The morning of the Obon festival, Aki and I waited for the rest of Guardian to arrive to Aki's house, where we would take the train a few stops together first to the shop to rent yukata for the evening, then to the festival. Aki had hung a paper lantern outside the front door in preparation, planning to light it as we left so it could glow all night. We sat on the tatami at the low table, drinking our morning coffee and sharing stories about our grandparents, inspired to get to know each other's families by the theme of the holiday. One by one, the other three members of Guardian arrived, and joined us at the table to share their stories as well. I had missed being a member of a family, as I had lived alone for two years, and being so easily accepted into the group of misfit musicians was a place I was purely happy in.
Hina arrived at the house, and I greeted her at the door excitedly, sharing a hug. I lead her inside, and gestured to the four men sitting at the table, chatting and laughing, sipping coffee. "Hina-chan, meet Guardian." I said.
I looked at her face to gauge her reaction, seeing them all together without stage clothes or makeup, acting like regular people. I was happy to introduce her to my adopted family, and I was proud to belong to their group. Hina looked at them, her eyes slightly wider than normal, and bowed her head in a greeting. "Isn't your life wild, Natsu-chan." Was all she said.
The yukata rental shop was small, and the six of us took up most of the space as we browsed the racks looking for patterns and colours that suited us. As soon as we walked in, we were shown to a dressing room, one for the guys, and one for Hina and I, and told to change into the yukata underclothes. We walked across the floor in only white tabi socks, Hina and I together in the women's section, laughing to ourselves and talking about the colours we would chose. I could feel every now and then eyes on me, and I stole glances over my shoulder to catch Aki looking from across the small room. Hina and I finally decided to match patterns with a crane design, hers in dark green, and mine in rich red to match Aki. He had settled on a dark red plain yukata with contrasting bright blue underclothes and obi. The shop keeper invited Hina and I to have our makeup and hair done as a complementary service, and we gladly agreed, sending Guardian outside to wait for us.
As we stepped out of the shop fully dressed and done up, we were greeted by the sight of all four members of Guardian in yukata, leaning against the fence across the street from the shop casually, smoking and talking. I took a moment to enjoy what I was witnessing, smiling to myself. Aki noticed us and began to wave, his face brightening.
"That colour really suits you, you know?" He said, simply looking at me with admiration.
"You mean your colour?" Aki was known to chose red in all occasions, from the tips of his bleached hair on stage to the colour of Guardian's logo, he lived the colour of his namesake.
He shrugged in a playful way, holding out his bent arm for me to take as we walked, and passed me a can of hot green tea from a vending machine. Hina and Fuji walked at the back of our group, and I noticed they had been talking together any chance they had, starting on the train ride into town from Aki's house.
I nudged Aki and spoke quietly. "I think Fuji and Hina-chan might have a thing starting."
Aki spun us around and walked backward so he could see the two. "Fujiwara-san!" He called in a mocking tone. Fuji's attention snapped forward to find the source of the call. "You should be on your best behaviour." Aki turned us again to walk forward.
The night darkened and the streets came to life with lights, sounds, smells. Taiko drum music was everywhere, emanating from several different stalls playing over a loud speaker. Games were set up, and smoke billowed from various places where food was being cooked. All around us people were dancing, singing, forming circles to practice traditional dances together, children were running and laughing. I held Aki's arm tightly as we wove through the crowds. We shared drinks, skewered chicken, mochi, and a wild array of other flavours.
Guardian were masters of the games, winning every stall they approached. The four of them naturally separated into two teams, sauntering up to the game stalls like a group of Yakuza. They would expertly face off two on two, and ultimately at least one out of four would win a prize. Hina and I would stand back and cheer for them. Aki always picked a food or drink item as the prize, as fond as he was of strolling around the festival grounds picking away at something.
Aki pointed to the stall with a well known game, where the player would drop a magnetic fishing line into a huge box of red goldfish. There were always one or two gold fish in the box, and it was based on luck to see if you would catch one. "Do you want to have a go?" He asked me.
