An Okinawan Affair

by Herb Blanchard

  Still unable to make eye contact with her lover, Yoko shook her head negatively. "That is not possible. I now need $400 dollars"

  Brad wasn't sure exactly how much money was in his credit union account but he was sure that he could manage $400 easily. If not, he knew Johnny Stump would loan the difference to him.

  "Alright. I can do that. I don't have to work on Wednesday. You know, two more days? I'll come here then and give you the money and I will stay over every night from then on."

  FOURTEEN

  Brad and Dan pulled the Navy's mobile crane back into the heavy equipment yard from the Air Force end of the flight line after removing the rudder from a C130 aircraft for an Air Force contractor. Brad checked the time, 1120 hours and decided that he could not wait any longer. The sooner he had the $400 in his hand the better he would feel.

  "Hey Dan, give me a ride to the credit union will you. I need to draw some money out."

  "Wonder why?" Followed by the classic Buckner grin.

  "Yeah. I'm doing the best that I can for the moment."

  "Are you going to move in with her?"

  "Looks like it. She named a price and said that she wanted me to."

  "Obviously things happened for the good on your date last night"

  "You could say that." Brad said as he climbed into the right front seat of the shop's open topped jeep. "I'm not completely comfortable with the way things happened, but they happened and I'm going to have to live with them."

  "You wanted more of a commitment from Yoko before you slept with her. Is that it, Brad? You can't have it all the time you know. Especially here."

  I know you're right, Dan. But I still feel guilty and devious about it."

  "Well you shouldn't feel guilty and you certainly weren't devious about it. It's not like she was a 16 year old girl that you seduced with lollipops and a bottle of beer."

  "Domo, Dan." He said while jumping out of the jeep. "You going to eat in the chow hall?"

  "I think I'll go by the Okinawan snack bar and get some yakamesa. Want something?"

  "Hai, dozo. Here's 50 cents, get me some yakasoba if you would."

  "No sweat GI. I'll meet you back here after I pick up our lunches. That give you enough time to raid your savings account?"

  "It should. It isn't very big and going to shrink considerable after this trip."

  Laughing quietly, Dan drove off while Brad took his next step towards what he hoped would be a future with Yoko.

  FIFTEEN

  The $400 in 20s and 50s made an uncomfortable bulge in Brad's wallet. He shifted around on the sukoshi cab's back seat trying to find a spot where he wasn't sitting on the bulging leather.

  The cab passed Kue hospital on the right. Halfway there. Brad thought as he took a deep breath and felt the nervousness in his quivering intake of air. His hands felt damp and his light cotton shirt was getting wet in the arm pits and on his back even though the morning was still cool and a gentle offshore breeze came in the left door window.

  I hope I'm not too early. He thought when he checked his watch again, the second time in the last mile. Ten after eleven. I'm sure Yoko is up and around by now. Be lunch time shortly. We can go to the Kadena restaurant for lunch.

  "Migi, Papa-san". Brad asked the driver about three quarters of the way around Kadena Circle. "Koko, dozo." He stopped the cab on the end of the street leading to Yoko's house and got out on the driver's side before handing Papa-san a dollar bill and walking away not waiting for his change. With tunnel vision focused on the far end of the street he hurried to where she was waiting for him. He strained his vision to see her little house tucked off the street and offset back from the owners bigger and newer house. When he reached the opening in the fence Brad could see that Yoko was obviously up and about. Her windows were open to let in the fresh morning breezes. When he stepped into the tiny courtyard movement on his left caught his eye. Yoko's landlady was coming out of the community benjo, (toilet). She stopped and looked towards Brad with a look he could not interpret even though he was only a few steps from her. What is it with her? He thought and tried not to stare her down. The mama-san was typical Okinawan. Round faced, heavy eyebrows and lashes and fairly large boned is how she would be described by an American woman. About 5' or 5'1", no make-up, her hair pulled up neatly in a bun. After a moment she turned and went towards the open sliding door leading into her kitchen. Alright, is she another Junko?

