Chereads / LIFE : HOW’S JOURNEY? / Chapter 11 - RESPONSIBILITY, FREE

Chapter 11 - RESPONSIBILITY, FREE

"Where am I? This place looks familiar. Is this my room at Yuuma's house?" Hisao tried to open his eyes slowly after he went through the light. He realizes he is no longer in the dark and wonders about his current location.

 

 "Knock"

 "Knock"

 "Knock"

Someone suddenly knocks on the door and opens the door.

 

 "Hisao, how long do you want to sleep?" Yuuma stands in front of the door and asks Hisao to get up.

 

 "Yu… Yuuma. How can… Errghh… My head!" Hisao wonders how he is suddenly at Yuuma's house, but he suddenly has a headache and can't finish his words.

 "Errrmm… You don't remember? Yesterday, you suddenly jumped at me when I was on a date." Yuuma felt annoyed when he started to remember what happened last night.

 "Date? Do you have a date? With whom? Is it Ayumi?" Hisao feels curious about who Yuuma is on a date.

 

 "What the? No! What does this have to do with Ayumi? I'm not with Ayumi!" Yuuma feels distracted by Hisao's questions.

 

 "I thought it was Ayumi. She is so attracted to you. So, who is she? She must be a lucky girl, ha?" Hisao teased Yuuma about Ayumi and wondered who exactly Yuuma dated.

 

 "Hhmmm… It's nothing. I'm just joking with you. You just ran to me at the restaurant when you were so drunk, and you suddenly puked on my shirt out of sudden. So, I brought you to my home. Just that." Yuuma explained how Hisao finally ended up in his house and felt relief that Hisao didn't recall that he bumped into Alisha last night.

 

 "Really?" Hisao tried to recall all the things that happened last night. He remembers that he went to a convenience store to buy some beer and then saw someone smile at him, he was flattered by that sweet smile, but he didn't recall who it belonged to.

 

 "Well, I need to go now. Ayumi will be mad if I'm late." Yuuma suddenly gives an excuse to leave while walking past to get out of the room.

 

 "Yuuma. Can I… Can I stay with you starting today? I don't want to go back to my own house. It is so gloomy, and I feel lonely there." Yuuma suddenly stops when Hisao asks his permission to stay at his house. Hisao feels sad when he remembers his house environment.

 

 "Why? Is that because your house is like garbage now?" Yuuma cut that gloomy atmosphere when he tried to make a joke about Hisao's house.

 

 "What? No! I already cleaned my house." Hisao feels so annoyed with Yuuma, who joked.

 

 "Hahaha. Okay then. Do whatever you want. I told you, right? This house is always open for you." Yuuma tells Hisao that he is always open to Hisao coming and staying with him.

 

 "You… you do?" Hisao still wondered if he was allowed to stay at Yuuma's house.

 

 "Ya, why not? So, I need to go now. Suit yourself here." Yuuma smirked at Hisao's reaction and walked away to go to work.

 

 Chiyoda, Tokyo – The next day at Hiroshi Associates in Mr. Hiroshi's room.

 

 "You what? You allowed her to leave and resign from her position? Didn't I tell you don't come back if you can persuade her to come back?" Mr. Hiroshi exploded when heard Hisao couldn't persuade Hana to return to the office.

 

 "I'm sorry, Mr. Hiroshi. I know I should take responsibility for it, that's why I decided to resign from my position." Hisao feels useless and knows he needs to take responsibility for what happened with Hana and this company situation. The only thing on his mind was the solution to this problem. He felt that he must resign from his position in the company. He didn't feel he deserved to hold that position anymore after what he had done to Hana and the company. Hisao handed over his resignation letter to Mr. Hiroshi's desk.

 

 "What… what do you say? Do you also want to resign? Hhmm… Look, I never said you'll be fired if she does not come. I only want you to persuade her until she returns to work." Mr. Hiroshi was taken aback when he learned that Hisao also wanted to resign, but he composed himself and explained that he didn't intend for Hisao to resign.

 

 "I understand what you are trying to convey, but unfortunately, I can't persuade her to return. It's my responsibility now. It's all my fault with what happened in your company. I'm sorry, I turned your company upside down because of my selfishness. I didn't deserve to be the attorney in your company anymore after what I have done and I'm so sorry about it. That's why I decided to let go of my position and take responsibility for my mistake. Once again, I'm very Mr. Hiroshi." Hisao bows his head in respect to Mr. Hiroshi.

 

 "How about your client, Mr. Yamada? He only wants to deal with you." Mr. Hiroshi worried about the clients who only wanted to deal with Hisao.

 

 "Don't worry. I'll go visit him today and tell him about it." Hisao convinced Mr. Hiroshi that he shouldn't have been worried about it. He will settle all his work before he leaves.

 "Haru! I'll go to Yamada Bar today. You have to come with me. I'll introduce you to Mr. Yamada today." After a long conversation with Mr. Hiroshi, Hisao went out of Mr. Hiroshi's room and went to find one of his colleagues to come with him to meet Youta today.

