1 ½  months later

Akane was walking down the street and decided to walk through the park; she had been given the afternoon off so she had a little time before the doctor’s appointment. As she was walking she heard a beautiful voice accompanied by a guitar. A few meters away a girl was singing and playing the guitar. A small crowd had formed around her. Akane walked closer and saw a pretty girl with an angel voice. And as she enjoyed the sweet melody she thought: “She’s beautiful. She actually looks like a doll.”

Same day, 1 hour later.

3:15PM

 I’m walking down the park. I decided to leave the office early and go back to the house. I miss them and it’s time to take care of GREEN. I hear a voice. It’s singing …….. . I walk up to the small crowd around the voice and I see her. She has straight blond hair and she’s wearing a black hat, a black and silver necklace. On her right wrist she’s wearing a band with silver studs. Her large almond eyes are brown and have blue eye shadow and black eye liner. She’s playing a guitar so I can’t see the rest of her clothes but I know. I’m certain. She is PINK.

3:18 PM

I move away from the crowd and find a place to wait for her to leave.

4PM

She’s alone now. She puts her guitar in the case and starts walking out of the park. I see the rest of her outfit. She’s wearing a black tank-top with a colored skull on it, a blue denim mini skirt and black short leather boots. I follow her. She doesn’t take any buses and walks leisurely for 15 blocks.

4:40PM

She arrives at an old house and rings the bell. A young man answers the door, they greet and she goes in.

4:42PM

A young boy dressed in jeans and a dark gray T-shirt arrives. He has a guitar case. He rings the bell. The same man from before opens the door. They greet and he enters. Band rehearsal?

7:30 PM

PINK exits the house. She starts walking. Again she doesn’t take a bus and walks 17 blocks. She arrives to an old apartment building and goes in. She greets an old woman coming out of the building with a smile. Time to go home and start my research.

Akane was in her last month in the company. She would miss the job, it paid well and it gave her enough free time for her designs. It was her lunch time and she was walking to the park. Ever since the beginning of the week before she had been taking her lunch a little late and had been going to the park to eat and listen to the girl play the guitar and sing. In the last few days she had also seen Yamaa-san in the park. He always stayed apart and for a guy who looked like him, he certainly had a way to go unnoticed. He was dressed very casually and kept looking down. Sometimes he ate, sometimes it seemed like he was snoozing. After a while he would get up and walk away.

Okay it sounded as if she was stalking the guy, but she really wasn’t. She just couldn’t help but notice him. Anyway she never approached him or anything. He seemed to enjoy the quiet time, so she just left him alone. She was thinking about this and, of course, not paying attention to where she was going and she bumped into something… and someone. She hit her leg against a bench and the rest of her against a person. “Sorry, I wasn’t watching where I was going…” The person looked up. “Yamaa-san! I’m sorry, I was just thinking and not paying attention and… Sorry.” He gave her a quick smile but he looked really uncomfortable.

“I’m sorry… again. I’ll leave you alone.”

Akane started to walk away but he stopped her. “No, it’s okay. You can sit here if you want.”

“Are you sure? You don’t seem very comfortable with that. I understand….”

“No. It’s just that… well some of the women in the office can be a little…”

“Insistent? Dense? A little on the stalkish side?”

He laughed at that and it was a real laugh not the stiff smile he’d given her before.

“I don’t know if I would put it like that but… yeah, maybe a little. You’re…”

“Kurogawa Akane”

“Right, sorry…” Akane waved her hand to stop the apology.

“Don’t worry. And it’s really ok if you want to be alone. I usually sit on the other side.”

“No. It’s really ok. You don’t seem… what was it? Insistent, dense and a little on the stalkish side. Have you been having your lunch here since you started working at the company? ”

“Not really. Only these last two weeks. Last Friday I took this way after work and I heard her, since the weather’s been really nice I thought it would be nice to have lunch here listening to some music.”

“Yeah, me too. She does have a great voice.”

“And she is nice to look at, which doesn’t hurt, right? I mean she’s a life size Barbie doll”

“I guess,” he said, looking down and rubbing the back of his neck. He was uncomfortable, again.

“Sorry, sometimes I just blurt out things without thinking. I’ll shut up and let you listen in silence.”

“That’s really okay,” he said with a laugh.

After that they ate and talked and listen to the girl with the guitar.

Akane looked at her watch. “Oh, man! I’m late! I didn’t notice the time. I have to go back or they’ll kill me.”

Yamaa laughed “Since I’m your boss I think it’ll be fine. But I have to go too, so… I guess I’ll see you in the office.”

“Yeah, bye.”

“Bye”

Then they both went their own way.

Sometime after that, Yuko put her guitar away and left the park. Nobody noticed the man following her.