"Aaiiieeee!"
Mimi threw the phone away from her ear when she heard Miyako's piercing shriek. Maybe telling her was a terrible idea, Mimi rubbed her ear and knelt on the ground and reached under her kitchen table to pick the phone back up.
"I'm glad you are more excited than I am!"
"Me? You should be more excited, Mimi-Chan! You're finally getting married—ano, when is it?"
Mimi walked towards her bedroom, she gently patted a black kitten that was sitting on her bed before she walked towards the closet. She thumbed through the different colored fabrics hanging, trying to decide on what she would wear to her dinner with her—it still was new for her to think about—fiancée, "Well, we haven't thought about it yet but Michael's been so thrilled that he is suggesting we get married right after New Years! Can you think of just how much work we would have to finish in time?"
Holding an olive dress and examining herself in the mirror, she sighed at Miyako's next remark, "Work, is that all you ever think about? Mimi, you are getting married and the least you could do is forget about work! Aren't you as excited as Michael, or me! I think it is sweet how he wants to be your husband so soon. Oh, I wish Ichijouji-kun would just hurry and propose to me!"
"I wouldn't be in such a rush—I'm not even sure if I made the right decision by saying yes to Michael," Mimi heard herself saying then paused. "I-I mean…Marriage is pretty much the end of Mimi Tachikawa's life, you know…I'll be Mimi Sugai and everything before, will feel as if it never happened."
"Ano…Mimi, what are you talking about?" Miyako asked when her doorbell rang. "Oh, I think that's my cab. I'm sorry, Mimi, if I had known that Michael was going to propose I wouldn't have planned my trip this week!"
"No, it's alright, really. Just be sure to call me when you get there and to have fun," Mimi smiled and slowly hung up. She glanced at her reflection in the mirror and bit the edge of her mouth, "I guess this would do for tonight."
She had been greeted, congratulated, and hugged by too many people that Mimi thought she had reached some sort of quota by the end of the day. She is not entirely fond to have so much attention drawn towards her. At least they seem real happy for me, Mimi commented to herself, pausing for a second to stare at her best friend's empty desk before settling herself down to her own. Magazines, documents, and sketches were flung onto her table into a huge pile, though as Mimi prepared to sort them out a certain photo on her desk had caught her eye. She picked up it up, looking at the photo of Michael standing in front of a fountain, and Mimi couldn't help but laugh at the memory of Michael attempting to cram an entire ice cream cone down inside his mouth and the reaction he had from how cold it was.
"What is wrong with me?" She scowled and lied back on her chair, biting down on her fountain pen, "I am happy; the happiest I have ever been and yet I can't seem to show it. Something feels strange...I can't help but feel like something is missing still."
Mimi propped up her elbows and rested her chin on top of her fingers. She stared pensively at the wall for a long time, searching for the source of her undeniable uneasiness, when her thoughts wandered back to a memory she stored safely and deeply in the back of her mind.
"It's not possible. I still can't be attached to him after all this time…it's been too long. I've moved on with my life, and he's gone." Mimi took a deep breath and shook her head. I need to stop, she told herself, it must be the feeling of being homesick. This is about to end, because tonight I will finally get to see my parents again when they visit to meet Michael's parents. And this feeling will go away now when I see my family again. And my love.
"Snow!" An excited look on her face, Mimi threw on her coat as she stepped out of the building and out onto the streets. The bright lights of the city mixed with the falling snowflakes lightened her spirits. Lifting her free hand, Mimi smiled widely as a few snowflakes floated down onto her fingers. The snow always brings me such wonderful memories…I wonder what Shoji is doing, right this second.
"Well," she tugged on her collar to cover herself more. "Whatever it is, I sure could use her buying me a hot cocoa like she used to," She laughed when the huge Tokyo tower caught her eye, flashing the time of ten before seven. "Oh dear, Michael and everyone else must be waiting for me already! I better hurry."
