He didn’t seem to know how to respond, but then said, “Plus, if you wanna talk about the real master of being alone—” as if he were about to toss the conversation in my direction. Yeah, that’s not going to happen.
Making sure Hanamizawa-san couldn’t see, I pressed my hand against Hachijo-kun’s back to send a silent message. Don’t you dare talk about me. Since I couldn’t get up the courage to protest, Hachijo-kun ended up agreeing to go out with Hanamizawa-san that weekend. I was such a spineless idiot.
Not only that, but he was going to take her to that spa. I knew because he asked me later if I’d give him one of my tickets. I didn’t want an uneven number of tickets. I bought them so that we could both go together.
“Please?” he asked hesitantly.
I didn’t want him going anywhere with Hanamizawa-san on the weekends. But I knew the reason he was going out with me—even though I sucked at communication—was because of his caring personality. If I wanted to stay with him, I needed to be supportive. So I got my ticket book out of my wallet and handed him one.
“Thanks. Here’s the money for it. Sorry, Nue.” Hachijo-kun had a guilty look on his face while he paid me and took the ticket. I guess he really had gotten roped into this whole thing. But it was okay for me to be a little selfish, wasn’t it?
“Here.”
“Hm?”
I handed him a flyer. It was an ad for the upcoming Kanda Used Book Festival in Jimbocho. “I want to go to this with you,” I managed to squeeze out. He gave me a stunned look for a moment, but then a soft smile spread across his face as he took the flyer.
“Of course. I’d love to.”
“Hee hee.” I couldn’t wait.
◊◊◊
It was the day of the book festival—a clear, autumn Sunday. I got off the train at the Jimbocho station. I was meeting Hachijo-kun by the information directory right next to the A-6 exit of the Iwanami Jimbocho Building. It was 10:55 a.m., five minutes before we were supposed to meet.
I went out through the exit and immediately saw carts filled with old books. I looked up and saw a sign that said “Kanda Used Book Festival.” Nothing was more exciting for a booklover. I glanced over towards our meeting spot and saw that Hachijo-kun was already there, standing in front of the sign and staring absently out at the people streaming past. I felt warm just seeing him and trotted over.
He noticed me and immediately waved. “All right, let’s get started,” he said, taking a step forward. I went to follow him, but a book on a cart nearby caught my eye. Ah! I might want to read that one...
My legs carried me to the cart like a moth to a flame, except I was a moth to a book. Hachijo-kun chuckled when he saw me. “All right. Where to start?” he asked.
I took the pamphlet out of my purse and showed it to him. Last night before bed, I’d traced a path on the map of the route I wanted to take. First we’d go out to Yasukuni-dori and look at the carts in front of the bookstores there, then we’d check out the carts by the Jimbocho Book Center and head to Sakura-dori. After that, we’d cross Hakusan-dori to check out the special sales on Suzuran-dori.
“Suzuran-dori’s the last stop? It might be the most crowded there, though...” Hachijo-kun said, but I shook my head.
Suzuran-dori was really congested during the book festival. I wanted to go there last because I hated being around lots of people. I didn’t care how much I wanted a book or how cheap it was there, I had no desire to claw my way through the crowds to get it.
“All right. Let’s get started for real this time,” Hachijo-kun said, and I nodded in return.
◊◊◊
We went out onto Yasukuni-dori and stopped at the first cart there. It seemed like this one was full of oversized classic novels, and the rest were miscellaneous books. I looked at the titles but couldn’t tell what any of them were about, and I didn’t recognize the authors either. That was exciting. That’s when I found it, buried in a pile of those books. Ah!
“Hm? Did you find something?”
“Look.” I picked it up and showed it to Hachijo-kun. Chin Shunshin’s Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám.
“Ooh, so that’s the Rubáiyát, huh?” he said as he took the book from me.
I nodded. “Omar Khayyám is in that book that I love, Samarcande. He was a genius scholar from the Seljuk dynasty, famous for his work in math, astronomy, and poetry. The quatrain poems he wrote were collected in the Rubáiyát, and the historical novelist Chin Shunshin translated it. He was famous for writing Gijon Three Kingdoms. It’s a groundbreaking book taking the side of Cao Cao, who’s usually seen as a traitor. But unlike other works having to do with the Three Kingdoms, Cao Cao isn’t depicted as a greedy usurper, but instead a loyal retainer who was trying to preserve the life of the Han dynasty, or as a politician who was trying to preserve some sense of order in those uncertain, turbulent times.”
