Page 51 - KCMAGAZINE 20230717

Before the girl came, he’d been content few steps backward, but stopped there.
and happy with himself. And the trees and Normally wild animals ran off under
the flowers and the birds. He danced with the threat of rocks, but this girl seemed
Tom the butterflies and kicked rocks across the reluctant to go, driven by curiosity. She
m
To
stream. He ran across corn fields and slept looked at him up and down, and then to
in hollow logs. There was peace, and then his left and right, as though searching for
there was him. He and peace got along someone else.

pretty well.
"Were you talking to somebody?" She
It was a day like any other. The day the girl asked.
Written by Lim Le Herng came.
He frowned. "You didn't answer my
He was talking to Mr. Moustache and his question." She frowned back, looking
family in his favourite spot of the woods annoyed, which took him by surprise; he'd
when he heard the rustling of leaves, the thought his raspy voice would scare her
clumsy shuffling of feet through weeds. He away. "I'm Saida," she said. "Happy?"

straightened up, alarmed, and picked up a
rock the size of a palm with ragged edges. Saida Happy. What a weird name, he
It did not sound like anything he’d heard thought. She seemed harmless. He slowly
before. lowered his arm and put the rock back on
the ground.
And then he saw her. A creature that
looked just like him, except having more "So," the girl continued. "Who are you, and
and blonder hair, a slightly plumper build what are you doing here?" Before he could
– a stark contrast to his skinny body – a say anything, she held up her hands as
heavy-looking lump on her back and though she knew exactly what he was going
something… something he'd seen a long to say. "Okay, okay, I'll go first. I came to

time ago but had long forgotten the name stay at my grandma's for the summer, and
of… a cap! She had a yellow cap on her this morning I'd decided to have a little
head. And a backpack. The lump on her adventure out here in the woods. Since,
back was a backpack. you know, you hardly get these anymore in
the city-" she waved her hands at the trees
Human? He thought. He was terrified. "-so… yeah! Here I am." Then she beamed
Humans were the destroyers of peace. Was at him expectantly. He almost beamed
she here to take away his? back, but stopped himself short; he didn't
even know this girl. Why should he tell

"Whoa! Calm down." The girl held up her anything? Plus, she'd interrupted his
her hands, which looked pale against the little chat with the flowers! So he scowled
backdrop of green. "Don't hit me with that instead, and without a word, turned away
thing!" and knelt down before the bunch of yellow
tulips, hoping she would take it as a sign to
"Wh- who're you?" He rasped. How long leave.
has it been since the last time he spoke?
He couldn't remember. The girl took a He had no luck; a shadow loomed over Mr.

47 Illustration by Tan Zi Yi 48