The Girl Beneath the Plum Tree

Plum blossoms didn’t have the same worldwide mystique around them as cherry blossoms. Crowds didn’t flock to the old cities to see the blooms in early February like they did in late early April. In Japan, they were still respected and known for their beauty, but beyond that, most never thought of their wonder. In Inabe City, not far from Nagoya, there is an agriculture park where a grove of over 4,500 plum trees grow. Every year, their flowers bloom from late February until mid-March. There, in that sea of pink, is where Hazuki met Naoe.

The first time he met her, Hazuki was only twelve years old and running late for school. He lived with his grandparents on the outskirts of the city and rode the bus in every morning. A wreck nearby had blocked the bus, delaying him by several minutes. As he ran through the park and looked up at the beautiful blooms that enveloped him in gentle pink, he didn’t see the teenage girl in front of him. They collided with a thud, and Hazuki fell to the ground with his backpack spilling pencils and paper along the path.

The girl seemed shocked that Hazuki was there, and they both immediately began to apologize to one another. The girl’s voice was high and quiet, and she kept her eyes away from him as she bowed again and again.

“It’s okay!” chimed Hazuki as he shoved his supplies in his bag and got up to depart once again. As he took off, she called after him.

“Your hat!” she shouted.

He patted the top of his head and realized his school hat had fallen off and was near her feet. She did not offer to bring it to him and seemed uninterested in reaching for it, so Hazuki trotted back and retrieved it, grateful nonetheless that she had pointed it out.

He was not yet interested in girls, but as he walked back, he did notice her awkward, mousy beauty as she avoided his gaze once again.

“Well, see ya,” he said as he returned his hat to his head.

“Goodbye! It was nice meeting you!” she said with genuine excitement.

Hazuki continued on his mad dash to school, but the wording stuck with him.

‘I guess that counts as meeting someone?...’ he thought to himself as he ran out of the park and towards his school.

That evening, after classes had ended, Hazuki walked through the grove of plums instead of running. Tree branches reached out over his head like natural scaffolding and blotted out the sky with their blooms. Their color brought a peaceful melancholy to his thoughts, which in the years since his parents’ death had been hard to come by. He rounded a turn along the walking path, and to his surprise, the girl was still there where she had been earlier that morning.

They met eyes, and she smiled. Now that he was walking, Hazuki saw her fully. She was relatively tall for a girl and in a pink kimono with her hair pulled back in traditional style. Pink flowers adorned her auburn hair. She had sanpaku eyes, which Hazuki had heard was a bad omen for her, but as he looked at her soft smile, he felt a calmness similar to what he felt when looking at the plum blossoms.

“How was class?!” she asked.

“It was good… Did you go to school today?” he asked in return with genuine curiosity.

She blushed and looked away.

“I didn’t…”

‘Is she a delinquent?...’ he thought to himself, even though she did not seem like one.

She reached up and caught a falling petal. Melancholy drifted over her face, and even though Hazuki was only a boy back then, he noticed in that moment that something about her resonated a quiet sadness.

“The leaves are already falling,” she said.

“Grandma says this will be a short blooming season since it’s already so hot.”

“I hope not, but you’re probably right,” she said as she clasped the petal.

There was a pause, and Hazuki was ready to be home so that he could play video games on the family computer.

“Have a good night,” he said, unsure of what else to say.

“You too!” she replied.

That was the first time Hazuki saw her. Over the next few weeks, he would see her each morning and evening on school days as he made his way to class. Always in the plum grove. Always near the same tree. Some days he’d see her not far away, but in a slightly new location, her sanpaku eyes wide with observation as she looked at the blossoms like a caretaker.

Then she was gone. Just like that, one day she wasn’t at her tree anymore. The petals of the blossoms began to fall and the warmth of spring arrived in full force. As a boy, Hazuki thought nothing of it other than being somewhat surprised she had not told him she was leaving the evening before when he had seen her. Over the coming weeks, thoughts of her faded as the white and pink of the plum trees turned to green.

Summer, Fall and Winter passed. February came with cold snaps and the blossoms of the trees were delayed. When the air warmed, the blossoms began to open, and soon the grove was covered in color once more. Hazuki had gone through a growth spurt over the winter, and his voice was changing. He wanted to have a mustache like the adults in the movies, but his face was still smooth. Walking felt awkward with his newly elongated legs forcing him to lope more than walk.

