Jon Athan - Am I Beautiful?

“Okay,” the salaryman responded. He pointed back at the office with his thumb and asked, “Do you want me to call the police?”

“No, don’t do that. I really don’t want to cause a scene. I don’t want more people to know about… I just… I don’t want her to follow me.”

“The police can help you.”

Adam had a few options. He could have called the police, but it seemed excessive. She wasn’t hurting or even bothering him. She was waiting patiently across the street after all. He could have confronted her, but he didn’t want to draw attention to himself. He could have walked away and ignored her, but he couldn’t predict her reaction.

He feared the Streisand effect. An attempt to hide his affair could have led him to unintentionally expose his relationship with her to the world. At the moment, running seemed like his best option.

He said, “Don’t worry about it. I think I might have been overreacting.”

“Are you sure, sir?”

“I’m positive. Have a nice day,” Adam said. Walking backwards, he bowed slightly and said, “ Arigatou gozaimasu. ”

“Be safe,” the salaryman said as he bowed again. “ Kiwotsuketene .”

It translated to ‘take care.’

Head down and shoulders raised, Adam hurried away. He jostled through the crowd, bumping from salaryman to salarywoman to salaryman. He turned the corner and headed down a narrow street.

“Adam!” Miki yelled from behind him, jumping and waving.

Adam groaned in frustration upon hearing the chirping sound behind him, like a bird tweeting. But it didn’t come from a bird. The melody came from the green walking signal at the crosswalk behind him. He heard Miki’s hurried footsteps amidst the stampede of salarymen crossing the street. His brisk walk accelerated to a jog.

He lifted the collar of his coat up to his temple, as if that could somehow trick Miki. The light at the crosswalk was red, so he ran around the corner, circling around the block. He jogged past a ramen restaurant, a sushi shop, a convenience store, and a couple of apartment buildings. Yet, he couldn’t escape the clacking footsteps behind him.

“Adam, wait!” Miki shouted. “It’s me! It’s Miki!”

“Damn it,” he muttered as he stopped at another intersection.

He lowered his coat, loosened his shoulders, and sighed. I can’t run away from her, he thought. He accepted defeat, but he wasn’t ready to stop moving. A confrontation was inevitable, but he sought to save face. Public arguments never looked good. They were especially ugly in front of potential business partners. So, if he was going to speak to her, he planned on doing it away from the Express Dream Tours office.

The light turned green.

Chirp, chirp, the walking signal sang. Chirp, chirp!

Adam crossed the street. He walked past an Indian restaurant, an apartment building, a 100-yen shop, and another apartment building. As he approached a 7-Eleven at the corner, Miki caught up to him. She slowed her jog to a stroll beside him, visibly out of breath but still managing to smile.

She waved at him and said, “Hey.”

Refusing to acknowledge her outside, Adam gave her the cold shoulder and entered the 7-Eleven. Miki’s smile shriveled into a frown. She followed him into the convenience store. The door chime rang with their entrance.

Three people ate their microwaved lunches at the seating area near the entrance. A high school student stood near the large printer to the left, making copies of his notebook. A middle-aged woman took a drag of her cigarette in the designated smoking room next to the ATM. Two clerks—a Japanese man and a Vietnamese woman—stood behind the counter to the right.

Synchronized, the clerks said, “ Irasshaimase .”

‘ Welcome. ’

Adam approached the magazine rack next to the printer. He perused the magazines, as if he could read Japanese. Most of the covers depicted women with large breasts in scanty bikinis.

Miki stood beside him and asked, “Are you okay?”

Adam studied the magazine rack, searching for something to read. The bikini magazines were out of the question. He grabbed a fashion magazine and thumbed through it.

Miki leaned forward and looked up at him. She asked, “Adam, is something wrong? Are you… mad?”

“What are you doing here?” Adam asked without taking his eyes off the magazine.

“I was just in the area. I saw you coming out of that office, so I thought I’d say hi. So… hi. ”

“There are over ten million people in Tokyo. You expect me to believe we just ran into each other by luck? That this is just a coincidence?”

“I’m not… I don’t know why you’re angry, but I’m sorry if I did anything to upset you.”

“I’m not angry, so please stop saying that.”

Adam put the magazine back on the rack and walked away. He was, in fact, furious . Miki frowned again. She followed him to the refrigerators. A collection of sandwiches—ham and cheese, egg salad, teriyaki chicken and egg, strawberry and whipped cream—filled the shelves in front of them.

Miki said, “Okay, listen… I wasn’t expecting to find you here, but I was looking for you this weekend. I went to the bar, I walked around Kabukichō… I wanted to see you again, Adam. Is that a bad thing?”

Adam grabbed a strawberry sandwich from the refrigerator and examined it. He had never seen anything like it before.

He asked, “How did you find me?”

“I told you already.”

“No, you didn’t. You said you were looking for me in Kabukichō. How did you find me here? You were waiting for me outside of that office, weren’t you? How did you know I was going to be there?”

“I didn’t know you were going to be there. I remembered you said you were an international marketing associate. So, I searched international travel agencies in Chiyoda and Minato here in Tokyo. That’s where most foreigners go for business. I saw you at that office, so I thought I’d try to talk to you after you finished your meeting if you were alone. I wasn’t going to talk to you if you were still busy, I promise. I don’t want to cause any trouble for you or your work.”

Adam put the sandwich back in the refrigerator. He wanted to berate her, but he didn’t want to hurt her. To his utter disappointment, Miki was a good person with a gentle heart. He could see that she meant no harm. He walked over to another set of refrigerators and looked at the drinks—and Miki followed him.

“What exactly do you want from me?” Adam asked, avoiding eye contact.

Miki smiled thinly and said, “Well… I wanted to invite you to lunch. My treat, okay? I know a very nice café around here.” Her smile grew larger. She said, “I know tourists love eating at 7-Eleven in Japan, but I promise this café is much better.”

“I appreciate the offer, but I can’t. I’m busy with work.”

“Okay, I understand. Are you free tomorrow? Maybe for dinner or some drinks after work?”

Adam sighed. He put his hand over his mouth, then he slid it down to his chin, and then it fell off his face. He finally looked at her. Her eyes were big and hopeful while her lips twitched with anxiety.

He said, “Listen, you’re a good person, but… I think there was a misunderstanding.” Miki’s eyes welled with tears. She bit her lip and continued smiling. Adam said, “What happened on Friday… it was a one-time thing. Okay?”

“A–A one-time thing?”

“Yes.”

“I–I’m… I’m sorry, I don’t really understand what you’re saying.”

Tears dripped from her eyes as she blinked. She wiped her cheeks with her sleeve and sniffled, but the smile never left her face.