June 5, 2008
San Francisco
The restaurant looked almost exactly the same.
The same narrow doorway. The same warm glow of light spilling out onto the sidewalk.
Steve paused for a moment before opening the door.
"You okay?" Kevin asked.
Steve nodded.
"Yeah."
They stepped inside.
The smell of garlic and grilled meat filled the air.
For a moment Steve simply stood there, looking around.
A few things had changed — the paint on the walls, a few new tables — but most of it felt strangely familiar.
Kevin glanced around.
"You've been here before?"
Steve smiled faintly.
"Yeah."
He gestured toward the counter.
"My friend Tommy used to work here."
"Tommy?" Kevin asked.
Steve nodded.
"I met him when I first moved to the city."
They took a seat near the window.
Steve studied the room again.
"I haven't seen him in years," he said.
Kevin leaned back slightly in his chair.
"People drift apart," he said.
Steve nodded.
Then he glanced toward the kitchen door.
"Mizuki worked here too."
Kevin looked up.
"Really?"
Steve smiled faintly at the memory.
"That's actually how I ran into him again after we met at the park."
Kevin tilted his head slightly, curious but calm.
"You just walked in and there he was?"
"Pretty much," Steve said.
"He was carrying a tray of glasses and suddenly stopped when he saw me."
Kevin smiled.
"That must have been a surprise."
Steve laughed softly.
"Yeah."
For a moment he seemed lost in the memory.
"He looked at me and said something like... 'Mr. Guy from the park.'"
Kevin chuckled.
"That sounds about right."
Steve leaned back in his chair.
"It was funny," he said quietly.
"I almost didn't come here that night."
Kevin studied him gently.
"I'm glad you did."
Steve nodded.
"Me too."
For a moment neither of them spoke.
The restaurant buzzed softly around them — plates clinking, quiet conversations drifting between tables.
Steve glanced once more toward the kitchen door.
For a second he could almost imagine Mizuki walking through it again, carrying a tray of glasses.
The thought didn't hurt the way it once had.
It simply felt like a memory.