Soulmates: 300 Years of Love

Before, I really don’t believe in the word LOVE. I don’t even know the real meaning of destiny and soulmates.

Why?

It is because my parents have the worst love story ever. I've witnessed every part of their fights. They didn’t have a happy ending just what Cinderella and Prince Charming had.

I have a very lonely life. I am empty inside.

But, there’s this legend that changed my whole life. And this legend brought me to a man that will teach me the real meaning of love.

Summer, 2007

Tokyo, Japan

Here they go again….

Every night, they are always fighting..

Can someone please stop them?

“I can’t take this any longer. All the time, their bickering and arguments are all I hear in this house. I am sick and tired of it.”

I immediately entered my room straight from my school. I hear my parents both shouting at each other.

God, it’s frustrating.

“Yashiri?” someone’s calling my name from my door. I opened the door. It was my grandma, Yumi.

“Why, grandma?” I saw her holding a food tray.

“Here. I brought you some food. I just thought you might not eat your dinner, you’ll get sick if you don’t eat something...” My grandma entered my room and placed the tray on my side table. We both sat on my bed.

“Ugh… even me can’t do anything about your parents.” She said.

“I’m getting used to this, grandma” I breathe heavily. Super deep. It’s so deep that I could bust a hole on the floor.

My grandma holds my hand really tight because she knows about what I am feeling right now. At least for now, I am not a crybaby anymore. Since I was ten years old, my parents were always like this. Now that I’m already seventeen, I am still enduring this for seven years in a row? Wow, I am so cool!

I am so immune about my parents’ nonstop fights. I am not going to cry anymore. I’ll just ignore them… but why am I still feeling like this? I still feel that I am alone in my life. My older brother, Eitaro, has a job in an airline company and he rarely goes home. Yuuya, my younger brother, is in his school dormitory. I only have my grandmother here in this empty and lonely house.

“Don’t hold back your feelings, Ishi. If you’re disappointed to them, tell them.” Grandma said. When she said that, I didn’t hold it any longer. I hugged my grandma and cried. She tapped my back.

“I’m gonna tell you something.” She said while still hugging me.

I faced my grandma and wiped away my tears. “What is it, grandma?”

“Do you want to feel better? Just go to the lighthouse near our house in Chiba.” She said.

“Huh?” I looked at her.

“You’ll eventually feel better especially when you see the sunset up there, that’s where I and your grandpa met before. They call it ‘a lover’s place’.”

“Grandma, that was your time. In the present time, it’s more comforting to party with your friends and a lighthouse is not the place for lovers to meet. Lovers meet on webcams and other means of communication in this era.”

“Believe me, Ishi… you’ll definitely feel better on that place. You know, there’s a legend about that place where the lighthouse in Chiba is located.”

“Legend? Does it even exist, grandma? It’s already the 21st century.”

“Of course. Here's what the legend is all about. Three hundred years ago, there’s a beautiful woman came from a rich family who fell in love with a samurai warrior. But because of an incident, they got separated and every day, the woman waited for his love under a huge cherry blossom tree on top of the hill in their hometown in Chiba, where the Inubosaki Lighthouse is currently standing. When the right time comes, they will see each other again.”

“Maybe the lighthouse is haunted, grandma, and that’s the main reason why that woman is not yet at peace. She wanted to see her love once again. And they wanted to be reunited...”

“For all the people who visited that lighthouse, they said that they have found their soul mates on that place. That’s why many people are going to the lighthouse to find their true love. Isn’t that romantic?” my grandma said while she smiles sweetly.

I rolled my eyes. “Oh grandma, you’re starting to be a hopeless romantic.”

“My dear Ishi… this summer vacation, you must get away from this house and go there at Chiba. Come along with me.”

“Yeah, maybe I should get out of this place. I might get crazy in here.”

“I’ll talk to your mom about it, don’t worry. In the meantime, you should eat this, okay?”

“Okay, thanks for the dinner, grandma...”

When I woke up the next day, I went to see our living room. I just thought that my parents would be still there. I slowly walked towards the living room and I found out that the coast is clear, they’re gone. Then, I saw this note from my mom:

“I’m sorry, baby, need to go for work early. Take care at school. Love, Mommy.”

She called me what? Baby?

I cannot help but to get pissed off. The last time she called me baby when I was ten years old. Yuuya was eight then, and my older brother Eitaro was fifteen. Anyway, I just ignored this feeling of disgust and quickly ate my food because I’m getting late for school.

“Ya-shi-riiiiiiiiiiii!!” my bestfriend Toya screamed. He ran towards me and messed up my hair that he always do to me ever since we’re still in grade school together.

“Hey, I can see you’re in a good mood?” I said. He gets my stuff because we’re going to school together. He’s always having that gentle smile on his face.

“Of course! It’s necessary to begin your day with good vibes, isn’t it?” he smiled at me.

Toya Takahashi is my best friend since we were in grade school together. We were competing against each other in our class before but we eventually became super close friends, but I hope we were more than that. You know, he’s my ideal guy.

He’s handsome, super intelligent and super generous. There’s nothing that my best friend can’t do. His dream is to become an architect someday, just like his dad who is a famous architect here in Japan. But for me, I like to become a super famous celebrity! I am dreaming to become a singer just like my idol, Makino Ueda who is a JPOP Idol.

“Our school year was about to end. What’s your plan for the summer break?” Toya wrapped his arm on my shoulder. There goes my heart beating faster again.

