Who is the 'Noah' that everybody keeps mentioning?
Even before meeting him, Hanako starts liking the mysterious person who shelters and waters the plants for her, in her absence.
It's not long after that he even becomes the oasis in the humdrum of...
Hanako gazed at the beautiful cherry blossom tree which, occasionally showered down drizzles of pink petals. Since her first day here, it had become a habit for her to stare at this beautiful king of spring standing tall and proud, the branches almost reaching inside the windows of the school building.
"The sakuras are in full bloom again this year," a voice from behind said, imperceptible as it mingled with the sound of the breeze.
After a brief consideration as to whether she actually heard the voice or not, she turned her head around.
Behind her, was an old man wearing a pair of scruffy trousers and a lab coat (why does it look mud stained?) over a beige shirt which said, 'Paseri.' (The Japanese pronunciation for 'parsley'.) Over a hooked nose balanced a pair of spectacles so old and frail-looking that Hanako would have liked to imagine it made out of some charred remains of sparkler sticks. The scarce quantity of hair was neatly combed to one side, though she anxiously wondered if it's the scalp below which gets most of the unnecessary scraping.
"Young lady, are you a first year student?" he asked.
She nodded again.
"What is your name?"
"It's Hanako."
He smiled. "Well then Hanako-san, can I see you after school today? I would like you to help me with some things. I'm Mori. Call me Mori-sensei."
"Ah yes... Mori-sensei."
Frankly speaking, Hanako didn't like charity work, but this old man with his muddied coat and kind smile urged her to realize that after all, it may not be bad to help these kind, once in a while.
***
Thank you for reading and don't forget to water your plants!
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