CHAPTER 3: GOING HOME.
The next morning I awoke to the sound of a piano. I lay there briefly, wondering who would play a piano at this time of the morning. The chime of a nearby clock told me it was seven am. My brother should have left by now. Then I remembered our special guest. I got up and walked to the large living room.
My mother had set up a large grand piano in an alcove when my brother and I were younger, and we used to regularly get lessons. But I had stopped after the accident. I had used to think I was pretty good, but I was a mere amateur compared to Kida. As I got close, the second sight kicked in and I saw a pair of hands swiftly darting from key to key, but with a delicate grace. The phrase came to an end and the hands came to a rest. The view switched to me standing in the doorway.
“Good Morning,”
“A little early isn’t it?”
“What do you mean? This is late compared to what time I usually had to get up.”
“What time do you usually get up then?”
“About half-five. I had a long way to get to my school.”
“Woah. I didn’t even know that such time existed. Hey, is my brother about?”
“He left about half an hour ago. Said something about being slightly late and he’d call you if anything came up.”
“Okay.” We were silent for a moment. “You’re very talented.”
“You mean this?” Her hands gestured to the piano.
“Yeah. I mean, I used to take lessons, but never got to that level of skill.”
“I’ve been having lessons ever since I lost my voice. Initially I was bored with them and wanted to quit, but as I grew older, I began to appreciate it. Music is one of the few ways I can express myself.”
“Well, keep at it. You might become a famous musician one day.” I started towards the kitchen. I walked into the sofa, then into the counter, before I made it. I was still getting used to Kida’s viewpoint in my head. Kida followed me so as to keep the link between us intact.
“Actually, Im not sure what I want to do with my life.”
“Have you considered it?”
“I have. At first I thought I wanted to do something in my hometown, where people knew about my disability and could work around it. But as I grew up I got pretty sick of living in such a confined area. So I wanted to see if I could work in the city. But most of the jobs I had been considering require an interpreter a lot of the time. Recently I’ve been thinking about getting into art or photography.”
“Interesting choice. Have you your own camera?”
“Yes, I’ve got a real nice one at home with all the lenses and special equipment.”
“Well, there are a lot of jobs that require photography. It cant be that hard to get into.” I had got some breakfast together and we sat down to eat it. I switched on the radio just in time to hear a weather report.
“…And here’s the weather for the Shizuoka region. Over the mountains there is a brief respite in the storms, but it only looks like it’s going to be clear for a day or two before the storms come back in. Not to worry though folks, the storms are only going to be around for one more week then its glorious sunshine for the rest of the summer…”
I stood up and poked my head outside the shutters. Sure enough, the easy rhythm of raindrops had gone and although the dampness was still around, I could see, through Kida’s eyes, that the cloud was breaking up slightly to reveal rays of sunshine. As the view switched towards the city of Shimizu and Suruga Bay beyond it however, dark clouds were beginning to form again and would be here in about a day, probably by this time tomorrow.
“Hey, Kida?”
“Yes?”
“Do you wanna go home?”
Kida looked me full in the face. Unfortunately, I couldn’t tell what she was thinking, unable to see her eyes.
“I mean, it’s been great having you here, but your parents must be worried and I don’t want to keep you from things that you have to do.”
A small sigh escaped her lips and her thoughts followed shortly afterwards.
“I guess you’re right. I don’t want to leave here though. Its friendly and I have the time of my life here, even though it’s only been one day. But I suppose things can’t stay this way forever. On one condition though.”
“What?”
“You have to come with me. I’m going to miss our little connection the most and I want to get the most out of it.”
I thought about it for a second and saw no reason why I shouldn’t.
“Okay. What’s the best way to get there?”
“Probably by train to Goto, then walk the rest of the way.”
“Okay then. I’ll just grab some shoes for the two of us and make up some lunch and then we’ll be on our way.”
I headed into the kitchen to make lunch, but Kida went and sat down at the piano again. As I went through the motions of making lunch in the dark, a slow melody floated through the air and into my sensitive ears. They say that when you lose a sense, the other four strengthen to make up for it. I could hear sadness in those notes. A melancholy resonance that reminded me of something that I thought I had gotten used to. Loneliness. I remembered what Kida had said before breakfast.
“Music is one of the few ways I can express myself.”
That thought echoed in the darkness, going round and round into it came full circle and had nowhere left to go.