As he traipsed along the path, he took in the newly returned color with gratitude. To his surprise, he saw her up ahead, in the same spot once again. Early morning sunlight bathed her pale skin and bright hair in a golden light, and Hazuki noticed she was in the same kimono. To his embarrassment, he realized he did not know her name to call out to her, but also realized she might not want him to use her given name yet.

He settled for a simple call out as he approached with a wave, hoping she would remember him.

“Hey!” he called as he sought to get her attention.

She did not immediately respond.

“Tree girl! Hey!”

She finally turned and looked at him. It took her a moment to recognize him.

“School boy?” she asked.

He laughed.

“Yep! Long time no see!”

And thus their connection for that year began. And just like last year, he saw her every day that he decided to take that route to and from school. And just like last year, she was always near the same tree in the grove. Without being aware of it, Hazuki began to look forward to seeing her. Until she was gone without a word, just like the previous year. This time, Hazuki felt a slight pain he was not familiar with, as a sensation of pain drifted into his stomach and chest when he realized she had disappeared without a word again.

Sports, festivals, holidays, tests, rituals, sleepovers, vacations, chores, and dreams filled in the months afterwards as Hazuki’s thirteenth year slowly bled into his fourteenth year. Winter passed, and hints of warm air arrived to his elation. He was taller still, slightly less lanky, still smooth-faced, now embarrassingly fighting acne, but also a member of the swim team due to his broadening shoulders and long limbs. When February arrived, he began to take the plum grove route to and from school every day. One day, she appeared once more. Still in the same kimono, and still by the same tree.

Being slightly older and finally starting to develop emotional intelligence, Hazuki realized he actually wanted to learn about her this time.

“So do you vacation here for a few weeks or something?” he asked from behind her as he walked to her.

She laughed quietly to herself and faced him.

“Something like that,” she replied.

They faced one another. He was taller than her now, and his hair was in his eyes as part of his rebellious teenager look.

“You’ve grown taller. And your voice changed. I almost didn’t recognize you,” she said.

“Does it sound good? My voice?” he asked with a sincerity that made her blush and laugh with her hand covering her mouth.

“It does. It’s nice. Don’t try to make it deeper just to sound cool, though. Girls don’t always want it to be super deep,”

“That’s good to know,” he said as he jokingly made his voice as deep as possible.

“I’m glad you agree,” she replied in an overly deep voice.

They laughed together as the wind drifted between the trees. Weeks passed, and a pang of loss crept into Hazuki’s mind, fearing that she’d likely be leaving soon.

“Can I ask your name by the way?” he blurted out one evening as they stood by her tree.

It seemed to catch her off guard, and she blushed as she pushed a strand of her hair out from near her eyes.

“Where’s this coming from?” she asked.

“You always vanish randomly in March without saying goodbye, so I wanted to ask your name in case you’re not here tomorrow morning.”

She paused as though she wanted to say something, but didn’t. Hazuki noticed her melancholy aura return.

“I’m Hazuki, by the way,” he said.

“A leaf under the moon,” she replied.

“A leaf in the moonlight. Or at least that was the idea,” he said with a smirk.

“I like that. I’m Naoe.”

“Honest. Straightforward. It’s pretty,” said Hazuki.

They smiled to one another, and the sense of melancholy washed away from her as they talked about schoolwork and the plum blossoms. Naoe’s face lit up as she spoke about the trees and Hazuki noted to himself that she was quite knowledgeable. It was time for him to leave.

“Well, in case I don’t see you tomorrow, goodbye and I hope I see you next year,” he said in jest and seriousness as he left.

The melancholy returned to her even though she smiled a sincere smile. Dusk had painted the clouds in a range of reds, pinks and purples that stretched high into the early evening sky. A gentle breeze blew through the grove, causing Naoe’s kimono to billow ever so slightly as she stood completely still and pondered his words. Sadness stayed in her eyes even as her lips lifted in a slight smile.

“Same to you. Good night and maybe goodbye.”

“Good night and maybe goodbye,” said Hazuki as he walked away.

That was the last time he saw her that year.

‘Did I upset her with that comment or for asking her name? Is she avoiding me?’ Hazuki thought to himself as he swam laps for practice that afternoon.

Longing made its way into his heart and the days passed into weeks and months. Soon, he was fifteen and set to start high school. His new school was in a different neighborhood and the plum grove was no longer on the way. He had not thought of that and regretted that he hadn’t mentioned it to Naoe. He set his mind to make as many trips as possible to the plum grove starting in February so that his last term in middle school could be shared with the girl at the plum blossom tree.