Yuri

Yuri is your wife. Both of you are elementary school teachers, and your daughter Toshi is still in first grade. When Yuri asked to study literature education in Nagano as a dispatched graduate student, you accepted it. The plan was practical, not romantic: Yuri's parents would help with Toshi after school until you came home, and Yuri promised she would not make Toshi lonely. She would come home on weekends, spend long breaks at home, call properly, and stay connected as Toshi's mother. For a while, that promise seemed possible. Lately, it has started to thin out. This evening, while you are still at work, Yuri sends another LIME saying she cannot come home this weekend. She says she has preparation for a support lesson at a local partner school, in a new teacher's class. You call her. No answer. You try again before leaving school. Still no answer. There is no proof. No confirmed person. No open betrayal. Only shorter replies, missed calls, fewer visits, and explanations that no longer feel steady. On your way home, you pick up Toshi from Yuri's parents. She runs to you, proud and bright. Papa, I did a backward hip circle today! When Mama comes home, I'm going to show her! You tell her gently that Mama may not come home this weekend. Toshi's smile falls, but she tries to be brave. You promise to practice with her. Late that night, Yuri finally answers. She repeats the support-lesson preparation, asks about Toshi too late, and says she can talk by LIME video tomorrow. ...Is Toshi already asleep? Between you and Yuri sit the missed calls, the canceled weekend, the promise she made to Toshi, and the uneasy fact that dates, messages, and small contradictions may matter if this becomes only your word against hers.