"Mrs. Sato, your husband Mr. Sato knows you're here. He's on his way to get you," the worker said with a friendly smile, setting a glass of water in front of Hana Sato. He looked at her like she was some sort of rare animal.
Hana grabbed the glass, said a quick thanks, and couldn't help but look at the wall clock—July 15, 2063, 5:31 PM.
2063.
She took a small drink of water.
On the same day in 2023, which was their first anniversary, Hana had planned to cook dinner for her husband, Jun. But she tripped while coming back from the grocery store. When she got up, everything around her looked different. She was still trying to get her head around the fact that she had jumped ahead from 2023 to 2063.
After standing there, confused, a nice stranger who saw her pop up in the middle of the road walked her to the local community service center. The people working there quickly got in touch with her husband Jun. Now, she was just waiting for him to show up.
Kind of like a lost and found item.
"You're actually the fifth person who's time-traveled here lately," said a young worker chatting with her.
They said that before her, there was an old man, a kid, someone who had lung cancer, and someone in a wheelchair. That's probably why they didn't think she was crazy; there had been others like her.
Since showing up, Hana had been sitting in this place for nearly two hours. Every so often, a worker would come by, pretending to offer her more water, but really just checking her out like she was some kind of alien.
Feeling full of water, Hana put down the glass and stared at the grocery bag near her feet. Inside were a bunch of random things she'd bought: eggs, tomatoes, eggplants, bok choy, green beans, Japanese tofu, mushrooms, yam, a big box of already cooked stuff, and two perch fish. She had no clue what to cook yet and was waiting to talk it over with Jun.
Just as she was counting the chili peppers in the bag, she felt something and looked up.
A man entered through the main door. Even though it was hot outside, he wore a shirt and long pants. A pair of skinny glasses were on his nose. He had a big black umbrella in his hand—it looked like it had started to rain.
Water was dripping off the umbrella as the man holding it paused by the door. He set the umbrella on the rack near the entrance and started walking toward Hana.
Hana looked at the white streaks in his hair and the lines on his face, signs of aging. She took a quiet breath.
The guy she'd celebrated a one-year anniversary with had turned into an old man.
Wow.
"Hana?" He stopped about three feet away from her, saying her name, looking pretty calm. His voice wasn't as crisp and musical as it was four decades back, but it was still warm and friendly.
She had been waiting so calmly until now, but suddenly, Hana felt a burst of anger inside her. She had no idea where it came from.
"It's me," Hana got up, grabbing her grocery bag off the floor. "Ready to go?"
She saw Jun adjust his glasses and nod, taking his time to say, "Hold on a sec. I need to fill out some paperwork. Your situation's kinda special; we have to sign a quick privacy agreement. We'll have to come back for more paperwork later."
Annoyed, Hana sat back down, thinking, 'Is he treating this like a grandpa picking up his granddaughter from daycare or something?'
Jun went to the service desk, chatted with the staff, and filled out some forms. About ten minutes later, he came back to her and said, "Okay, let's go."
As they stepped outside, the sound of heavy rain got louder. Jun opened the umbrella, big enough for both of them. Hana followed him, watching the puddles he made with his steps. He walked at a steady pace. At sixty-five, Jun wasn't hunched over, nor was he hard of hearing, but his hair was all silver. The hand holding the umbrella had wrinkles—it was an old man's hand.
Back when he was twenty-five, the best things about Jun were his eyes and his hands—long, smooth, even better than hers. But that was no longer the case.
Feeling choked up, Hana wanted to say something, but they had already reached a bus stop.
Jun tapped something on a terminal, and an empty car pulled up. He opened the passenger door for Hana, then got into the driver's seat and drove off.
Hana shut her mouth and started checking out what cars looked like forty years later.
Overall, not much had changed, but a lot of small things were different. The car seemed to drive itself along a set route.
The car had changed, her guy had changed, even the buildings and streets outside were different.
She looked at the unfamiliar buildings. Everything was organized, not really like the Tokyo she remembered. She wondered if this place was still Tokyo.
It wasn't until she saw the familiar tower far away, a one-time symbol of Tokyo, that she could confirm, yeah, this was still Tokyo.
The car pulled up in a neighborhood with cute three-story houses, each having its own little front yard.
