Chapter Text
On a bright sunny morning, a farmer could be seen harvesting with a sickle in one hand as the other cut through the large field of paddy. Sweat flows through his body as he moves stacks of the paddy to his truck. He repeats the process for hours till the sun was directly on top of him he retreats back to his truck and drives off back towards his house. It was a simple single storied house 20 meters in width and 16 meters in length. Slowly he parked his small truck and unloaded large stacks of the paddy hauling them to the back of his house where equipment lay. Just as was about to thresh the paddy his doorbell rang. The doorbell rang a few more times until the farmer came and opened the door. He was greeted by a woman along with a cameraman.
“Good afternoon sir, my name is Ms. Araki Mari and I'm from MJN. We would like to interview you” She spoke with confidence and a smile. the farmer answered by closing the door again without saying anything.
“Hey! Come back, we just want to ask a few questions!” He heard the woman's scream but he just ignored her and continued to thresh the paddy. This continued for several days with the lady continuously knocking on his door every day and asking the same thing 'we just want to ask a few things' But the answer from the farmer was just silence still, she never gave up but that would change when the sky turned dark and the wind picked up. A storm comes and they both get exposed
“Araki, we have to go!”
“no! I won't leave until he answers us!”
she answered in annoyance. The cameraman didn't know what to do whether he went back to the car himself or accompanied Araki. That question was answered when a bolt of lightning struck a tree and fell on top of their car. They both started to panic as the wind got stronger and it started to rain. The farmer peeked out of his window thinking about what he should do. Yes, the two of them really bothered him, but he wasn't willing to leave them both in that kind of weather. Finally, he opened the door and the two reporters ran in tired and wet. The farmer came and gave them a towel for each.
“Wait here” he simply says Both of them dry their hair and parts of their exposed body before curling up into a ball. The farmer returned with a pot of tea and two small glasses.
“Here, drink this to warm yourself up, I'll find clothes for you to change”
they took a sip of the tea and a big sigh escaped their mouth "so warm~" they both said in sync with a smile. As time went on and the night started to fall the two journalists sat down at the dining table, their stomachs growling with hunger at the smell of delicious food. Not long after, the farmer came out carrying a big plate of fried rice. The delicious aroma made their mouths open for a few spellbound moments until saliva dripped when they saw the food.
“Eat”
said the farmer. And in the twinkling of an eye, the two reporters took a generous portion and devoured it. It was so delicious that they both started crying happily because they had never eaten anything this delicious, let alone known the existence of this kind of fried rice. More hours passed as the storm slowly died down and the rain turned to a drizzle. The cameraman was fast asleep snoring on the couch while Araki sat in front of the window drinking the rest of the tea. It wasn't long before the farmer came and joined him for a while. There was just silence between the two of them. Araki, although tired, still wanted to ask the farmer but was embarrassed and a little scared. She took a deep breath and braced herself.
"What brings you here in this remote town?"
"I don't think it's a good thing to ask questions of people you don't know," the farmer replied.
"Then let's start over" she cleared his throat
"My name is Araki Mari from MJN station"
"Shiba Takao," the farmer answered.
"Would you mind if I asked you a few questions about yourself, Mister Shiba?"
"No"
"Okay, first question, what brought you to this part of town?"
"the silence here makes me calm"
"Second question, is your real name Immanuel Haro?"
For the first time in a long time, the farmer was surprised he had not heard that name for many years.
"How did you know my real name?" he asked calmly.
"It's not difficult. I did some research after the bakery drama in town and found you. Immanuel Haro the millionaire who disappeared from America fifteen years ago"
He was silent for a few minutes as he slowly started to remember his old life as Immanuel and in an instant, his face turned into a mixed expression. worry, fear, anger, and emptiness. Bad and black memories started coming back into his mind. Her hands started to shake as if she was being hit by ET. This made Akari worried. Has he gone too far?
"Mr. Immanuel?"
"Please don't call me by that name," he manages to say calmly
“I don't want to continue this interview good night"
Before Akari could say anything the farmer got up and went to his room slamming the door. Akari, now unable to do anything, goes to her room and sleeps. Meanwhile, the farmer fell to his knees and started to cry. All the guilt and regret came back to haunt him after so long.
"I'm sorry" he cried