"You've been having all the luck, I think you better." I said, looking over the top of the sea of red fish. I pointed to a far corner. "I have a feeling one is there."
Aki took the fishing rod from the old man working the stall with a nod. He flicked it quickly and sent the magnet at the end of the string flying into the far corner, letting it sink into the mass of red fish before giving it a pull to retrieve it and see what he had caught. To my surprise, a gold fish was at the end of his line.
"I can't believe you did that!" I said, taking the fish from the end of the rod and handing it to the old man.
Aki laughed with pride at his luck and followed the old man to claim his prize. "Close your eyes." He said to me as he turned back around, concealing what was in his hands.
I did as I was told, and felt him grab my hand, holding it up. He slipped something over my hand and around my wrist, and I felt it tighten slightly. His hand held my fingers, and I felt his lips press into my knuckles before he told me to open my eyes and look. Around my wrist was a dainty red string braided bracelet, a small gold shining goldfish charm woven into the braid.
"Actually, I think you're my good luck charm after all." He said.
I had begun to feel light headed from drinking, and began refusing any other drinks Aki offered to share with me, letting on that I wanted to remain sober enough to keep enjoying the night. He easily took my hints and slowed his pace as well. "Throwing up on a train or in a rented yukata is not a good time." He commented. We walked toward a circle of dancing people, not following any particular choreography, justing listening to the music and moving. As we approached, a slow, traditional flute song began to play and the crowd slowed their steps, even just stopped dancing to chat in groups. Aki took one of my hands, placing the other atop his shoulder, and tucked his hand under the elaborate bow of my obi to hold my hip. He pulled me close so our bodies were touching, and began to sway us in time to the flute. I rested my head on his shoulder, and felt him place a kiss upon my temple. I closed my eyes and let him lead our movement, his hand on my hip holding me tightly against him, creating security.
Just before midnight we stepped out of the yukata rental shop in our street clothes again, Aki and I waving to the shop keepers as they saw us out to close for the night. Across the street, Kota and Hiro were talking, and a few meters away, next to the vending machine, Fuji and Hina were talking. Excitement bubbled up in my stomach, seeing how the night had played out for them, and I wondered what to expect for them. Aki and I joined Hiro and Kota, turning to begin walking to the train station just in time to catch the last train. I glanced over my shoulder to call for Fuji and Hina just in time to witness them share a kiss. I smiled brightly, and kept my shout to myself.
"What?" Aki commented on my sudden smile. He looked back quickly to see what had changed my expression, but Fuji and Hina had fallen in step with us already.
"Nothing." I said. Aki smiled back at me, and nodded slowly to show he had caught on.
We said goodnight to Hina two stops before Aki's house, and I told her to send me a message as soon as she got home. The rest of Guardian got into Kota's car and we waved from the front door as they drove away down the street. The lantern was glowing brightly, and I thought about the stories Aki had told earlier in the day about his family.
"What do you think about Fuji and Hina-chan?" I asked, as soon as we closed the door.
We walked together to the bedroom without a thought, tired. Aki began removing clothes. "I think Fuji is a good man. I would trust him with Hina-san. I really think they would make each other happy."
He reached both hands out to me once he had stripped himself, and I let him strip me as well, feeling his hands strongly on my body, reassuring me of his presence. I got into bed and he followed, moving close to hold me against him, offering as much comfort as he could. I draped an arm over him, pressing my hand into his skin just to feel him. He took a deep breath, a sigh, as if of relief. "Are you feeling better?" He asked, referring to how slightly drunk I was.
"I am just at the comfortable, floating kind of stage." I said. "I feel like I could easily just drift off to sleep safely in your arms right this second."
I looked up to see his face, and he leaned his head down to kiss me. It was a gentle sort of kiss, no hunger in it at all, only contentment. "Then please do." He said. It was the last thing I remembered that night.