  Just as he turned towards Yoko's kitchen door, she stepped out through it. She had on a light blue flowered summer dress which didn't emphasize her feminine curves, nor did it hide them. She wore no makeup. Her hair, which she wore fairly short, was combed out softly framing her face. How serious was the expression on her face that it brought Brad up short.

  "Konnichi wa, Yoko-chan" You look nice this morning." He started smiling, but her expression was still strange.

  "Hi Brad, dozo, come in. Would you like a cup of coffee". Yoko answered stepping aside to let him enter the kitchen but at the same time sidling away to avoid his touch and the possibility that he might try to kiss her or take her in his arms.

  Confused by her demeanor, Brad stepped into her clean little house and went up the tall step from the kitchen to the room with the tatami mats and sat by the small table. "No thanks. I thought we could go eat lunch in a little while if you would like.

  I brought you some money so you can catch up paying bills." So he would not embarrass her, he avoided saying how much or why he was giving it to her.

  What in hell is going on. He thought. His nervous breaths returned mimicking the feelings he had in the taxi ride up island.

  Yoko sat across the table from him and also appeared to be as nervous maybe more nervous than Brad was. She spoke softly, but directly and looked him in the eye as she asked, "In the Brown Derby, we talked and you told me stories, neh? They were stories, neh?"

  Sitting in the quiet strange atmosphere that had developed between them trying to understand what she was asking of him Brad answered to what he thought she was asking. She must be talking about me telling her about growing up in the country and on a farm. Those were the only stories that I told her. "Yes, they were stories." He sat nervously wondering where this whole conversation was going. Looking at her, Brad realized that she was sadder than when she asked her question, and watched her get up from the tatami mats without speaking.

  She went into the kitchen before finally speaking. "My friend and I have to go to the store". She left without an explanation or turning to look at him.

  What the hell-----, what is that all about? I guess I'll just stay here and see what happens.

  When he heard her talking to another nesan Brad stood to look out the kitchen window in time to see Yoko and Yoshiko, her best friend step out into the street and turn towards Kadena Circle where the local stores were. They were deep in conversation and Yoshiko had her arm around Yoko.

  The women were gone less than an hour and didn't have anything with them when they entered through the sliding kitchen door. Brad remembered Yoshi from the Brown Derby and had always liked her. She was petite and striking looking. He thought of her as a classic Japanese beauty. She had left the Brown Derby to work in a teahouse that was off-limits to the GIs.

  Yoko had put on a bit of makeup but still had the sad look about her eyes unlike he had ever seen before.

  "You had better go eat lunch, Brad. You are hungry, neh? Yoshiko-san and I ate". She waved her right hand slowly towards the open door before turning away and leaving again with Yoshiko following close behind.

  Brad walked towards the circle and caught the first pink cab that came by. "Kokusai Dori, dozo." The trip was a blank in his mind. What did I do? I never lied to her or cheated on her. We made great love together and she wanted to do it. I know we haven't known each other very long, but isn't that what living together is all about? Get to know each other? Learn about each
other? Have a good time and letting me help her. Why did she all of a sudden not trust me? I never thought that Yoshi didn't like me, but she seemed to be in on Yoko's decision. Brad's thoughts continued to be chaotic all the way to Kokusai Street in downtown Naha City. He felt he had no control of all his thoughts that had become undecipherable. Chaotic words and events he could not understand. He was sure that the fault was his and his alone. He had said something or Yoko saw something about him that was in reality, not his true self.

  When the taxi reached the top of the Kokusai Dori hill Brad knew he had let the driver go too far up Kokusai and they had passed the coffee house which he had been to several times with Susie and also with Dan and Yumiko.

  "Koko dozo." He spoke up in a louder voice than need be and which brought a look of disgust from the driver that Brad received from the rearview mirror.

  He opened the curb side door of the cab and as he step out handed the driver $2 muttering more to himself than the taxi driver, "Gomen niisan, I'm really fucked up right now. Sorry about that." From the sidewalk Brad watched the driver shake his head muttering under his breath then smiling when it occurred to him how large a tip he had got.

