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Life goes by in the blink of an eye.
That’s what Masato had heard his entire life from his father and everyone around him. He could, now, smile and realize that he had made the most out of his. He happily married to the man whom he trusted, loved and admired unconditionally. They both traveled to every corner of the world, while having jobs that were flexible enough. Hurdles were unavoidable – tears, rage, disappointment, losses – but it is what we defined as life.
Bearing his 86 years of age, Masato woke up refreshed with the rays of sunshine reflecting against the white sheets. The other side of his bed was empty, meaning that Ren must have gotten up already. Funny enough, until they reached their older years, Masato was always the one to wake up first, but Ren was now one to get up first and get energetic in the morning. The clock read 12:04 – he had overslept once again.
He put his comfortable clothes on, closed the door of their room behind him and headed to the kitchen. It was empty, but there was a note on the fridge saying that Ren had gone out for the errands – which they did every other day. He smiled fondly and Ren’s handwriting, reminiscing their school days of exchanging notes to each other.
Although it wasn’t Masato’s speciality, he pulled out pasta and some tomato sauce he had done yesterday, or a few days ago – he couldn’t remember properly. Alas, the age was catching up to him.
“His favorite, even after all this time,” Masato murmured to himself as he started cooking. He prepared the table – two plates side by side, as Ren liked to sit that way instead of facing each other.
Masato ended up eating his dish, as Ren took a little more time. He wrapped it, and wrote a note ‘I made it for you. I left your pills by your cup, please don’t forget to take them. With love.’
Getting his wallet and his book, Masato went out for a walk. It was a wonderful day, the clouds bright white and the sky in a vibrant blue. Not too far from their home, there was a bench where he always sat. Ren had proposed to him right there and then, 60 years ago. Masato expected it to happen during one of their travels, but his husband had chosen a different, calming place to do so.
Pages went by, and so did time. He finished the chapter, and headed back home.
“Ren, I’m home.”
The pasta was still there, however.
Seeing how the door of their room was closed, he assumed that Ren must have gotten back but went to take a nap. Masato smiled to himself and murmured, “He forgot to eat, again.”
“I’m going to do our laundry now. If you need anything, I will be just right here.”
And so he did, washing, drying everything. He would never let Ren do it – his husband would just put everything in one wash, reds with whites. Masato folded everything neatly and went inside the room. It was a little difficult for him to carry and walk at the same time, so he had to watch every step, making sure he wouldn’t trip. Ah, the age, once again.
“You should wear more clothes, Ren. Let’s go out to buy you some fresh clothes another day.”
After arranging the clothes into the drawers, he looked back on to the bed and saw it disorganized, sheets all over the place.
One thing they always fought on – Ren was quite messy. He would always forget to make the bed, and so Masato had to, unfortunately, get used to making it, as a neat freak as he was.
It was already 8 at night when he looked again at the clock.
Going to the kitchen, he made himself some rice and soup, as his doctor recommended. He did, however, notice that the Italian dish was untouched. He sighed and put it in the fridge, so Ren could eat it tomorrow. But Masato was not upset. After they both got old, Masato started noticing that Ren would not eat a lot and would speak less and less. That was also a thing he got to get used to. Nevertheless, Ren’s eyes and smile would speak more ten thousand words to Masato.
Hearing the TV on from the living room, Masato had guessed he was watching something.
“Ren, I’m going to sleep now. Join me soon.”
Pajamas, teeth brushed, he found slumber quite fast.
A few hours later, he was awoken by the TV noise. Ren must have forgotten to turn it off before coming to bed. He lazily waltzed his way until the living room, where he put down the noise.
However, Masato stood there, silently. His nose and eyes followed the smell of the faint incense, until his gaze found the corner of the room he avoided the most.
“You didn’t join me, Ren.”
With teary eyes, he knelt before the shrine and lit up another incense, joining hands together in a prayer.
“Life goes by in the blink of an eye.”
Yet, Masato didn’t remember, or more like, didn’t want to remember when he had last blinked.