Engaged in the Moment

What happens tomorrow? As Akioto walked, he thought about what lay ahead. Her stay in this town was not just for the exhibition. The show would soon be over. Before that, she had to find work to sustain her life. For now, she could stay in her apartment a little longer. But.... Her new works—the “faces”—needed a strong reason to move forward. She couldn’t see what would become of her, or whether this performance would change anything. Her thoughts were restless—about Joe, about the uncertainty of her life. If it didn’t work out, she could always fly back to where she came from. With that in mind, she kept walking—until she saw the light. 明日はどうなるの？ 秋音は歩きながら、先の事を考えていた。 彼女がこの町に滞在しているのは、展覧会のためだけではなかった。展覧会はもうすぐに終わってしまう。その前に生活のための仕事を見つけなければならない。今の住まいには、しばらく借りれそうではあるけれど。  新しい作品、あの「顔」たちには、次の一歩へ進むための強い理由が必要だった。自分がどうなるのか、このパフォーマンスが何かを変えるのか、何も見えない。 ただジョーのこと、不安定な状況のことに心が乱れていた。  もしうまくいかなければ、元いた場所へ飛んで帰ればいい。 そう思いながら歩いていると、光が見えた。 It must be Joe. He was standing there, holding up a lant...

Meeting, Regularly Because his drum was left in my room, his return was already promised. But it was irregular, never according to plan. I often asked, “Can we set a schedule?” He would only answer, “Yeah,” but nothing was ever decided. Somehow, Joe always appeared at the right moment. That’s why I never once refused his sudden visits. Perhaps that was the greatest way I spoiled him. This Wednesday was the very first planned event! Luckily, the weather seemed to exist just for us. We packed our things and headed for the deck. Joe’s vision was clear, Beat - Shadow - Light. The beat was his sticks. The shadow was my art—paper-cut faces. The light was the lanterns. 約束されたミーテイング 彼のドラムは私の部屋に置いてあったから、彼がまた来ることは約束されていた。 でもそれは不規則で、決して予定通りではなかった。 私は何度も「スケジュールを決められる？」と聞いたけれど、 彼は「うん」と答えるだけで、本当には決まらないままだった。なぜか、ジョーはタイミングの良い時に現れた。 だから、彼の突然の訪問を断ったことは一度もない。それが一番彼を甘やかしてしまったようだ。 この水曜日は予定した初めてのイベント！幸運にも、天気も良く私たちのためにあるようだった。私たちは荷物をまとめて、桟橋へ向かった。 ジョーの考えははっきりしていた。ビート・影・光。  ビートは彼のスティック 影は私のアート、切り紙の顔 光は...

 Two days later “What are you doing? Can we meet? Two hours?” Akine: “Yes.” He arrived carrying a single drum. “Friend of yours?” Akine asked. “Today, let’s try it with the drum,” Joe said. Today he seemed composed, strikingly handsome. In the room, piano music played in the background. “Joe Sample,” Joe said. “Yes, the other Joe. His piano paints landscapes — a winter sea,” Akine replied. Joe sat on the “resting chair” and gently touched the rim. A simple practice. Timer set: sixty seconds on, ten seconds off. The rim’s click called out, scissors answered. Slow at first. They slipped, laughed, began again. The timing of completion — the work itself decided. 二日後 ジョー「今なにしてる？ 会える？ 二時間後？」 秋音「うん。」 彼は太鼓をひとつ持って現れる。 「友だち？」と秋音。 「今日はドラムで、やってみよう」 今日の彼はすっと整って、格好よく見える。 部屋にはピアノミュージックのバックサウンド。 「ジョー・サンプルだ」とジョー。 「そう、もう一人のジョー。彼のピアノには風景がある。冬の海」と秋音。 ジョーは“休憩椅子”に腰をおろし、リムをそっと鳴らす。 シンプルなプラクティス。 タイマーをセット。六十秒オン、十秒オフ。 リムのクリックが呼び、ハサミが応える。 最初はゆっくり。ずれて、笑って、もう一度。 作品が仕上がるタイミングは、作品が決める。 He stepped c...

