Chapter 4

The week dragged by with the singular purpose of reminding Eric how crappy his life really was. Every morning and afternoon he hoped to see her, but she was never there. Endless meetings, customer after moronic customer, getting into an argument with his supervisor over the application of a new program, the list went on and on. Then on Friday afternoon he looked out the window of his building and saw clouds building on the horizon. His spirits soaring, he ran to the break room and turned on the weather channel. Eric could hardly contain his delight, much to the puzzlement of his co-workers, when he heard the weekend was to be a soggy, dreary mess.

Running from the bus stop he almost missed Rain sitting there waiting for him. He practically fell down as he skidded to a halt after running past her. She smiled brightly at him, and blushed slightly as the memories of her dream came rushing back to her. He stood with a small grin, and a small blush of his own. She assumed it was from almost falling and making a fool of himself.

"Um, hi," she said, "did you happen to see the weather report for this weekend?"

"Why do you think I'm so happy?" he said drawing closer to her, "Do you have any plans?"

"None at the moment, but I'm sure that will change in about 2 minutes." She said, laughing.

"How about, you pick the place for dinner tonight, and we'll go from there?" Eric said hopefully.

"OK, I'll be over around 7 or so. We'll have a quick bite to eat at this little Japanese place I know, and maybe go to Blockbuster and rent some movies?" Rain said, planning out the night.

"Sounds great, but I have to get home. My place is a wreck, that's why I was running." Eric said, grinning, happy to be spending time with her.

Rain checked her watch, "Don't take too long," she replied with a sly smile, "I might find some other guy at the bus stop to hang out with."

"Tease," Eric retorted, laughing, "I'll see you in a few hours."

Running home, Eric cleaned his apartment in record time and was just exiting the shower when Rain knocked on his door. Running to the door in a towel, and leaving wet footprints on the wooden floors, Eric cursed under his breath, and opened the door.

"You're early, no fair. Please come in and make yourself comfortable, I'll be just a few minutes." Eric said breathlessly.

Rain looked at him with a raised eyebrow and a smirk, "How long have you been standing around soaking wet, waiting for me to show up?" She asked, giggling.

"Hours, the hot water ran out ages ago and I feared that I would catch pneumonia and die while waiting. But, now that you're here I can go get dressed, thank you so much for being prompt." Eric said, grinning broadly, trying to contain a chuckle. Shaking his head, Eric turned to go back into his room and slipped in the puddle his wet body had made. He fell down and unceremoniously dropped the towel on the way down. Blushing brightly, he quickly covered himself and retreated to his room before he could look at her face.

"Sorry about that," he yelled from his room, "I hope you didn't get too much of an eye full."

Through muffled laughter Rain replied in a strained voice, "I didn't see a thing!"

After quickly dressing, they left his apartment and walked across town to a small Japanese restaurant. As they entered, a young woman in a traditional kimono greeted them, bowing deeply.

"Konbanwa. Welcome to Sake Gura. My name is Sakura. Is this your entire party for this evening?"

Eric returned the bow and replied, "Konbanwa Sakura-chan, hai, domo arigato gozaimasu."

Both Rain and Sakura smiled as Eric returned upright.

"You know Japanese?" Sakura asked brightly.

"I know very little, I learned it while I was stationed in Japan with the Marines." Eric replied, suddenly bashful as Rain looked at him with a small smile and intense stare.

"You speak it very well. I grew up here in the states, I only know enough to work here. My grandfather would have it no other way." Sakura explained with a nod toward the sushi bar where an impossibly old man was expertly dissecting a perfect specimen of maguro.

"I'll be sure to tell him how well you speak it." Eric said with a small bow before they followed Sakura to their table.

"Are you always like this with people?" Rain asked after water and a small pot of honey and ginger tea were delivered to the table.

Eric took the pot and expertly poured himself and Rain a cup of the aromatic tea. "I find it that people will be more willing to listen if you put yourself in their shoes. I loved Japan; I immersed myself in their culture. I spent almost a year there while I was in the Marines, and made many friends. But I had to be respectful and learn their ways. There are some places that will refuse service to Americans simply because they're Gaijin. The older generations in Japan still have an air of honor and respect about them, and most still hold a grudge against Americans because of the war. The younger generations are just like us, but are socially stuck in the 50's." Eric explained, getting a far off look in his eyes as he remembered his adventures in the land of the rising sun.

"That sounds wonderful," Rain said, drawing him from his memories, "maybe you can take me some day."

"Oh, sure," Eric replied brightly, "we could stay at a Ryokan in Kyoto and climb Fuji Mountain, nightlife in Tokyo, we could have a blast!"

Sakura brought them menus and Eric ordered miso soup, and the chef's choice sushi and sashimi without looking at his. Rain looked at the menu quizzically and then to Eric for help.

"Do you trust me?" He asked her quietly.

Rain nodded and he quickly turned to Sakura and ordered udon and sekihan, with some extra sashimi and sushi for them to share; she smiled at him and bowed deeply. "Grandfather will be pleased." She said as she departs.

"So what did you order for me?" Rain asked, unsure of his intentions.

"Udon is a type of noodle, usually served in broth with vegetables and meat. Sekihan is a rice based dish usually served in celebration." Eric told her quietly.

"Oh, really?" Rain said, "And what are we celebrating?"

"Our second date, of course." Eric said, grinning.

As Sakura brought the food out to the table, she placed a small bottle of sake with the sekihan. "This is from grandfather. He says congratulations."