Tokyo Hearts: A Japanese Love Story (21 page)

‘Sorry, Happy New Year,’ said Takashi.

‘What’s the matter? Has something terrible happened?’ she said.

‘I went to the Izu peninsula with Masaya and Kenji and a few others and Haruka was there. She practically ignored me and spent all her time with a guy called Jun who is probably the most annoying person I’ve ever met.’

‘Haruka is a nice girl,’ said his mother in a soothing voice. ‘I don’t think she’d be interested in spending much time with this person if he really is so horrible.’

‘Well she looked pretty interested in him to me,’ replied Takashi. He went on to explain to her how they were nearly all killed in an accident. His mother listened without interruption until he paused to catch his breath.

‘My dear Takashi,’ his mother said to him calmly and softly. ‘I’m sure that Yuriko’s brother Taroo didn’t mean to endanger your lives. Please try and look at it from another perspective. He did go to a lot of trouble to drive you all the way to Izu. It is a long drive.’

‘So what?’ said Takashi. ‘He shouldn’t drive if he can’t keep his eyes on the road. Can I speak to Father?’ he asked.

‘He’s sleeping,’ she replied.

‘I should sleep, too. I’ll speak to you later,’ said Takashi.

‘Just keep working hard at your studies, Takashi. That should be your priority,’ his mother said to him.

‘Of course,’ Takashi replied.

He put the phone down and thought about what his mother had said. She did have a point. He decided he needed a better perspective on life, just as she’d suggested.

Takashi needed to get to sleep, but his mind was restless. He wanted to call Haruka, but he didn’t know if she was interested in talking to him. He decided to send her a text message: “Do you still want to meet in Omotesando next Thursday?”

She sent him back a message immediately: “The café is probably closed for New Year. I can meet you there in two weeks.”

“Terrific. I’ll be there at 6:30 p.m.,” Takashi replied. He felt a lot better, and he went to sleep for a very long time.

The good will is in all

It was eight thirty p.m. on Wednesday, the second week in January. Haruka had been wandering through Omotesando that evening after work, looking through the shops, wishing she didn’t need to be so careful with her money now. As she passed by the Café hors et dans, she imagined Takashi sitting there waiting for her the next day, and she wished that it were Thursday. Her heart was still torn between Takashi and Jun. She wanted to hold onto Takashi for her sake, yet she knew that being with Jun would make her parents happy and provide financial stability for her in the future.

When she was with Jun, she would often think about Takashi. She’d remember how he could make her laugh and how much she looked forward to his phone calls – even talking about the weather with Takashi would make her smile. She sometimes had to cancel her dates with him on a Thursday, but it upset her when she did. Despite this, it wasn’t always perfect. Occasionally when she met with Takashi at the café in Omotesando, he’d talk about the cost of this or that and it was then she’d realise that if they had money problems in the future, this might pull them apart. On the train ride home, Haruka kept asking herself why love had to be so difficult.

A couple of hours later, as soon as Haruka opened the front door, she knew that something was going on. There was a commotion inside. Her father rushed past quickly holding three pairs of socks. Her mother called out to her in an agitated voice from the bedroom.

‘Where’ve you been, Haruka? Well, don’t bother telling me. You’ve probably been out with that Takashi fellow. You’re wasting your time with him,’ she said. ‘I need to have a quick talk with you. Please come in and sit down so we can have a chat.’

‘I don’t meet Takashi on Wednesdays,’ Haruka said to her. ‘I was window shopping after work.’ She entered her parents’ bedroom and sat down on the edge of the bed, a little confused.

‘We’ve been waiting for quite some time for Jun to propose, haven’t we, Haruka?’ her mother said to her.

‘Yes, but I’m quite sure that he’s waiting until I move to Kyoto,’ Haruka replied defensively. She wasn’t expecting her mother to broach this subject as soon as she walked in the door.

‘Because I’ve spoken to your father and we think that you and Jun are floundering, so we’ve decided that we should go to Kyoto and meet with his parents again to start arranging wedding plans with him and his family.’

‘If you think that’s best,’ Haruka replied, knowing that this would make her mother happy.

‘Yes, we do, Haruka. You’d better hurry up and pack, my dear, because I have a surprise for you – we’re going to Kyoto in the morning and you must get ready and join us. Now go and get a move on.’

