‘Not really, but isn’t it strange for her to want to know? Only friends ask those kinds of questions. Even then, most likely they’re only enquiring out of politeness,’ Yoko said. ‘Was that all? The whole time you were with her, you were talking about us?’

‘Pretty much.’

‘You’re not doing your job then, are you? You’re supposed to be listening, not talking.’ She chuckled. ‘Anyway, congratulations on getting hired.’

‘Thank you,’ Shoji said, smiling. ‘I couldn’t have done it without your introduction.’

‘But you’re not supposed to discuss what happened during the session with anyone, remember? Not even me.’

True. Somehow that had slipped from his mind. He was just so relieved that his first client had seemed pretty harmless. He had genuinely enjoyed their time together and looked forward to seeing her again.

‘I know you’re excited but, from now on, let’s not talk about work. I don’t want you to get into trouble.’

‘Okay.’ He hugged her. ‘I’m glad I can stay in Akakawa with you.’

‘Me too,’ she said, and looked at him. ‘In the end, did you find out why she requested you?’

‘I thought we weren’t going to talk about work anymore?’

Yoko crossed her arms, pretending to be angry. ‘Yeah, but since you told me the beginning, you need to tell me the ending.’

Shoji laughed. ‘She did. She told me my voice reminded her of someone, but she didn’t say who.’

‘A former lover.’

‘Isn’t that too simple?’

‘People in love are simple,’ she said, her eyes elsewhere. ‘Too simple.’

Shoji sensed a change in Yoko’s tone. She sounded off. ‘What are you thinking?’

‘Nothing,’ she said, waving him away.

There had to be something. ‘Come on.’

She glared at him. ‘I said it was nothing.’

There it was again. Whenever Yoko wanted to find out something from Shoji, she would insist until he told her. Yet, when it was she who was hiding something, he couldn’t pry it out of her. Perhaps she had a complicated past. Fine, he could live with that. He wasn’t exactly being honest with her either. Everybody has a part of themselves they never want anyone to know. Not even the people closest to them.

‘Did you tell your client about Jin?’ Yoko asked.

Shoji shifted his eyes. ‘How could I tell anyone that we met because you slept with my flatmate?’

‘You misunderstand. I never slept with Jin. I didn’t know him that well.’

‘Then why were you there?’

‘I was feeling down. A friend told me she was meeting up with one of her boyfriends, and this particular boyfriend loved to have another girl watching them doing it. I know it sounds sick, but I thought, hey, let’s try it once. Who knows, I might enjoy it?’

‘Fair enough, except you were wearing nothing but his T-shirt.’

She rolled her eyes. ‘I was drunk and threw up on my dress. Jin lent me his clothes while mine were drying.’

‘Ah.’ No wonder Jin didn’t seem to care about their relationship.