Dad! Come on!
Dad!

　A girl with green hair and green clothes and a girl with gray hair and black clothes are pulling my hand. In the usual forest, I didn't resist them, but let them pull me along.

　Behind me, I heard several laughing voices.

"Don't pull so hard, you'll endanger your father.

　"If you pull too hard, your father will be in danger. For some reason, I thought, "Oh, it's the usual scene.

"All right, then.

　I pulled the hand being pulled in the opposite direction and held the two girls in my right and left hands, one by one.
　The two girls were squealing with excitement.

"Daddy, you're strong!
"Strong!
Ha-ha!

　I start running toward the river. It's a familiar road where I've gone fishing many times.
　Behind me, there were voices of dismay and laughter. The beginning of a fun holiday.

　We arrived at the riverbank and spread out a rug. The two girls helped, cackling with excitement. We spread out our baskets of lunch and water bottles of tea, and we were ready to go.
　I put on their straw hats, which I hadn't put on them since we were moving through the forest, but they needed them here on the riverbank where the sun was strong. They looked at each other and seemed to be happy about it.

I took the fishing rod and gave them the tools.

　I announced as I stood in front of the girls, fishing rod in hand. They both clapped their hands.

They both clapped their hands. "It's your father's handiwork, so don't worry about using it!
"Your father was so enthusiastic when he made it.

　Deanna chuckles at my words. I was so excited that it turned out to be the best one ever. Maybe we can catch Leviathan if he's here. I'm sure he's not in a stream this close to the lake.

"Ask Momma Saamya and Momma Liddy how to use it and what to do.
"Why?

　The green girl asks me with innocent eyes. A bead of sweat trickled down my face.

"Because your father is not a very good fisherman.

　Anne said with a chuckle. He was tying on a large hook with great dexterity, probably to catch a big fish.
　Hearing this, Helen nodded and continued. She had already attached the bait and was lightly swinging the rod.

Your father is not very good at hiding his desperation.
"Helen, from your mother's point of view, isn't most of the world bad at it?

　I said pointedly, but Mom's opinion didn't seem to change, and she just said, "Yes, yes.

　Each of us kept a reasonable distance from the other and dropped our fishing lines. Except for the one next to Samija and Liddy. Each of them has a daughter attached to them.

"Yes!
"Ooh, good, good, good.

　The green girl's rod seems to have successfully carried the hook to the target area. Samija is good at teaching.

"Gently.
"Yes, yes, gently. The fish will escape.

　Meanwhile, the black girl and Liddy are quietly going about their business. In contrast to Samija.
　Eventually, they both shouted with joy.

"We caught it, Saamya!
"Oh, that's a good one!
"Heh heh.

　The green girl fidgeted as she was patted on the head by Samija.

Liddy, mom, you caught it!
"Yes. You're good.
"Yes.

　The black girl was also happy to be praised by Riddhi.
　After a while, I began to hear the sound of water splashing everywhere, but my rod did not move a muscle.

　I started fishing first thing in the morning. A dozen or so river fish were swimming in a fish tank made by damming up a part of the river. In terms of numbers, it was a big catch.
　Yes, just in terms of numbers. At least enough to fill the bellies of the whole family, and some of them are roasting in the flames of the fire to add color to our lunch.
　But that doesn't include the fish I caught. Up to this point, I hadn't caught a single fish.
　Well, with so many fish in such a small area, it's possible that there won't be enough for me to catch. Yeah, yeah, that must be it.

"Papa.
Dad.

　As I ate the grilled fish offered by my two daughters, I tried to escape from reality.
　I continued fishing in the afternoon. Liddy and Helen went out to pick fruits and wildflowers nearby. The two girls seemed to be bored and were playing chase with Samija and Helen.


　I'm not sure what to make of it, but I'm sure it's a good idea. For some reason, I now see it as a normal event, as if it's normal for those two.
　With such a sense of discomfort, I swung the rod for what seemed like an eternity.

　I lay down on the rug to rest for a while. The sky is clear blue, and white clouds cross the sky sparsely, as if to remind me of my existence.
　The wind gently caresses my body. It was enough to cool my head, which had been burning from not catching any fish.
　As I calmed down, I began to feel sleepy. As I was falling asleep.

"Aaah! Daddy's taking a nap!
"Me too!
"Me too!

　My two daughters clung to my sides. They soon began to fall asleep faster than I did, and I fell into a daze along with them.
　Finally, I thought I heard the laughter of a girl, not my family, but a girl I had heard somewhere else.

　When I woke up, I found myself in my room. The riverbank I was supposed to be on is nowhere to be found.

Oh, shit.

　I looked out the window with my waking mind and saw that it was just before the sun rose. It was just before the sun came up, just as the sky was dawning, which was my usual time to wake up.
　I had a very strange dream. I drank a little bit more than usual last night, maybe it was because of that.
　After getting dressed, I drank a glass of water and went outside where my daughters were waiting for me.