It's the night before graduation and we are having a party at my mom's house. It is for Koji and Hana, and a couple of my mom's track students. There are lots of students and parents here, many of whom I don't know particularly well. Akari is feeling a little anxious about the whole thing. Right now, we're standing off in the corner of the kitchen so she can adjust to this environment. We are at the periphery of the party, so it's a good spot.
However, it looks like some socializing is about to be thrust upon us. Hana has just entered the kitchen with two people who must be her parents and is walking towards us. Her mother is about the same height as Hana. Her hair is the same shade of blonde as Hana's too, which makes me think I might have been wrong about her dying her hair, unless the two of them get it dyed together. She has a curvier figure than Hana does, and she has very high cheekbones. I wonder if before she developed her condition, Hana had a figure more like her mother's. There is an air of elegance about her.
Her father is probably the tallest person I've ever met. If I had to guess, I'd say he has a height of more than two meters. Unlike his wife and daughter, he has very dark hair and eyes. He has the same feeling of elegance about him. Both are dressed quite formally, and Hana is wearing a familiar red sweater dress. I realize that I don't know much about Hana's parents, but if I had to guess, I'd say they are wealthy.
I take Akari's hand and squeeze it. She smiles at me and squeezes back. She's okay with us interacting with them.
Hana smiles at us and gives us both a brief hug before saying, "Mom, dad, this is Akari and Kayoko." To my surprise, Mrs. Tanaka mimics her daughter's greeting to us, by giving us both a quick hug.
Then she says, "It's very nice to meet you both. We've heard a lot about you." She looks at me, "It was very nice of your mother to invite us into your home."
I smile, "I'm happy to meet both of you too, Hana's great, so it's nice to meet the people who made her."
Her father laughs, "I don't think I've heard it put quite that way before. But I suppose it is accurate."
Akari is frozen. She's just standing still with a fake smile on her face. She's not having a panic attack, but she hasn't found the courage to talk to them yet either. Their air of elegance and formality probably doesn't help.
Mrs. Tanaka says, "Akari, I understand we have you and your family to thank for helping Hana get admitted to Tokyo. We are in your debt."
Akari's mouth comes open, but nothing comes out. I give her hand a little squeeze as encouragement. If she's not ready, I'll distract them somehow.
Just as I'm considering offering to give them a tour of the house, Akari says, "Y-yes, I was h-happy to help, and s-so were my p-parents."
The Tanakas smile at her and thank her.
Then Hana asks, "Is Koji here yet?"
I shake my head. "I haven't seen him. But we've been back here, he might be in the living room." Hana looks at Akari and gets a guilty expression on her face. I think she realized we were trying to avoid socializing for a little bit for Akari's sake. She smiles at me and directs her parents back to the living room.
The Tanakas head off to the living room and then I hear more people approaching the kitchen. Dammit. This may not have been the best spot for Akari. Just as I'm considering what we should do for her, I breathe a sigh of relief because the people in question turn out to be Carsten and Ai. I see Akari relax noticeably too.
After we exchange our usual greetings, Ai says, "This is quite the shindig. Your mom's going to have to top it next year when all four of us graduate."
Akari laughs, "Why? It c-can't be the same?"
Ai scoffs, "No. All four of us are graduating. Kayoko's her daughter. She likes the three of us more than Koji and Hana too. So, I will be disappointed if she doesn't kick it up a notch."
Carsten laughs, "Are you going to jot down every detail of the party to compare to next year?"
Ai gets out her phone, "I'll have photographic evidence."
I laugh, "And what, pray tell, will you do if the party next year isn't up to your standards?"
She thinks for a moment, "I haven't worked that out yet."
I hear my mom's voice in the living room, "I'm not sure where Kayoko is, let me see if I can find her."
"You three stay in here for now. I'll go see what my mom wants."
Akari will do well if the two of them stay with her. Eventually she'll feel well enough to venture out into the main party. I'll come back when I can.
I head out into the living room and find my mom. She's chatting with two male third-year students who I recognize. We greet one another. They must be her two students who are graduating.
"There you are, dear." She pulls me aside and we sit on the couch. "I was going to ask them to go in your room and get the two chairs in there, so we'd have more seating. I didn't really want to send them in there without your permission, though."
