Chapter 2 kitchen-1

I think my favorite place in the world is the kitchen. No matter where it is, no matter what it looks like, as long as it is a kitchen, as long as it is a place to cook, I will not hate it.If possible, it is best to be fully equipped.In the kitchen that is often used, there must be a few clean and dry towels, as well as clean and shiny white tiles. I can't help loving a messy kitchen. Vegetable crumbs are scattered on the floor, and the soles of the slippers are black and dirty. Even so, as long as it is spacious and bright, I still like it.A large refrigerator stands impressively, and there are enough food for a whole winter in it.I leaned against the silver sliding door of the refrigerator, looked away from the oil-splashed stove and the rusty knife, and looked up casually, and the starlight flickered sadly outside the window.

It was just me and the kitchen left, and I thought, it was better than being alone after all. When I'm exhausted, I often think deeply: When I don't know when to say goodbye to this life, I am willing to breathe my last breath in the kitchen.Whether alone in a cold place or in a warm place with others, as long as there is a kitchen, I can face death without fear. Before being taken in by the Tanabe family, I slept in the kitchen every day. I couldn't sleep well anywhere, so I looked around the room for a safe place to fall asleep.One day at dawn, I found that it was easiest to fall asleep next to the refrigerator.

My name is Mikage Sakurai, and my parents have both passed away.So my grandparents raised me.When I was in middle school, my grandfather passed away.Since then, my grandmother and I have been living together.A few days ago, I never expected my grandmother to leave me. There was, indeed, a home; but as the years passed, the family passed away one by one, and I was left alone in this room.Every time I think about it, everything in front of me suddenly seems like a dream.It's amazing how time flies so fast and I'm the only one left in this very house where I was born and raised.This is literally science fiction, a cosmic mystery.

For three days after the funeral, I was in a trance. Extreme grief, want to cry but no tears, followed by limp sleepiness.I rolled out the bedding in the quietly glowing kitchen and fell asleep wrapped in a blanket like a lioness.The hum of the refrigerator lulls me into lonely thoughts.The long night passed quietly, and the morning came. I would like to sleep under the stars. I would like to wake up in the morning light. Other than that, everything went away indifferently. But!I can't kill time like this all the time.After all, reality is cruel and merciless. Although my grandmother left me some money, it is too big to live alone in this house, and the rent is too high.I can only find another housing.

Reluctantly, I had to buy a rental advertisement brochure and flip through it. I couldn't help feeling dizzy looking at those endless, similar rental advertisements.What's more, moving is time-consuming and labor-intensive. I had no energy, and I was lying in the kitchen day and night, with sore joints all over my body, and I had to wake up my dazed head to see the house, move, and change the phone. How could this be possible! Thinking of these countless troubles, I was so discouraged that I fell asleep.I clearly remember that afternoon, a miracle fell on me like pie in the sky. Ding dong, suddenly the doorbell rang.It was a cloudy spring afternoon.I didn't even want to look through the rental advertisement. Anyway, I was moving, so I was busy tying magazines with rope.I ran out in a pajamas, unlocked the door without thinking, and opened the door.Yuichi Tanabe (fortunately not a robber) stood outside the door. "A few days ago, thank you so much." I said.This was a nice lad, a year younger than me, who was a great help at my grandmother's funeral.When I asked, he said he was in the same university as me.I'm currently on leave of absence from school.

"You're welcome." He said, "Have you settled on your residence?" "Still not settled." I smiled. "Sure enough, it's still the same." "How about coming in for a cup of tea?" "Don't drink. I'm going out to do some errands now, I'm busy." He smiled. "I'm just here to tell you. I've discussed it with my mother. How about staying at my house for a while?" "what?" I asked. "Anyway, come to my house tonight around seven o'clock. Here's the map." "Hmm." I took the picture blankly.

"That's it. My mother and I are very happy for you to come, Miss Meiying." He smiled, a wide smile.He was standing at the door, but I felt our eyes suddenly draw closer, making me fix my eyes.This may be due to his sudden calling of my name. "...Then, I will definitely visit." To put it bluntly, I may have gone mad.But his attitude is quite calm, I can only believe it.Just like when he was in a state of madness, a road appeared in the darkness in front of him, which was shining silver and seemed to be a real road.So I agreed to him. He said "goodbye" and walked away with a smile.

I barely knew him until my grandmother's funeral.When Yuichi Tanabe suddenly appeared on the day of the funeral, I really thought it was my grandmother's lover.While burning incense, he closed his eyes that were swollen from crying, and his hands were trembling.Whenever I saw the portrait of my grandmother, tears fell down. Seeing him so sad, I couldn't help but think: I don't love my grandmother as much as this person.He was devastated to such an extent.Then he put his handkerchief to his face and said: "Let me help you with something." Having said that, he really did a lot.

Tanabe Yuo— It took me a long time to remember when I heard my grandmother mention the name, probably because of confusion. He works part-time at the flower shop that his grandmother frequents.I remembered hearing my grandmother say several times: There is a good boy, his name is Yukun Tanabe, today... my grandmother loves flower arrangement, and there are endless flowers in the kitchen.She goes to the flower shop twice a week.Thinking about it this way, he seems to have come to my house once, following behind my grandmother, holding a big flower pot.Tanabe is a young man with slender limbs and a handsome appearance.I don't know how his character is, but I have seen him working enthusiastically in the flower shop.Even after getting to know him better, his "cold" impression remained unchanged for some reason.No matter how gentle his speech and demeanor, it always feels like he lives alone.That is to say, he and I are only aware of this level, almost passers-by.

Rain falls at night.The warm rain is pattering, covering the market like clouds and smoke.I walked in this spring night with a map. The Tanabe apartment was just across Central Park from mine.I walked into the park, and the smell of vegetation at night came to my nostrils.My feet clattered on the wet path.The path glows with neon colors. To be honest, I only went to Tanabe's house because of the invitation of the other party, and I didn't think about anything else. I looked up at the towering apartment building, and the 10th floor of Tanabe's house seemed extraordinarily high.The night must have been charming from above.I got off the elevator, paying attention to the sound of my footsteps echoing down the corridor.As soon as I rang the doorbell, Yuichi opened the door immediately.

"Please come in." Yuichi said. "Then bother you." I walked in.This room is in a class of its own. The first thing I saw was the huge, solid sofa in the living room that adjoined the kitchen.There is a dining cabinet behind the sofa, and there is no coffee table or carpet in front.The sofa is covered with a camel cloth cover, which looks luxurious, even if it is advertised.It seems that the whole family can sit on it and watch TV, and there is also a big dog, which is rare in Japan, sitting next to it. The balcony can be seen from the large window.A row of pots or boxes for planting flowers and plants is placed in front of the window, forming a dense flora, just like a tropical jungle.Take a closer look, there are flowers everywhere in the house, in various vases, there are flowers that suit the season.