With the thought of her beloved and her missed parents waiting for her, Mimi happily walked through the crowds without hesitation. Her heels clicked whenever she managed to run, but as she preparing to cross the street Mimi caught a glimpse of something that immediately made her stop and gasp.
There, across the intersection, standing in the middle of the crowds with his head hanging back to gaze at the sky... Could it be? Was she imagining things or dreaming or was it—no, it was!
It was Yamato Ishida!
Pacing back and forth, Michael looked at his watch again and sighed, "Tachikawa-san, where are you?" he turned his head to the waiting parents. "I am so sorry everyone. I'm sure Mimi's on her way."
"She's twenty minutes late, do you think something has happened?" Mrs. Tachikawa stood up, concerned for her daughter. "Mimi would never be late for anything without telling anyone. Michael?"
Placing a hand on her, Mrs. Sugai smiled gently at the worried woman, "Please, Sariko, she is probably just running late, I'm sure she is alright. Surely she's anxious to finally have her parents here."
Sariko Tachikawa smiled and took her hand, sitting back down with her husband, "Yes, Mimi would never worry us like this for no reason. I just hope she hurries before I start having a panic attack again," she laughed so forcefully that the others had to muster a laughter to comfort themselves, too.
Not paying them any heed, Michael walked over and looked out the apartment window. He frowned while watching the street for any sign of her; she'll show up, I know she will.
Mimi's eyes began to overflow with tears and as much as she tried she couldn't keep her smile from showing. Again and again she told herself that it could just be a dream but her first ever encounter with Yamato Ishida keep racing back in her mind. She couldn't seem to move, it was like everything just stopped, somewhere from the bottom of her mind was just screaming for her feet to move, to run to him and dive into his arms once again after the long and painful years.
He was older and taller now, but the way he looked standing there was a close resemblance to the image Mimi had in her memory. The people passing by him didn't so much take a second glance at the young man standing with his eyes towards the sky, just staring up in wonder at the sky and watching every flake of snow falling. So long…he hasn't changed one bit, she said to herself when Yamato then began walking away.
"—wait, Yamato. Wait!" Mimi called out but he didn't seem to hear her. She took a step forward, then two as she walked to the middle of the road, and then three as her feet broke into a run as she kept trying to call his name, but Yamato wasn't even hearing her shouts and was walking farther from her sight. Can't he hear me? She almost lost her balance as she kept pushing her way through the crowd.
"Yamato!" she yelled as loud as she can but failed; only causing others to give her annoyed glances. "I'm sorry, please let me through—Excuse me, Yamato!" she shouted when she finally got out of the busy line. Frantically turning her head towards every direction, Mimi felt despondent when she realized that she had lost him, and the familiar feeling of aching began to grow inside her chest. She decided to keep running.
After hours of searching, Mimi started to feel exhausted and terribly cold, the numbing in her toes stretching over her legs. Breathing heavily, she staggered through the snow and noticed that the crowd of people had thinned incredibly, signaling the late evening. Her hope getting crushed by every heavy step she trudged, her body settled on collapsing onto a bench near a bus stop. The harsh cold seeped into her, her legs began to feel so rigid that she had to pull them close to her numbing body. Sleepy, I feel so sleepy, she thought as her eyelids began to fall.
She was too exhausted to cry, but it was the only thing her body could do after her long excursion, "I-I don't understand," her teeth chattered with every word that came out. "He was there, I-I s-s-aw him, like the very first time we met. He was real, after all these years. Matt..."
People would pass by but no one stopped to ask her if she was alright, to them this woman was just another fool left to spend another night drowning in their mistakes. He didn't even hear me calling him, it really seemed like I was chasing a ghost, she shook her head in disbelief. "Why …after all these years, I thought you were dead. And now that I found you again, I," with yet another aching heart, hugging her shoulders Mimi broke down altogether, crying for all the things she hadn't cried for.
Michael banged his fists onto the wall, surprising both pairs of parents. Quickly his mother rushed to him but Michael gently shook her off.
