Chapter 17: Tokyo, Part 2

Chapter Cast:
Darren, Male, 53

- Narrator, retired, father of Gwen and Victoria (Vic)

- 5’11, beige skin, 195lbs, cropped greying brown hair
Audrey, Female, 16

- High school senior, daughter of Duncan and Theresa

- 5’9, pale skin, 140lbs, light-green eyes, straight auburn hair over her shoulders
Gwen, Female, 16

- High school sophomore, daughter of Darren, sister of Victoria

- 5’6, beige skin, 135lbs, shoulder-length wavy black hair
Victoria (Vic), Female, 14

- High school freshman, daughter of Darren, sister of Gwen

- 5’4, beige skin, 120lbs, wavy neck-length light-brown hair
Rainey, Female, 47

- Night nurse

- 5’8, 155lbs, beige skin, blue eyes, shoulder-length auburn hair
Joyce, Female, early-80s

- Wife of Herman, grandmother of Audrey, mother of Theresa

- 5’6, beige skin, 115lbs, bobbed salt-and-pepper hair
Herman, Male, early-80s

- Husband of Joyce, grandfather of Audrey, father of Theresa

- 6’0, beige-olive skin, 180lbs, thin short gray hair
Theresa, Female, mid-50s

- Mother of Audrey, widow of Duncan

- 5’7, pale skin, 150lbs, shoulder-length auburn hair

Rainey was up by the time I got back to the hotel and, after gathering my daughters, we ate at an American cafe a few blocks from where we were staying. We were all feeling a bit odd, the time difference and strange sleep cycles messing with our general equilibriums. But we were all excited enough to be in Tokyo that we trooped on, catching a cab down to the famous Tsukiji Market where some of the freshest fish was sold to restaurants and resellers. We wandered slowly for an hour or so, and I loved the place. Barkers and handlers and mongers converged together to do business in fresh fish and seafood, and the array of different offerings was simply astounding.

We ate sushi from a couple of different stalls, got dumplings from another, and drank green tea to wash it all down. By the time we were ready to leave, it was well after two in the afternoon.

I called Audrey but got no answer, so I tried Joyce and the woman picked up. “Oh, hi Darren!” I could almost feel the woman’s arms hugging me from a distance. “Are you interested in an evening dinner with the four of us tonight? My husband and I would like to treat everyone to a special meal. We already have reservations for eight of us at seven-fifteen at a place called Hakushu, and I just can’t take no for an answer, so will you and your girls and your partner be joining us?”

As usual, Joyce spoke so quickly and without pauses that I had no chance to say a word until she finally had to take a breath. “Sounds good, Joyce, and thank you. Should we meet you there?”

“Yes. My daughter will be leaving work a little early to go home to shower and then the four of us will leave from there. We should be a little early, they won’t seat us until everyone has arrived.”

“I’ll be sure we get there earlier.”

“Wonderful, Darren. Tell they girls and Rainey hello and I will see you this evening.”

We returned to the hotel and showered and relaxed a bit. I drank scotch while Rainey sipped a Japanese lager. Gwen and Vic had enough time to swim in the pool before changing into the best evening clothing they’d brought. The four of us gathered in front of the hotel awaiting our cab.

The ride took less than ten minutes and we were almost a half-hour ahead of schedule. Rainey and I held hands and talked while Gwen and Vic checked their phones. Gwen’s boyfriend, Pete, had been messaging her since we’d left Houston, but the difference in time zones meant that they weren’t online together most of the time. I could tell Gwen missed him, and I honestly thought it was sweet when she sighed and said, “I wish Pete was here...”

“Maybe next time,” I replied.

“You’d let me bring Pete on our next vacation?”

I shrugged, “If he behaves and things work out, maybe. I’d have to talk to his parents, of course.”

“Oh, they’ll be fine with it,” she assured me with more confidence than was warranted.

It occurred to me that my conversation with Audrey early that morning had been different. She never said that she wished Travis had come. I didn’t know if it was because the dynamic of our relationship made her hold back from voicing that thought, or perhaps, I considered, maybe Audrey hadn’t actually wanted Travis to join her on the trip. I wasn’t sure which way to read things, but decided, again, it was no longer my business to look too deeply into Audrey’s concerns. I felt a twinge of sadness, though, at the idea that maybe she wasn’t as happy as she deserved to be.

