2. Nae and My Hut (1)
Since that day, I started living with Nae. It’s okay to be useless. I was so happy to hear that, I followed Nae around like a baby bird.
Nae seemed to like that I was following her around, and every time I did, she would stroke my head with her big hand. Every time she did that, I was so happy, her hand was so warm, I couldn’t help but cry.
“Wha, what…! Why are you crying again! Are you hurt!?”
“Hehe… Just… Just because I’m so happy…”
“You scared me, you know!”
Every time, Nae would shout in surprise, but as long as I wasn’t hurt, she would pat my head. Every time, my heart would beat wildly, pounding against my chest.
I knew that this was love, an endless warmth. I loved Nae so much for that. Every day was a happy day.
“Nae! Are you going hunting again today?”
“Yeah, is there any particular meat you want?”
“Um… I like anything that Nae likes!”
“What I like? Hehe… I like to chew on raw meat, is that okay?”
“I… I’ll try…!!”
When I stuttered my response, Nae showed her sharp teeth and giggled.
“Just kidding. I prefer cooked meat too. Raw meat is too tough and gets stuck in my teeth. Anyway, it’s dangerous outside, so stay inside and rest. Don’t open the door for anyone.”
“Okay!”
“Shoo, go inside quickly. You might catch a cold.”
“Hehe, take care!”
I waved goodbye to Nae, who was waving her big hand, and returned to the hut.
“…Alright! Let’s do this!”
Even though she said it’s okay to be useless here, I didn’t like that. I wanted to be of help to Nae.
“I need to clean up before Nae comes back!”
Determined, I meticulously cleaned the inside of the hut, recalling the work I had done at the mansion. I swept the dust and pushed it outside the hut, using old clothes as a mop to wipe the corners where dust had accumulated.
I even did the dishes! All the dishes in Nae’s hut were made of wood, so it was good that they wouldn’t break even if dropped.
The axe used for chopping firewood was too heavy to even lift, let alone move, as it was made to fit Nae’s hand. Still, I thought it needed a good clean, so I wiped it down with a wet cloth.
I wiped the table, the chairs, and even floor… Every time I saw the hut becoming a bit cleaner, a smile naturally bloomed on my face out of pride.
And then, with the passage of time, the door of the hut opened with familiar footsteps. It was Nae returning.
“Welcome back!”
“Wow, you seem to be in a good mood today.”
“Hehe. Notice anything different?”
“Something… different?”
As I grinned and fidgeted in front of Nae, while scratching her cheek put her hand on my head and compared it to her body. Nae tilted her head as she looked at her hand, which had stopped at her navel.
“Hmm… Did you grow a bit taller…?”
“Not that!”
“Hm? Oh, huh? Ah! You cleaned the hut! Right?”
“Right! Hehe, I cleaned it up while you were out!”
“Ah, you helpful little thing! I couldn’t clean because of my hands, thank you!”
Rough but kind, hard but warm. I liked Nae like that.
“Come on in. I’m a cold-blooded creature, so I get cold if I sleep alone.”
“Okay!”
When the sun set and night came, we would sleep in one bed.
“Come back safely!”
“Yeah, I’m going!”
Every time Nae left the hut, I hugged her at the entrance and said goodbye.
“I’m back!”
“Welcome back!!”
Every time Nae returned, I was so happy and greet her with a “Welcome back.” I was so happy that I wondered if it was okay to be this happy. I was just so happy.
“You look just like a black rabbit.”
“A black rabbit?”
“Black hair, bright red eyes. You’re small and always hopping around, just like a black rabbit. Yes, and you’re warm too.”
“Hehe, is that so?”
I loved such everyday life.
Every day felt like a dream, and I wished this dream would last forever.
Then one day, I woke up from sleep because the space next to me in bed was empty. Rubbing my sleepy eyes, I got up out of bed. Nae was sitting by the window, looking up at the sky.
“Nae…”
“Huh, what’s up? You’re awake?”
“I woke up because it felt empty next to me…”
“Pfft! Somehow you seem more cold-blooded than me. Come here.”
As I leaned into Nae’s outstretched arm, she sat me on her lap. I naturally relaxed against her warm body temperature, and I fiddled with Nae’s large hand that was wrapped around me.
While blankly touching Nae’s hand, I suddenly asked a question that came to mind.
“But why does Nae live alone?”
Nae blinked as if she hadn’t expected me to ask such a question.
“Huh? Well, it’s because of these hands and teeth.”
Nae, who was laughing bitterly and shaking her hand, seemed to overlap with my own reflection. It was the expression of a person who had been hurt, with new wounds overlaid on top the previous ones before they even had a chance to heal, and had been worn out to the bone.
