Resolve (by Sakai Ryuuji)

He took the Tokyo U. entrance exams again this year. This was his third time in all; in other words, he was a second-year ronin(*), and would soon be at the limits of his physical and emotional strength. He decided to entrust his final hopes to this shot. If he passed, then he would officially become a student at Tokyo U. But if he didn’t pass, he resolved, he would man up and die.

So it was rather cruel that his number was left out when they announced the passing applicants.

He staggered through the town like a shell whose soul had already gone. No, to be precise, he was looking for a place to commit suicide. Eventually he came across an office building just right for dying. Adequate height, and it didn’t stand out much. Thinking that he would be able to die without being seen by anyone, he climbed the building’s stairs, one flight after another.

The rooftop was surprisingly windless, and sounds from the ground below could be heard only faintly. There was a stillness that strengthened his resolve to die even further. He approached the iron railing.

He thought to himself, “No memories, and no regrets. Dying should be easy, right?” and climbed over the railing. But only a moment later he climbed back. Something had caught his eye.

He picked it up. There was a man’s shoe and a letter with “Will and Testament” written on it. He opened the letter. From its contents, he identified it as belonging to a Tokyo U. student. It had been good to be accepted into the prestigious university, but after spending a year without any goals, the student had apparently become disappointed with life and committed suicide.

When he looked down, there was indeed a person’s lifeless body on the ground below. They were clearly dead. He looked at the pitiful figure for a while. “I want to live,” he murmured absently. It seemed to him that death was an incredibly foolish, rather boring thing.

First he made a report to the police. Naturally he didn’t give his name. Then he went home and told his family about the test results. “No dice.” Everyone was disappointed, but seeing that he was being cheerful about it they all encouraged him, and that night they held a modest consolation party.

He felt thankful to the dead Tokyo U. student. He had been gifted with the most precious part of human life. He resolved that next year, he would try again, and that night for the first time in a long time, he slept soundly.

And then up the stairs, slowly and soundlessly, came his mother. In her hand was the rope she had bought the day before.

His mother’s resolve was firm. Firm enough that it wouldn’t be changed by the actions of others.

<+ + +>

決心　－　坂井竜二

　彼は今年も東大を受験した。通算三回目、つまり二浪であり、そろそろ体力も精神力も限界であった。彼は今回に最後の望みを託し、合格なら晴れて東大生だが、もし不合格ならその時は潔く死のう、とまで決心していた。

　そして合格発表の日、彼の番号は無情にも抜けていた。

　彼は魂の抜け殻のような足どりで、ふらふらと街を歩いていた。いや、正確には自殺場所を探していたのだ。

　そのうち、死ぬにはうってつけのビルがあった。高さも適当で、さほど目立つビルでもない。これなら人に見られる事なく死ねるなと思い、彼はそのビルの階段を一段ずつ登った。

　屋上は、意外と風もなく、地上の音も微かにしか聞こえない。死の決心をますます固める静けさだった。彼は鉄柵に近づいた。

　「思い出す事も思い残す事も無いし、簡単に死ぬか」

　彼はそう思い、鉄柵をまたぎかけた。しかしすぐに引き返した。何かが目に止まったのだ。

　彼はそれを拾い上げてみた。男物の靴と、「遺書」と書いてある手紙。彼は中身を開いた。その内容から、この遺書が東大生の物と判明した。東大に受かったは良いが一年を何の目的もなく過ごしてみて人生に悲観して自殺したらしい。

　彼が下をのぞくと、地上には一体の潰れた人間の体があった。明らかに死んでいる。彼はしばらくその哀れな姿を見つめていた。

　「生きよう」彼は気づかぬ間にそう呟いていた。死がいかに馬鹿らしく、つまらぬ事か気づいたのだ。

　彼は一応、警察に通報しておいた。もちろん名前を名乗らずに、だ。そして家に帰り、家族に試験の結果を話した。「駄目だったよ」皆はがっかりしたが、彼の明るさを見て口々に励ましってくれ、その夜はささやかな残念会が開かれた。

　彼は感謝していた。死んだ東大生にだ。人生で最も大切な物を与えてくれたからだ。彼は来年、もう一度東大を受ける決心をし、その日は久しぶりにぐっすり眠った。

　そして階段を、ゆっくり足音を立てずに母親が登ってきた。手には昨日買った縄を持っている。

　母親の決心は固い。それは、他人によって変えられる事などない位であった。

Jung by Moonlight (by Ishikawa Hironobu)

“Hey, want to try a psychological test?”

