Antique Shop?BEAR? - Chapter 9
Chapter 9 – Whispering Earrings
The next day, upon checking her smartphone in the morning, her mother sent a reply saying that she would wait for her, and so she arose early to sweep her room and do laundry. While eating breakfast, she watched a video she had taken, then hopped on her bicycle to unload the living expenses and transfer the money. Then she headed straight to the street before the station to pick up some souvenirs for her mother. At a sweet shop that she had never dropped in before, she bought two anmitsu and two servings from a sushi restaurant. Later, she bought some local sake at a liquor store next to the antique shop. The sake was said to be produced with local water, and the label had a watercolor painting of red spider lily along the river.
“They change the labeling to match the seasons.” The elderly shopkeeper told her as he wrapped the bottle. “It has pictures of cherry blossoms in spring, hydrangeas in summer, red spider lily in autumn, butterbur in winter, and the sake tastes sweet.”
“That’s lovely.” Rei accepted the alcohol. “Excuse me, may I ask about the antique shop next door?”
“Antique shop?”
“Yes. The store across the stone pavement next door.”
“So the neighbor is an antique shop. My business is only available until evening, so I have merely met my neighbor once. The owner came to greet me when my store was closing, but I haven’t seen the store in operation since then.”
“Is that so…”
“Previously, a take-out coffee shop was situated there, with benches on the stone pavement where customers sipped their coffee, but it was apparently closed half a year ago and that store moved in soon after. So what would you like to know?”
“No. I was hoping to find out what time the shop is available for business only… Thank you.”
The owner came out to the front of the store smiling and took a bow. Glancing at the antique shop, she observed that the brown shutters were down.
Arriving at her parents’ house, all the windows were opened and it appeared that a major cleaning was being conducted. The garden was still covered in weeds, but the rooms seemed to be undergoing a thorough cleaning. Although her legs threatened to buckle under the pressure, she pressed the doorbell.
“Yes?” Her mother responded in a low voice.
“Mother, I am home.”
“Welcome back. Let me get the door now.”
When her mother showed up at the door, she was noticeably more overweight than she had been at the previous year, but her face seemed to be in good shape.
“I was in a hurry to do the cleaning when you suddenly said you would be here.”
“Sorry to bother you.”
Contrary to yesterday, all the garbage from the kitchen had been disposed of and the disorganized living room had been tidied up. Although it still reeked of cigarettes, it was better with the windows kept opened.
“Here are souvenirs for you.”
“Oh, my! Sweet treats, sushi, even sake! I appreciate it.” Her mother’s narrow eyes squinted even more in delight.
In the past, her beauty used to be a tall and slender woman with a very Japanese countenance, but now she had gained weight and her face bore considerable flesh, it gave her a rather overpowering presence.
“Well, what’s so urgent today?”
“I simply have no other business to attend to.”
“Come on, sit down. I have something good to share with you.”
Rei seated herself before the table in the tatami room. With high spirits, her mother wiped the table and served the sushi and sake.
“We can have the sweets after the meal, right?”
“Yeah. So, what’s the good news?”
“Actually, the loan on this place is about to be paid off, so I decided to relocate.”
“Eh! Did father pay it off?”
“Indeed. With the money from selling this property, I will move to an apartment near my office. The price is cheaper since it is further away from the station. Besides, the apartment is installed with an elevator, and I won’t have to maintain the garden and the cleaning of the room will be a breeze.”
“That’s good to hear.”
“Right. Once this place is sold, there will be sufficient money in savings to even afford a mansion. I still intend to work, and since I am not getting a divorce, I will earn my living expenses.”
“Yeah.”
That was when it hit her.