* * *
We left shortly after ten o’clock and headed down to the train station. At this time of day the station was pretty much deserted, just a few people on the other platform heading towards the cities of either Shizuoka or Shimizu. We were the only two on our side. The train was running on time and we got on and found a seat. Kida had been silent ever since we had left the house, but as the train left the station, she nudged me.
“Hey, look at this Seraph,”
“Well its kind of hard not to when you’re looking at it. What am I meant to be looking at?”
“It went out of sight for a second. There it is!”
As the train headed north it gave us a full view of Mount Fuji, rising from the ground like a majestic deity, with its white-capped head. No matter how many times I had seen it, it never failed to impress me. Now, after seeing for the first time in three years, it was truly breath taking.
“Wow. It’s beautiful. You can’t see it from my town. You have to go over to the neighbouring peak. But the journey itself is almost as awesome as the final view. There are waterfalls and rivers, beautiful forestry, and a small shrine near the top. Unfortunately they close the trail during the summer storms. You’re gonna have to come and visit when the weather clears.”
“I’d like that.”
The journey was long and slow. We passed the time by playing Rock, Paper, Scissors, which is a game I refuse to play with my brother as he always cheats. We also played truth or dare. It was a childish game, but we were so bored and it was a good way to get to know each other. I was also feeling playful due to the good weather.
“Truth,”
“Name three items you never go anywhere without.”
“Well, apart from times like when I just get up in the middle of the night and wind up naked on some guy’s doorstep, I always carry my cell phone, a packet of tissues and a spare bra.”
“Okay,” sweatdrop.
“You’re blushing.”
“I can see that. Okay my turn. Um…truth.”
“Are you going to miss me when Im gone? Not the fact that we share senses, but are you going to miss me?”
“Way to go for the awkward question. Um…yeah. Im going to miss you.”
“Really?” Kida sounded pleased, almost.
“Yeah. You’re a fun person to be round. We kinda have the same mentality.”
“You’re just saying that.”
“I mean it. Anyway, it’s your turn.”
Kida looked at me. “Dare.”
In my second sight, I saw myself smile. I picked a pencil out of my pocket and threw it on the floor of the train carriage.
“Pick that up.”
“Okay…” Kida sounded a bit puzzled, but I knew what I was doing.
As she bent over to pick it up, I roughly judged where she was and reached over and slapped her lightly on her bum. Kida gave a squeal, and turned to look at me, but I was sitting there whistling, a picture of innocence.
“Hey!” She protested, but in a playful manner.
“You took the dare.”
“Well, I still think you deserve a little payback.” She stood opposite me and closed her eyes.
“Hey what are you…?” My sentence was cut short by Kida’s mouth clamping over mine. I was going to protest, but I stopped myself.
“Hey, this isn’t so bad…” I thought. Then she opened her eyes.
I could feel someone kissing me, but all I could see was myself. It was like I was kissing myself.
“Ugh!” I coughed as Kida pulled away, laughing.
“That’s not funny!”
“I thought it was hilarious! Now we’re even.” She stopped laughing and another awkward silence settled over us.
“It’s a good job nobody else is on this train. This one sided truth or dare would look kind of weird.” I broke the silence, but the tension was still there.
“Seraph…”
“Yeah?”
“…Never mind.”
We sat the rest of the journey in silence.
* * *
Goto was little more than a commuter town, yet probably the biggest two in the local area.
In the midday sunshine, which was pleasant after the weeks of storms, we headed up the trail towards the mountains.
There was only one road up to the village and it was shut due to a burst water main. Kida, however, knew the area like the back of her hand and found a trail that she had frequented in her youth. Through her eyes, I could see her pick out familiar features and points of nostalgia for her. Half way up the mountain trail we paused for lunch. We sat on a bench that was located on the side of the trail, opposite a small fountain. The figure on the fountain was a man and a woman holding hands. In the pool of the fountain were a number of coins.
“Why are there coins in the fountain?”
“This is the famous wish fountain. They say that if a man and a woman both throw a small coin into the pool at the same time, both their wishes would be granted.”
“Does it work?”
“I’m not sure. Want to give it a go?”
“Sure, why not?”
I dug out some coins and gave one to Kida.
“You have to make the wish the exact moment you throw the coin.”
“Okay, on three. One, two, THREE.”
I threw the coin into the pool. At the exact moment I let go I made a wish. Both coins hit the water in perfect harmony and they floated gently down to the bottom of the pool.