Without waiting for any response, she bounced up from the bed. Really cute dimples on her butt.

She came back with a sheet of lined paper and a pen, and leaned on a pillow against the bed’s headrest. “This is a kind of test we learned about in Psychology last week. It takes a little while to set up, so wait a bit, okay?”

“So you do go to class after all.”

“Somebody might be cutting work right now when they said they’d be out visiting customers, but it’s not me,” she said, writing on the paper. “Alright, ready. So you answer whatever comes into your head by association with the words I say. Don’t think too much; just say what comes to you.”

“Oh, that one psych game that’s been going around. In other words, I’m going to end up as a dirty-minded dork with an Oedipus complex.”

“Don’t make it sound like what they do on TV. This is a serious psychological test. Here we go, okay? Airplane.”

“Falling.”

“Whale.”

“School lunch.”

“Baby.”

There it was! The first two had probably been dummy questions. No way, was she pregnant? In any case, I’d better give a neutral answer.

“ObGyn.”

Sneaky answer, right? Whether you have a kid or abort it, it’s a matter for Obstetrics and Gynecology.

The association game went on like that. After two or three nothing-much words, there’d be one that made you think of us as a couple and made your heart skip a beat. But in the game of love, you lose if you show your hand first, so I avoided the issues with answers that could be taken either way.

“Okay! So, what did you get out of my associations? Let’s hear the break-down and results.”

“Sorry to tell you this, but I wasn’t actually testing your associations. You fell for it perfectly.” Her chest quivered with excitement.

“See, anybody would be on their guard if you tell them they’re getting a psych test. Nobody wants people nosing around in their minds. So when you hear a word associated with the things you don’t want people to know your thoughts on, you take time to keep from giving it away. What I was checking was just the time you took to answer.”

“Hey, that’s playing dirty.”

“The five words you didn’t respond to right away were ‘baby,’ ‘bouquet,’ ‘household,’ ‘meal,’ and ‘marriage.’”

“Hang – hang on a minute.”

“Well, it’s easier to say now, isn’t it? Come on now, spit it out.”

“…Let’s get married.”

<+ + +>

月下のユング　－　石川浩延

　「ねえ，心理テストやってみない」

　こちらの返事もきかずに彼女はベッドからとびおりていった。おしりのえくぼがかわいい。

　レポート用紙とボールペンを持ってもどって来た彼女は，ベッドの背もたれに枕を立ててよりかかり，

　「先週，心理学の時間に習ったやり方よ。ちょっと準備があるから待ってて」

　「授業なんかに出ることもあるんだ」

　「お得意さん回りとか言って，こうやってサボってる誰れかさんとは違いますからね」

　と言いながら，彼女はレポート用紙に何か書き込んでいる。

　「さあ，できた。これから私の言う言葉を聞いて連想するものを言って。深く考えなくていいから，思いつくままを言って」

　「最近はやりの心理ゲームか。どうせ，俺がスケベでマザコンでオタッキーだって結果になるんだろ」

　「テレビなんかでやってるやつといっしょにしないで。これは真面目な心理テストなんだから。いいい，始めるわよ。飛行機」

　「墜落」

　「くじら」

　「給食」

　「赤ちゃん」

　きたな。最初の二つはダミーだろう。まさか，彼女，子供ができたんじゃないだろうな。ともかく，ここは当り障りのない答えをしなくちゃならない。

　「産婦人科」

　うまい答えだろう。産むにしろ堕すにしろ産婦人科にはお世話になる。

　連想ゲームはこんな調子で続いた。なんでもない言葉が二つ三つあって，そのあと，今の二人の関係を考えるとドキッとするような言葉がくる。だけど，手の内を読まれたら恋のゲームは負けだから，どうとでもとれる答えではぐらかした。

