My Soul Will Find Yours [Completed]

I Didn't Want It To End

The ringing sound came from the telephone on the small table near my futon. Disappointed that my dream was cut short, I threw my blanket off of me with a frown and went to answer the phone.

I was so close to seeing the man's face, damn it! "Hello!?" I didn't mask the tone of annoyance in my voice.

"Miss Yang, apologies for waking you up. This is Akihiro from front desk. You requested for a wake up call at precisely seven in the morning according to the reservation notes my colleague keyed-in on your record. Did we get the time wrong?" said the man on the other line politely.

I slapped my open palm on my forehead, I did ask for wake up calls. How could I forget? "No, no," my voice apologetic. "You got it right, Akihiro. Sorry for snarling at you, I.. I'm always like this.. I'm not a morning person, you see." I added a weak laugh for additional effect. I wasn't going to admit that I was annoyed at him for cutting my dream short.

"I understand, Miss Yang," he said. "When would you like your breakfast to be served?"

"In an hour," I replied. "Please and thank you."

"It's our pleasure," he said before ending the call.

Now that I was fully awake, I went back to the futon to roll it up. Old habits die hard. While I knew I was staying a hotel and could be lazy if I wanted to since I could always ask for the staff to clean up after me, I didn't want to act slovenly. I then went to Accuweather before looking for clothes that matched the weather that day. I also grabbed my toiletries and proceeded to doing my morning rituals.

Forty-five minutes later, I was at the adjacent smaller sitting room separated from the main room. The area was carpeted and had a Western style table and chairs. There, I opened my laptop and started searching the internet for ramen places nearby. I wanted to have noodles for lunch later. After reading several restaurant reviews, I finally made my choice. I decided to use Google maps for directions, thankful that I made the right choice of having a Flytpack Pocket WiFi[1] with me.

For the next few days I went to the different parts of Kyoto. Armed with just my cellphone, travel WiFi, and a spare powerbank, I managed to visit several temples, restaurants, became a geisha for a day in Gion, and experienced a traditional tea ceremony. I made sure that everyday I experienced something memorable. By the eleventh evening, I went to the inn's front desk to ask if they had recommendations for group tours. Akihiro helped me book one and was told that a tour coaster would pick me up at nine in the morning tomorrow.

As was my habit since coming there, I went to the onsen for a soak. The water temperature helped relax my muscles after a long day of walking around the city. By then, I was no longer ashamed of being naked around others. I've been doing this for more than a week, after all. I've made a few acquaintances since then so when I saw the familiar lady in the change room, I beamed.

"Konbanwa[2], Ryuko-san[3]," I greeted her.

"Oh, Hina-chan[4], it's you!" Ryuko-san, who was in the process of tying her hair in a bun, crinkled her eyes as she returned my smile.

I spent my evening dips with her since meeting her five days ago. She was in Kyoto vacationing with her son and his fiancee. She didn't want to be the third wheel so she would always decline joining them for dinner outside and ate in the inn's restaurant instead. Ryuko-san reminded me a lot of my own okasan[5], she took good care of her skin as much as my mum did.

"How was your day?" She asked me in a heavily accented English.

"Fun, as always," I replied. "Your country is so beautiful, I wish I could stay here forever."