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Yuko and A Story of Love, Romance and ...Mystery

Page 5 of 11

It had been more than a year since Yuko and I had first met but now everything seemed so different than it had then. Even my flight was different. This time we followed the coastline north from Los Angeles past San Francisco, Canada and Alaska. We passed over the Aleutian Islands before turning south along the coastline of Russia. Then we flew directly south to Japan.

We landed a Narita Airport near Tokyo and I had to take a separate flight from Narita to Osaka. It was a far more interesting flight than any I had ever taken before. From above, British Columbia and Alaska looked forbidding and rugged and the Aleutian Islands appeared to be lonely and desolate. For most of the trip, we saw only ominous and inaccessible looking snow covered mountains but the most impressive sight of all was seeing snow capped Mount Fuji rising up through the clouds to let everyone know that we were finally over Japan.

I had never felt quite so alone, or more unsure of my own future than I did the moment I walked out of the airport terminal into the wind driven sleet and freezing cold of Osaka. To make matters worse, Tamura-san who was always punctual was nowhere in sight. An hour later he still hadn't shown up. Anxious to get out of the cold and into my hotel I took the next available cab. My hotel reservation was at Osaka's International Hotel, adjacent to Asahi Broadcast Corporation. When I checked-in I was given a message. Tamura-san had lost control of the company's Mercedes on a slippery toll-road on his way to the airport and the car was a total wreck. Luckily, no one was hurt in the accident and he said he would join me in the bar at 9:00PM. I went there an hour early.

For most of the trip, we saw only ominous and inaccessible looking snow covered mountains but the most impressive sight of all was seeing snow capped Mount Fuji rising up through the clouds.

Amazingly, the bartender remembered my name even though I hadn't been there in more than a year. It is a remarkable trait that most Japanese possess and I noticed it wherever I went. The bartender, whose name I can't remember also asked about Tamura-san. I had forgotten the many hours that we had spent in this bar on weeknights when we weren't in Tsuyama. In fact the only memories that were very clear in my mind were those of Yuko and me together.

Tamura-san told me all about his frightening accident in the Mercedes and he apologized over and over again for not being at the airport to greet my arrival. We talked about the preceding year and carried on the usual small talk. I thought that Tamura-san seemed troubled and distracted and that he was avoiding certain topics. We had been talking for more than an hour and he had not once mentioned Yuko, nor had he mentioned anyone or anything that would have led the conversation in her direction. I was both anxious and afraid to hear whatever news Tamura-san was avoiding. Finally I decided to bring up the subject of Yuko myself.

I asked Tamura-san if he was still seeing Yuko's sister. He didn't reply immediately and when he eventually did speak I was caught totally off-guard by his emotionally distraught answer.

"I can't help you find Yuko-and please don't ask me to help"

I pointed out that I had not yet asked about Yuko and I repeated my question. Tamura-san haltingly replied,

"Natika and I are going to get married this coming June."