Chapter Seventeen
It took us half an hour to go where I was taking him. Of course, we took his car. I gave him direction on the way until we reached where I wanted to go.
A restaurant, but not really.
It was like an inn but not really. It was sort of a house restaurant that provided very quality, tasty food at a very cheap price. Especially authentic Japanese food.
Not many people knew about it because it was like a small house and aside from the board that was standing outside that says Shokudo: Authentic Japanese Food, nobody could tell that this place was a restaurant that provided food and meals too.
I had found it accidentally, when one day I was coming back from buying some stationary from the store, and got lost. I remembered looking at the board and thinking to ask for directions from the staff working here.
Instead, I was met with one old, humble, elderly couple, who not only gave me direction but also gave me their food for free. Even though I had told them that I could pay. Still, they did not listen to me. Later, I found out that it was because they thought I looked like their daughter, who was currently studying in Japan. And well, I had left the place slipping money in the grandma's old cardigan, against her wishes. Even though, after that I became broke as hell.
"Where are we? What is this place?" Mike asked me. Bowing his head down to take a good look at the home/restaurant. I smiled as I told him about this place. "This is a house restaurant. This place provides very authentic Japanese food." I answered his question. He was still ducking and lifting his head to check out the place through the window. Finally, my words sank in and grabbed his attention. He looked at me.
"A house restauarant? What is that? This place hardly looks like restaurant to me." He said, judgement clear in his tone. I could not blame him. The first time I saw the board outside, I was sceptical as well. So, I knew where he was coming from, but I knew he would change his opinion once he tasted their delicious food.
I took off my seatbelt. "You will change your opinion once you've eaten their food. And more than that you will love the people who serve them." I told him. He gave me a confused look. "What?" He asked me. I shook my head at his sceptic and confused face. "See for yourself. Come on." I told him, jerking my head for him to follow me into the house.
He gave me a look that read loudly - he did not like the idea, however, I was hoping that once he had experienced this place, all of his doubts would clear out.
I hoped he would like this place. As we stepped out of his car, he surprised me by taking my hand. He did it so casually that I almost felt he had been doing it all his life. He did not as much as glanced my way when he did that. I was still stunned from his action when we entered the place. My stomach was fluttering.
"Anyone here?" Mike called out as soon as we entered the house. Mrs. Hanako appeared from the right side of the house. When she saw me, her crooked teeth adored her old face. I smiled in return. "Hello, Mrs. Hanako. How are you?" I asked her, walking closer to her side.
"Kiyoshi, come outside and see who's here." She said, still smiling. She was wearing an apron that I had not noticed before, she cleaned her hands on it and then I realised that maybe they were probably making a meal at noon. I tried to see the room that was reserved for serving and saw that nobody was inside it. The door was completely left open and I could see inside it. I suddenly felt bad for the couple but then forced myself not to. Empty room meant that Mike and I could eat in peace without any disturbance.
Mr. Kiyoshi strotted out when his wife called him out. And just like Mrs. Hanako, he smiled as soon as he saw me. I saw him take in Mike but he did not comment. "Hello. Mr. Kiyoshi. How are you?" I asked him, giving him my best smile. "Good. Good." He said, rubbing his hands together, looking at his wife and then back at me. "You did not ask them to sit?" He asked her wife and Mrs. Hanako suddenly realised that we were still standing.
"Right, Right darling. I completely forgot. Go ahead and sit inside the room. What would you want to eat?" She asked me. 'What would you want to eat?' and not 'What would you like to eat?' The difference was clear as day. She asked me that question as if I were her family member.
"Can you prepare the usual for two?" I asked her kindly, and she nodded eagerly. "Sure. Sure. I will prepare it for you. Will only take few minutes." She said, before disappearing from the view. Mr. Kiyoshi escorted us to the room before he too, disappeared where Mrs. Hanako went.
I sat down and so did Mike. My shoulder sagged down in a little relief. We had privacy. Thank god. Well, aside from the old couple. Out of the blue, I realised that Mike had not spoken a word since he asked if anyone was here. I looked at him and saw him taking in the whole room that we were in. By the looks of his face, I can hardly tell what he was thinking or how he felt about this place. Therefore, I decided to ask him directly.
"What did you think about this place?" I asked him. Even though, I wanted to ask him in a straightforward style whether he liked this place or not. Right as the thought entered my mind, I suddenly realised how comfortable I have become around him. And how easy now it was for me to talk to him. I did not feel like fidgeting or squirming around him anymore. Nor was I looking for a topic to talk to him about. Things have smoothened out between us, without even realising it.
"It's good." He said while nodding his head, his eyes still glanced around. Finally, they settled on me. "I just never have seen or been to a place like this before. It's different." He commented, looking a little uncomfortable. I thought that it was okay for him to be like this because everybody gets this feeling when they try something new or go to a new place. But, I hoped he did not dislike this place. I was about to ask him when Mrs. Hanako entered the room with our cooked food.
"That was fast." I said, because I realised it would have been only five minutes of sitting there. Mrs. Hanako nodded her head, smiling brightly. Her eyes almost shut half when she smiled. "Oh, yes, yes. We were just preparing this before you arrived. So, it did not take too much time." She said, placing the plate right in the middle of the chair. She handed us the bowls of our food at both of our sides. With that she disappeared out the door.
I turned to Mike. "I hope you did not mind me ordering for you. They only provide Japanese food so I thought I would help you out with it." I explained it to him. He hummed. "Good thing you did. I don't know a thing about Japan." He said, before picking up the spoon, gathering some soup in it before sipping it all in his mouth. After a moment of silence, in which I had not even touched my food because I was waiting for him to taste his, he let out an appreciative sound. Nodding his head, he said, "It's good."
My shoulder sagged with relief. For some reason, him liking the food had somehow felt like him liking my choices. If he had not liked the food then I would have felt terrible. More than the owner of the place, probably. Mike kept his head face down, focusing on eating his food completely. I thought about picking a topic to talk about but then after watching him so engrossed in eating, I decided against it.
If he wanted to enjoy his meal then so be it. It's not like I had many topics to talk about with him. Sooner or later, I would run out with topics and then things would become awkward. It was better if we just ate our food in a comfortable silence. After about thirty minutes, we were done with our food. Mike asked me to split the bill but I shook my head and told him no. I paid the bill and we walked out of the place.
Once in the car, Mike thanked me for the treat. I told him nevermind. Right as we both settled in the car, Mike got a call from one of his friends asking him to be there. He asked me if it was okay for him to cancel with the rest of the activities, as it was an emergency. So, I agreed. Even when a wave of sadness settled over me. But then I thought better of it. This was more than I can ask.
Mike dropped me off on my place and kissed my hand and waved goodbye. Disappearing in his car somewhere, going somewhere I did not know. I was left with my own thoughts.
Staring at the street where his car had disappeared to.
I did not know what to think about today.