Ocean water, caramel and spices

Their first date took place on a 14th of February. She gave him chocolates. He gave her a CD that he had burned. For hours, they talked about past, present and future. They laughed together. There were moments of silence. They told secrets to each other. They cursed, passionately, all the evils of the world.

Later on, they kissed ardently at the train station. Maybe it was just the night’s inertia, or perhaps they intentionally tried to give the night a final touch. One reason or another, the sleepy passengers who walked around, woke up from their drowsiness, for a few seconds only, as they passed by that mixture of hands, eyes, tongues and lips; a mixture that was turning more and more homogenous as the time came closer. The instant when the day would immolate itself to allow the birth of a new one; the moment when Cinderella would cease to be a princess and lose her glass slipper; the time when the last train would take apart the pieces of that perfect puzzle that nature had put together.

“Shūden desu! Shūden desu!” (last train!, last train!), cried the old rail worker.

He took the last train home with a stupid smile on his face and a feeling of void as his only travel companions. It was strange… only a few minutes had passed and he was already missing her. He tried to cover that feeling of void with music, listening to one of Brubeck’s most amazing songs on his mp3 player. Obviously, he didn’t succeed, so he made his mind fly back to Mirato Mirai, trying to fill in, by remembering, the crevice that had suddenly opened on his chest.

And so his mind flew over railway tracks, bridges, shopping malls and coffee shops. It stopped by Starbucks, took a ride on the majestic Ferris wheel, and when it came down, and after recovering energies in a nearby restaurant, it stopped at the gates of the train station, just before their lips made their first encounter.

He felt the sweet brushing of her skin on his arms once more, produced accidentally, while they wandered the city aimlessly. The feeling was so real, that every pore in his skin shrank like it had shrunk an hour ago. The sweet brushing gave way to a shy search of each other’s hand, that unavoidably, turned into a complete success when every one of their fingers found its own dancing partner, entwining in such a way that it seemed physically impossible to unwind them again.

Waves of unknown origin travelled through his body at the speed of thought. Feeling them in his feet, they run through legs and thighs, reaching his spine and ramifying on arms and neck to end up dying at his fingertips and the most hidden spots of his head. Even though he hadn’t had butterflies for dinner, he knew that at least one was playing cheerfully in his stomach at that very moment.

He forgot the words he used in the farewell, just knowing that they had been clumsy and typical. However, he didn’t stop even for a second to feel the shame of it, since his concentration avoided the words to focus only on the events. He remembered how a murderous hug tried to put an end to that beautiful evening sonata. And he also remembered how, far from surrendering, tired of losing many nights like that, he remained close to her after the hug, in a desperate attempt to change the course of the events in the last minute.

He stayed very close to her after the hug tried to kill that wonderful evening, making the distance between their faces so small that he could feel how after every exhalation, a fresh breeze crashed on him and slipped around his nose and his lips, following his facial contour. It was then when he got his green eyes, that still showed the beauty of childhood but also some hints of maturity and experience, to help him in his mission: stealing the Japanese heart that was beating hastily a few inches away of his own.

She had demonstrated to feel relaxed and confident during the whole evening, proving that she had not only more experience but was also older than him. At that moment, she was still showing confidence, however, the speed of her breathing and her slightly trembling fingers, betrayed her.

The seconds they stood there looking at each other felt like years, if not decades, and he believed that he had learnt more about her in that instant, than in the whole evening.

When he realized… they were already kissing. There were neither more waves of unknown origin nor more deep reflexions. The naughty butterfly ceased its wing-flapping, falling quietly asleep in a hidden spot of his stomach. His mind just went blank. And everything collapsed into one single reality: his lips, and hers. Forgotten feelings flourished again, mixing perfumes with flavors, life essences, hopes and desires… and all of a sudden, he found himself saying:

- Ocean water, caramel and spices…

- What…? (she asked with a cute smile)

- That’s the way you taste. Ocean water, caramel and spices.

- You know, that’s the nicest thing someone’s ever told me after kissing me…

- Really? What about I lov…

- Shhh… (she said, while placing a finger on his lips). Don’t use those words… they burn.

(And they kept on kissing)

That night, emotions got mixed-up with magic in that part of the city. Yokohama gleamed in their hearts, as beautifully as ever. A new bond between two existences had been conceived.

Many seasons would pass by. Spring, summer, autumn, winter and spring again, an endless cycle. The events of that night would probably be forgotten by the sleepy passengers even before arriving home. However, at least two souls would keep the memories of that 14^th of February, even after the trees had lost their leaves and gone naked when the snow appeared, covering them in white to the point of nearly freezing them to death. Even after they blossomed again, showing off their beauty. Even after they offered their cool shade to another couple who, running away from their parents and from the burning light of the summer, found shelter beneath its crown to continue expressing their love furtively.

Hundreds of season would pass by, however, they would always remember, that magical night.

- Tokyo, May 2008