 "What? Really? Yes, finally!" Haru was thrilled to handle one of the company's major clients.

 

 Chuo, Tokyo – That night at Yamada bar.

 "Hisao! It's been a while since your last visit. What brings you here today? Is there any documentation I need to sign off? Please, take a seat. Suit yourself. This bar is like your second house, am I right? What do you guys want to drink? Red or white wine? This place has a lot of expensive drinks, you know?" Youta welcomed Hisao's visit and wondered what had made him come after his last visit. Youta allowed Hisao and Haru to sit when he saw them standing while waiting for him to come.

 

 "It's okay Youta. I only want to introduce you to Mr. Tanaka Haru. Your new attorney. Starting from today, he'll be the one who serves you." Hisao and Haru take a sit as Hisao introduces Haru to Youta as his new attorney.

 

 "Pleasure to serve you, Mr. Yamada." Haru bowed his head at Youta as an honor to serve Youta as his attorney.

 

 "What do you mean, Hisao? As my attorney? Why do I need two attorneys for my business? One should be enough, and that attorney is you." Youta rejected the offer, leaving Haru feeling dejected.

 

 "I'm sorry, Youta. I know you feel upset about this news but today is my last day to be your attorney. I quit my job today and today is my last day. That's why I brought you a new attorney. Don't worry, I'll tell you everything before he starts his work with you." Hisao tells Youta that today is his last day of work.

 

 "Why are you quitting? You've been in this job for nearly 5 years. To be a lawyer has been your dream since we were still kids. So, why out of sudden? Is this because of me? You don't like working with me, Hisao?" Youta is curious about why his best friend suddenly gave up on his dream and quit his job.

 "Naahh… It is not like that, Youta. It's not you or my job. It's just about myself. I… I don't know. I only want to find myself back. Lately, I feel like I lost myself too much now. I almost don't know whether what I do is right or wrong. I feel so anxious and tired of myself every day. So, I have to take a break and look for myself again." Hisao doesn't know how to explain to his best friend what he feels right now, and he also doesn't want to hurt his best friend's heart with his decision.

 

 "So, what you'll do next, Hisao?" Youta wondered what Hisao would do next in his life because he knew his best friend would not just stay and stand back. He knew his friend would do something to upgrade himself.

 

 "Haaa… I don't know. Maybe I'll open my firm one day but for now, I think I need to take a rest and maybe help Yuuma at his restaurant." Hisao still doesn't have a plan for what he wants to do after he quits his job.

 

 "Yuuma? You met Yuuma?" Youta heard Hisao calls Yuuma. He never heard Hisao talk about Yuuma before, and even though he had come to this bar several times he never spoke at once about Yuuma. He wondered if this was because Yuuma, was the one who made his best friend change so drastically.

 

 "Yes, I stay with him now. He already has a restaurant now. You know I was wondering if the three of us should hang out together just like in our old times. It must be fun though." Hisao persuaded Youta to spend time with him and Youta after a long time three of them had their own life and were strangers to one another.

 

 "Hahaha… Maybe next time, Hisao. So, is this the man that I have to deal with after this? Make sure he knows everything about his work. I don't want to have any trouble in my business." Youta turned down Hisao's offer and changed the subject to Haru's work as his index finger pointed to Haru.

 

 "Oh, yes. Don't worry. I'll make sure he knows everything before I officially quit today and I feel sorry about the news, Youta. I hope you'll continue to cooperate with them even though I am not there anymore." Hisao suddenly feels bad for his best friend. He knew Youta felt so disappointed to hear this news. Youta just nodded his head and sipped his drink.

 

 "Mr. Watanabe! It's been a while! I miss you!" Out of nowhere, Asuka came from behind and put her arm around Hisao's neck.

 "Oh, Asuka!" Haru and Hisao were very startled when Asuka approached him out of a sudden.

 

 "Hehehe… I miss you, Mr. Watanabe!" Asuka tries to seduce Hisao in front of his colleague and Youta.

 

 "A… Asuka. Please… Please don't do this. Please let go of your hand from me. I'm working here." Hisao doesn't feel comfortable about what Asuka is trying to do to him and asks Asuka to let go of him.

 

 "Why? Do you feel embarrassed?" Asuka tried to seduce him one more time and teased him when she saw his face already turned red.

 

 "Ms. Hara! Can you let go of me? I'll talk to you later." Asuka let go of Hisao when she heard Hisao suddenly change his tone to be firm as he meant what he said. Youta just saw and gave a glance to Asuka to ask her to leave. She understood when she saw the signal from Youta.

 

 "Okay then. I'll wait for you, Mr. Watanabe. Make sure you come to me before you leave." Asuka gives a seductive look to Hisao before she leaves. Hisao feels so uncomfortable with that.

