【February】 A Special Reward That Supports Me Through Hard Days: "Yayoi Gozen"

This morning, a camellia flower blooming in the garden fell to the ground. I rushed into Yayoi Ken, feeling like I’d just seen an ominous premonition.

 

The cram school I started attending right after entering high school has a study room, and since becoming a senior, I’ve practically lived there, even on weekends. Usually, I stave off hunger with extra-large rice balls I bring from home, but sometimes, as a way of rewarding myself, I go to the neighborhood Yayoi Ken. Among the menu items, the one I order as a special treat is the Yayoi Gozen.

 

Salt-grilled mackerel, tempura, and sukiyaki. A feast arrayed in small bowls. The okra and chicken sasami dressed with ponzu, garnished with seaweed, are also a nice touch. As I was savoring the flavor of each dish, one by one, a girl who attends the same cram school sat down at the table next to mine.

 

"That's lavish. Your Last Supper?"

 

"Don't put it like that. I'd prefer you call it a morale booster."

 

"Our big exam is tomorrow, after all. I came here to psych myself up, too."

 

As she said this, her Mixed Toji Set Meal arrived. Pork loin cutlet, fried shrimp, and beef simmered together with egg, she’d gotten something truly lavish as well. She always orders this, the Miso Katsu Simmered Set Meal, or the Katsudon. I always like to enjoy a lot of different flavors when I eat, but she likes to go for one big, bold flavor.

 

Over the past year, every now and then, we’ve eaten side by side like this.

 

Actually, we don't even know each other's names. All we know is that we’re aiming for the same university. "I think Yayoi Ken's deep-fried foods are superb," she’d say. "I know," I’d reply. "The tempura is so good, it’s a mystery why they don't make a set meal out of it alone. And the side dish that came with the salt-grilled pacific saury set was amazing, too." She probably has no idea how much these moments of idle chatter supported me through my days of exam prep.

 

And that, too, will surely end today. As I was feeling disheartened, remembering the fallen camellia, she spoke.

 

"By the way, this morning, a camellia flower fell right in front of me."

 

I was startled. What an unlucky coincidence. But she continued with a smile.

 

"It’s a good omen. We’re definitely going to pass."

 

"It’s a bad omen. It *fell*, you know."

 

"They say the crimson color of the camellia wards off evil. Well, a lot of people say a lot of different things about it. But why not just believe what you want to believe? I decided to think of it as the flower taking away our bad luck for us."

 

Saying this, she held out a light green camellia leaf.

 

"Here, take this as a lucky charm. Let's pass this exam together, and next time, let's eat at the same table."

 

At those words, my heart leapt and felt like it might drop to the floor.

 

I picture it. The day the results are announced, and the two of us telling each other our names and becoming friends instead of rivals. To make that happen, I would do everything in my power. Wrapping the leaf carefully in a paper napkin, I gave a firm nod.

 

Text by Momo Tachibana Illustration by Mog Hatakeyama