Dedicated to: VCA ika dalawampu't tatlong konseho

Chapter 1

White Satin Dress

August 16, 2022
In front of a neighbor's house
Near White Kamono Hotel

"Huh?"

That was just the single word I could utter as I stared back at those small eyes in front of me.

The wind was hot. I could feel the beads of sweat from my temple that were slowly gliding down to my cheeks. The damp white cloth was still resting on my head as it fluttered with that unexpected emotion.

I should run. I should apologize. I should make a movement to escape, but when his eyes full of fascination gazed at me, something suddenly slipped into my mind that maybe it's not just the place that held portals to escape the world of unuttered problems— sometimes it's the way someone looked at you, differently.

The moist of summer heat, the few cars that passed by on the nearby road, and the gentle sway of the cluster of pine trees along it made me feel that I am completely in different world right now— that maybe even if I am alone right now, being alone in this beautiful place is not bad at all.

Kapwa kami hindi makagalaw sa pagkakasalampak sa lupa, ako na natuon ang mga hita lupa habang ang mga kamay ay nasa pagitan nito, at siya naman na nakaupo habang ang dalawang kamay ay nakatuon sa likuran niya upang suportahan ang kanyang sarili.

"Or a ghost?" tanong ko sa kanya.

Sa ilang salita kong iyon ay doon pa lang siya natauhan. He immediately stood on his feet, ilang beses pa siyang muntik nang mawalan ng panimbang dahil sa pagmamadali.

He took a few steps backward before he cleared his throat and pointed his trembling finger on me.

"W-What are you doing here?!"

Someone told me that it's very rare to find a Japanese who can speak English, lalo na sa ganitong lugar. It's not a problem to communicate in English to the big cities of Japan, but if a foreigner will stay in the countryside, she should ready her Nihonggo.

What's another unusual? To meet a similar person in a completely different place. Though Maehira Koen isn't far from here, I never thought that I'd meet him again, for the same reason, but in a quite awkward situation.

When I got up and was about to remove the damp cloth around my body, he quickly took the distance between us.  He held the white cloth and pulled it more around me as if it would secure me from something.

He wasn't looking at me, his head was looking at the right side, with his blushing face under the sunlight. "Aren't you aware that you're still in your white night dress, Miss?"

Umawang ang bibig ko habang nakatingala ako sa kanya. Ako na mismo ang humila ng puting kumot na medyo basa at mas ibinalot ko iyon sa sarili ko.

He sighed before he bowed down. I thought he was about to apologize which was not supposed to be him, but I just realized that he was picking up my father's photograph.

"Here," he gave it to me for the second time.

"T-Thanks. I-I'm really sorry for the trouble. . ." mas ibinaba ko ang pagkakayuko ko sa kanya.

Tumango lang siya. Nanatili lang kaming magkatitigan ng ilang segundo, hindi ko alam kung dapat ko na ba siyang talikuran o tanungin kung may dapat ba akong gawin? Should I give him something for the trouble?

I just trespassed! I ruined his white curtain. Nabangga siya ng bata kanina at dalawang beses na niyang ibinalik sa akin ang litrato ni Papa.

"I will just bring this back after—" hindi niya ako pinatapos sa sasabihin ko.

"Are you a Filipina?"

I blinked twice. "Y-Yes. . ."

He awkwardly shook his head with a small smile on his lips. Nakapamaywang na siya sa harapan ko habang pinagmamasdan niya pa rin ako.

"So, you're aware of Sidra?"

"Huh?"

Hindi dahil Pilipina ako ay makikilala ko na ang babaeng Pinay na sinasabi niya.

Parang nagulat siya sa reaksyon ko. "You're not aware of her? Sidra Everleigh?"

"I don't know her."

Napakamot siya sa kanyang ulo. "Tadashi told me that Sidra has been conquering the Philippines' television with her endless commercials. I think Seiji is still jobless."

"What?"

"She's an actress. I am just quite curious if my cousin's wife is doing good. I still have no connections with them."

Umiling ako dahil wala na akong naiintindihan sa kanya. "I am sorry. I am not watching television."

"Oh, sorry about that."

Tumango lamang ako. Aalis na sana talaga ako nang bigla na namang nagsalita ang lalaki.

"How about a dinner?"

One of my mother's reminders when she was still alive is not to trust or accept a stranger's invitation. Pero ang tangi ko lang nagawa ay lumingon pabalik sa kanya at ngumiti.

"Sure. What time?"

"I'll pick you up at 7 pm."

I nodded at him. Ngunit nang nakakailang hakbang pa lang ako ay muli na naman niya akong pinigilan.

