Novels by HaKa

Spring… is only a few weeks away.Sakura stepped out of her apartment that morning. The Tokyo air is still cold, biting at her cheeks and ears. She made her way toward Yoyogi-Uehara Station, ear mufflers wrapped snug around her ears, shielding her from the last reluctant breath of winter.In her ears, “Kaiju no Hanauta” by Vaundy played through her headphones.At the station, the morning train was already packed. Station attendants pushed passengers in so the doors could close. Sakura is among the crowd, squeezed in tightly—just another part of her everyday life.When she arrived at Higashi-Ikebukuro, she walked calmly toward the office. She stopped by a vending machine and grabbed a can of hot coffee, clutching it tightly in both hands—hoping the warmth of the can would transfer into her shivering body, chilled by the winds sneaking between the buildings.She checked her schedule for the day—a meeting with her manager in Ōmiya.“Sakura, let’s go. Make sure you’ve got the documents,”

Inside the nearly empty train, Heri stand quietly near the door.The song “Fragrance” by Mahiru and RINZO played softly through his earphones, blending with the Tokyo nightscape flowing past the window.Tokyu Lines… today he had retraced the tracks that were once part of his life.The only difference now was—Sakura had walked them beside him.Memory and reality gently met, and his heart felt warm.Once he arrived back at the hotel, he runs into a few cabin crew members.“Heri, where’ve you been? Disappeared all day,” one of them asked casually.“Just hung out with a friend,” he replied softly, offering a faint smile.They chatted about their shopping adventures in Shibuya, lunch in Ginza, and laughter in Ikebukuro. They invited him to join next time.Heri just nodded politely.The Tokyo they sought and loved… are different from the Tokyo he kept quietly in his heart.For today—and maybe even the days to come—he wanted to be selfish, choosing his own version of the city.That night, am

The warm aroma of curry drifted from the kitchen, wrapping the small house in comfort. Inside, Akari moved swiftly, helping Yuriko with dinner preparations, while Kenta hurried back and forth, carefully setting the table with plates and cups. In the living room, Mayu sat quietly in front of the TV, occasionally humming along with the jingle of a passing commercial.From her seat, Sakura peeked into the kitchen. Something stirred within her—a quiet curiosity.“Sakura, would you like to take a look?” Yuriko called with a warm smile.Sakura nodded gently and stepped in. The kitchen is small, but full of life—sounds, aromas, and soft laughter. In one corner, Akari was preparig salad, while Yuriko stirred the curry and tasted the sauce from a large pot.Sakura looked around. There is something alive in this space. A kind of warmth—voices, scents, and casual movement that made everything feel connected.This kitchen… is nothing like the one in her apartment. Hers is always quiet. Empty.“Wh

“Nii-san! Why didn’t you tell me you were coming to Tokyo?” the young girl called out, half in protest.“Ah… yeah, haha,” Heri replied awkwardly. “I already made plans with someone, Akari-chan. I was worried I wouldn’t have enough time.”Akari’s gaze immediately shifted to Sakura. “Nii-san… who’s she?” she asked innocently.Sakura quickly stepped in to introduce herself, not wanting things to become awkward. “Kitagawa Sakura. Nice to meet you.”“I’m Yamamura Akari! Nice to meet you too, Kitagawa-san!” the girl said enthusiastically with a wide grin.“Nii-san,” she added with a teasing smile, “is she a friend… or a friend?”“Mom’s going to be so happy when she sees her!”“Mom?” The question flashed quickly through Sakura’s mind. Whose mom…?Heri let out a small sigh, then turned to Sakura and explained.“Akari is the eldest daughter of my host family here in Tokyo.”Sakura, who had been feeling a bit uneasy, instantly relaxed. Even happy. A figure from Heri’s past—someone she’d only he

11:45 a.m.Sakura is lounging on the sofa, hugging a small cushion to her chest. Her eyes were nearly closed, drowsiness slowly taking over.She glanced toward the bed. Heri is still fast asleep… or—wait? Sakura rubbed her eyes. Heri had opened his eyes halfway and was quietly looking in her direction.Slowly, he reached for his phone and turned off the alarm before it had the chance to ring."You're awake," Sakura said softly.Heri gave a small nod, yawned, and rubbed his face. Then, he got up and headed into the bathroom to wash his face and perform his prayers.His movements were neat and disciplined—clearly the product of long-standing routine. Sakura watched in silence, simply observing. For some reason, there is a quiet comfort in watching him like that.Without saying much, Heri picked clothes from his suitcase and returned to the bathroom. Before long, he reemerged—fully ready, wearing a navy blue sweater over a white shirt, dark jeans, and his favorite OnCloud sneakers.“So…

