Hanami stood before the mirror, smoothed her beige blouse and took in a deep breath. A strand of hair popped up from the side of her head- stubborn bed hair- which was promptly tucked behind her ear.
"It's not your first day. You'll be fine,"she said to herself and despite the heaviness in the bottom of her stomach, dragged herself to the bed. There, her trusted bag waited. She lifted it and put the straps around her shoulder. The sky outside was pale but the clouds were yet to gather. Sun peeked from the space between two high rise buildings in the distance, warming the air.
It was close to seven when Hanami stepped out of her room. Arata had returned from his walk and sat on the couch, watching the morning news.
"I'm leaving."she said, drawing closer. Distracted by the stock market values flashing on the screen, the man only nodded. When she turned however, he dropped a reluctant question, "When will you be back?"
"By eight."
"Need a lift?"
"No, I'll be fine. Thank you."She gave him a nod and slipping her feet into her sandals near the entrance, stepped out of the apartment.
It was the usual rush at the railway station. Standing behind the white lines, heads craned towards the signboards awaiting the arrival of the train. Hanami too was one of the many in the crowd and she felt that she belonged right there. The train arrived. People rushed, dragging her along. Once in, she held onto the overhead bars and waited for her stop. Through the small windows at the door, Hanami gazed at the scenery brushing past into a blur. The sky retained its grayishness.
Pacing through the familiar hushed hallways of St.Maria high school, Hanami felt the buzz of anxiety in her head quieten down. Her steps lost uncertainty and gained their firm determined gait. Students lingering in the corridors gave her a nod of greeting, some smiled whispering among themselves. Her feet stopped before the forbidding door of teacher's room. She slid it open and stepped inside to find her colleagues preparing notes for lectures, some chatting over a cup of canteen tea and others dealing with exam papers. A familiar scene. One of them raised her head and noticing her,flashed her a bright smile."Look, who's here."
"Welcome back!"Yukino spun on her chair and stood up. As she sashayed closer long black hair swayed,spilling down her shoulders. "So, how are you?"Yukino smiled,eyeing her with curiosity. Her dark black eyes twinkled and reminded Hanami of two deep wells. The small glimmer of light was the opening, which often remained hidden. She took a seat in her spot beside Yukino's.
"It's fine."she smiled, moved by the warm welcome. "But really, everything happened in a rush so--"
"And that's why you couldn't invite us!"An elderly professor from the other side of the desk snickered."No gifts, nothing!"
"Well she didn't get any either you know,Mr.Nakamura."Yukino laughed, looking at the grinning man. The rest of the questions soon followed- who the man was, what did he do for a living and whether she thought it was too soon. Hanami, although embarrassed and unwilling,answered them one by one-Arata Miyama. Chairman at Izanami corp-no. And yes,she did think it was too soon.
It took her a while to get back into the rhythm. Her lectures were slow paced, thanks to the titter of students in the class. She felt their gazes on her back, which made her shoulders stiffen. A boisterous girl turned the whispers into laughter when she asked Hanami about her absence. Similar answers were relayed to their questions. By the end of the day she felt exhaustion take over her. It was the pleasant kind though-tinted with the satisfaction of resuming her work and of stepping back into familiar surroundings.
"I didn't think you'd actually go through with it."Yukino mused as they paced out of the school building. The sun was sinking low,leaving it's bright orange afterglow. Their shadow stretched on the ground. Yukino's shadow was longer than Hanami's.
"Neither did I but look where we are now."
Yukino shrugged. "Life never goes in a straight line. Plans are meant to go awry."
They parted at a street corner. Yukino waved and trudged away,her trenchcoat flapping in the wind. Hanami traced her steps to the station.
It started raining midway. She ducked underneath the eaves of a cafe, rummaging her bag for a small fold-able umbrella.
"Hana!" She started. Hanami lifted her eyes to look at a man, who had stepped through the door.
"Takao!"she breathed,"What are you doing here?"
"Here for business but heck, I didn't expect to find you here."he grinned, "Come in, let's have a cup of coffee." When she hesitated, Takao took her by the hand and pulled her into the café.
"Where have you been Hanami?"Takao asked as he glanced out of the misty glass pane. Sheets of rain moved from left to right without a pause. She looked at the brow twitching on his forehead. The smile of recognition was gone. Hanami reached for a tissue from the holder and set to picking at the edges.
"Hmm?"
"Right here. In Tokyo."
"And now?"
"Still here."she smiled, attempting to lighten the heaviness that had crept in with his questioning.
"Your mother told me."he said, turning to look at her. His dark eyes reflected the light from the floor lamp. "How rash can you be?"
She sighed."Not you as well, Takao. Please. I've had enough from everyone."
The waitress arrived, looking as gloomy as the weather outside. They gave their orders and she skulked away. Hanami stared at her hands, unwilling to look at her friend anymore.
"You never told me anything. That hurt, seriously."he leaned back in his chair.
She remained silent.
"There's one thing I'm happy about though."
Takao tapped the table.
"About what?"
He continued, "Remember, I'd say that you will be the one getting hitched first? Now, you owe me a candy."
She shook her head, smiling at the man. "You're still as calculating as ever. Just a bit taller, hm."
"You're still the same though."Takao smiled back. She noticed his eyes soften.
The girl in her little raincoat who cried when the boys took away her shoe, was gone. And deep down she felt that the boy who'd helped her retrieve the shoe at the cost of a swollen cheek, was gone too. Both swept by the rain.
Two hours later, he drove her to the station. By then they'd caught up with the other's life as if they hadn't parted five years ago.
Mr.Miyama was already home when she reached.
"Bad roads?"he asked from his spot on the couch. She nodded and hurried to her room.
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