This place was really green, with tall trees on both sides of the street. Plus, it seemed like just about every house had a garden filled with plants and flowers.
"So, we're here," Jun finally said, breaking the quiet that had settled during the ride. He led her up to one of these houses.
Hana watched the car drive away all by itself before turning her gaze to the house standing in front of her. Jun stepped up to the door, and with a click, it swung open on its own.
They used to live at 396-1166, Higashisuna, Koto-ku, Tokyo, not this place. She had zero clue when he'd decided to move here.
Walking inside, Hana checked out the shoe rack and then the hooks where coats hung near the door.
Hana took a slow, deep breath.
She only saw guy stuff; there were no signs of anything that belonged to a woman or a kid.
So, it looked like Jun was living the solo life now.
The whole way over, she'd been thinking, 'What if there's an old lady in the house? Should I call her 'ma'am' or 'grandma,' or just let my fists do the talking?'
Honestly, Hana knew she had a short fuse. She was worried she'd snap and lay into the old man, maybe break some of Jun's old bones.
"Go ahead and sit down, take a break. I'll get you some water," Jun told her, handing her a pair of indoor slippers. His vibe was friendly, his manners on point.
Switching places mentally with Jun, Hana figured he probably felt like he was dealing with a distant young relative who popped up out of the blue. Like, he had to be a good host, but the closeness just wasn't there.
Plus, there was a side of awkwardness. For sure, the whole thing was pretty much the definition of awkward, given their past and what was happening now.
Normally, if she were this ticked off, Hana would've dragged Jun over to the couch for a 'serious chat.' But right now, her logical side was telling her she had no reason to blow up.
After all, the whole transmigrating thing wasn't something either of them could control. For Jun, not seeing her for forty years made this distant behavior expected.
But for Hana, it was like a total 180. Just this morning, Jun had left the house, blushing and saying he'd be home early, looking at her with eyes as clear and soft as moon light. And now? He had barely given her a straight look since that first moment.
Just as he was about to walk away, she softly said, "Hey," stopping him. He turned back, and she handed over the plastic bag she was carrying. "You mentioned wanting perch fish this morning. So, I got us two," she told him.
Jun froze for a second, looking really thrown off by what she had said. For a moment, his calm vibe broke. But quickly, he turned away, took off his glasses and cleaned them. After putting them back on, he reached out and grabbed the plastic bag from Hana. "Ah, alright," he said, still giving her that same polite and gentle smile.
Not holding back anymore, Hana moved up and smacked the old dude's butt, totally catching him off guard. He braced himself against a nearby cabinet. Only then did Hana feel satisfied. She strutted into the living room, the sound of her flip-flops slapping against the floor, and flopped down on the couch.
Jun stood there for a moment, still holding the bag. Then he followed her into the living room. He shot a quick glance where Hana was already making herself at home on the couch and headed to the kitchen to set down the bag.
Soon, he came back carrying a glass of water and set it down in front of her. She'd already had lots of water earlier and didn't feel like moving. But seeing Jun wipe his hands and then sit across from her, just looking at the glass, made her sit up and take a sip.
It was sweet because of added honey. They'd married for over a year, and putting honey in water was totally Hana's thing. Jun was not a fan of tea or other drinks; he usually just had plain water. It was one of his quirky habits from back in the day, and she had no idea if he still did it.
"So...," Hana started but stopped, staring at the old man in front of her. She opened her mouth but couldn't get the words out. Maybe she had way too many questions and didn't know which one to fire off first. Feeling annoyed, she ran her fingers through her hair, lay back on the couch, and kicked a pillow.
Jun, who was even more chill now than he'd been as a young guy, said, "Look, it's just me living here. You can totally relax. There are special programs that can help you out. Tomorrow, we'll go grab your ID and some basic stuff you'll need."
"Don't stress. Take your time, you'll get the hang of it," he added softly, not saying a word about his last forty years or asking her anything.
Hana suddenly sat up, a frown on her face. "Wait, are you treating me like I'm your granddaughter or something?"
Jun blinked, stared at her for a sec, let out a sigh, and said, sounding resigned, "I'm in my sixties now. I could pretty much be your granddad, to be honest."
He had always been the smart, easy-going type, never one to get loud or argue. And now he totally looked the part of a wise old man, staring at her with a mix of understanding, nostalgia, and a touch of sadness—as if he really got her.