Mar 21 2007
Harajuku, Part 2
To continue where I left off, I had just been virtually molded into place onto the Shibuya train back to my own prefecture along with Mai, Nana, and Sukiko on our way home from a day in Harajuku. I was struggling just to breathe for the few moments before the train took off, but after we had been running for a few minutes, I managed to stand up straight and get some air to my lungs. There were so many people on that train, I can’t even try to describe it to you. I was about to try to climb on the luggage rack above me just to have some more breathing room.
It was at this point that I noticed the not-so-subtle stares of the people directly around me- especially that of a really creepy salary man. Instantly, I remembered what I had read about chikan on trains, and I looked back at the others. Mai, Nana, and Sukiko were all chatting happily; shit, they haven’t noticed. I tried glaring back at the weird salaryman, but he just smiled and took his time looking me up and down, even craning his neck to get a better view.
UGH! MOTHER OF-!! If THAT doesn’t send your spine crawling, I don’t know what will. I WANTED to turn away, to block his view, but I was scared to turn my back on him lest he see that as an invitation to get "grabby". I compromised by shifting to the side, and inching closer to the other three, while still keeping him in my peripheral vision.
I’m watching you, you chikan pervert…
Actually, he ended up getting off the train before us, but I was glad to be prepared, and I began seraching out any other chikan possibilities. A new crowd of people smushed onto the train, replacing the people who had just gotten off while mercifully leaving some extra space. We would be arriving home soon. Sukiko, who noticed my silence, asked if anything was wrong.
Me: Oh, no, not at all. I was just looking around the train car. There was a man earlier who kept staring at me.
Nana: Ohh! Did he try to touch you??
Me: NO! Nothing like that! I looked back at him, and he kept looking at me, but he did not try anything.
Mai: Was it an old guy?
Me: Yeah- a salaryman.
Nana: Those are the worst. As a Goth Loli, I get stared at a lot, too, in the train cars, but if a salaryman starts staring at you, he might be a pervert. You have to be careful.
Mai: Those aren’t the worst.
Me, Sukiko, Nana: Huh?
Nana: You don’t think a chikan is the worst?? Have you ever been touched by one? They try to get me all the time in my Goth Loli skirts.
Sukiko: You and I were stared at when we were in our school uniforms two weeks ago, don’t you remember, Mai?
Mai: Yes, yes, I rememeber. But a chikan is still not the worst. A chijyo is.
Nana: EWWWWWWW!
Sukiko: *Laugh* What- were you grabbed by a chijyo, Mai?
Just as I feared I would have to suffer through a "An-older-woman-grabbed-me-in-my-special-place-in-the-train-car" story, Mai shook her head and said that she hadn’t been touched by one herself, but she saw one once. She said it had been two years ago, in her first year of high school. She had been on the train going home from school one day, and she was lucky enough to get a seat, so she pulled out a book and began to read while listening to her MD player. She was on the train for a while, and it got more and more crowded, when something above the rim of her book caught her eye. In front of her was a older guy, she said maybe in his mid- to late-twenties, and he was holding on to the bar above to keep steady. The thing Mai had seen move was a woman’s arm, reaching around the guy to stroke his package. "This woman was older than my mom," Mai said, making us all cringe. Mai said she looked back down to her book immediately, but that she looked up every once in a while in a mix of amazement and horror.
Now that I think about it, she never told us how that ended, because Sukiko added in, "Well, I’ve thought about doing that sometimes, too."
If I could have choked on my tongue at that very moment, I would have. But it didn’t end there, oh no. Mai confessed to having chijyo-esque thought herself, and Nana recalled how she once pressed her but against the butt of a guy she liked, and copped a feel in the guise of striaghtening her skirt, and she wondered if he ever knew it was her. They then rounded on me, wanting to hear my American chijyo adventures. I told them in all honesty that while there were some instances of fondling and groping in the subway cars of America, it was nowhere NEAR the problem level that it is in Japan. Also, I told them, there is no subway or train system where I’m from. We have streetcars, sure, but they never get that full. Plus, in New Orleans, everyone is always watching everyone else, so even if a woman DIDN’T instantly rip the guy’s hand off and beat him to death with it while screaming bloody murder, somebody else would in her defense.
However, they didn’t let the subject rest. What followed, I may never live down.
Nana: Well, now that you’re in Japan, haven’t you ever seen a cute guy you wouldn’t mind bumping into "accidentally" on the train.