I realised Kida was looking at me.
“Now what?”
“We don’t tell each other our wishes. And if the fountain deems us worthy, our wishes will be granted.” Kida smiled. "It's kinda corny."
“Yeah.” I agreed. on the inside, however, I was burning to know Kida’s wish, and I was sure she felt the same.
We continued up the trail.
* * *
We made it to Kida’s village at about three in the afternoon. The sun was still blazing bright and it was warm, despite the brackish feel to the air. The village of Yokosuka was small but homey. Traditional style houses and wide open streets with a small square in the centre, which was surrounded by homes, a small convenience store and a small bar/restaurant. It was calm and peaceful.
“Kida!”
Kida looked to who had called out and in her sight I saw a man of medium build and height with thinning hair run across the square.
“It’s my old sign-language teacher, Mr. Furumura.”
“Kida, where have you been? We’ve been worried sick about you.”
Kida spoke to him in sign language whilst giving me a running commentary.
“I’m telling him that I think I must have sleepwalked or something and that you found me and offered to help me back home.”
“But that’s impossible,” Mr. Furumura was saying. “The roads have been washed out, we’ve only begun to get supplies in today. You would have been killed if you tried to walk out the village if you were awake, let alone asleep.” He was looking at me now. I fidgeted, aware of how my scarred shut eyes might appear to a normal person. Kida started gesturing again,
“I’m telling him that him that I don’t understand it either, but I really have to go see my mum, let her know I’m all right.”
“Okay. You let me know if you need anything.” He glanced at me again; clearly reluctant to leave Kida with me, but Kida shooed him away.
“Come on, I wanna show you my house.”
Kida led the way to her house, stopping every time somebody saw her, giving quick gestures of confirmation that she was fine. Yokosuka was an even tighter community than Shinoi was.
“Does everybody here know sign language or something?” I asked as we headed down a street towards a large house on the far edge of the village.
“Pretty much. Everybody learnt it when I had lost my voice in the accident. It actually makes life easier in the town for everybody, and it wasn’t too big a deal as it is a small town.”
Kida ran up the path and rang the bell. I followed a few yards behind.
The door opened and a small kind face, which had signs of worry over it, peered out. Her eyes widened when she saw me…I mean Kida. Then with a small scream, she threw herself around Kida.
I just stood there taking this in. I assumed the woman to be Mrs. Chihara, Kida’s mum. She was babbling something about how she was relieved and amazed and so on. She must have noticed me because she looked Kida in the eyes and asked
“Who’s this?”
Her gaze, which appeared to be looking at me, was penetrating and deep, from which I didn’t think I could lie to even if I wanted to.
Kida spoke in my head along with gestures to her mum.
“This is Seraph. He helped me home after he found me.”
“He didn’t hurt you did he?”
“MUM! He’s been a real gent, going out of his way to help me home.”
She turned round and I saw myself blush again. I coughed and stepped forward.
“Pleased to meet you. I found your daughter and realised she was mute. So I offered to escort her home.”
“Thank you for returning my daughter to me, despite you’re…um…the fact that you can’t…”
“It’s not been a problem, I can assure you.”
Kida gestured again, but without commentary.
Kida’s mother looked to me again.
“Kida asks if I would invite you to join us for tea. I would be honoured if you could accept as a thank you for doing this act of kindness,”
“I’d be glad to.”
Kida grabbed my hand and “guided” me into the house, following her mother. Mrs. Chihara disappeared into the kitchen as I took the opportunity to have a look round Kida’s house. It was large and spacious.
“Nice place you have here,”
“It is. I’ve been here all my life. It can get claustrophobic though.”
“A house this big?”
“Not the house so much as the village lifestyle.”
We were invited into the living room, where we knelt down at the table and Kida’s mother brought in the tea. We sat in silence as the tea was poured and the first sips were taken.
“When Kida disappeared from the house in the middle of the night during a storm, I was horrified. The paths around here can get so treacherous around here when it rains heavily. I thought I had lost her forever.”
“Well, I found her near Goto. She was suffering from near hypothermia and I nursed her back to health, then waited for the storms to let up before we headed back up here.”
“So, do you live in Goto?”
“No, I live in Shinoi.” I paused, realising that Shinoi was miles from here. “But I was in Goto for a business trip. I’m a reporter, and I wanted to do a piece on the beauty and tranquillity of this part of the region.”
