Read Online Tokyo Hearts: A Japanese Love Story by Renae Lucas-Hall - Free Book Online

‘It sounds like she was being nice.’
    ‘That’s the strange part about it,’ Takashi replied. ‘My grandmother has never been that friendly.’
    ‘What did your parents say about this?’ asked Katsuro.
    ‘They told me not to worry about it.’
    ‘Maybe your grandmother is just softening in her old age,’ said Katsuro.
    ‘Yes, you’re probably right,’ Takashi replied.
    Katsuro poured him another beer and Takashi started telling him about his hopes to work at one of the major trading companies. Soon after, without him realising it, he started talking about Haruka.
    ‘I think Haruka’s the one I’d like to marry one day,’ he told his cousin.
    ‘Is she pretty, Takashi?’ asked Katsuro.
    ‘Oh, very pretty,’ he replied. ‘But I’m worried I’ll never be able to date her because I’m not sure whether she feels the same way about me. I think she might be seeing an ex-boyfriend again and she’s talking about taking a job in Kyoto.’
    Katsuro laughed. ‘What a person says and thinks is not always how they feel, Takashi.’
    Mika must have heard them talking about Haruka from the kitchen. She leaned around the kitchen door and called out to Takashi. ‘Be careful, Takashi, a beautiful rose may have many thorns.’
    ‘Yes, I think one of your thorns scratched me earlier,’ replied her husband. They all laughed.
    Takashi really liked Katsuro because he was always positive and a very good listener. He always felt that he was learning something from him, particularly how he should converse with others without being intrusive. Takashi somehow felt that this could be a great asset in the future.
    They finished two more glasses of Kirin beer before Mika brought some of the dishes to the table for them to start eating. Mika didn’t eat much during the dinner. She kept going back and forth from the kitchen to the table, always bringing in another array of food. Takashi felt honoured to enjoy such a feast. Before him was a selection of his favourite dishes: Chilled tofu, yakiniku pork marinated in soy sauce, garlic, ginger and sugar, an assortment of vegetables and the obligatory steamed rice and miso soup. Mika was obviously delighted by the smiles on their faces every time another favourite dish arrived.
    After dinner, Katsuro and Mika talked about their experiences in Australia.
    ‘What was the house like over there? Was it really a lot bigger?’ Takashi asked them.
    ‘Oh, it was huge. It had three levels and the kitchen was four times bigger than the one I cook in here,’ Mika said.
    ‘How about golf, Katsuro? Did you play a lot of golf?’ asked Takashi.
    ‘Every weekend – but I’m still not very good. The golf courses were magnificent though – they stretched for miles.’
    ‘Did you eat a lot of beef and Western food?’ Takashi asked them.
    ‘Well, Mika made mostly Japanese food at home. They have Japanese grocery stores there. But when we went out to eat, I would always order a steak,’ said Katsuro. He showed Takashi the width of the Australian steaks by indicating with his index finger and his thumb.
    They talked a lot more about Australia that evening. Mika told Takashi about the koalas and the kangaroos that she’d seen close up, as well as the English classes that she’d attended once a week. She explained to him how she had hoped to speak more English when she was living there, but she’d mostly spent her free time with other Japanese ladies. Apparently they’d all met for lunch in various Japanese restaurants once a month. Takashi was surprised to hear that there were so many Japanese restaurants in Australia and that you could buy take-away sushi from many vendors scattered around town.
    Katsuro spoke about how wide the roads were, even in the centre of the major cities. He also talked about the Australian people with whom he’d worked. He admired the way they could speak so frankly and the generous hospitality he had received from them.
    Takashi’s eyes were wide open and he