Meeting You

Yamada Ryosuke was standing under the shadow of a building in one corner of the busy Tokyo. He was waiting for his band mate, Keito, as they planned to stroll around together in their day-off. Checking his cell phone, he noticed that he arrived fifteen minute earlier than the promised time.

He did realized how passerby threw him a glance once or twice, might be recognizing who he really was. He had used to it after all. Observing his surroundings, he caught a view of a certain place that triggered a memory to resurface.

It was just an ordinary day in his life. The sky was clear with a thin layer of cloud, just perfect for encouraging his mood. Going to work in the morning, he sauntered down the familiar street from the station toward the place where his interview would be held.

Reaching the same street as he currently stood at, he waited for the traffic light to change color to cross the road. That was when suddenly someone bumped into him and the sounds of fallen goods followed right after. He staggered aside slightly. After steadying himself, he looked down to the figure of a woman crouched down before him collecting the scattered things. As though a reflex, he helped collecting her items. Just when the woman stood up, he almost froze.

“Forgive me, Sir. I’m in a hurry. And thank you for helping me,” she bowed and left before he could form a coherent reply.

He was staring at her back as she walked further and further away. He had said in his interviews that he could not fall in love at the first sight. Yet, karma sometimes slaps you right on your face. He put a hand on his chest and felt that his heart still had not slowed down since the moment his gaze landed on the young woman’s face.

It had been a week since that meeting. In a corner of his heart, he hoped that he would meet her again whenever he walked through this street. But luck had not on his side apparently.

He was pulled out from his thought as he felt a tug on his pant. He looked down and saw a little boy stood before him.

“Yes?” He said as gentle as he could, gave the boy a smile.

“Nii-chan, would you buy my car?” the boy looked at him full of hope while showing him a toy car.

He always had soft spot for children and the boy before him was so cute, with tiny hands and chubby pinkish cheeks. He assumed that he was a first grade student, put it less or more. He crouched down so that he was at eye level with the boy.

“You sell your toy?” He asked while throwing glances around to find any sign of the boy’s guardian.

The boy nodded then mentioned a price. It was not much for him, but he was curious about the boy’s action.

“Ne…,” he paused as he realized he did not know the boy’s name. “I’m Ryosuke. What is your name?”

“Akira.”

“Ne, Akira-kun, why should you sell your toy?”

“I need money,” he innocently answered.

“What for?”

Instead answering, Akira pointed at certain direction. Following Akira’s finger, he saw a flower shop.

“You want to buy flower?”

“Yes. Today is Mom’s birthday. I want to give her a gift.”

He was stunned at Akira’s statement. Now, he was not only captivated by Akira’s cute face, but also his gentle heart. He smiled widely as an idea came.

“Alright. I’ll buy your car.”

Akira seemed reluctant to let go of his toy, but eventually handed it to him.

“Now, how about I help you to pick the flower for your mother?”

Akira’s eyes twinkled and a smile bloomed. “Really?”

“Un.”

And that was when Keito’s message came, telling him that he would be late.

After picking a flower and had it arranged in a small bouquet, he handed the bouquet to Akira.

“This is for your mother,” he said while giving the bouquet. “And this is a gift for you because you’re a good boy,” he give Akira’s toy back which made the boy’s eyes widened in joy.

“Thank you, Niichan.”

“Where do you live, Akira-kun?”

“Over there,” Akira pointed to a building just a block from where they stood.

Weighing up his options whether he would let this boy walked the street alone, he decided to walk him home as Keito would not arrived until some times later.

And so here he was, standing before a flat door and holding the boy’s hand. Before he could press the bell, a sound of someone running toward his direction had him turned around.

His eyes widened in an instant for before him, crouching down hugging Akira, was the young woman that had captivated him since a week ago. He gulped. She is a mother? Disappointment crept up in his heart. It means she is someone’s wife?

“Akira, where were you? Do you know how worried I was?” she almost sobbed.

“I was buying a gift for Mom.”

Feeling his awkward presence, he faked a cough. Soon, her head shot up to him. He could see how her eyes widened upon seeing him.

“Niichan helped me to buy this,” Akira chimed in happily while showing the bouquet to her.

She rose to her feet and wiped her wet cheeks off before facing him properly. She bowed, “Thank you for helping Akira, Sir…”

"Ryosuke. Yamada Ryosuke.”

“Thank you, Yamada-san.”

“You are welcome…,” he hung his words.

“Oh, sorry,” she said. “I am Shida Mirai,” a smile bloomed.

As though seeing her smile was not enough to brighten his day, he heard another pleasant surprised.

“I am Akira’s older sister.”

That day, his smile never faded that Keito asked whether there was something wrong happened before his arrival. He only gave Keito a bigger grin as response.

*****The End*****