Tokyo Hearts: A Japanese Love Story (7 page)

‘I miss Australia and being able to walk to the beach on the weekends. My house was also a lot bigger over there.’

Takashi put his hand to his mouth and coughed before stubbing out the end of the cigarette. ‘But this house in Y
ga is nice, isn’t it?’ Takashi asked with his hand to his mouth.

‘What did you say?’ asked Katsuro.

‘Sorry, I have a tickle in my throat. Your home – it’s nice, isn’t it?’

‘Well, yes,’ said Katsuro. ‘It’s much smaller, but Mika’s happy because she missed Tokyo and now she doesn’t have as much to clean.’

‘You know I wanted to visit you in Australia, but I couldn’t afford the plane ticket. Will you be going back there?’ Takashi asked.

‘No, I don’t think so. I think that I’ll be posted in London within the next two years,’ Katsuro replied.

‘For how long?’ Takashi asked.

‘It will probably be a four-year stint, but I’d prefer to go back to Australia. Hey Takashi, why don’t you come to visit us next Saturday? We live about five minutes from Y
ga train station. Will you come for dinner?’

‘I can’t make it this Saturday because I have to go and visit my grandmother in Yokosuka, but are you free the following Saturday?’ Takashi asked.

‘Sure, that would be fine, Takashi.’

‘By the way, what’s Mika planning on making for dinner?’ asked Takashi. He knew Mika was an excellent cook and he always looked forward to her meals.

Katsuro laughed. ‘I don’t know yet. Does it matter?’

‘Of course not! I’ll be there about six p.m. if that suits you. Can you e-mail me the directions?’

‘Sure. See you then, Takashi.’

‘Bye, Katsuro,’ Takashi said to him.

He hadn’t seen Katsuro for a few years. He was the eldest son of his mother’s brother, and he was just as much a close friend as he was his cousin. When they were younger, he’d been someone that Takashi and his older brother had really respected. The time that Katsuro had spent with Takashi when his brother had passed away was so generous of him that it was something that would always be appreciated and never forgotten. Although Katsuro had been busy with his university exams at the time, he would often visit Takashi’s family in Yokosuka and sit with his parents or take him outside to play baseball or help Takashi to practise the art of Kendo. He’d always been a much better sportsman than Takashi, but he would often let him win at games just to cheer him up when Katsuro knew that he was having a difficult time.

Katsuro had met his wife Mika a couple of years after he’d started working at the trading company he’d joined after his graduation. She’d been a secretary there. According to Katsuro, they’d hit it off almost immediately, and three years ago they’d married. When Takashi had first met Mika, he thought that she was very demure and painfully shy, but as he got to know her better, they’d became more comfortable with each other and now he really enjoyed seeing her because she was extremely nice and often a lot of fun. Takashi was really looking forward to next week. He’d never had a bad meal at his cousin’s house and the food was always as good as their company.

Takashi’s phone beeped and vibrated in the palm of his hand. A smile crept onto his face when he saw that it was Haruka’s name that flashed up onto the screen. She must have called while he was on the phone to Katsuro. He checked to see if she’d left a voice message, but she hadn’t.

He dialled her number. He didn’t even hear the ring tone. Haruka must have been waiting for the call.

‘Moshi moshi,’ said Haruka on the other end of the phone. She sounded happy that he’d returned her call.

‘You just called me, Haruka?’ Takashi said to her, wiping his beaded forehead with the back of his left hand. The combination of Haruka’s voice and the heat and the humidity in his apartment were dramatically increasing his body temperature.

‘I just called to thank you for tonight.’

‘My pleasure,’ Takashi replied.

‘Did you have a good time?’ she asked.

Takashi’s smile broadened. ‘Definitely. Um … Haruka, what are you doing Sunday week?’

‘Nothing during the day. Some friends might be coming over on that Sunday night,’ she said.

Takashi was about to ask who they were, but he stopped himself. ‘Would you like to spend the day with me in Kamakura?’ he asked her.

‘Sounds good. By the way, I can’t meet you next Thursday. I just remembered that I have to work late,’ she said.

‘Not to worry – I’ll see you the following Sunday,’ Takashi said to her. ‘How about I meet you at Kamakura station at ten a.m.?’

‘Okay that sounds good,’ said Haruka. ‘Thanks again for this evening.’

Takashi was about to reply when the floor suddenly started shaking underneath him. The empty sushi container and chopsticks on the table in front of him fell onto the carpet. He dropped his mobile phone as he tried to stand up.

‘Are you there?’ cried out Haruka on the other end of the line.

He could hear Haruka calling out to him as he grabbed his phone as well as his keys and his jacket, ready for an emergency exit from his apartment.

‘Sorry, the room is shaking … it’s an earthquake – can you feel it?’ Takashi asked Haruka.

‘No, I can’t feel a thing,’ she replied.

‘Well, you are quite far away … wait a minute, it seems all right now … I think it has stopped,’ said Takashi.

‘Are you going to be okay?’ Haruka asked him.

‘I’ll be fine. I’d better go. I’ll call you in the next few days,’ Takashi replied.

‘Okay. I’m looking forward to hearing from you. Bye, Takashi,’ she said.

‘Bye, Haruka,’ Takashi replied. He put down the phone. It annoyed him that the recent earthquakes seemed like they were constantly interrupting any quality communication he was hoping to have with Haruka. There were no more tremors to follow and Haruka filled his thoughts as he cleaned up the container and chopsticks that had fallen onto the carpet. He had constantly kept in touch with her by phone for quite a few years. He’d been so concerned about her when her father was ill that he couldn’t help but call her on a regular basis.

This telephone tennis gave him the opportunity to try and lift her spirits, and before long, it also had a positive effect on him. Now, if they didn’t talk for up to three days, he really missed her and it felt like something was lacking in his life. This feeling would only subside if he spoke to her again. He decided it was going to be a long week waiting for the following weekend when he could spend more time with her, especially with the tedious visit to his grandmother in the next couple of days.

By companying with the wise, a man shall learn wisdom

It was over a week later, at four p.m. on Saturday, when Takashi disembarked from the train at Shibuya. From there, he changed platforms to take the T
ky
Den-en-toshi line to Y
ga. The rainy season was still upon them. It was very wet outside and the air was moist. There had only been a smattering of showers earlier that day, but now it was raining heavily.

Because the afternoon air was still incredibly humid, his linen shirt that was so crisp and clean only an hour earlier was now wet and sticking to his chest. He knew that the heat would continue like this for another couple of months before the cool autumn breezes descended on Tokyo.

Takashi took his seat on the train bound for Y
ga and checked his mobile phone for messages. His mother had sent him a text telling him how good it had been to see him the previous weekend and how she’d been impressed with his patience as he’d listened for over two hours to his grandmother’s various grumbles and grievances. Takashi sent her a message back to let her know that he was looking forward to seeing her and his father again soon. This was not untrue. Although Takashi liked the independence he had living in Kawasaki, it had been an easy and enjoyable life growing up in Yokosuka. His mother had always been strict, yet kind, and his father had always been very easy going – he was the joker in the house. When Takashi’s brother died and he and his mother had been completely distraught, it was his father who had carried them through this difficult time. His father had never allowed them to continue to carry the burden of his brother’s death, and his lighthearted manner had helped them to extinguish a lot of the pain.