On a Sunny Day

"It means a sudden, unexpected surprise, like a clap of thunder on a sunny day."

"Is that what 'seiten no hekireki' means?"

"Haha... what are you talking about? S-E-I-T-E-N-N-O-H-E-K-I-R-E-K-I. 'Seiten' means a sunny day, and 'hekireki'—the characters are tricky—means a clap of thunder."

"Ah, like the 'Hekireki Issen' (Thunderclap Flash) one?"

Moeka said this while resting both elbows on the table, one hand propping up her chin, and the other holding a paper cup of mocha. Keita, sitting across from her at the small round table, had his coffee cup sitting on the table while he leaned back slightly with both hands in his pockets. The hem of his coat hung down near the ground.

They were at a cafe terrace facing a grassy plaza in a city park. The wind was still a bit chilly, but the sunlight had become much warmer, and the scent of spring could be felt in the air.

"Moeka, how many years has it been since you joined the company?"

"It will be exactly two years this April."

"Right. Your parents were so happy when you got into a good company in Marunouchi, so quitting suddenly to go on a working holiday in Paris must have been a real bolt from the blue for them."

"Yeah. They were super surprised and totally against it."

"I bet. Your boss at work must have been surprised, too."

"Yeah. I got scolded a lot. Well, quitting suddenly after two or three years is actually pretty common in the workplace, though."

"And then there's me..."

"Yeah... It really is a bolt from the blue, isn't it?"

A spring breeze swept between the two of them, and the edge of the napkin held down by Keita's smartphone fluttered.

"I suppose so. But, in a way that's typical of you, Moeka, it's also within the realm of expectation... So? How many years are you staying there?"

"Two years."

"What about work?"

"A job like an assistant at a local Japanese company. But it's a tiny company I've never even heard of."

"What about the salary? Can you pay rent and make a living?"

"I can't make it on the salary alone. I'll have to dip into the money I worked so hard to save."

"Well, I suppose that's to be expected."

A ball belonging to a toddler playing with their parents on the nearby grass rolled to their feet, so Keita picked it up and tossed it back to the family. "Thank you," the parents said, and the toddler also said in a loud voice, "Thank you, big brother."

"I hear Japanese girls are super popular in France. Someone like you, Moeka, who's popular even in Japan, will probably have men lining up to approach you."

"Well, that might be the same for you, Keita, staying behind in Japan."

Moeka said this while looking down at the cup on the table, smiling quietly.

"Well, I guess we're even then."

Keita said this, then raised his shoulders and stretched while still seated.

"I want you to come visit me in Paris."

Moeka said this while looking straight at Keita.

"I'm still a resident, so I have all sorts of restrictions on money and time. But going to visit you in Paris doesn't sound bad at all."

For a while after that, the two of them sat in silence. The warm sunlight, the sound of children playing in the grassy plaza. A peaceful spring holiday afternoon.

"You really don't say things like 'Don't go,' 'Don't you dare cheat on me,' or 'I won't cheat either,' do you, Keita?"

"Did you want me to?"

"No. Not saying those things is just like you, Keita. It might sound strange, but I was actually happy about it."

"I know, right?"

With that, they both laughed.

The family that had been playing ball folded up the sheet they had spread on the grass, and they went out of their way to come over to the two of them to say "Thank you" before leaving. Both then and after that, the two of them sat in the spring sunshine, barely speaking. For them, the silence was not painful at all.

"It's almost time for the movie."

Keita said this and stood up.

"Yeah."

Moeka also put her smartphone in her bag, stood up, and linked her arm with Keita's. Today was the opening day of the roadshow. It was a popular movie, so it would surely be crowded.


* This work was written based on the prompt "On a Sunny Day" from the Shirokuma Literature Club's casual project. Thank you always, Shirokuma Literature Club.

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