The Winter Project

19. Minoru

Minoru's family were treating him so well with home cooked meals and beer that he would have most definitely put on weight if he wasn't constantly finding new and exciting routes to cycle and mountains to hike. He had already picked up on some basic Japanese phrases and developed an insatiable appetite for the early morning; something he had previously thought impossible. He had already seen and learned so much from them but he knew he had to continue on his journey. He felt desperately sad to say goodbye to his Japanese family. His two weeks with them felt like a lifetime and he was adjusting to their lifestyle so well that he thought he could live there happily forever. He couldn't, however, get rid of the thought that he had spent nearly a month in Japan and barely seen any of it.

He said his regretful farewells to his family as they dropped him at the train station, and then continued on his journey. His next stop by train was Osaka, and as he sat and watched the world go by at full speed, he felt alone for the first time since leaving home. Maybe it was because he had just said goodbye to his own flesh and blood who he probably would not see again for many years, or maybe it was because he knew that there was nobody waiting for him at his destination. He thought briefly about Stephanie and wondered if she was okay. He then remembered how she had stolen his television, and although it felt more trivial to him now that he had more interesting things to focus on, it still made his blood boil and he chose not to think of her anymore.

It was late November and the cold was starting to reach a level that Minoru found unbearable. He loved the summer months and spending time outside in the sun wearing nothing but a t-shirt and shorts, but now he was wrapped in a coat with a scarf around his neck that his grandmother had given to him. He could still smell their house on it as it pressed against his nose, and he felt homesick for a place that wasn't home. Minoru did not like to feel any negative emotions, and so he spoke to himself internally about how amazing his experience had been so far and how more incredible experiences awaited him. He felt instantly more cheerful and relished the scent of his grandparent's house as a reminder of how lucky he was.

Once Minoru emerged from the train station in Osaka to the bustling street, he felt overwhelmed at the sight of the city after spending so much peaceful time in the smaller town where his family lived. Yet he felt comforted to be surrounded by people again, for Minoru loved places of energy and never ending possibility. It was night time now, and the bright lights of the city had awoken him.

He thought his love for the Japanese people could not possibly grow larger, until he found himself lost and unable to find the hotel he had booked while sat on the train. On entering a restaurant and asking for help, two young men who were sat at the bar agreed to take him there via bicycle. He followed them outside and one gestured for him to climb onto the back of his bicycle while the other cycled around them drunkenly singing. Minoru clung onto the complete stranger as they biked through Osaka city centre and he was given a preview of this vibrant place. Eternally grateful, he could not stop thanking them, astounded by their gracious hospitality for someone who they owed nothing to. He thought about how there were so many cynical and unaccommodating people in the world and how refreshing it was to meet people who were willing to help when they had nothing to gain.

At the hotel, he attempted to sleep purely because it was nighttime and in theory he should have been exceptionally tired, but the bright flickering neon light outside of his hotel room window made the idea of sleep seem impossible, and so he got dressed again and ventured outside, hoping at the very least that he would get to talk to somebody to curb his newfound loneliness. The first bar he walked past was full of noise of people talking and laughing, and the sounds comforted him, drawing him inside. He sat at the bar drinking a beer alone, not an uncommon sight in Japan and so he assumed nobody would question or approach him. To his surprise, after only a few minutes alone, a young Japanese man approached him, possibly in his early thirties or late twenties. He was well dressed, clean shaven and had a look in his eyes that showed kindness, radiating from his face. Minoru was always proud of his emotional intelligence and felt that he could work people out by just a few looks, and he decided that this man was kind at the very least.

'Would you mind if I joined you?' he asked. His American accent took Minoru by surprise. Minoru nodded and gestured to the stool beside him. The man sat down, beer in hand, and sighed. They sat in silence for a few moments, before the young man spoke again.

'I'm Hideki,' he said, reaching out his hand for Minoru to shake. 'And you?'

'Minoru.'

'Ah! You do have Japanese blood. I was unsure at first.' He laughed out loud.

'My Dad's Japanese,' Minoru explained. 'Born and bred in London, though.' Hideki responded in Japanese, and Minoru stared blankly at him.

'Okay,' he said, shaking his head. 'What a shame! Good thing I grew up in Texas.'

Minoru did feel relieved to be able to speak to somebody who clearly knew English as a native language. He had spent so long speaking in slow and broken English that he was beginning to think in broken English, and it would sometimes give him a headache after he became aware of it. He spoke to Hideki for the next two hours or so, knocking back beers and sharing stories of their lives from the other side of the world. Hideki's sense of humour was dry and sarcastic, something Minoru had missed when speaking primarily to Japanese people. They talked for so long that Minoru did not realise they were drunk until he found Hideki and himself in a karaoke bar, in a private room with six other people, singing songs in English that made the two Japanese girls in the room stare at him as if he were a much desired celebrity. He enjoyed the attention, for it had been a long time since he was allowed to accept it without feeling guilty that Stephanie would find out somehow. 

At five am, they were all walking down the street together and Minoru admired the tired and drunk businessman who he saw sleeping on the street, too comfortable in the safety of his city to bother going home to sleep. Nobody in the group except for Hideki spoke English, but Minoru would still laugh with them all as they joked in a language he didn't understand. 

Minoru spent the next three days in Osaka with Hideki, who had agreed to show him the best of the city. He enjoyed it immensely, but he did feel as if he were simply repeating the same activities that he had done in Tokyo. He was thirsty for more discoveries, and so felt it was time to continue on his journey. Hideki lived and studied in Texas as a mature student, but he was spending time in Japan over the winter to be with family and reconnect with old school friends. He offered to take Minoru with him as he travelled, and Minoru was eager to accept his invitation. Since meeting Hideki, his sense of loneliness had faded to nothing and he was finally enjoying himself again.

He was excited to learn that Hideki had a car for the duration of his stay, and was more than happy to sit in the passenger side of the car as Hideki sped through the Japanese motorways back in the direction of Tokyo. He tried to work out how long he had been in Japan, and figured it was a little over a month. Although he was enjoying it immensely and consistently relishing every waking moment, he began to wonder if he should consider visiting another country before returning to the mundane routine of his life back home. Always fascinated by Japan due to his own father, he had never considered where else he would like to go. He thought about other parts of Asia, Europe and briefly considered South America, but he couldn't pinpoint where on a map he would like to end up. He asked Hideki about Texas and the United States, but Hideki simply laughed in his face and told him that he wouldn't enjoy Texas at all, but did not offer an explanation. 

Minoru thought of Stephanie again, hoping that she was recovering from their break-up and that she did not hold any bad feelings toward him. When he had separated from his first love, the break-up had been amicable despite Minoru's heart feeling as if it had been shattered into a thousand pieces. He had not expressed rage or offence to her decision, and he had not chased her after she left him. They had spoken a few times since the break-up and he had always been kind and polite to her, for he had loved her and wanted what was best for her even if it didn't involve him. He had felt liberated when he woke up one morning and knew that he no longer loved her. With Stephanie, he had known it while still sharing a bed with her, and he felt repentant for a moment until sleep finally took hold of him.