Hmm, nothing really to say for this chapter other than I hope everyone likes it. Oh and SSLE, I apologize if I was following the book a little too closely. Hopefully this will answer your question ;D and thanks to everyone for the reviews!
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I am hoping that Sayuri has received my call.
It is cruel, I suppose, that I have assumed the disguise of my greatest friend. But of course this is the only way that she would ever agree to meet anyone. After our meeting outside the teahouse weeks ago, I do not believe she would willingly meet with me again. I trust that it was relayed specifically that the Chairman requested her presence and not Nobu. I had called Mameha rather than Mrs. Nitta; one could never be sure enough.
Leaning against a bridge, I cannot suppress the anxious feeling bubbling in my stomach. What will she think? Will she turn and run from me? No, surely not, Sayuri is a smart girl and would never make a fool of herself. That job is saved for Pumpkin...I am not sure how long I have been here, for I have not worn my watch. Time has become an irritant, a nuisance to me. Deadlines and meetings- my life is full of them! I have no need for a watch in my spare time.
I finally spot her, twisting and craning her head about so hard I am sure it will fall off. Searching for our dear friend, I assume. Unfortunately for her, the two will not be meeting each other any time soon…
"Sayuri!" a couple men glance at me strangely when I call for her so rudely. Or are they looking at her?
She pauses; even this is graceful, the way her fingers splay and her neck tilts slightly to one side. But I am dwelling on irrelevant facts now. The fact she is even walking towards me and not running the other direction is astonishing. I release my grip on the edge of the bridge I am standing on and face her completely.
"Nobu-san!" she greets; her voice portrays happiness, but I doubt she is truly joyous by my presence. "I was looking for the Chairman, but it appears he is not here today! Has he taken ill?" And sent you in replacement, you ugly lizard!
"I see you are wearing the comb I gave you. It is lovely, yet you wear it in the middle of winter."
"Nobu-san, you are ever the pessimist!" Sayuri laughs nervously. "It is a gift I revere, how could I not wear it? After all, a flower in winter reminds us that we are nearing the spring time."
"Walk with me." I say gruffly. She falls into step beside me, nodding every now and then at those she recognizes.
"It has been long since I last saw Nobu-san. Poor Takazuru has not even had the benefit to be in your presence! Where have you disappeared to, the mountains? Even your friend the Chairman does not know!"
I snort. "The teahouses are not the place for me any longer. I am afraid I am not an imaginative man, in case you have not noticed in all the time you have known me." And yet this has never stopped me from visiting in the past. I am both a bad liar and a bad storyteller. Sayuri does not respond to this, however. "My work has become more...important than entertainment."
"We have all missed your presence." She murmurs. I have no response to this, for I am unaware if this is mere flattery or truth and I dare not ask, so she begins rambling about some story or another. I have no care for her words; rather I watch my feet on the ground, her feet sliding gracefully beneath her kimono. Hearing her voice is enough for me. I called her here for a reason- I am not a man without purpose. Yet now my thoughts are completely lost, and I am unsure of what I am supposed to tell this woman.
Never have I been so unsure of myself!
"And would you believe, Nobu-san, the poor girl was running through the street chasing after the animal! Imagine what the onlookers thought, a dog trying to wear a kimono!" she laughs. I purse my lips.
"I am sure old Mrs. Tagawa was not pleased." It is the only response I may even formulate, having not heard the rest of the story.
"Oh, of course not. But you cannot make a dog pay to repair a kimono, can you?" she teases. I give a barking laugh and shove my hand further into my pocket. I am not sure where we are headed, for I did not come with any clear route in my head either; we have come to the cherry blossom trees, not yet beginning their bloom.
"Nobu-san, we must return to this very spot when the blossoms arrive. I have heard of how lovely the scenery is in this area for viewing. I am sure the Chairman-" Sayuri is being disgustingly forward with me. That she dare make such a suggestion infuriates me; she is clung to one subject, like an insolent school-girl.
"Really?" I sneer. "So that you may make dog-eyes at him, I suppose, while I pretend to gape at flowers? What kind of man do you find me to be, Sayuri?" I've caught her completely off-guard. "You really should expect this from me by now, silly girl. Or has Mameha never prepared you for such serious conversation?"
"Nobu-san, please, you are attracting attention!" she whispers, and she is quite right- my voice has risen and a couple of children are staring at me; it most certainly is not because of the scars.
"What kind of a man do you find me?"
"Nobu-san, please, you are so very dear to me. Why are you so angry? Have I-"
"Don't be stupid." I hiss. "Chairman this, Chairman that, do you really think I have not noticed?" Sayuri says nothing and drops her eyes to the ground. "I may be ugly, Sayuri, and I may have a heart made out of stone, but make no mistake. I see the looks you give him; do you know how much it pains me?"
She turns her head. "Nobu-san, I-"
"There is no excuse!" I fume. "All I have done for you!" I take off my hat and throw it on the snowy earth. "Sometimes Sayuri, I wonder why I bother with you geisha."
"Perhaps, Nobu-san…" Sayuri sucks in her cheek, thinking.
"Perhaps what?" I am all but screaming at her now, and my hand twitches with the image of a slap across her face. Her slowness is angering me and I kick the hat away from us violently, making her start. The children shriek and chase after it- to them, this is all a game. Life is but a game. A damned game.
"Forgive me." She says softly, pressing something into my hand before turning away and wandering back to her okiya.
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Surely she will be upbraided for venturing out; it was not a paid visit, after all.
When she left I stood by the tree, breathing hard, the item clutched in my hand. I was quite sure whatever it the gift had been was meant for the Chairman and not for a heartless man such as I. Nevertheless I was crippled by curiosity for what it was, and yet I did not dare to open it. One of the young boys had returned the hat to my feet (certainly too afraid to attempt to give it to a one-armed beast); it was dirty and soaking.
Finally, I pocketed the wrapped thing and picked up the black fedora.
As I began my journey home, I threw it in an alleyway.
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The gift, it seems, had been indeed meant for the Chairman. I would recognize his handkerchiefs anywhere.