Read Online Brave Story by Miyuki Miyabe - Free Book Online Page B

striding through the crowd and blurting out something about the ghost photograph in the middle of all the excitement over the new student. Instead, he picked up his bag and headed home. He walked at first, then picked up his pace until he was jogging. Am I running away? From what? It was a rhetorical question. Wataru knew the answer before he asked it. He kept running, all the while convincing himself that he wasn’t escaping.
    He opened the front door and shouted out, “I’m home.” Through the glass-paned door leading into the living room he could see his mother talking on the phone. When Wataru opened the door she frowned and slammed the phone down violently.
    “What’s wrong?”
    “Another silent call,” Kuniko said, snorting with anger. White steam bubbled out of a boiling pot in the kitchen. “That’s the third time today. It’s almost like they knew I was busy trying to get dinner ready…”
    For the first time, Wataru realized that his mother wasn’t just angry. She was frightened.
    “If they call again, I’ll pick it up,” he offered. He glanced in the direction of the kitchen. “Um, looks like something’s boiling.”
    “Oh dear!” Kuniko launched into the kitchen, and Wataru went to his room and began putting away the things in his bag. As soon as Kuniko had the kitchen back under control, the rapid-fire questions began. How was cram school? What did you have for lunch? Fried rice for dinner okay? Wataru was used to this conversation and he answered everything perfunctorily, but his head was filled with Mitsuru. He found himself just wanting some peace and quiet.
    He washed his hands and began setting the table when the phone rang. Wataru flew to the wall and picked up the receiver.
    “Hi, it’s me, Katchan.”
    Wataru gave his mother a look that said, “It’s okay.”
    “You had cram school today, right?”
    “Yeah. But this is a bad time to talk. We’re about to eat.”
    “Oh, should I call back? Don’t want your mom to get mad at me.” Wherever he was calling from, there was a lot of activity in the background. It was hard to hear his voice. “I’ll call back.”
    “Sure, thanks.”
    Wataru hung up the phone swiftly. He knew his mother wasn’t fond of Katchan’s calls. But what if it was Yutaro calling? He was sure his mother wouldn’t frown at that . Best friends with Yutaro. Wouldn’t that please her? And what if they were friends? This was a thought that hadn’t occurred to him. Would Yutaro Miyahara be a better friend for him than, say, Katsumi Komura?
    Wataru dismissed the idea as soon as he had it. Yutaro was a good kid, but would he be fun to hang out with? If he could find someone as well respected as Yutaro, and as fun as Katchan, that would be perfect.
    Yutaro and Mitsuru.
    Katchan and Wataru.
    As he sat there in a daydream, the phone rang again. It had to be their silent caller this time for sure. Wataru snatched up the receiver.
    “Mitani speaking!”
    “Wataru?” It was his father.
    “Oh, it’s you.”
    “‘Oh, it’s you’? We need to talk about your phone manners.”
    “We’ve been getting more silent calls. Mom’s getting scared.”
    There was a pause. “Today?”
    “Yeah, three times this afternoon already.”
    Kuniko walked over and Wataru handed her the phone. He went back to sit at the table. Dinner was all laid out. He would be eating alone with his mother again tonight.
    Kuniko talked for a while. He heard her agreeing to something, saying, “Very well, I’ll get it ready,” and then she ended the call with her customary, “Keep up the good work, dear.” Wataru had grown used to this habit of hers, and never given it a second thought until one day about a year ago, when a visitor came to their apartment while Wataru and his mother were there alone.
    The woman was a sales lady for a cosmetics retailer. She had been in the same class as his mother in college and this was a social call—an opportunity to gossip and push some cosmetics.