The Test
"Jeff. Eat this too."
"Mmh..."
We were closer now than we had ever been. Strangely—no, so obviously that anyone could see it—Shine had begun clinging to me much more often. Both physically and mentally. I accepted the snack she held out to me. Shine was feeding me, and it was getting a bit overwhelming. Rain, seemingly unfazed by this display, didn't even glance our way as she happily munched on her own snacks. Watching her chug milk from a giant mug all in one go was somehow incredibly irritating.
"Here, Jeff, have another."
She thrust another snack in front of my face. My mouth was already full, but under Shine's sparkling gaze, I chewed quickly and swallowed what I had.
"Are you thirsty? Want some milk?"
As I hesitated, chewing slowly after mindlessly accepting treat after treat, Shine slid her own milk toward me. The milk sloshed near the brim of the large mug.
"Thanks..."
The endless stream of snacks had completely dried out my mouth. Unable to bear the dry, powdery crumbs coating my tongue, I gulped down every last drop of the milk Shine offered.
"Jeff, you've got some on your mouth."
The moment I set the mug down, Shine reached out. The tissue in her hand gently wiped my lips. Wait, wasn't this usually Amy's job? Confused, I eventually turned my head away.
"No more?"
"Yeah... I'm full."
It wasn't a lie; my stomach actually felt bloated. The bizarre atmosphere seemed to be giving me indigestion. I hopped down from my chair and headed toward where Baeksi was sitting.
"Jeff, now that you're done eating, you need to brush your teeth."
Amy's voice drifted over from behind me. Mid-stride, I flinched and quickly hid behind Baeksi's massive back.
"Jeff~"
Baeksi was huge, surely big enough to hide me completely. With that hope, I curled myself into a tight ball, using the giant teddy bear as a shield. Brushing my teeth is such a chore. Can't I just do it once before bed? With that lazy thought, I ran my tongue over my teeth. The lingering taste of sweet snacks and milk was still strong. I smacked my lips, trying to swallow away any trace of food to convince myself I didn't need to brush.
"Jeff."
As I was smacking my lips, Shine suddenly appeared and reached right behind Baeksi's back. She grabbed my arm. My body was dragged out all too easily; it seemed Shine had absolutely no intention of helping me hide.
"I don't want to brush..."
"If you don't, you'll get cavities."
I flattened my body against the floor as hard as I could, spreading my arms and legs wide. My stomach, slightly bloated from all the snacks, pressed flat against the ground.
"Come on."
But Shine wasn't about to let me off. Completely ignoring my silent protest against going to the bathroom, she grabbed my ankles and dragged me across the floor. Sliiiide, sliiiide. I drifted further and further away from Baeksi as I skidded across the floorboards. Cruelly, the giant teddy bear did nothing but watch me recede. Thud. Baeksi, who had been leaning precariously, finally toppled over backward.
Dragged all the way to the bathroom, I was guided right in front of the sink. Shine stepped onto the small stool and picked up my toothbrush. Before I could even wonder what she was doing, she squeezed a generous dollop of toothpaste onto it and thrust it toward my mouth.
"Say ah."
"Ah..."
Without thinking, I opened my mouth just as she ordered. Immediately, the toothbrush slid inside. Countless soft bristles began gently sweeping over my gums and between my teeth. The sharp, refreshing scent of toothpaste spread through my mouth, leaving a sweet strawberry aftertaste that made my tongue twitch.
"Shine...?"
I certainly hadn't expected her to brush my teeth for me, so I instinctively pulled back. As I retreated, the toothbrush slipped out of my mouth, leaving a thin, sticky trail of saliva stretching from my lips.
"What is it?"
She looked as though she found absolutely nothing strange about this situation. Was I the weird one here?
"I... I can do it myself."
I mumbled around the toothpaste. Hearing this, Shine's eyebrows twitched, and she nodded as if realizing something.
"Right. Jeff, you can do it on your own now, can't you?"
"Yeah. I can do it alone."
Now? Shine's choice of words bothered me slightly, but I brushed it off. When I held out my hand, she placed the toothbrush in my palm.
"Make sure you get every corner."
Shine sounded exactly like Amy. I nodded.
As Shine and I stood side-by-side brushing our teeth, Rain, who had finished devouring her snacks, was dragged into the bathroom by Amy.
"Rain, you need to brush your teeth too."
"No!"
Cheep, cheep. The little yellow chick flailed her arms.
"You're not coming out until you do."
Ignoring Rain's protests, Amy pushed her into the bathroom. Rain stumbled forward, then spun around in a panic, but the small safety gate installed at the bathroom entrance was too high for her to climb over.
