Encounter

There was never much going on in the narrow alleyway in front of Cafe Adagio. In fact, there was never much going on inside the cafe either. That’s why the rent was cheap, the days short and the work peaceful. The only people stopping by were regulars—either grabbing a coffee on their way to work in the morning, or enjoying the quiet in the afternoon. With only three tables, the cafe barely had enough room to accommodate anyone. This was by design.

The long days of summer brought brilliant sunshine, but the alleyway was always covered in shadow. There were a few other little restaurants and shops along the long, narrow stretch, but directly opposite the cafe was just a large, blank wall, on which many plants were hung, their vines clinging to the concrete.

“Can’t forget to water them tonight…”

Takagi Kana, the owner of the cafe, stood behind the counter, staring out of the open front door, listening to the voices faintly echoing around the alleyway. No customers, no talking, no—

All of a sudden, the peaceful quiet was disrupted by loud and frantic footsteps quickly growing louder. She could barely acknowledge the shadow running by the front door, before it turned course and barged into the shop.

A man, dressed way too heavily for this hot weather, with a baseball cap, sunglasses and a black mask stood in the small space, breathing heavily. His hands opened and closed restlessly. More footsteps were audible outside. Voices. The man looked up and Kana understood his situation so suddenly, with such clarity, it felt like a lightning strike.

“Come on, behind here,” she said and waved the man closer.

The stranger didn’t hesitate for a second and dove behind the counter with moves like a secret agent, crouching down just as a group of people ran past the cafe. Kana watched them slow down, looking confused. The stranger pulled down his mask and put a finger to his lips.

One of the group—all women—walked into the shop, looking around, yet the three tables were still as empty as they had been, no indication of any customers present.

“Excuse me, this might sound strange, but have you seen a man run by just now?”

Ah.

“Yes,” Kana said and the stranger grabbed her leg so hard it bordered on painful. “Someone just ran past my door, but I couldn’t make out who it was. He was wearing a cap and sunglasses. Did something happen?”

The woman’s face lit up.

“No, it’s all good. Thank you so much!”

“You’re very welcome.”

Just then another woman rejoined the group. She heard them talk, standing near the entrance to the cafe, and the atmosphere visibly deflated.

“I lost him,” the newcomer said.

“Damn. He doesn’t have any more recordings scheduled for this week. They’re doing a public appearance later.”

“We can’t get to him when… Wait. Do you want a drink while we look at the schedule? Hanako sent an updated file.”

“Good idea. I’ve never been here, but it looks cute.”

The group—five of them—entered the cafe. Kana welcomed them warmly as they walked up to the counter, even though she had a very heavy weight attached to her leg. They ordered various drinks and some cookies, and asked if they could push the tables together while they were in.

“Of course. Just don’t block the doorway, if possible,” Kana said with a smile. “Your drinks will be ready shortly.”

There wasn’t much room behind the counter, so Kana had to step over the man, who had started to frantically type on his smartphone while everything was going down. She decided to ignore him and go about her business.

“Doesn’t she look familiar?” one of the girls whispered.

“Who?”

“The barista.”

Everyone looked over at once, thereby making the effort of whispering completely naught. Kana didn’t let herself lose composure as she measured the coffee grounds and only exhaled when she turned her back to the group to use the coffee machine.

“No?”

“I swear I’ve seen her face before.”

“That’s not why we’re here.”

“Right, right. So here’s Hanako’s message…”

The discussion turned mostly around availability, pushing around obligations, logistical challenges and accommodations. If Kana didn’t know any better, she would assume they were planning a company trip. If only. She knew exactly what was going on. If these girls put half as much effort into the rest of their lives as they did with this, they would be successful no matter what they tried. They looked so incredibly normal on the outside, but she had seen the frenzy with which they had run through the alleyway… and the fear in the stranger as he tried to escape. There was nothing normal about this.

“But don’t you think this brand is wrong for him?” one of them asked and pointed at something on the tablet.

“I heard he only accepted the sponsorship because the other one he aimed for was snatched.”

“By who?”

She whispered a name into the round.

“Nooo… Really? Then again, Sakuya should be grateful to get anything at all. He placed second in the finals, but people are saying the votes were bought. There were others more deserving to be in the lineup.”

“The company manipulated the votes to push out the ones they didn’t want. He was probably a safe choice for their marketing.”

“I don’t want safe. I want exciting. He shouldn’t be in the group at all.”

