science lab.
Goro and Kazuo were washing their hands in the sink, talking.
“Kazuko’s cute, and she’s nice, too. But she can be a little overbearing at times, can’t she.”
“Oh yeah?” said Kazuo, who had been miles away again. “What makes you say that?”
“Don’t you think she can be overbearing?” said Goro, puffing up his chest to match his face, which was always rather red and puffy. “She treats us like we’re kids. Come on. You boys can go and wash your hands, she says.”
Meanwhile, Kazuko was hiding behind the partition in the science lab, waiting for the mysterious person to arrive. Her heart was pounding.
It’s nearly time! she thought. I need to hold my ground! Kazuko puffed up her chest and flexed the muscles in her arms and legs. Just then, the door to the science lab opened, and someone stepped in slowly.
This is him… thought Kazuko.
IDENTIFYING THE INTRUDER
Kazuko thought she would be able to remain out of the enemy’s sight for a while. But maybe she was being a bit hasty by thinking of him as the enemy. After all, she had no reason to believe that he meant her any harm. Come to think of it, she had no reason to believe it was a he! It could just as easily be a girl! But whoever it was, that person had caused a lot of difficulty for Kazuko, and she was determined to get to the bottom of it.
Only moments later, the shadowy figure walked over to the chemicals cabinet, where he or she began rummaging through its contents. Kazuko then heard the clatter of chemical bottles and test tubes being lined up on the desk.
But in reality, Kazuko was too scared to do anything like that. What if that person was violent? What if that person decided to attack her to protect his or her secret? After all, she was only a girl. What hope did she have of protecting herself? If only she’d asked one of her friends to accompany her… But it was too late. And what was the point — she knew they wouldn’t have believed her anyway! There was no choice. She’d simply have to face the intruder by herself. But what sort of a person could it be? She knew that the intruder was capable of giving her superhuman powers. So was that person a genius? A lunatic? Or even a monster? She didn’t like her new-found powers, and she really didn’t want her friends to think she was any different to anybody else. So she needed to look this person in the face and demand that she be made normal again. And if that didn’t work, then maybe she’d have to trick or threaten that person into making her normal again But what would she do if the intruder didn’t want to or was unable to do what she wanted? What would she do then! Kazuko began to worry.
Getting a grip on herself, Kazuko remained silent and listened to the sound of chemicals being mixed.
Then suddenly there came a voice: “Okay, Kazuko. You can come out now. I’ve known all along that you were hiding there.”
It was a voice Kazuko knew well. The voice of someone close to her. Surely, it couldn’t be him!
Kazuko gingerly stepped away from the partition to find the intruder standing by the chemicals cabinet, smiling at her.
“Kazuo!” screamed Kazuko in both surprise and relief as her friend stood before her with his usual daydreaming expression.
Was he really the one she was after? Could it really be that Kazuo — who’d been with her through this whole thing — was the intruder? Kazuko found it hard to believe. But she knew she had to, and that it would be better if she could hear it directly from him.
“So it was you? You made that odd chemical and gave me these strange powers?” said Kazuko, doing
her best to suppress her anger. He was supposed to be her friend, but he’d been watching her suffer all along without ever saying a word!
“Yes, that’s right. But I didn’t do it to cause you trouble. It was just a coincidence that you came to have those powers. I didn’t mean for it to happen. There’s a reason why I didn’t tell you before. I was trying to protect you. I just hope you can believe me!”
“But, but…” Kazuko was suddenly lost for words.
There were so many questions, so many things she wanted to say. “I just can’t believe it. Why would you…”
Kazuo wore a smile of pity on his face, and Kazuko was surprised to see there was something a little more mature about him. Not like when some of the students pretend to be grown-ups, but a genuine maturity. The person standing in front of her was no longer a boy — at least not like the rest of the kids at school.
THE BOY FROM THE FUTURE
“I don’t know how to tell you this…” Kazuo said thoughtfully. “It’s going to take a little time to explain. But believe me when I say everything I’m about to tell you is the truth. And you should now have an easier time believing me because of everything you’ve been through. To put it simply, Kazuko, I am… from, er, the future.”
“From the future?” Kazuko was shocked. She thought she was prepared to hear anything, but this was well beyond her expectations — well beyond common sense, or what she believed was common sense, anyway.
“I… I can’t believe it,” said Kazuko, her voice trembling.
“I thought you might say that,” said Kazuo with a nod. “It’s a bit like science fiction, isn’t it?”
But Kazuko wasn’t in any mood to make light of the situation. “So how did you get here? In some sort of time machine or something?” she asked in a sarcastic voice.
“No. I came just like you did. By time-leaping and teleportation.”
As she struggled to take this all in, Kazuko felt a bit faint, and the room started to spin a little.
“If you can’t believe what I’m saying, that’s okay,” continued Kazuo. “You can just listen to it as if it were a fairy tale. You’ve suffered enough, so you have the right to hear my story. But don’t blame me if you think my story is outrageous. I’m not going to lie to you. But it’s the only explanation I have.”
“All right,” said Kazuko. “I’ll listen.”
“Okay. I’ll tell you. But let’s stop time before we start. We don’t want anyone interrupting us.”
“What?” Kazuko yelled.
Unruffled by her shock, Kazuo reached into his pocket and pulled out something that looked like a transistor radio, and extended its antenna.
“Okay. Now we are the only people moving and talking in this world. If you don’t believe me, take a look out the window.”
Kazuko wondered if Kazuo might be losing his mind.
“Go on!” said Kazuo. “Have a look, if you don’t believe me.” And with that, he took her hand and led her to the window.
Kazuko allowed herself to be led to the window, noticing at the same time how cold Kazuo’s hand was and