I laugh, "What do you think I have in there, mom? Of course they can go in there." She smiles, nods, and returns to her students to send them off to do her bidding.
I'm about to return to the kitchen, but then I see Koji come in the front door with an interesting companion, so I stay on the couch. She's a beautiful woman in her 50s. She's a little shorter than Koji. She has purple eyes and long dark hair that gives me a good idea of what mine might look like at 60. When dark haired people go gray, you hear people refer to it as "salt and pepper." In her case there's just barely more pepper than salt. She is wearing a long, elegant blue dress that showcases her slim figure while showing very little of her skin. It even has long sleeves. When she gets closer, I notice she has light red scarring on the right side of her face.
I was already fairly sure of her identity, but upon seeing the scares I know for certain that she is Hanako Ikezawa. When I talked to Koji yesterday, he still wasn't sure she was going to be able to make it to this party, but I'm overjoyed that she found the time. I want to thank her for helping Koji so much and I'm also very interested in meeting an old classmate of my father's, especially one that I heard him talk about several times.
After Koji told me about her, I did a little research. She's a big deal. She's the editor-in-chief of Tokyo's biggest newspaper and has won pretty much every journalism award one can win during their career. It's more than a little intimidating to think about meeting someone like her. But as I watch her and Koji, I notice she seems surprisingly approachable. Maybe even a little timid. When I looked at her resume, that isn't something that I thought would be part of her personality.
My mom has spotted her now too. She walks up to her and says, "Hanako! You look beautiful as ever. It's amazing to see you and have you in my home. Do you mind if I give you a hug?"
Hanako smiles and nods, and my mom hugs her. I think I must have been right when I thought she seemed timid. My mom doesn't ask most people for permission to hug them, and she gave her a much more reserved hug than she would give most people.
When she hugs my mom back, I see that her right hand and wrist are also scarred. Does she have scars covering that entire side of her body? If so, it makes Koji's scars look like nothing. I start to think about what horrible event might have caused her body to experience trauma on that level, but I quickly abandon that train of thought as it becomes gruesome.
By now, Koji has come and taken a seat next to me on the couch. We're both smiling and taking in this interaction between the important women in our lives.
In a soft voice Hanako says, "You look good too. How long has it been, Emi?"
My mom breaks the hug, laughs, and looks up at her. "We don't want to say that number out loud, do we?" Hanako laughs softly and shakes her head. Then my mom says, "Would you like to meet our daughter?"
It's a little jarring to hear my mom say 'our' these days, but Hanako knew my dad. She knew him much better than my mom, in fact. So, it makes sense.
They approach us and my mom invites her to sit down across from me, and my mom sits next to her with a big smile on her face. She says, "Hanako, this is Kayoko. She's friends with Koji, as you probably know. That's how this little reunion came about."
She nods, "I'm very happy to meet you Kayoko."
"I'm happy to meet you too, Ms. Ikezawa. My dad spoke fondly of you, so it is nice to meet you myself."
Her face gets somber, and she quietly says, "I was very sorry to hear about your father. He was…important to me. More than he probably ever knew. He's someone I always wished I had thanked…" her voice cracks "…and I missed my chance." She looks down and closes her eyes, as if remembering the moment she's about to share. "He…spent the day in the library reading with me once, and it was the first time I felt…accepted by someone for who I am. I didn't feel like he pitied me, or was repulsed by me, or wanted to protect me. I felt those were the three main reactions people had when they saw me. But not him. He just…spent time with me, doing something we both enjoyed. We barely talked that day. We just sat and read. We…never became particularly close after that either…" There's a hint of regret in her voice and she trails off for a moment.
She continues, "But, we'd chat sometimes in class, or in the library. We saw each other a few times in university too. Every time I interacted with him…no matter how small it was, I felt like he saw me as a regular person. Something…no one else made me feel before I met him." She laughs softly and opens her eyes, "That might sound silly, I guess. He wasn't much more than an acquaintance. But he helped get me started on a path to overcome…some of my hardships. He helped me see myself differently. And I think about that every day." She blushes. "I'm sorry to dump this all on you the moment I came through the door…but when I knew I was coming here tonight, I knew I wanted to tell you both that while I had the chance, since I missed my chance to thank him."