It is ok, works.  A few weeks have passed since the opening. Akine was invited by the writers she had met that night to visit them at their ateliers on weekdays and attend other galleries and events on weekends. Her days stayed busy, and she told herself it was fortunate: no time to dwell on Joe, or on the silence that lingered since. These three months became precious to her. Even if her plans ended as nothing more than plans, that was fine. She reasoned. Still, unease gnawed at her.  I am lucky, she repeated to herself. She reminded herself that Joe did not consume her; instead, she was filled with the power of creation, which was the point. And yet she could not deny it: his unshakable presence seeped into her work. The aftertaste of a rhythm she should not be able to hear remained in her chest. Memory does not build a prison, it becomes nourishment. a guide,  whispered. それはそれで良い オープニングから数週間が過ぎた。 秋音はあの夜に出会った作家たちに誘われ、平日はアトリエに呼ばれ、週末は別のギャラリーやイベントへと出かけていた。 忙しい日々のおか...

Shopping Together  The supermarket was small, wedged between a bakery and a drugstore. Inside, the fluorescent lights buzzed, casting their pale glow across the neat rows of cans and bottles. “What do we need?” Joe asked. “Everything… so many things. Daily necessities, basic food… but it’s hard to find, and I don’t even know what’s good here.” “What’s that one?” she wondered aloud. Akine rose onto her toes, reaching for a box on the top shelf. Almost… but not quite. As she tried again, Joe’s arm brushed past hers. He reached up easily, pulled the box down, and dropped it into her basket. “Thank you,” she said, glancing up at him. Joe only shrugged, as if it were nothing. But Akine understood: what was simple for him carried real weight for her. “Is there anything you’d like, Joe? I don’t really keep much at home… so if you want something, just say.” And as the words slipped out, her heart raced. He’s coming to my place. Am I teasing him? Provoking him? “Ice cream,”...

 Joe’s message arrived suddenly. “Can I see you?” Akine looked at her phone, hesitated only a second, and typed back a single word. “Yes.” “When?” “In a couple of hours,” Joe replied.  “I’ll come by.” ジョーからのメッセージは突然だった。 「会える？」 秋音はスマホを見つめ、ほんの一瞬だけ迷ったあと、一言だけ打った。 「うん。」 「いつ？」 「二時間後くらい。」とジョー。 「迎えに行くよ。」 Joe: “Where do you want to go?” Joe: “…The water’s edge？” Akine nods. They walk. At first apart. Then their steps fall in sync, as if pulled by something unseen. No plan. Just side by side. The road toward the river. Joe looks at her. Suddenly, bold: “…A kiss.” Akine doesn’t answer. Their lips meet — slow, unhurried like the greeting of old friends. Joe: “Let’s walk a little more. The view’s better over there.” Akine: “Do you come here often?” Joe: “I sit on that rock. Think.” Joe: “The sunset here… worth more than anywhere else.” He pulls her close. This kiss is deeper, searching. Her tension eases. She surrenders to it, surprised at herself. Silence. Heavy wit...

Unbearable Pull The two began to walk side by side toward Akine’s apartment. No words, only the sound of footsteps on the night’s stone path. Akine glanced at Joe from the corner of her eye. The shadow swaying past his shoulder seemed to echo her heartbeat. Joe opened his mouth once, then closed it again, keeping the silence between them. A faint breeze brushed past, drawing them closer. For an instant, their hands nearly touched. At that moment, their eyes met. No words were needed. Within the quiet, both knew what would come next. Joe stepped closer, silent. His hand touched her cheek — and she could not turn away. The kiss was gentle, warm, carrying years already lost and the weight of a night that might never return. A stranger, yet suddenly— as if he had always been there. When their lips parted, his smile was small and soft. 抵抗できない何かが 二人は秋音のアパートへと並んで歩き出した。 言葉はなく、夜の石畳に響く足音だけがあった。 秋音は横目でジョーを見た。 彼の肩越しに揺れる影が、自分の鼓動と重なっているように思えた。 ジョーも一度口を開きかけては、閉じ、 沈黙を守った。 か...

