[Novel] I Was Here—The Cat Says Nothing, But Sasebo Knows the Town Scenery (Episode 30: "I'm Glad You're a Police Officer" / "There Was a Gentle Presence in the Shadow of the Hat")

Side B: "I'm Glad You're a Police Officer"
—One week before retirement, at my final police box

　The early spring breeze slipped right through the back of my uniform.
　In one more week, I will retire from the police force.

　Well, rather than "retire," it feels more like "my duty is coming to an end."

　I was offered promotions several times.
　But every time, I turned them down.
　Because standing on the street corner suited me better than sitting at a desk at the station.

　This police box where I am now was my first post when I was young.
　I never imagined that this would be the place where I would reach retirement.

　...At the same time, though,
　it seems it has been decided that this police box will also be closed.

　The higher-ups explained it matter-of-factly, saying something about "part of personnel rationalization,"
　but the words of a townsperson who muttered, "It's going to be lonely, isn't it?"
　weighed much heavier in my heart.

　One day, while that was on my mind,
　I was sitting on the bench in front of the police box.

　A brown and white calico cat wandered up.

　It looked at me with a face as if it had known me for a long time,
　slowly came up to my feet, and rolled over in a sunny spot.

"…Is that you, Bun-chan? You're famous, you know."

The townspeople often talked about him.
A cat that would wander in anywhere and stay by someone's side.

I never expected him to come all the way to the police box.

I smiled and pulled the tab on a canned coffee.
I had just been thinking about taking a break after my afternoon patrol.

Bun-chan said nothing.
He just narrowed his eyes and stared right at me.
Strangely, I felt a sense of relief deep in my chest.

"I want to finish my time here in another week."

When I muttered that,
Bun-chan gave his tail a small flick.

"So many things happened.
Lost items, runaway incidents, mediating fights...
But being called 'Officer' by the children
was what made me the happiest."

By the time the canned coffee had gone lukewarm,
Bun-chan stood up
and walked toward the utility pole in front of the police box.

The way his tail swayed
looked as if he were saying, 'I saw it all, you know.'

I stood up and gave a salute.
Not to Bun-chan's back.
But to this police box and this town.

"I'm glad you're a police officer."

That was the phrase that quietly welled up from deep within his chest today, just one week before his retirement.

[End]

Side A: "There was a gentle presence in the shadow of the hat"
—Bun-chan, in front of the police box

I am a cat. Bun-chan.
I walk through the town by scent and sound.
Today's wind felt a little different.

It was, well...
It was a wind that felt like, "Someone is about to finish something."

As I twitched my nose and turned the corner,
I saw an old man sitting on a bench in front of the police box.

The sun shone on the shoulders of his uniform,
and the eyes visible from beneath the shadow of his hat were looking far away.

—Ah, so this is the person.
The townspeople had been talking about him for a long time.

"The police officer at the box is an old-fashioned kind of guy," they'd say.
"He treats both children and the elderly with genuine care."

I quietly approached the bench.
That day, for some reason, it felt like a day I should be by his side.

The old man didn't get angry when he noticed me.
I felt like the depths of his eyes softened just a little.

"...Is that you, Bun-chan? You're famous, you know."

Saying that, he popped the pull-tab on the canned coffee in his hand with a click.

I decided to just stay quietly by his side.
I wouldn't meow. I wouldn't fawn. I wouldn't cling to him.
But, I could feel his feelings along with the wind.

The old man began to speak,
slowly and bit by bit.

"Being called 'policeman' by the children was what made me happiest."

His voice was as salty as the sea breeze,
but somehow, it was warm.

—Ah, this man has always been someone who "was there" in this town.

I gave my tail a flick and stood up.
No more words were needed.
I heard him loud and clear.

I stepped away from his feet and began to walk slowly down the road in front of the police box.
Behind me, I felt the presence of a salute.

Even without looking back, it came through clearly.

That today was a milestone for this person as a "policeman."

The scent of the wind had turned gentle.

That was enough.

[End]

Previous episode▼

Series Title List: (To be posted sequentially)

• Episode 1: "The Cat Above the Slope" / "The Delivery Person's Mission"

• Episode 2: "The Letter Carrier Below the Slope" / "The Word Florist"

• Episode 3: "The Tail's Map" / "The Tail's Arrow"

• Episode 4: "I'm Waiting for You" / "The Scent of the Wind, the Sound of Curry"

• Episode 5: "The Tail's Guide" / "A Cat in Sasebo"

• Episode 6: "The Sound That Unravels Me" / "The Sound of Trying Too Hard"

• Episode 7: "The Day I Let Go of That Hand" / "Me, Still Not Understanding"

• Episode 8: "The Reason I Cried That Time" / "A Mother's Heart, the Warmth of a Child's Hands"

• Episode 9: "A Night I Couldn't Say 'I'm Home'" / "Will I Be Able to Become a Proper 'Father'?"

• Episode 10: "The Sound of Fish, My Father's Back, a Cat's Footprints" / "Standing in My Father's Shop."

