Wasurenai Basho 「Unforgettable Place」

「忘れない場所」

It's been years when my ex-girlfriend dumped me. I am living solely right now. The company I'm performing at transferred me to another branch. It's been a week I am living in this new apartment. My apartment is near a river. And it is peaceful, I cant see people around in the afternoon. Maybe there were busy at works?

I've been working in other branches for 1 week already. Adeptly, today is my off and I need to gain a fresh air outside. This is the first time I am walking in this place alone. I'm still not familiar with the places here, so I went to the river just to relax.

I recognize a guy in the river. Standing there, and seems he looks so down. He is looking at the river with a gloomy face. I suddenly shocked when this guy is about to jump into the river. I extend and grasp his hand.

"... What are you doing?!", I just shout at him.

I feel his hand is kinda frozen. I just thought maybe he had been there since last night. He was shocked when he identifies me. He pulled out his hand at me. He won't look at my eyes.


"Do you recognize what are you doing?!" I asked him in a roaring voice.

Up until now, he hasn't looked at me. He was clenching his hand.


"It's not your business."

I was pissed off when he replied to me like that.


"If you want to kill yourself... It's more enjoyable to live. I don't know what happened to you, but would you at least take care of yourself?", I smiled at him while uttering those words.


He laughs at me.

".. You know, you are a strange guy."

"Huh?"


I don't have an idea of what he means by that. But when I saw his smiling face its made me feel weird. I smiled back at him.

Afterward, I talked to him. It was a relaxing afternoon. We're sitting under the tree while discussing something. I notice that he is enjoying what we were doing. That enters my mind.

"By the way what's your name?" I asked him with a gentle voice.

"Miyagi."

"... Hmm, Miyagi... I'm Shinya."


Miyagi smiled while looking at the sky. I looked at him and I felt weird again. He saw me looking at him. He then smiled back at me.


"Yknow Shinya-san. You're a kind person."

"Eh? Well... I'm not. It was just for me."

"... Please don't be gentle to me.", he whispered.

"... Hmm?"


I didn't hear what he said to me, but he said that he just forgets what he said. It was evening already. I asked him if he wants to go to eat dinner with me but he refused me.


"Sorry, Shinya-san."

"Hmm? It's fine. I'll ask you next time then."

He makes a tender smile towards me. I felt weird again, I don't recognize what is happening to me when I saw him smiling like that.

"Aren't you going home, Miyagi?"

"Nope. I will stay here for a while."

"... Then don't do anything reckless."

"Sure."

He smiles again like that. Dung! Those smile again. I can't think but weird things. He asked me to meet him again tomorrow in this place. I accept his offer.

Another day and a new day for work. Filled with tasks to do. I kept on looking at the time, and it seems that I was looking forward to meeting Miyagi again.


"Ah, Shinya-san, won't you want to come eat dinner with us?"

"I'm sorry. I have to pass today. I have an appointment after this."

".. Eh? Don't tell me you found a girlfriend?"

"Huh?! Of course not."

"Haha. We're just joking. Well, see you tomorrow."

I refused their offer just to meet Miyagi. It just can't wait to see him. I saw him again by the river. It seems the same thing happened yesterday. I saw him looking at the river with that sad look in his face. I walk up to him.

"Don't tell me."

"Ah, Shinya-san!"

He was surprised when he saw me. But afterward, he makes that warm smile again. I can't stop but feels weird when I saw him smiling. I just suddenly hug him. He was surprised at me. But he hugs me back. Miyagi's body feels cold.

I keep on seeing him every day after work. When I'm off from work, I talked to him the whole day. I'm happy just talking to him and seeing his smile. He would not come to my apartment, so we always eat in that place every day. I don't ask him twice why he won't come with me to eat somewhere else. But still eating with just the two of us every day makes me happy.


It's been a month since I've met Miyagi. And I feel that I'm slowly falling in love with him. But I don't dare to mention it. Because I don't want him to get grossed-out just because I confessed to him. I want to stay with him.


I promised to see Miyagi in the afternoon. But suddenly my boss asked me to do overtime. I finished my work at ten in the evening and I'm in a hurry to see him. I thought to myself if Miyagi is still waiting for me there. When I went to the riverside. I saw him sitting while staring into the river again. He does that sad face again. I'm always curious why he always makes that smile while looking at the river. He saw me. He smiled, but his smile is different from the smile I knew.


