Riza felt a cold sensation prickling beneath her thick coat. Anxiety and fear slowly crept in, making the fingers clutching her bag go stiff.
Amid the low roar of Tokyo's crowded city bus, she felt trapped in a cramped space with a stranger who had just stated her academic identity with uncanny accuracy.
Judging by his appearance, the man beside her looked completely ordinary. There was nothing about him—or his expression—that suggested he was a criminal.
The man had delicate features, a distinctive blend of Japanese and European heritage, clear skin, a high-bridged nose, and a pair of calm, gentle eyes. That innocent face would make anyone who saw him immediately let go of their suspicions.
Even so, in an isolated situation like this, what woman wouldn't be gripped by fear if a stranger suddenly approached her and somehow knew her personal background?
The man gave her a faint smile, as if he could read the panic swirling behind Riza's eyes.
"No, we've never met before," the man said amiably. His voice was light and calm. "Are you suspicious because I knew you were a master's student at the University of Tokyo?"
Riza flinched. The man had somehow noticed the suspicion and paranoia rising in her mind. She quickly steadied her breath, which had briefly caught in her throat.
She did her best to keep her expression and tone from revealing that she was anxious and terrified out of her mind.
"I'm not suspicious," Riza said quickly, trying to force a smile as natural as possible even though it felt stiff. "I was just surprised. We haven't even introduced ourselves, but you already knew who I was."
The man beside her nodded in understanding, not offended in the slightest. "That's true. Especially since you're a woman in a foreign country. It's completely reasonable for you to be cautious and suspicious."
Instead of immediately giving her a concrete explanation for the mystery, the man casually offered her advice. Riza could only manage a wry smile at his words.
In her heart, she no longer cared about his advice. All she could do was pray that the bus would pull over and stop at the next bus stop as soon as possible.
As if realizing that Riza could no longer hide her awkward expression, the man finally chuckled softly and pointed toward the backpack in her lap.
"I'm sorry. I really didn't mean to frighten you," he continued politely.
"I happened to notice the keychain on your bag earlier. It had the University of Tokyo logo and name on it, so I figured you were one of the students there."
Riza's eyes immediately dropped to the official acrylic keychain from the university, which was indeed hanging neatly from her bag's zipper pull.
"Oh... because of this?" Riza murmured softly. She lifted the keychain for a moment and stared at it in disbelief.
Riza fell silent at once. The intense embarrassment stung her face until it felt hot.
All the negative assumptions and kidnapping scenarios that had been running wild through her mind collapsed in an instant, leaving nothing behind. It turned out the man had learned who she was solely from the keychain she had put on her bag herself.
Riza bowed her head deeply and let out an awkward breath. "I... I'm sorry too for assuming the worst about you."
"It's okay," the man replied gently, his smile blooming with genuine sincerity and not a hint of mockery. "You were only doing what anyone would reasonably do."
Yet the man's friendly, understanding smile only made Riza feel guiltier and berate herself even more. She admitted to herself that this time, she had been too quick to judge someone simply because she was overwhelmed by excessive anxiety.
The hiss of the air brakes sounded as the bus finally came to a complete stop at the destination bus stop. The automatic doors opened. Riza hurried to her feet and stepped off first, walking ahead of the man beside her without daring to meet his eyes again.
The concert hall and art exhibition venue actually weren't far from the bus stop. However, instead of heading straight for the arena entrance, Riza chose to sit on the bus stop's wooden bench and wait for Keisya.
She had actually wanted to go straight to the venue and wait in front of the entrance, but her pride held her back. She didn't want the man from earlier to find out that she also intended to attend the same concert after lying about it before.
Riza hugged her phone close and typed a message, her fingers dancing quickly across the glass screen.
"Sya, I'm already here. I'm sitting at the bus stop in front of the building. Let me know when you're on your way!" Riza sent.
Ding!
Less than a minute later, her phone vibrated with a reply.
"Okay, Za! I'll be OTW in a bit. I'm still in class—I just finished." Keisya replied via WhatsApp.
Riza breathed a sigh of relief and slipped her phone back into her pocket. But minute after minute passed with agonizing slowness. Fifteen minutes went by, then stretched into half an hour, yet Keisya still hadn't shown up.
Riza looked around the sidewalk, but there was no sign of her mixed-race friend arriving.
Tokyo's sky began to darken beneath a silvery orange glow. The concert was scheduled to begin at exactly 5:00 p.m. From the bus stop where she sat, Riza could see the exhibition hall's grounds already filling with a sea of people queuing orderly to register and exchange their tickets.
Only a few minutes remained before the show began. Yet Keisya still hadn't arrived.
Riza began to panic. She pressed the call button on Keisya's contact.
Beep... beep... "The number you are trying to reach is unable to receive calls at this time. Please try again later..." a cold automated voice answered.
"Where is Keisya? Why isn't she picking up? WhatsApp only shows two check marks, and she hasn't read it either..." Riza complained anxiously. ... ... To be continued