Part 1 (Present)
“Ya,” I yell as I quickly jog out of the convenience store. Despite my short nature, I manage to catch up to the group of college students swiftly. The small group consisted of a few men and a couple of women from the art club, a more of a social gathering than a club, from the Tokyo Institute of Technology. These clubs were one of the opportunities to meet students outside of our college major. I stood out from the other members of the group due to being the only foreign member. Everything from my light blonde curly hair; to my blue eyes; and even my tan skin tone was different from the others.
I slow my pace to match my boyfriend of a year and a half, Haru, a medical major the same year as me, and my best friend, Cho, a new to the world finance major entering her first year. I look around the group to see Hiroto, a law major in his third year, talking to the group’s so-called “comedian,” Akira, a business major in her last year. The others were new members of the group that I had not the chance to meet due to my schedule and my limited ability to speak Japanese. However, I was lucky enough to be able to go with everyone to the bar in our neighborhood in the north of Tokyo.
“What took you so long?” Hiroto asked with a smirk as we walked to the subway station.
“Yo didn’t let me leave until I helped him stock everything,” I stutter out.
“Wow, native speaker,” Akira jokes, causing the group to laugh. My lack of knowledge and slow progress in Japanese have often been the reason for the group’s jokes since we meet two years ago, despite the improvement that I have made in that time frame.
“Anne, have you learned any Japanese urban legends yet,” Hiroto asks over his shoulder as he leads the group.
“Not yet, however; I have heard some people talk about Kuchisake-onna.”
A deafening silence as they all steal glances towards each other and at me.
“What’s wrong with Kuchisake-onna?”
“Don’t worry about it; we’ll tell you the legend. We’re just surprised that you mentioned it.” Haru states as he shyly wrapped an arm around my waist.
We quickly walk down the stairs to the shadowy underground. Despite the small conversations that had started up, the tension still noticeably hung over us.
“Maybe it was better that Anne got off late; we don’t have to deal with rush hour,” Akira says after we have all moved towards our sought platform. Some of the members of the group let out a soft chuckle at the comment. It doesn’t take long until the train pulls to a stop in the station.
I grab onto Haru’s hand as the doors open to reveal the people quickly leaving, ready to go home from a long day at work. The only time I let go is when we finally find seats in the middle of the car. However, the woman sitting in the corner of the car seemed to give off a questionable aurora causing my body to lean into Haru’s side and grasping his hand again.
“So, is someone going to tell me about Kuchisake-onna?” I question as I turn back to my group of friends.
“I will,” Hiroto grits through his teeth as he steals glances toward mine and Haru’s interlocked hands.
