"Oh, excuse me! I've been laughing at everything lately. My husband—he's like a piece of dried-out old pine—he tells me I'm louder than a monkey at the zoo! Hahaha!"
She continued to ramble, jumping from her husband to the fact that she was more like a seal than a monkey, to how handsome Keiichi was. She even used a bit of Kagoshima dialect—yokanise—to call him a "fine man."
"I've been waiting for a chance to use that word, and I finally did! I'll probably forget it by tomorrow, though!" She laughed again. Her energy seemed infinite. Keiichi finally found a gap in the monologue.
"I'm sorry, but we really have to get going..."
"Ohh," the woman pouted, before starting up again. "Wait, Tachyon-chan! Do you want a cough drop?"
"No, thank you," Tachyon said with clinical coldness.
The woman's shoulders slumped instantly. She seemed to age ten years in a second. Her grocery bags, which she'd been holding easily, suddenly seemed to pull her down toward the pavement.
"I suppose talking too much is bad for the health," she muttered, her voice frail. "I just get so excited when I see a young couple. Forgive me. I'll be on my way."
She turned and began to shuffle away, a tiny figure shivering against the grey concrete. Keiichi felt a pang of intense guilt. Tachyon tugged his hand in the opposite direction. "Let's go," she urged, but Keiichi couldn't move. He looked at Tachyon, his eyes pleading. Tachyon sighed, reading the conflict in his expression.
"Fine. I'll go with you. I suppose I wanted to carry her bags anyway."
They hurried after the woman.
Keiichi didn't know how to restart the conversation, but Tachyon simply tapped the woman's shoulder. "Ma'am? Those bags look heavy. Let us carry them for you."
The woman looked back, her expression sour and hurt. "I wouldn't dream of letting a stranger like you touch my groceries! It's fine. I know how well-educated young people are these days—told never to take candy from strangers, I'm sure."
Tachyon looked at Keiichi, helpless. He stepped in.
"Ma'am... about what you said earlier. About us being a couple..."
He tried to pivot to a topic she enjoyed.
"We aren't actually a couple."
The woman's eyes widened. "Good heavens! You were holding hands so tightly, I was certain you were... involved!"
"No, it was just... a coincidence that you saw us like that."
Tachyon let out a faint snort beside him, but Keiichi kept his eyes on the old woman.
"A coincidence, was it?" She gave a sly grin, the life returning to her face. "Truly? A pure coincidence? I know how it is. Don't worry, your secret is safe with me. I'll only tell people I trust... Oh, you're taking the bags? Thank you, dear."
Tachyon took the bags, and the woman kept her eyes fixed on Keiichi.
"Tell me the truth. It's okay. I'll only tell O-Tae and Kinu. Why were you holding hands?"
"I... I can't really talk about that," Keiichi said, looking pained.
"Ohh!" she squealed. "You can't talk about it? So it's a secret from the public! I knew it! I knew it!"
Keiichi just gave a strained smile, which only fueled her excitement.
"My, my. Maybe a honeymoon wasn't so far off after all!"
"No, it really isn't that," Keiichi corrected. He felt he had to deny it clearly since Tachyon was right there. But the woman's face fell again. The light vanished from her eyes, and she let out a heavy, bone-weary sigh.
"I see... Well, that's that, I suppose. My house is just around that corner. Give me my bags back."
She reached for the bags, but Tachyon hesitated, looking at Keiichi for guidance.
"It's okay," Keiichi said. Then, acting on an impulse he didn't quite understand, he added, "I'll talk to her for a minute. Tachyon, go back to where we started and wait for me."
Tachyon looked at him, puzzled, but nodded and began to walk back.
Once Tachyon was out of earshot, Keiichi turned to the woman.
"Ma'am, I wanted to tell you something, but I didn't want Tachyon to hear. Let's walk to your front door, and I'll tell you there. I'll carry these for you."
The woman looked at him curiously and handed over the bags. "What is it?" she asked in her raspy voice.
"Not yet," he said, walking with her.
As they walked, a wave of regret washed over him. Why am I doing this?
"This is my house," she said, stepping into a small yard. Keiichi hesitated at the gate, bags in hand.
"What's wrong? You were the one who wanted to talk."
Her voice sounded testing, almost mocking.
"Ma'am..." Keiichi whispered.
"Come inside. Do you want tea?"
Keiichi's mouth opened and closed like a fish. "No... no thank you."
"Then come to the door. Are you trying to run off with my dinner?"
She was getting irritable. "If you don't come here, I'm calling the police," she threatened. Keiichi steeled himself and walked to the entryway.
"I'm sorry."
"You shouldn't have offered to talk if you were going to be this hesitant," she snapped.
"I know. I realized that halfway here, but I couldn't find a way to back out."
She looked at him expectantly. "Well? Out with it. I've waited this long; I'm hearing the whole story."
Keiichi nodded, took a deep breath, and glanced back to make sure the street was empty. He lowered his voice to a whisper.
"I... The truth is... I love her. I love Tachyon. ...Does that make you feel better?"
"My! You love Tachyon-chan?!"
The moment the words left his lips, his skin felt like it was on fire. A strange, unbearable itch spread through the center of his chest—the kind of itch you can't scratch.
He looked at her like a man facing execution.
"Please, don't tell anyone. I'm begging you. This feeling is a secret. And yet... I told you. A nosy, impolite stranger in a small town."
The woman bristled at the insult, but she didn't interrupt.
"Please. You cannot say a word. If this gets out, I'm finished. I hate carrying this feeling around... maybe that's why I told you. I thought a nosy old woman would just laugh it off. But you aren't laughing. Why aren't you laughing?"
The woman stared at him. "...I was in a foul mood until five seconds ago. Why would I laugh? Fine. I won't tell anyone. Now get out."
Keiichi looked at her, searching for some kind of reassurance, but she just shook her head and disappeared into the shadows of the hallway. "Close the door on your way out," she called back.
Keiichi stood there for a long time, staring into the dark hallway with a look that bordered on resentment. Finally, he let out a long, jagged sigh of regret and turned to leave.