Me and my mom are both tearing up and Hanako is visibly choked up too. The fact we're in the house where my dad lived, and Hanako just missed him by two years is extra heartbreaking. It would have been great for them to meet again. I hope he's watching somehow.
My mom puts her hand on Hanako's shoulder and smiles at her, "I'm glad he helped you. He tended to do that, didn't he?" Hanako smiles at her and nods.
I sniffle a little bit and then say, "I want to thank you too…because I think you're part of the reason I got adopted."
She looks at my mom with a befuddled expression. My mom explains, "We decided to adopt a child with a disability…Hisao and I felt we were very well qualified given our lives and our professions…we knew that that sort of child could end up never getting adopted. I'm the one who suggested it, but when I did, Hisao mentioned you. I think his memory of you is what convinced him it was a good idea."
A few tears fall down Hanako's face and then she turns her eyes back to me, "That's lovely. I'm glad you got adopted by such great parents, Kayoko. I'd be happy to say I played a small role in making that happen."
I smile, "Me too." I look over at Koji, who is tearing up a little himself, something he never does. We all need to get sillier now or we're going to bring down the entire party. I pat him on the shoulder and laugh, "Thanks for making sure Koji likes to play games. If you hadn't, I wouldn't have a chess buddy."
Hanako raises an eyebrow, "You play chess, Kayoko?"
I nod, "Yep, my dad taught me."
Koji laughs and says, "I've played her 50 times and still haven't beaten her."
That's only because he ran out of runway. I think if he had more time, he would start beating me regularly.
Hanako's eyes sparkle in response to Koji's words and she smirks confidently, "Do you have a chess board here? I'd love to play you."
I laugh, "Yeah, sure, we can play a game. My dad's old chess board is over here."
I stand up and I lead her over to the small table where my dad's beautiful marble chess board sits. Hanako spends a moment admiring it and feeling its smooth surface. As we set up the game, I notice that my mom and Koji are spectating.
I wonder how good she is. She seemed confident even after Koji told her he has never beaten me. I have to imagine that means she's pretty damn good.
…
This is the most intense game I've ever played. My dad was really good and the only way I ever beat him was by doing really wacky things that caught him off guard, but that would only work sometimes. I only ever beat him a handful of times.
Hanako is on a similar level to him. But I've gotten better over the last two years, and I'm proud to say I have mostly been able to stand toe-to-toe with her. It gives me some idea of what playing my dad now would be like and that puts a smile on my face.
It's been going on for an hour, and neither of us has very many pieces left. However, she still has her Queen, a Bishop, and two Pawns, while I've only got four Pawns, so I'm in a horrible position. Still, the game hasn't been lost yet. Despite the duration of the game, we've only gained more of an audience as the game has drawn on. This surprises me a little, but I suppose the intensity with which we are both playing has drawn people to us.
The party has become eerily quiet as people watch with rapt attention. Hanako has been thinking about her current move for 5 minutes. I'm about to complain when she moves her Queen and says, "Checkmate!~" in a surprisingly sing-songy voice.
I cross my arms and sit back in my chair and let out a frustrated huff. When I look around, I see that Koji is laughing hysterically, like he beat me himself. I'll let him have it because he's lost to me so many times. However, I don't give my other friends as much grace. Ai, Carsten, Hana and Akari are all having a good laugh at seeing me lose too. I glare at each of them in succession, taking special time to really stare down my girlfriend until she stops laughing and mouths the words, "I'm sorry, okay!"
Hanako smiles at me, "You're very good Kayoko. Your dad taught you well. I've been playing regularly for more than 50 years and you more than challenged me."
I smile at her, "Thank you. You're amazing. I'd like to play you more somehow so I can get better."
"I'd like that too. We can play online if you like."
I nod, "That's a really good idea."
By now, Akari is at my side, undoubtedly trying to make up for me catching her laughing so hard at my failure. She isn't getting her way out of the doghouse with the question she decides to ask though.
"Does that mean I won't have t-to play?"
I scoff at her and unenthusiastically say, "Ms. Ikezawa, this is my girlfriend, Akari."
