On the way back from seeing the parade, I asked Piyo about her future dreams.
Elana was hogging the bed, snoring.
“Honestly, well, I made her uncomfortable for days. I’ll rest here for a few days.”
“Ah, um. If so, there’s something I want to do.”
It was Nina who spoke up this time. Was it new cosmetics, or perhaps clothes?
“I wanted to see this.”
“A movie, that’s nice. What kind of movie is it?”
“The dog one.”
The dog one? Was such a thing being shown? But a movie about animals seems rather unusual.
“Nina, do you like dogs?”
“W-well, I just thought it looked interesting! If you’re not going, I’ll go alone.”
“I’m going. I like movies too.”
And so, after Piyo, I ended up going to the movies with Nina. She dressed up to blend in with the surroundings. Perhaps it was because she let down her hair, which she usually tied up, that she looked so cute.
“Wow, you look cute when you let your hair down.”
“What do you mean, I don’t look cute usually?”
“No, no, I meant your vibe changed.”
She was still Nina on the inside. But walking together like this felt like a date. I wonder if she would get angry if I said that.
As we were walking to the movie theater, I noticed a crowd gathering by the roadside. Someone seemed to be giving a speech. Behind them was written the words “Symbiotic Society Party”.
“We will create a society where men and women can live together comfortably. Please cast your vote for me, Kroa Orangebeak.”
Wow, so there are elections in this world too. Well, that’s only natural.
“What are they doing?”
Nina, perhaps wondering about the crowd, walked towards the speech. At the street speech, the candidate and her supporters were calling out to passersby.
“For a society where women can work easily, for men to take parental leave.”
Man, everyone has it tough, no matter the world. Well, I should head to the movie, I thought, and started walking, but for some reason, Nina didn’t move.
“Nina, aren’t you going?”
She was listening intently to the speech with a troubled expression.
“Um, is it hard for women to work?”
“Eh, no, I don’t think so. But still, if you have children, it’s probably better to take time off work, right?”
Nina frowned, lost in thought. This was probably the first time she had seen such a sight.
“I don’t want children if it means losing my freedom. If you’re going to say that, then don’t have them. It’s like children are a nuisance. You push the responsibility of who takes care of them onto each other. In the end, you just hand them over to someone, right?”
That’s true, but, hmm, this is a difficult topic. Just then, the candidate stopped her speech and approached us. Oh no, did I offend her? We should leave this place quickly. But Nina glared at the candidate and wouldn’t budge.
“Hello, thank you for listening to my speech.”
“No, not really. I just happened to hear it. Well then, I have somewhere to be.”
As Nina turned her back and tried to leave, the candidate stopped her.
“Wait. Please listen to me a little longer. I am Kroa Orangebeak, a candidate for the Symbiotic Society Party.”
“I know.”
“Both my parents worked from when I was little. Just as you said, I was always sent to daycare. I didn’t get to see my parents until late at night. But I was very happy.”
Nina looked skeptical as Kroa began to talk about her past. *So what?* her face seemed to say.
“There were times I wished we could spend more time together because the time was so short. Even so, seeing my parents work was my pride. Every person’s family is different, and there’s no single right way.”
“But my mission is to help as many people as possible live comfortable lives. And besides, there’s no rule that children must be raised solely by their family. People never grow alone. Isn’t it wonderful to grow by interacting with many others and sharing the joy of growth?”
Applause erupted from the surrounding crowd for her speech. Hearing this, Nina became pensive again. On the other hand, Kroa seemed to be waiting for Nina’s reaction more than the cheers from the crowd. I had assumed she was trying to gain support by skillfully responding to Nina’s words, but it seemed she was genuinely speaking to Nina alone.
“Yes, that’s true. Your way of thinking has a point. Well, do your best.”
With that, Nina started walking towards the movie theater. She must have had something on her mind after hearing Kroa’s words.
