I Only Have Eyes For You

by Khardine Gray

  “Okay, fine. Thanks for trying to serenade me.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  They resumed their enchufle happily as the music changed.

  It was the first weekend in September, and they had tons planned. They started their adventure two days ago when they went to Ebisu to watch his friends race. Then made their way over to Okinawa, where they spent the night with his great aunt Ruki in her beach house. She definitely didn’t look nearly deceased as Hiroshi had described. She was Yumi’s aunt, and just as lovely as she was. She showed Savannah her tapestry collection and taught her how to knit. They left after dinner today to finish up their night here. Camping on Torii Beach, with a big bonfire blazing and hot salsa music playing from the portable dock they brought along with them.

  They’d had so much fun, but what was even more amazing was that tomorrow they’d set off for Mt. Fuji. She’d waited eagerly for this weekend for a long time, and she was so excited she could burst. Months ago Hiroshi had advised that the best time to climb was towards the end of climbing season when it wasn’t so busy with tourists. You could also be a little more certain with the weather. If it rained, that could make the trail more difficult to climb. Savannah imagined that would be quite awful.

  “So I was thinking.” He usually started a conversation like that when he was about to suggest something she might not like.

  “What?” she asked cautiously, tucking a wayward strand of hair behind her ear.

  “We could potentially leave here early tomorrow and check out the Royal Hotel.” He eyed her curiously as she stiffened. “As we’re already here.”

  He was referring to the Royal Hotel that was one of the most infamous haunted places in Japan. It was built on the sacred grounds of the Nakagusuku Castle and had this whole terrifyingly creepy back story that would make your skin crawl. Or, if you were her, your insides would want to scream and hide. The thought of going to a castle excited her, but not enough to make her go to a haunted one.

  She’d been talking to him about her next two issues for the magazine. One was going to be dedicated to Mt. Fuji and their adventures over the next two days. But, it was fitting for the October issue to have a scary theme for Halloween. It was actually Hiroshi who suggested that.

  “I thought I could bypass the whole scary thing and maybe go to Sapporo,” she stated.

  He raised his eyebrows. “Well, if you think that’s a good idea then we can do that. I’m all yours for two weeks.” She’d gotten to know him so well over the past couple of months, so she knew by his tone that he didn’t think it was a great idea. But he would never, ever tell her what to do.

  He’d taken over the job of being her personal tour guide and had taken her to some fantastic places that had given her the creative edge she needed to write some incredible articles. All of which received continuous recognition. He’d also given her pointers that made good business sense.

  “You think it’s a bad idea, don’t you?”

  He responded with a satisfied smile. “I think you should consider the horror issue. But of course, it’s up to you. Japanese horror is off-the-charts scary. People will go mad for it. Think of The Ring and The Grudge.” The thought of either of those movies made her want to run and hide under a blanket.

  He smiled and shook his head at her. “I know it’s not your thing, but if I’m there to hold your hand and fight off evil spirits, you’ll be fine.”

  “Fight off evil spirits?” Goosebumps covered her arms, and she shivered.

  “Normally I would try to scare you some more.” Yes, he certainly would. “But since I think this is a cool idea I’m gonna say you’ll be fine. We could go to the hotel tomorrow and keep at a safe distance so you can get pictures of the grounds and other stuff. Then we can head on to Mt. Fuji. If you decide to do it, I can take you to some other cool places over the next two weeks. Aokigahara Forest, the Old Chusetsu Tunnel, the Doryodo Ruins.” While he got excited just talking about it, her skin crawled and she stopped dancing again to put her hand to her chest.

  He brushed his hand across her cheek. “Hey there.”

  “I’ll die if I go to any of those places. I know it, I will.” She winced, bringing both hands to her cheeks. “I’ll just die of fright.” She blamed Jake and her cousins for her horror fears. They used to play all manner of terrible pranks on her when she was little. She was the youngest one and had suffered at the hand of their cruel ways.

  Hiroshi placed both his hands on her shoulders and stilled her. “I will not let that happen to you. Trust me.”

  She sighed and thought about it. She trusted him, maybe she would be okay if he was with her, but only if he was with her. She didn’t think she could start and follow up the visits to the sites herself, or with Ishida if Hiroshi couldn’t make it. “Okay, I’ll do it. You promise you’ll be there.”

  “Of course. I wouldn’t trust anybody else to take you. Also, you want to leave Sapporo for winter. We still get a kick from hosting the Winter Olympics in the seventies. We can go skiing and ice skating.”

  Now that made her smile. She’d enjoyed the spring and summer here, and was eager to see what the autumn and winter would be like. “I’d like that.”

  “It’s—” He stopped, and his smile widened. “Hey, it’s our song.” The Flamingoes started to sing I Only Have Eyes for You.

  She cringed. “Oh my gosh, are you going to sing?”

  “No.”

  She was surprised because he’d taken to singing this particular song every time it came on. Ever since that night when he first went to the racetrack. “You aren’t going to sing this time?” She leaned her head to the side.

  He shook his head.

  “Is something wrong with your throat?” she teased, giggling.