Seeing the always energetic Nae make such a sad face hurt my heart so much that I pouted and tightly held Nae’s hand. Although my hand didn’t fit in size and I felt enveloped in Nae’s hand, but I somehow liked it.
“Why? I think they’re cool.”
“People often don’t know the difference between ‘different’ and ‘wrong’.”
“…Nae is not wrong.”
“Right. There’s no one in this world who’s wrong. There are just those who are different.”
Saying so, Nae, who was chuckling, picked me up and headed towards the bed.
“Alright! Let’s end this conversation here, if we go to sleep any later, our little black rabbit won’t grow. Let’s go to bed.”
“Okay….”
There were still many things I wanted to say, but I couldn’t help but nod at Nae, who was deliberately changing the subject. Why does she look so sad when she looks at the sky? What is she long for so much?
I never found the courage to voice the question that I had held back. Several more days passed after that.
Since that day, Nae never snuck out of bed, so I never had the chance to ask the question I had held back that day. It bothered me a bit, but it was okay.
I understood well enough that it was a conversation that didn’t necessarily need to happen.
“I’ll be back, don’t go far. Got it?”
As always, I smiled broadly at Nae, who was worrying about me.
“Okay! Have a good trip!”
“Don’t just listen half-heartedly. It rained yesterday, not snow, so the mountain slopes are very slippery. Be careful.”
“Hehe, got it!”
As I chuckled and nodded again, Nae also laughed and stroked my head. As she said, “I’ll be back,” and left the hut as usual, I cleaned the hut as usual and waited for Nae.
But strangely enough, no matter how long I waited, Nae didn’t come back. Nae, who always came back when the sun was on the horizon, didn’t come back even when the sun set beyond the horizon and the moon began to show its face.
Suddenly, I was scared.
Why isn’t she coming back? Did something happen? She said it snowed a lot and to be careful, did she have an accident on the way back?
Or maybe… did she abandon me? Because of that question that day?
When my thoughts reached that point, I shook my head and denied the thought that came to mind. Nae wouldn’t abandon me. Nae said she needed me.
But even as I tried to reassure myself, my worries piled up like snow.
After staring at the door that wouldn’t open for a long time, I made up my mind, opened the door of the hut, and went outside.
Fortunately, it wasn’t snowing, so Nae’s footprints were still there, and I was able to follow those footprints to find Nae. The night was deep and the road was dark, but thanks to the moon in the sky, it wasn’t hard to follow the footprints on the snowfield.
Following Nae’s footprints, I ventured into the deep forest at night. Despite being wrapped in a fur coat made from the animals Nae had caught, the biting winter wind felt as if it was slicing through my flesh.
This is serious… Nae is cold-blooded, she could catch a cold if she stays out in this cold for too long…
As my worries accumulated, blurring my vision, a large green hand caught my eye from below the mountain slope. It was Nae’s hand.
“Nae!!”
I ran straight to where Nae’s hand was. For some reason, Nae was unconscious, half-buried in a mound of snow.
I immediately grabbed Nae’s arm and tried to pull her out. But thanks to all the times we had been running around together, I was able to muster enough strength to extract Nae from the snow mound, my face burning with exertion.
I didn’t so much pull her out… it was more accurate to say I dragged her out. Anyway, Nae’s leg, once I had dragged her out of the snow mound, was bent in an impossible direction.
—It rained yesterday, it didn’t snow, so the mountain slopes are very slippery. Be careful.
“Nae should have been the one to be careful…!”
Grumbling like that, I slung Nae’s arm over my neck and retraced our steps. Even though I had gathered my strength, moving Nae, who was twice my size, was no easy task.
But I couldn’t just leave Nae there, so I gritted my teeth and moved her to the hut. Upon arriving at the hut,
I laid her down on the living room floor and bit my lip.
“What should… what should I do…”
I didn’t know how to treat an injured person. My mother never taught me that. But I couldn’t just sit there and do nothing.
“First… first, I need to warm her up.”
She’s cold-blooded, after all. I immediately started to take off Nae’s soaked clothes.
It wasn’t easy to take them off because her leg was completely broken…
But if I left her like that, she could catch a cold, so I gently peeled off her clothes.
“Ugh… Ugh…!”
“I’m sorry, Nae…! Just… just bear with it a little longer!”
After taking off Nae’s clothes, I immediately wiped the moisture off her body with a cloth and covered her with the clothes I had been wearing. Thinking that wouldn’t be enough, I fetched firewood from the storage outside the hut and lit a fire.
As the living room began to fill with warm air and Nae’s complexion improved, I finally let out a sigh of relief and, curling up next to her, fell asleep.
Thanks.