Page 62 of A Serving of Hope

“Macaroni gratin.”

“From a restaurant?”

“A café in Shizuoka.”

“Let me guess. The place closed a long time ago.”

“No. It’s still there.”

Nagare peered over his newspaper at Koishi. “And what—we can just go there and try it for ourselves?”

“Yes. That’s what she said.”

“Hmm. That does sound easy.”

“Right? This one should be a walk in the park.”

Nagare’s expression tightened. “There’s always a catch, though. I’ll have to be careful.”

“Hey, what’s that?” asked Koishi, pointing to a paper napkin taped to the kitchen wall.

“I’m not exactly sure. She seems to have scribbled something down and left it on the table. I was going to give it back to her as she was leaving, but it slipped my mind.”

He folded his newspaper and joined Koishi in peering at the napkin.

“Ah, I know,” she said. “It’s a five-line poem.” She recited:

The memory I search for

Is purest white:

Once more to see

My child’s smile

From long ago.

“What’s a five-line poem?” asked Nagare.

“A poem written in five lines.”

“Right. Thanks for the insight.”

“It’s a hobby of hers. She said it’s all about writing what you feel,” said Koishi, smoothing out the napkin. “Thought I might give it a shot myself.”

“You’ll need to work on your handwriting first.”

2

Setsubun was the last day of winter according to the traditional lunar calendar, and yet it came at the start of February, when the cold was at its fiercest. When Yuiko emerged from Kyoto station, a wall of freezing air rose to meet her—just as a friend who lived here had warned her it would.

Yuiko prided herself on her tolerance for cold weather, but even she knew better than to turn up in Kyoto at this time of year without a winter coat.

It was a busy period at the hospital, and a whole ten days had passed since Nagare had contacted her. No doubt the cold had grown even harsher in that time. Yes, she was glad she had dug out the gray tweed coat she hadn’t worn in years. Neither Tokyo, where she’d grown up, nor Nagoya, where she’d lived for so long, ever experienced a chill like this.

Walking briskly, and with her coat fastened tight, Yuiko soon arrived at the Kamogawa Diner. She let out a long breath, her shoulders relaxing visibly, then slid open the door.

“Hello again.”