Haruka wanted more than anything to make her parents happy. The thought of a big, expensive wedding, living in a lovely house and buying everything that her heart desired, which would all be possible if she married Jun, now made perfect sense to her. Haruka’s mother gave her a knowing smile as she turned to continue with her packing, but it suddenly occurred to Haruka that she might not be able to go at all.

‘But Mother, I have to work tomorrow, so I can’t go with you,’ she said despondently.

‘I’ve spoken to your work. They were very nice about it, and they’ve given you the time off.’

‘You’ve spoken to my work?’ Haruka asked her mother, grinning from one ear to the other. Normally Haruka wouldn’t be happy about her mother speaking to her boss without talking to her first, but that evening, she secretly thanked her mother with all her heart.

‘Yes, dear,’ she replied. ‘I spoke to your work a few hours ago and they said that would be fine. They even suggested you call in to see Mrs Aoki at the English conversation school to finalise any details about your new management position.’

‘That’s terrific,’ said Haruka. ‘I really want to ask if they’ve organised my accommodation.’

‘I spoke to Yuriko’s mother this morning, and she said she needs to go to Kyoto to visit a sick friend, and I thought to myself that this was the perfect opportunity for us to meet up with her sister, Jun’s mother, don’t you think?’

‘Yes, of course, Mother,’ Haruka said with a laugh and gave her mother a fun salute as she skipped out of the room to start her own packing.

Haruka was in her room, half packed, trying to decide which of her silk scarves to take with her when it dawned on her that she should contact Takashi because she wouldn’t be able to meet him in Tokyo the following evening. Haruka tried to call him several times, but she couldn’t get through. Panicking, she called Yuriko’s home, hoping that her friend could offer her some advice on what to do, but Yuriko’s phone went to voicemail as well. Haruka decided that the best thing to do would be to go and see her next door. She’d have plenty of time to finish her packing later.

When Haruka rang the doorbell at Yuriko’s house, her mother, Mrs Makimoto, opened their front door.

‘Hello Haruka,’ she said. ‘Are you coming along with your parents to Kyoto?’

Haruka wasn’t sure if Mrs Makimoto was willing to discuss with her their plans to meet up with Jun and his family to talk about the wedding, so she didn’t mention anything to her about this.

‘I certainly am,’ Haruka replied. ‘I’m sorry it’s late, but I really need to see Yuriko. Is she in her room?’

‘I’m not sure,’ Mrs Makimoto said. ‘Go up and take a look.’ She walked away with no intention of continuing the conversation. Haruka was used to her frosty demeanour, so it didn’t bother her in the slightest.

At the top of the stairs, Haruka crossed the landing and knocked on Yuriko’s door. She opened it and gave her a generous smile as she beckoned Haruka into her room. Haruka was so pleased to see that Yuriko’s bedroom had been totally transformed. She looked around in astonishment. The pink walls and fluffy toys had been replaced by a tasteful, sophisticated and glamorous boudoir, and the exercise bike was nowhere to be seen.

A padded satin cream headboard offset a luxurious off-white bed cover with organza pleats and a pearl trim. Haruka was also pleased to see a novel by Yukio Mishima instead of Yuriko’s diet magazines on top of one of her new ivory bedside tables that had lovely butterfly drop handles. The candy-striped sofa seat had also disappeared and in its place was an 18th century style lady’s chair. On the floor was freshly laid thick pile carpet in a soft mocha colour. In the corner was a cream dressing table with a Bordeaux mirror, accompanied by a matching upholstered stool with stylish tapered feet. The walls had been covered in beige wallpaper that was embossed with an elegant, pearly wisteria pattern.

‘What do you think?’ said Yuriko as she extended her right arm outwards to display the room.

‘Unbelievable!’ Haruka replied. She was so pleased to see that Yuriko had also taken heed of her makeup advice and kept it light and natural looking. Her skin had greatly improved, and she looked very pretty. Her high cheekbones were now emphasized and her eyes sparkled without heavy eye shadow.

‘The room is completely transformed – it looks so beautiful. It’s so elegant and grown up,’ said Haruka as she felt the organza bedding and admired her new dressing table.

‘I know,’ replied Yuriko. ‘I spoke to my father a couple of weeks ago and he had the decorators in on Monday. I’m so happy, I don’t want to leave the room!’

‘I wouldn’t either, if I had a bedroom like this,’ Haruka said wriggling her toes in the thick pile of the carpet.

