Chapter 06.01

After the vacation, I threw myself back into studying. On weekends, I met up with a friend or two, and I only exchanged the occasional message with Jenny. Uncle Steve studied with me every afternoon after his appointments.

“Amber,” I turned to my sister during one of our dinners—she was staying at home for a few days, “how’s Jenny?”

“She’s doing well,” Amber replied.

“She doesn’t really treat me like her friend anymore. She talks to Paul almost every day, and only replies to me if I message her first,” I said. “For her birthday, she accepted a Japanese book from Paul, but for my birthday wish text, she just replied ‘thank you.’”

“She told me you made her uncomfortable during the vacation, so she thinks it’s best to keep her distance,” Amber said. “She didn’t go into detail, and I didn’t ask.”

“What did you do, son?” Dad asked.

“I might’ve gone a bit overboard when she changed into her swimsuit,” I admitted.

“You’ll make things right in the fall,” Mom smiled.

—

After the group vacation, I focused mostly on my studies. Jenny carefully avoided me. If I met up with our friends, she wouldn’t come. When I canceled plans, that’s when she joined Brian and Paul.

“I think you’re ready,” Uncle Steve said with a smile on my last day as an intern.

“Thank you for everything,” I said. “If they don’t take me on, can I still stay on as your intern?” I had to ask.

“Of course you can, though it might come with some challenges.”

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“You’ll find out in the fall,” he laughed. “Now go home and get some rest,” he added with a smile.

I drove home and arrived just before dinner.

“How was it?” Amber greeted me—she had come over with Brad.

“I’m ready for next week,” I said calmly.

“Did you tell Jane?” Dad asked, curious.

“Not a chance,” I grinned. “She hasn’t been that embarrassed in a long time—but she will be this fall if this works out.”

“I’m sure you’ll pull it off.”

“I hope so,” I said.

—

Jenny flew off with her family for the vacation organized by Adam’s side, while I was getting ready for my university exams the next morning.

“After next week, I can fix everything I messed up,” I said at dinner, “and hopefully, she’ll forgive me.”

“You’ll do great. I’m sure Uncle Steve prepared you well,” Mom said.

“I hope so,” I smiled. “A lot depends on next week.”

In the morning, I set off. Paul had sent me the exact address and was already waiting for me.

The city was just over an hour away by highway. I had to drive through it—it was a bit larger than ours, but instead of a beach, it had universities. Paul’s apartment was in a modern U-shaped residential complex with multiple tall buildings, a gated parking lot with a security guard, a convenience store at the base, and a large playground next to it.

Since Paul had registered my license plate, the gate opened for me, and I parked in the landscaped lot, where grass lined the paths leading to the stairwells.

Paul buzzed me in through the intercom, so the older man at the reception didn’t ask any questions. I took one of the elevators up to his floor.

“Thanks for letting me stay,” I said as we shook hands after I rang the doorbell and dropped my bags.

Sitting calmly by Paul’s feet was a medium-sized, purebred red-and-white Japanese dog with a curled tail, pointed ears, and a triangular head. She was clearly well-trained and well-groomed. At Paul’s signal, she padded over to her basket beside the couch and lay down.

“This is Akiko,” he said, petting her gently.

“Come on, I’ll give you a tour,” he added. “If things go well, you’ll probably be spending a lot of time here,” he grinned.

The apartment was huge and tastefully decorated in shades of gray, blue, and white. From the entryway, it opened into a spacious living room with a large sofa, a TV, and a home theater system. Three rooms branched off in different directions, two of them with their own bathrooms—each equipped with both a bathtub and a shower. Judging by the unpacked belongings, they had already divided the bathrooms, so I planned to use Jenny’s.

“This one’s my room,” Paul said, pointing to the room on the left. “Jane’s is across from it,” he added, “and that one’s the guest room—eventually it’ll be Susy’s,” he said, nodding toward the third room, which didn’t have a bathroom.

“Nice place,” I said.

“You know Dad doesn’t care much about this kind of stuff,” he smiled. “But he’s genuinely happy that Jane’s living here”.

“Can I peek inside?” I asked, nodding toward Jenny’s room.

“Sure, though there won’t be many surprises,” Paul replied.

He was right. Her room looked just like it did back home—except here she had a double bed, and the usual mess of clothes on the floor was missing. A desk with a lamp and chair sat beneath the window, and in the corner stood the bed and her wardrobes. The color scheme matched the rest of the apartment—cool tones of gray, blue, and white. Only one poster hung on the wall: the one I had given her about the novel I never let her read.

“How come she has a double bed?” I asked. “She never allowed that at home.”