[Short Story (Romance)] The Evening Shower and the Witch of the East, 5000 characters
[HL: A small turning point of fate created in the lull of the rain]
"Welcome. First, please write your name here. A pseudonym is fine."
"A pseudonym is okay?"
The woman nodded magnanimously.
"Yeah, when I rented this spot, they told me to check if customers were antisocial or whatever, but I wouldn't know even if I asked. So, I just have people write their names. It's a harsh world, isn't it?"
"Huh."
It was a coincidence that I sat at that fortune-telling booth.
Why? Because I didn't want to be alone. Because I was frustrated by the massive amount of moisture brought by the rainy season and this sweltering heat. Those were simple enough reasons. Also, the booth was set up just under the eaves of the shopping mall, and it was perfect for avoiding the rain that had just started to pitter-patter.
When I turned around, the rain had turned into a downpour that washed everything away.
It had been an unfortunate cloudy day since morning, and the sky had looked gloomy the whole time.
Perhaps it couldn't bear the weight of it all by evening, because the moment I sat down, it fell as an evening shower.
To my left was the bustling arcade, bright as midday with flashing neon lights; to my right was the deserted outdoors, already dark from the heavy clouds hanging low, even though it was still evening in summer. Even now, a few people were running in here for shelter.
This was just a narrow intermediate point; I still had lingering attachments to going toward the bright side, but I hesitated to go back into the evening shower. Stuck there with my frustrated feelings, I eventually settled into this fortune-telling seat, quietly tucked away in the gap where the loud sound of the rain and its spray were hitting the eaves directly above and the ground just to my left.
Unconsciously, I might have wanted to hear someone's opinion on which way I should go.
As I sat in the seat, I suddenly felt the temperature drop.
"It's a terrible evening shower, isn't it?"
"I guess you could call it a guerrilla rainstorm. It should let up soon."
When I looked at the fortune teller again, she was a neat-looking woman in her thirties with long black hair parted to the side.
I had sat down on impulse and hadn't really looked at her, so as I glanced around, the woman laughed amusedly.
"Is this your first time getting a fortune told, young man?"
"Well, the first time for a serious one. I've had it done a few times with my girlfriend at booths in amusement parks and such."
"Ah, the ones near the caricature corner."
"Yeah, exactly."
The fortune teller's voice was somewhat calm, and as I finally felt relieved, my eyes caught the price list.
Noticing my gaze, the fortune teller tilted her head slightly and asked.
"What kind of fortune-telling would you like?"
"Well..."
The pricing seemed to be 3,000 yen for 30 minutes for one reading. It looked like 5,000 yen for an hour if you chose two. I didn't know the going rate, but come to think of it, the amusement park was about the same.
Life luck, work luck, financial luck, and then... love luck.
Love, huh? That word stood out painfully, but I didn't want to look at it right now.
In the morning, I came to this shopping mall for a date with my girlfriend. Although we had started dating, our relationship had deteriorated as quickly as possible as a result of pushing and shoving like the rainy season front, and I had a premonition even before coming here that it was probably already over. So, a little while ago, we both got angry and fought over something trivial. And she slapped me in public and ran off.
Both she and I are stubborn and pushy, so if it has gotten this complicated, it's probably impossible to start over. However, I actually quite liked her strong-willed nature, but I couldn't back down either, and we competed... where did we go wrong?
My feelings are as gloomy as the evening shower that continues to fall next to me.
Then, words like a summer breeze suddenly reached my ears.
"Shall I tell your fortune for today's weather?"
"The weather? It's already raining today, isn't it? The forecast said it would be cloudy all day from the morning. It seems it will be cloudy or rainy for the rest of the week, and we'll have to wait until next week for clear skies."
"I'm sure this is the end of the rainy season. When it clears, it will surely be bright and sunny. But well, today is a special day where whether it clears up or not is crucial."
Special. Is it special?
Various thoughts crossed my mind. But I don't want to think about love anymore today.
"No, well, please tell me my work luck."
"Work luck. Understood. Then, may I see your hands?"
"Oh? Is it palm reading?"
