Hatori let me lean on his shoulders as he led me to his practice. He didn't say a word about it, but I noticed something strange, in the way he was supporting me. Hatori was holding me with one hand and yet, he seemed to try to keep me as distant as possible. As if he would have been afraid, I might touch him … Or at least it felt like that to me.
On the other hand, he also didn't really know me. Maybe he still had the picture of me, dancing in the snow in his mind. We both were silent, as he guided me.
"We are nearly there", Hatori suddenly said, pulling me out of my thoughts. I looked up. "Wow!", I said, impressed. We were standing in front of a huge block of buildings, with dozens of houses and neatly cutted lawns that were surrounded by cherry trees and wells. The whole complex was surrounded by a huge wall, which made it look like an own little city right in the middle of Tokyo.
"Who lives here?", I was wondering aloud. "They must be really rich to afford this …" "This belongs to my family", Hatori promptly answered, slightly grinning. "And yes, we do have money, but not as much, as everybody thinks." I blushed ashamedly.
Finally we reached a little house. "We are here", Hatori told me, as he opened the door. Curiously, I stepped in.
It looked like the typical practice of a doctor. White walls, a desk, an examination couch, charts and dressing material. Hatori helped me to set down on a chair. Then he went to close the door. I noticed how he looked out on the street. As if he wanted to make sure that nobody had followed us. "Is everything alright?", I asked, slightly puzzled. Hatori turned back to me. "Yes, of course", he answered, more to himself. "Now, I will have a look at your ankle."
It was a bit uncomfortable, as Hatori examined my foot and I could feel his cold fingers on my skin. My heart was beating so hard, that I was almost sure he could hear it. "I can only repeat how sorry I am, for causing you all this trouble, Soma-san", I said shily. Hatori, who had avoided my eyes until now, finally looked up. For the first time since we met, I could see a real smile on his face, bright and shining like a sunrise. It made him even more beautiful than he already was …
"You don't have to apologise, Aino-san", he told me, pronouncing my name in this lovely way, that only he had ... Hatori went to get dressing material for my ankle. "It is nice to meet someone you can talk to", he said softly. I could only see his back, but his voice sounded sad at this words. I smiled. "Yes, I think so too."
Hatori remained at his desk for a moment, before he came back to me. I watched, as he mended my hurt ankle. "You can call me Kari", I told him, having become more brave by his last comment. "Everyone does that, actually." Hatori stopped shortly. "Of course, only if you like to", I added quickly, not wanting to be too blunt. "Kari …" Hatori repeated, his voice far away. "Yes", I nodded, a strange tingle in my stomach as he said my name. "I like that", Hatori replied, now sounding normal again.
I wanted to say something, as suddenly the door of the practice opened and a young man, approximately of Hatori's age, stepped in. He was dressed in a Kimono and had black hair, that slightly fell on his shoulders and dark eyes.
"Hello and good day, everyone", he said cheerfully, as he came towards us. "Am I interrupting something?" He was grinning, as he looked at Hatori and me, Hatori kneeling in front of me. He just rolled his eyes. "Yes, Shigure, actually, you are. I am working, as you might have noticed." He pointed to my ankle. Shigure's eyes scanned my looks. His grin broadened. "Well, Hari, if you call this work, then I want to become a doctor too!", he said, a mischievous look on his face. I blushed.
"Don't listen to him", Hatori told me, throwing a threatening glance at his friend. "Shigure was dropped on his head when he was a little child and as a result he tends to talk nothing but nonsense." Shigure placed a hand on his heart. "Oh, you hurt me!", he said, pretending to be insulted. He turned back to me. "So, and you are?", he asked, his eyes fixed on me. I smiled back, sarcastically. "I am not interested", I replied. "She's not your type, Shigure", Hatori added to my surprise. "Why?", Shigure wanted to know and chuckled. "I don't mind that she's smaller than me." "No", Hatori answered, his voice sounding cynical. "She has a brain." I went bright red.
Shigure stuck out his tongue at him. "Very funny, really!" He reached out his hand. "I am Shigure Soma", he introuced himself. I listened up. Now, this was something I had not expected!