"I don't understand! Where could Mimi be," Mr. Tachikawa asked. "She knows how important this night is for all of us and yet she chooses this time to be late…Do you think she's in some kind of danger? Maybe we should call the police she might be—"
Mr. Sugai cut in, "But wouldn't she call us? Maybe she forgot and went on home."
"Mimi would never forget about tonight!" Sariko protested and held onto her husband. "What if she really is in danger, I better go call the—"as she was about to reach for the phone when the door opened. "Oh, Mimi, darling!"
"Mimi!—what in the world," Michael's eyes widened as a pale and almost frozen Mimi walked in. Her eyes hollow and tears incessantly streaming down her face, Mimi kept on walking as if no one was there, and stopped just in the middle of the room. Michael ran towards her, "Mimi, I was so worried. What took you so long? Mimi?"
The girl stood there as if she were already dead. Her father went up to her and shook her, "Mimi, speak to me? My, she's, her skin's dead cold! Mimi!" Both mothers quickly gasped and ran to fetch her blankets while Michael tried talking to her. "Let's take her to your room, Michael, let her lie down and..."
Michael shook his head, "Mimi, please talk to me," he pleaded, looking straight into her eyes. "What happened? Are you alright!"
Cold, scared and grief-stricken, finally—as if it hurt to talk—Mimi choked out her words, "I don't know…" and fainted into her beloved's arms.
Three days after her incident, Mimi refused to listen to anybody and started going back to work, busying herself even more with deadlines. Michael, hurting to see her like this tried reasoning with her but all he ever got in return was Mimi's hollow voice and lack of energy. That day, Mimi was again finding herself thinking back to the other night…
How can it be, they all said he was dead, she recalled, he couldn't have just. What if it weren't really him? What if I was just not able to completely let go that he haunts me even through my eyes, now…
"Oh, Mimi-Chan, could you come see me for a second?" Michael asked from his office. Mimi nodded and followed.
As Michael went on about the spring fashion line, Mimi kept finding herself recalling back to the night with Yamato, then back to Shoji's confession and Yamato's death. Each memory stinging her, she shook her head and looked outside his office and her eyes widened and she stood up.
"Ano, Mimi? Is something the matter?" Michael asked.
"Matt…" Mimi whispered. Indeed it was him; of all irony there he was, conversing with one of Mimi's co-workers. "Michael, who is that guy!" she exclaimed and pointed to Yamato.
Michael scratched his cheek, "Oh, um, that's Matt uh, I'm not really sure of his last name but the company just hired him. He's going to be working with your group with the Spring line—Mimi?" but before he could interrupt once more Mimi had jumped out of her chair and ran out when she saw the blonde leaving. "Mimi!"
"Eh, Yamato—Matt!" she called and smiled when he finally turned around, but her smile fell when the elevator doors closed at the same moment. "Arrgh, wait!"
"Sumimasen," Mimi politely said as she reached the lobby, still searching for him. With luck on her side, Mimi spotted him just by the entrance. A huge smile came across her face. "Matt!"
He turned and flashed a small smile as she reached him, "Oh, hello. May I help you?" he asked, Mimi stared at him in total disbelief, he didn't recognize her.
"You…You don't even remember me," she whispered, her hands falling to her sides, feeling she was about to cry. "Yamato, it's me—Mimi, don't you remember?"
Matt arched a brow, "Ano, um," he grinned apologetically. "I'm sorry, Miss, but I honestly don't remember your name. And, did you just call me Yamato?" Mimi felt like she just took a huge blow when all the sudden a voice call out from behind her.
"Matt!" Mimi turned around and gasped at the girl she saw running. Matt chuckled as the woman tackled him with a hug which he gladly returned. Mimi stood frozen and looked at the familiarity—even though her hair had grown longer, Mimi still recognized her voice and her face when she turned to look at Mimi.
"I…" Mimi stuttered. "Shoji."