  Alright, I know what you're thinking Papa-san. Crazy fucking American GIs. That's what and that's okay because right at the moment I am a bit crazy.

  Brad tried to orient himself to where on Kokusai Street he was before turning and starting back down the hill. He crossed a couple of alleys and stepped up on the curb after crossing the first side street he had come to when he found the sign he was looking for. Only a couple of feet long and written mostly in Kanji with a line of tiny English 'KOKUSAI COFFEE HOUSE'. The sign also had a small arrow pointed down the set of narrow stairs leading to the coffee house's front door. The coffee house had no 'A' sign which was required of all places patronized by the GIs. There was just a small framed document printed in kanji with a lot of red rubber stamp signatures on it from the Okinawan Health Department. Brad had no idea what it said and really didn't care. The coffee shop was fairly busy whenever he had been there. Many times the Okinawan owners didn't want to go through the hassle of overzealous American military health inspections and sometimes it was a way to keep most of the GIs out and basically have an Okinawan only facility.

  Like all coffee houses, this one was dim and being in the basement with no windows made it very easy to control the amount of light. He stopped and took his sunglasses off just inside the door to let his eyes adjust after the bright Okinawan sun. When she spoke Brad could make out the nesan's outline and recognized her voice.

  "Konnichi wa, Brad-san" You are alone? No Susie with you?"

  "No, Tomako. I'm alone. Can I have the back corner table."

  "Hai. You like kohi? Biru?"

  "Sapporo beer, dozo, Tomako."

  Still not able to see very well, Brad wandered back through the scattering of tables to the far back corner where he and Susie had always hidden out away from the other people. He passed several Okinawan and Japanese people whom he thought he recognized, but they didn't pay any particular attention to him not caring that a low key American was there.

  "Arigato." He acknowledged Tomako when she set the tall, frost covered bottle in front of him.

  "You want to eat, Brad-san. Maybe some donburi?"

  "Yeah, a small bowl of beef donburi with takusan gohon."

  Tomako nodded as she turned away with a small smile.

  "Tomako."

  "Hai, Brad-san"

  "Thank you. Don't mind my manners right now. I don't mean to be bad to you."

  "I know who you are, and it is alright to have a bad day.

  You and Susie have not been here for a long time?"

  She made it an open ended question and at first he was going to ignore it. Then on second thought decided it was alright to unload a bit on this friendly, sukoshi nesan.

  "I haven't seen Susie for awhile. I turned into a butterfly and have been going with a girl from Kadena Circle. And she dumped me this morning."

  "Dumped---you? What is that?" Tomako frowned as she tried to deal with Brad's strange word. The frown seemed to add some years to her. It made her more mature looking.

  "Oh-- dumped means she doesn't want me. Doesn't want to see me any more".

  "I'm sad for you. I'll get your donburi. OK?"

  "Please"

  Brad watched her small figure walk away between the tables. Cute butt and nice legs. Must be all of 5 foot, maybe. I never noticed her body very much before. Funny, she's the only person in the coffee house that I've ever talk with. She always works afternoons. At least on the few afternoons I came here she waited on me. I wonder if Dan and Yumi remember her?

  SIXTEEN

  "Brad-san, I go home now. Maybe you want to go back to the base." Tomako shook his shoulder to get his attention.

  Not passed out or even asleep. Brad was just in a world of his own listening to the soft background music and sifting through the events since he had met Yoko. He was still trying to figure out why she had suddenly turned so negative.

  He looked at his watch and had trouble reading it in the dim light of the coffee house and the 3 or 4 liters of Sapporo beer he had didn't help. 1856 hrs. Shit, what a losing day. Brad stood, feeling a bit shaky like the intoxicated man that he was.

  "You alright Brad-san?" She asked with true concern in her voice looking up into his eyes.

  "I think so, Tomi. I've just been sitting too long and drank too much biru. I think I should hit the head on the way out."

  "Whose head?" She asked cocking her head slightly as she leaned towards him.

  "Benjo". Brad said quietly.

  "Hai. Wakari-masu." Answering as she turned and followed him. He passed carefully between the tables that were full of after-work Okinawans.