Me: Uhhh…
Mai: That’s right. There had to be at least ONE you’ve seen that made you wish you could touch him.
Me: But- Not like THAT!
Mai: Of course, of course, but maybe- *evil grin* just a small brush on the hand, or your shoulder against his couldn’t hurt.
Nana: A small feel couldn’t hurt anyone. Plus- you’re a gaijin. So all you say if he turns around is "Oh- I’m so sorry!" in English, and smile at him. He will smile back, and probably say that you can touch him as much as you want.
Me: *feeling that I’m quickly losing this battle* But…But I don’t..want..to…
Sukiko: *to the rescue* Mai, Nana- leave Pandora-san alone. She’s always gone to school with other girls. She is not used to being around boys.
Me: THANK YOU, GOD!!
Mai: Well, she should learn.
Nana: That’s right. She’s going to be living here for another three months.
Mai: Before she leaves, we should make sure she is not scared of men anymore.
Me: Oh, God- WHY HAST THOU FORSAKEN ME?? I’m not scared of men, per se-
Mai: Then touch one.
Nana: That’s right. Be a gaijin chijyo- just for today. Then you will prove to us you’re not scared of men.
Me: *looks over at Sukiko hopefully*
Sukiko: *Shakes her head* Just a little touch, Pandora-san.
Dammit. The majority wins again.
Me: *Sigh* Fine- but I’m ONLY touching him a LITTLE BIT.
Nana: But we have to SEE you do it.
Mai: Let’s pick a guy on this train car, then. We’ll be home in about four minutes, so if you hurry, you can get him and then be off the train before he even knows what happened.
Nana: Ohh! Ohh! I want to help pick him!
They started pointing out the most DISGUSTING GUYS on the train car, all of whom I rejected, hoping to kill enough time so we would be at our station before they found a good specimen. But y’all know I’m not that lucky. Nana pointed out a group of guys near the left hand doorway, standing in a small crowd of about five and chatting quietly. They looked about our age, maybe older or younger but not by much- it was a bit too far to tell. The thing was, where we were positioned, we could easily watch them from afar without being too obvious- or at least, THEY could. I was supposed to go over there and feel one of them up. Out of ammunition, I took my sweet time working my way over to them, acting as if I was trying to get by the doors for when my stop came up. I was really self-concious abuot my hair, and felt for sure that if they saw a head of blonde hair inching toward them, they would be sure to take notice. I ducked my head down and squeezed over until I was finally in their vicinity. I looked over my right shoulder- the three of them were all watching, and Nana flashed me the victory sign. Great. Thanks for that.
There was one problem. Blocking my way to the nearest guy was a pair of people- a salaryman and a housewife to be exact. They were standing back to back, which meant I would have to bump them out of the way, or go around and target another guy. Hmmm- risk brushing against two OTHER strange asses on my way to a third, or risk being seen by a pack of strange boys I didn’t know anyway. I chose the lesser of two evils, and "Sumimasen"-ed my way around. I targeted the guy on Guy 1’s left, still keeping my head down. The train car was still full, I told myself, so if worst came to worst, I could always chicken out and make it look like an accident. I looked around Guy 2’s shoulder to see if the Mai, Sukiko, and Nana were still watching. They were; Nana had even moved over a bit so she could get a better view.
Okay.
Here goes.
I turned to the side, and slowly reached my hand out towards Guy 2’s right ass cheek, with NO IDEA about what I’m supposed to be doing. Do I give it a hearty squeeze? Pet it like a kitty? Kancho him?! I shifted more to the side, hiding behind the shoulder of the salary man to block my face while turning towards Guy 2 so that I didn’t have to reach out my arm so far. I inched closer, just about to brush the back pocket of his jeans.
Suddenly, a large hand clamped around my wrist and jerked me forward, bashing the side of my face into the salaryman’s shoulder while a loud voice said, "Oy! What the hell do you think you’re doing?!"
I look up- and my first glance isn’t Guy 1, who grabbed my wrist, nor was it to Guy 2, who turned around to see what was going on behind him. I looked at the guy right in front of me- Fujiomi.
"Oh, shit." I remember saying in English right at that moment, when my eyes met his. I don’t know who was more shocked, me or him. But it quickly went downhill from there.
Guy 1: Hey, thief! Answer me!
Me: OW! *in English* Let go of my wrist, dammit!
