“Where are we going?” she asked “Down to the beach?”
“Somewhere even better. Where there are aquariums, and zoos, and all sorts of different things. I’ll take you anywhere in the world, as long as it isn’t here.”
“But we do have aquariums and zoos here. And amusement parks. And indoor water parks. Anything you could ever want.”
I knew Karen had to be telling the truth. If my own house had been replicated, then the sky was the limit. Nevertheless, that wouldn’t be enough for me.
“No, Karen. I mean, sure, maybe you’re right. Maybe this paradise really does have everything I could ever want. But it isn’t where we belong. We have to go back to Kozaki.”
“No way.” Karen took another big ol’ bite of watermelon. Chewed. Swallowed. “I’ve gotten used to being here. I don’t think I’ve got what it takes to live out there anymore.”
“Of course you do!” I dropped to my knees and made intense eye contact with her as I slammed my fist against my chest. “I’ll make sure there’s a place for you out there again, I promise. I’ll find a way to make it work, and I won’t let anyone get in our way.”
I knew it wouldn’t be easy for Karen, returning to a society that had marked her as long deceased. However, I meant what I said, and I was fully confident that I could pull it off somehow. For Karen, I could do anything.
“So please, won’t you come with me?” I pleaded.
Karen finished her slice of watermelon and set it on the plate, then let out an exaggerated sigh, like a troublemaking kid who’d been caught red-handed. “…Okay, fiiine. You win, I guess.”
“Sweet! Then let’s get going!” I exclaimed, grabbing Karen by the hand and heading for the front door. Then I remembered something. “Oh, crap! The time!”
Oh God. I’d been so caught up in catching up with Karen that I’d wholly forgotten. I was about to rush into the living room to check the time…then quickly realized that none of the clocks here would properly reflect how much time had actually passed since I’d entered the tunnel. I had to check the wristwatch I’d strapped on at the start of this journey. I wasn’t wearing it anymore, so where was it? Maybe Karen had taken it off when she changed my clothes.
“Hey, Karen, you wouldn’t happen to know where my watch is, would you?”
“Oh, you mean this?” Karen reached into her pocket and pulled it out. In a rush of anxiety and relief, I snatched the watch from her grasp and checked the time. It read half past five, and I’d entered the tunnel at midnight. The last time I remembered checking my watch, the little hand had been pointing to the two—but I knew it had already done a full rotation by that point, so that implied that it had been not five and a half hours but seventeen and a half… Yet even that seemed a little odd.
“Hey, Karen…? How long was I asleep after I got here?”
“Oh, you were zonked out for a while. Like half a day, probably.”
I froze. If I’d slept for twelve hours, then that implied the little hand had made two full rotations and was working on its third, which meant…I’d been in the tunnel for going on thirty hours now. A cold sweat rolled down my forehead.
“W-we’ve gotta go, right now! I’ve been in here for way too long!”
I grabbed Karen by the hand and hurried out the front door. One step off the porch, and my foot sank into the sand. The house stood on the boundary between a grassy meadow and the beach. There were no roads or utility poles to be seen anywhere. The utter impossibility of maintaining a permanent residence in a place like this only drove home the fact that this world was an illusion. I quickly spotted the tiny shack from which I’d originally emerged. It wasn’t far at all from the house. We made our way across the beach until we stood before its old wooden door.
“Okay, Karen… You ready?”
“…Yeah.” She looked pensive, gripping the lower hem of her tank top as she stared anxiously at the ground.
“It’ll be okay. No need to be afraid. It’s a long way back, but I promise we’ll make it.”
This did little to visibly reassure her. Regardless, we didn’t have time to just stand around. The clock was ticking, second by second, hour by hour. Determined not to waste any more time, I reached out and slowly creaked open the door. Beyond it was the steep downhill slope I’d nearly killed myself climbing on the way to this place. Thankfully, the return trip would be easier on our stamina, though we’d still need to be careful not to trip and fall.
“All right, let’s do this.”
I took my first step through the door. As soon as I did, Karen wrapped her arms around my waist from behind. I turned my head to look over my shoulder, but I couldn’t see her face on account of it being buried into my backpack. All I knew was that I was standing on one side of the door, and she was still standing ankle-deep in the sand on the other.
“Karen? What’s the matter?”
“There’s someone out there who means the world to you, isn’t there?”
“Yeah, and I can’t keep her waiting any longer. That’s why we need to leave.”
“I’m so glad. You’re finally ready to move forward again.”
“…Karen?”
Her little hands squeezed tight on the fabric of my shirt. “Come on, Kaoru. You already know what I’m about to say, don’t you?”
I felt an uncomfortable palpitation in my heart, and my breaths grew fewer and further between. I furrowed my brow. “…No, Karen. I really don’t. Why don’t you spell it out for me?”
“Well…think about it like this. Clownfish can only live in the sea. If you tried to take one and put it in a river, it would only choke and die. They’re weak that way. All they can really do is hide in their little anemone friends and watch the bigger, stronger fish from afar. Like salmon, for example. They can live in the ocean or in fresh water. They can swim upstream, then back down again as many times as they want. Heck, they can even jump up waterfalls. And on top of all that, they’re really yummy to eat.”
“Well, yeah. You’ve got that right. I really don’t see how this has anything to do with our current situation, though.”
“It has everything to do with it. You’re like a salmon, Kaoru. But me? I’m a weak little clownfish, stuck here in my—”
“Don’t say that!” I shouted out. “You’re Karen! You’re a human being, not a clownfish or a salmon! You can go anywhere you want. So please, don’t say stuff like that… You’re killing me here…”
I’d spent so much time—in more ways than one—trying to make it here. I couldn’t possibly return by myself.
“It’s okay, Kaoru. I’ll always be with you. Whenever you need me, I’ll be right there by your side… So please.” Karen released her grip on my shirt. “Don’t worry about me. Go out there and live like you mean it. Just like you told her.”
She pushed me from behind—only gently, but it was enough to make me lose my balance and stumble forward into the tunnel.