2

When the door closed behind Aiko, the house exhaled again.

Naoki stood in the entryway for a moment with Hana against his shoulder, as he listened to the fading rhythm of Aiko’s jogging steps disappear down the street.

Hana shifted in his arms.

“Alright, let’s get to work.”

The morning routine began the way it always did.

Naoki returned to the kitchen and placed Hana gently in the small play seat near the table. The seat rocked softly when she moved, keeping her entertained while he moved around the room.

He rinsed Aiko’s bowl, washed the pan, dried the counter again even though it was already clean. The sponge moved in slow, practiced circles across the surface of the stove.

Order had become something he could control. 

He stared into the distance as he remembered his previous work life. Just half a year ago. Emails arrived at midnight. Deadlines shifted without warning. Managers spoke about promotions like they were distant mountains. Visible but difficult to climb.

Naoki had been good at that world, even better than most.

He had entered the company straight out of university and climbed steadily. Within five years he had become the youngest section supervisor in his department. Within eight he had already been told that another promotion was coming.

Assistant division manager.

The title had sounded impressive, whoever you asked. His father had nearly burst with pride when he heard.

“Don’t slow down. In Japan, men who slow down are forgotten.” His father encouraged.

At the time, Naoki believed him. But life changed quickly after that. Hana arrived. Then Aiko’s exhaustion followed. She had been diagnosed with postpartum depression.

The promotion offer came three weeks after Hana was born. Naoki still remembered the conversation with the director.

“Relocation would be necessary. The Osaka branch needs strong leadership.” The man explained.

Osaka... Two prefectures away. Longer hours. Larger responsibilities. A bigger future. Naoki declined the same afternoon. The director didn’t even try to hide his surprise and disappointment.

“Most men would not give up this opportunity.”

Naoki had smiled politely. “Most men don’t have my family.”

Hana kicked her legs in the seat beside the table, pulling Naoki gently back to the present.

He wiped his hands and crouched beside her. “You’re already trying to escape.”

Her tiny hands waved in the air as if she understood. Naoki laughed softly and lifted her again.

“You’re strong.”

He carried her into the living room. The wall above the television held the photographs he had straightened earlier that morning. Now he studied them more carefully. Each frame held a different version of their lives.

The earliest photo came from high school.

Aiko stood near the back of a group photo with hair tied in a simple ponytail. Naoki was visible near the opposite side of the image, looking stiff and slightly awkward beside his classmates.

They had known of each other then, but not much more.

Aiko had always seemed distant during those years. Always focused on her studies, determined she already knew where she wanted to go.

Medical school. Helping people. Saving lives. Naoki had admired her quietly from afar. They didn’t truly become close until university. By then, Aiko had changed direction and decided to become a physiotherapist. That photo hung beside the first.

Two college students sitting on a campus bench, laughing at something outside the frame. Naoki’s arm rested behind Aiko, not quite touching her shoulders but close enough to make the intention obvious.

He remembered that day clearly. The moment she had leaned against him. The moment he realized his life had changed. From that point forward they rarely separated.

Classes together. Meals together. Late nights studying in quiet libraries.

Naoki moved to the next photo.

Their wedding.

Naoki still remembered the strange disbelief he had felt standing beside her.

Even now, years later, he sometimes wondered how someone like him had been chosen by someone like her.

The final photo showed Aiko holding Hana in the hospital room after the birth.

Her hair had been messy. Her eyes tired. But she had still looked beautiful.

Naoki touched the frame lightly.

“I’d do it all again,” he murmured.

Every choice. Every sacrifice. There was nothing in the world he wouldn’t give for Aiko. Or for Hana.

Hana made a small impatient noise in his arms.

“Ok sorry. No idling. Right. More work.”

He returned to the kitchen and began the next round of cleaning. Laundry folded and stacked in neat piles. Kitchen towels replaced. The floor swept again even though it barely needed it.

The house gradually returned to the careful stillness he preferred.

While placing a small jewellery tray back onto the dresser in the bedroom, Naoki paused.

The tray looked rather incomplete.

He frowned.

Aiko’s wedding ring set was there. Some small silver earrings. But the delicate bracelet she wore most days was missing.

Naoki opened the drawer beneath the tray. Nothing.

He checked the bathroom counter. Still nothing.

“Hm.”

He stood there for a moment thinking. Aiko rarely misplaced things like that. Then again, she had left in a hurry that morning.

Naoki shrugged lightly. “I’ll ask her tonight.”

He closed the drawer and returned to the kitchen. By now the sunlight had grown stronger, filling the room with warmth.

Naoki opened the refrigerator and studied the shelves thoughtfully. Aiko had said she would eat at the hospital. But hospital food was rarely good. And besides, cooking for her made him happy.

He reached for the ingredients he needed.

Rice. Fresh vegetables. A small container of miso. But the meat was missing. Naoki smiled. That part was easy.

The Shibata Meat Shop sat just two streets away, and Takeshi never minded when Naoki came by for supplies. In fact, the old man seemed secretly pleased when Naoki used the shop’s ingredients properly.

Naoki lifted Hana again and secured her in the baby carrier.

“Field trip,” he said quietly.

Outside, the morning air had warmed slightly.

The familiar metal shutters of the butcher shop were already open when they arrived. 

Inside, the steady rhythm of a knife striking wood echoed from the back room. Takeshi Shibata stood at the cutting table. He didn’t look up immediately. He recognized the sound of Naoki’s footsteps now. He only did when he heard Hana’s giggles. His expression shifted just slightly at the sight of Hana.

“You’re early.”

Naoki nodded. “Just borrowing ingredients.”

Takeshi wiped his hands on his apron and stepped forward.

“What are you making?”

“Something simple.”

He opened the cooler and examined the neatly arranged rows of meat. Each cut had been prepared with precise care. Naoki selected a small portion and wrapped it carefully.

Takeshi watched him quietly. “For Aiko?”

Naoki smiled. “For Aiko.”

Takeshi nodded once. 

Hana reached toward the counter with curious hands. The old butcher leaned closer and allowed her tiny fingers to grab the edge of his apron.

Babies just had that effect. For a moment, the shop felt strangely peaceful, like a place where nothing bad could ever happen.

Naoki finished wrapping the ingredients and lifted the bag.

“I’ll bring lunch to the hospital.”

Takeshi said nothing, but the slight approval in his eyes was clear.