Theresa, Joyce, Herman, and Audrey pulled up in a cab a few minutes before our reservation. Audrey looked stunning. Not that that was unusual. She could be wearing baggy sweatpants and a ratty shirt and I’d still think that she looked beautiful. But this night, she wore a long red dress dress with silk along the top, strapless, just a hit of rounded breasts and an inch or so of cleavage visible. Her hair had been softened and curled near the ends, a few carefully-placed bangs overhanging her face. Audrey’s makeup was simple and modest, making her look a bit older than sixteen. My heart skipped a beat on first glance, and I hoped that Rainey had not noticed my reaction.

We were seated on time around a hibachi grill, me on one end next to Rainey, my daughters, Joyce, Herman, and Theresa in the middle, Audrey opposite me on the other end of the table.

Hakushu was a high-end steakhouse and well-rated, according to Joyce, the woman talking endlessly about the restaurant and then their day spent wandering downtown Tokyo. No one else even had a chance to speak until the chef arrived and prepared the grill. I ordered the steak and shrimp, as did Rainey.

The grill was soon steaming and sizzling with meat and seafood, onions and zucchini, the aroma of garlic and ginger quickly making my stomach growl. We ate salads with ginger dressing before the main courses were served with white rice. Conversation around the table became difficult with the sounds of the food preparation and the voices of other diners rising as the evening went on.

I drank sake, Rainey a beer, and after a full bottle for me and a couple of beers for my lover, we were feeling loose and amorous. Being careful not to be seen, Rainey and I touched each other’s thighs and slowly rubbed our way closer and closer to more private flesh.

Audrey had largely avoided making eye contact with me. Not in a cold way, generally she was attentive to whomever was speaking, and that was mostly Joyce. The first time I noticed her looking at me was well into the main course when Rainey leaned over to kiss my cheek and laugh at a joke Joyce had made about Tokyo being a romantic city for those young enough for such things. I couldn’t help feeling sorry for Audrey in that moment.

It made me tense up, not wanting my ex-girlfriend to see Rainey showing me affection. If my current girlfriend noticed my reaction, she didn’t show it. But I know Audrey had to have seen the way I looked a bit sheepish and didn’t return Rainey’s kiss or laughter. I wondered what Audrey was thinking right then. Her expression was even, her well-practiced mask probably fooling everyone else. I saw the truth, at least some of it, in the way her eyes narrowed slightly, the slight droop of her lips, the slow breath she let out before looking away.

I describe these moments because they are often the most difficult parts of spending time with Audrey after our breakup. I loved her. Honestly, deeply, loved her. Even my relationship with Rainey couldn’t change that. And in those moments, where I should have been aglow with Rainey’s love for me, I found myself instead drowning before Audrey’s eyes. I couldn’t fully push aside those underlying feelings for my ex, and it made me feel both guilty and ashamed to have Rainey so freely give me love which I couldn’t yet match. Knowing that Audrey might not be as happy with her boyfriend as she’d let on previously only made that more difficult. Knowing that I had yet to tell Rainey that I loved her made each offered kiss, every loving touch from her, that much more difficult to accept and embrace.

But other than me and Audrey, there was no sign that anyone else was not enjoying every moment. Gwen and Vic chattered about how much they loved their shrimp and chicken. Rainey showed no sign that I was hesitant or a touch distant. Joyce, Theresa, and Herman were all drinking sake, as well, and by the end of the meal, they were very loose and flushed and laughing, relaxed in spite of whatever else might be going on at the table.

“Although I am well stuffed,” Herman said, leaning back in his chair, “I think I would like to go to the ice cream parlor just down the street. Anyone interested?”

Gwen and Vic both exclaimed, “Yes!”

I shrugged and looked at Rainey. She said, “Sure. Don’t know where I’d put it, but maybe the walk over might free some space.”

We all thanked Joyce and Herman for the wonderful meal they bought us and left the restaurant, walking slowly down the street. Rainey took my hand and I held it loosely. I was all-too-aware that Audrey was right behind us with her mother.

The ice cream place was much like any other I’d been to, except the menu boards were in Japanese and the English language cards showed flavors I’d never seen, such as lychee, ginger and five-spice, wasabi, soy sauce, bitter melon, and one I had no interest at all in trying, squid ink. I opted for a safe play with mango and orange scoops. Rainey went with bitter melon. Both were good if nothing terribly superior to ice cream I’d had over the years. We took our desserts with us and walked further down the street.