 | 24:13 銀座駅 |
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“So there must be a difficult reason why I can’t understand, right?”, said Emma. Hearing this, Hiroki gave her a troubled look. “Are you saying that the reason I can’t understand is because of cultural differences?” “That’s not what I mean….”, said Hiroki shaking his head. “I just don’t know how to express my feelings.” An announcement came over the station speakers but Emma couldn’t catch what it was. She couldn’t understand why there were so many loud speakers in Japan. There were speakers everywhere. All they did was play music that sounded out of place and repeat things over and over as if they were addressing kindergarten kids. All sorts of sounds were heard all day long. Even cars and cameras spoke. In Japan, even the signal lights played nursery rhymes. Most Japanese were quiet and reserved. There weren’t very many people who spoke to Emma and when someone was speaking, the other person listened without saying anything. There were a lot of polite people. Still, the city was a noisy place. There was noise everywhere you went. Shops next to each other played different music as if it was some sort of competition. It was enough to give you a headache. Americans were the opposite. Americans were noisy. Of course there were quiet people as well but most people talked non-stop. Still, there were no speakers spouting out noise like in Japan. “My English ability is only about the level of an elementary school kid,” said Hiroki rubbing his face. “I can get across facts to some extent, but it’s difficult for me to explain detailed nuances or complicated feelings I have.” “The difference between you and elementary school kids,” replied Emma, “is that they try really hard to express what they mean, even when they don’t know the words, and you just clam up.” “Oh……I guess you’re right.” “You don’t have to be perfect. I mean, my Japanese is pretty bad. You speak to me in English so I don’t try as hard as I should. I realize that. I know I have to try harder and learn to speak better Japanese. But that’s not the problem.” The train stopped in front of Emma and the door opened. Compared to American subways, Japanese subways were clean. There was very little graffiti and the floors were kept spotless. The biggest difference though, was that there were no shady looking types that would come up and bother you. Letting out a sigh, Hiroki faced Emma. A sheepish grin appeared on his face. He leaned his head toward the train as if to say “shall we get on?”. Emma also let out a sigh; a forced, unnatural one. After letting a couple getting off the train go past her, Emma turned toward the door. She then noticed that there was an elderly couple waiting to get on as well. Hiroki also noticed and the two of them stopped and waited for the couple to get on. What was that sigh all about? And what did the sheepish grin mean? Emma encounter this sigh all the time. And meaningless smiles. It wasn’t just Hiroki, it seemed to be a facial expression that was common to all Japanese people. “Well, what’s your decision?” was what Emma wanted to ask. But rather than a yes or a no, Japanese answered with a smile. Of course, Emma sometimes had trouble making decisions as well. It’s hard to give a definite yes or no at those moments. Still, it was different with Japanese people. They were waiting for the answer. Even though they’re thinking “no” in their minds, they don’t say it and just reply with a smile. This smile is my answer they seem to say, never saying anything. Hiroki suddenly grabbed Emma by the shoulder and pulled her back. “What?………..” Emma’s eyes were wide with surprise as she also saw what had happened in front of her. The old man that was waiting to get on the train had suddenly been pushed down onto the platform by a guy getting off the train. The guy was big for a Japanese. He was built like a football player. Emma couldn’t believe what he had done. The old man fell over on his back and his wife bent down over him, calling out to him. Hiroki left Emma and turned toward the young guy. Emma grabbed Hiroki’s shoulders and frantically pulled him back. Hiroki looked back at her. Emma shook her head to say no. She knew how Hiroki felt but she didn’t want him to tangle with the guy. What they really needed to do was help the old couple. The wife continued to speak desperately to her husband. A young guy jumped off the train, followed by a young girl. “Daijoubu desuka?” Even Emma could catch the young guy’s Japanese. The young guy knelt down and peered at the old man. Just as Emma and Hiroki were moving toward the old couple, they suddenly heard a girl scream on the other side of the train platform. “What……” Emma couldn’t believe what was happening. In the middle of the platform, a man was on fire. Standing in front of the burning man was the guy that had crashed into the old man. “Huh?……..” Emma couldn’t believe what she was seeing. This wasn’t New York, this was Japan. No, even in New York or Los Angeles, this sort of thing rarely happened. But there really was flame covering a man’s body and he was rolling on the platform floor screaming. Next to them, the young guy yelled out something and the girl that was with him answered and started to run. This brought Emma to her senses. “Hiroki!” she said and Hiroki nodded and moved toward them. He knelt down at the side of the old lady. Emma also bent down on the other side. Hiroki said something to the young guy. Emma couldn’t catch the fast spoken Japanese. Frowning, the young guy peered at the old man’s face. He replied to Hiroki in rapid Japanese, then addressed the old lady. “Oikutsu desuka, Goshujin wa?” Emma finally caught what was being said. “Hachijuu ku desu” replied the wife. Hiroki again asked the young guy something and the young guy shook his head in answer. Seemingly perplexed by the answer, Hiroki took the old man’s wrist and looked along the platform. He saw two men desperately trying to put out the burning man’s flames. Emma put her hand on the old lady’s shoulder and, drawing her toward herself, said “Daijobu. Kitto daijobu desu.” Wondering what had happened to the young girl, Emma looked behind her. A large group of people had formed a circle and were watching the tragedy. They just watched though, no one made any move to help. Hurry, Emma prayed, hurry and get some help. Turning back, her eye’s met Hiroki’s. Hiroki opened his mouth to say something. Then it happened. A powerful flash of light suddenly blinded Emma. At the same time something hit her body with a force that she had never experienced before. Emma collided into the body of the train and disappeared. |
 | Hiroki |  | The old man |  | a guy | |
 | his wife |  | A young guy |  | a young girl | |
 | a man |
