Green Eyes of the Suburb

S1E9

The man in the car didn't continue driving. He locked the glance towards Tama's eyes while Tama was walking to the other side of the road, making the kid uncomfortable.

"Am I seeing something?" He freaked out. "It is something like..."

Tama quickly made an excuse before the man continued to speak. "I am wearing contact lenses."

"Pretty unusual for the contacts to have built-in glow-in-the-dark features," the man commented.

Tama didn't bother to reply, he doesn't want to engage more in the conversation. The boy acted like he didn’t know the myth at all, like most of the youth in the suburb. Thus, the man continued to drive his car.

What was that about? Tama wondered. So someone can see my eyes? Is that bad news or not?

All the judgement would be made depending on the appearance of the stigma, wherever the inhabitants believe it or not. The last two generations don't seem to believe it, so he is safe. If anything, it would only be an outlier fashion style. 

When Tama arrived home, he got motivated to check the sign of green eyes on himself in the mirror, especially after some stranger pointed that out.

It faded.

“Hm…” He touched his chin. “Should I make sure of it? I am curious.” 

Tama twirled his pointed fingers, just to make sure. 

But unlike his expectation, the sky on the window went pink, and he saw… the snake again. The snake that shouted at him last time, whose skin is dark yellow colored. 

Tama freaked out. He was actually doing the third spin when he wanted two, what a mistake. “I am doing it wrong! Bye!”

“Wait! Don’t go! Don’t go! I want to talk about something!” the snake shouted back. 

Tama's willingness to go back to the human world was postponed.

The snake continued: "I'm not interested in eating, because it’s uneatable. Are you alone at this time?”

Alone?

How the heck did the snake know that he was feeling a bit lonely this time post high school? Tama saw the presence of the snake as someone like the Owl, an unapproachable creature.

“Sorry I scared you before, because I was too surprised. You’re the only human I’ve spotted who’s aware.”

“Ya? What do you want? Don’t you just want to talk because you’re alone?” Tama was projecting himself when he said that. 

“Yeah. I can’t go anywhere outside this house. I’m alone!”

Suddenly, Tama felt slight empathy.

“Why?”

“I was so isolated in this area that I don't know who I should talk to… but finally I can talk to you, another stranger.”

“Well as a fellow stranger, can you answer me a few questions? What is this place exactly?” Tama went very straightforward. “I was discovering stuff and ended up here unmistakably, and there’s not much information among human peers about it.”

 “This is an interdimensional place. Another universe. But it’s not visible to the human world,” They explained further. “It’s inaccessible to creatures like you. How did you even obtain it?”

 “That’s why you’re telling me I don’t belong here? Well, I don’t, anyway.”

 “To be honest, my knowledge is also fairly limited to the human world.”

Tama sniffed his nose. “So you are no different than me. I don’t even know why this is happening.”

“Well, I just… heard this area is different socially from where I came from. Humans typically can’t access it, and so are the majority of us. I have actually come across something unique habit this place has…”

“Different socially? Where did you come from?”

“Definitely not from here.”

Tama then remembered the green eyes culture of the place he always grew up to and lived. Well, it was the same; other places didn’t have it.

“Any human typically can’t come across a different dimension. Not sure if your place is the same.”

Tama remembered the mysticism and myths, but every place had it. He was confused by the snake’s statement, and scanned what it possibly meant. 

Snake continued. “It is said that some who have ‘privileges’are given to humans as a kind of help, a cultural thing.”

Tama was confused. But suddenly he remembered how he was saved by a talking owl.

“Do you have any unfortunate events or something?” Snake wondered. 

“I got in an accident that made me experience near death stuff. Wait… aren’t you already aware of that?”

“I can’t listen to human conversation or know what they are doing.”

“Oh… I thought that was the mechanism here,” Tama said. “Because I found animals that could hear and talk like you did. “

“Nope, not everyone has the privilege to do that. Majority don’t.”

“Ah, so that's what it is…” the voice tone Tama used had a slight of dissapointment. He wanted to know more, but it seemed to be little, because neither of them have knowledge of it.

“Do you have a name? I want to call you as someone,” Tama intuitively asked. “We’ll probably talk to each other frequently by now. I will be here again in the future.”

The snake was impressed by Tama’s objectivity and persuasion.

Snake agreed. “Call me as Snake, whatever you call it. Our names depend on what we look like.”

“Sweet.” 

Snake looked at Tama’s eyes sharply after that, for a few seconds. “I think you need to return soon.”

“Ah right, I am exhausted as well after what I did all day.”

Tama didn’t understand fully yet what Snake meant, and he was unable to process since he was extremely exhausted. But he left with a strange mix of curiosity and caution, ready to face whatever awaited next.

Tama went back to the by twirled his finger into three spins. He then looked at his eyes in the mirror as he wanted to check with a smile.

It did visibly sparked.