Kimi no Na Wa Afterstory

6: Taki

Welcome back everyone :)
-------------------------

     My mouth went dry. Well, drier than it already was after Mr. Tanaka practically dropped the Itomori Memorial news right onto our laps. Any trace of the calm and collected version of me this morning went down the drain after two surprises that could make a run for top surprises ever in my life.

     I wasn't sure if I wanted to laugh or cry. But then again, I've been feeling like that a lot lately. I'd be more concerned about it if it weren't for the fact that I knew exactly what was causing both my suffering and joy.

     Mitsuha stood still in front of me, hiding the fact that my presence had completely thrown her off as hers did to me. With the same clear smile she showed me weeks ago at the cafe, she bowed. "Hello, everyone. I am honored to be here to work with this company. On behalf of my hometown I extend our deepest gratitude for this project. Truly, all proceeds will go towards disaster recovery because we are still in the slow process of mending—mending families, destroyed houses, and the semblance of normal life."

     As her thin smile envelopes the silent room, Mr. Tanaka smartly found himself a seat so Mitsuha could take over. I could sense the great difficulty that she had in talking about Itomori, but I marveled at her smooth ease as she covered all the parts Mr. Tanaka had not mentioned before. Her voice never betrayed the grief I almost certainly knew she felt. I was going through the same.

It must have been even worse for her. My throat tightened up at this new thought.

     "Eight years ago, the disaster left me with a broken house and broken relationships. Nothing can describe the screams I heard around town that night. Some of my friends were equally shocked and hurt as me, others...weren't even lucky enough to see the next day." A pause followed, her eyes desperately searching the room for an emotional connection.

     It worked. Her speech made everyone a little more alert, sit up a tad straighter because it stole their attention so marvelously.  Nobody seemed to exhale audibly, for fear that they would miss a word of the enchantment.

     "I can't take back the lives that have been lost. I wish I can, but I can't. The most sincere way I can honor those who regretfully lost their lives in the disaster is to create a memorial site for them. For us, the living, as well. A terrible fantasy-come-true story like ours should not be forgotten. Those memories from eight years ago are just as fresh as the moment it happened. Tokyo has optimal resources and publicity for us to use this to our advantage. I strongly believe that we can draw the attention of the public to remind them of the terrible accident that they've mostly forgotten about by now. The wellbeing of our town will partly be entrusted to all of you from today on. I look forward to working with each and every individual in here. Thank you for your time today."

Mitsuha ended her presentation with an abrupt bow. There was deafening silence—I wasn't the only one who felt awed, shocked. Then I remembered that she was still bowing, so I shot up and started clapping. Enough eyes followed me that made me feel my ears redden out of self consciousness. But my actions were enough to remind everyone about proper etiquette, and soon other clapping alleviated my embarrassing burst of action. I quickly sat back down, praying that Mitsuha hadn't seen the spontaneous scene.

I curiously looked up at her. She hadn't seen it; her eyes immediately followed Mr. Tanaka as she came out of her bow to shake hands with him. For a brief moment, I felt jarring disappointment. Then I felt a nudge on my arm.

"Hey, hey...she's kind of cute isn't she? We should sign up together to work with her." Matsume whispered none too softly. I snapped my attention to his face. He was sincerely looking at me, almost as if implying something.