"Miss, I forgot to ask your name."

"Rhoe Anne," tipid na sagot ko.

He smiled a bit as he placed his hands in his pocket. "It's nice to meet you, Rhoe Anne. I'm Kousuke Matsumoto."

Muli akong ngumiti sa kanya bago ako huling tumango at tumalikod sa kanya. I pulled the white cloth around my body as I walked slowly away from him.

He's very different from the stories I've heard about Japanese. They're known for being cold, aloof, distant, anti-social or even boring, but Kousuke— the stubborn neighbor that I've heard from stories is way too different.

Because he's like summer— warm and bright like his smile.

***

I spent the rest of the day inside my room, on my bed, lying on my stomach, with my legs playfully swinging, while reading a book entitled "To Kill a Mockingbird"

I suddenly had goosebumps when I read a part where Jem chose to stay with his father, Atticus Finch when he was being surrounded by dangerous-looking men. He held his father's hand even with great fear in his heart.

I bit my lower lip. The bravery of this young boy, even if he's fictional is very admirable.

This is why I love reading so much, it's giving me the privilege to meet different kinds of people, and for me, their characters wouldn't be possible without a writer that shares a part of his/her life.

In this book, I know that I partly met Harper Lee.

There's always this part of the book that you'd choose to stop for a moment and feel more the scene in your head. Ibinaba ko muna ang librong nakabuka at ipinatong iyon sa dibdib ko.

Huminga ako nang malalim bago ako bahagyang tumingala sa ulunan ko.

The sliding door in the balcony was half-opened, the thin white curtain was fluttering, and the sunflower windmill at the corner was rotating as the wind blew.  

Kung nasa hotel building A siguro ako ng hotel ay masisilip ko iyong kapitbahay naming si Kousuke. My neighbor next door told me that the owner of the house was a grumpy old man.

Maybe he's the grandson?

I took the bookmark and placed it on the page where I stopped reading, and I put the book on the small table near my bed before I allowed myself to roll over my bed.

I took a glance at the sliding glass door at the balcony. Nakasampay na kasi roon iyong puting kurtina na ibinalot niya sa akin.

How could I face him without bra?!

He probably saw my nipples with that white satin sleepwear!

That's why I've been trying to distract myself with Harper Lee's book! Dahil sa tuwing wala na akong iniisip ay naalala ko iyong nakakahiyang pagkikita namin ni Kousuke.

Baka isipin niya ay naghahanap ako rito ng mapapangasawang hapon at pinakitaan ko na siya agad ng nipples ko!

Halos sabubutan ko ang sarili ko. Iyon din ang nasabi sa akin ng kapitbahay kong Pinay sa sunod na kuwarto. Karamihan daw kasi sa mga hapon dito ay iniisip na gusto lang mag-asawa ng mga Pinay rito ng hapon.

Kousuke might be handsome and cute, but marrying Japanese is not part of my plan! I still don't know what happened with my father and mother, but I don't want to follow their tracks. Dahil sa sandaling malaman ko kung nasaan si Papa at kung ano na ang kalagayan niya ay uuwi na ako.

Around 5:30pm when I started to prepare. Isa rin kasi iyon sa pinaka nahihirapan ako. It's hard for me to prepare, kaya dapat ay maaga ako laging nag-aayos, lalo na at alam kong on-time lagi ang mga hapon.

When I opened my cabinet, the first one that caught my eyes was another white dress. Since I am quite tall, I tend to buy long dresses, bihira rin kasi akong magsuot ng maiksing mga damit.

I picked a long white summer dress with a vintage puff on the shoulders, with a low cut on the chest, it has a thin string that could tie as the ribbon in the middle that would hide my cleavage, and it has a high slit that reached almost half of my left thigh. I chose white sandals, picked a small rattan sling bag, and a white handkerchief-like headband. I applied light makeup and used vanilla perfume.

When everything was done, I turned around in front of the mirror to see my final look. Unlike other girls who have long hair that they could style easily, I have this short black hair with natural messy hair.

I don't have this natural beautiful perfect curly hair, not even straight like a model of shampoo, but I have this thick and messy hair. Buhaghag na parang nilagyan ng style, iyon ang lagi kong naririnig sa mga kaibigan ko. And I don't know if I can consider it an insult or a compliment. 

When I felt satisfied with my look, I sat back on my bed and waited for the time. Hindi na kami nag-usap ni Kousuke kung saan kami magkikita pero siguro naman ay alam na niya kung saan niya ako susunduin.

