Jasmine and matcha

Pouring milk into the greenish powder resting at the bottom of the cup held delicately in her soft right hand, Lia finished making her matcha coffee. She had never tried it before, but something about it caught her attention the day prior in the tiny store next to her new apartment. She felt inexplicably drawn to it — like she had to try it.

After stirring the mixture and securing the lid on the cup, she ran to grab her bag and slipped out the door, the warm drink still in hand.

No sooner had she reached the street that she realized it was raining. Going upstairs again would make her lose the train, so she had to take off her jacket and use it to cover her head and body. “What a nice first impression you’re going to make, Lia,” she muttered under her breath, more annoyed than amused.

When she finally arrived at the train station and located platform six — the one where her train would arrive any minute — she realized she still hadn’t tasted her drink. She spotted an empty spot on the crowded bench, sat down, and brought the cup to her lips, excited to try the new beverage. However, as the first warm sip filled her mouth, her excitement was replaced with a grimace.

She instinctively pulled the cup away, the grassy flavour still lingering.

“Bad, isn’t it?”

The voice came from the guy standing not too far away from her. He also had a cup in his hand and was looking at her with empathy — recalling the disappointing experience he also had with the drink.

“Matcha coffee, right?” He asked, already convinced about the answer. Lia nodded.

“I tried it last week. Thought it’d be sophisticated, but it tasted just like spinach,” he added, not looking directly at her, as if remembering everything as accurately as he could.

“You could’ve warned me,” Lia replied, a grin spreading across her face.

“Where’s the fun in that?” He shot back, matching the playful tone of the girl.

For a moment, Lia couldn’t look away. It felt like everything and everyone around them disappeared. She was just about to ask his name when an announcement echoed:

“Train to Kyoto arriving at platform six”.

Before either of them could say anything, people started to get up and move toward the train, snapping the invisible thread between their gazes.

Lia rushed toward the train as fast as she could to avoid missing it. Once she finally boarded, she looked around, scanning the crowd on the train. No sign of him. She then looked out the window — and there he was, already smiling at her. Without realizing, her lips curled into a grin, too.

The train started its journey, and she watched him get tinier and tinier, until he was gone.

During the twenty-minute journey to the office, she couldn’t think about anything else but him.

“It’s your first day at work, Lia. Focus. You don’t know anything about him — not even if you’ll see him again. Forget it, at least for now, and focus.” She kept repeating herself.

The following day, Lia left her home earlier. Partly because she didn’t waste time making that awful matcha — but mostly because she was hoping to see that boy again. This time in better conditions: not soaking wet from the rain, nor pulling grimaces over disgusting drinks.

As she got closer to the station, she became more and more nervous with every step. She wore a tight white shirt and grey suit pants, her high heels clicking confidently against the pavement. Everyone turned to see her, but she couldn’t care less; she was only focused on one thing today — or rather, one man.

She made her way down the station stairs and onto platform six, thinking it was stupid to have hopes on finding a person she had seen just once.

She looked around calmly in case he was there — she didn’t want to look desperate — but wasn’t lucky.

Just as she was about to sit on the bench, someone leaned close and whispered into her ear:

“Are you looking for someone?”

She didn’t even have to turn around to see who it was.

Lia turned her head slightly, just enough to meet his eyes.

“Maybe,” she said nonchalantly.

”Oh, really? Can I know who it is?” He asked, matching her tone, his gaze tracing her expression like he already knew the answer.

“Someone who definitely won’t be trying matcha again.”

He raised his cup in response “Might be me, then. Straight espresso today.” He took a small sip.

“Boring. I expected more from you," she said teasingly.

“I’m Lia, by the way,” She offered her hand.

“Hikaru,” He said while looking at her hand before taking it with a smirk, as if he knew how carefully she was managing her feelings.

When she heard his name, she repeated it in her mind. Hiraku. It sounded very familiar.

Just then, the train arrived.

“I guess I have to go now” She said half-pouting, half-smiling.

“I guess I’ll see you tomorrow” He replied, giving her a wink.

The next morning, Lia was in a hurry, again, but she wasn’t stressed, she was convinced she would see him at the station, and that is what mattered.

Well, it mattered when she got to platform six and he wasn’t there.

Nor the following day.

A week had already passed since the last time they saw each other.

After a hard day at work, dealing with difficult customers, Lia decided to go home walking instead of taking the train.

She had been in a pretty bad mood since the day she didn’t see Hikaru at the station, and wanted to get out of this cycle by discovering new places. She found herself in a calm street, with stores on every corner: bookstores, cafes,… It all looked so peaceful. She passed by a cafe and smelled something really nice that made her stop to take a closer look — and another breath. For the first time in a week, she felt her facial muscles relax. She closed her eyes, focusing on the smell.

“Jasmine tea, way better than matcha, I’m telling you,” said a voice from her side.

There he was. She was so focused on the smell that she didn’t even notice he was standing next to her, almost touching shoulders, until he spoke.

She first jumped at the sound of his voice. “Oh my God, Hikaru! I haven’t seen you in a week and now you scare me when you see me?” She said jokingly.

“Oh, so you’ve been counting the days, haven’t you?” He answered teasingly. Bumping her shoulder and raising his eyebrows.

She instantly blushed. She was so surprised to see him that she didn’t even have time to think what to say.

“Want to go inside? Try jasmine tea?” He asked, seeing her embarrassment.

She looked at him doubtfully.

“Come on, we agree that matcha is bad, so I bet you’ll agree with me that jasmine tea is wonderful. Plus, I’m freezing, and I’m sure you are too. We’d better get inside before we turn into snowmen”.

She smiled, seeing how hard he was trying, and nodded as a response.

“You better be right!” She said with a laugh as she entered the establishment.

Lia instantly fell in love with the place, it was straight out of a fairies’ film.

They sat on a round table in the corner of the room, both of them smiling. After this week that felt like torture, Lia finally felt happy. Not worried about work or anything else. Completely focused on the guy sitting in front of her.

“So, looks like the universe wanted our story to be continued”.