I can’t even breathe normally when he’s around. I can feel butterflies inside my stomach. Oh my, this is getting weird.

Do I really like him this much?

“Uhm… well… I will go to Chiba… with my…with my g-grandmother… yeah, that’s it.” Why am I stammering? Why does he have to wrap his arms on my shoulder? When did I start to have malice towards my one and only best friend?

“Eh? Why so? I thought you will join us in our rest house in Yokohama? That will be fun!” he said.

“No. I’ll pass for now, I need to get away from our house for the whole summer. I need to escape. I’m sorry...” I said.

“I see. I understand. I thought your parents are already separated. Why are they still living together?”

“Ugh. You know that my grandparents in my father’s side are all conservative. They said that they needed to keep their family name clean. What would other people say if they got separated? It can be a big disgrace to them...to our whole clan…”

“It’s getting worse and worse. They are doing this for seven years in a row...and you are seven years hurting…”

Yes it is. I’m seven years in pain and enduring their fights. But what can I do?

I suddenly checked on my wristwatch. Oh no we’re getting late!

“Oh? Its quarter to eight already. Let’s go. We’re going to be late!” I pulled Toya and started walking. I just don’t want to talk about my family problems anymore.

“Yashiri Koizumi and Toya Takahashi, you’re both late again!” My ecology professor shouted. We were classmates since first year college in almost all of our minor subjects, just like here in our Ecology class.

Oh shoot! We will definitely be punished. It’s all Toya’s fault. Great, now we have to do the gardening outside for an hour.

“It’s all your fault, Toya!” I angrily said to him. I slapped heavily on his shoulders and he seemed to not mind it and just laughed. Even his laugh is music to my ears.

We went to the school’s back portion where the garden is located but before we went there, there’s something that caught my attention. There’s a painting hanging in a vacated classroom. I believe that’s the room for Art Club. In the painting, there was a lady in the lighthouse whose facing the sea and sunset is the setting. I go near the window of the room to see the painting clearly.

“What are you looking at?” Toya said.

“The painting… it’s so beautiful.” I said. It is really beautifully made. I envy the painter for having a very good talent in art.

“Yeah, right, wait… why is this window open? I’ll close this.”

“Wait, let’s go inside the room.” I started to climb towards the window.

The window is not that high above the floor, that’s why I easily climbed and got inside the room.

“Come on, we will get caught if we do this…” Toya was irritated and scratched his head but he has no choice but to follow me.

I came near the painting. It’s like it’s sucking me towards it. I think it has a magic behind it or something.

“It’s like the woman in the painting is waiting for someone. Too bad she’s facing backwards; I can’t see her facial expression though.”

“I bet that’s the goal of the artist of this painting; for the viewers to predict what the woman feels in this painting. I guess the painter was so sad while making this.”

“I bet so too. Maybe the lighthouse was ‘their’ meeting place.” Wait, I think I heard of this before? Who told me this story anyway?

“Oh, is this the famous Inubosaki Lighthouse in Chiba, right? Where people find their soul mates? Is this really true?”

Oh, right. My grandmother told me about this one. I remember now.

“I don’t know, my grandma said that there’s a legend behind this lighthouse.” I said.

“Fujiko Watanabe… she’s the painter… written at the bottom of the painting.” Toya said while reading the bottom portion of the painting.

“I know she’s popular…do you know her, Ishi?” he added.

“I don’t know! I am not really into arts and I wonder why there’s a painting of Ms. Watanabe in this empty classroom?”

“Maybe the principal bought this as an inspiration piece for the art class students. Wait… maybe the reason you want to go to Chiba is for you to try that legend, don't you? I thought you don’t have time for love?” He stared to pinch my right cheek.

Well, you know Toya, you’re the one I really love. We really don’t need a lighthouse for us to meet. We were meant for each other ever since we were born!

That’s what I wanna tell Toya but he’s too numb towards my feelings for him.

“Ugh. Toya, come on… you’re teasing me again, you’re such a bully!”

The day ended so fast and now, it is officially our summer vacation. I can’t even wait to have my vacation in Chiba. After my preparations, me and my grandma start to travel to her hometown. It’s a relief that my mother finally let us go as if she cares about this.

When we made it to Chiba, I hurriedly went to where my mother’s room used to be. When was the last time I went here? I think when I was five years old? I guess so. I can’t really remember anything.

I lay down to her bed and I closed my eyes. Then I didn’t even noticed that I fell asleep.

Ojiro… Ojiro… where are you, my love? Come back to me, my love, Ojiro…

“Huh?” I suddenly opened my eyes. Was that a dream? Why I am hearing a woman’s crying voice? I stood up and looked outside my window.

I saw the sun is starting to set. I saw the famous Inubosaki Lighthouse outside my window.

Ojiro… my love, Ojiro…

“What was that I am hearing?” It was like I was hypnotized or something.

I don’t even know that I’m already walking outside our house. I can’t even control myself. I am approaching the lighthouse and I entered it. Now, I am on top of the lighthouse gazing the whole seas of Chiba.

Suddenly, the woman’s voice is gone…

“Wait a minute, why am I suddenly crying?” I said.

My eyes are now wet with tears! I feel heavy inside…

“Miss, please, don’t jump!” yelled by a mysterious man behind me.

I was so shocked when he hugged me behind my back and he pulled me away from the railings of the lighthouse. While the mysterious man is hugging me, I heard the woman’s crying voice and she said…

“I know… we will see each other again…”