There were no stars in the sky that final July night. Only dark rainclouds hung heavy over the small town – shadowing the moonlight and threatening to burst open at any moment. The streets were empty, and no lights could be seen in the windows; with midnight just a few minutes away, the air was still and quiet – perhaps even a bit lonely.

In retrospect, it probably would have been a good idea to accept her friend’s offer to stay over at her place after work. But it was an unfortunate turn of events; the brunette had already made plans for the next day, and she couldn’t afford to compromise them. Besides, even if the path was dark and a storm loomed over her head, it wasn’t as if she hadn’t walked herself home at night before; it was a route she was very familiar with, and the threat of wet clothes was hardly an issue.

Glancing down at her phone, she noted that the time was eleven-fifty-eight, and feeling a bit anxious to get home, she quickened her pace in hope of making it to her apartment within five minutes. Even if she wasn’t afraid of walking alone at night or being caught in the rain, she was still tired and wanted to try and be in bed before one o’clock.

But it was strange. At first, she thought she was imagining it, but no, with every step she took, the young woman started to feel increasingly dizzy. Maybe she had overworked herself that day? She had worked a six-hour shift, and while that really wasn’t a big deal, the café had been surprisingly busy for Sunday evening. It wasn’t just her sense of balance that was affected though; she was beginning to feel oddly lightheaded, and when she rubbed at her eyes to clear her vision, the world around her continued to be blurry.

Seized by confusion, her heart raced frantically as her trembling fingers gripped the cell phone in her hand.

She would just call…

She would just…

She would…

She…

With every second that passed, her thoughts became even more fragmented until nothing but a jumbled white noise filled her mind. And soon enough, even that gave way to a suffocating darkness that swallowed her consciousness.

It was slow – her descent back into a wakeful state. Was it the sound or the feeling of rain that truly drew her out of unconsciousness? She didn’t really know the answer to that. She didn’t really seem to know anything at all, in fact. Laying there on the concrete – her body shivering and aching from the biting cold of the rain and the constant pain from falling – she waited for a dawning realization to overtake her, but nothing came. Only a bleak emptiness where her memories should be persisted in that eerie silence.

When it was obvious that not even her name would come to the forefront of her mind, an overwhelming fear settled in her heart, and she launched herself into a sitting position – desperate to…To do what? She didn’t know, and she fell back onto her elbows – vertigo causing the world to spin around her.

”What is…?” she weakly murmured, relieved to find that her voice still worked – even if it was drowned out by the sound of the heavy rain. But what good was a voice if she didn’t know what to say or who to call for help?

Shivering more violently, she slowly forced herself up into a sitting position – pushing back her tangled hair from her face and rubbing the water as best she could from her eyes. There was little to see around her though as she struggled to squint through the curtain of rain; the muted light overhead offered her no help, and she was reluctant to investigate the scattered content of her bag – unaware of what it really was.

There were gray clouds floating in the sky that summer morning, but as the young woman cast her gaze toward the open window, all she could see was the promise of a shining day stretching out before her. Even the sigh that slipped exasperatedly passed her parted lips hardly disrupted the cheerful smile that dimpled her cheeks. Three phone calls from three very nosy friends and several text messages later, one might think her spirits would be dampened, but that couldn’t be further from the truth; this day was special to her, and no one, not even her two overly-protective and cautious childhood friends could ruin it for her. And then of course there was Sawa who was just anxious and excited to learn about the new man in her life because there was no way she would be so secretive about her plans if she wasn’t going out to meet someone important. Naturally, her friend was right, but that didn’t mean she had to tell her about him yet; she wanted to enjoy her time with the photographer from Kobe before all of her friends caught wind of her potential relationship and scared him off with probing questions and dangerous threats.

Checking the small clock hanging on the wall, a nervous flutter of panic danced through her heart when she realized that all of the phone calls and text messages had set her back twenty minutes, and there would be no way she could avoid being late now. As she dashed to the front door – pausing only a second to pull close the curtains – she quickly slid into her shoes and hastily locked the door behind her. Without so much as a glance over her shoulder, she hurried through the apartment building – stopping for a moment to catch her breath only after she made it to the street. It was then when she remembered to look inside her bag to make sure she hadn’t forgotten anything back in her apartment. Lucky for her, her phone, ID and wallet were all present and accounted for, so with a relieved sigh, she set off in the opposite direction of her job; she had specifically asked him to meet her in a place where they were least likely to get caught. Maybe that was wrong of her, but a pushy older brother and a scowling friend tended to make situations uncomfortable.

Anyone who glimpsed her passing them on the street would not mistake her intentions; she was a young woman on a mission – determined to reach her destination without any interference. They would also notice how pretty she was; she was a lovely vision in a cream-colored summer dress topped with a light pink cardigan. Small white ruffles trimmed the cuffs of her sleeves and hem of her dress, and a choker was fastened around her neck – a delicate pink rose gently positioned against her throat. Her chestnut hair fell loosely to her shoulders save for the small braid plated on the left side of her head, and instead of the braided bun accessory she often wore secured on the right side, she chose to wear a simple light pink and white headband. To finish off her ensemble, she wore white sandals and carried her white floral bag. It had taken her longer than she cared to admit to choose that outfit, but in the end, she was satisfied, and she hoped he would like it, too. Perhaps it was strange, but she found herself thinking more about what he thought of her over anyone else; his opinions intrigued her, and there was a large part of her that aimed to please him if even just a little bit.

Her footsteps slowed to a comfortable pace as she neared to their meeting point. If she rushed now, she might accidentally pass him by, and that would be embarrassing. She doubted though that it would be difficult to spot him; the area was – for lack of a better word – deserted, and it was practically impossible to miss someone turn down the single dirt path that led to the small shrine on the edge of town. Despite its “deserted” status however, the shrine was actually well maintained by an elderly couple who managed its upkeep; they kept it swept and cleaned, and even tended the small koi pond on the small piece of property. It was one of her favorite places in town due to its serene and tranquil atmosphere. She had often visited it after they had parted in Kobe without exchanging phone numbers. She had left offerings and prayed that perhaps the two of them would be reunited. And when she had seen him again a few days ago, she knew her prayers had been answered, and that was really why she had asked him to meet her there.

Of course, she didn’t tell him that. It just wasn’t the kind of thing you told someone right after meeting them again; clearly, they had both been happy to see one another after those long three months, but she didn’t want to appear too eager and scare him away. Using her nosy friends as a reason for choosing that spot had been very convenient, and he hadn’t argued or put up a fuss about how it was out of the way from the restaurant and shopping district where they would be spending the day – much to her relief.