Staring Match

Honestly, when will these Japanese ever learn that staring at a foreigner, especially this one, will earn them a stare right back?

So I've dealt with this for quite a while, and it's one of my little pet peeves about living in Japan because I'm paranoid by nature. ANYWAY. So I had to go to the bank today, which meant walking to someplace other than my apartment right after getting off the train. I'm relatively used to this, but I think the people along that road aren't used to seeing foreigners. Well, all of them except the meat vendors who remember me because how many foreigners move to Seya anyway? I bought karaage from them my first day staying in my apartment. Really nice folk. I really should go back there.

I'm walking and getting stared at and trying my darnedest to just listen to my music and ignore it, but at some point this attractive guy smoking a cigarette and wearing a fedora (I've come to realize I have a soft spot for fedoras) eyeballs me as we pass each other on opposite sides of the street. Now, I don't know about you, but I don't get eyeballed much. So here I am, grinning like I'm mad, and walking to the bank.

Fastforward to after I've picked up some sushi for dinner from the local sushi place as well as some toilet paper from my favorite little drug store. I turn the corner to my street and lo and behold, there's this really attractive (stress on the really!) crouching outside the building next to mine smoking a cigarette. What is with the attractive Japanese guys smoking cigarettes?! I HATE cigarettes!

ANYWAY. So this guy turns his head, sees me coming, and STARES. Now, I've actually got my glasses on so I can SEE that he's looking at me. Of course, having lived in Japan for half a year now I've learned to just put my head down and act like I didn't see him. The road is SO interesting, don't you think? Well, temptation is really hard to fight and within a second or two I'm looking up at him again and GEEZ. He's STILL staring at me.

I looked away as I went up the stairs, but between the stairs there's open air and he was still watching me. At the top of the stairs? STILL WATCHING. Now, all these thoughts tear through my head like a tornado, but I somehow managed to keep my face straight and simply stare back. After awkwardly pulling out my keys and nervously glancing back to see if he was still staring (thankfully, he'd stopped), I got inside. I made SUPER sure to say "Tadaima", which essentially means "I'm home!", when I entered the house. To any observant Japanese person, this would show that although I'm a foreigner, I speak Japanese. BWUAHAHAHA.

Sadly, once I closed my door I freaked out thinking "Well, why did he stare at me the whole way up?!" My friend summed it up for me nicely. It's one of three things. He either 1) doesn't like foreigners, 2) found me attractive, or 3) is very curious about foreigners. Now I know what you're all thinking: It could totally be MORE than just one of those three!

Sorry to break it to all you who root for me getting a boyfriend, but I'm pretty sure this is the same hot guy I had a staring match with shortly after I moved into my apartment. If it's the same guy, then he has a wife and a three or four year old daughter. He looks WAAAYYYYYY too young. I'd say he's only in his early twenties. Like, only around my age! GEEZ.

Oh, and not to mention I saw a mother who had three young boys following her (all obviously brothers) and had another one on the way. She looked like it might be twins. Well, that or one of those watermelons we get in America. Not those small Japanese ones here. lol. Oh, and the mother? She looked only to be in her later twenties. I don't think she was in her thirties. O_o