'What's your name, kitten? Alright, I'll name you Ame (rain) because it is raining, right?'
The rain was getting harder and harder. Hodaka and Ame entered a dingy building, its signboard said, 'Atami'. He chuckled, 'Atami, the name of the place sounds warmer, doesn't it?' He looked up to the darker sky. Heavy rain continued falling mercilessly. The spot where they were sheltered from the rain was a narrow space in front of an old elevator. Ame cried, 'meo-w.'
'Are you hungry?' He took out a chocolate bar and broke into pieces.
Ame licked one of them on the floor. Then her ears got tensed. They heard someone run away making a splashing sound on the road. Soaked from head to toe, a man dropped something black and he had disappeared soon. Hodaka stood up and got closer to the object in the pool. He rubbed his eyes with his hand. He saw fish-like creatures dancing around it. Then they vanished into the muddy water. Before picking it up, he noticed a manga tea room in front of him. Glancing at the display board, he calculated the sum of the overnight cost. He uttered, '100 yen per thirty minutes and 1,800 yen added for eight hours...' he stared at the metalic thing in the pool. It was a handgun. Without thinking twice, he grabbed it and put it in his pocket. It was heavy, but he felt safe. He needed something to protect himself in the city which looked alien to him.