"Shigure Soma?", I asked, taken aback. "The writer?" Shigure started to smile, as I heard Hatori sigh in the background. "A fan!", Shigure said happily, clapping his hands together. I had to grin. "Not exactly." I looked at him, half angrily, half amused. "You are the obnoxious writer who pushes my best friend to threaten suicide at least once a week." Hatori chuckled, Shigure however didn't seem to be bothered by my comment. "You know Mitsuru", he grinned and giggled, seeming quite pleased with himself.
"We are friends", I confirmed. "We met in the bookstore, I work in", I told them.
"You like books." Hatori looked at me. I smiled. "Yes", I answered. "Very much." Our eyes met and for a few seconds, the world seemed to stand still … There was just Hatori and me …
"Well", Shigure (whom I had completely forgotten), chimed in, "Then you and Hari have something in common." He put an arm around his friend. "You should know that Tori-kun here, is a bookworm himself."
Hatori looked at him, apparently annoyed. "Do you have nothing better to do, Shigure?", he asked. His friend grinned, already used to this kind of comments from Hatori. "Alright I'm going", he said. "I don't want to disturb you two lovey –doveys after all." He giggled and made kissing sounds. "Go!", Hatori yelled at him, irritated at his friend's behaviour. Still laughing, Shigure left the practice.
"I apologise", Hatori said, as he turned back to me. "Sometimes it is really hard to believe, that we are the same age." "It's okay", I assured him. "I thought he was funny … In a pervert kind of way", I added. "Well, if you put it that way …"
Silence fell between us again. "I probably should go now", I realised, as I looked at the clock above the desk. "Otherwise I'll be late for work." Hatori nodded. "Of course", he said. He got up. "I'll walk you out."
Together, we walked to front gate. I was desperately trying to think of something to say. I didn't want to go. I wanted to stay, here, with Hatori. I hated to leave now, without knowing if I would ever see him again. I wanted to know more about this fascinating man who had just stepped into my life … Who was he and why did his eyes look so sad?
Or how many of his family members lived here? I looked around, impressed by the number of houses I saw. When, all out of a sudden, I got the strange feeling that somebody was watching me.
I turned my head and it was then, that I noticed the person, looking out of a window of one of the houses. A young man, who was staring at me. He had dark eyes and black hair and skin, as pale as freshly fallen snow. Or was it really a man? Or a young woman? It was difficult to say ... But something about him … I shuddered. "Is everything alright?", Hatori asked me. "Yes", I nodded. "Yes …" When I looked back again, the person was gone.
Finally, we reached the gate. "I haven't even asked you, how much I owe you for treating my ankle", I remembered, as I faced Hatori to say good-bye. He shook his head, smiling. "It was nothing", he said. "But –", I began, as he interrupted me again. "Just promise to keep better care next time you dance in the snow." I stopped. Hatori was looking at me, friendly, no sarcasm in his handsome face. He was serious … I smiled. "I will."
I swallowed, trying to find the right words. "Bye, Hatori", I just said. What else was there to tell him? He was silent for a moment, and for a second I had the impression that he wanted me to stay too. I wished he would ask me to see him again …
But the moment passed. "Bye, Kari", Hatori said. And so we parted. I could see him, watching me leave …
I returned to the bookstore and back to work. I received a dressing-down by Mr. Shiraki, the storeowner, because I was late, I put the books by Haruki Murakami into the wrong shelf, I forgot about the customers ... But today, I didn't care about any of this. Something had happened … Or better said, someone, called Hatori Soma.
In books, you can read those stories about love at first sight. I always wanted to believe them, but all these years, I had never experienced anything like it myself. Until now …
I fell in love with Hatori the minute I first saw him. I knew it then. I know it now. And this love would not go away that easily…
Even if it looked like I would never see Hatori again. At least at the moment. Hatori had disappeared as quickly, as he had come … I didn't even knew if he liked me, or if he still thought, I was nuts. He hadn't said a word about wanting to meet me again. And I didn't have the courage to ask him …
So, hours later, I was sitting at home on my couch, trying to think of a way that would bring Hatori back in my life. What was I to do? Maybe I had really gotten crazy … Never would I have imagined that I could feel this way …
There was just one thing that could cure this kind of lovesickness: Chocolate! Being desperate, I went to the drawer to search for it. When suddenly an idea, a stream of hope, entered my mind. "I can't do this!", I thought, only more agitated then I had been before. "Or can I?" What was there to lose? And so, I decided to listen to my heart. Even if it ment I was crazy … But love, after all, never is rational …