"There are others. Physiognomy, Four Pillars of Destiny, and so on. Tarot, too. Do you have a preference?"
"No, not particularly."
That feels strangely casual.
As I thought that, the fortune teller grabbed my left wrist and traced the lines.
"Do you have any allergies?"
"Allergies?"
"Yes, because I'm going to do an aroma massage."
"Aroma?"
"It's better to be relaxed, right? If your body is stiff, your mind and your destiny will be stiff too. Which scent do you like best?"
"Destiny?"
"Yes. If it can't be changed, fortune-telling has no meaning."
The fortune teller quickly pulled out five colorful small bottles and a round white ceramic pod from under the desk.
At that moment, a complex scent wafted through the air. A fragrance that mixed various scents, like orange, rose, and mint.
When I held them to my nose one by one, I smelled a familiar, refreshing scent.
"Is this... apple?"
"Yes, green apple. You knew that well."
"Yes, well."
"It's just the right season for it."
The fortune teller took the green apple aroma, added a few drops to the prepared oil, and the scent spread softly. I felt as if the humidity of the rain that had been stagnating and hanging low had dissipated only in that spot.
Then, she poured water from a plastic bottle into the top of the pod and added a few drops there as well. When she put a candle under the pod, the soft scent spread again. That mass of air pushed out the damp smell of the surrounding rain, and I was wrapped in a refreshing atmosphere as if I were inside a soap bubble of green apple scent.
"Is it okay to use fire?"
"Well, it's not allowed, but with this rain, no one will notice."
The fortune teller smiled with just the corner of her mouth.
"Is that so?"
"Yes, yes. So, young man, your work is going quite well, isn't it?"
"Yes, I suppose."
Work... I asked for work luck, but there wasn't anything particularly bothering me. I feel like it's going well. At least there are no major failures. I've lived relatively smoothly, and if things continue like this, I'll be reasonably...
While I was vaguely thinking about the future, the fortune teller massaged my wrists and fingers in turn. The unfamiliar, slimy discomfort and the pleasure of the massage. But with this scent, I felt a little more relaxed.
The future, huh?
"Young man, you're not interested in fortune-telling, are you?"
"Yes, oh."
The slip of affirmation was probably because I was caught off guard by this scent.
"Hehe, that's fine, that's fine. Well, coming here was also a whim of fate, right?"
"Huh."
"Let's see. If things continue like this, you will advance in your career reasonably, marry reasonably happily, and spend a reasonably happy old age."
"That's awfully vague."
I felt a little dumbfounded.
Is fortune-telling usually this vague? Something that could be said to anyone, and something that could apply to anyone. But I felt that the fortune-telling I had received before had also just been saying plausible things, even if it was dressed up.
The special feeling I had had somehow became a little ridiculous.
Perhaps sensing that atmosphere, the fortune teller continued.
"Hehehe, it's better not to say too much to people who aren't in trouble. Fortune-telling is something where the result changes with a slight misalignment of gears."
"Is that how it is?"
"That's right. Let's see, I might have said too much without hiding anything earlier, but for example, suppose I said, 'You will ride a bus within the next hour.' But since you heard it, you could kill time around here for an hour even if it wasn't in your plans. You would have ridden it if you hadn't heard it. Truly accurate fortune-telling is something subtle like quantum mechanics, and you shouldn't be told the truth unless it's really necessary. Because it gets twisted."
"Quantum mechanics, you say?"
"Yes, yes, observing it changes the future. That's why I wrap unimportant things in words that don't make much sense. Here, the other hand too."
I held out my left hand with a feeling of dissatisfaction.
However, for some reason, my right hand felt much softer and warmer than before, and I felt that my tension had eased just a little.
"Then, does that mean fortune-telling doesn't come true?"
"No, it comes true. But in most cases, there's no point in making life come true."
"Hehe."
Even though she was a fortune teller, that way of speaking was somehow interesting.
"You don't believe it, do you?"
"Well, it comes true, right?"
The fortune teller didn't get angry, but looked at my eyes with a gentle lift of her mouth.
"Then, I'll give you a fortune that will come true."
