You and I [Completed!]

Back to Monotony

Hanami rested her head on the table with a dejected sigh. A lazy tactless woman was not the impression she'd wanted to make and yet she'd woken up at mid-day. By that time Mr Miyama had already left for office, probably offended by her behavior.

The scribbled note he'd left on the kitchen counter had been curt: 'Going to office, will be back by 7.' Along with the note, he'd left a glossy business card in case she required to contact him and a copy of the apartment key. Hanami looked at the key for a whole minute before placing it back on the table.

When she opened her eyes that afternoon and found herself in a room different than the tiny rose tinted one she had shared with her roommates, she had panicked for a second. It was the same terrible feeling she'd experienced as a child, when her hand had slipped out of her mother's hold during a festival and she had lost her way in the crowd.

Hanami sighed. There was no point mulling over it. Presently, a pile of chores awaited her. She made up her mind to apologize later when the man returned. She sat up, stretched and with a determined look on her face, rose to her feet.

After her belongings were unpacked and arranged into closets and drawers, Hanami observed the tidy room and a smile lit up her face. At least, the first task on the to-do list was done with. Now, she had yet to go through the herculean task of preparing something edible for lunch.

Her exploration of the kitchen had revealed that there were quite a lot of ingredients on the shelves- jars packed with everything ranging from sugar to wasabi. And going through the neatly arranged cartons, bottles and fresh vegetables in the fridge made her realize that Arata Miyama did not believe in 'instant' foods. And that, unfortunately, was all she knew best- open the pack, boil some water, stow the contents in and voilà the lunch was ready.

With a sigh, Hanami rummaged her bag, looking for a newly purchased cook book only to realize that she'd forgotten it at her previous apartment where the rest of her belongings remained as well. The day was slowly turning out to be a disastrous one.

"What do I do, now?"she mused, staring at the furnished wooden floor, half expecting it to tell her the recipe of miso soup. Maybe she could order something for the time being. But what about the evening? She would eventually have to cook. At least, that was what Mr Miyama might be expecting of her. She'd already produced a bad impression by sleeping in and now, he would know about her inability to cook a decent meal.

A low drone from the corner of the room drew her perturbed gaze towards the dresser. Her phone perched on the edge vibrated, blinking with a bluish light. With every buzz, it inched closer and closer to the corner and before she could understand, it toppled down.

Her eyes went wide, lips parted with a gasp and she rushed to catch her phone. It slipped through her fingers. And crashed to the floor.

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In the midst of paperwork, phone calls, meetings and presentations Arata lost track of time and when he glanced out of the window, he was surprised to see that the bright wispy blue had burgeoned into a darker shade. Few dim stars twinkled in the horizon, as if they'd go out any moment and leave a bleak darkness in their wake. He continued staring out, watching the faint glow of the Tokyo tower visible as a red outline among many other glimmering lights.

A pat on his shoulder drew his attention back to the presentation screen. Finding it blank and half the conference room empty, Arata looked around and found the director of Izanami Corporation looking at him.

He rose to his feet. "Director Yoshinaka, apologies. I was distracted."

"Of course you were distracted. Newlyweds quite often are." The elderly man smiled. "Already missing the missus, aye? No worries. Grab your jacket, we're going out. My treat."Yoshinaka tipped his head to another associate, beckoning him to join in.

"A treat?"the associate raised his brows, lifting a pair of spectacles sliding down his long nose.

"For joining our league of married men." Yoshinaka laughed with a shake of his head. The associate joined in the laughter though he did not seem to have any interest in the situation.

"Now, you heard me didn't you? Meet me in the lobby." The director gave a pat on Arata's shoulder before turning away and leaving the conference room. The associate floundered after him, prinking his regimental tie.

Arata stared at the diminishing figure of the old man, smiled and shrugged on his jacket. Although it was quite late, there was no way he could refuse the director. Mitsuo Yoshinaka was too stubborn to relent.

As he stepped out of the conference room into the brightly lit hallway, his gaze fell upon the clock on the opposite wall. It was half past seven. ​​​It suddenly occurred to him that he couldn't stay out as long as he pleased. Although he doubted whether the woman cared about his presence or not, he didn't want her to panic and call for the neighbors or her parents.

After a bit of hesitation, Arata reached for his phone, dialed a number he'd saved as 'HER' and waited for a few seconds, expecting to hear a soft spoken voice. However, when there was no response even after the fifth call, he shook his head, slipped the phone back into his pocket and left the conference room.

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