“Really.”
Kida gestured to her mum, who nodded and Kida got up and left the room. I heard her feet padding upstairs as the second sight vanished.
I was silent, uncomfortable with the woman that I had met only a few minutes before. I started to sip my tea.
Mrs. Chihara broke the silence.
“You have symbiosis, don’t you.”
I choked on the tea, and coughed.
“How..?”
“You’re good at hiding it, but there are tell tale signs.”
“How do you know about it?”
“It’s a rare phenomenon, but not unheard of. My sister and her husband used to have it when she was about Kida’s age.”
“ “used to”?”
“Yes, she lost it after a while. But yours is a strange case. I’ve never heard of speech being transmitted through another. It’s normally one of the five senses that are complimented by another. But never has there been speech before.”
I sat for a while, digesting this titbit of information.
“So how did you really meet with Kida?” Mrs. Chihara broke the silence.
I sighed and started from the beginning. It was the first time I had told anyone the whole story, apart from my brother, and I felt a great burden lift from my shoulders. Mrs. Chihara made non-committal noises; as if it was a story she had heard before, but with an understanding rather than boredom.
“So what do you think you should do now?”
“I don’t know.”
“Do you like Kida?”
“Yes. But she really should be with her family, someone who understands her and can talk to her.”
“The way I see it, there’s no one better qualified than you Seraph. Kida’s obviously crazy about you. I think it would do her good. But that’s for both of you to decide.”
I sat there thinking about what she had just said.
Suddenly, Kida came clattering down the stairs. As the second sight kicked in, she grabbed my arm and pulled me outside her house.
“What are…?”
“Just sit here a second.”
She sat me on the steps of her house and then moved away. The sight temporarily vanished as Kida moved just out of range. I sat there, hearing a noise that was familiar, yet one that I was unable to place. The second sight suddenly came back and I saw myself get larger in my vision as Kida came running back towards me.
“Smile!”
“Wha...?” Kida leapt behind me and put her arms around my shoulders. As she looked up, I could see a camera on a tripod, a little light blinking to show that it was on a timer. The noise I had heard was the familiar clack of a tripod being set up. As I was a reporter, I had been around enough photographers to recognise their equipment by sound.
I tried to smile, but I wasn’t really photogenic. The flash was bright, the brightest thing I had seen in a long while.
“What was that for?" I asked as Kida packed her equipment away.
“I just wanted a picture of us together. So that I won’t forget you. I’ll send you a copy.”
“Thanks.”
Suddenly a boom shook the town. Kida looked up and I saw a thundercloud just above the peak of the mountain, and it was starting to move towards the village.
“Seraph, you had better get going. When that cloud breaks, the trails are going to be totally inaccessible.” Kida’s mother called from the house.
I nodded.
“Wait…how are you going to get back. Without me to guide you, you’re blind.”
Kida was frantically making gestures to her mum.
“Mr. Furumura is going to Goto. He can take him.”
We waited whilst the situation was explained to Mr. Furumura, and he agreed to take me to Goto, but we had to hurry.
I went to say goodbye to Kida.
“I don’t want you to go.”
“I have to go home. My brother would freak out if I went missing without a word of where I had gone, and I have to go back to work soon. I wish I could stay but I can’t. I’ll try to visit again when the storms are over. We can go and see Mt. Fuji-san from the trail you told me about.”
I couldn’t see Kida, but her vision was getting blurred, and I assumed she was on the verge of tears.
“Mr. Shinkai, we have to get going!” Mr. Furumura called.
I hugged Kida and whispered in her ear. “I’ll be back. I promise.”
I let her go and walked away. I watched my back start to move away. Then the second sight vanished with a sudden flash of blackness. I turned my head to face the way I came, and then followed the sound of Mr. Furumura’s voice. The rain had started to fall, but it was light, and not threatening yet. The wind had picked up slightly, and the thunder now rumbled ominously overhead on a more regular basis. We kept walking. In the darkness, which had become almost a stranger to me, I kept seeing images of the last two days. To try and dispel the emotions that I was starting to feel, I called out.
“How much further?”
“Not far. We are at the Wish Fountain.”
That did it. My tear ducts had been removed after the accident, so I could not cry anymore, but if I could, I knew my tears would be heavier than the storm that had brought Kida into my life, and the storm that was taking her away.
* * *