Kana looked down at the floor, where the stranger sat, head between his knees, arms around them. He didn’t make a sound, but Kana knew he must be able to hear. She looked up at the group of girls.

Why are you chasing him, if you hate him so much? She had half a mind to spill their drinks on them, but that would only be trouble and she’d have to remake them anyway. Instead she reached down and patted the stranger’s head, then picked up the tray.

Kana glanced at the tablet on the table as she first put the cookies, and then the drinks down. It was a detailed calendar schedule of someone clearly in showbusiness. Luckily there were five cups to distribute, so she had a bit of time to snoop. The name ‘Candy Apple MV Promotion’ was written in red in one of the squares. So her intuition was right.

“Enjoy your coffee, ladies. If there’s anything else, please don’t hesitate to ask.”

The girls nodded and thanked her, immediately turning back to the tablet. As Kana walked back, she held her serving tray in a death grip—until the wood gave in and she fractured the edge. It was cheap anyway. Behind the counter, the stranger typed frantically on his phone. He had a messenger app open. A groupchat of… No. Kana averted her gaze. Helping this man didn’t give her the liberty to snoop.

While the girls drank their coffee, shared pictures between them and laughed over stupid jokes, Kana busied herself by cleaning behind the counter. There wasn’t much to tidy, but she didn’t like to just stand around while there were people in the shop. And she couldn’t sit down on her stool, as the way was blocked by a very nervous man, who kept glancing at her.

Finally, the group was ready to leave. They brought the cups to the counter and she thanked them for the kindness before they left. Only when their voices faded from the alleyway, did she let her shoulders slump and looked down.

“The air is clear.”

“Are they gone?” the stranger whispered from below.

“Yes. They left.”

The man sighed in relief and put his phone away. He stood up and took off his cap and sunglasses, and so she was confronted with pink hair, a boyish smile and the most adorable face she had seen in a long time. Kana realised that he was a bit shorter than her, which didn’t often happen. The stranger was sweaty from his run, his hair askew, but he looked radiant. Kana swallowed.

“The name’s Sakuya. Hasemi Sakuya.”

“Takagi Kana. I own this cafe.”

“You own it? How cool!” Sakuya beamed. “You look too young to be a shopowner!”

Kana laughed and Sakuya blushed immediately. “I didn’t mean it as—”

“It’s fine, it’s fine. You’re right, but it’s what I always wanted to do.”

“I always wanted to sing. It’s my dream.”

Kana looked at the door. “Despite—”

“It’s worth it. I will make it work!”

It was the youthful enthusiasm, the naive positivity and refusal to accept any alternative that Kana knew intimately. She wanted to scream.

“You should know what’s best for you,” she said instead. “Oh, and tell your people there’s a mole somewhere. That calendar these girls had was clearly from your agency. There’s no way a fan would have detailed information like that.”

Sakuya’s eyes widened in shock.

“Then… shit. That’s how they found the address today.”

Kana sighed and closed her eyes. This was no longer her problem. Just a chance encounter, nothing more. She helped where she could and that was that. Good deed for the week.

“I contacted my manager earlier and he should be here in a few minutes to pick me up. I can’t thank you enough.”

“After those fans followed some idols into their hotel rooms last week, it’s the least I could do to help.”

“Oh?”

Kana cleared his throat. “I don’t follow social media anymore, but it was all over the news. It’s despicable behaviour.”

“It truly is.”

Just then, Sakuya’s phone rang. He picked it up and exchanged a few quick words.

“It’s my manager. The car is here. They can’t drive through the alley but… Uhm. Thank you again. Truly.”

Kana just nodded. Sakuya bowed with a smile on his face and turned to leave. Kana stared at the door, through which this whirlwind had come and gone. She swallowed, her throat dry. It never stopped. Why would it? Just because she no longer… Stop. Stop thinking about it.

She was still staring when Sakuya returned, barging in like last time, out of breath. His eyes shone and his face was red when he held out his phone.

“Can I get your number? I want to thank you somehow!”

“That’s not—”

“Please!!” Sakuya said and bowed.

Kana relented despite her better judgement. She brought up the messenger app on her phone and touched it to Sakuya’s. A loud ping noise confirmed that their information had been swapped.

“Thank you so much!!” Sakuya shouted, just as he ran away again.

Kana looked down at her phone screen.

Hasemi Sakuya. The profile picture was him, wearing plush bunny ears, a blush sketched onto his face. It looked like a screenshot from a variety show. Kana stared at it some more. Then she walked to the door, locked it and turned the sign to ‘Closed’.