Survival

I don't want to die...

No...

Not now...

I have to go home...

Help...

Someone help me...

Why?

Nobody answers me...

***

Days later

***

I wake up in a ... room?

Wooden style...

Everything is so unfamiliar. I lay on a thin bedding directly placed on the bamboo flooring. The room is small and empty.

I find myself wearing a... robe?...

I never have this kind of robe...

I heard small steps outside the room. Seconds later the wall on the right side moves slowly... It must be sliding door... I see a long black haired little girl in a white summer dress is standing there... She gasps, her hands covers her mouth... Her dark-brown eyes widen in shock...

"Onii-chaaan...!" (Big brother...)

She screams loudly, then walks away from me in hurry steps. Soon, she comes back with an older boy. They walk closer to me but keeping the distance. They lower their bodies to sit on the floor... Knees on the floor... Buttocks rest on the top of their feet... The boy starts to speak...

"Hi... Nihonggo hanashimasu ka,"

I smile hesitantly. I bet, stupid face is all I show them.

"Do you speak English?"

The boy asks again... gladly in English...

"Yes..." I smile.

He smiles sweetly and continues,

"Okay. I wiiru try to speak Ingurishu. My name iz Junichi Suzuki. Puriiz kooru me Jun. Ando this iz my sista, Chika..." (Okay. I will try to speak English. My name is Junichi Suzuki. Please call me Jun. And this is my sister, Chika...)

--±--

Jun will continue speaking English in Japanese accent in the rest of this story. Please imagine it by yourself. ...

--+--

"May I have your name please?" He asks me.

"My name... My name is...,"

Nothing pops out in my mind. It's not good. I don't even know my own name?

I shake my head... "I-I don't know...," I hold tears in the corner of my eyes, keep them from falling to my cheeks. Behave... You are an adult... Don't cry in front of kids... I talk to myself.

Jun smiles, calming my worries. His inner looks older than his outer looks.

"Then we will call you... How about Maria? The name suits you because you're foreigner... And it is easy to say even for us, Japanese," He smiles and turn to his sister, Chika, explaining something in Japanese. Chika smiles and turn her gaze to me,

"Maria-san, yoroshiku ne..." She says with her super cute voice. I guess, she says something good to me.

I smile back at her, "Thanks, sweetie. I am happy to meet a cute girl like you."

"Nomitai desu ka..." She offers me a glass of water. I accept it gladly. When the cold water runs through my throat, I have just realize how thirsty I am.

I finish drinking in one gulp. I turn my face to see the boy. When our eyes meet each other, he shyly turns his gaze to the floor. He indeed a sweet young teenager, maybe a high schooler. "Could you please tell me how I ended up here? I can't recall anything..."

He smiles and starts to explain, "I found you on the beach yesterday... unconscious, drenched, and dirty. I brought you here and cleaned..." He stops and blushes, "... I asked Chika-chan to cleaned your body and changed your clothes." His red face turns to the floor.

Bad liar...

He did that, not Chika. Did he realize that's impossible for a toddler?

He talks to Chika in Japanese and the girl leave us immediately.

I clear my throat to get his attention. "Thank you very much for taking care of me," I smile sincerely to him. I don't want him to feel bad about anything. He should know that he didn't wrong me because the situation gave him no choice. "Could you please bring my things to me? I hope I can remember something if I see them."

"Chika-chan will bring your stuffs to you" he says. "Don't worry, she already washed them." Again, he is blushing.

Seconds later, Chika come back with my clothes on her small hands and give them to me.

Light blue jogger pants...

Sleeveless white shirt...

Undies...

All of them have the same Brand ALP with strange characters.

"It's Katakana, Japanese characters. You bought them here." Jun says while looking at the floor, blushing. It's cute to see him blushes all the time. I take the undies and place it under the pillow.

"You can safely look at me now," I smile at him and look closely at white gold necklace with heart shaped diamond pendant. I look closely and carefully. Still... I don't manage to recall anything.

"Are these all I have with me?" I ask.

"Yes." He answers shortly. Then, again, his face blushes even more. "Umm... Actually... Chika-chan said that you have some bruises on your body. You can check on it later."

God...

"Onii-chan, onaka ga suita...," Chika says, rubbing her stomach. Her pouting mouth is kinda cute...

"Oh, okay. Let's have lunch." Jun says with wide smile on his face. "I will bring your food here if you like."

"No. I will come with you," suddenly I realize the rudeness from my words, "Is that okay?"

"Sure". They smile and leave the room.

***

We eat lunch. The food is light, I like it.

Steamed potatoes...

Grilled fishes...

And vegetable soup...

What kind of vegetable is it? I don't know... Seaweed? Maybe.

The thing that I want to complain is the way we eat. We use chopsticks. I barely manage to pick some of my food.

"Maria-san, I am sorry if you don't like the taste. I am not a good cook," Jun apologizes for my inconvenience. "You can use your hand instead. I know you're not familiar with chopsticks but unfortunately, we don't have western style utensils."

"It's okay. I will learn to use chopsticks. And... Don't worry. I like these foods."

"I forgot to tell you that we're the only ones staying in this island," Jun says while munching his food.

"What? This island is unhabited?" I stop eating due to shock. I turn my gaze towards him. "Then, why do you live here?"

"We have no choice," He looks at Chika who is eating undisturbed, then continues, "Two months ago, just after my highschool graduation, our parents went bankrupt. We have almost nothing left. Our parents decided to bring us here since this house is the only one we have."

"Then, where is your parents now?"

"They left..."

"They what?" I am shocked. It sounds so irresponsible...

"They left us a month ago with the only boat that brought us here," He stares blankly, "I just hope they are okay and come back before winter. It will be bad if we don't have enough food for winter."

Suddenly, I feel sorry for these kids. I wonder what are my family doing right now. Are they worrying about me? Are they looking for me?

Wait...

Do I have a family?

***

It's my fourth day staying with them. I feel bad to be a burden for Jun and Chika. I am the only adult here so I suppose to do something out of responsibility. Besides, I need to thank them for saving me... I owe them my life... And my pride (Yes, they gave me their mom's clothes so I won't walk naked).

As expected, we have no electricity here. We use firewood for cooking and lighting. We also use cold water for bath. They have kerosene, but they want to save it for winter. I cursed their parents many times but I realize that I am not better than them. With my presence here, their foods will run out faster.

I need to do something...