Naiko: A "What if" short story

            A/N: A Historical Account of Hiroshima. This is fictional and a "what if" alternative storyline to what happened if...well it didn't really happen. Thanks.           

            Naiko worked diligently in the kitchen, hoping to cook up the best okayu, her most popular dish of rice porridge. To her dismay, the kitchen was emptied of any rice and she immediately slipped on her shoes, feeling slightly dizzy. Naiko grabbed a hold of the frame to the front door and inhaled deeply. Her pregnancy hadn’t been going well, but the doctor claimed all to be well. Naiko straightened up and finally slid outside the door.

            The bright sun shone down from the soft blue sky. Birds fluttered and chirped tree to tree. Cherry blossoms wavered effortlessly in the air, causing Naiko to smile as petal rested neatly on the tip of her nose. She nodded at her curious neighboring friends, while they stared at her growing belly. Naiko had been shunned from her family, for no woman dared be with child and not have a husband. She shrugged off their scowled expressions and pressed forward, humming all the way down the street. Gazing around, Naiko noticed everyone seemed to be tensed. No doubt, it had to be the Americans and the Japanese military attacking Pearl Harbor.

            Naiko sighed, feeling flushed and distraught that her country had been involved in such tyranny. Each night she had become used to the nightly sirens that echoed from outside her window. Solely for practice, incase Hiroshima were to be attacked critically by the American military. Today though, something was off. Little Kaya kicked vigorously inside Naiko’s belly, causing her to jump.

            “What is wrong, little girl? Taira, calm sweetheart,” she said, rubbing at her perfectly round belly. Naiko believed her baby to be a girl, a wish that her secret dead lover once hoped to be true. No one knew of him, he was ten years younger than she, and a soldier. His life was lost the day the Japanese attacked America. Naiko traced a heart on the surface of her belly, the delicacy of a fingertip made the baby kick again. She laughed and carried on, brushing past arrogant people.

            The daylight siren seemed to grow louder as Naiko approached the marketplace. Everyone around her scurried around and was pointing up at the sky. Naiko glanced upward, forcing her hand over her eyes to shield the sun. All she could see were small black dots far away over the ocean. Her heart beat rapidly.

            An elderly man tugged at her arm. “They’re coming! Amerikan!” he yelled with fear. Naiko flinched away from his touch and bumped into a couple behind her, both had their hands over their mouths in distraught. She looked back at the elderly man, tears formulated in his dark brown eyes.

            “What? No. No.” Naiko exhaled. Immediately her hand grazed the top of her belly as she stared up into the sky, watching the black dots grow larger in the distance. People scattered frantically, knocking fruits and vegetables to the ground. A few feet away a crowd of people bent forward, listening carefully to the small radio that blasted over the siren.

            Naiko stepped closer to listen. Kougeki Kaishi! Kougeki Kaishi! The cry through the speaker was echoing in the marketplace. The Americans were going to attack. They were going to seek revenge on the Japanese.

            They were headed for Hiroshima.

            Everyone in the marketplace screamed and ran in all different directions. Naiko, however, stood her ground, was making her peace. Over the noise she heard a couple of men speaking quickly about American B29 bombers heading toward them. That it would destroy them all. Naiko glanced their way, only to find they had run off in two different directions, wives in tow. Then, her feet finally moved. She ran as fast as her belly would allow her. All the way home, tears wetted her cheeks, and she cried out prayers for mercy upon them all.

            The B29 bombers hummed nearby, grazing through the sky. Naiko could no longer run and fell to her knees, scraping off skin. Blood trickled down her bare legs, and all she could do was press her forehead against the ground. Dirt matted to her wet cheeks. Naiko stayed crouched, listening to the bombers hum from up above, waiting for her demise. Everything flashed before her eyes. The thought of a future with her child, a smiling, bubbly infant settled cozily in her arms. There were cherry blossoms covering the ground, leaving nothing untouched. Finally, her lovers laugh, his soothing words forever in her mind and heart.

            Ai shi teru. I love you.

            As quick as the Americans arrived, they were gone. Naiko raised her head from the ground and gazed around. Neighbors emerged from their homes, clutched in their family’s arms. She looked up into the sky and no longer heard or saw the bombers. Naiko cried out in happiness and stood on her feet again. People swarmed around one another, pulling each other into hugs. To Naiko’s surprise they hugged her and eased her worries. They accepted her once again.

            That night Naiko rocked in her chair and ate rice porridge. She listened to the radio and wondered why the Americans decided to withdraw their attack after what the Japanese had done to them. Maybe vengeance isn’t the answer.

            Just maybe peace isn’t too far of a stretch, after all.