This is the story of Ayame, a young artistic gymnast who, due to a stroke of fate, can no longer practise her sport. In search of a new purpose in life, she comes to Sendai from her home town of Sapporo by chance to work in the house of a famous fig...
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"Here we are, welcome to my house again, Ebihara-san!" Yuzuru had gone ahead and now let her follow him into the entrance area. He had put the suitcase down in the hallway. After they had both taken off their shoes at the genkan, he immediately turned to her.
"I'm sure you'd like to arrive in peace and quiet, move into your room and perhaps unpack already? I know you don't officially start work until tomorrow. So I thought I could order something to eat. It would be easier that way and you can settle in at your own pace."
"That's very kind of you, thank you very much, Hanyū-san!", Ayame bowed. „But I would like to start cooking for you today. If you don't mind, of course..." Ayame was slightly unsettled when she so obviously thwarted his plan with her offer.
Yuzuru looked at her with his mouth slightly open and a little surprised, a moment of silence followed. Then he grinned and said: "Wonderful! I am pleased and happy to accept your offer, Ebihara-san. But please move into your room first. Do you remember where it is?"
Ayame said yes, she remembered. It was at the far end of the corridor and there was also her own bathroom, which could only be entered through that room. It was a perfect little living unit, all to herself.
"Good, then I'm going to get some rest and freshen up. And then I'll meet you in the kitchen. Shall we say in an hour?" asked Yuzuru. "That would be perfect," Ayame knew that the hour would be enough. She didn't want to waste any time.
Yuzuru looked pleased. He nodded to her once more and then went to the upper floor where his room was. She looked after him as he slowly climbed the stairs in his oversized clothes. He suddenly looked very tired again. Well, he really should get some rest before they meet for dinner again, Ayame thought to herself.
***
Despite the long journey, Ayame was exhilarated and not at all tired. She had moved into her room, and it was beautiful. Stylish and simply furnished in calm, light colors, with a view of trees and lots of greenery. It was a corner room and had windows in two directions. So she would have plenty of light in the room in the morning and during the day, Ayame loved it already. A large closet gave her more than enough space for her things. There was a small desk by the east window, perfect for her laptop. The whole room smelled like a coniferous forest. It was wonderful.
The bed, however... it was right in front of the larger window. Ayame had forgotten to mention it to Yumi: she preferred to sleep on a futon. Her parents' house was small, so it had been for space reasons as well as the traditional ones, but it had always been good for her body, even after the accident. She assumed that Yumi's organizing hand had been involved and that she had arranged everything for her and prepared the bed.
For the moment, however, Ayame didn't want to make any more trouble. She would just try and use the bed. If she couldn't, Yuzuru would certainly provide her with a futon, she was sure of that.
She entered the spacious western-style bathroom through the connecting door. It had an open shower, an extra bathtub and a large mirror over the washbasin. It was furnished with wood and tiles and looked like a small, private onsen. She loved it from the first moment. The toilet was next door, in a separate room.
Back in the room, her two huge suitcases were already waiting for her, and she was doubly glad that she had sent them ahead. The journey had been so much more pleasant.
Ayame decided not to unpack straight away, though. She knew that Yumi had already done the shopping as a precaution to make things a little easier for her at the start, and she wanted to get to the kitchen quickly to see what was there.
A quick shower and fresh clothes would have to suffice for the beginning. She still had enough time later to make herself comfortable.
When she came out of the shower, wrapped in one of the huge, fluffy-soft shower towels, and was about to open her small suitcase with the clothes she had packed as a precaution, she happened to notice the flower lying on the pillow of the bed. She only saw it now, as the backlight from the window had previously hidden it from her view.
She stepped closer and immediately recognized it as a purple Japanese iris. She smiled at the gesture and touched the flower gently. Someone had probably thought about her first name. How thoughtful!
However, she only allowed herself this brief moment of pause and joy, because now she wanted to get down to business and get an overview of the kitchen as quickly as possible. That seemed to her to be the best strategy for arriving at Yuzuru's house properly.