  When he finished and came out of the toilet Tomako was waiting by the bottom of the stairs.

  "You not feel well, neh? You look---terable."

  He looked at her intense expression and fought to understand what she was saying.

  "I'm speaking correctly, neh? You look ---bad. Is that it?"

  "Yes, my sukoshi tomodachi you're correct. As a matter of fact I do feel terrible. I need a hot shower, something to eat and some sleep." And added quietly. "understanding company."

  Tomako hailed a pink cab. Opened the back door and kind of pushed Brad towards the seat. With a small hip she pushed him towards the other side of the seat making room for herself beside him. She then told the driver something that Brad couldn't comprehend at all.

  "Did you tell him to take me to the Naha gate."

  " No. I told him to take us to where I live. I will fix you something to eat and you can take a shower while I fix our food. I have a new hot water," Tomako hesitated searching for the word, "heater, neh? New hot water heater."

  "I'm not sure that I'm going to be very nice company, Tomi."

  "Do you get drunk, angry and hit women? Don't say. I know that you would not do that. So you can shower, eat. Maybe we can talk about Kadena Circle nesan. Only if you want to. Then you can sleep a long time so you can go to base tomorrow without a hurting head. Honto?"

  "Thank you, Tomako. You are a very smart and nice lady."

  The driver seemed to know exactly where to go. Right after they passed Tomari Port he turned left defying the left turn 'death sentence' of Highway #1 in the evening rush hour. Brad watched it happen in amazement. Across two lanes of bumper to bumper south bound traffic with nary a scratch on the new pink paint job. Pulling up in front of a new, poured concrete apartment building the driver started to talk in a subdued way to Tomako. For what seemed like several minutes Brad stood next to the small car leaning on the the open rear door trying to comprehend what was going on. Finally Tomako spoke rapidly, but softly and what sounded like affection to the driver who was now smiling and nodding his head turning to inspect Brad at the same time. She stepped back to c
lose the door then smiled before bowing slightly to the taxi driver. "Arigato goziemashita." She waved as he unhurriedly pulled away and drove down the narrow side street.

  Tomako took his hand. "This way tomodachi." And she lead him around the corner of the building to a set of outside wooden stairs going up to the fourth floor.

  Climbing the stairs slowly and looking out across Tomari Bay Brad pondered how many questions to ask. Finally he kind of blurted it out. "What was Papa-san talking to you about. He seemed to be giving you hell about something."

  "Giving me --hell? Oh-- like talking to a child, neh?"

  "Hai, like he was talking to his daughter."

  "Nearly. He knows that I do not and have never brought a man here. Most certainly not a GI. He was worried of what I was thinking or doing."

  "What business is it of his? I don't want to cause you any trouble, Tomako."

  "Oh, it is his business. He is my oji-san, my father's brother. Almost every day he takes me to Kokusai Dori and brings me home at night."

  After climbing three sets of heavy duty wooden stairs she unlocked the door and stepped inside motioning Brad in. "Dozo."

  He slipped off his loafers at the door before stepping into the room. It was a small studio apartment. Part Okinawan, part Western. What caught Brad's appreciative eye was the view through the wooden framed single glass slider leading to a very tiny balcony. Tomari Bay stretched out fully towards the East China Sea and as he walked up to the slider on the left he saw Tomari Port's boat building facilities and fishing pier with several fishing boats tied up on it.

  "This is great Tomi."

  The apartment had a tiny kitchen on the far wall with a two foot square window over a sink of almost the same size. A short counter ran from the outside wall to about the middle of the room. To the left of the front door was a closed door which Brad assumed was an Okinawan style bathroom taking up that whole corner of the apartment. The main room from the small tiled area in front of the entry door to the slider and back to the kitchen was covered with tatami mats. A large double door cabinet stood against the far wall under a wide window with what appeared to be family photographs sitting on it. On the front wall of the room was a taller but single door wooden cabinet and in the center of the tatamis was a low table like an American coffee table but finished with a deep brown Okinawan style lacquer finish. Three large, colorful silk covered pillows were scattered on the floor near it.