Farewell, My Orange by Iwaki Kei

Author:Iwaki Kei [Kei, Iwaki]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781609454791
Publisher: Europa Editions
Published: 2018-10-10T05:00:00+00:00

Out in the college courtyard garden taking a quick break, Salimah noticed the figure of her work supervisor strolling from right to left through the bushes. Being with her teacher and Echidna, she hesitated to call out to him, but at that moment her teacher suddenly hailed him loudly. He gazed about him, his lower half hidden by the bushes. This was just like the last time, Salimah thought, cheeks flushing warmly. His apprehensive look suggested a petty thief discovered in someone’s house. The chill image that he presented in the work place melted now in the warm afternoon sun. When his eyes lit on the three of them, he bashfully walked over. Even Echidna was looking at him like a stranger. Without the white coat and gumboots she barely recognised him, and it was natural that her eyes should widen at this vision of him in grey parka, blue jeans, and sneakers.

“How’s it going? Well?”

At the teacher’s searching question, he flinched like a boy. In the pale late winter sunlight, his shadow stretched the length of his body over the lawn. Salimah’s eyes fell on her own shadow. Go on, go and talk to him, she told it silently. The teacher’s eyes leapt to her students.

“This is my cousin.”

“So these are your students, are they?”

Now the teacher’s eyes moved inquiringly among all three in turn. Do you know each other? Echidna laughed as she explained, He’s our work supervisor. She wasn’t laughing at the fact that they knew each other, Salimah guessed, but at how different he now looked.

“Actually, you know . . . ” the teacher began, but the supervisor put his hand quickly over her mouth before she could say more.

“Oh, there’s a secret.” Echidna was being uncharacteristically bold. A secret, yes. Just what was the supervisor doing here?

“Letting a few people in on it will just put you on your mettle and stop you failing, you know,” said the teacher as she pushed her cousin’s hand away. “He’s here to get a driving license,” she went on. “You know that mechanic’s course, the one with the big garage? He’s doing his training there.”

The car mechanic’s training department was located at one corner of the courtyard. A number of impressively flashy cars were always parked there, constantly surrounded by a gaggle of teenage boys in mechanics’ clothes.

At his cousin’s words the supervisor turned bright red and stood there stock-still and mute. It wasn’t normal for someone of his age not to have ever thought about learning to drive, she went on, but he dismissed this accusation with the simple statement that it hadn’t been necessary until now. Salimah was sorry that he’d returned to his usual curt work place mode, and felt an urge to drop in some comment that would soften him, but he had turned and left before she could open her mouth.

The teacher went on to talk about him, referring to him with a sigh as “that kid.” Salimah was a little shocked. She felt oddly uncomfortable with the intimate and dismissive way they spoke of each other.

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