"No fair!"
Amy leaned against the gate, smiling. "Hurry up and brush."
"Then... then you brush too, Amy!"
"I didn't eat any snacks."
At Amy's response, Rain trembled with sheer indignation.
Spitting out the mouthful of foam I had worked up, I held out a toothbrush to Rain. It was her personal toothbrush, adorned with a little yellow chick on the end.
"Here."
Still trembling, Rain took the toothbrush from my hand and let out a small sigh. "I shouldn't have given in to temptation."
I nodded in agreement. The snacks Amy had prepared were incredibly delicious. That was the problem. Even knowing we would have to brush our teeth afterward, the tasty treats right in front of us weren't a temptation we could resist. Watching us, Amy burst into giggles.
"You know we have to go train once you're done brushing, right?"
Holding a cup of water to rinse my mouth, I tilted my head at Amy's words. Training? It was already well past lunchtime. This was completely different from the usual time we went to see Victor. Besides, we had already met Victor this morning... Wait. Did we meet Victor this morning?
Harboring that doubt, I spat out the water.
"Pwah..."
My mouth felt wonderfully clean and refreshed. Leaning in to check the mirror, my white teeth sparkled back at me. I beamed at my reflection. The bright smile of a young girl—a healthy smile always clears the mind.
"All done!"
I rinsed my toothbrush and ran over to Amy.
"Are you sure you got them all?"
"Yes!"
Amy, who was waiting at the entrance, grinned and reached out to me. I raised both arms toward her. Slipping her hands under my armpits, she lifted me effortlessly and set me down on the other side of the safety gate.
"Jeff is first."
"I'm first!"
While Shine and Rain were still inside, Amy secretly slipped me a small candy. I clutched it in my hand and quickly scanned the room. Fortunately, no one seemed to have noticed. With practiced speed, I shoved the candy into my pocket.
"Amy, by training, you mean we're going to see Victor, right?"
Having successfully hidden the candy, I voiced the question that had been bothering me.
Amy tilted her head. "Do you want to see Victor? Your training with him ended a week ago."
"Huh?"
I searched my memory at her words. Faint, blurry afterimages flickered in my mind, with Victor's face among them. But no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't recall the details. As I groaned, struggling to piece my memories together, Shine finished brushing and ran to the gate.
"Amy! Let me out too!"
Just like I had, Shine stood before the gate with her arms wide open. She hopped up and down on her small feet, practically begging to be let out. Amy scooped Shine up and set her down right next to me.
"Jeff."
"Yeah...?"
"Let's go change."
Before I could even reply, Shine grabbed my arm and dragged me away. Letting out a startled "Whoa!", I allowed myself to be pulled along. Shine shed her dinosaur pajamas and changed into a black tracksuit. I followed suit, changing into an identical tracksuit.
"We're going to train...?"
"Yep."
I stared blankly in Amy's direction. Rain, who had also finished brushing, was carried out of the bathroom in Amy's arms.
"Where...?"
"The training grounds."
The training grounds. Where was that? It didn't sound like the gym where we usually trained our abilities with Victor. Before I could ponder further, Amy, now fully prepared, led Shine, Rain, and me out of the room.
The once-empty hallway was now bustling with people. It seemed the holiday season was over.
"Looks like the holidays are over," I remarked.
"Right? Everyone returned last week," Amy replied.
I fell silent. If everyone had returned last week, it meant people should have been wandering the hallways since then. But... but the last hallway in my memory was completely deserted, a quiet and empty space.
There was a gap in my memory. What had I been doing all this time?
I turned my gaze to Shine, who was walking beside me. Her face was glowing with joy, a soft smile permanently etched on her lips.
Hiding my hands behind my back, I channeled my power. A strange sensation, like a tiny spark of static electricity, tingled at the tips of my fingers.
Don't use your powers in front of Shine.
A small voice echoed in my head. Heeding the warning, I dispersed the energy pooling at my fingertips.
Slowly, I began to slacken my pace. Once a gap opened up between me and Shine, I tried channeling my power once more.
Cracklet—
A tiny spark flared at my fingertips. I clenched my hand into a tight fist. The spark caught at my fingertips was sucked into my palm and vanished.
Right now, there was absolutely no issue with using my powers.
"Jeff."
"Yeah?"
"Come here."
Perhaps noticing that I had fallen behind, Shine turned around and held out her hand. It was a small hand, and she waved her arm as if urging me to take it. I reached out and clasped her hand. Our small hands locked together, creating a cozy warmth.
With a gentle tug, I was pulled forward to walk right beside her again. And she didn't let go of my hand. Not until we finally reached the place they called the training grounds.