Safe Guard and the Little Witch
"I have to get out!"
Waking up with bleary eyes, I stumbled out of bed and spotted Shine watching television.
"Shine. Where's Amy?"
"She went out for a bit to take care of something."
Letting out a long yawn, I climbed down from the bed, rubbed my eyes, and sat next to Shine. She was watching the news again.
"Is this fun?"
"Yeah."
I rested my chin in my hands at her response and stared at the screen for a long while. The static buzzing in my head seemed to grow louder. What little interest I had quickly evaporated. Watching the endless stream of boring reports, I slid off the chair. Having absolutely nothing to do was becoming a real problem. Drawing, playing with dolls—it was all so tedious. What did I usually do to pass the time? I wished we had a computer in the room. I figured it would be a good idea to ask Amy once she got back.
Unable to bear the boredom, I dragged over my sketchbook and spent some time doodling. It was a long while later when Amy finally returned.
"Amy."
"Yes, dear?"
"I want to play on a computer in our room."
"Oh, really?"
"Yes."
I closed my sketchbook as I spoke to Amy. She seemed to ponder it for a moment, then pulled out her phone and tapped the screen.
"Wait just a moment."
Just as she said, a short while later, several men carrying massive boxes arrived at our room. They bowed politely to Amy and began installing the computer according to her instructions. They cleared out the corner where our dolls had been piled up and set down a large desk. Atop it, they assembled a massive computer. I stared at it, my eyes sparkling with excitement.
"I don't think that looks very fun," Shine said, clearly not caring for the computer. The dolls that used to occupy the desk's spot were relocated near the bed.
"One hour a day."
"Pardon?"
"The amount of time you can use it. Exactly one hour."
I looked up at Amy in disbelief. One hour? Wasn't that way too short? But she looked like she had absolutely no intention of taking back her words. Amy sat down in front of the newly installed computer and began downloading a suspicious-looking program. I watched the screen with anxious eyes. A massive shield-shaped icon filled the display. Once Amy entered an ID and password, the familiar desktop screen finally appeared.
"There you go, Jeff."
Sitting in the seat Amy vacated, I gripped the mouse with a trembling hand. A familiar sensation. Moving my small hand, I checked the program Amy had just installed. Safe Guard. What on earth was this? I slowly turned my head to look up at Amy. She gave me a gentle, slow smile.
"One hour a day."
Hoping against hope, I tried to access some of the websites I used to frequent.
"Ah..."
A lamenting sigh escaped my slightly parted lips. Access Denied. The homepage of the game I used to love playing was completely blocked. I moved the mouse quickly, trying to connect to other sites, but the result was exactly the same. The only site I could actually access was YouTube. And even then, the videos I could watch were heavily restricted.
Amy watched my despair with a satisfied look before turning back to watch the news with Shine. My hand gripping the mouse began to tremble with frustration. In the end, there was nothing I could do. I spent my precious hour searching for and watching clips of The Little Witch's Great Adventure.
Just as Amy had warned, the moment the hour was up, a giant shield icon locked the computer screen.
"Jeff, your hour is up."
"Amy... there's something wrong with this."
I pointed at the computer, my face puckering up. Because of that weird program, I couldn't play any games. And once the hour passed, the computer locked me out entirely. It was so unfair. I felt like I was going to cry. As I stomped my feet in frustration and stared at Amy, she spoke.
"If you study hard, I'll let you use it more."
That damn studying was always the catch. I turned my head and glared at the thick workbook sitting on the table. My breathing grew heavy and ragged. Touching my flushed face, I let out a small sigh and slumped. Flopping down like melted cheese, I let out a weak groan. I think I've been acting a bit strange lately.
"Amy. I think I've been a bit weird lately."
"Hmm?"
"I keep getting angry for no reason, and I feel like I'm about to cry all the time."
I placed a hand on my forehead and confessed my inner thoughts. The suffocating feeling in my chest wouldn't go away. If only I could play a fun game right now, I felt like it would all clear up. I slightly raised my arm, peeking at Amy's reaction.
"I see. Our dear Jeff. What could be the problem?"
"This... I just want to play games..."
"Games?"
"Yes... but I can't. It's blocked so I can't get in."
The more I thought about it, the madder I got. I stood up from my seat and began stomping on the chair.
"Unblock it for me!"
Amy's eyes widened in surprise at my sudden outburst. My emotions were bouncing all over the place. I buried my face in my hands and sank to the floor. Letting out a deep sigh, my face crumpled once more.
"I'm sorry, Amy..."
I weakly climbed down from the chair. My head was buzzing. Throwing a tantrum like a child, how un-adult of me. Leaving the chair behind, I threw myself onto a plush teddy bear. I sank deep into the pile of stuffed animals.
"Jeff."
