Dangerous Lines | Yuzuru Hanyu

8. Sendai

With her husband so distracted, Yaeko could finally go outside for the first time in what felt like ages. She enjoyed it, the freedom of being able to walk unnoticed in an unknown place and just explore the city and the surroundings.

The best part of it all was that since they were trying to just go by unnoticed, the couple had gone to Miyagi without a single bodyguard.

For what seemed like the first time since she married that man, Yaeko felt like she was finally allowed a glimpse of what life could be if things had been different.

Walking freely around the streets of Sendai, she allowed herself to enjoy all of the little things: the breeze of the wind, the children rushing to get to school on time, and the glimpses of nature that seemed to be in every corner. Even the small shops that she had never seen in Tokyo.

Sendai felt like a place of peace, where she could be herself without the usual judgment she received around her home.

Sure enough, Tokyo was big enough for her to go by relatively unnoticed but every single neighbor knew who she was and the side glances were never that nice to receive.

She eventually found herself in a quiet and peaceful street again, her surroundings filled with small shops. One of them, a coffee shop, somehow made her curious.

Entering this place, it wasn't that hard to realize that it was really quiet, with barely any signs of customers going in and out.

A young woman was sitting in a corner, studying with her laptop, iced coffee in front of her and there wasn't much more movement.
Just the tranquillity of a calm space made her interested.

From the moment she entered, an older lady greeted her almost right away with a deep bow.

Before she knew it, Yaeko was already sitting at one of the tables and being offered the simplest of drinks, all of them sounding delicious as the woman listed them. Ending up with a latte in front of her, Yae enjoyed the peace that surrounded her in that space.

It was so easy to just stay there, sitting right by the window and observing the surroundings of the shop.

She didn't know it then, but that little place would end up being a refuge during her time in the region.

Yaeko barely even realized it but soon enough, she developed a routine of going there in the mornings, sometimes with her latte, others with a matcha tea.

Those moments, when she was just Yaeko and not the Yakuza wife, were more valuable than she could have ever imagined. Being herself was taken for granted on more occasions than it should. It was only when you weren't allowed to be it that the importance became obvious.

She wasn't even too sure of how many days had elapsed since she started going to the shop but every day felt the same. Yaeko would wake up, fulfill whatever needs her husband had and soon after, she was walking out of the door into her walk.

Whenever she left, he glanced sideways at her. Yaeko had this feeling that her husband wasn't a big fan of her endeavors but was choosing against saying anything because he knew she needed something to do just like he did.

If he was about to spend most of his living moments with a phone in hand, it was only natural that she found something for herself as well.

The mornings at the coffee shop were now so common that the owner was already expecting her every day, asking immediately what she wanted and saving her the best suggestions all the time. Yaeko liked the older woman even though she often reminded her of her mother, always worried, always trying to do the best for others. She was now so familiar with most of the customers that it was as if she was a local.

Sendai had received her with open arms and the people there were incredibly nice. Yaeko hadn't explored much yet, choosing to just spend her mornings in the shop and eventually going back to the hotel so her husband wouldn't be too pissed off.

The owner of the shop had been telling her to go around more and even went as far as recommending some more touristy places for her to visit, it was nice, even if she wasn't too sure if she could go around like that.

"Maybe we should find you a nice tourist guide." the woman eventually joked.

"I don't think my husband would appreciate that."

"So what? Being married means that you can't have friends?"

Truthfully, it kind of did, but Yaeko wouldn't admit that out loud to the woman, too fearful of the explanations she would need to give after that. She had mentioned her husband before, when trying to explain the circumstances of their visit to the region, mostly giving the excuse that Kiyoshi was there in business and she had been dragged along.

"I know what you mean, but I still don't think it's a good idea."

"Insecure men...you should run away from them"

It wasn't as if she could... Even when she was quite certain that the older woman was right.

"Don't worry about it, I'm loving Sendai either way."

As displeased as the woman was about her dismissal of the idea, the older woman still accepted it. Despite having Yaeko's best interest at heart, the truth was that she couldn't have known the girl's identity and how much care went into protecting every person who could come across her.

All Yae wanted was to lay low and enjoy her time.