"A fortune that will come true?"
"In exchange, if it comes true, you must do one thing I say. This isn't about work luck, so you don't need to pay."
"If it comes true?"
"Yes, if it comes true is fine. In this world, there are things that are clear and okay to tell."
The fortune teller smiled mischievously and asked, "So, what will you do?"
And I felt the scent of green apple pop.
"Fine. What are you going to predict?"
"The weather."
"The weather?"
"I said it at the beginning, didn't I? So, if it comes true, will you do as I say?"
"That's fine, but don't say something like 'it will be sunny tomorrow.' I can't watch the sky all day."
"Hehe, of course."
The fortune teller laughed, took her fingers off my left hand, and clapped once. After glaring at the empty space in front of her with a strangely serious, all-seeing gaze, she covered her face with both palms and exhaled as if to exorcise something from the gap.
Although it was only for a short time, the beauty and divinity of that gesture strangely struck my heart.
"The rain will stop in 3 minutes, and it will clear up completely in 12 minutes. And a beautiful bridge will be drawn, and the man and woman will meet again. The Witch of the East, Ostens, swears to the gods of heaven and earth."
"Huh? Eh?"
I was taken aback. 3 minutes later? 12 minutes later? Unlike the fluffy, non-committal answers from earlier, that time was strangely specific. While I was confused, the witch continued.
"It will clear up properly. When it clears, as promised, you must leave this arcade immediately, go straight, and at the first main street, go right instead of heading toward the bus stop. This is your last chance. If you don't, you will regret it forever."
"To the right?"
"Yes. Right."
Suddenly, the sound stopped.
I turned around.
Something shivered down my back.
The rain had stopped.
When I looked outside, the clouds were still billowing, but the rain had definitely stopped. Even though it had been pouring like carpet bombing until just a moment ago. I was stunned.
"Well, there isn't much time left, so let's settle the bill."
"Settle the bill."
"Yes, yes, I am a fortune teller, and you are a customer. But this is a problem. Since it's been about 30 minutes, I thought it would be 3,000 yen, but I haven't really told your work luck, which you requested. Hmm."
The witch raised her thin eyebrows and groaned.
Work luck. I don't feel like paying for the fortune-telling earlier, but the fact that the rain stopped came true. The fortune-telling came true.
Besides, 12 minutes later, that is, 9 minutes later, will come soon. And if it clears up properly, I have to leave the arcade immediately. If I do that, there is certainly no time to settle the bill.
If this is the last chance.
"Um."
"Hmm, what should I do? How about you pay what you feel is right?"
"What I feel is right."
I sat in this chair with a lingering, frustrated feeling after breaking up with her. I wanted to talk to someone. I had a muddy vortex in my heart, not knowing what to do with these feelings and the future.
But talking to this witch for a while, and perhaps due to the effect of the aroma, combined with the scent of green apple, my feelings had somehow calmed down and become a little lighter. As if a refreshing summer breeze had blown over the surface after the rain stopped.
If the rain has stopped properly, and if the sky has cleared properly, if I hurry, I might be able to make it in time to her, who didn't head toward the bus stop. Somehow, I could think that.
Wow, a small cheer went up.
When I looked back again, the clouds were blown away one after another by a strong wind, and in no time, they were replaced by the twinkling of stars. It was like magic. And in the middle of it, I could see a beautiful Milky Way, and the three stars needed for today shone white and bright.
Yes, today is Tanabata, a very special day. They might be able to meet in a year, but if I don't meet her now, I will never be able to meet her again, never.
Now that the evening shower has lifted and it has cleared up, I must go see her.
"Here, the payment is fine, so go quickly."
I hurriedly opened my wallet. I threw a 10,000 yen bill on the desk and jumped out of the arcade, and I heard a voice from behind saying, "The payment is sufficient."
Fin
Ostens' fortune-telling shop is located in Galleria Kozu along the Sai-ao River in the northeastern part of the screen. It is a large suburban shopping center, and there is a shuttle bus from Kozu Station. The reason it is listed as 'Octens' on the map is because the witch is careless and never bothered to correct the mistake.