  “No, we’re in the vision, so no singing.”

  “What vision is this?”

  “This one.” He circled his finger around them. She looked about at their beautiful surroundings and the brilliant night sky. Then back to her handsome man as he held her so they could sway to the smooth rhythm she loved so much.

  They didn’t need fancy steps for this song, just a simple dance where they held each other. She gazed into his eyes and took in the vision, the vision of them together.

  He drew her closer so she could slip both her arms around his neck, then he bowed his head low to her ear and whispered, “I always imagined dancing on the beach with you, just like this.”

  She smiled against the smooth skin of his face.

  “And then I would look at you just like this.” Her face brushed against the warmth of his as he pulled away gently so he could focus on her, holding her gaze and holding her attention. Holding her heart.

  There was something beautiful, something shining within the depths of his brown eyes. Something safe and warm. Something that made her feel like she was home.

  “And, I would say, I only have eyes for you.” He never took his eyes off her, and she found herself immersed in his stare that beckoned her to stay forever.

  She smiled up at him, feeling the swirl of warmth that flowed from her heart. “I only have eyes for you, too.”

  The music was playing, the waves were moving in and out against the sea shore, the fire from the pit flickered against the wind, and yet there was a stillness in the moment that gripped at her.

  It gripped at her, and it was times like this when she wondered what she would do when her life went back to normal. She was so happy when she was with him.

  Sometimes when she looked at him, she thought she could see his soul. She liked to think that she could, and it surrounded her with this feeling of the deepest joy.

  * * *

  They set out very early the next morning and made their way to the Royal Hotel. They stayed just over an hour and absolutely did not go inside. Savannah wasn’t even sure if you could from the abandoned, this place is haunted, way the structure looked. It looked more than haunted, and everything within her screamed keep away. So they most certain
ly kept their distance, keeping safe from evil spirits and whatever else lurked around places like this.

  She did, however, get some good pictures she felt her readers would like. She also made some notes on the back story to help her write the article, and soon got that buzz she frequently felt when she was preparing for her other articles.

  They then set off for their climb on Mt. Fuji, which she was bursting with excitement for. Hiroshi had advised on an afternoon climb because they wanted to catch the sunrise.

  Mt. Fuji had ten stations, with the first located at the foot of the mountain and the tenth station being the summit. It was common to get to the fifth station and start your assent from there. At two pm they arrived at Kawaguchiko just in time to get the express bus to the fifth station, Yoshida Trail, to truly begin their adventure. Hiroshi had taken some of the other trails on his previous climbs but pointed out that the Yoshida was the most popular and the ascent time took around five to seven hours. There were also a lot of mountain huts that lined the trail between the seventh and eighth stations, so they could rest when they needed to. More important than that was the magical sunrise she’d heard so much about was best seen on that side of the mountain.

  Savannah wondered how she’d feel when she reached the top. Although, probably what she should be worried about is the actual climb itself. Hiroshi was a little reserved in giving her too much information, which told her that she was going to find some parts of it hard.

  When they arrived, he took her hand and pulled her away from the group that had gathered to start the climb.

  “We need to do this slowly,” he cautioned. “I know you’re excited, and you want to get to the top and see the sunrise, but this won’t be easy.” At least he’d confirmed her thoughts.

  “Okay,” she agreed, giving his hand a gentle squeeze.

  “Seriously, Savannah, this is going to be the hardest thing you’ve done in your life. The higher we get, the more strenuous it will be, and the air will get thin.” He looked worried for her. “You have to tell me if you feel weird in any way. And you can’t think of it like taking the stairs at Nordstrom.”

  She had to laugh at the analogy, remembering their conversation on the flight over to Japan. She slipped her arms around him and stood on her toes to give him a quick kiss. “I promise I will be careful, and I swear I’ll tell you if I feel weird.” She laughed. He grinned down at her then took her hand into his once more as they rejoined the group.

  There were so many people here. She couldn’t imagine what it must be like when it was busier than this. Hiroshi told her that during the Obon week in mid-August climbers had to practically queue up on the passage. Eager as she was to climb, she would hate to add more time onto the average climb by queuing and not getting very far. It wasn’t the same thing, but the only queue she would tolerate was waiting in line at Nordstrom to pay for one of her desired items of purchase, like shoes.

  Hiroshi took the greatest care of her as they began the climb and continued to monitor and protect her. He offered her water and energy bars every half second to keep her energy and strength up. The trail became a little difficult two hours into the climb when the terrain became steep and rocky. Steep she could manage, but rocky was trickier as her boots kept getting caught on the edge of the rocks, slowing her down. Relief washed over her when they approached the seventh station and the trail became level again.

  Although she was managing okay, Hiroshi insisted on them resting in one of the mountain huts here instead of trying to proceed to the eighth station. She would have preferred to continue on but she listened to him.

  They had dinner with a few of the people they had to share the hut with, then slept huddled together until just after one am when he woke her up. If they wanted to reach the top before sunrise, which was in another three and a half hours, they had to leave now, so they did.