"S-Sorry Miyagi I'm late. I had to take overtime today so."

"Its ok Shinya-san."

"Don't tell me you've been waiting here since afternoon?"


He didn't respond. He just diverted his sight from me. I approached him.


"Miyagi-"

"Shinya-san. I have something to tell you.


I was kinda shocked when he said that. I held his cold hands.


"... What is it?"

"... Y'know... Will you please stop coming here every day?"


I was hurt when he said that. I got furious about what he said to me.

"W-What do you mean by that?!"

"... I don't want to see you anymore."

"Huh?! What kind of excuse is that?!"


Without realizing I'm gripping his hand with force but seems like he doesn't feel anything. Then he started crying.

"... Please stop coming here I don't want to see you anymore. I don't want you to get hurt."

"I don't accept that. I am here because of my own free will. And I don't want to hear any excuses! 

He just kept on crying. And me, as much as possible I didn't want to cry. But it hurt my feelings. I didn't want to lose him. I just want to stay beside him always. Seeing his smile. All of him. I want all of him.

"Please. Please, Miyagi, don't say those things. I don't want to lose you."

"... Me too, but if you keep on coming here it will only hurt you more. That's why... Please stop coming."

"I won't accept that! I won't! Because I love you, Miyagi! That's why..."

My tears suddenly dripped. He smiled at me. That same smile that he always does.

"Me too Shinya-san, I love you but it just won't work anymore."

He keeps on crying. I wiped his tears and asked him.

"What do you mean by it won't work anymore?"

Miyagi hugged me tightly and explain everything to me.

"Shinya-san I'm already dead. So it won't work. You won't see me."


I froze in shock because of what I've just heard. I asked him if he was joking, but he shook his head. I was speechless.

He touched my face and I felt his cold hands again.

"Two years ago. I killed myself here. Because my lover left me. I loved him so much that I was unable to live without him. So I killed myself here... I was in regret when I meet you. I fell in love with you the moment I first saw you, I felt regret thinking that if I didn't kill myself maybe ... maybe then you an I can be together but it seems that my time in this world is at its limit."


I kept on crying while convincing myself that this is only a dream only a joke. all I could do is hug Miyagi as tightly as I can, never letting him go.

"Don't leave me, Miyagi. I love you! So please."

"I love you too Shinya-san. But the time has come."


"Thanks for loving me Shinya-san."

He looked at me, and he kissed. His lips were cold. His whole body is cold. as I see his body slowly vanish. I kept on crying and tightly hugging him.


"... Miyagi."

"Shinya-san thanks for everything."

"Miyagi. Don't leave me. Please!"

"I cant. I'm sorry."

"... M-Miyagi."

Miyagi has vanished. The only words left in my mind ... "I love you.", I keep on crying as I fell on my knees. I kept on shouting Miyagi's name. My tears won't stop. as if my whole world has been torn apart.

It's been 2 weeks before I was able to slowly recover from the incident but even now I still can't forget Miyagi. Every time I went home from work. My usual route is to stop by that river. I always keep on throwing flowers into the river and kept on saying "I love you and I missed you so much Miyagi" while crying.

A year has passed. I'm about to transfer again from the previous branch that I am working at. I went to the river on my last day in that place. Today was the exact same day I met him by the river. and as usual, I bought flowers.


"Miyagi, Until now I can't forget you. You gave me happiness when I'm with you. It's extremely difficult when you are not around. It's been a year since the last time I saw you. You know ... today was the day I met you here. Miyagi... I'm about to go back to the previous branch that I've worked at before coming here. Today will be the last day of my visit here. But you know even if you are not here with me... I still love you. and will keep on loving you. I really love you, Miyagi."


I cried while uttering those words. I threw the flowers into the river. I wiped my tears and said my final words to him.


"I won't forget you, Miyagi. I love you!"

I was about to leave the river when I looked back one last time I felt like I was dreaming. I saw Miyagi holding the flowers I threw and as if waving his hand at me saying goodbye. With the smile that he always does. I was speechless when I saw him. I cried again and as I wiped my tears he disappeared.

"Thank you and I love you. Miyagi."