‘When you’re talking to the person you love, your mind gets muddled. You end up saying all the wrong things. Later on, when you’re lying alone in bed, you beat yourself up about it: Why did I say something so silly? I should’ve said this and that instead.’ Mizuki laced her fingers together. ‘You make up your mind that, next time, you’re going to say all those clever things you’ve thought about and rehearsed over and over. But then, when you see them, you get nervous and forget everything you’ve rehearsed.’

‘Really?’

She gave him a playful smile. ‘You think I’m making it up?’

‘Of course not,’ Shoji said, but he didn’t think Yoko was someone who would fumble. He looked at Mizuki. ‘So, you fell in love with Giant from that one conversation?’

‘Not exactly,’ she said. ‘I can’t remember when it started, but I began to look forward to work because I liked talking to him. I wanted to spend more time together. Our conversations were the highlight of my days. I grew so familiar with his schedule that I remembered his classes better than he did. Sometimes, I had to remind him it was time to end the call because his class was about to start.’

‘Was he your first love?’

‘I guess so. Or, at least, close to it.’

‘What did you talk about?’

‘A lot of things …’ Her eyes shifted, reminiscing. ‘Like, coincidentally, he supported the Yomiuri Giants. That was why he didn’t mind me calling him Giant.’

‘But who doesn’t like the Yomiuri Giants?’

She tilted her head. ‘Hanshin Tigers fans?’

‘Which one are you, Mizuki? Are you with the Yomiuri Giants or the Hanshin Tigers?’

‘Neither,’ she said. ‘I like watching baseball, but I don’t care which teams are playing, or who is the winner. I just love the energy and the excitement in the field. A good game is a good game.’

Shoji chuckled. ‘You say things that don’t make any sense, but you explain them so well, I sort of buy your reasoning.’

‘That’s a relief.’ Mizuki clasped her hands together. The ring on her finger was a plain gold band. Simple and understated, which gave it a quiet elegance.

‘What happened to Giant in the end?’ Shoji asked. ‘Did you ever get to meet him?’

She shook her head. ‘Neither of us ever suggested it. Maybe we grew too comfortable speaking to each other on the phone, and we didn’t want to ruin this blissful existence. Or perhaps both of us were hiding something.’

‘He could be old enough to be your father.’

‘That wouldn’t be surprising, but I was thinking of something else.’

‘Such as?’

Mizuki reached for her tea. ‘He could’ve been married.’

Her words reminded Shoji that she knew nothing about this man.

‘I used to think that if neither of us said anything, we could stay that way forever,’ she continued. ‘That was naïve of me. One day, when I tried to call him, the line was no longer in use. I didn’t really know anything about him apart from his name and that he liked the Yomiuri Giants. I didn’t even know where he worked.’