Shine, who had been watching the news, was now staring at me. I shifted my gaze toward her. Through my tear-filled eyes, Shine's figure appeared blurry. Avoiding her gaze, I buried myself deeper into the plushies. My mind was a complete mess. As I whimpered to myself, unable to calm my racing thoughts, Shine walked over and reached out a hand to me.
"It's okay, Jeff."
She smiled softly, caressing my cheek. Instantly, my cluttered mind cleared. My headache vanished, and even the anxiety tightly coiled in my chest dissipated in a flash. I slumped, completely relaxed. Looking down at my limp form, Shine spoke to Amy.
"Amy. I think one hour is too short."
"Is it...?"
"Yeah. Jeff wants to use it more."
"Hmm..."
Amy seemed to contemplate for a moment, then pulled a small booklet from her pocket. After flipping through it a few times, she let out a soft sigh and looked at me.
"Alright, Jeff. Two hours a day, then. But you absolutely must study."
I nodded slowly at her words. I couldn't hide my grin, though. I raised a hand to cover my mouth to hide the silly smile slipping out, but it seemed Amy had already caught it.
"Are you really that happy?"
"Yes..."
"I don't like Jeff using the computer," Shine said as she sat down beside me. The plush belly of the teddy bear sank under her weight. She pressed down on the stuffed animal, scooting closer to me. "But since Jeff likes it, it's okay."
"Mmh... thank you," I nodded in response. Satisfied with my reaction, Shine smiled warmly and pulled me into an embrace. Her warm, soft arms wrapped tightly around me. I reached out and hugged her back. Our beating hearts seemed to sync up, bringing a deep sense of peace to my mind.
"Jeff, aren't you going to say thank you to me too?" Amy looked at me, playing hurt. I hurriedly opened my mouth.
"Thank you, Amy."
In the end, I got to use the computer for one more hour that day.
My study sessions with Amy grew more difficult by the day. I was always on the verge of tears while solving the problems. Questions that seemed so easy when I was writing down the answers always turned out to be wrong once they were graded. Shine didn't get perfect scores either, but seeing her always ahead of me made me feel anxious. After finishing her own work, Shine would come over and help me solve mine. Strangely enough, whenever she was with me, every single problem became incredibly easy to solve.
"Jeff, aren't you going to solve the problems?"
"I'm going to do them with Shine."
I dropped my pen the moment I received the worksheet. After all, if I tried to solve them alone, I was bound to get them all wrong anyway. Watching me, Amy let out a small sigh.
"If you only rely on others' help, you won't be able to do anything on your own."
"But I can't solve them on my own right now anyway."
Shine solved her problems at a rapid pace. I stared blankly, watching her movements. Having finished all of her own work, she leaned in close and whispered softly in my ear.
You can do it, Jeff. It's an easy problem. I'm right here with you.
I moved my hand in a daze. The problems practically solved themselves. It took less than a minute per question. I was breezing through them at a speed incomparable to before. Having finished the entire worksheet, I set my pen down with a satisfied expression.
"Are you already done?" Amy, who had been playing on her phone, picked up my completed workbook. "You've gotten quite fast."
"I helped her."
"Good job, Shine. You must always help Jeff whenever she's struggling."
"Yeah. I'll always help Jeff."
Shine turned around and grabbed my hand. Sitting there blankly, I gasped in surprise.
"Jeff, you'll help me too if I'm struggling, right?"
"Huh...?"
"You'll help me, right?"
"Of course..."
I nodded. She always helped me whenever I was having a hard time. No matter how difficult the task, as long as I was with Shine, I could overcome it without a hitch. If Shine hadn't helped me, there was no way I could have solved those problems.
Since today's studying was done, the rest of the day was free time. I immediately went over and sat at the computer desk. It was a computer that only I used, yet a strange, unfamiliar Notepad file was sitting on the desktop. Feeling puzzled, I clicked on it.
Inside was a short, written phrase.
The exclamation marks at the end looked incredibly intense. What was this? I turned my head to look at Amy and Shine.
"Amy. Did you happen to use the computer?"
"No?"
"What about Shine?"
"I didn't use it either."
I turned back and stroked my chin. Then did I write this Notepad entry? But I don't remember doing it. Brushing it off as nothing important, I deleted the file. My allotted time was extremely limited.
I opened YouTube and immediately searched for a video to watch. Pulling my hat—which I had taken off for studying—back down over my head, I let my mind drift into the colorful video. At this very moment, I wasn't Jeff; I was Lucy the Witch, soaring through the sky.
A newly uploaded video got me even more excited. With a pounding heart, I examined the video details closely.
The bold letters flashed intensely on the screen. My breath hitched. I had to go see it right now. Fidgeting in my seat, I stood up.
I have to get out of here. I have to get out!