• Episode 11: "The Day I Returned to Land" / "A Heart Returning to Port"

• Episode 12: "Beside a Warm Tail" / "The Presence of Distant Mountains Behind the Scent"

• Episode 13: "I Was Waiting at the Exit of the Night" / "The Few Minutes I Return to Being Myself"

• Episode 14: "Before the Sound That Hasn't Yet Rung" / "I'm Sorry. But Thank You." / "Is Staying Behind the Same as Running Away?"

• Episode 15: "Beside the One Who Prays in Silence" / "The Prayer of the One Who Prays"

• Episode 16: "Before the Silence Turns Into Sweat" / "You're Here Today Too, Bun-chan"

• Episode 17: "The Reason for Raising the Noren Curtain" / "Bun-chan, It's Not Over Here Yet"

• Episode 18: "I didn’t say it out loud, but you heard me." / "A voiceless voice, I can hear it clearly, you know"

• Episode 19: "The Winner Who Doesn't Sing and the Clown Who Doesn't Laugh" / "The Distance Seen from Above, the Scent Reaching from Below"

• Chapter 20: "Light ignites between the two" / "I thought you would come. I have no proof, but I just knew" / "I didn't go to see you on purpose—though you probably won't believe me"

• Chapter 21: "Those who dwell on the boundary" / "I can tell by the scent whether someone is leaving or arriving"

• Chapter 22: "Even when falling, the eyes are always looking forward" / "I wanted to say that I did it"

• Chapter 23: "Even on days when there is no sound, there are those who can hear" / "Beyond the sound, there is a heart"

• Chapter 24: "The sound of unraveling is not in the voice, but deep in the eyes" / "Mother, the cat, and the stranger" / "Halfway up the slope, I felt two winds overlap"

• Chapter 25: "Today, there was no sound of a broom" / "When he is silent, I feel like the garden grows a little wider"

• Chapter 26: "Even if you can't hear the bell, the wind is still blowing" / "Even if the bell doesn't ring, the scent of memories remains here"

• Chapter 27: "Because someone was certainly here" / "Because you were here"

• Chapter 28: "Because those hands were gentle" / "Since the day I touched that child, I feel like the town has become a little warmer"

• Chapter 29: "The scent of dried nets and a silent kindness" / "Even if nothing is said, there are things that are understood"

• Chapter 30: "I'm glad you're a police officer" / "There was a gentle presence in the shadow of the hat"

Afterword

Thank you for picking up this book.
And I offer my heartfelt gratitude for walking this far with Bun-chan and the town of Sasebo.

I was born and raised in Sasebo.
However, I left town for university and found employment outside the prefecture.
But after several milestones in life, I am now living in this town again.
This collection of short stories began with my desire to depict the scenery of Sasebo—which feels nostalgic yet has certainly changed—and the lives of the people who live there, as seen through the eyes of someone who has "come to live in this town again," using a quiet lens called the 'cat's perspective'.
The protagonist, Bun-chan, is a white and brown calico cat.
He does not speak human language, but by simply being there, he gently accepts the small fluctuations in people's hearts and the expressions they show to no one else.
A cat in the corner of town.
While that is all he is, he is a presence that is surely remembered as having "been here."
The title of this short story collection was chosen as a phrase that symbolizes Bun-chan's way of being, and Sasebo as a "place where memories remain" for the people who have spent time in this town.
Furthermore, in the creation of this book, I have utilized OpenAI's ChatGPT as a creative partner.
At first, I consulted it about the plot with a light heart, wondering "what kind of stories might be born with a cat and a town as the setting," but before I knew it, my days were spent carefully exploring the breath of the story and the lingering resonance of words through dialogue with AI.
"A cat that doesn't speak," "people who don't want to talk," and "memories of the town that disappear without being told"—
I feel that being able to give shape to these themes through collaboration with ChatGPT, sometimes like poetry and sometimes as stories, was an essential process for this work.
Sasebo is a town of slopes and harbors.
The scenery that has changed and the atmosphere that remains the same all continue to nurture the memories of the people and the town.
I would be happy if Bun-chan's story could gently nestle into your heart as one of those memories.
Spring 2025
From the town of Sasebo
Author

Profile | Kazuomi Matsunaga

Biography:Graduated from Kyushu University, Faculty of Engineering (Materials Science) ⇒ Engineer at a metal materials manufacturer in the Chukyo region (Production Engineering) ⇒ Advertising sales for a local free paper in Nagasaki Prefecture ⇒ Educational institution staff (← Current position). In my 50s, living in Nagasaki Prefecture.
I am a writer who lets my thoughts play daily at the intersection of "questions" and "curiosity." Recently, I have been writing reflections from a unique perspective on themes such as education, storytelling, psychology, AI, and design, centered around my serialized column series, "The Science of Thought." I am currently exploring "free design of knowledge" that transcends existing frameworks. My motto is "Imagination opens up the world."
While working in university and education-related fields as my main profession, I value carefully observing "the moment someone starts to 'like' something" and "the scenes where questions sprout."
🧭 I would be happy if I could deliver articles that leave you with a "new perspective" after reading them.
Any feedback is always welcome!