“Have you eaten yet?” Heri asked as he walked slowly beside Sakura.“I have,” she replied with a nod. “Had an onigiri for breakfast, and a coffee at Tully’s while waiting for you to land.”“Oh yeah,” she added, “so… what’s the plan now? You heading to the hotel first?”Heri gave a small nod. “Yeah, I need to check in and drop off my luggage. And honestly… I’d like to take a nap until around noon before we go out.”Sakura just smiled. Truthfully, when she decided to pick Heri up at the airport, she hadn’t thought about what came next. All that mattered was seeing him again—being the first person to welcome him.“Where will you wait, Sakura-san?” Heri asked.“Uh… maybe at a café near your hotel?” she replied, unsure.“You sure that won’t be too long?” Heri paused. “Or… if you’d like, you can just wait in my room?”Silence.Both of them froze. Awkward.Until Heri, a little flustered, quickly added, “I mean—you can just chill on the sofa, watch TV or order snacks from room service while I

Musim semi… tinggal menghitung minggu.Sakura keluar dari apartemennya pagi itu. Udara Tokyo masih dingin, menusuk pipi dan telinga. Ia berjalan menuju Stasiun Yoyogi-Uehara. Ear muffler menempel di telinganya, melindungi dari sisa-sisa musim dingin yang belum rela pergi.Di telinganya, lagu “Kaiju no Hanauta” dari Vaundy mengalun melalui handsfree.Di stasiun, kereta pagi sudah penuh sesak. Petugas mendorong penumpang masuk agar pintu bisa tertutup. Sakura ikut terdorong ke dalam, penuh sesak, menjadi bagian kesehariannya.Sesampainya di Higashi-Ikebukuro, ia berjalan santai menuju kantor, ia sempatkan membeli kopi kaleng dari vending machine. Ia genggam erat, berharap kehangatan kaleng itu bisa menular ke tubuhnya yang terkena angin dingin yang berhembus dari sela-sela gedung.Dia mengecek jadwal hari itu — rapat bersama manajernya di Omiya.“Sakura, ayo berangkat. Pastikan dokumennya ya,” ujar manajernya.Semua terasa biasa. Tapi ada yang berubah.Di sela-sela rutinitas, Sakura memb

Di dalam kereta yang mulai sepi, Heri berdiri tenang di sudut dekat pintu. Lagu “Fragrance” dari Mahiru dan RINZO mengalun lembut lewat earphone-nya, menyatu dengan pemandangan malam Tokyo yang berlalu di balik kaca.Tokyu Lines... hari ini dia kembali menyusuri jalur yang pernah jadi bagian hidupnya. Bedanya, sekarang ada Sakura di sampingnya. Kenangan dan kenyataan saling bertemu — dan hatinya terasa hangat.Sesampainya di hotel, ia bertemu beberapa rekan cabin crew.“Mas Heri, dari tadi ke mana? Hilang seharian,” tanya salah satu dengan santai.“Main sama teman,” jawabnya pelan, hanya tersenyum.Mereka bercerita tentang petualangan belanja di Shibuya, makan di Ginza, dan ketawa-ketawa di Ikebukuro. Mereka mengajaknya bergabung lain kali.Heri hanya mengangguk sopan. Tokyo yang mereka cari dan cintai... berbeda dari Tokyo yang ia simpan dalam hati. Untuk hari ini — dan mungkin hari-hari ke depan — ia ingin tetap egois, memilih Tokyo versi dirinya sendiri.Malam itu, di tengah hiruk

Aroma kari hangat menyebar dari dapur, menyelimuti rumah kecil itu dengan rasa nyaman. Di dalamnya, Akari cekatan membantu Yuriko menyiapkan makan malam, sementara Kenta mondar-mandir menyusun piring dan gelas di meja. Di ruang keluarga, Mayu duduk anteng di depan televisi, sesekali bersenandung mengikuti lagu iklan yang lewat.Dari ruang tamu, Sakura mencuri pandang ke dapur. Ada rasa ingin tahu yang timbul begitu saja.“Sakura, mau lihat?” ajak Yuriko sambil tersenyum hangat.Sakura mengangguk pelan dan melangkah masuk. Dapurnya kecil, tapi terasa hidup—penuh suara, wangi, dan tawa kecil. Di sudut, Akari sedang menyiapkan salad. Yuriko sibuk mencicipi saus kare di panci besar.Sakura memperhatikan dapur itu. Ada kehidupan di ruang ini. Suara, aroma, dan interaksi yang terasa akrab dan kehangatan.Dapur ini... sangat berbeda dari dapur apartemennya yang sunyi.“Kamu biasa masak apa di rumah?” tanya Yuriko sambil tetap mengaduk kari.Sakura tersenyum kikuk. “Jujur aja… aku lebih serin