Guy 2: Thief?
Fujiomi: Thief?!
Me: What? Theif?! I’m not a thief!! LET GO!
Guy 1: *looks at my hand, then back at Guy 2* Hey, [Guy 2], pull out your wallet.
Guy 2: *pulls out his wallet with out of his left back pocket* Why?
Guy 1: *looks at my hand again and smiles, letting me go* You’re no thief. You’re just a chijyo. Hey- [Guy 2] you were about to be chijyo material
Guy 2: *looks at me and smiles* Awww, man! Why’d you have to go and save me like that, then?
Me: I am NOT a chijyo!
Guy 1: Ohhh? Then what were you doing reaching out for my friend’s butt, huh?
Me: I was….uhh…Um…
At that point, I made the fatal mistake of glancing over at Fujiomi. He was BEYOND pissed. I’m suprised his retinas didn’t burn from the heat of the glare he was giving me.
Then, Sukiko came over, with Mai and Nana not too far behind, and said hello to the boys like nothing was wrong. She took my elbow, and said that she was glad they found me for her- she was worried she had lost me in the crowded train car. Then she turned to me and said, "It was smart of you to try to get Fujiomi’s attention, Pandora-san. You were lucky he was nearby when you were lost."
Guy 1 (who I later found out is on the Student council with Fujiomi, though Guy 2 goes to a different school) looked at Sukiko and gave me a weird grin and said something like, "She was lucky, though she almost got the wrong guy’s ‘attention’"
The next stop was ours, and we all got off. Only one other boy got off with Fujiomi, and it was someone other than Guys 1&2. It was totally silent as we walked out the train station, and Fujiomi turned to right when we exited, while the four of us girls turned to the left. Mai, Sukiko, and Nana all laughed about what happened, and asked me to tell them in detail about it. I did, with a lot of translation help from Sukiko, and they laughed harder. They said it would have been funnier if I had grabbed Fujiomi’s butt, then I would be the envy of the whole third year class. I thought it was much more likely that Fujiomi would instantly rip my head off and spit down my throat, but didn’t say so.
All of that was on Sunday. Fujiomi didn’t come back in time for dinner that night, and he’s been avoiding me for the past few days. I don’t know whick is worse- being snapped at every few feet, or being shunned entirely. I don’t think anyone in the house feels it, but I feel a really uneasy atmosphere whenever I’m around him, like a war is brewing or something.
*SIGH*
In other news, I’m going to be updating on a more semi-regular schedule, probably on Tuesdays and Fridays (American time. It would be Wednesdays and Saturdays over here) so please look forward to it. Any kind of questions about my experiences here in Japan or about the culture are always welcomed, and thanks again for the regular comments!
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Looking forward to the regular updates. I for one can’t wait to find out what exactly Fujiomi’s problem is.
Could Fujiomi be jealous his twin found an American friend? You’re probably all he’s heard about since you & Sukiko started to communicate & he may feel left out- so he’s retaliating & waiting for sis to make things the way they were before the big change. Just a hunch. Maybe hook him up with a friend of yours back home via e-mail? Might take the edge off a bit.
Keep up the good work with your stories & good luck!
Neither can I, John. Neither can I.
Huh- I never thought about it that way, Helen. You might have a point there. I mean, I think Fujiomi may have always had a serious demeanor, but Sukiko talks about him like they’re really close. Though, I think by now if I saw a sweet, caring side of him like she describes him to be, I’d die of shock. Your view is definately something to think about, though.
Any more ideas?
Anything I could give you right now would be speculation unless I met him. I will say I think whatever annoyance he had with you is quickly turning into hatred.
How in the world did you let them talk you into turning chijyo? Still, I give Fujiomi’s unexpected presence the best example of irony in the history of the world… and the worst case of bad timing.
Now if I start living in Tokyo or Osaka, I’m going to have to watch myself; who knows what you girls are plotting. Craziness…
Looking forward to the updates.
Nothing compares to the pressure one can receive from a group of teenage girls.
It’s very interesting to hear this conversation - you can get a real insight into the culture and values. Especially Ms Goth Loli!
Man girls conversations are totally crazy. Boys have NOTHING on the peer pressure and craziness of a regular group of girls - and that goes for any country.
Terribly bad luck with Fujiomi - it’s nuts he was right there. This is almost turning into a Shoujo Manga storyline. And you know what that means Pandora. Pucker up.