[Short Story] I Can Only Meet You on Rainy Days

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Whenever it rains,
I always head to a small bus stop.

On that bench, which is empty on sunny days,
a man sits only on rainy days.

A black umbrella. A slightly worn-out coat.
And, his profile as he reads a book.

"We meet again."

To him, who said that with a smile,

I
(But we've never met before...?)
thought.

＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿

That was about a month ago.

It was raining that day too,
and having forgotten my umbrella,
I hurried home at a jog.

Even so, the rain just kept getting heavier.

(I have no choice...)

It wasn't far to my house.
But I didn't have the courage to run home in this rain,
so I decided to take shelter at the bus stop.

A man was reading a book on the bench.

I glanced at the man.
(It looks like there are no more buses... Reading a book at a bus stop on a day like this... and he seems to have an umbrella, too...)

While feeling puzzled,
I decided to wait for the rain to let up.

The man looked at me.

"Please, have a seat if you'd like. It looks like it will keep raining for a while..."

"...Yes. Thank you very much."

I said that and sat down on the bench.

"If you'd like, would you like to borrow my umbrella?"

"Huh? But then you won't be able to get home!"

"I'll be fine. Please, use it."

"But..."

"Please throw away the umbrella you used."

"......Then I will borrow it. But I will definitely return it. If it's alright with you, your mobile number..."

The moment the thunder rumbled, I instinctively closed my eyes.
When I opened them, he was walking on the other side of the rain.

After watching him leave,
I opened that umbrella and hurried home,
but it was very strange.

At that moment＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿

The man looked like he had vanished for an instant.

Returning home,
I think back on today.

Someday, on a rainy day, I'll return the umbrella.
Thinking of such things, I fall asleep.

Some time has passed.

It was raining that day, too.

I wanted to return his umbrella.
Perhaps I could meet him at that bus stop once more...
Strangely, I felt that way,
so I took the man's umbrella,
opened my own, and headed toward that bus stop.

For some reason, at a convenience store along the way,
I bought a can of coffee.

The bus stop came into view.

I could see someone sitting on the bench, just like the other day.

Could it be...

Thinking that, I started to jog.

Sure enough, on such a rainy day,
there was the man reading a book at the small bus stop.

While catching my breath a little...

"I found you..."

"We met again."
The man said with a small chuckle.

Please, have a seat if you'd like.

Yes.

I sat on the bench just as I had before.

Thank you for the umbrella the other day. Thanks to you, I made it home without getting wet.

No... I'm just glad I could help.

(Glad I could help?)

I felt a strange sense of unease.

And I had the feeling that perhaps this wasn't the first time we had met.

Have we met somewhere before?

We've met again, haven't we?

The moment I saw that smile, a nostalgic ache stirred deep within my chest.

“I’m sorry... I just can’t seem to remember.
If you don’t mind, could you tell me?”

The man looks at me with a gentle gaze.

“You don’t need to return the umbrella anymore.”

“Why is that?”

“It’s fine if you forget.”

“As long as you are smiling, that is enough for me.”

(Huh?)

In that moment, just like the other day,
the man is already walking far away.

He was at a distance I couldn’t reach even if I ran.

It was just like that time.

On the way home.

(Is it okay if you forget... ?)

Those words wouldn't leave my head.

I felt sure that I would be able to meet him again with a smile,
saying, "We met again."

Whenever it rained, I started taking his umbrella
and heading to the bus stop.

But ever since that day,
he never appeared.

Even on sunny days,
passing by the bus stop
and checking the bench became my daily routine.

At the bus stop where there was never anyone else,
a woman was sitting reading a book.
The woman looked to be about in her sixties.

As if drawn by something mysterious,
I ran up to the bus stop.

"Excuse me, but have you ever seen a man reading a book here on rainy days?"

The woman had a clearly surprised expression on her face.

"By any chance, did you meet my son?"

...Your son? Was that your son?

The more we talked, the more his clothes, hairstyle, and facial expressions seemed identical.

What do you mean? I borrowed an umbrella from your son on a rainy day. But... when I tried to return it the next time I saw him, he wouldn't take it back...

...That's because... my son is no longer in this world...

What!? But I met him.

Could it be that you are Sachi-chan?

...Yes. How do you know my name?

The woman looked down and smiled slightly while holding back tears.

My son always cared about you, Sachi-chan, ever since you transferred to his elementary school.

But one rainy day, he saw you had forgotten your umbrella, and he couldn't just stand by, so he gave it to you and ran home.

I heard that shortly after that, you transferred schools again due to family circumstances.

My son passed away a few years ago, but he came to help you again. That is all.

Oh... I see... So I really was meeting him after all...
It was strange. I felt like I had met him before, but I just couldn't remember, yet I wanted to remember so badly... I kept coming here on rainy days.

I don't think my son will come anymore...

I'm glad I could help you.
If you are smiling, that is enough for me.
That is what he said.

The woman smiled a little again and said,
If that is what he said, then that is his wish.

I always come to this bus stop, which my son loved, to read a book on the anniversary of his death. While reading the books he liked, I feel like I can talk to him for a little while...

I'm glad I met you.

Me too. I'm sure he is the one who brought us together. Not on a rainy day, but on a clear, cloudless day.

It's just like him to be so kind, cheering you on.
So, please be happy...

Yes. Thank you very much.

Well then...

On my way home
looking up at the sky, I thought of him

I, who was saved twice
by him, with whom I only spent
a brief moment in my life.

Finding your kindness
in a corner of my memory,
it will continue to
gently stay by my side as I go on living...

To the sky where he spends his time,
"Thank you."
As I whispered that softly,
the summer breeze gently brushed against my cheek.

A few days later

I saw a girl without an umbrella in the rain.

"Please, use this."

Leaving the surprised girl behind, I started to run.
Passing on the kindness I received that day to someone else.
The summer rain felt a little kinder.

The End

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