Curiously, their relationship was not strained. She stayed over with them in their condo sometimes, and they all came over to stay at Tokié’s home at other times.
Tokié’s late husband left her the house, on which the mortgage had been fully paid off, along with a tidy sum of money, and when she died presumably – as their only child – Tokié’s son and his wife would inherit these from her.
It’s not that she didn’t worry about whether she would need care, but she had taken out private insurance for this possibility and was conscientious about her diet and exercise. As Tokié got older, it was perfectly natural for her to hope for a sudden death, one that didn’t create a burden for anyone.
She figured that, so long as she was still living on her own, she was entitled to one last selfish wish. Something she’d been wanting since her husband passed away.
While there was still time, she wanted to have a dog.
Being obliged to walk the dog would be good for her health.
Even if she became unable to care for it, her grand-daughter loved dogs and, with the inheritance, her son and his wife could manage to look after one little dog.
Tokié was pondering all this as they moved to the next car where, standing by the door, they saw a woman in a snow-white dress, looking just like a runaway bride. She was quite a beauty, though the look on her face gave the impression that she had just stabbed someone.
Her granddaughter may love dogs, but she was also of the age where she adored princesses and brides and frilly lace dresses, so she pointed at the woman and exclaimed, ‘A bride!’
Just then, tears flowed down the woman’s cheeks.
A grownup could intuit that there must be extenuating circumstances. By the woman’s feet, there was a wedding favour bag from the Takarazuka Hotel, a top-notch local venue. Anyone with common sense and consideration knew that you didn’t wear an ostentatious white dress when invited to a wedding.
Furthermore, a dress as beautiful as that must have cost at least a hundred thousand yen. Judging from those tears in response to Tokié’s granddaughter, the woman appeared perfectly intelligent – not the type to commit an unintentional gaffe.
Her granddaughter seemed utterly enthralled, and immediately took the spare seat next to where the woman was standing. There was not quite enough space beside her granddaughter, which made it preferable for Tokié to stand in front of her, hanging onto the strap.
Her granddaughter was staring inquisitively at the tearful woman. For better or worse, the girl was of an age where she was curious about everything, so it was only a matter of time before she started asking why the bride was crying.
Tokié figured there was a better chance of avoiding embarrassment for the woman by pre-emptively engaging her in conversation. Her granddaughter had enough discipline to know that she wasn’t supposed to butt into grownups’ conversations.
‘Was it a successful incursion?’
It seemed to take a moment for the woman to register Tokié’s question.
‘Are you speaking to me?’
‘Yes, I asked you a question.’
Tokié might like to think that her blunt way of speaking was straightforward and natural, but the woman seemed to have taken it as criticism.
‘You must think I’m ridiculous – a woman wearing a white dress like this and carrying a wedding favour.’
‘Don’t take it the wrong way – I’m not criticizing you at all. If anything, you might very well think I’m the one who’s ridiculous. A nosy old lady asking a stranger whether her revenge was successful.’
The woman looked like she’d been caught off guard, but then she chuckled.
‘I’m not sure whether I was successful or not. It’s possible I may have only brought them closer together, in their hatred towards me. But I hope that when they think of their wedding, the two of them remember me. I won’t let it be the happiest day of their lives. I want to make their wedding a day they’d rather forget.’
The woman had been speaking stiltedly but then her tone seemed to relax.
‘I’m a wronged woman. While I was in the midst of planning my wedding, that hussy took advantage of his jitters to lure him away. It was calculated – once she was pregnant, she came to him, weeping and helpless.’
‘There have always been and always will be devious women like that. What a tale of woe.’
‘That’s a strange response,’ said the woman. ‘Usually, I’d expect to hear that, no matter how much of a grudge I have, putting a curse on my ex is simply not done in polite society. Especially from someone your age.’
Tokié replied, ‘You’d have to be a saint to have something of that magnitude done to you and not put a curse on him. So long as you have the wherewithal and you’re certain you won’t regret it, no doubt you’ll feel much better for striking back.’
Her gaze drifted to the landscape outside the window. The houses lining the railway were all old and shabby.
‘One must be prepared to take on and atone for the curse, in and of itself. You did it because you feel deeply wounded and so, a stranger’s rebuke, no matter how accurate, won’t shake your resolve. But I’m nothing more than a nosy bystander.’
‘… I’m prettier than the bride.’
‘No doubt you are.’
Were that not the case, you never would have attempted such an incursion.
‘When they came around to my table, the bride turned to the groom with a fiendish look. She saw that he was looking at me. Seeing me, more beautiful than in all the five years we were together. Ten years from now, when she’s a tatty old housewife, worn out from housework and raising kids, I hope he remembers how I looked today. Even when I’m worn out, I’m sure I’ll age better – and I hope he remembers the woman he could have had, the one he let get away. I hope he remembers how the woman he married, on the day that she looked her best, compares to me. And that he is disillusioned by the life he chose so rashly.’
She spat out this noxious venom that some might have interpreted as boastful. But the woman who looked as though she had just stabbed someone was herself wounded, unavoidably spattered with the blood of her victims.
‘I don’t care whether people think I’m arrogant or nasty. I was willing to do whatever it took to put a hex on those two. I wanted to make sure that what ought to have been the finest day of their lives would be jinxed.’
‘You’ve got mettle.’ Tokié nodded and then shifted the conversation. ‘So, you work at the same company as the bride and groom?’
‘Yes.’
‘This is unsolicited advice from a nosy bystander, so take it as you like.’
The woman listened solemnly.
‘For now you can curse them to your heart’s content. Your mere presence at the office will be humiliating and will surely affect his prospects.’
Tokié deliberately didn’t mention anything about the bride. Her own life experience told her that there was little chance such a crafty woman would return to work after giving birth – and that in light of the circumstances, she had little motivation to do so. Even having accomplished her scheme to steal another woman’s man, it was doubtful she had the grit or the guts to withstand the scornful looks from her colleagues.
‘But once you’re satisfied with the curse, you ought to quit.’
Tokié offered no further explanation and the woman kept quiet. She seemed to have a good head on her shoulders and to be taking in Tokié’s message.
With the groom now saddled with such a clingy partner, relentlessly pursuing the destruction of their life together would backfire, earning her their enduring resentment. The curse would then burden her for the rest of her life.
Tokié had no idea about the depth or breadth of the woman’s love for the man. But she was still young and beautiful – this blow, though painful, was not fatal. She would surely recover, of this Tokié was certain.