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Even if he grew up in a temple, he was not sure if he should consider himself a religious person, he could not deny that his life was entirely covered by religious beliefs and practices that he had learned ever since he was a small child. As well, for years and years, he had heard thousands of prayers coming from the mouths of the believers that visited the temple regularly.
People from all over the city came to the place on a daily basis to make all kinds of requests to the deities. Most of the time he tried not to pay much attention to what they prayed about, he wanted to keep their privacy as much as he could. But there were some other moments in which he would listen to the prayers, some of them were trivial things, like winning the lottery or getting a promotion on a job; some others were more complicated, more meaningful; people asking for a loved one to survive a serious illness, to come back home after disappearing for a long time, to smile again after a big trauma. During the years he had heard so many prayers, that now that he was older, he didn’t know what to pray for, what to wish for.
That was until he met her.
Nanoka.
His Friday prayer.
When she first went to the temple he did not pay much attention, it was during the early weeks of spring and he was busy helping Hyakka with the cherry blossom petals that were falling all over the place. She was a friend of Tenko, a regular visitor of Friday’s praying service. The only thing he knew was that one day the young waitress invited her to visit the place of worship.
Nanoka quickly befriended most of the people living there, she was especially fond of Otoya, the youngest brother he had in the place. It’s been more than a year now, and he could not be more thankful that he met her. They started talking around her third visit when Otoya properly introduced them. She has said a couple of times before that he used to be colder and indifferent to her during their first meetings, but he never noticed it. What he did notice was that, as weeks went by, he would eagerly wait for Fridays to come, and that he hoped that his time with her would last just a little longer.
It was Kamon the one that noticed first, Mao had now realized that his older brother would make small comments about Nanoka just to see his reaction and smile when he gained the expression he was searching for. Natsuno was the second one to notice and the first one to ask; but Mao never denied, nor accepted anything, he just remained silent when she asked if he had feelings for the girl that went or the temple with Tenko. At that time, he didn't know exactly what he was feeling.
There was no denying that he eagerly waited for Fridays to come, that those days he would hurry back from school to the temple and quickly help prepare everything for the praying time in the late afternoon. And now, that he knew the full extent of his feelings, he was at the front door of the temple sweeping the floor, constantly looking at the street, waiting for the moment she would arrive at the place. Last Friday he was on the back helping Otoya with some things, so that day the only moment he could look at her was by the end of the praying ceremony, now, he was hoping he could see her from the start, maybe even talk to her a little just before the start of the temple service.
When he was with her he was happy, it was that simple, the conclusion came to him as easily as breathing. It was obvious. Whenever she was around, she made him feel calm, her smile made him smile back at her; the way she acted and the times she had wanted to help them around the temple were adorable to him. And that’s why he would always await for Fridays, even if he would just take a single glance at her. That was just enough.
A couple of minutes later he noticed them, she was walking towards the temple with Tenko and Hyakka, who probably encountered them on his way back from some chore he had to do. His younger brother was being as loud as always complaining about something he could not completely comprehend from the distance he was hearing them. It was until they were just a couple of meters away from the temple that his eyes met hers. His heart was beating fast in his chest, she smiled at him and greeted him just before they entered the place.
He wondered for too long if he should join the group, that when he finally took a decision, he was left alone in the entrance as the group walked towards the door of the main praying room; the three of them were still laughing and animatedly chatting, he wondered if it was the same thing they were talking about before. He hurried his work and quickly walked towards the place where they entered.
The room was really spacious, the place where the monk will seat for the praying service was right in the middle of the place. In the very front, there were the statues of the temple gods that are made from jade and gold; on the sides, the praying kneeling cushions people can take for the service. He saw Nanoka take one of them and walk with Tenko to the front part of the room.
When they finally sat on the cushions his eyes found Nanoka’s again and smiled; Tenko motioned for him to join them and he happily took one of the cushions and walked towards them. The two women greeted him and it was Tenko the one that started talking to both of them about some of the gossips she usually heard in the cafeteria where she work.
One of the things he enjoyed the most with those kinds of casual chats, was appreciating the boldness and sincerity of the words Nanoka used whenever she expressed her opinion. Even if she didn’t always understand the situation, she was so direct and honest and that alone was one of the things that Mao liked the most about her. He was always mesmerized by her. That was a fact.
They stopped their chat as soon as they noticed that the room began filling up with more and more people, most of them regular attendants for the Friday’s praying service; some others were just occasional assistants, and there were also some tourists that came to see how the ceremonies in the temple were done.
It was just a couple of seconds after the place was completely filled when the monk entered the place and walked towards the center, where everything was already prepared for him to start chanting the prayers. As he started the ceremony, most of the people in the place bowed in front of the gods’ statues and whispers could be heard all around them.
A couple of months ago, Mao asked Nanoka about what she prayed about, and she confessed to him that she was not that religious and that most of the things she knew about religion were things that Otoya had told her. She also mentioned that she usually just asked for her grandfather’s health and for the soul of her parents to be resting in peace.
That time, when she asked back, he also answered honestly, that he didn’t pray for anything. He usually just bowed his head and repeated the chants the monk said during the service on his head until it was over.
But now, if she asked him again, he would have to lie.
Everything started just a month ago when she and Tenko offered their help to prepare for the biggest festival of the temple that year. Instead of coming only on Fridays, they were every day at the temple; and Mao had the opportunity to talk more to her, to get her to know her more, to be more enchanted with her.
But it was during the festival when the realization finally hit him. He wondered if it was the warmth of that night, the yukata she was wearing, or the fireworks in the background; that made him understand what he truly wanted when he was with Nanoka. He guessed he had been falling for her so slowly during the time they’d known each other that he didn’t notice how in deep he was until it was too late. Until his mind settled on a wish that surprised him the second it crossed his mind but also brought him peace almost immediately.
He wanted to spend the rest of his life with her.
Nothing has ever made more sense to him that the wish of being with Nanoka all his life. Yet, the possibility seemed so far from his reach in so many ways that the only thing he had left to remain a little hopeful was praying. So he prayed, every Friday, sitting next to the woman he wanted the most, that he could stay forever with her, by her side. He asked to whoever was listening for them to give him the possibility to intertwine his life with Nanoka.
Even if he was not sure if he should consider himself a religious person, he could not deny that his life was entirely covered by religious beliefs and practices that he had learned ever since he was a small child. So he prayed, for her to feel the same way he felt, for her to accept his proposal when the time finally comes.
His Friday prayer.