Chapter 6: Market Seller

Anna's Point of View

I quickly run to check what is happening at the street, then I saw a big fire happening in several houses. I got nervous and hoped that our house won't burn. Our house may be ugly but it's 99x better than having no shelter. So, I walked to our house with almost no visibility because of the smokes. What is this catastrophe? What happened to our street? I didn't see where I was going, then all of a sudden, I was grabbed by someone.

"Chieko. You should have took a different path so you wouldn't breathe smoke!"

It was my mom, worried about me. I looked at her face, there was no tears in her eyes. She seems okay, so maybe our house was not caught on fire like any of these burning houses.

"Come, come. Let's get out of this mess and go home"

Said my mom, and grabbed my hands to go home. So our house didn't got burned down? Then what a relief! I thought I'm going to be miserable again.

We walked through the smokes and to the house which was a few meters away from the fire, but atleast people are helping each other to put down the fire.

"Chieko, I need you to find a job to provide us some earnings"

My mom began talking again. What? Where can I find a job in this century? What jobs are available in this time? I always wanted to be a marketing manager but it surely is not yet invented.

"You know what? I want you to take care of my market instead, while I go look for other jobs"

She added. My mom has a job? I didn't know that, but is dad the one that has no job though?

"Right after you dress up, go to the market and do the job for me, okay?"

Sad my mom. I nodded quickly, even though I don't know where the market is. I have to find Ami to ask her where the market is. I sprinted to my room and closed the door to dress up my ugly clothes, though I got to wear it. I also realized that while I experience my life as Chieko, I need to lower down my pride and just accept of what I have.

After dressing up, I went down the first floor of the house and went to mom who is sitting on a chair, while reading a newspaper. My mom explained some important notes in the market like the prices and stuffs. My ears were on the highest level of listening to the details of what my mom is saying.

"And lastly, the prices of tomatoes are ¥0.60 per kilogram. Did you understand all of it? No worries since there is a price list I've written inside the stand"

My mom explained with a forced smile. I nodded and nodded from everything she is saying. After that, I walked outside the house to the streets to go to Ami's house. I need her in guiding me sell in my mom's market or I might put myself in trouble if I did something wrong or illegal.

-•-

It was a right thing to bring Ami into the market. She is a great friend indeed and fun to be with. We took a carriage, an old vehicle, and drove us to the market.

As we arrived in the market, it has many people buying and selling products such as vegetables and fruits but it was still very spacious and clean.

"I think your mom sells right here"

We walked around and Ami stopped and pointed to a closed stand. I thought for a second if this is going to fit in myself, Anna's standards.

Both of us opened the stand and organized and cleaned the products we're selling. So this is where we're getting money from? But why am I given only ¥2? This is so unfair.

"Wait, I'm just going to go to the nearest restroom here"

Ami said, I said okay as she quicjly proceeded to go find a restroom. I wonder why she isn't talking about the time travelling machine and the fact that she doesn't know my real name. She also said she is also a time traveller together with her dad, did they also get transported to someone's body and it's a long time when they last travelled from the present that they could possibly forgot their real name? Hmm. I wonder.

"Oh, look! it's crybaby"

All of a sudden, someone shouted and pointed towards me. It was Kaito's friends, Shina, Nobi and Savier. I didn't look at them and pretended that I'm bust doing stuffs.

"What are you doing here in the junk? Are you forced to sell here because you're poor?"

Nobi laughed as they three are trying to make fun of me. I'm sorry but I need to prove these three that I'm not worthy of being bullied. I'm not that type of girl who just kneeled down to these people like they are superior. I need to scare them out a little bit.

"What are you doing here? Are you poor enough that you can't afford high-quality products in the supermarket?"

I let out my anger to them one by one.

"What? What is supe-wma-ket? What other language did you learn?"