We were just few steps away— neighbors. Hulaan niya na lang kung saang building ako. Maliit naman ang hotel na ito at hindi na mahirap hanapin ang entrance at exit ng mga guest.

Two minutes before 7pm when I left my room. Dumaan na ako sa hagdan dahil hindi naman ganoon kataas ang second floor. Naglakad na ako sa parking na nasa harapan lang naman ng maliit na hotel at tumigil ako sa dinadaanan ng mga sasakyan.

Exactly at 7 pm, a red car stopped by in front of me. The window slowly pulled down, and the smiling face of Kousuke greeted me.

Bubuksan ko na sana ang pintuan nang pigilan niya ako. Nagmadali siyang lumabas ng kotse at pinagbuksan niya ako.

"Thank you," pumasok na ako sa kotse. Hindi mawala ang pagtataka ko sa kanya. Ibang-iba talaga siya sa mga naririnig ko tungkol sa mga hapon.

Agad siyang nagsalita nang nagsimula nang tumakbo ang sasakyan niya.

"We're going to Joyfull. It's the nearest place here to eat."

Tumango na lamang ako. Simula nang dumating ako sa Gifu ay puro pa-deliver pa ako. Sa totoo lang ay natatakot akong makipag-usap sa kanila, lalo na't kaunti lang ang alam ko sa Nihonggo.

"So, is it okay if I ask you?" tanong niya. Saglit siyang sumulyap sa akin bago niya ibinalik ang atensyon niya sa daan.

"Yes," tipid kong sagot.

"So, you're here in Japan for? I am sorry for being nosy."

"No. It's okay. I am just getting surprised. You're very different from the stories I've heard about Japanese."

He laughed. "I've been hearing that for a while. This country has a standard. My family has a standard. I thought following the standard is always right, but it will not make us always happy."

Napatitig ako sa kanya dahil sa sinabi niyang iyon. It took us just ten minutes until we arrived at Joyfull. He opened the car's door and the restaurant's door for me, and we were welcomed by a uniformed crew, wearing a white top and gray pants.

"Nan nin?"

"Futari desu."

Naintindihan ko naman sila dahil tinanong ng crew kung ilan kami at sumagot si Kousuke na kami lang dalawa. Pero napansin kong saglit na natigilan ang babae.

Kousuke whispered to me. "She knows me. She'll definitely report to them that I have a date."

"Report to whom?"

He chuckled and shook his head.

We picked the corner table and it has a hanging painting of a yellow tree.

Joyfull's restaurant is quite cozy, with its nice lighting, wide space, comfortable couch seats, and divisions in every table of half-wooden and glass. There are different paintings on the wall, huge glass windows alongside with it are small potted plants, and a statue of an illuminated dog.

The crew even explained that we have unlimited drinks in front of us, from flavored teas, cocoa, sodas, and even soup when Kousuke and I picked our order.  

While we were waiting, I suddenly remember that I haven't answered his question.

"I am looking for my father."

"The one in the photo?"

I nodded.

"Do you know his name?"

"Just his first name."

"Oh, that's quite hard."

I took my mother's family name. My father and mother didn't get married. Hindi ko alam kung nagkaroon ba si Papa ng sariling pamilya o minsan ba ay inisip niya si Mama, pero handa ako sa posible kong malaman.

I know that there's part of me here in this country.

"I really want to help you. In just a single snap of my finger, we can easily locate your father."

Napanguso ako. "Really?"

"Well, not now. I am still under my family's punishment. They want me to realize that I have nothing without our power. So, they sent me there, in that old house, excluding me from anything. Right now, I am just a cute country boy with a red car with gasoline that's about to run out."

Tuluyan na akong natawa sa kanya. "A-Are you telling the truth?"

He nodded. "My family's very complicated. So, how long are you going to stay here?"

"Just this summer," sagot ko.

"But the summer's about to end. It's going to be Autumn," sagot niya.

"According to the news, the season's shifting will adjust a bit. I think this year the summer started quite late."

He nodded again. "Then I'll help you. I'll help you find your father this summer. I think my punishment is until the summer ends."

"Y-You sure?"

Ngumisi siya. He boyishly placed his right elbow on the table, swiftly moved his hand, and placed his chin above it, while interestingly staring at me.

"I think that satin dress has a trick and every Matsumoto boy's curse. . ."

"What?" kumunot ang noo ko.

"When Seiji asked for a gold, I asked for a white. . ." ani niya bago siya lumingon sa parating na babaeng may dalang pagkain.

And then he whispered with that mischievous smile on his lips.  "That silly shooting star getting us in trouble. . ."