On Monday afternoon I go to my favorite Starbucks, but it is completely occupied so I decide to go to the next one, two blocks away and I think I leave my bicycle and just walk there. It is plus 31, the streets are almost empty since it is a national holiday, and the sun is so bright it lits up the concrete sidewalks and the red brick houses around me. I walk fast and with my side vision I see even the brighter light. I naturally turn there and stare at girls face for about two seconds which seem like eternity. She looks back and keep staring at me. I extend my hand and say, Hi, my name is Johnny. My name is Yuki, she replies. Your face shines like the sun, I say. She smiles and says, I graduated last Friday and I am moving 5 centimeters per second around the neighborhood.

  • Why 5 centimeters?
  • That's the speed sakura petals float in the air with. I notice her toe nails are polished in the hot pink, exactly the color of my tie. I ask, where is the matching finger polish and the pink lipstick?
  • I really like pink, but I worked for the hospital and couldn't use any polish on my finger nails, but I am changing now. I have pink eye shadows on though. And the pink lipstick is in my purse now.

The street is extremely hot, we walk into the Starbucks, the air conditioned breeze is refreshing, but the coffee shop is full. And we go to another one. And another one. And another one in Kensington market. And we sit on the grass in the park. She tells me, how she wanted to become a geisha in Kyoto, that she loves film photography and shows me her pictures from the recreation of the forest of Ghibli's Princess Mononoke somewhere on an Island in Okinawa. I don't play, I can express myself in any way I want and I choose just to be, feel the grass, breathe the air, listen to the pretty girl and enjoy the extreme beauty of the moment.

She is so shy, and really feels like a sakura branch. But she also seems very comfortable and quiet. I am relaxed, light clouds cover the sun and the moment feels so fragile as if everything is made of glass strings, the light bounces in between creating sparkles and rainbows, and even the slightest wind can break it. But I am not afraid of that, the moment feels so enlightening and I am here and now, nothing else exists. I tell her about it, we stand up and slowly start moving back.

The bright sunny sky starts sprinkling drops of rain, in this hot air, which feels absolutely surreal. It smells like rain all of a sudden, fresh grass, humid earth. It starts raining a bit heavier, and we find ourselves under a tree near an old house hiding from the summer rain. Eight young people across the street have a barbecue in the front yard.

I ask Yui to put her hot pink lipstick on. She takes out her phone and uses it as a mirror. She looks at me, and even though the color is pretty bright it is put in such a subtle way that it is barely visible. I look up, I see rain drops falling through the sun filled air, and huge green maple leaves right above us, covering from the rain. We start kissing, but only for a few moments. There are people watching, she says.

The rain stops. She holds my hand and we slowly walk through the strong uplifting smell of summer rain. I see three girls walking towards us. Their faces, arms and legs covered with purple paint. Are you smurfs? - I ask. Oh, that's why you are looking at us! I thought we'have met before. This is a tradition for the freshman week for engineering students at the University of Toronto, one of the girls answers.

We slowly walk back, she holds my hand at times, at times I hold hers.

Stay beautiful,

Johnny Maddick