To the Person I Love and Hate the Most… - Chapter 23 ~END
Years Later…
A few years later has passed since that phone call with Natsumi.
I have become completely distrustful of women and have not been in a relationship since.
One day, in the middle of the night, my phone rings.
I’m startled, so I reflexively pick up the phone.
“Ah, Taguchi-san? I’m Natsumi’s mother, do you remember me?”
Why is Natsumi’s mother calling me out of the blue?
“Yeah, it’s been a while.”
I reply so, feeling somewhat taken aback.
“Are you doing well?”
What is this small talk, can’t you just go straight to the point why you’re calling me?
“I’m surviving, I suppose. Umm, may I ask why you’re calling me?”
“Well, you see, Natsumi has left home.”
She told me so.
“She left home?”
“After an incident with Ichinose-san…the man she was living with in Tokyo broke into our house like a madman…it became a bit of an incident in our small village…so our neighbours start to talk about it…since then, I have a strained relationship with my family.”
She explains to me so.
“I see…”
“So, I’ve been trying to contact people I know…and I was wondering if you…”
“No, I don’t know anything about it.”
I cut off her words and replied so.
“…I see. It’s all my fault for not protecting her…I should have told my family everything about you at that time and let the two of you get married.”
She said so with a hint of sadness in her voice, she sounds like she is on the verge of tears.
“Umm, I’m sorry, but I don’t know anything about it, and it has nothing to do with me anymore. So, excuse me…”
I say so and abruptly end the call.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Several months after that phone call, as I’m shopping in Shinjuku, I decided to take a shortcut down a less crowded alley.
While walking the alley, I come across a dispute between a man and a woman.
The man slaps the woman and I hear the woman repeatedly apologizing.
“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, Hiro-kun!”
For some reason, her voice sounds familiar.
The man leaves the scene, leaving the woman behind.
I just witnessed something unpleasant, I should just mind my own business.
So I quickly try to walk past them.
However, suddenly…
“Ma…Ma-kun?”
It’s Natsumi.
She is still as beautiful as ever, but her face has some bruises and her clothing…
She doesn’t seem like to be living in a very good environment.
“…what a coincidence…it’s been a while. So you’re back in Tokyo…why did you call out to me just now?”
I reply coldly.
“Ah…I’m sorry. I just got nostalgic…”
Natsumi lowers her head.
“It was a few months ago, but I received a call from your mother. She asked if I knew about your whereabouts…”
“Is that so…”
“Why don’t you try calling her?”
I suggested so.
“That’s impossible…”
She says so with a sad expression on her face.
I don’t want to get involved with her anymore, so I say,
“Well…I just said something unnecessary. Well then, I’m going this way!”
When I try to leave,
“Ah…Um…”
Natsumi calls out to me once again with pleading eyes.
Just by that, I somehow understand what she wants to say.
“Do you want me to help you?”
I ask her so.
Upon hearing my words, for a moment, Natsumi’s eyes fill with hope and expectation.
“Eh? Ah…umm…this time, I want Ma-kun to…”
Before she can finish her words, I say,
“Why don’t you ask for help from your family? I can’t bring myself to help you anymore. Because even if I do, I’ll just get betrayed again…”
The moment those words come out of my mouth, her face turns into despair.
Without turning my back, I walk away, leaving Natsumi behind.
After walking a few steps, it seems like the man returns because I can hear the sound of him hitting Natsumi again.
“Please, stop hitting me! Hiro-kun!”
I hear Natsumi’s anguished voice pleading.
I look back and look at Natsumi one last time.
My heart aches.
However, I no longer want to be involved with her.
So I just leave the scene.
I send a letter to Natsumi’s mother just in case.
‘I saw Natsumi in Shinjuku. She was with a dangerous man. I suggest that you hire a detective or contact the police. I’m sorry, but I can no longer bring myself to be involved in this, you will need to handle this yourself.’
After that, I don’t know what happened to Natsumi…
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Twenty years have passed since I met Natsumi…
I also have a family now.
My wife may not be a beauty, but she is a woman who knows everything about my past and my relationship with Natsumi, but she still chose to love me despite my flaws.
I’m truly grateful.
Back then, Natsumi put me through a lot of tough times.
My heart was pierced countless times.
Even now, I still feel like something is missing from my heart.
What should I have done at that time?
I should have saved her?
No matter how much I think about it, I still don’t know…
Do I regret my actions? I’m not sure…
One thing I do know is that back then, I was naïve and foolish about the ways of the world.
I may hate Natsumi, but she was a woman I once truly loved from the bottom of my heart.
I hope she is living a happy life now…
~THE END~