Yasutaka Tsutsui - The Girl Who Leapt Through Time

“Yeah, sure,” said Masako. But then she noticed that the rails on both sides of the bridge were very low. “Actually, I think it might be time to head back,” she added, feeling that indescribable fear coming back.

“Why?”

“Just because.”

“Do you have other plans?”

“No, not particularly.”

“Then why not?” said Bunichi, suddenly noticing the anxious look on her face. “You’re not going to start telling me that you’re scared of crossing the bridge, are you?”

Bunichi had hit the nail on the head — so Masako didn’t even bother to reply. Instead, she glanced at the long white bridge, with its telegraph poles dotted along it at intervals of several metres and the low, wooden rails in between. Masako was now getting quite scared. Something like this has happened before! She thought to herself. And something bad is now about to happen.

“I don’t want to cross the bridge,” Masako suddenly said.

“You really are a strange one,” said Bunichi as he took a few steps onto the bridge and peered over the handrail into the waters below.

“I guess it is a little high up,” he added. “But then, I thought you’d already overcome your fear of heights.”

“I just don’t like this bridge!”

“Suit yourself.”

Bunichi peered over the edge again and listened carefully. There was nobody around except for the two of them, and all he could hear was the rushing of the water and the occasional croak from a frog.

“I’ve got it!” said Bunichi. “It’s not heights you’re afraid of it. It’s the rails and handrails in high places that scare you! You were able to climb up that clock tower because there were no rails! Don’t you see — that made it easier for you!”

“But why would I be scared of rails?”

“I don’t know. But there are plenty of people who have random phobias.”

Masako wasn’t sure if Bunichi was making fun of her, so she started to pout a little.

“Well, I can’t help what I find scary, can I! I just feel as if something might come jumping out from behind one of those telegraph poles.”

“What, like someone wearing a Prajna mask?” smirked Bunichi.

“Stop it!” yelled Masako, surprising Bunichi.

“What’s wrong?”

“Look, I’m scared! I’m really scared!”

Masako covered her face with both hands and sank down onto the ground. She suddenly felt like she might be able to remember something that happened a long time ago. But at the same time, she was too scared to remember it.

“Are you not feeling well?” asked Bunichi, looking genuinely worried.

Masako said nothing, but gave a small nod.

“Okay then,” said Bunichi. “Let’s go home.”

Masako felt as if she could remember whatever it was that had happened if she really put her mind to it. But she was afraid the memory might be too painful for her to bear. So several frustrating days went by. It was actually during that period that Yoshio started to wet his bed again.

“What is it this time?” asked Masako. “The woman with the scissors isn’t there any more, right?”

“No, she isn’t…” replied Yoshio. “It’s just that…” Yoshio’s voice trailed off into incomprehensible mumbling.

Later on, long after they’d gone to bed, Masako awoke in the middle of the night and tried again to help Yoshio overcome his fear.

“Come on, Yoshio,” she said, shaking him awake, “let’s take you to the bathroom.”

“But…” Yoshio mumbled, sleepily.

“Come on, hurry up, or you’re going to wet the bed again.”

“But I don’t want to go yet.”

“But you have to go. Oh… I see. You’re scared again, aren’t you? You’re back to being a big scaredy-cat!”

“No, that’s not why.”

“Well then, go!”

Yoshio pulled back the covers and got out of bed. Then he walked out into the hallway slowly. As for Masako, she was feeling quite satisfied with herself, so she rolled over onto her side and closed her eyes. But before she could fall back to sleep, Yoshio came back into the room with his face as pale as a sheet. Then he sat down next to Masako and began to cry.

“What’s the matter?” asked Masako, surprised.

“At the corner of the hallway, there’s a man’s head on the floor,” sobbed Yoshio.

“What?” said Masako, sitting upright. “That’s impossible. You must have just dreamt it!”

“No, it’s really there… covered in blood, and rolling around on the floor.”

Overwhelmed with fear, Yoshio threw himself into Masako’s arms, trembling. Masako tried to be brave, but she was so scared by Yoshio’s story that she had to make an effort to stop her teeth from chattering.

“But it really can’t be true,” said Masako, trying to convince herself as well as Yoshio. “A man’s head in the hallway. I mean, it just can’t be true.”

But Yoshio seemed genuinely terrified. He wasn’t playing.

For a moment, Masako considered going to the bathroom with Yoshio again. But what would she do if there really was a man’s head on the floor? She even considered waking her parents, who were asleep in the next room, and asking them to come along as well. But if she did that, then Yoshio would know she was scared as well, and she didn’t want that. She needed to be strong for his sake, so she could set a good example — no matter how scared she really was inside.

“I’ll show you how ridiculous it is,” she said, hopping out of bed.

“You’re not really going, are you?” said Yoshio with his eyes wide-open. “You’re not really going to go to the bathroom?”

“Yes I am.”

With that, Masako took hold of Yoshio’s wrists and tried to make him stand. But Yoshio wouldn’t move. In fact, he was so scared that his body was frozen still, so he couldn’t get out of bed even if he’d wanted to.

What a wimp , thought Masako, I can’t believe he’s a boy!

After reassuring Yoshio that everything would be fine, Masako stepped out into the hallway with Yoshio in tow. There was no light out there, and in the dark, for just a second, she felt as if there might actually be something there. But she’d never been scared to go to the bathroom before, so she was determined not to be frightened this time either.

“Things look scary only because you think they’re scary,” she whispered to Yoshio.

Together, they peered around the corner of the hallway and along to the bathroom.

“See!” said Masako. “There’s nothing there.”

Yoshio blinked his eyes and grabbed hold of his sister’s body, then took a good long look along the hallway.

“That’s so strange,” he said. “I swear it was there earlier.”

Masako wondered why on earth Yoshio might have imagined a man’s head lying in the hallway. Surely there had to be a reason. But she knew there’d be no point in asking Yoshio, who most likely didn’t know the answer himself.

It’s amazing how the human mind works , Masako thought to herself, it’s just baffling!

When the next morning came, Masako left the house together with her father, just like she did every day. The train station was on her way to school, so she could walk and chat with him every morning. Masako really enjoyed those chats, and she felt particularly close to her father. So she figured it would be all right to tell him about what had happened the night before. She thought he might even know how to help Yoshio overcome his fears. But unfortunately, her father knew more about engineering than he did about heads on hallway floors, so he was unable to suggest anything.

When they reached the station, Masako said goodbye to her father and carried on walking over the level crossing. For no particular reason, she turned to look back at the station, and when she did she got a bit of a surprise — she could see her father standing on the platform just like every other morning, but this time he was on the wrong platform waiting for a train going in the opposite direction. Masako wondered if he’d been deep in thought and gone there accidentally, but that seemed unlikely.