He was going to explain the current situation, but the cup was cooling faster than he had anticipated. There was simply not enough time to explain things in enough detail to clear everything up. Beads of sweat once again began to gather on his brow.

What can I tell him?

He was in a pickle. If he explained everything, the coffee would certainly go cold. If Shuichi didn’t believe that he had come from the future, it all would have been for nothing.

Can I explain it well enough? No, I don’t think I can.

Gohtaro knew he was pretty lousy at explanations. Perhaps if he had lots of time, but he had no idea how long he had left before the coffee cooled. Shuichi was still eyeing him suspiciously—probingly, even, as if his gaze was burning deep into Gohtaro’s heart.

Gohtaro began spitting out words, knowing that he had to say something. “I don’t expect you to believe me however much I try to explain, but...”

“You’ve come from the future, haven’t you?” Shuichi spoke to him very carefully as if he was a stranger who didn’t understand the local tongue.

“Yes!” Gohtaro replied loudly, instantly excited by Shuichi’s excellent perceptiveness.

Shuichi rubbed his head with his fist, mumbled incoherently and continued his questions.

“From how many years?”

“Huh?”

“From how many years in the future did you come?” Open to the possibility but skeptical at the same time, Shuichi started gathering information. This is exactly what he used to do before a rugby game—put together the necessary information, piece by piece.

He hasn’t changed.

Confronted by Shuichi’s questions, Gohtaro decided to answer them. That would be the fastest way to gain his understanding.

“Twenty-two years.”

“Twenty-two years?”

Shuichi’s eyes widened. Gohtaro had never seen him look so surprised, even when he had spotted him living in rags on the street.

Although Shuichi had told Gohtaro about the rumor surrounding this café, he never expected to find himself face-to-face with someone from the future. Also, considering Gohtaro had somehow aged twenty-two years while he was in the toilet, it was little wonder he was surprised.

“You certainly have aged,” mumbled Shuichi, his expression softening a little. It was a sign that he was letting his defenses down.

“I guess I have,” replied Gohtaro a little self-consciously.

Here he was, a middle-aged man of fifty-one, acting like a shy child in front of this twenty-nine-year-old. For Gohtaro, he was once again meeting his guardian angel, who had helped him get his life back.

“But you look fit and well, yeah?” said Shuichi, whose eyes were bright red. “Hey what’s up?”

Gohtaro almost got up from his seat, surprised by the look on Shuichi’s face. He had imagined that Shuichi would be shocked suddenly to see him old like this, but he hadn’t expected a reaction like this.