After the opening Akine did not want to remain in the crowd. The tension of being with strangers, the conversations— all of it had surpassed her limits. She couldn’t bring herself to return to the room, and whispered softly, “Let me stay by the water…” The night wind cooled her skin. At that moment, she noticed a tall man walking without purpose. Step by step, he was drawing closer to her. オープニングの後 秋音は人混みに残りたくなかった。  知らない人との緊張、会話、全てが限界を超えていた。  部屋に戻る気にもなれず、 小さくつぶやいた。 「水のそばにいよう…」 夜風が肌を冷やす。  そのとき、背の高い男が目的もなく歩いているのに気づいた。  一歩ずつ、彼女に近づいてくる。 Akine tilted her head.   “Are you a drummer?”  Joe blinked. “??? ” “I was there, a couple of days ago,”  she said, smiling.  “You look like him.”  Her smile widened.  “I just got here for the exhibition. But I feel like you were the first familiar face in this strange town.”  “Exhibition?” Joe asked quickly.  “I was there too. Why were you there?”  “My work is there. Today was th...

After the rehearsal Joe was walking toward the harbor. Before leaving, he wanted to touch the stillness of the water. The town’s streets, unexpectedly, guided him. An entrance where voices and lights gathered. There, the words were displayed: “Engaged in the Moment.” He did not understand the meaning. Yet it resonated, like a rhythm left deep in his chest. Through the glass, he saw a painting. Simple, yet filled with strength. The desire to see it closer grew within him. リハーサルの後 港へ向かって歩いていた。  去る前に、水の静けさに触れたかった。  街の道は、思いがけず彼を導く。 人のざわめきと灯りが集まる入り口。  そこに掲げられた言葉 「この瞬間に抱かれて」 意味はわからない。 けれど、胸の奥に残ったリズムのように響いた。  ガラスの向こうに見えた絵は、シンプルで強さを感じた。 近くで見てみたいという感情が高まった. Opening Reception at the Exhibition Shadows and light lined the wall. Black seeped, white breathed. There was no sound, yet it echoed in his chest like the aftertone of a drum. A single abstract in ink— not a form, not a wave, but simply ma itself. Joe stopped walking. That painting was his favorite. H...

Akine's First Day The room the gallery owner lent her was small yet warm, faint with cedar. She touched the worn quilt and listened to the muffled silence. The town’s air was different—cool, wide, tinged with salt and metal. Restless, she stepped into the dim street, lamps leaning like old men in quiet talk. From beyond the murmur, a rhythm— like footsteps, but alive, carrying heat. It led her through an alley, to a low building spilling light and sound. Blues rock—her favorite. A rehearsal. She peeked inside, guilty, curious. The drummer drew her eyes. She slipped back out, telling herself she had seen nothing, heard nothing, breathing into the wind. Yet the rhythm lingered, like the secret pulse of the natural world.  秋音、最初の一歩 ギャラリーのオーナーが貸してくれた部屋は狭かったが、杉板の風がかすかに漂う暖かさだった。 彼女は擦り切れたキルトに触れ、くぐもった静寂に耳を澄ませた。 街の空気は違っていた。冷たく、広く、潮と金属の匂いが漂っていた。 落ち着かず、彼女は薄暗い通りに足を踏み入れた。ランプは、まるで老人たちが静かに語り合うように傾いていた。 ざわめきの向こうから、リズムが聞こえてきた。 足音のようでもあり、しかし、生きていて、熱を帯びていた。 そのリズムは彼女を路地へと導き、 光と音を放つ低い建物へと導いた。 ブルースロック。彼...

  Joe’s Night Walk / The Day Before He Meets Akine The last cymbal faded into silence. After clearing up with the others, he stepped alone into the night. Beneath the murmur of the city flowed something softer, not quite music, not quite memory. His feet marked a steady rhythm, streetlights passing like beats in a measure. And soon, the air began to taste of salt. ジョーの夜の散歩 / 秋音と出会う前日 最後のシンバルの音が消えた。 彼はバンドのメンバーと一緒に片付けを済ますと、一人で夜の中へと歩み出た。 街のざわめきの底には、音楽とも記憶ともつかない、もっと不思議なエネルギーに満ちていた。 足は一定のリズムを刻み、街灯がビートと共に通り過ぎていく。 やがて、空気は潮の匂いを帯び始めた。 Akine’s Night Walk / The Day Before She Meets Joe She felt something in the air, pressing lightly against her skin. A low, gentle rhythm wove its way through the silence. With a shawl draped over her shoulders, she stepped onto the damp street. With each step, the distance between herself and what awaited seemed to fade away. Behind the fear of loneliness before a challenge faced alone, an undercurrent of expectation wrapped over it,  an...