Page 137 of Caper Crush
“I wanted to explain it to you in your language.” I walk over to a nearby bench. He follows.
I pull it out of my bag. I read my annual report out loud, not daring to look at him:
The relationship of William Haruki Matsumura and Miranda Langbroek was a venture that operated successfully in the private investigation, music, art, and accounting fields. It was supported successfully in its private investigation endeavors by Officer Johnson, Tony Langbroek, and Takashi Matsumura. But most importantly, this relationship between William and Miranda brought out the best of both. It encapsulates the accounting principles of:
Consistency—you should keep the same girlfriend;
Business Entity—I don’t want to date Peter. For many reasons. And he is not the better choice for me. Like the business entity concept, I want to keep my love life separate from my business life.
That’s not to say there aren’t Risk Factors—I am emotional, hot-tempered, easily jealous. You can be reserved, which makes me wonder what you are feeling. You don’t like to be controlled. But known risks are always easier to manage.
When I finish, he stares at me, his eyes soft and glistening.
“That’s brilliant,” he says.
Then I show him the chart illustrating dual-aspect accounting. “There are so many things you’ve done for me. You defended my painting when Edmund and Annabelle came over. You told me I would succeed as an artist, and you hugged me and calmed me down when I was about to explode about the forgery. I think you’ve given me far more than I’ve given you, but I will make that up.”
“No, you’ve given more to me. I feel like you let me be myself. I’d really lost confidence after my breakup with Juri.” He smooths my hair down. “You showed Kiyoko I’m not some boring accountant when you made me sing ‘Barbie Girl.’”
“She was already interested in you before that,” I say.
“My singing ‘Barbie Girl’ didn’t do it?” He grins at me knowingly and hands me the bento box. “I made this for you. I love you.”
“I love you,” I say.
I open it up. There are four compartments. A picture of my painting from the Tribeca gallery, cut out from the catalog, sits in the first one. I pick it up, and anIcut out from a newspaper is taped to the bottom. A tiny photo ofPlaying Around 1:30is in the largest compartment. Underneath it,LOVEis taped to the bottom. Next to it is a photo of the Kimimoto, and beneath it,YOU. The final compartment has a miniature spray of cherry blossoms made by Penelope.
“I asked Penelope to make those,” he says.
“This is amazing.”
“I love your annual report.” He holds my stapled papers to his chest.
“Do you?” I remember my collage. “I made one other thing for you.” I unwrap the piece and hand it to him, watching for his reaction.
He traces the details of our relationship. He pulls the handkerchief out of the sweatshirt pocket. “Why is this all balled up? And damp?”
“I was angry at you for not fighting for our relationship.”
“I’m sorry. I won’t make that mistake again.” He looks deep into my eyes. “Is this collage for me to keep?”
“Yes.”
He leans over the collage and kisses me. I thread my hand through his hair as I lose myself in his kiss.
He puts the painting down on the bench next to him and pulls out a piece of paper from his pocket.
“I can’t paint, and I’m not familiar with the art world. But I thought I should tell you what I felt and saw when I looked at your paintings yesterday. They’re like a diary of your life, and I teared up just looking atTears 4:40. I’m so sorry I put you through that.” His hands cradle my face, and our glances hold. His eyes are watery, and my eyes tear.
“It’s okay.”
“AndOff-Limitshad struck me before—before I knew it was calledOff-Limits. I’m presuming that refers to us?”
I nod, too choked up to speak.
“And there was so much electricity and buoyancy and joy, and yet also uncertainty. I think it’s super powerful what you can evoke with colors and brushstrokes. Your talent takes my breath away. And I could see how much you feel for me. You didn’t need to do an accounting presentation. I could see it in your artwork, especially inW 2:30. AndW 12:30.”
“AndW with SP 8. Was it obvious when there were so many W paintings?”