Hanako smiles at her, "It's nice to meet you." Then she raises an eyebrow at her, "Why don't you want to play chess with your girlfriend?"
Akari looks around and freezes. People are still watching me and Hanako, even though we're just talking now. Akari has just realized that she is now the center of attention, and she was just asked a very pointed question by a stranger. She also doesn't know many of the people who are looking at her. She's starting to hyperventilate.
I stand up and say, "Excuse me, Ms. Ikezawa."
She nods and looks at me with surprisingly understanding eyes.
I rub Akari's back with my hand, "Hey…let's go over here, okay?" She nods without blinking. I take her by the hand, and we go back to the living room which is empty right now. We sit down and I hug her and hum our song to her. After a few minutes she comes back to me and gives me a soft kiss. "Thank you. Th-that…snuck up on me. I didn't realize I had basically walked on to a s-stage until it was too late." She sighs, "That w-was embarrassing, especially in front of someone like Ms. Ikezawa."
"You don't need to worry about that." We turn around and see that Hanako followed us part of the way. Was she watching us? That's…a little weird given what we were doing. Akari blushes, but with just Ms. Ikezawa around, she's not too anxious.
She smiles, "Sorry to startle you. I have panic attacks too. So, I just wanted to make sure you'd be okay. Your girlfriend knew what she was doing, though." She sits down on the couch across from us with a soft smile on her face. She doesn't have the kind of smile where she ever shows her teeth, but the expression is simply adorable.
Akari looks at her with eyes as wide as saucers, "Y-you have anxiety? But y-you're…so important!"
Hanako laughs and smooths out her dress, "I don't agree that I'm especially important. But…I will say there are lots of important people who struggle with it. World leaders, actors, scientists…a whole lot of people."
I smile at Akari, "You're basically one of the best French horn players in the world already. I bet a lot of people would be surprised you have anxiety too."
She blushes, "I…d-don't know about that…"
I wink at Hanako, "She's being modest."
Hanko smiles at her, "I'm sure she is." Suddenly she looks distracted. She gets up and walks over to Saki's bookshelf. I guess she hadn't noticed it yet.
Akari and I get up and follow her. She smiles and says, "These are nice pictures. Your dad, how I remember him." She taps the glass of the picture frame right underneath my dad's face and studies him closely. This is a picture that also has Saki in it. Someone else she must have known. But she makes no mention of her.
Between what she said earlier and how she's looking at him now, Hanako must have been in love with my dad. It makes me a little sad. Even though I'm obviously happy he ended up with Saki and then my mom.
Just as I'm thinking this Akari nudges me and winks, picking up on the same thing.
She turns around, "Well…I think I need to go meet Koji's girlfriend and her parents." She smiles bashfully. "I probably shouldn't have gotten distracted for so long. But it was a nice distraction. It was lovely meeting you both. I'm very happy you both befriended Koji." She looks back at me, "I look forward to more chess with you, Kayoko. I'm going to give you mom my contact information, you can get it from her."
I nod, "Thanks for coming. It was amazing to meet you."
…
Me, my mom, and Akari just collapsed on the couch after cleaning up after the party. Hana and Koji tried to help, but we sent them on their way because the party was in their honor.
Now that I'm sitting still, I have a burning question that I have to ask my mom.
"Mom…exactly how many girls had a thing for Dad in high school?"
She laughs, "You think Hanako was one of them?"
Akari answers, "Definitely."
My mom smirks, "Based on what she said tonight…I think you're probably right." She pauses and thinks for a moment. "I think…most every third-year girl at Yamaku had a crush on him at some point."
"Seriously?! I get that he was good looking or whatever, but what made him that popular?"
My mom smiles, "Well…I think it was a combination of things. There was the fact that he was handsome of course, but…that was just part of it. I think one of the big things is that he was someone new."
"New?"
"Yeah. He transferred in, you know? Classes at Yamaku don't change a whole lot across three years. You know everyone. So…someone new was big news. It sent ripples through the school, especially once word got around that he was cute. It meant new possibilities to many girls who felt their romantic options weren't very appealing."
"That makes sense, I guess. I wonder if Hana got that kind of attention from third year boys."
