Side Story: Family Portrait

Helena shuffled slightly on the chair. Everything felt confining, not only because she wasn't accustomed to wearing such an elaborate, layered ensemble instead of the more practical but plain hakama—and not because she was unsure of how she looked right now either. The hand on her shoulder offered some measure of comfort, but in this unfamiliar smoke-filled room, its owner felt too far away even though he was only behind her, slightly to her right.

Kido noticed Helena's apparent discomfort and felt a pang of guilt at the thought that he should've at least dressed as much as her instead of his naval uniform—if only to share her burden. Or perhaps he shouldn't even take her to this studio in the first place.

"Sorry," he whispered in her ears after signaling for his friend, the photographer, to wait. She shuffled some more and turned her face toward him.

"Oh...it's alright. Nothing to be sorry for...if any, I should be the one apologizing for worrying you, Kido-san," she whispered back. The hand on her shoulder didn't budge in the slightest, but his affectionate gaze grew intense as he walked to her side and leaned down. Her heart raced, but her spirits lightened as she could see him close by.

"None of us need to apologize, I see. But if you have concerns about this...don't hesitate to let me know."

"Ah...well...It's just me getting uneasy because I've never done this before," Helena became flustered over the mundane reason. Surely he had no such reservations because he was laughing.

"Me neither," Kido said. "To have a family portrait taken with you, I mean. But trust me; you will look beautiful in the picture, so don't worry about it."

"Kido-san...that's...that's embarrassing," Helena grew red even more, but her spirits swelled even more as well.

The photographer lit a cigarette as he watched the exchange. This friend he had not seen in a long time was happily talking with a lady he didn't know. And what a fine lady she was. Delicate like a flower, but not weak. She would be the ideal Japanese woman, even though she wasn't even Japanese. He had never thought his friend would be involved with someone like her, but it wasn't his place to be overly concerned about their unusual circumstance. He had a job, and this unguarded moment between the two, without all the stiff faces and forced smiles, was beautiful. It had to be immortalized—then the lady would see how true her man's words were.

The photographer was relieved that the two didn't seem overtly surprised when the camera went off. But that was because the lady was left too bewildered to even react.

"Hey, didn't I tell you to wait?" Kido laughed.

"Candid pictures are better," the photographer shrugged. "Otherwise, this may take forever."

"Touche."

When she finally got to see the developed picture, Helena found out why Kido looked so pleased and why she felt the same.

Seeing herself and him in that idyllic moment, laughing and smiling so candidly—she would surely treasure the picture. There will be nothing else like it, even if, from now on, they will have their pictures taken many times.