FMS Episode One 1 (Patreon)

"Kaisui Yokujo mae…Kaisui Yokujo mae…"

Chihaya Natori got off the steep ramp of the bus, leaving the unanimated voice of a recorded man behind her. The asphalt on the village road glistens white with the summer sun.

Chihaya was so used to the darkness during the ride that she couldn't help but blink her eyes as she saw off the route bus that had resumed its motion. Parents with beach mats, cooler boxes and various other items in their hands followed their children, smiling. Soon, their backs began to sway with the haze rising from the hot road surface.

"It's a short walk from the stop," said the transit officer who Chihaya asked for directions at the bus terminal. “Look for the road to the beach and keep going.”

Auntie Isuzu's guesthouse seemed to be on the opposite side of the cove, to the west of the beach. Chihaya, whose eyes had finally gotten used to the brightness, started walking along the gravel road that parted from the municipal road down to the beach, now a long distance behind the family.

On this side of the island, the undergrowth was deep, and the foot of the hills approached the sea. From time to time, Chihaya felt as if she had lost her way on a road through the woods, though she was supposed to be heading down toward a beach. But the sweet smell of the tide in her nostrils and the heat of the sand that she could feel through her shoes reminded her that the sea was close by.

It was a little after two in the afternoon when Chihaya arrived at Isuzu Inn next to thin pine trees, following the man at the terminal had told her. It seemed Auntie had been waiting at the front door for some time, and Chihaya noticed and in a rush halted her steps and bowed from a distance.

"You were late, weren't you?” Auntie said with a laugh, “I was worried. I thought maybe you wouldn’t know the way.”

Saying that, Auntie swiftly took Chihaya's luggage and brought it into the main house, giving her no time to say yes or no. The host then asked her to come along and follow her up the wooden stairs that led from the hallway.

"This is your room."

Chihaya was given a quick tour around the room. It was old, but well-maintained and clean. From the south facing window, she could see the sea through the pines growing on the beach. In her view, there were also bright red spots here and there, which represented the umbrellas that the beach goers erected on the sand across the cove.

“Although, young people may not like rooms with tatami mats…”

"Oh, I’m perfectly fine," Chihaya denied.

"It’s already a treat that you’re letting me use one of your guest rooms. I wouldn’t…"

"Don't be shy," Auntie said, "Chihaya-chan,you've had a rough time."

Then, Auntie halted in her speech, looking like she just realized her mistake. She glanced at her young niece’s face, as if thinking what she should say next.

"No." After a few moments of awkward silence, Chihaya smiled and said, defiantly.

"I. Am. Totally. Fine."