In the streets of Tokyo, early afternoon sunlight filtered through the glass of Shinji's taxi. The city buzzed around him, but his mind was elsewhere, drifting through the daily grind. He sat slumped in the driver's seat, fingers tapping absently against the steering wheel.
"Man… this life is tough," Shinji muttered to himself. "Every day it's the same thing. I work and work, try to take care of my family, but nothing ever seems to change. The same life… the same struggles. Will it ever get better?"
The city noise outside blurred into the background as he sank deeper into his thoughts. For a moment, he let himself imagine something different, something better. A life without constantly worrying about money, without the relentless hustle just to make it through the day.
Suddenly, a sharp knock on the window pulled him out of his daydream. Startled, he glanced to his right and saw a young woman standing on the curb, dressed in expensive, well-tailored clothes. She looked out of place amidst the everyday chaos of the street. Without hesitation, Shinji unlocked the door, and the woman slid into the back seat.
"Where to?" Shinji asked, his voice neutral.
But the woman, Aiko, wasn't paying attention. She was on the phone, her voice shaky with emotion.
"Mum, I just can't marry a man I don't love," Aiko said, her voice rising as she tried to keep her tears at bay. "He's your choice, not mine. Why are you and Dad always like this? Why can't I ever choose anything for myself?"
Shinji's eyes flicked to the rearview mirror. She had turned her head away from him, her face half-hidden as she continued to argue with her mother. He shifted uncomfortably in his seat, feeling the tension of her words even though it wasn't his problem to solve.
"I'm your mother, and you can't argue with me while you're still under my roof!" her mother's voice crackled harshly through the phone before the line abruptly went dead.
Aiko let out a soft sob, dropping the phone into her lap. Shinji hesitated. His instinct told him to ask if she was okay, but something in him held back. "Getting involved with someone like her would only drag me into more trouble," he thought, shaking his head slightly. He let out a quiet chuckle at the irony of it all—him worrying about trouble when his life was a constant battle against hardship.
Aiko wiped her tears and sat up straighter, suddenly aware of her surroundings. Her eyes were still red, but now there was a spark of determination in them. Her voice, when she spoke, was surprisingly calm.
"Do you want to marry me?"
Shinji nearly slammed on the brakes, his foot slipping off the gas for a second. His head whipped around to face her. "What?" he blurted out, utterly confused.
"You heard me." Aiko's voice was soft but steady. "Do you want to marry me?"
Shinji blinked, at a loss for words. Here was this woman he had known for all of five minutes, asking him to marry her as if they were discussing the weather. "No," he finally said, keeping his face straight.
She seemed unfazed by the rejection. "You're the only person who can save me," she continued, her tone growing more desperate. "My parents are trying to force me into an arranged marriage, but if I'm already married, they'll have no choice but to leave me alone."
Shinji frowned, staring back at the road. He didn't know anything about this woman, and she knew nothing about him. "This is crazy," he thought. "I can't just agree to something like that."
"I can't marry you," Shinji said, shaking his head. "I don't know you."
"I'll make it worth your while," Aiko pressed on. "Money, comfort… I can give you all of that."
Shinji's grip on the steering wheel tightened. The mention of money caught his attention, and despite his better judgment, his mind began to wander. The orphanage he grew up in, the people he considered his family—he had dreams for them, for himself. But those dreams required money, something he didn't have. Aiko's offer could change everything.
He glanced at her again in the mirror, weighing the impossible decision in his mind. She was beautiful, there was no denying that, and she clearly came from wealth. "Maybe this is my chance," he thought. "Maybe this is how I finally break free from this cycle."
Shinji swallowed hard, his thoughts racing. "I'll do it," he said, the words escaping his lips before he could fully process them.
Aiko's eyes lit up, and she leaned forward in her seat, excitement radiating off her. "Really? You'll do it?"
"Yeah," Shinji nodded slowly. "But I'm doing it for my family. This isn't just for me."
Her face broke into a wide smile, and before Shinji knew what was happening, she threw her arms around his neck, pulling him into a tight embrace. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!" she cried, her voice filled with relief and joy.
Shinji sat there, stunned for a moment, feeling her warmth against him. He was doing this for his family, for his future… but he couldn't ignore the sudden rush of warmth that spread through him at her touch. Aiko pulled back, her face flushed as she realized how close they were. They both laughed awkwardly, the tension between them momentarily replaced by a shared, giddy excitement.
"After all," Aiko said, still blushing, "we're getting married."
Shinji smirked, feeling the absurdity of the situation but somehow unable to resist the pull of her energy. "Yeah," he said, chuckling softly. "I guess we are."
They sat in silence for a moment, the weight of the decision settling over them. But in the back of Shinji's mind, doubts lingered. He had just agreed to marry a woman he barely knew, all for the promise of a better life. As they drove off into the busy streets of Tokyo, the future felt uncertain, but for the first time in a long while, it also felt full of possibilities.