One Step At A Time [Ongoing]

A First Start

Today was supposed to be something special. Today was supposed to be something new. But it felt empty.

"Shihana, are you excited?" Shihana's mother asked as she helped her daughter put on her baby blue sweater. Shihana just smiled faintly and shrugged, letting her mother put it over her head. If she could, she would rather just stay at home with her mother. But she couldn't, her mother needed to work. And she didn't want to be alone at the house. Before, homeschooling had been so much better. Back when things were different.

Her mother just smiled at her antics. "Well, just remember that if you don't feel well, just give me a call, ok?" She carefully brushed her daughter's bangs out of her eyes. To Menma, Shihana looked absolutely adorable. The school uniform fit her so cutely, and with her large yellow eyes, sweet smile, and pure white hair, she looked like a little angel. Her little angel.

Shihana returned the smile softly. "Ok, Kaa-chan. I will, don't worry!" She assured her mother, taking her mother's offered hand. 

Her mother's hand was encompassing her own small hand. If felt soft. Warm. But her other hand was empty. It didn't use to feel like that. As her thoughts drifted, thinking back, her eyes unconsciously turned duller. It was barely noticeable, but this did not escape the eyes of her dear mother. Her mother scrunched her brows up in worry, but said nothing else, only maintaining a weak smile. A soft pat on the head was all she was gave.

"Ok then, let's go. Don't want to be late for your first day of school, do you? Let's put your shoes on and then your mittens and earmuffs. Don't want you to get sick." Menma listed, looking around for said items. Shihana just stood there as her mother searched. It wasn't that cold though. But her heart warmed at seeing how much her mother cared. She always went above and beyond for her daughter. In a world were people wore flashy clothing and had blinding powers, her mom was the real hero. And she kind of liked that her mother was so overprotective. She didn't remember her other parents ever being like this. But to be fair, there was a lot of things her previous birth parents hadn't done.

Today was Shihana's very first day of school. Like ever. In this life, at least. Even though she was already seven, she had never been to school before. Her parents had decided that it would be better to school her from home, where they could care for her more carefully. Her mother would switch with her father when it came to teaching her. As they both still had work, when one was not home, the other would school her. It was much better than an actual school, because at least at home, she was surrounded by her two most important people in the entire world. But that all changed since the incident.

The previous year, on her 6th birthday, her father had decided to take her out for ice cream. She had always had a sweet tooth and her father had surprised her with the idea. They had just come out of the ice cream shop, happy and laughing. Her father would tell her funny jokes and stories.

It had been night time, around 8pm when most shops were closed. In her area, it was mostly family owned shops and restaurants. Unfortunately, this week had been a bit hectic, as her parents had had to unexpectedly take on more work than usual. At lot of their co-workers had fallen ill, and that left her mother and father having to take the extra load. What made it even more troublesome was that it meant her mother had to stay at work late. Immediately, Shihana felt guilty, because her mother felt bad for not being able to come as well, but she was soon assured that it was perfectly fine. They could bring her something when they returned. Agreeing to it, father and daughter left to get some ice cream. The trip there had been wonderful, even if her mother wasn't able to come along.

When they arrived at the ice cream shop, it was just about about to close but they had begged the owner for some last minute ice cream. They apologized for the inconvenience. All the other shops were closed. When learning about her birthday, the owner had agreed and even went as far as putting it on the house. They had thanked him and left to finally go home, eager to return in time to give her mother her ice cream.