Shina shouted a bit and laughed at me. I forgot that supermarkets probably didn't exist here in the 19th Century. I'm so dumb. Because of this, I became more hot-headed. And just before I spoke, Shina grabbed my shirt, pulling me to her face.

"Listen here, you mouse. You know, I liked Kaito because of how cool he is, and I can accept that he can fall in love with some other girl, but you? How can she like you? I don't like him being your beau! So please just step out of this problem so we can eventually become good friends with each other"

Shina scared me. What is this? Some kind of jealousy just because I went to the theatre with Kaito and got to hang out with him? I stood in silence and was mental blocked, as the three walked away from the stand.

How dare she belittled me just because my personality is quiet and probably boring? That won't make her look cooler.

A few minutes of overthinking has passed by and Ami finally arrived again. She waved back to me happily while I only smiled at her. After that, it was just a normal day of greeting and selling products to the customers. We had so much time together that it feels like it was already a hang out between the two of us.

-•-

As the sun sets on the horizon, I walked alone at the street of our house, tired and hungry because I haven't eaten yet since the morning. It's hard living like this and I can finally feel like it. Ami and I already part ways a few minutes ago. When I finally got to our house, I saw two unknown people talking to my mom.

I hid behing a couple of plants and tried to spy what they are talking. I didn't hear them clearly but all I know is that I'm worried about mom. She seems sad as if she was begging to those people. What is happening? I noticed my mom grabbed something from her pocket of her duster dress. She took some money from her pocket and gave it to those people and afterwards, the two unknown people left, as my mom went inside the house.

I waited for a few minutes before coming in the house because if not, my mom could have think that I probably saw her with those two. Just as if the sky have become dark, I went to the door and knocked gently. It was opened by my mom who was crying.

"Mom! What happened?"

I panicked and hugged her. I don't want to see any moms struggling alone. She didn't answer, instead she sat down to a chair and ordered me to sit with her as well.

"Chieko, I-I'm going to sell you. We don't have enough money and the market? I borrowed money from a married couple in order to put up a market, but I didn't get to repay them because just like I said, we don't have nough money"

My mom explained. She's going to sell me? My body? My soul? Her daughter? What is this nonsense? She's selling a human! My sad tears then turned into anger once she explained.

"Mom, you aren't worth to have a daughter! You selling me is like you're giving away your own soul! Heh, unless you don't love me? You don't love me, mom, do you?"

I let out my emotions as I stood up from this chair and walked around with anger filled my heart, trying to kick out my mother outside my heart. This is not a family that I expected in the 19th Century. I expected that families here are less toxic than in the present!

Then, my mind urged me to do one last thing. It is to get out of this so-called home. I quickly went upstairs to get my things up inside my school bag, all the possible objects that I could fit in my bag.

"Chieko, where are you going? Don't go! Don't leave me! Don't leave your mother here!"

My mom begged for me. We are both filled with tears, crying and sobbing. But no, I got carried with my feelings. I carried my bag filled with clothes and stuffs and went downstairs. My mom followed me, trying to grab my hands, trying to hold me back from leaving the house, and because I got carried away, I used my force to make mom let go of my arm. I pushed her to the floor, as I said one last line to her.

"I'm sorry, mom. I love you but I don't love this life. I'm leaving instead of being sold by my mother"

I ran outside the house, tears falling down to my cheeks, and wiping it. I still heard my mom's voice screaming:

"You'll regret this!"

"Don't ever come back!"

It was hurtful to experience this situation. But even if I don't own this life, I can still feel the love of Chieko's mom and dad, it's depressing that I didn't get to say goodbye to my dad.

I ran away as far away as I can, hoping to see a kind-hearted person to adopt me. It's night, so I can't see my path clearly. I went through some plants and bushes and I don't know where I am going. All I have is pain and heartaches that gives me strength to keep going. I need to bare with all of these.

All of a sudden, I stepped the wrong way as I fell off a cliff in the middle of the night. I closed my eyes hoping not to die young and poor in this century.