Setchan Part 1

I was walking briskly downhill from the university to the station. I noticed a few cherry petals on my new shoulder bag. The cherry blossoms, which were late in blooming this year, are fluttering in the air. I looked at my watch and saw that it was a little before five o’clock.

If I don’t hurry, I won’t be able to make it in time for my part-time job.

After my fourth period class, I was going over my notes with a friend on the parts I had missed, and I was running out of time. In the crowded, narrow sidewalk, I quickened my pace a little so that I wouldn’t be late for my part-time job.

“Excuse me.”

I hurried to the ticket gate of the station, asking the people in front of me to give way. The pedestrian crossing before the station. As usual, a mobile crepe vendor’s car is parked on the side of the road. The sweet smell almost draws me in, but I hold back today. The red light seems longer than usual. While waiting at the light, I found something fallen under my feet.

“What is it?”

It was a familiar plastic card. A student ID card.

The light turned green. For a moment, I wondered what to do, but then I put the card in the inside pocket of my bag and crossed the road.

From the train window, I saw the trees of the campus on the hill. Randolph Memorial Auditorium could be seen through the trees. I was told during the entrance ceremony that it was named after the founder, Anny P. E. Randolph. The beautiful sound of bells can be heard from under that roof. The train in the rush hour to go home carried me toward Sakae station in the center of Nagoya city.

“I’m home.”

“Welcome home, Yuri. Have you gotten used to your new part-time job?

“Well, no problem, but my stomach is growling all the time.”

“I’ve fried up some croquettes for you.”

“Thank you, mom!”

I was so excited about my favorite croquette that I went to my room to put my luggage down.

“Oh, by the way…”

“What? What’s wrong?”

My mother looked at me suspiciously as she took off her apron.

“On the way home from the university, I found this.”

I put the card on the dining room table.

“Oh, it’s a student ID card. I think she’s in trouble, don’t you? Shouldn’t you call her?”

“I thought so, but it’s already late, so I’ll try to get it to the university tomorrow.”

“You should do that. Oh, isn’t she a classmate of yours?”

“What? Oh, that’s right. She’s a first grade student, too, but in a different department as me.”

On the still-new student ID card, there is a picture of a girl with a slightly nervous look on her face. Next to her student ID number is written “Haruko Kamisawa.”

“Setchan.”

My grandmother, who was drinking green tea in the dining room, suddenly spoke up.

“What?”

My mother and I looked at each other. It had been a few years since we started living with my grandmother. She was a quiet and elegant woman. I like spending peaceful time with her. A few years ago, my family noticed that she was forgetful and that her conversations were becoming more and more difficult, so we decided to live together with her instead of living alone. She used to study English literature at the same university as me. I was once shown an old photo of her, and she looked so beautiful, as if she was a movie star. When I entered the university this spring, she was happy to see me and said, “I’m so happy and proud of you.” Now, due to her health condition, she doesn’t talk much and spends most of her time watching TV with a smile on her face.

I slowly talk to my grandmother.

“Grandma, she’s not Setchan. She is my university classmate dropped this off. I have to return it tomorrow, so I’ll take it.”

“Setchan, Setchan.”

She smiled and repeated the same words.

Continued in Part 2.