Antique Shop?BEAR? - Chapter 23
Chapter 23 – The Language of Black Rose
Upon arriving in front of the house, an enraged voice could be perceived which had been absent earlier.
“Don’t make me repeat it!”
Noriko jolted and shrugged her shoulders. That was the voice of the father.
“Get upstairs now!”
Noriko wondered if she should press the intercom, but the result would be the same as before, hence she entered the gate fearfully. This was trespassing. However, she was too concerned about Mina to think about it.
The house was surrounded by a wall, and the yard was full of weeds and trees growing in the wrong direction.
The living room light was on, allowing Noriko to covertly approach the window without creating a sound. Since the window was opened and the screen door was down, she could clearly hear her voice. She sneaked a peek inside and was struck by the sight of Mina lying on the floor, sobbing inconsolably as her father seized her by the head and slammed her to the floor. Noriko let out a gasp.
“How dare you go to that garden! Don’t you ever go back there again!”
“… Yes…”
“Speak louder!”
“… I understand…”
“If you don’t listen to me, I swear I’ll kill you!”
Noriko froze at those words.
“Stop! It hurts!
“It hurts!”
Her father had repeatedly strained Mina’s cheek and finally struck her with his fist.
“This is for discipline!”
Once again, he applied pressure to Mina’s cheek and she slumped limply to the floor.
“All you have to do is be a good girl! Now get up there!”
Noriko took out her phone and was about to report it to the police, but the second she witnessed her father walking with heavy steps up the stairs, Noriko opened the window.
“Mina!” In a whisper, she called Mina.
“… Eh?”
Noriko climbed into the living room in her shoes and checked Mina’s injuries. Her cheek was swollen, as if she had sustained severe blows. Mina didn’t seem to recognize Noriko for a moment, but she clutched Noriko’s clothing.
“… Help me…”
“Let’s go outside.”
Noriko carried Mina by the shoulders and stepped out.
“Mina!”
The sound of her father’s voice resounded from upstairs as he descended the stairs with a thud. Noriko was horrified.
“Let’s hurry!”
Mina could barely walk, her legs started to tremble and she burst into tears.
“What the hell are you doing!”
When she turned around, her father was standing there with a crimson complexion.
“Get out of here!”
As soon as he yelled out at her, Noriko was shoved out of the way. She flew through the windowpane and outward.
“That hurts…!”
Unable to catch herself, she fell into the garden. A sharp pain shot through her. The glass had sliced her and she was bleeding from her arms and head.
“You! This is trespassing! And you have to pay for the glass.”
Fortunately, the glass didn’t pierce her body, but it did cut her forehead.
“Mina will be going back to the garden with me.”
Even to her own surprise, she announced it clearly.
“Ha? Mina is my child!”
“No father would do such a thing!”
Right as she exclaimed this, her father stormed out and attacked Noriko.
“Do you have a death wish!?”
“Stop it, Dad!” Mina shrieked aloud.
“Somebody! Help! Please call the police!”
Noriko resisted trying to escape, even as her father knocked her down and assaulted her. At that moment, she reached into her pocket to see if she could find anything.
Huh?
There was something in her pocket.
Noriko took it and thrust it with all her force.
There was a momentary pause.
“Aghhhh!”
Fading in and out of consciousness, she opened her eyes to stumble upon a black colored pencil impaled on her father’s eye. Mina went outside and helped Noriko to her feet. Neither of them was in a condition to walk very far, but as they struggled to get out, the sound of sirens could be heard in the distance.
?????
Upon Noriko’s return to Dandelion Garden, the principal greeted her in tears. The father was immediately transported by ambulance so that his eyesight could be restored and Noriko was granted self-defense, resulting in no further incident. Although Mina was soon discharged from the hospital, she was mentally exhausted and had to take some time off from school.
“Mina? Can I come in?”
“Please.”
When Mina caught sight of Sudo, she seemed on the verge of tears.
“Ma’am… I thought you would have quit by now… it’s my fault… I’m sorry…”
“Mina, you haven’t done anything wrong, right?”
Sudo sat down next to Mina, who broke out crying.
“You see, ma’am… my dad is actually my father-in-law.”
I knew it…
Sudo listened in silence.
“… My mom still harbors resentment towards me even though she has died.… Even though dad is such a person, she loved him very, very much.”
“Eh?”
Noriko glanced at Mina, not understanding what she meant, but Mina was unwilling to say anything else. A piece of drawing paper next to Mina caught her attention.
“Oh yeah, I brought the pencil I promised you.” Sudo took out a Faber-Castell colored pencil.
Mina looked at it her eyes popped out in amazement. “That one! My mom had the same one.”
“What? She owned the same one?”
“Yes. But I think she disposed of it at home… She often drew roses on it.”
Mina smiled happily, but Sudo shivered at her words.
“Ma’am, would you like to draw a picture with me now if you don’t mind?”
“Huh… ah, of course.”
Sudo opened the lid of the colored pencil, which contained no black.
“I am glad. From now on I can draw roses that are not black.”
?????
Kuma looked at the place where the pencils had been while polishing the shelves before opening the store. No new products had been placed there yet.
“Are you intending to spend an eternity holding a grudge against your daughter with black roses?” Kuma muttered to himself. “It’s not your daughter you ought to hate, but her father.”