He wasn’t going to raise his head from the floor until he got an okay from Jinnai.
He heard Jinnai snort.
“You need to move.”
“What?” Shuta lifted his head. “Yes. I’m going to a real estate agency tomorrow.”
“What an idiot. You think you can find a pet-friendly place that quickly? I’ll talk to a real estate agent I know, but for now, take your stuff and move into the room above this office. If it’s just for a little while, I can care for Bee. Hey, Bee. Do you want to snuggle with me today?”
Jinnai took hold of the pet carrier, flopped down on the leather sofa, and threw his legs up on the table. His manner was brusque, but his face betrayed his delight.
A little stunned, Shuta savored the feeling of finally putting down roots somewhere.
Satsuki gave a wry smile. “That’s why I said you need to settle your affairs with your old company. And find a new apartment quickly. Otherwise, the old man won’t come into work until you do.”
“Absolutely.” Shuta stifled his laughter.
Fate works in mysterious ways. Not long ago, he’d been aimlessly wandering the streets of Nakagyō, and now here he was. He was going to be busy from now on. First, he had to go back to that clinic and inquire about keeping Bee.
What would that strange doctor say?
When Shuta reached out to Yuina to let her know he’d decided to resign officially, she responded immediately.
“Emoto hasn’t been in the office lately. He’s been suspended pending the outcome of the investigation.”
They were walking south along Tominokoji Street. Shuta had gone to the brokerage firm first thing that day, completed the exit paperwork, and knocked out what he could in one day. When he told Yuina about the situation with Bee, she offered to accompany him to the clinic.
“Suspension, huh? I hope he’ll tell the truth.”
Shuta held the pet carrier firmly in his hand. Bee seemed calm today.
“You got the worst of it in the end. You didn’t have to quit,” said Yuina.
“If I didn’t quit now, I’d have left eventually.”
“Well, the company treats its employees like dirt,” said Yuina. She had a conflicted look on her face. “I’ll do my best to make things a little better. I like my job now, so I’m not going to complain—I’ll take action. If we give it our all, we can change things.”
“Yes, we can change things.”
Shuta had a preconceived notion that Jinnai’s company—and the construction industry in general—was corrupt. But he found the job surprisingly suited his nature and he didn’t dislike it.
After crossing a few intersections, Yuina stopped.
“So, where is this amazing clinic? Haven’t we been going round in circles for a while?”
Shuta, who had confidently taken the lead, seemed lost again. Yuina was beginning to be fed up.
“What’s the name of the district?” she asked.
“Well, it doesn’t have a district name. The address is made up of street names in that unique Kyoto style. It’s confusing—east of Takoyakushi Street, south of Tominokoji Street, west of Rokkaku Street, north of Fuyacho Street, Nakagyō Ward, Kyoto.”
“What kind of address is that? Go east, south, west, then north? Aren’t we just going around the block?”
“Right. I guess.”
Still, he had been to the clinic before. If they walked around the neighborhood for a bit, they should come upon that dark alley. But today, neither the alley nor the building was anywhere in sight. No matter how many times they circled the area, they could not find it. They stood together in the middle of the street. Bee began to meow and shift uncomfortably in her carrier. “Maybe she’s hungry.”
Yuina looked up and down the street they had just walked through. “The clinic isn’t here.”
“You’re right.”
But the clinic was no dream or illusion. The weight of the cat in his hand was very real. Yet he could no longer get to the clinic. Once you had entered the grid of streets, whether the clinic existed or not depended on the moment. Such unique randomness was characteristic of the streets of Kyoto.
Shuta looked at Yuina. She was laughing, her head tilted quizzically to one side. Shuta laughed, too. The two of them began walking down the street without turning back.
Margot
2
Margot
“Man, this is pretty shabby,” muttered Koga testily.
The building was located at the end of a dank alley, sandwiched between two equally decrepit-looking structures. From the main road, the alley looked like nothing more than a gap between two buildings. The structure itself was gloomy. The sky above was clear, but darkness shadowed his every step. It mirrored his current emotional state.
