Chapter Text
The heater rattled awake, disturbing the wisps of hair at the nape of her neck. The extended sigh of the fan was the only sound of life in the quiet room. Tuesday mornings were always slow in the office. Manager Okata was coming in late due to a doctor’s appointment. No clients had come in all morning. The tick of the analog clock on the wall reluctantly dredged its way forward. Each pass it made adding dust to the desktops.
Man, she hated this job.
The haunting clang of bells made it only worse as the front door was pushed open.
The woman sat up from her previously reclined position. Face stretching immediately into a blaring smile but all she could feel were the bags weighing beneath her eyes.
“Welcome to Iwatobi Travel Agency, where we bring the world to you! How can I help you?”
The words escaped her without thought. The company motto was near-branded on the inside of her skull by now. Help the customer, make a sale, get them out as fast as possible. That was what the employee manual said. That was what Manager Okata impressed upon her. That is what she was supposed to do.
Straightening from her jolt of a bow, her eyes met the customer’s for the first time.
It was an older gentleman. Clearly not feeble as he deposited his coat on the hook, crossed the room, and took a seat beside her desk with ease. Their clientele tended to be older, unwilling to trust their travels with online companies or current blog trends. The way he was built, he probably wanted some simple tropical vacation to escape the oncoming winter. Nothing fancy like surfing lessons or scuba diving. Probably just wants a book and a warm, ocean view.
“I’d like to go to Italy,” he said, voice clear and confident. He had done this before, she gathered.
“Great choice! Do you have a specific time and destination?”
“This upcoming April. The Amalfi Coast.”
Amalfi Coast in April. Hardly a great time to visit the area. Too cold to swim, frequent rain, and choppy water. What would an old man do there?
Nonetheless, she turned to her computer and began typing away, filling in the entrance form mechanically.
“How many travelers?”
“One,” was the gruff reply.
She glanced his way. The tight line of his lips and falter in his voice. She knew not to press on that subject more.
“For how long?”
“Just a couple days.”
A couple days? Italy was on the other side of the world; easily a 12 hour flight. Customers like him tended to choose a place like Italy to stay for months, relaxing comfortably with their retirement funds. Trying to assimilate with the locals in their temporary home. This trip was being made with different intentions.
“One for Amalfi, Italy next April. Four days sound alright?” she asked. Her fingers worked quickly, moving from dropbox to dropbox with habitual keystrokes. The man dipped his head in approval
“Name and age, sir?”
“Nanase Haru. 63.”
“Pleased to meet you, Mr. Nanase. I’m Watanabe Aya and we thank you for choosing Iwatobi Travel Agency. It looks like we have a lot of options open for airfare, lodgings, and excursions. Do you have some ideas about what you want to do during your stay?”
“Nothing.”
“Nothing?”
She paused in her preemptive typing, slowly deleting her assumption of “wine tasting” from the search bar.
“I will take care of my plans. I just need to be there by April 30th”.
His voice, guarded in all previous utterances, softened for a moment. His sight far off beneath drooping eyelids. She added a note emphasizing importance.
“Understood. I can print out my top recommendations for hotels at various price points so you can look over them more easily. We are a couple weeks too early to book flights, but I can get some estimates for you as well.”
“No need.”
“Sir?”
“Just email it to this address.” He pulled a card from his pocket and offered it to her with two hands. She accepted it automatically, mind racing to fill in the gaps as she watched him stand from his seat and walk towards the door.
“S-sir! We haven’t finished the form! We still need to decide your budget and discuss the purpose of your visit!”
He paused a moment before he finished shrugging on his coat and turning back to her.
“For old times sake.”
How curious. Very curious.
The clang of bells brought her back from her imaginings. The runaway client stood at the door. He met her with a placid expression.
“Find yourself another job, Ms. Watanabe. This place doesn’t suit someone who works like you.”
“Ah! T-take care, Mr. Nanase!”
The door closed, and Mr. Nanase was gone.
“Strange customer,” she thought as she looked down to study the business card he had given her more intently. “And the mystery continues- How was he connected to the Tachibana Company?”
The bells called out once again, this time announcing the arrival of Manager Okata. She glanced at the clock only to realize just how long she had been lost in her musings. For what it was worth, Mr. Nanase’s visit had made the morning fly.
Its always been hard talking to strangers. But somehow, you always leave quite the impression.