My mom laughs, "Probably. Good thing Koji snatched her up!" She pauses for a moment, "Your aunt told me once that the fact he was new was a big deal for Saki, especially. Everyone at Yamaku knew what happened with Kayoko. Everyone at Yamaku knew her father was overbearing. Your father was this sweet handsome guy who didn't know these things that she wished no one knew. It was probably hard for her not to be attracted to him."
I smile, "That makes sense." I look at Akari. "I like to think about the two of them falling in love at Yamaku sometimes. I wonder…if me and Akari are anything like them."
My mom smiles, "You are in some ways. Being so in love is one of them."
As if wanting to prove her love, Akari snuggles up and hugs me around my waist. I smile at her and stroke her hair.
My mom yawns. "I'm getting tired, so let me tell you the other thing that made your father popular."
"Oh, there's more?"
She nods, "He really needed help. He was depressed about his condition and didn't know how to behave around students at Yamaku because of their disabilities."
I raise my eyebrows, "That's…attractive?"
She laughs, "Yes. When you factor in that he was handsome and new, it meant many girls wanted to help him find his way. He was a project of sorts. A rewarding one, since if you helped him, who knows what might happen between the two of you?" She winks suggestively then thinks for a moment. "I know a few other girls for sure thought they could be his guide. Hanako's best friend was one of them. The student council president at the time was too." She laughs, "Even me, to some extent. I felt really motivated to help him get fit. I didn't like him right away like some of the others, but…I think I would have if he kept running with me. Heck, even Rin seemed concerned about him and wanted to spend more time with him, and she had never expressed that kind of interest in a boy. But in the end, it was Saki who became his guide. She helped him come to terms with his own condition. She helped him better understand the right way to interact with others with disabilities. And well…" She laughs softly. "She reaped those rewards I mentioned." She pauses again, "Funnily enough…Saki is probably a big part of why your dad was so good with Hanako."
Akari giggles, "I mean, we didn't likeHana that way…b-but her situation did make us want to help her and be friends with her. S-so it makes sense that there were so many people who felt that way about your d-dad…just with a more romantic element mixed in."
"Yeah…I guess it all adds up. Still strange to imagine the girls of Yamaku all chasing after my dad like that, though."
My mom laughs. "So, there you have it. The Reasons Your Dad Was the Most Eligible Bachelor at Yamaku." She giggles. "It isn't exactly the title of a bedtime story, but I know I'm tired after telling it. Goodnight girls."
—-
We're at the graduation ceremony inside the athletic center. I'm sitting in the stands with my mom, Akari, Ai, and Carsten.
After the ceremony, our friend group is going to meet at the front gates for a picture. After that, we are getting scattered to the winds. Okay, that's maybe a little bit dramatic. But I'm feeling very emotional.
Hana and Koji are going on a trip to Okinawa for Spring Vacation. That's what her parents got them as a graduation gift, so I think my instinct that they were wealthy was probably correct. I don't know when I'll see them again. Ai and Carsten are also going to Hokkaido today to spend time with Ai's family. However, I know I'll see them again after the break.
We're traveling too. Akari's parents invited me and my mom to come stay with them for a week. My mom is only able to come for a few days because of my grandparents, but it will be nice for her to get a break. We'll be having a joint birthday party for me and Akari, which should be fun.
When they call Koji's name and he walks across the stage, we stand up and get as loud as we can, because we know there just aren't that many people here for him. Hanako isn't sitting with us, but when we see her do the same thing elsewhere in the stands, we smile and wave to each other in thanks.
We do the same for Hana, though we know her parents are here, so we aren't quite as boisterous.
…
We're at the front gate now waiting for Hana and Koji. I'm doing my best not to cry, since I don't want to look terrible in this picture. I'm not sure how much I'm going to be able to keep it together after I lose that motivation though.
Akari can tell I'm struggling, and now she's the one who squeezes my hand to check on me. I squeeze and smile back at her.
Koji, Hana, and her parents arrive, and the six of us set about figuring out how to take the picture. In the end, we decide Carsten will kneel next to Ai in front of the other two couples. We take a series of pictures, some with silly faces, some more serious. My mom and Hana's parents seem to be enjoying the experience.
