"Mom..."
The little mushroom-haired girl was like a lost little beast.
Her round, dark eyes, so distinctive of children, were wide open.
She unconsciously twisted her fingers.
"Anna."
The child's mom looked at her.
After a pause, she said, "What I mean is..."
"There's no such thing as a shadow."
"That was just your hallucination."
"Your imagination."
"It wasn't real."
"Do you understand?"
"The shadow was fake."
"You imagined it..."
The little mushroom-haired girl's pupils contracted sharply,
she...
seemed to understand a little.
But...
The little mushroom-haired girl shook her head.
"No..."
The little mushroom-haired girl found it unbelievable, absurd...
"How could that be..."
"The shadow was fake?"
"But, Mom..."
The little mushroom-haired girl opened her eyes wide. "I saw her!"
More than once.
Each time, she saw her more clearly...
"Mm."
The child's mom looked at her, her expression complicated. "You were the only one who saw it."
The little mushroom-haired girl froze.
Soon, she hurriedly tried to explain. "No, that's not true!"
"I wasn't the only one who saw it!"
How could she have been the only one who saw it?!
That made no sense...
"Who else?"
The child's mom looked at her and followed up on what she'd said.
"Who else saw the shadow?"
The little mushroom-haired girl froze again.
She... she didn't know...
The little mushroom-haired girl was so anxious that her eyes reddened.
"I, I didn't notice!"
The little mushroom-haired girl stammered, but... "S-someone must have seen it!"
"Your father and I didn't see it."
The child's mom fired one question after another at the little mushroom-haired girl. "What makes you think anyone else saw it?"
The little mushroom-haired girl was left speechless.
In her desperation, she made a sound like a little beast whimpering in