‘And I have some exciting news to share with you,’ said Yuriko, sinking into the lovely new lady’s chair.

‘Tell me,’ Haruka said.

‘I went for an interview yesterday and I start a new part-time job next week.’

‘How exciting,’ said Haruka, really pleased that Yuriko’s life was going so well for her lately and she had more to think about than just dieting and shopping.

‘You know I did a three-month interior design course at the end of last year,’ Yuriko said to Haruka.

‘Yes,’ Haruka replied. ‘You thought that course was really interesting, didn’t you?’

‘Yes, I did,’ said Yuriko. ‘Well, I saw a job advertised a couple of weeks ago. They needed someone to work with an interior designer in Shinagawa two days a week, and I went to the interview last Friday. It went really well, and I found out today that I’ll be starting in two weeks.’

‘That’s great news, I’m really happy for you,’ Haruka said to her, delighted she’d finally found a job she wanted to do.

‘So I thought I’d better go shopping and buy myself a whole lot of stylish winter clothes for my new job.’ Yuriko walked over to her built-in wardrobes and slid back the door. She pulled out the most luxurious pair of black tailored trousers, a short, fitted silver grey cashmere jacket and several silk blouses. Haruka’s eyes opened wide with admiration. The price tags were still on each garment, but she could not see one brand name slashed across the front. They were really beautiful subtle pieces of the finest quality.

‘You’re a lucky girl, Yuriko,’ she said. ‘They’re all really beautiful– but what’s that big bag at the bottom of your wardrobe?’

‘That’s my surprise for you,’ Yuriko replied. ‘In that bag are the clothes I’ve never worn because they’re a size too big. I thought you might like them – they’re all brand new.’

Haruka sensed an opportunity. She’d cut back her shopping budget to zero and now, thanks to Yuriko, she’d have a new set of clothes and she wouldn’t have to dent her credit card. Haruka opened up the bag and rummaged through the garments that were all folded neatly ready for her inspection. She was delighted – six out of the eight pieces would be perfect. She’d just gained two Ralph Lauren striped tops, a long cream belted coat from Junko Shimada, two pairs of trousers from Comme des Garçons and a skirt from Issey Miyake’s Pleats Please collection.

Haruka shook her head in amazement. ‘Are you sure you don’t want these, Yuriko?’

Yuriko was so happy to see that Haruka was so grateful. ‘No, definitely not. You’re my best friend. I want you to have them.’

‘Thanks, Yuriko, you’re the best,’ said Haruka. ‘By the way, are you coming to Kyoto? Are you packed?’ she asked, suddenly remembering to ask Yuriko about the trip the next day. She was so astonished by the bedroom transformation, the news about the interior design job and the lovely new clothes she’d acquired that she’d almost forgotten the purpose of her visit.

‘No, I’m not going. I have to look after my younger brother. He’s only twelve, you know.’

‘Oh, that’s a pity, but….’ Haruka started to say.

‘What’s the matter?’ Yuriko asked her.

‘Well, I have a problem and now that you’re not going to Kyoto, maybe you could help me with a solution.’

‘What’s up?’ she asked Haruka.

‘I wanted to meet Takashi tomorrow in Omotesando, but I can’t now. I called him to cancel our plans, but his phone is switched off and I can’t get through to him. I think it would be rude to just leave another message, because I’ve had to cancel our dates quite a bit lately.’

‘Where were you planning to meet?’ asked Yuriko.

‘At the usual place. Do you know the Café hors et dans in Omotesando, near the subway station?’

‘Yes, I’ve been there several times before. It’s above Morgan de toi, isn’t it?’

‘Yes, very good, Yuriko.’

‘What time were you planning to meet?’

‘Six thirty p.m.,’ Haruka replied.

‘No problem – I’ve been meaning to go to the Prada shop just near there for some time. I’ll meet up with him and let him know that you’re in Kyoto.’

‘What about your little brother? You can’t leave him,’ said Haruka.

‘I’ll take him to cram school. He can study there for a few hours.’

‘Thanks. You’re an angel, Yuriko.’

‘My pleasure,’ she replied.

‘Yuriko….’

‘Yes?’ she said.

‘Just one thing – don’t mention to Takashi that I’m meeting Jun in Kyoto,’ Haruka said to her.

‘He’ll probably be able to work that one out, Haruka.’

‘Oh yes …well, try not to bring him up in the conversation,’ Haruka said.