A Mischievous Secret

By: Eva Luo

Sitting on the stones on the side of a stream, a young girl wearing a yukata plays with the water. She dips her toe in the rushing water. Oh! How refreshing! She slowly puts her feet in. Soon her ankles are in the water. Carelessly, the hem of the yukata drops into the water. The young girl decides that the stream is shallow enough to play in. The girl has already soaked the dress midway to her knees, so she doesn’t hesitate to jump into the water. She hops off the rocks, splashing. Her yukata is now soaked up to her knees. “ Yumi! Yumi!” a voice calls out. Yumi’s eyes widen. Oh no, she thinks. Mother will be angry at me for getting all wet! She quickly slips on her sandals and grabs her haori on the river rocks. Yumi rushes to wear the haori, trying to cover the soggy hem. She runs to greet her mother in the cottage. Mother is already busy preparing afternoon tea and dango rice dumplings. Mother sighs, saying, “ Yumi, what did you do now?” Yumi realizes the dripping yukata has created a puddle on the floor and her haori has become slightly dampened. “ Sorry, I-” “ Don’t tell me. Just hurry up and change. Your big brother will be coming home soon.” Mother smiles at Yumi, and gently pushes her to go change. Yumi puts on a fresh yukata that is pale green, and goes to help Mother make more sweets. They finish just in time.“ Yumi, Mother, I’m home!”her brother, Haru, calls out. On the way to their cottage, he has bought some taiyaki from the vendors in the busy marketplace. Spotting the puddles of water on the porch and in the house, he asks, “ Yumi, what happened?” Yumi just smiles a mysterious and mischievous smile, and says, “ Oh, nothing.”