“O-Oh.” Hachijo-kun seemed surprised at my sudden talkativeness, but I ignored him and opened up the book. Finding this exact book among so many made me feel like I’d just found treasure. That was the real thrill in going to one of these old book fairs.
I was so excited about my find that when I finally snapped back to reality, I realized I’d been standing there for quite a long time. Whoops. I’m supposed to be on a date with Hachijo-kun today. I was worried that he might be annoyed that I’d gotten so carried away and glanced over at him.
“Excuse me. I’d like to buy this.”
“Sure. That’s seven hundred yen, please.”
Apparently he’d bought something too. I glanced over at the title. “Huh? Hotsuma Tsutae?”
“Yeah, do you know it?”
“Yeah. I heard it was written in jindai moji—a rumored ancient writing system before kanji came to Japan—but I’m not sure if that’s true.”
“Oh, really? The tagline ‘Are the rumors true?!’ drew me in and it seemed interesting, so I thought I’d read it.”
“Like Atlantis and Tokugawa’s buried treasure...”
“What?”
“It would be romantic if this were something like that, but a fun read is about all those books are good for.”
“Ah ha ha. I guess it is that kind of book.” He chuckled sheepishly but didn’t seem to regret buying it. I was relieved. As long as he was satisfied, I could go back to my hunt. And of course I immediately bought the Rubáiyát. I checked each cart from corner to corner to see if I could dig up any other treasures.
Hm? I looked up and made eye contact with Hachijo-kun. Apparently he’d been staring at me. I felt a little shy and tilted my head to the side as if to say, “Why are you looking at me?”
“Just thinking about how cute you are,” he said with a grin.
Embarrassed, I looked down and kicked him in the ankle.
“Ah ha ha, ow, that hurts!”
I-I didn’t kick you that hard. Ahh, my cheeks are so hot!
For some reason he started looking through the old toys that were lined up next to the books, at some monster action figures. I guess boys like that kind of thing. I wondered what could possibly attract him to the soft plastic dolls made to look like those creepy creatures.
“What’s that?”
“Alien Icarus and Pandon from Ultraseven.”
“What’s that?”
“Hitman Terrible-Monster Baraba. Pretty good design, huh?”
“This one’s face looks like a seal. Is this a monster from Ultraman too?”
“Not exactly. This is Peguila from Ultra Q, but he does appear in other series.”
I didn’t understand the difference. The only thing I knew for sure is that he must really like these things. Mildly surprised, I tossed the book I bought into the plastic bag Hachijo-kun had brought along, and went back to hunting again.
Even though we had come here together, we barely talked, but it didn’t feel awkward. I was really enjoying our time together. I hope he feels the same way...
After we combed through the carts, he suddenly said, “Hey, why don’t we take a break over at that café?” I turned and saw a sign that said “Children’s Books and Café” written on it. That sounds interesting. I wonder if he’s curious about it too?
I glanced over at him and he smiled. “Aren’t you just itching to read the books we just bought, even for a little bit?”
I nodded emphatically. I couldn’t wait to dig into the books I’d found, so we went inside the bookstore café.
Wow... The moment we stepped inside, a mysteriously wonderful atmosphere spread out before us. Both sides of the building were lined with shelves packed with children’s books. It reminded me of a library, but a wall of indoor plants in the center of the building marked off the café space. It was like a tea party in the middle of a forest filled with books. I wished the library at school looked like this...
We headed to the counter in the back of the shop.
Hachijo-kun ordered for us. “Café au lait and black tea, please.” We took our drinks and sat down at a corner booth. We both sat on each end, neither across from each other or next to each other. It made me feel a little shy.
Well, now that we’d sat down, I went ahead and took out my books. I decided to start with the Rubáiyát, of course.
“Do you have any favorite poems in there, Nue?”
I flipped through the book and found the page I was looking for. I pointed to the poem and showed it to him. “This one.”
A Book of Verses underneath the Bough,
A Jug of Wine, A Loaf of Bread—and Thou
Beside me singing in the Wilderness—
Oh, Wilderness were Paradise enow!
(Translated into Japanese by Chin Shunshin, and into English by Edward Fitzgerald)