　「さあ，俺の連想から何が判ったんだ。分析結果をきかせてくれよ」

　「残念でした。あなたの連想なんか調べるテストじゃないの。みごとにひっかかったわね」

　彼女のバストがゆれている。

　「心理テストをやるって言えば誰れだって身がまえるでしょ。心の中をのぞかれるのはいやだもん。だから，心の中の人に知られたくない部分に関連のある言葉を聞くと，それをさとられまいとして，答に手間どるのよ。私がチェックしてたのはあなたが答える時間だけ」

　「おい，きたないぞ」

　「あなたがすぐに答えられなかったのは，赤ちゃん，花束，家庭，ごはん，結婚の五つね」


　「ちょ，ちょっと待ってくれよ」

　「さあ，言いやすくなったでしょ。言っちゃったら」

　「……結婚しよう」

Family Time (by Inoue Takashi)

A special polarizing glass had been developed to replace raster graphics for showing stereoscopic movies, and successfully put to use in TV screens. Thus, 3D images that previously could only be seen in theaters could now be enjoyed in one’s own home.


“I’m home!”

“Welcome home.”

As if she had been standing and waiting for Masahiko’s return, housewife Yuuko cheerfully came out to greet him, smiling broadly. “You must be tired, dear; I’ve run a bath for you in case you worked up a sweat today.”

The tub was filled to the brim with water at just the right temperature. Soaking comfortably, Masahiko stretched his arms and legs, and thought, It sure cost a lot, but I’m glad I sprang for that 3D TV. Yuuko’s in a really good mood, and my boy Hiroshi’s been delighted. His heart filled with familial love, and a satisfied sense of well-being enveloped his whole body along with the steam from the bath.


When Masahiko finished his bath and strolled into the kitchen, still toweling his hair, there was another magnificent dinner waiting on the table. Yuuko was an excellent cook. What’s more, she could make almost anything – French, Italian, Chinese, or Japanese cuisine. And all at a level of ability that would put a professional to shame. Today’s dinner was a full-course Japanese-style meal. The dishes and the beautiful arrangement of food in them wouldn’t have been out of place at a five-star restaurant – no, more than that, it was a wonder to behold. Taking the beer poured for him, Masahiko asked Yuuko, “How is Hiroshi?”

As if he’d been waiting to hear the words, Hiroshi opened the door and came in.

“Welcome back, papa. Today, I was so busy!” he said, and pouted cutely.

“Oho, why were you so busy?”

“Yeah, they gave me loads of homework, but see, I’ve got it all done.”

“You finished it already? Good job, Hiroshi!”

“That’s right, dear. Today, Hiroshi’s teacher said that he was the only one to get a perfect score on the math test…” said Yuuko, taking over the story and gazing at Hiroshi fondly. Then, “Oh! I’m sorry.” Noticing that Masahiko’s glass was empty, Yuuko poured him some more beer.

The cold beer went down very nicely after the warm bath. Masahiko found himself deeply happy. A beautiful and gentle wife, a cute and obedient son who moreover had grades to boast about – now, surrounded by this happy family, he unthinkingly gave a sigh of satisfaction.


Yuuko was talking cheerfully. “So anyway, honey, today….” Glancing at him and away again, with a trace of flirtatiousness in her movements, she told him about all the things that had happened that day while Masahiko was away. The events of the PTA board meeting, the competition to be fashionable, critiques of people’s jewelry and accessories. How the Suzukis next door had also bought a 3D TV, and neighborhood gossip brought by Saburou, the liquor-shop’s delivery man, and so on almost without limit.

And Hiroshi, as if doing his best not to lose, worked his young wit to the fullest to bring Masahiko’s attention to his own stories. “So, papa, hey papa….” Things that had happened at school, next week’s field trip, little stories about friends whose names Masahiko had come to remember himself, a little pestering thrown in to be rewarded for his accomplishments, about entering a childrens' art show as a representative of his school. Masahiko’s heart filled all the more with contentment, and the day’s weariness faded away without a trace.

“Alright, next summer vacation, let’s take a trip to Europe,” he said, as if with that the matter were decided. Yuuko, cheeks a little flushed from sharing his beer, practically sparkled as she turned to Masahiko.

“Really? Oh, that’s lovely, dear.”

“Yey, papa’s the best!” said Hiroshi, celebrating. And with that the happiness of the family circle was increased again, and so the matter was settled.


