Chapter Ten: Young Dreaming:

“What do you want to do when you grow up?” Kelly asked Atticus one day. The boy took a minute to think about it.

“I don’t know,” he said. Kelly smiled and patted him on the head.

“I think you will do great no matter what you choose to do,” she said. He kind of smiled.

“Do you really think so?” he asked.

“Yes,” she said. “I believe in you.” Atticus felt warm in his chest. Come to think of it, he hadn’t thought much about his future. He was just a kid. Kids never had worries about that sort of thing. They live a care-free life. Their parents worried about things like the future. But, kids eventually have to grow up.

“I wanted to be an actress when I was a kid,” Kelly said.

“You did?” Atticus asked.

“Yeah,” she said. “I loved movies. My grandma would show me films from the silver age. All of that glam and glitter. I wanted to be like Marylin Monroe.” She smiled and shook her head.

“It didn’t turn out that way,” Kelly said.

“Why?” Atticus asked.

“Life,” she said. “Life happened.”

“Why did that happen?” he asked. Kelly shrugged her shoulders.

“It just does. You will learn,” she said. “But you will do fine.” Atticus rested his head on her shoulder. What did he want to do with his life? He never thought about it  until now. Kelly patted him on the head.

“Don’t worry,” she said. “You have plenty of time. You are still young after all.” Atticus smiled. Sometimes, Kelly didn’t make any sense.

“Are you still lonely?” he asked.

“Hm?” Kelly asked. “Nah. I’m not so lonely anymore.”

“Why not?” Atticus asked. Kelly pulled him into a big hug.

“I have you, Aoi, my coworkers, and Haru-san,” she said.

“I’m not so lonely anymore either,” the boy said.

“Oh?” Kelly asked. “Why is that?” He looked her in the eye.

“I have you, grandma, and Aoi-chan,” he said. Kelly smiled with pain in her heart. Let him be a child a little bit longer.