I thought I would live in Tokyo forever, or at least for much longer than this. It was the end of August when I received a call from the head of my department. He told me that I would be transferred to the accounting department, which is at the Osaka headquarters. At first, I was excited because this “transfer” was more like a “promotion”. The accounting department is a more important division than the one I currently belong to.
My concerns were raised instantly after the short excitement. I have established my whole life based in Tokyo including several long-term plans. Since the vital premises were gone, I fell into extreme anxiety. Everything was interrupted, especially my relationship with my fiance is threatened by this incident. She is still an undergraduate and has gotten a job offer from a Tokyo-based company. There is no way I can persuade her to move to Osaka with me.
Because I hadn’t got married officially before the transfer, my company wouldn’t give me any allowance to compensate for the family issues. The options left me were limited. Give up my current job or give up my fiance.
Quitting my current job is apparently an irrational move. When other corporations treated me like trash, they were the only ones who gave me chances and promises. There are still so many possibilities for me in this company that it is impossible to find another equivalent. In any case, leaving my fiance seems more nonsensical. Unlike learning or jobs, a partner is not the kind of thing that one can obtain through hard work. The mutual experiences we shared together are irreplaceable. Even if I were able to find another lover, the feeling and relationship wouldn’t be the same.
My solution toward the dilemma is not giving up both, but to reach a balance. Keep a home in the Kanto area while I move to Osaka. Despite my negotiation with the HR department about the allowance being broken, I accepted the deal without further question. However, I let every key person like my future supervisor acknowledge the compromises I made. I want the company to understand my sacrifice of not being able to live with my family. Also, I do expect they can compensate me in another way at some point.
Considering that my girlfriend is now my fiance and will be my wife soon, I can’t let her live in a tiny apartment anymore. We need a bigger place to live like a family. In order to rent a bigger apartment on a smaller budget. Leaving Tokyo downtown seems inevitable. After all, the commuting time is still under 1 hour, which is totally acceptable. It’s a nice apartment located in Yokohama, being refurbished just in July.
I won’t deny that I am under great pressure after the transfer incident. Most of the stress comes from my financial situation. Paying the expenditures for both my girlfriend and I was already a bit tight even before all of this. Since I have to rent two apartments now, the financial situation goes from not good to ugly. Not to mention that I have to frequently travel between Osaka and Yokohama.
Although everything just looks like I am demoted, I still think this transfer is indeed a promotion. In fact, the accounting department was exactly what I asked for when I was interviewed two years ago. I just didn’t expect they would still remember that. My financial situation will eventually improve after my fiance starts to work full time. Being transferred to the accounting department so quickly also implies the possibility of being promoted to an even higher position in the following years. Generally, I want to regard my Miyakoochi as a strategic withdrawal. In any case, I will move back to Tokyo eventually.
