Deep Breath: Extra - Part 2

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Airmail 2

Having slept most of the flight, the journey back to Japan felt much shorter than the trip there. When Kenji Yachi landed in Japan, the first thing he noticed was, "It’s not that cold." Despite only staying in England for a week, it seemed his body had already adapted to the chill.

From the airport, Yachi went straight home. As the old hedges came into view, he felt a sense of relief just by seeing them. He opened the wooden gate and first checked the cat’s food dish under the eaves. …The food, which had been piled high, was completely gone. Even though he knew the cat probably considered his home a secondary residence and would have gotten food from other houses, he couldn’t help but worry a little.

There was an airmail letter in the mailbox. The sender was Yoshihisa Haruno. He had mentioned sending the letter on the day Yachi was due to arrive, so it was likely the same one. Yachi tucked the letter into the breast pocket of his coat and entered the house. The air inside felt a bit stale, so he opened a window.

He placed his bag in the corner of the room and looked for a pair of scissors. Standing, he carefully opened the airmail and read Haruno’s letter. After calmly describing his life in England in his neat, small handwriting, the letter ended with, "When are you coming here?"

Yachi wondered what kind of expression Haruno had while writing this. Just imagining Haruno, with his serious face, sitting at his desk made Yachi’s cheeks relax into a smile. He wanted to see him. Come to think of it, Yachi hadn’t taken a camera on the trip. He had an old film camera, but it was heavy and inconvenient, so he had left it behind.

Suddenly, the phone rang. Maybe…? Yachi thought, hurriedly standing up and bumping his knee against the low table. It hurt, but afraid the call might end, he hobbled over and picked up the receiver.

"Hello, this is Yachi."

After a brief pause, a voice came through the line: "It’s Haruno." Was it just his imagination, or did Haruno’s voice sound a bit sweet?

"I’m glad to hear you made it back to Japan safely," Haruno said.

"Were you watching me with a hidden camera or something?" Yachi teased.

Haruno let out a small "Huh?"

"I’m kidding. I just got home, and then your call came in," Yachi explained.

Haruno fell silent. Yachi didn’t understand why.

"Haruno?" he prompted.

"I… I called several times before this," Haruno murmured quietly.

"Did you?" Yachi asked, surprised.

Despite wanting to hear more of Haruno’s voice, the silence returned. Yachi decided to change the subject.

"Haruno, I have a request."

"What is it?" Haruno’s voice finally returned.

"Could you send me a photo? I didn’t bring a camera on my trip, so I don’t have any pictures."

"Of course. What kind of photo would you like?" Haruno asked.

Realizing Haruno misunderstood, Yachi quickly clarified, "Not of a place—could you send me a photo of you?"

There was another long pause.

"I have a request for you, too," Haruno said.

"What is it?"

"I’ve bought a computer and had it shipped to your house."

"A computer?"

"I know you’re not fond of such things, but I thought it would be nice if we could keep in touch via email."

It was true that relying solely on airmail and phone calls made communication a bit inconvenient.

"I appreciate it, but I can buy one myself."

"I’ve already paid for it."

"But…"

"I haven’t paid you back for the Tower of London tickets or the meals you treated me to. Consider this my way of making up for it."

Haruno’s tone was firm. Even so, Yachi knew that a computer, even a cheap one, would cost ten or twenty times more than what Haruno owed him. Haruno had already bought it, so returning it wasn’t really an option. Perhaps Yachi could look up the price later and pay him back. There didn’t seem to be much point in arguing about it now.

"Alright, I’ll gratefully use it."

He could hear a relieved sigh from Haruno on the other end of the line.

"With the computer, we can use Skype to talk face-to-face, so I won’t send you a photo," Haruno stated firmly.

Yachi felt a twinge of sadness at the refusal. Even if they could video call, it wasn’t the same as having a photo.

"Do you not want to send a photo?" Yachi asked.

Haruno didn’t respond. It seemed he really didn’t want to. Some people were like that.

"It’s not that I don’t want to," Haruno finally said, his voice sounding slightly sulky.

"Then why?"

"If I don’t send you a photo, you might call me when you want to see my face."

Yachi replayed Haruno’s words in his mind, and his face grew hot. The idea that Haruno wouldn’t send a photo so that Yachi would call him instead was both endearing and a little embarrassing.

"Is it cold over there?" Yachi asked, changing the subject.

"It’s early morning here, and it’s very cold."

"I wish I could be there to warm you up," Yachi blurted out, feeling embarrassed as soon as the words left his mouth. He began to regret his choice of words, but before he could sink into self-loathing, Haruno responded.

"Please don’t say things like that," Haruno’s voice was slightly angry.

"Why not?"

"Because you can’t actually do it… When you say things like that, it makes me miss you even more."

Though Haruno’s voice was tinged with frustration, it also trembled as if he were on the verge of tears. The sound sent a bittersweet ache through Yachi’s chest. Being involved with Haruno made Yachi realize that he still had feelings like this inside him.

And it was clear that what he was feeling was, unmistakably, love.

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