Eventually though, photograph time is over. I decide I'm going to hold it together a little while longer, because I don't think Hana and Koji would appreciate me bawling. Plus, it would look like I was begging them to stay or something. We all exchange hugs with one another, and when Koji hugs me, he surprises me when he says, "Hey, can I talk to you for a second in private?"
"Um...sure. Where do you want to go?"
He says, "What about the girls' dorm common room?"
I laugh, "Sure. Trying to fit in one more game of chess? I'll have to go get my board."
He laughs, "No, that's not it." He turns around and waves to Hana, who gives him a knowing nod and then whispers something to Akari. She smiles. What exactly is about to happen?
When we get to the common room, we sit where we usually do, and Koji is silent for at least thirty seconds so I break the tension with a joke.
"You're…making me uneasy here. You're not about to tell me you really do love me, are you?"
He laughs, "No. But I'm not that good with emotional stuff so I had to gather myself a little." He takes a deep breath. "Last night…what Ms. Ikezawa said to you about your dad really got to me."
I smile, "I noticed you got choked up. I hadn't seen that before. I wasn't sure you were capable of tears."
He smiles, "Yeah. Well…what she was saying about your dad hit close to home for me. I think you must be a lot like him."
"O…kay?"
He sighs, "You're going to make me say it outright, aren't you?"
"Uh…yeah, I think so, because I don't know what you're trying to say."
"What she was saying…what your dad did for her…helped her see herself as more than just…something repulsive, someone to be pitied…all that. It made me realize…you did that for me, Kayoko."
I've been trying to hold back a torrent of tears for more than an hour at this point, and now all that effort was for naught. The second Koji says my name, I start bawling.
It means a lot that he thinks I helped him so much, but I think I might be even more moved by the fact that it means that I am like my dad. It means he'd be proud of me.
Koji comes and sits on the arm of the chair I'm in and puts an arm around me and through my blurry eyes I can see that he has a few tears of his own, "Thank you…so much, Kayoko. I do love you, you know? Just not…in a romantic way." He clears his throat, clearly trying to hold back his tears. I wish he would just cry with me. "Speaking of which…Ms. Ikezawa was completely in love with your dad, wasn't she?"
I laugh, and it prompts me to pull myself together. I'm sure that was his intention.
I sniffle, "Yes, she definitely was. My mom thinks so too." I wipe away my tears on my sleeve. "I'm glad you feel like I helped you, Koji. You've been a great friend. I'll miss you, but I'm sure we'll be seeing you."
He nods, "You will. I'm sure of it."
After that, I take a few more minutes to pull myself together, and then we head back to the gate where the rest of our party is waiting. Hana approaches us when she sees us coming, and I think she's coming to greet her boyfriend, but then she hugs me and quietly says, "Did he tell you? Or did he chicken out?"
I laugh, "He told me. Can't you tell I've been crying?"
She breaks the hug and looks at me, "Well, yeah. But you cry about everything, couldn't be too sure."
I scoff, "Shut up. I'm just very in touch with my emotions!"
She smiles at me, "Well…thanks for everything, Kayoko. I don't think I would have survived here without you and Akari."
I start crying again. Hana tries to comfort me a little but then yells, "Akari…I think I broke her. Come help."
Akari laughs and comes to hold my hand. Then she smiles mischievously at Hana. "Interesting ch-choice of words, Hana…you b-broke her, huh? Didn't you do that once b-before?"
Hana winces, "Yeah…I did not think that through." She looks at me with a guilty face and says, "Kayoko, before I go, I just want to apolo-"
I wipe away my tears and say, "Akari, dislocate her elbow."
Akari laughs and says, "On it." She grabs her arm and smirks for a moment, but then, instead of attacking her, the two share a nice hug.
After that, we rejoin the rest of our friends at the gate and say our farewells. I'm crying the hardest, but I'm happy to be joined in my tears by all my other friends. Carsten, Koji, and Hana are only crying a little, but Ai, Akari, and my mom are crying almost as hard as I am. Hana's parents patiently watch the spectacle with smiles on their faces. I think they are as happy as she is that they sent her to Yamaku.