“Nii-san! Kenapa kamu nggak bilang kalau kamu ke Tokyo?” seru gadis muda itu dengan nada setengah protes.“Eh… iya, hahaha. Aku udah janji sama seseorang soalnya, Akari-chan. Takut waktunya gak cukup,” jawab Heri sambil nyengir canggung.Mata gadis itu langsung beralih ke Sakura. “Nii-san… dia siapa?” tanyanya polos.Sakura segera memperkenalkan diri, tak ingin membuat situasi jadi kikuk. “Kitagawa Sakura, salam kenal.”“Namaku Yamamura Akari! Salam kenal juga, Kitagawa-san!” jawab gadis itu dengan antusias dan senyum lebar.“Nii-san,” lanjutnya sambil tersenyum jahil, “dia teman… atau ‘teman’?”“Ibu pasti senang kalau melihatnya!”"Ibu?" Sebuah pertanyaan cepat melintas di kepala Sakura. Siapa 'ibu' yang dimaksud…?Heri menghela napas kecil, lalu menjelaskan sambil menoleh ke Sakura.“Akari ini… anak tertua dari keluarga angkatku di Tokyo.”Sakura, yang sempat merasa bingung, mendadak merasa lega. Bahkan senang. Sosok dari masa lalu Heri yang selama ini hanya dia dengar sekilas, kini

Jarum jam menunjukkan pukul 11.45.Sakura bersantai di sofa, memeluk bantal kecil di tangannya. Matanya nyaris tertutup karena mengantuk.Diliriknya ke arah tempat tidur. Heri masih terlelap… tapi… oh? Sakura mengucek matanya. Heri sudah membuka matanya setengah, menatap pelan ke arah Sakura.Dengan gerakan pelan, Heri mencari HP-nya dan mematikan alarm sebelum sempat berbunyi.“Sudah bangun, ya,” ucap Sakura pelan.Heri hanya mengangguk, menguap, dan mengusap wajahnya. Ia bangkit dan masuk ke kamar mandi, mencuci muka, lalu menunaikan salat.Gerak-geriknya rapi dan sistematis—seolah terbentuk dari kebiasaan panjang. Sakura memperhatikan dalam diam, hanya mengamati. Ada rasa tenang melihatnya begitu.Tanpa banyak bicara, Heri mengambil pakaian dari kopernya dan masuk ke dalam kamar mandi. Tak lama, dia sudah siap sepenuhnya: sweater biru gelap dengan kemeja putih di dalam, celana jeans hitam, dan sepatu OnCloud kesayangan.“Jadi… mau kemana? Makan siang, ya?” tanya Heri sambil merapik

“Kamu udah makan?” tanya Heri sambil berjalan pelan di samping Sakura.“Udah kok. Tadi sarapan onigiri, terus sempet ngopi juga di Tully’s pas nunggu kamu mendarat,” jawab Sakura.“Ooh ya,” lanjutnya, “kita…mau ke mana sekarang? Kamu ke hotel dulu, ya?”Heri mengangguk pelan. “Iya, aku harus check-in dulu dan naro koper. Terus…sejujurnya, aku juga pengen tidur sebentar sampe jam 12 sebelum kita jalan-jalan.”Sakura hanya tersenyum kecil. Sejujurnya ketika dia memutuskan untuk menjemput Heri di bandara dia tidak memikirkan “habis itu mau ngapain”—yang penting, dia bisa menjemput Heri. Bisa melihatnya langsung.“Sakura-san, kamu mau nunggu di mana nanti?”“Eh…ehm…mungkin di kafe dekat hotel kamu?” jawabnya ragu.“Gak kelamaan nanti kamu di kafe?” Heri tampak berpikir sejenak. “Atau…kalau kamu mau, ke kamar aja?”Hening.Keduanya tiba-tiba diam. Sunyi yang awkward.Sampai akhirnya Heri, agak tergesa, menambahkan, “Maksudku…ya kamu bisa duduk aja di sofa, nonton TV atau pesan cemilan lewa