  The first thing she noticed as they stepped outside was the significant temperature change. It must have dropped by several degrees, and the wind made the cold feel even worse. Good thing they were both layered up in jackets with several under layers, gloves, and other warm things. When they packed a few days ago, she’d wondered why they’d need such wintry wear in the middle of summer. Now she knew.

  Lights lit the pathway and everyone wore caps with lights attached to the front. It was, however, still quite dark and a little scary because she couldn’t see anything to the right or left of them unless she focused her light in that direction. Holding Hiroshi’s hand was the only thing that calmed her. Sensing her uncertainty, he gave her hand a squeeze and slipped his arm around her.

  “Nearly there. See, the air feels different,” he pointed out.

  The air did feel different. She’d thought that when they left the hut but now she could feel the definite change in a way she couldn’t describe, other than saying it felt thin. Or, thinner than it had before.

  “Are you okay?” The lights on his hat allowed her to see the concern on his face.

  “I’m good, just tired. Are you okay?” she asked him, too, although she knew he was more than fine. He’d climbed the mountain as easily as if he were walking on one of the garden paths back at the manor.

  “Perfect,” he laughed.

  Scary as it was, climbing in the dark was a little fascinating because there were so many people around them with the same goal in mind. She had to admit that climbing in a group made the challenge more bearable. And, talking helped the time pass.

  They listened to a short, stocky guy from Australia regale the group with tales of his other climbs. He’d climbed Mount Kilimanjaro three times, Everest twice, skied the Alps apparently all the time, and this was his tenth climb of Mt. Fuji. He made the Alps sound nice, and Savannah thought she’d like to go there and spend time in all the countries it ran through. That would be exciting, and Europe was definitely on her list of places to visit. She’d put it on her mental list when she went to Italy.

  After walking for what seemed like forever, she suddenly heard people cheering ahead of them, and she guessed they’d reached the summit. It motivated her and fueled her with a boost of energy to continue. That would be them in a few minutes.

  More and more cheers sounded the closer they got until finally it was their turn.

  “Here we go,” Hiroshi announced as they took their final steps, which marked their entrance onto the mountain’s summit.

  “We did it,” she gasped, jumping up and down.

  “Wait, not too much energy.” He placed his hands on her shoulders, looking worried. “You could pass out.”

  Yes, her legs felt like they might fall off, and her head felt a little woozy, but she was so thrilled by the achievement. This was the stuff dreams were made of for any travel journalist. Going on a real adventure and doing something exceptional.

  “I’m all right.” She smiled. “Hiroshi, we’re at the top of Mt. Fuji. Do you remember when we saw it from the plane?”

  He nodded slowly and gave her that look she’d grown accustomed to. While she could just about make out his features from the light on his hat, he’d done it so often that she knew exactly how he looked. She called it his appreciative look. Where he’d give her this adoring stare and gaze at her as if she was the most important thing in the world to him.

  “I remember,” he replied with a soft smile, then took her hand into his again and led her away from the crowds. “Let’s wait here for sunrise.”

  As if on cue, the darkness around them began to shift away when the first orange-hued ray peeked through the sky. She glanced excitedly up at Hiroshi, and he returned the look with a warm smile. They gazed back out together as the rays slowly brightened, peeling its way through the darkness of twilight and turning the surrounding area a reddish-orange color as the sun began to fill out the sky.

  Soon the brilliance of the mighty, endless rays spread out to caress the land.

  She’d never seen a sunrise like this before, with its absolutely magical display of color that bathed over
them. She could see now why Japan was called the land of the rising sun. The definition was all here, right now in this moment.

  Clouds surrounded them. Actual clouds, with a mix of the vibrant orange the sunrise brought entwined within the wisps. Savannah took a moment to appreciate the height from which they stood, with the world below within their gaze.

  People around them were cheering, happy to have reached the summit and watched the awe-inspiring sunrise. But Savannah and Hiroshi stood still. Hand in hand they stood still as an overwhelming feeling of peace encased them.

  There was that reverence again she’d experienced from her adventures around Japan.

  Reverence, respect and… She looked at Hiroshi.

  Love. Love that flowed like warm honey.

  He squeezed her hand and turned to face her. “I love this part. There’s nothing more magical than watching the sunrise from here.”

  She nodded agreeing. “It’s amazing.”

  “Yes, and peaceful.” The corners of his mouth eased into a gentle smile. “Makes you feel like you’ll always have happiness. That’s how I… That’s how I feel when I’m with you.” His eyes sparkled with the same radiance she saw when he danced with her on the beach, but with something intense she’d never seen before. Something that caught her immediate attention and made her heart race.

  Yes, she’d fallen for him well before now. But this was the moment she truly fell. The moment when she fell completely and utterly in love with Hiroshi.

  And, she knew that she would always be.

  This was the man she would love forever.

  She snuggled against him as he put his arm around her.

  Chapter 20

  A long time had passed since that day on Mt Fuji. Months. Six to be exact. And now, Savannah was looking at only a handful of few weeks until she returned to San Francisco. Then, on to the next destination. Wherever that would be.

  She’d always planned on Mexico and had kind of told Brian that would be her next stop. But she wasn’t sure yet.