That night, Masahiko was relaxing on the sofa with the newspaper spread in front of him. Then Yuuko came down from the second floor where she had put Hiroshi to bed, stopped by the potted Benjamin Fig in the doorway, and called out to him. “Oh honey, how does this look; does it suit me?”

She had changed in to a translucent, pale blue negligee. Now she struck an affected pose, swaying her body and smiling mischievously. She had a wonderful figure.

“It’s good… looks great on you.” Masahiko swallowed as he watched her, enchanted. “More than that, it’s incredibly sexy, Yuuko.”

“Oh! Why, thank you. Hey, dear, if you don’t wrap things up and come to bed soon….” She smiled invitingly.

“Yeah, I guess so.”

After stretching out his whole body and heaving a yawn, Masahiko reached out unwillingly for the remote. Crossing his legs and falling into a yearning posture, he glanced across at Yuuko sitting on the other sofa. A flicker of regret passed over his face. Then he looked down at the remote in his hand to make sure of the buttons.

Next to the button labeled [Life Size] there was another labeled [Original Size]. He pushed it.

The spacious living room, the other rooms with their Scandinavian furniture, and Yuuko all vibrated for a moment, and in the next instant their outlines blurred, and everything was sucked into the screen of the 32x18 HDTV in one corner of the room.

On the screen, Yuuko was now walking with a provocative swing up the stair to the bedrooms. Partway up she stopped at looked back with a bewitching wink. Then, across her backside, a white caption scrolled twice. [In accordance with ethics regulations, the scene ends here. Farewell, and good night. Please be sure to check out H Graphics products in the future—]

I’m a little tired of this video, let’s borrow a different one tomorrow.

He pushed the remote’s OFF button. The image vanished, and only the TV was left, palely exposed under the fluorescent light in a terribly large one-room apartment devoid of any other furniture.


With the recent spread of 3D TVs and this kind of ‘Happy Family’ video, the number of young people without any desire to get married was on the rise. This was causing a serious drop in the birth rate, much to the government’s concern.

<+ + +>

団欒　－　井上たかし

　ステレオキノ方式の立体映画で，ラストルに代わる特殊偏光ガラスが開発され，それをテレビのブラウン管に応用することに成功し，今迄映画館でしかみることの出来なかった映像，家庭でも楽しめるようになった。


「只今」

　「お帰りなさい」

　昌彦の帰りを待ち構えていた様に，妻の裕子が満面に笑みを浮かべ，いそいそと出迎える。

　「お疲れになったでしょ，あなた，先にひと汗流されたら，お風呂の支度出来ておりますの」


　丁度いい加減のお湯がたっぷり，溢れる湯舟にゆったりと浸り，手足を伸ばしながら昌彦は思う—ずい分と高い買い物だったが，立体テレビを買ってよかった。裕子もすっかりご機嫌だし，息子の浩も喜んでいる—。家族に対する愛しさが甘く心を満たし，満ち足りた幸福感が，立ちこめる湯気と共に全身をすっぽりと包みこむ。

　風呂から出た昌彦が，頭を拭きながらダイニングキッチンに這込ると，食卓の上には今日も豪華な夕食の用意が待っていた。裕子はとても料理が上手である。それに，フランス，イタリー，中華，和食とどんなものでも作れる。それも玄人裸足の腕前なのだ。今日の夕食は日本料理のフルコース，盛り付けの美しさも器も，一流料亭にひけをとらない，いやそれ以上に見事なものであった。

