly.
On the appointed day he turned up as promised but he couldn't bring himself to come out from behind the tree where he has been hiding and staring at her from afar. He saw her looking about anxiously, waiting for him to arrive. He knows she must be near tears.....but he had lost all his courage to face her for the last time. Even as she was ushered into the car by her mother, he could not remove himself from the security of his hiding place. Clenching his fists hidden in his pockets, he felt the sharp plastic petals of the daisy ring prick his palm.
The car has already push off while he was looking down. Panicking, he starts to run after it, waving frantically. " Wait! Wait for me! Wait ~" He shouted tearfully, waving the hand that held the precious treasure.
Exhaustion began to overcome the young boy and his steps falter. The distance between him and the car grew wider and wider till it is no longer within his sight.
" It's....too....late...."
Goro shot up into a sitting position even before he is fully conscious. When he opened his eyes in the dark, his world is bursting with bright stars. " What the ~" He mutters breathlessly to himself as his mild dizziness subsides. His soft panting is amplified within the silence of the room. Reaching up to push his hair out of his eyes, he realised that he is prespiring heavily. Feeling badly disturbed, he left his bed to get a glass of water.
The kitchen window is opened as he stood by it drinking solemnly. For some unknown reason he could not explain why his mind is totally confused. He could still remember his dream vividly.That was a memory from his childhood, a memory he never shared with anyone.
" Who's there?!" He cried out abruptly as a black shadow dashed across his line of vision. While contemplating if he should go out into the garden and check out the shadow, he put down the glass in his hand slowly. Just then the black shadow jumped onto his window sill. Uttering a cry he jumped back.
Meeeeow ~
" Ha?!" Goro laughed nervously. It's obvious he had scared by a mere cat! He moved closer to the still figure sitting complacently on his sill licking itself. " You sure scared the hell out of me!" He chided the intruder.
Meeeow ~
" Who owns you, I wonder?" He mutters to himself as he risks a pat on the furry animal's head. The doorbell made the both of them jump.
" Sheesh!" Goro yelps.
Meeeow!
" I'm sorry but did you see a brown cat somewhere in your house?! A brown cat! I swore I locked its cage but it escaped! And now it's gone ~ and I don't know where to look and...and...."
" Whoa ~ slow down..."
Goro led his visibly distressed late night caller into his living room and sit her down. While she is trying to regain her composure, he went back into his kitchen and came back with his furry visitor.
" Is he the one you are looking for?" He asks dubiously.
Jen's eyes widen in surprise. In a flash her mournful face lightens as he places the cat into her arms. " Where did you find her?" She asks in disbelief.
" She came for a late night visit on my kitchen sill. Nearly scared me half to death!" Goro laughed sheepishly.
" Thank you so much! I won't know what to do if I lose her!"
" You're welcomed! Afterall, she found me." Goro smiled. He watches in silence as Jen cuddles the cat gently. " You must love her very much." He remarks.
" Eh?" Jen looked up in surprise. " Oh! This isn't my cat. I am looking after it for a friend of mine. She has gone on a holiday and will be back tomorrow.
" I won't know how to answer to my friend if I lose her pet cat."
" I see ~"
" I ~ I better be going....it's already so late. I am sorry I disturbed your sleep." She said as she stood up hurriedly.
After seeing her out, he went back to bed. The little fiasco has erased the uneasiness from his mind totally. As he fell asleep again, he dreams of brown cats and gardens.
" What's wrong with you lately?"
Goro looked up momentarily from the book he is reading. He can't help overhearing the conversation going on in the cubicle behind him. The cafe is nearly empty and thus completely silent. Hearing no reply, he lowers his eyes to his book again.
" I am having wierd dreams lately."
" What kind of wierd dreams?"
" I kept dreaming about my childhood days."
" You mean back in the countryside?"
" Yes! That was so long ago! As you know, my father moved the whole family into town when I was little."
" You dreamt of that wierd little boy too?"
" Yes, he is my first real friend....even if he was really wierd."
" I still think he is the one who took your daisy ring."
Goro's head snaps up risking whiplash. The book in his hand drops lifelessly onto the table before him. Unconsciously, he strains his ears to listen in further to the conversation.
" Speaking of daisy ring! That wierd guy living next to me has a similiar one too!"
" Eh? How did you know?"
" I saw him with it last week! Come to think of it, the two rings sure look alike."
" I bet it's the same ring."
" Why do you think so?"
" Your grandmother made you that ring, didn't she? There shouldn't be another ring that resembles it in this world."
" But there's no proof that he took it and the ring is gone forever anyway."
Goro stiffens. He needed so much to see the faces of the two females sitting behind him. Searching frantically, he finally found a small gap between the chairs and leans forward for a quick glance.