"Mr. Watanabe! I miss you!" After a few hours of discussion with Youta and Haru, Hisao went to meet Asuka as promised. When she saw Hisao come to her, Asuka became so excited, and without a doubt, she hugged him and grabbed his hand.

 

 "Ms. Hara. I have something to tell you." Hisao refused to be held by Asuka's hand and tried to go straight to the topic she wanted to tell her.

 

 "What is it? You look so serious. Has something bad happened? Did something bother you, Mr. Watanabe?" Asuka was startled that Hisao suddenly called her surname and not her first name as usual. She wonders what Hisao wants to tell her, it seems so serious to discuss.

 

 "Hahaha… It's not like that. I just want to tell you that I quit my job and today is my last day. We are probably we'll never meet again after this because I promise myself, I'll never go to a place like this anymore. I'm sorry I've been telling you this out of a sudden." Hisao tells Asuka that he quit his job today and he's so relieved that he can let go of the burden he has now.

 

 "Why? Why so sudden? Is something happening at your work? Are you okay?" Asuka was stunned when he heard the news from Hisao, and she was so worried about his situation.

 

 "Hahaha… I'm fine. I never feel so much better than today. I feel so relieved and free. I'm so glad I made this decision. I make a lot of mistakes in my life. A lot of sins I've been a burden on my back. I'm sorry. I'm sorry because I've been one of your mistakes and burdens. I'm sorry, Asuka. I promise I'll never show myself again in front of you anymore. I know you must have hated me so much." Hisao suddenly feels bad for Asuka and blames himself for what happened between him and her.

 

 "I… I don't understand. What do you mean? What do you mean by mistake and burden? Am I a mistake and burden for you?" Asuka feels so triggered by what Hisao suddenly said to her.

 

 "No. No. It's not about you. It's about me. What I trying to say is as a man I should not take advantage of women even your job as the mistress. I should not take it for granted of it. I should be the man who protects and respects women. That's what I mean. I'm sorry I've been such a jerk and a loser for you. I'm sorry." Hisao explained what he meant about Asuka's questions to him and asked for her forgiveness.

 

 "You know Mr. Watanabe, that's why I like you. The first time I saw you that day, I knew you were a very good man. Every time you came here, I always wanted you only for me. That's why I asked Mr. Yamada to let me be the one who serves you. But no matter how I treat you, and how good a service I give to you, you are still far from me. You never fall for me. Is this because you already have a girlfriend?" After hearing Hisao's explanation, Asuka expresses her feelings for Hisao and is happy that she fell in love with a gentleman, even though she knows he will never be hers.

 

 "Girlfriend? N…No. She's not my girlfriend. I mean not yet. We never met or knew each other in real life. Hahaha… You must think that I'm crazy now. I only met her in my dreams. She always comes into my dreams whenever I feel lost in my life. Even though I knew I only met her in my dreams, I kept searching and running to her every time I saw her shadow. Wait… Hahaha… I guess lately I met her once or two times but every time we bumped into each other I was drunk. Hahaha… I'm so dumb. I do remember now, she is so stunning, the same in my dreams. She is a very nice woman, not judging me with whatever I've been telling her about how useless I am in my life. She did not hate me at all. Thus, she kept smiling at me like I saw her in my dreams. She even told me not to give up on my life and to keep searching for the truth of life. I didn't know what it's mean but I promise I'll look for it until I meet her again. However, even though all of that is real and it happened in my life, I still feel it was just dreams because I was too drunk every time that happened. Right now, I don't know which one is real and which one is a dream. Hahaha… I'm too confused about myself. I don't know what to do." Hisao smiles, laughs, and feels anxious when he talks about Alisha. His feelings became confused every time he talked about Alisha.

 

 "She must be very special to you, Mr. Watanabe. I can see how you are so befuddled with your feelings. You must love her so much. Now I know why you never fall for me. Mr. Watanabe, I hope one day you can catch up with her and promise once you get her, never let go of her. Make her your precious thing and priority. She must be so worthy for you, if not I'll take you from her. Hahaha… I hope I'll never regret letting you go, Mr. Watanabe." Asuka gives her last words and smiles as a farewell to Hisao. She knows that she can't force someone to fall for her. She needs to accept the fate of a woman like her not meant to be for a gentleman like Hisao. For her, it may be just a dream to have someone like that in her life.

 

 "Asuka, I hope you'll find a person who can set you free from this place. I know a precious woman like you must find someone who can serve you like a queen and I'm sorry because I'm not the one who you are looking for." Hisao gives a last word to Asuka as a farewell. He hoped that one day she'd find someone who loved her more than she loved him. He felt bad for her to leave her at this place, but Asuka just nodded her head and smiled at him for the last time. It made him remember the nightmare he had about Asuka, the horrible creature he saw in that dream was a symbol of this place turning her into a worse person who was hungry with lust, he chased after her in that dream because he always chased after Hisao's heart, but he always ignored her feelings and leave her far in his life.