Tales From the Cafe

Although most people don’t travel to the future because it is extremely unlikely to meet the person they are looking for, Katsuki Kurata has traveled to the present-day café from the past on Christmas Day. Miki decorates the Christmas tree with tanzaku, folded paper on which wishes are written, while conversing with Kyoko, Nagare, and Kazu. Miki asks Kurata if he is waiting for his friend Fumiko, whom Nagare has just tried to call and who promised to be here. He says no. Miki tells Kurata that Fumiko finally got married to her boyfriend, Goro (whom she visits in the past in Before the Coffee Gets Cold). Kurata is delighted to learn about Fumiko’s marriage.

Kurata says that he is waiting for a colleague, Asami Mori, whom Fumiko promised to bring to the café. He says that they were engaged, but he didn’t think they would get married now. He recalls getting to know Asami. She confided in him about a pregnancy loss, and he told her that she could give the lost child meaning if she tried to be happy. Fumiko calls, and based on Kurata’s side of the conversation, it appears that he won’t be able to meet Asami.