　注がれたビールのグラスを手にして，昌彦は裕子に尋ねた。

　「浩はどうしたの—」

　その声を待ってたように，扉が開けられ浩がはいって来た。

　「パパ，お帰りなさい。僕ね，とっても忙しかったんだ」

　小さな口を可愛く尖らせて浩は言った。

　「ほうー，忙しいってどうしてなんだ」

　「うん，宿題がね，どっさりあったの，でもね，もう全部済んじゃったよ」

　「そう，もう済ませたの，浩は偉いな」

　「そうですのよ，あなた。算数のテストも浩だけが満点だったって，今日，先生が—」

　裕子が話しを引きとり優しく浩を見つめる。

　「あらっ，ごめんなさい」

　昌彦のグラスが空いたのに気付き，裕子がビールの酌をする。湯上りの喉に冷えたビールが心地よく通り抜ける。

　昌彦はつくづく幸せだと思った。美しくて優しい妻，可愛くて素直でその上成績のいい自慢の息子，そんな家族に囲まれてのこの団欒のひと時，思わず満足の吐息をもらした。


　裕子が明るく陽気に喋る。

　「あのねえ—，あなた，今日ね……」

　昌彦の居ない昼間の出来事，それこそ今日一日に起こった全てを，くるくるとよく動く目と，一寸コケットリーな身振りも交えて話すのだった。PTAの役員会でのこと，競い合ってたファッション，飾りたてていたアクセサリーの批評。お隣の鈴木さんも買った立体テレビの話し，酒屋の御用聞きの三郎さんから仕入れた御近所の噂話し等々限りなく。浩も負けず一生懸命，幼い知恵を働かせ，昌彦の気を引こうと話しかけるのだった。

　「パパあのね，ねえっパパったら……」

　学校での出来事，来週の遠足の話し，昌彦ももうすっかり，名前を覚えてしまった浩の友達の誰彼のエピソード，ご褒美のおねだりも交え，学校代表で出品する児童画展のこと。充足感がよりいっ層心を満たし，一日の疲れが跡かたもなく消えてしまう。

　「—ようし，それじゃあ，今度の夏休みにはヨーロッパ旅行をしよう」

　締め括るように昌彦が言う。お相伴のビールでほんのりと頬を染めた裕子の顔が，明るく輝き昌彦に向けられる。

　「あらっ，本当に，うれしいわあなた」

　「わーい，やった，パパきっとだよ」

　はしゃぐ浩，団欒の幸せがよりいっそう増幅され，確かなものになって行く。


　その夜，昌彦がリビングのソファーでくつろぎ，新聞を広げていると，浩を寝かせつけ，二階のベッドルームから降りて来た裕子が，入口の所に置いてある植木，ベンジャミンのそばに立って，昌彦を呼んだ。

　「あなた，これどう，似合うかしら—」

　淡いブルーの、透き通るような薄いネグリジェに着替えた裕子が、気取ったポーズをつけ身をくねらせ、悪戯っぽく笑いかける。すばらしいプロポーションだ。

　「いいよ、すごくよく似合うよ—」

　ごくりと唾を呑みこみ、昌彦はうっとりとしてそんな姿の裕子を眺める。

　「それに、すごくセクシーだよ裕子」

　「あらっ、ありがとう。ねえあなた、もうお休みにならないと—」

　誘いこむような微笑で裕子が言う。

　「ああ、そうしよう」

　大きく伸びをして欠伸をひとつもらし、昌彦はもの憂そうにテーブルの上のリモコンに手を伸ばした。脚を高々と組んで悩まし気なポーズで、向かいのソファーに目をやり、ボタンを確かめる。

　〈等身大〉と記された横の、〈原画〉のボタンを押した。

　ゆったりとしたリビング、北欧調の家具で飾りたてられた部屋も、裕子も一瞬ぐらっと揺れ、次の瞬間輪郭がぼやけ、部屋の隅に置いてある、３２ｘ１８ハイビジョンタイプのテレビの画面に、すーっと吸いこまれていった。

　画面では裕子がすごく挑発的な歩きぶりで、寝室への階段を上がって行く所だ。途中で立ち止りふり返り、嫣然とウインクを送ってくる。その後ろ姿にダブらせて、画面にはテロップの白い文字が流れた。

　〈画像倫理規定に依り、この先のシーンはカットされております。ではご機嫌よう、お休みなさい。次回もぜひＨ映像の作品を—〉

　—このビデオも少し飽きたなあ、明日、違ったのを借りて来よう—。

　リモコンのＯＦＦボタンを押す。映像が消えテレビだけがやけに大きな、一ＤＫの家具らしいものが何一つない部屋が、蛍光灯の下に白々とさらけ出される。


　立体テレビと、この種の家庭団欒ビデオの普及で、近頃、結婚する気を無くした若者が増加し、それが出生率の低下という深刻な事態を招き、政府は憂慮していると言う。