“Right now.”
“So soon…” said Kazuko with a tear in her eye.
“Of course I want to stay as long as possible. I’d much rather stay in this time and live happily among people like yourself and Goro. But I have work to do. I need to finish my research.”
Kazuko drooped her head. “Well, you are from the future, so I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that you should want to return.”
“But I do like your time better than the future,” said Kazuo without hesitation. “The pace of life is slower here, people are nicer. It’s just much easier to live here and to get along with everyone. And, of course, you’re here.” Kazuo looked into Kazuko’s eyes. “Of course, Goro is a great friend, and Mr Fukushima is a great teacher. But if it comes to choosing between staying here and going back to my research, then I have to go back to my research. It is, after all, my main purpose in life.”
“But please, don’t erase my memory!” begged Kazuko with all her heart. “I won’t tell anyone! I promise. I’ll keep the memory of you hidden in my heart. I can’t stand the thought of losing all my memories of you. I can’t!”
Kazuo looked distraught at hearing her words. “I can’t do that. Please understand,” he said in a low and determined voice.
Realizing her cheeks were wet with tears, Kazuko hurriedly took out her handkerchief and wiped her eyes. Suddenly, she felt rather ashamed at being so emotional in front of Kazuo.
“I understand…” she mumbled. But her heart was too heavy for her to say much more. “So I guess this is it.”
Kazuko stood up and took a good look at Kazuo’s face, that lovely face that she would surely never see again.
“Are you going now… right now?” she asked.
Kazuo nodded solemnly.
“Can you just tell me one thing?” said Kazuko, her voice cracking. “Are you never going to return to this time? Are you never going to appear in front of me again?”
“I will probably come again. Some day…” said Kazuo as he picked up the radio-like device from the desk and pushed in the antenna.
“But when will that be?”
“I don’t know when. Probably when I finish my research, when I succeed in making the potion.”
Hearing noises from the road outside, Kazuko realized that time was moving once more.
“So will you come back to see me?” She pleaded again.
Already, Kazuo was starting to fade before her eyes, and she had to struggle to keep him in sight. She watched as a white steam enveloped Kazuo and a strong scent of lavender filled the air.
“I will come to see you, Kazuko,” he said, rapidly fading. “Not as Kazuo Fukamachi, but as someone completely new to you.”
“I’ll know,” said Kazuko, struggling to hold on to her consciousness. “I’ll know who you are.”
Then everything around her went black, and all her strength left her body. And in that brief moment before her body hit the floor, she heard a distant voice.
“Goodbye, Kazuko. Goodbye.”
A TIME TO CONNECT
“Come on Kazuko, let’s go,” came Goro’s booming voice as he walked into the science lab. “I’ve got your bag here!”
“Kazuko! ”he shrieked, seeing her lying motionless on the floor. Immediately, he ran over to her and tried to lift her. But she was too heavy for him to lift by himself.
“What should I do!” He said to himself as his eyes welled up with tears. “Maybe you’re just exhausted, Kazuko! This lab is far too big for the two of us to clean!” And with that, he got up and ran to the staff room for help.
When he got there, he was relieved to see Mr Fuku-shima sitting there reading, and together they went to the science lab and carried Kazuko back to the nurse’s room, where they laid her on the bed and waited for her to wake up.
“Oh. What happened?” she said, with a groggy voice.
“You fainted in the science lab…” said Goro.
Kazuko strained to remember what she was doing in the science lab. But all she could remember was that she’d gone there to put away the brooms.
“Were you the only ones cleaning the science lab?” asked Mr Fukushima.
“That’s right,” said Goro, puffing out his chest. “Just the two of us cleaning that big room. Me and Kazuko and… That’s probably why she fainted, from fatigue.”
“I’m sorry to hear that,” said Mr Fukushima, sincerely. “I will increase the number of students on the task from tomorrow.”
Now that Kazuo had returned to the future, he no longer existed in the hearts of the people of the present. His memory had vanished entirely from the minds of Mr Fukushima, Goro and Kazuko. But more than that, there was simply no Kazuo Fukamachi in this world — with no seat for him in the classroom, nobody noticing his absence, and no reason for anyone to think that anything strange had happened. And when three days had passed, there was also no fire at Goro’s house, nobody was late for school, and no truck came careering through the red light at the intersection. Kazuo had seen to it that none of those bad things would happen before he departed for the future and peaceful days returned to Kazuko’s life. But every day, on her way home from school, she would pass by a small, nice-looking western-style house where a lovely middle-aged couple lived. Every day, she would pass by the greenhouse next to the house and every day she would enjoy the sweet lavender smell that came from within.
I remember this scent, she would think to herself. So sweet, so nostalgic. I smelt this somewhere before. But where?
She could see the name Fukamachi on a shiny name-plate by the door of the house, but it was a name that meant nothing to Kazuko. And at that moment, in her heart, she began to dream of meeting someone. Someone special who would one day walk into her life. Someone she would instantly feel she had known for years. Someone who would feel the same about her.
THE STUFF THAT NIGHTMARES ARE MADE OF
Masako was in the same class as Bunichi Morimoto again. They’d been in the same classes all the way through primary school, but had been placed in different ones the previous year, when they started secondary school. Bunichi had grown quite a lot in that past year, and now Masako only came up to his shoulders, so sometimes felt a little awkward standing next to him. But they were good friends who always spent their breaks working on their homework together. Their classmates teased them about this, but they didn’t let it bother them.
One day, towards the end of summer, Masako was packing her books into her bag when Bunichi came up to her and asked, “Are you going to volleyball practice today?”
“No, I’m going home. I have way too much homework.”
“We can go home together then, if you like,” said Bunichi. “But won’t your team-mates be upset that you skipped practice?”
“They won’t mind. I’m too short to get much time on the court anyway, so I think it’s okay to slack off a little from time to time.”
And with that, the two of them walked out of the school gates side by side and onto the street, to where the sycamore leaves were already turning yellow and a cool breeze danced around them.
“Bunichi?” said Masako in the tone she reserved for asking favours. “Do you think you could help me with today’s math homework?”
“Yeah, sure. Why don’t you come over to my house?”
“No way!” cried out Masako, surprising even herself.
It simply wasn’t like her to react that way.
“There’s no need to shout. I mean, you don’t have to come if you don’t want to.”