June thought of home again the afternoon they drove to the town of Yufuin to visit Chiharu’s parents. Yufuin was as tasteful as their city was kitsch. Chiharu’s parents lived in a house with a manicured garden. They were sweet people, very kind. Knowing June was on her own, they told her she would always be welcome there, to come back anytime. Afterwards, driving back, she fell into a funk and sat staring in silence out the window.

‘Is something wrong?’ Chiharu asked.

‘No. I liked meeting your parents, they’re nice.’

In truth, she was angry. With her own parents. She had been treated to a glimpse of what a family could be, an experience that left her with a sense of waste. To think it was possible to have a normal, supportive family, who didn’t lock you away and tell you lies about the world!

She said none of this to Chiharu. She didn’t trust herself not to cry if she tried to explain how she was feeling.

They went out that night as usual. They had a drink at Satoshi’s bar and later went to get a snack at the pancake cart. On the way, an old man by the road looked up at them guiltily. Believing himself to be alone, he had taken a leak and June saw him finishing and zipping up his trousers.

‘Sorry, sorry,’ he said, bowing and walking unsteadily away.

‘What was that about?’ asked Chiharu, who hadn’t been looking. ‘What was he sorry for?’

‘Tachi-shoben,’ she told her friend, using the phrase Terence had taught her for pissing in public. Knowledge is never wasted, she thought. Nothing is ever wasted.

‘Oh,’ Chiharu laughed. ‘Hey, you’re sounding Japanese now.’

The right word at the right time. This brought a flush of satisfaction. But June still felt bothered, dragged down by her thoughts after meeting Chiharu’s parents. Then she suddenly saw clearly: she had to try again with Naomi.

The following day she made a call. She picked the time carefully. When her sister realised it was her, she was silent for a time.

‘Can’t you just come back?’ Naomi finally asked, sounding resentful. Or she started with resentment; her voice changed halfway through and made the question a plea.

‘I can’t. You know I can’t.’

Not because of the punishment she knew would await her, not because of her mother’s anger or the condemnation from the leaders. It was just that she was done. The Family was not for her.

And so her sister hung up again. The conversation stayed with June for a while after that, sitting heavily on her heart whenever she thought of it.

At summer’s end, there was news.

‘I’m pregnant,’ Chiharu said.

‘What?’ June floundered. ‘What will you do? What does Satoshi think?’

‘He’s excited. I am too, now I’ve thought about it.’

‘What about your studies?’